Genealogical Glossary
Language is constantly changing, and many words used in old records could have a different meaning from the common meaning used today; therefore, dictionaries from earlier years or centuries are an excellent resource for researchers. Below is a list of common words that are found in French records to help understand them.
With every entry, there is the word, its gender, and the translation or definition. If an entry has a part in parenthesis at the end of the word then this shows the feminine form of the word. For example, the entry "Habitant(e)" means that "Habitant" is a male inhabitant while "Habitante" is a female inhabitant.
For access to several historical dictionaries combined and cross-referenced in a single website, see https://www.lexilogos.com/francais_dictionnaire.htm
A
Abbaye: abbey
Abcès: abscess
Abris: protection, shelter; security, voucher; frontier customs guard
Absent: absent; absentee, missing person
Acceptation: acceptance; Approval; approbation
Accord: agreement, covenant, pact
Accorder: to set forth, establish, offer, grant, stipulate or promise something usually used when the notary is preparing the actual document
Accouchement: labor, birth
acre: acre
Acte: act, certificate, document, record, official act
Adjoint(e): assistant, deputy, substitute
Adjoint: adjoining
administration: administration
Adopté: adopted
Adultère: adultery, violation of the marriage vows
Advantage de délibérer: (law) opportunity of deliberation in which the heir can postpone acceptance of inheritance until inventory has been made
Affinité: relation by marriage
Affranchi: freed slave
Âge: age
Agrégation: addition, attachment, appointment, assignment
Agriculteur: farmer
Ainé: firstborn, oldest
Ajournement: extension or postponement for a specified period of time
Allemande(e): German
Altesse: an honorary title given to the kings, princes, and officials of the high court and to some of the royal councils, highness
Altitude: altitude
Âme: soul, spirit
Ami(e): friend
Ancêtre: ancestor
Ancien(ne): elderly
Anglais: English
Aniversaire: anniversary, birthday
Année bissextile: leap year
Année seculaire: the centenary years (1500,1600,1700, etc)
Année: year
Annexe: annex
Annuaire: yearbook
Annuel: annual
Antérieur: former, previous
Antique: old, ancient
Août: August
Apparaître: to appear
Appendice: appendix
Apprenti: apprentice
Approbation: document establishing the proof of certainty of a fact, such as a proof of the nobility of a person's family
Approximatif: approximate
Après: after
Après-midi: afternoon, late
Arbre génalogique: genealogical tree, pedigree chart
Arbre: tree
Archevêché: archbishopric, ecclesiastical territory under the jurisdiction of an archbishop
Archevêque: archbishop, the bishop of a metropolitan church to which other bishops are subordinate
Archipresbytérat: land under jurisdiction of an archpriest composed of several parishes
Archiprêtre: archpriest, a parish priest who also presides over several parish priests
Archive: archives, place where records are kept, (office) files
Argent: silver
Armée: army, military
Arrière: great (used in context family), for example- great grandpa is arrière-grand-père. Use arrière for ever great.
Article: article
Ascendance: ascendency, a series of ancestors
Ascendant: andcestor
Asile: asylum, shelter
Assurance: safety, security, certainty, assurance, surety bond
Asthme: asthma
Auberge: hostel, shelter, inn
Aubergiste: innkeeper
Aucun: none, no one
Aumône: alms
Aumônerie: benefice or foundation subject to certain obligations; lay foundation without ecclesiastical intervention
Aussi: also, too
Automne: autumn
Autre: other, another
Avant tout: above all, first of all
Avant: before
Avantage: beneficence, charity, welfare organization or institution, charity organization
Avec: with
Avent: Advent, the four weeks preceding Christmas
Aveugle: blind
Avocat: lawyer
