French word

bicyclette

Pronunciation

IPA/bisiklɛt/

Meaning

  • feminine nounbike

Example

Je gare ma bicyclette devant le magasin.

I park my bike in front of the store.

Illustration for bicyclette (bike)

More examples

Nous faisons souvent de la bicyclette le dimanche.

We often ride a bicycle on Sundays.

Core concept

A rider moves a light two-wheeled vehicle forward by turning pedals and steers it with a handlebar.

Common phrases

  • faire de la bicyclette

    ride a bicycle

  • acheter une bicyclette

    buy a bicycle

  • une bicyclette électrique

    an electric bicycle

Similar words

vélo: A short, everyday term for a pedal-powered vehicle used for travel or exercise.

Definition in French

Véhicule à deux roues actionné par des pédales et dirigé par un guidon, utilisé pour se déplacer.

Word origin

Bicyclette is a French derivative of bicycle with the suffix -ette, which commonly forms nouns associated with smallness or familiarity.

Usage tips

  • In everyday French, vélo is usually more common than bicyclette, especially in aller à vélo and faire du vélo.

Opposites

Related words

  • bicyclistecyclistnoun

Word lists with this word