French Conversation · Level 167
15 words
French word
ébranler
Pronunciation
IPA/ebʁɑ̃le/
Meaning
- verbunsettle
Example
Cette nouvelle m'ébranle.
This news unsettles me.
More examples
Le scandale a ébranlé la confiance des clients.
The scandal shook the customers' confidence.
Core concept
An outside jolt makes a structure or a person's inner balance lose its stability.
Common phrases
ébranler la confiance
undermine confidence
ébranler quelqu'un
shake someone
ébranler le moral
sap morale
Similar words
secouer: To deeply stir someone's emotions through a powerful event.
perturber: To disrupt someone's usual state or the normal flow of events.
bouleverser: To profoundly upset someone's emotional state or way of life.
choquer: To cause strong surprise or offense through something unexpected or inappropriate.
Definition in French
Provoquer un mouvement ou un trouble qui rend quelque chose instable, en particulier au plan moral ou psychologique.
Word origin
Ébranler comes from Old French esbranler, formed from es- and branler, meaning to sway.
Usage tips
- Ébranler is transitive, so a person can be its direct object without a preposition, as in Cette nouvelle m'ébranle.