Avril: April
Awol: military, absent without leave
B
Banque: bank, bench
Baptême: baptism
Baptiser: to baptize, to christian
Bateau: boat, ship
Bébé: baby, child
Bénéfice simple: ecclesiastical sinecure
Beaucoup: many, a lot
Beau-fils: stepson or son-in-law
Beau-frère: step-brother or brother-in-law
Beau-père: step-father or father-in-law
Belle-fille: step-daughter or daughter-in-law
Belle-mère: step-mother or mother-in-law
Belle-sœur: step-sister or sister-in-law
Bénédiction: blessing
Bétail: cattle
Bibliothèque: library
Bien€: well, good
Biens immobilier: real property
Biens: properties, goods, fee
Blanc(he): white
Blé: wheat
Boiteux: crippled, lame
Bouche: mouth
Boucher: butcher
Boulanger: baker
Bras: arm
Brasseur: brewer
C
Capital: assests, principal of a trust fund
Carte: map
Cathédrale: cathedral
Catolique: Catholic
Cavalaire: military cavalry; knightly order, knighthood, rank and privileges of a knight
Cela: that
Célibataire: singel, unmarried, bachelor
Celui-ci: this
Cent: on hundred
Centenaire: centennial
Cérémonie du voile: vigil, watch, veiling ceremony of bride and groom in nuptial mass
Certificate royal: royal decree
Cerificate: certificate
Certification: certification
Chaire: the chair or seat of a bishop in his church
Chambre: room
Changer: to change, alterate
Chapelain: a priest who has a chaplaincy, or says mass in a private chapel and who is paid by a trust fund or private individual to administer the affairs of said fund or individual
Chapelle: chapel
Charpentier: carpenter
Chasseur/chasseuese: hunter
Château: castle
Chemin de fer: railroad
Chevalier: nobleman; knight; member of a military order; gentleman
Chose: thing, something
Chrétien(ne): Christian
Chroniquer: chronicler, historian
Cimitière: cemetary
Citoyen: citizen
Classe: class, type, kind
Clerc: clergyman
Colonel: colonel (military)
Colline: colony; hill
Commerce: business, commerce
Comme: as, how
Commerce/ achat: trade/purchase
Comte: count, ear
Comté: earldom, courtship; county
Comunauté: community
Concernante: concerning
Concièrge: doorman
Confirmation: confirmation, affirmation; the religious sacrament of confirmation administered by the bishop
Congrégation: congregation; assembly
Conjoint (e): spous; partner, associate
Connu: known; acquaintance
Connu comme: known as
Consacrer: dedicate
Consanguinité: consanguinity, kinship, blood relationship
Conseil de Trete: Council of Trent
Conseil: council
Conseiller municipal: councilman
Consentement: consent, compliance, acquiescence
Consignation: consignment
Consommation: consumption
Constipation: constipation
Contenu: contents
Contract de mariage: marriage contract
Contractant: contractin party, such as in a marriage
Contrat d'aprentisage: contract of apprenticeship
Contrat/ accord: agreement, contract, arrangement, settlement; agreement enforceable by law
Contre: against
Contribuable: taxable, tax payer
Contribution: tax
Convertion: conversion
Convocation: designation, appointment, indication
Convulsion: convulsion
Copie litérale: literal or word-for-word copy
Coqueluche: whooping cough
Cordier: rope maker
Cordillère: mountain range
Cordonnier: shoemaker
Corp: body, volume
Corps: corporal (military)
Courant: current, present
Cousin(e): cousin
Couvent: convent
Credit immobilier: mortgage
D
Date: date
De cela: of the same (usually refers to previous wording, such as month and year)
De plus: furthermore, besides, moreover
De: of, from, belonging to
Décedé: deceased
Décembre: December
Décennie: decade
Décès: death
Déclaration: declaration, statement, affidavit
Declaré: declared, stated
Décret: decree
Défenseur: defense, counsel
Degré: degree, grade, rank
Délégation: delegation (of power); group of delegates
Délivrance: deliverance
Demain: tomorrow
Demande: demand, claim, petition, request, summons
Demandeur: claimant, seeker, petitioner
Demeure: dwelling
Demeurer: to live (location)
