In this article, we are going to learn some classifications of animals in French which will allow us to admire the great variety that exists. We invite you to continue reading so that you can identify and name categories or groups of animals.
So, does it look like a good plan? Cool! So, why don’t we start right away?
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Companion Animals
Let’s see some essential vocabulary to talk about these animals that play a key role in our lives.
List Of Pets
| Pets | Les animaux de compagnie |
|---|---|
| a dog | un chien |
| a bitch | une chienne |
| a puppy | un chiot |
| a guide dog | un chien de garde |
| a sheepdog | un chien de berger |
| a colley | un colley |
| a spaniel | un épagneul |
| a poodle | un caniche |
| a dog of mixed breed, a mongrel | un bâtard |
| a cat | un chat |
| a female cat | une chatte |
| a kitten | un chaton |
| a goldfish | un poisson rouge |
| a parrot | un perroquet |
| a canary | un canari |
| a hamster | un hamster |
| a guinea pig | un cochon d’Inde, un cobaye |
Important: When you want to talk about other animals people can have as pets, you can add the word “domestique”.
Example: Isabelle has a pet pig / Isabelle a un cochon domestique.
Farm Animals
Some farm animals in French are the following.
List Of Farm Animals
| Farm Animals | Les animaux de la ferme |
|---|---|
| an ox | un boeuf |
| a cow | une vache |
| a bull | un taureau |
| a calf | un veau |
| a billy goat | un buoc |
| a nanny-goat | ne chèvre |
| a kid | un chevreau |
| a sheep | un mouton |
| a ewe | une brebis |
| a lamb | un agneau |
| a pig | un cochon, un porc |
| a sow | une truie |
| a mare | une jument |
| a horse | un cheval |
| a foal | un poulain |
| a pony | un poney |
| a donkey | un âne |
| a jenny / a she-ass | une ânesse |
| a mule | une mule |
| a chicken | un poulet |
| a hen | une poule |
| a rooster | un coq |
| a duck | un canard, une cane |
| a gander/ a goose | un jars / une oie |
| a turkey | un dindon, une dinde |
| a rabbit | un lapin, une lapine |
Animals In The Forest
As detailed below, some of the animals that can call forests their home are:
List Of Animals In The Forest
| Animals In The Forest | Animaux Forestiers |
|---|---|
| a deer | un daim |
| a roe deer | un chevreuil |
| a doe | une biche |
| a stag | un cerf |
| a raccoon | un raton laveur |
| a marmot | une marmotte |
| a squirrel | une écureuil |
| a hedgehog | un hérisson |
| a mouse | une souris |
| a frog | une grenouille |
| a toad | un crapaud |
| a worm | un ver |
| a slug | une limace |
| a snail | un escargot |
| a spider | une araignée |
| a hare/ a jackrabbit | une lièvre |
| a fox | un renard |
| a ferret | un furet |
| a beaver | un castor |
Birds
If you are an enthusiast of birdwatching or if you are interested in the scientific study of birds, then this section is for you. Birdwatching is an activity you can do in your own garden, in a public park or in a natural reserve with the help of binoculars or spotting scopes. We have lots of things to learn from birds like perseverance, courage and respect for nature.
List Of Birds
| Birds | Les oiseaux |
|---|---|
| a robin | un rouge-gorge |
| a blue tit | une mésange bleue |
| an European crested tit | une mésange huppée |
| a great tit | une mésange charbonnière |
| a thrush | une grive |
| a dove | une colombe |
| a swallow | une hirondelle |
| a woodpecker | un pic vert |
| a magpie | |
| a pigeon | un pigeon |
| a chaffinch | un pinson |
| a sparrow | un moineau |
| a starling | un étourneau |
| a raven | un corbeau |
| a sky lark | une alouette |
Insects
Insects are unfairly underrated; there are people who think insects are pests and that their lives do not matter. What a mistake! Insects are crucial for the good functioning of ecosystems.
| Insects | Les insectes |
|---|---|
| a chrysalis | une chrysalide |
| a larva | une larve |
| a caterpillar | une chenille |
| a butterfly | un papillon |
| a moth | un papillon de nuit |
| a bee | une abeille |
| a ladybird/a ladybug | une coccinelle |
| a flea | une puce |
| an ant | une fourmi |
| a beetle | un scarabée |
| a louse | un pou |
| a cockroach | un cafard |
Wild Animals
There are many threats to wild animals: poaching, illegal fishing, hunting, the arrival of invasive species from foreign habitats, climate change or pollution. Many of the animals included in the following list are endangered species.
