âme

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ame"

French

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French ame, amme, from Old French ame, anme, anima, from Latin anima.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /am/ ~ /ɑm/

  • Audio (Paris); “une âme”:

    (file)

  • Rhymes: -ɑm, -am
• IPA^(key): /aːm/ (older, now chiefly Belgium and Canada)
  • Rhymes: -aːm
• Homophone: âmes
• Hyphenation: âme

Noun

âme f (plural âmes)

1. (religion, philosophy) soul
2. (moral, intellectual centre) soul, heart, mind
3. soul, person

   C’est un village de 800 âmes.

   It's a village of 800 souls.

4. bore (of a cannon)
5. (lutherie) soundpost (of a violin etc.)

Derived terms

• à fendre l’âme
• âme damnée
• âme en peine
• âme qui vive
• âme sœur
• corps et âme
• dans l’âme
• en son âme et conscience
• état d’âme
• grandeur d’âme
• la mort dans l’âme
• pointe aux âmes
• rendre l’âme
• vague à l’âme
• vendre son âme au diable

 

Further reading

• “âme”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.