Dénonciation: accusation, denunciation
Dent: tooth
Dentition: teething
Departament: district, department
Dépeuplé: unpopulated
Dépot: deposit, depository
Depuis: since
Député: deputy
Derinier/ dernière: last
Dernières volontés: last wishes; will that is dictated by a dying person before witnesses and in some cases the notary and is later recorded by the notary in his protocol
Derrière: behind
Désaccord: disagreement
Descendant: descendant
Diarrhée: diarrhea
Dictionaire géogragique: geographical dictionary
Dictionaire: dictionary
Digne: worthy
Dimanche: Sunday
Dîme: tithing
Dirigeant: leader
Discernement: judgement
Dispensation apostolique: apostolic dispensation or grant given by a pope or bishop, depending upon its nature
Dispensation de sa santité: apostolic dispensation or grant given by a pope or bishop
Distance: distance (from)
District: district
Dit: stated, said, the above mentioned
Divorce: divorce
Divorcé: divorced
Doctrine: doctrine, ritual
Document: document
Doigt: finger
Domaine: domain
Domestique: maid/ servant
Domicilé à: residing in
Domicile: dwelling, residence
Don: donation, gift, grant
Dossier/ documentation: written proceedings of a particular action; petition; file
Dot: dowry, that property which a woman takes into marriage
Dotation: endowment, dowry
Droit: law
Droit canonique: canon law
Droit d'ainesse: family estate, entailed on the eldest son; a legal term indicating priority right to authority, inheritance, or succession
Du nord: northern
Duc: duke, title of honor which follows that of prince
Du quel(le): whose
Dysenterie: dysentery
E
Éclésiastique: ecclesiastical
École: school
École notoriale: notarial college
Écriture: writing, handwriting
Égal: equal
Élise: church
Église Catolique: Catholic Church
Elle: she
Emancipation: emancipation, the act of freeing from servitude
Embarquer: to board, to set sail
Embaucher: marking
Émigrant(e): emigrant
Émigration: emigration, population movement, leaving one's native country to go and establish oneself in another country
Empêchement: obstacle, hindrance, obstruction' impediment
Empire: empire
Employé(e): employee
En terre: on land
Enceinte: pregnant
Encore: still
Endroit: place, site
Enfant: infant, child
Enfant trouvé: abandoned, foundling child
Engagement: pledge, commitment, promise, engagement (to be married)
Enqueter: investigating, researching, investigator
Enrhumé: constipated; having a cold
Ensemble: together
Enterrer: buried
Entreprise: business
Environ: around, near, approximate
Épidémie: epidemic
Épilepsie: epilepsy
Épiscopal: of the bishop
Époux/ épouse: husband/ wife, spouse
Esclavage: slavery
Esclave: slave
Espagnol: Spanish
Estomac: stomach
Et: and
Été: summer
Étranger: foreigner, stranger
être: to be
être inscrit: to be written, recorded, or registered
Évangélique: evangelical
Examen: examination
Exécuteur testamentaire: executor, person who oversees distribution of decendent's assets in accordance with last will and testament
Exécuteur: executor
Exemption: redemption, salvation
Exhumation: exhumation, removal of a corpse from its grave
Expert(e): public appraiser
Extérieur: outside the city walls
Extrait: text/ extract
Extrême onction: extreme unction, last rite (fifth of the seven sacraments) administered to a gravely ill person, usually just before death,
F
Fait: completed, done
Familial: pertaining to a family; domestic
Famille: family, all persons of the same blood, such as uncles, cousins, nephews, etc.
Femelle: female, undefined
Feminin: feminine
Femme: woman; wife
Ferme: farm, farmstead, estate, a rural establishment
Feu: fire, hearth
Feuille: leaf, sheet of paper, page of book
Feuille de service: service record, document of an officer containing the personal and professional antecedents of government employees, used extensively in the military
Feuille de famille: family group sheet
Février: February
Fiche: index cards, records
