French word

roman

Pronunciation

IPA/ʁomɑ̃/

Meaning

  • masculine nounnovel

Example

Ce roman est très populaire en France.

This novel is very popular in France.

Illustration for roman (novel)

More examples

Elle a acheté un roman d'amour hier.

She bought a romance novel yesterday.

Core concept

A book-length fictional world built around characters and an unfolding plot.

Common phrases

  • lire un roman

    read a novel

  • un roman policier

    a detective novel

  • un roman d'amour

    a romance novel

Similar words

nouvelle: A compact fictional narrative with briefly presented characters and plot.
livre: A written work consisting of pages intended for reading.

Definition in French

Œuvre narrative de fiction en prose, généralement assez longue, centrée sur des personnages et une intrigue.

Word origin

The noun developed from Old French romanz, a term for writing in the Romance vernacular, before acquiring its modern sense of a long fictional narrative.

Usage tips

  • Roman often combines with genre labels such as roman policier, while a shorter fictional story is commonly called a nouvelle.

Opposites

  • non-fictionnonfictionnoun

Related words

Word lists with this word