French Conversation · Level 46
74 words
French word
puissance
Pronunciation
IPA/pɥisɑ̃s/
Meaning
- feminine nounpower
Example
Ce champion a une grande puissance.
This champion has great power.
More examples
La voiture a subi une perte de puissance.
The car suffered a loss of power.
Core concept
A level of effective force that ranges from physical action to the influence of an institution or state.
Common phrases
perte de puissance
loss of power
à pleine puissance
at full power
Similar words
force: The physical strength exerted by a body or object.
pouvoir: The authority to control people or events and make decisions.
énergie: Usable energy supplied by electricity, fuel, or another source.
capacité: The ability to perform an action or the amount that can be accommodated.
Definition in French
Mesure de l'intensité d'une force ou d'une influence exercée par un objet, une personne ou un État.
Word origin
Puissance belongs to the French family built on puissant and the suffix -ance, with puissant inherited through Old French from Latin potentem, meaning powerful.
Usage tips
- In physics, puissance means power rather than force: force describes an interaction, whereas puissance concerns the rate of energy transfer.
Other meanings
- authoritynoun
- outputnoun
- influencenoun
Opposites
- impuissancepowerlessnessnoun
Related words
- puissantpowerfuladjective