Fiche de mariage: marriage proceeding or application
Fichier: filing cabinet
Fièvre typhoide: typhoid fever
Fois: time, turn, occasion
Fond: funds
Fondation: foundation endowment
Fontaine: fountain
Forêt/ bois: forest, grove
Forge: iron works
Forgeron: blacksmith
Fornication: fornication, sexual union outside of the marriage contract where the persons involved are not married
Forteresse: fortress, strength
Foyer: home
Français: French
Fraternité: fraternity, congregation of brotherhood of religious individuals, guild, trade union
Frère: brother
Front: front, in front of
Frontière: border, frontier
Futur: future
G
Garde: guard, warden, body of soldiers, keeper
Gauche: left
Généalogie: genealogy
Général: (military) major
Gens: people
Gonflement: swelling
Goutte: gout, drop
Gouverneur: governor
Grand(e): grand, great, large
Grand-oncle: grand uncle, the brother of the grandparent
Grande-tante: grand aunt, the sister of the grandparent
Greffier/ greffière: notary; court clerk, judge's secretary
Grippe: influenza
Guide: guide, advisor, instructor, trainer
Guilde: guild, society, association, brotherhood
H
Hameau: hamlet
Hémorragie: hemorrhage, bleeding
Héraldique: heraldry
Héritage: inheritance
Héritier: heir
Heure: hour
Histoire: history
Holandais(e): Dutch
Hommage: tribute, tax, respect
Homme: man, husband
Honnête: honest
Huile: oil
Huile sacrée: holy oil
Hydropexie: dropsy
I
Il y a: there was, it's been
Illégitime: illegitimate
Ils/elles: they
Immédiatement: immediately, promptly
Immigrant(e): immigrant
Immigration: immigration
Immueble: building
Imposable: taxable
In facie ecclesiae: Latin phrase meaning 'before the church'; used in marriage documents to describe full church marriage
Inconvénint: disagreement
Indemnité: indemnity
Information: information, declaration of statement of fact
Inhumation: burial
Intestin: intestines
Inventaire: inventory
Italien(ne): Italian
Italique: paleographic term, italic, cursive script
J
Jambe: leg
Janvier: January
Jardinier: gardener
Je: I
Jésuite: Jesuit
Journalier: day laborer
Jour des rois: Day of the Kings or Magi, twelfth night, Januarey 6th
Juge: judge, juryman
Juif: Jewish
Juin: June
Juillet: July
Jumeau/jumelle: twins
Juré: juryman
Justice: justice, rightness, fairness; tribunal
K
L
Laboreur: ploughman, peasant, farmer
Lac: lake
Laitier: dairyman
Langue: language, tongue
Latitude: latitude
Le: the (masculine)
Le mien: mine
Légal: legal
Légitime: legitimate, lawful
Le quel: which
Les deux: both
Liasse: bundle of losse papers that are usually tied together because they deal with common subject
Liberation: exoneration, exemption from taxes or obligations
Liberté: freedom
License/ diplôme: diploma; license (to practice a trade or profession)
Lien: bond, tie, link
Ligue: league
Limite: boudary
Liquidation: liquidation, winding up; liquidation of debts
Liste: register, list, roster, roll, census
Livre: book; weight measure
Livre de famille: book of the family, often issued by the government for recording births, marriages and deaths
Livres sacramentels: parish registers
L'œil: eye
Loi: law
Longitude: longitude
Lundi: Monday
M
Magistrat royal: magistrate who, in the royal courts, heard and sentenced disputes and lawsuits
Magistrature: judgeship
Mai: May
Main: hand
Maire: mayor
Mais: but; corn
Maison: house
Maladie: disease
Male: male, undefined
Mancipation: transfer of propery
Mandat: draft, bill of exchange
Manifestation: protest, protestation, declaration, affirmation, promis
Manoir: manoir, villa, country house
Manoir/ foyer ancestral: ancestral home, manor house
Marchand: merchant
Marchandise: wares, goods
Marché: market
Mardi: Tuesday
Marge: margin
Mari/ fiancé: groom, fiancé
Mari: husband
Mariage: marriage, wedding
Marié(e): married
Mariée/ fiancée: bride, fiancée
Marin: sailor
Marine: navy
Maritime: maritime
Marraine: godmother, a woman who assists in one of the sacraments of baptism, marriage, etc.
