French word

poumon

Pronunciation

IPA/pumɔ̃/

Meaning

  • masculine nounlung

Example

La fumée abîme les poumons.

Smoke damages the lungs.

Illustration for poumon (lung)

More examples

Les médecins ont examiné ses poumons.

The doctors examined his lungs.

Core concept

A matched pair of porous chest organs that remove carbon dioxide from the blood and supply it with oxygen.

Common phrases

  • les poumons

    the lungs

  • cancer du poumon

    lung cancer

  • infection des poumons

    lung infection

Similar words

organe: A body part that performs a specific function.
cœur: A muscular organ in the center of the chest that circulates blood throughout the body.

Definition in French

Organe pair situé dans la poitrine, formé de tissus aérés permettant l'absorption d'oxygène et l'élimination du dioxyde de carbone.

Word origin

The French noun poumon is inherited from Latin pulmo, whose genitive was pulmonis, after historical changes in Old French.

Usage tips

  • The singular and plural sound alike because the plural s in poumons is silent, although the spelling and article distinguish un poumon from les poumons.

Related words

Word lists with this word