List Of Wild Animals
| Wild Animals | Les Animaux Sauvages |
|---|---|
| a polar bear | un ours polaire |
| a wolf | un loup |
| a coyote | un coyote |
| a bull elephant | un éléphant mâle |
| a cow elephant | un éléphant femelle |
| an elephant calf | un éléphanteau |
| a rhinoceros | un rhinocéros |
| a zebra | un zèbre |
| a camel | un chameau |
| a lion | un lion |
| a lioness | une lionne |
| a tiger | un tigre |
| a cheetah | un guépard |
| a panther | une panthère |
| a gorilla | un gorille |
| an ourangutan | un orangoutan |
| a chimpazee | un chimpanzé |
| a giraffe | une girafe |
| a hippopotamus | un hippopotame |
Sea Animals
In the ocean we can find more than one million species of animals: from the smallest one, the zooplankton to the biggest one, the blue whale.
List Of Aquatic Animals
| Sea Animals | Les animaux de la mer |
|---|---|
| a whale | une baleine |
| a dolphin | un dauphin |
| a seal | un phoque |
| a sea lion | une otarie |
| a shark | un requin |
| an octopus | un pieuvre |
| a seahorse | un hippocampe |
| a walrus | un morse |
| a sea elephant | un éléphant de mer |
| hermit crab | Bernard l’hermite |
Some Useful Phrases To Talk About Animals
Now, as previously announced, we are going to continue with some useful vocabulary that will help you participate in little conversations about animals.
| Let’s talk about animals! | Parlons des animaux! |
|---|---|
| Do you have any pets? If so, what are they? Yes, I do. I have a cocker spaniel. | Avez-vous des animaux de compagnie? Si oui, lesquels? Oui, j’en ai un. Il s’agit d’un cocker spaniel. |
| What is your dog’s name? Her name is Florette. | Comment s'appelle votre chienne? Elle s’appelle Florette. |
| Do you prefer cats to dogs? Not really. Although I love both, I prefer dogs because they are more affectionate than cats and they don’t usually bother birds. | Vous préférez les chats aux chiens? Pas vraiment. Même si j’aime les deux, je préfère les chiens car ils sont plus câlins que les chats et normalement, ils ne dérangent pas les oiseaux. |
| What’s your favorite wild animal? and why? My favorite wild animal is the elephant because of their calm personality and their wonderful trunk. | Quel est ton animal sauvage préféré? et pourquoi? Mon animal sauvage préféré est l’éléphant à cause de leur personnalité tranquille et leur merveilleuse trompe. |
| Do you dislike insects? Not really. I think they are interesting and that there should be more scientists researching their life. | Avez-vous une aversion envers les insectes? Pas vraiment. Je pense qu’ils sont intéressants et qu’il devrait y avoir plus de scientifiques en train de faire de la recherche sur leur vies. |
| Do you enjoy birdwatching? If so, where do you go birdwatching? Yes, I love birdwatching. I don’t need to go far. I can do it in my garden because I feed birds in winter. | Aimez-vous l’observation des oiseaux? Oui, j’adore l’observation des oiseaux. Je n’ai pas besoin d’aller très loin. Je peux le faire dans mon jardin car je nourris les oiseaux en hiver. |
| What do you think about zoos? I don’t really like them, but in some cases it is preferable because wild animals are hunted indiscriminately. | Qu’en pensez-vous des zoos? Je ne les aime pas vraiment, mais dans certains cas, c’est préférable car les animaux sauvages sont chassés à tort et à travers. |
| Which animals are in danger of extinction? The list is long: whales, rhinoceros, polar bears, certain kinds of sharks, the Asian elephant, among many others. | Quels animaux sont menacés de disparition? La liste est longue: les baleines, les rhinocéros, les ours polaires, quelques variétés de requins, l'éléphant asiatique, parmi beaucoup d’autres. |
A Little Exercise To Practice Feminine And Masculine Nouns
We are going to finish this article with a little exercise whose aim is to help you distinguish feminine and masculine nouns when talking about animals in French.
Choose the correct word to practice regular and irregular feminine nouns. You will find them in the previous lists.
| Un canard | a. une canarde | b. une cane | c. une canardine |
| Un porc | a. une cochonne | b. une porque | c. une minette |
| Un taureau | a. une vache | b. une taureause | c. une minette |
| Un lapin | a. une lapin femelle | b. une lapine | c. une lapunette |
| un mouton | a. une moutonie | b. une elle-mouton | c. une brebis |
| un bouc | a. une bouquette | b. une chèvre | c. une brebis |
| un cheval | a. une jument | b. une elle-cheval | c. une ânesse |
| un chat | a. un chaton | b. une chatte | c. une minet |
| un chien | a. une elle-chien | b. une chiot | c. une chienne |
| un jars | a. une jarse | b. une oie | c. une jarsette |
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