Mars: March
Masculin: masculine
Maternal: maternal, pertaining to the mother's family
Matrimonial: matrimonial, relating to marriage
Mer de Nord: the North Sea
Mer du Sud: the South Sea
Mère: mother
Membre: member
Membre de famille: relative
Meme: same
Mémoire: memory, recollection; report; study, account
Mendiant(e): beggar
Mercredi: Wednesday
Mérit: merit, accomplishments
Messe: Mass
Métier: occupation, job
Mile: mile
Milice: (military) militia
Militaire: pertaining to the military or to war; a person serving in the army
Mille: thousand
Mine: mine
Mineur: miner
Ministre: minister
Minuit: midnight
Moi: me, my
Moin: monk
Moins: less
Mois: month
Moitié: half
Monastère: monastery
Monsieur: sir, mister
Montagne: mountain
Morant: dying
Morir: to die
Mort: death, deceased
Mort-né: stillborn
Moulin: mill
Muebles: furniture, household
Muet(te): dumb, unable to speak
Municipal: of or relating to the commune
Municipalité: municipality, the territorial jurisdiction which includes the inhabitants governed by a town council
N
Naître: to be born
Naîvre: ship; nave, aisle
Natif/ native: native of, born in a given locality; born outside fo the marriage contract
Nationalité: nationality, citizenship
Né(e): born
Nécessité: necessity, need
Nègre: negro, black or dark-skinned, native of various tribes of Africa
Neveu: nephew
Nez: nose
Nièce: niece
No.= nombre: number
Noble: noble, of noble blood,
Noblesse: nobility
Nomination: appointment, election, nomination, comission
Nommer: to elect or appoint; to name, to mention by name
Non: no
Nord: north
Nord-est: northeast
Nord-oeust: northwest
Nous: we
Notable: notable, noteworth, outstanding
Notaire: notary
Notre: our, ours, of ours
Nouveau/ nouvelle: new
Novembre: November
O
Obligation: obligation, responsibility, duty
Observation: observation, comments, marginals= notes
Occidental: western
Octobre: october
Offrande: offrande
Offre: offering
Oncle: uncle
Or: gold
Orient: eastern
Orphelin(e): orphan
Orphelinat: orphanage
Ou: or
Où: where
Ouest: west
Oui: yes
Ouvrier: worker, laborer
P
Palégraphie: paleography, study of ancient handwriting
Papiers d'identité: military register of a soldier
Par: by, for, through, along, over, by way of, via, around, about, in, at, multiplighed by
Paragraphe: paragraph
ParaÎtre: to appear, seem, look
Parceque: because
Pardon: pardon, forgiveness, grace, reprieve
Parmi: between, among
Paroisse: parish
Parrain: godfather, a man who assists in one of the sacraments of baptism, marriage, etc. usually a friend or relative
Parroise: parish, territory covered by the spiritual jurisdiction of a parish priest
Parroissien: parishioner
Part: part, fragment
Passé: past
Pasteur: pastor, minister, shepherd
Pasturage: pasture land
Paternel: paternal, from the father's line
Patrimoine: inheritance
Patron(ne): master, employer
Pays: country
Pêcheur: fisherman
Péninsulaire: peninsular
Père: father, priest
Periode: end, finish, conclusion, time limit, term, period, space of time
Périodique: periodic, periodical, newspaper
Permi: permission, authority, leave
Permission: permission
Peste: plague
Petit-enfant: grandchild
Petite-fille: granddaughter
Petit-fils: grandson
Pétition: petition, request
Petits-enfants: grandchildren
Peuplé: populated, town, village
Peut-être: maybe
Pg.= page: page
Pied: foot, length measurement
Place: main square of a town; office, position
Pleine: pregnant
Plus: more
Plus jeune: smaller, youngest
Pneumonie: pneumonia
Polonais: Polish
Pont: bridge
Population: population
Porqoui: why
Port: port
Portrait: portrait
Portugais: Portuguese
Possession: possession, property, estate
Posture: posture, position, attitude
Pouce: thumb; length measurements, inch
Poumon: lung
Pour: for, to
Prélat: prelate, ecclesiastical dignitary
Premier/ première: first
Prénom: given or christian name, first name
Près: next
Près de: next to
Présent: present
Président: head or leader of the court
Prêtre: priest
Preuve: (law) proof, evidence
Prévu: anticipated
Prier: to pray
Prière: prayer
Printemps: spring
Prison: jail, prison, penitentiary
Privilège: privilege, grant, concession
Procès: lawsuit, suit, court or judicial action or proceedings
Proche: near, close, approximate
Procureur: prosecutor, local city attorney
Professeur: professor, teacher
Profession: profession
