Animal parts vocabulary in French, covering body parts like head, legs, tail, and more for common animals.
Understanding the names of animal parts in French is essential for describing animals, reading about wildlife, and having more precise conversations. Here is a comprehensive list of common animal body part vocabulary, organized by general categories.
Below are some of the most common parts found on many animals:
| French Singular | French Plural | English Singular | English Plural | Example (FR) | Example (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| la tête | les têtes | the head | the heads | L'oiseau a une petite tête. | The bird has a small head. |
| le corps | les corps | the body | the bodies | Le chat a un corps souple. | The cat has a flexible body. |
| la patte | les pattes | the paw/leg | the paws/legs | Le chien lève la patte. | The dog lifts its paw. |
| la queue | les queues | the tail | the tails | Le cheval a une longue queue. | The horse has a long tail. |
| l'aile (f) | les ailes | the wing | the wings | L'oiseau bat des ailes. | The bird flaps its wings. |
| le bec | les becs | the beak | the beaks | Le canard a un large bec. | The duck has a wide beak. |
| la corne | les cornes | the horn | the horns | Le taureau a des cornes pointues. | The bull has sharp horns. |
| l'oreille (f) | les oreilles | the ear | the ears | Le lapin a de longues oreilles. | The rabbit has long ears. |
| l'œil (m) | les yeux | the eye | the eyes | Le chat a des yeux verts. | The cat has green eyes. |
| le museau | les museaux | the snout | the snouts | Le chien a un long museau. | The dog has a long snout. |
Le chat a des ___.
What is the French word for 'the eye'?
l'œil
The French word for 'eye' is 'l'œil'. Other options are head (tête), paw/leg (patte), and beak (bec).
Le lapin a de longues ___.
What is the French word for 'the ear'?
l'oreille
The French word for 'ear' is 'l'oreille'. Other options are beak (bec), tail (queue), paw/leg (patte).
These parts appear on specific types of animals:
| French Singular | French Plural | English Singular | English Plural | Example (FR) | Example (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| l'écaillé (m) | les écailles | the scale | the scales | Le poisson a des écailles brillantes. | The fish has shiny scales. |
| la crinière | les crinières | the mane | the manes | Le lion a une grande crinière. | The lion has a large mane. |
| le sabot | les sabots | the hoof | the hooves | Le cheval a des sabots solides. | The horse has strong hooves. |
| la trompe | les trompes | the trunk | the trunks | L'éléphant utilise sa trompe pour boire. | The elephant uses its trunk to drink. |
| le tentacule | les tentacules | the tentacle | the tentacles | La pieuvre a huit tentacules. | The octopus has eight tentacles. |
| la pince | les pinces | the claw/pincer | the claws/pincers | Le crabe a de grandes pinces. | The crab has large claws. |
| le dard | les dards | the stinger | the stingers | L'abeille a un dard. | The bee has a stinger. |
| la carapace | les carapaces | the shell | the shells | La tortue a une carapace dure. | The turtle has a hard shell. |
| la nageoire | les nageoires | the fin | the fins | Le poisson utilise ses nageoires pour nager. | The fish uses its fins to swim. |
| la soie | les soies | the silk | the silks | Le ver à soie produit de la soie. | The silkworm produces silk. |
These terms describe internal body parts found in many animals:
| French Singular | French Plural | English Singular | English Plural | Example (FR) | Example (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| le cœur | les cœurs | the heart | the hearts | Le cœur bat rapidement. | The heart beats quickly. |
| le poumon | les poumons | the lung | the lungs | Les poumons permettent de respirer. | The lungs allow breathing. |
| l'estomac (m) | les estomacs | the stomach | the stomachs | L'estomac digère la nourriture. | The stomach digests food. |
| le foie | les foies | the liver | the livers | Le foie nettoie le sang. | The liver cleans the blood. |
| le cerveau | les cerveaux | the brain | the brains | Le cerveau contrôle le corps. | The brain controls the body. |
| le sang | — | the blood | — | Le sang circule dans les veines. | The blood flows through the veins. |
| le muscle | les muscles | the muscle | the muscles | Les muscles permettent le mouvement. | Muscles enable movement. |
| l'os (m) | les os | the bone | the bones | L'os est solide. | The bone is strong. |
| le nerf | les nerfs | the nerve | the nerves | Le nerf transmet la douleur. | The nerve transmits pain. |
| le tendon | les tendons | the tendon | the tendons | Le tendon relie le muscle à l'os. | The tendon connects muscle to bone. |
These adjectives and descriptive words are commonly used to talk about animal body parts more precisely:
| French Singular | English Singular | French Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| long / longue | long | Le cheval a une queue longue. | The horse has a long tail. |
| court / courte | short | Le chien a des pattes courtes. | The dog has short legs. |
| pointu / pointue | pointed | Les cornes sont pointues. | The horns are pointed. |
| doux / douce | soft | Le pelage est doux. | The fur is soft. |
| dur / dure | hard | La carapace est dure. | The shell is hard. |
| épais / épaisse | thick | Le cou est épais. | The neck is thick. |
| mince | thin | La queue est mince. | The tail is thin. |
| puissant / puissante | powerful | La mâchoire est puissante. | The jaw is powerful. |
| velu / velue | hairy | Le chat est velu. | The cat is hairy. |
| coloré / colorée | colored | Le plumage est coloré. | The plumage is colored. |
These verbs are often used when describing what animals do with their body parts:
| French Verb | English Verb | French Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| bouger | to move | Le serpent bouge sa queue. | The snake moves its tail. |
| battre | to beat/flap | L'oiseau bat des ailes. | The bird flaps its wings. |
| lécher | to lick | Le chien lèche sa patte. | The dog licks its paw. |
| mordre | to bite | Le chien peut mordre. | The dog can bite. |
| pincer | to pinch | Le crabe pince avec ses pinces. | The crab pinches with its claws. |
| griffer | to scratch | Le chat gratte avec ses griffes. | The cat scratches with its claws. |
| sentir | to smell | Le chien sent avec son museau. | The dog smells with its snout. |
| regarder | to look | L'animal regarde avec ses yeux. | The animal looks with its eyes. |
| écouter | to listen | Le lapin écoute avec ses oreilles. | The rabbit listens with its ears. |
| tourner | to turn | Le serpent tourne sa tête. | The snake turns its head. |
L'oiseau ___ des ailes.
What is the French word for 'to flap' (as in wings)?
bat
The verb 'battre' (in this form 'bat') means 'to flap'. 'L'oiseau bat des ailes' means 'The bird flaps its wings.' Other options mean move (bouge), pinch (pince), scratch (griffe).
This list covers the most essential French vocabulary for animal body parts, including:
- General parts found on most animals
- Specialized parts for particular animals
- Internal anatomy
- Descriptive adjectives
- Common action verbs
These terms will help you describe animals more accurately and understand French texts about wildlife with greater confidence.
Flashcards (1 of 50)
- Example (FR): L'oiseau a une petite tête.
- Example (EN): The bird has a small head.
- English Singular: the head
- English Plural: the heads
Last updated: Thu Jun 12, 2025