Promesse: promise, offer, vow, pledge
Promis: betrothed
Propriété: property, land
Propriètaire: owner, proprietor
Protestant(e): Protestant
Protester: protest; declaration
Q
Quadruplé: quadruplets
Quand: when
Qui: who, whom
R
Réception: reception, receiving
Recherche: research
Réclamation: claim, demand
Récolte: harvest
Récompense: recognition, admission, acknowledgment
Reçu: receipt
Réduction: reduction
Regarder: look at
Régiment: military unit headed by a colonel
Région: region, province, territorial division
Registre: register, record, record book
Registre civil: civil registry
Règlament: regulation
Règne: reign
Reine: queen
Religieux: religious
Réligion: religion
Renonciation: renunciation
Répudiation: repudiation
Résident: resident
Retraité: retired
Retraite: retirement
Revenu: revenue, income
Révocation: revocation
Revue: review
Rite: rite
Rivière: river
Roi: king
Rouge: red
Rougeole: measles
Route/autoroute: highway
Royal: royal, or pertaining to the Crown
Royaume: kingdom
Rue: street
Ruelle: alley, small street
Ruisseau: stream
Russe: Russian
S
Sacré: sacred, hold
Sacristain: sacristan, sexton, the individual who took care of the ecclesiastical cemeteries
Sage femme: midwife
Saignement: bleeding
Saint(e): holy, saintly, hallowed, sacred, blesse
Sainte Cène: the Eucharist, holy sacrament
Saison: season
Salaire: salary, wages
Salle: parlor, hall, lounge, salon
Samedi: Saturday
Scarlatine: scarlet fever
Se marier: to marry
Second(e): second, secondary
Secrétaire: secretary, notary office, court clerkship
Séculier: secular
Sécurité: security, safe, steady
Semaine: week
Séparation: division, partition, separation
Séparé: separate
Septembre: September
Sépulcre: grave, sepulchre
Sergent: sargent
Serment: oath
Serrurier: locksmith
Servant(e): servant. see also domestique
Service: service
Seule: only
Sexe: sex, gender
Siècle: century
Sien: theirs
Signature: signature
Situation: location, situation
Situé: located
Société: society
Soldat: soldier, private (military)
Soldate: female soldier
Solennement: solemnly
Son/sa/ses: his hers, theirs
Soudain: suddenly
Sourd: deaf
Sousigné: written hereafter, signed, undersigned person
Souvent: often
St(e)= saint(e): saint
Subrogation: subrogation, substitution
Subséquent: susequent
Substitution: substitution
Sud: south
Sud-est: southeast
Sud-oeust: southwest
Suédois(e): Swedish
Suffragant: suffragan, one who is under the jurisdiction or authority of another
Suisse: Swiss
Sujet: subject, used to introduce a new fact or statement
Sur: about, concerning; above
Surnom: surname, nickname, last name
Survivant: surviving
T
Tanneur: tanner, leather worker
Tante: aunt
Taxe: tax
Teinteur: dyer
Témoin: witness
Témoinage: testimony
Temp: time
Terme: tem, periode of time
Terrain: tract of land, field
Territoire: territory
Testament: will, a document in which one declares his last will and in which he disposes of his property and makes other arrangements for after his death.
Tête: head
Tisserand: weaver
Titre de noblesse: nobiliary, peerage liste, pertaining to the nobility
Titre: title, name, caption heading
Tonnelier: cooper
Tôt: early
Toujours: slways
Tout: all, everyone
Toux: cough
Traduction: translation
Transaction: transaction, negotiation, settlement, agreement, compromise
Travailleur: worker, laborer
Tribunal: court, local court, tribunal court
Trinité: trinity
Triplés: triplets
Tuberculose: tuberculosis
Tumeur: tumor
Tutelle: fuardianship, the authority conferred by law to an individual to care for the fortune and at times the person of a minor
U
Université: university
Ut supra: (latin) as above
V
Variole: smallpox
Veille: vigil, the eve of a festival or holy day
Vendre: to sell
Vendredi: Friday
Vente: sale, sell
Vent réelle: sale of real property
Vert: green
Veuf/veuve: widower, widow, widowed
Viatique: sacrament of the Eucharist administered to the sick in danger of death
Vicaire: vicar
Vicariat: vicarage; the territory over which a vicar presides
Vicomte(sse): viscount, a title of noility
Vice-roi: viceroy
Vice-royauté: viceroyalte
Vieilli: elderly
Viex/vieille: old
Vignoble: vineyard
Village: town, vilage
Ville: city, town
Visage: face, countenance
Visite: visit, call, inspection
Vivant(e): alive
Vivre: to live
Voilé: veiled
Voisin(e): neighbor
Voisinage: neighborhood
Volume: volume