See also La nomenclature des ornithologues
| birdwatcher | ornithologue, observateur d’oiseaux |
| birdhouse | le nichoir |
| bird cage, aviary | la volière |
For a very beautiful graphical presentation of the details of bird anatomy in French, see Glossaire d’ornithologie.
| fowl, bird | le oiseau | |
| nest | le nid, la nichée | |
| to nest | nicher | “niche”! |
| roost | le perchoir | |
| to perch; to roost | percher | |
| aerie (of an eagle) | la aire | |
| beak, bill | le bec | also used for animal “snout” |
| craw | le jabot | |
| gizzard | le gésier | |
| feather | la plume | |
| to pluck | plumer (pleumer, au Québec) | |
| fledge | s’emplumer | |
| to moult | muer | generically, “to shed” |
| moulting | mue | |
| down | le duvet | |
| downy | duveteux | |
| wing | la aile | |
| foot | la patte | Same word as “paw” of land animals |
| crest, comb | la crête | |
| fledgling | jeune oiseau | |
| to flock | s’attrouper? | |
| flight, flock | le vol | |
| to fly | voler | |
| to flutter | voleter | |
| soaring | le essor | also more general: «prendre son essor» is “to take flight” |
| to migrate | migrer | |
| to peck | picoter | general term: also ”to prick”, or to injure with a peck |
| bequeter | ||
| to dabble | barboter | as do many ducks |
| to preen | lisser | |
| to lay eggs | pondre des oeufs | |
| to hatch | éclore, faire éclore | |
| to brood | couver | |
| clutch | la couvée |
| cajole | cajoler | as magpies, jays | |
| caw | croasser | le croassiment | literally, “to croak” |
| coo | roucouler | le roucoulement | |
| cry | crier | a generic bird sound | |
| cackle | caqueter | le caquet | |
| cluck | glousser | le gloussement | |
| chatter | jacasser | le jacassement | as jays |
| bavarder | le bavardage | as magpies | |
| jaser | as magpies | ||
| jaze | Québec | ||
| hoot | hululer | le hululement | |
| huer | |||
| honk | |||
| gobble | glouglouter | ||
| (gossip) | cancaner | le cancan | as ducks |
| moan | gémir | as doves | |
| screech | cri aigu | ||
| tweet; peep | pépier | ||
| twitter; chirp; warble | gazouiller | le gazouillement | |
| trumpet | trompetter | as swans | |
| quack | n.b. «couac», while meaning an unpleasant, or incorrect noise, isn’t used for the sound ducks make: ducks “gossip” in French. | ||
| whistle | siffler | le sifflement |
| goose | la oie | |
| le jars | “gander” | |
| le oison | “gosling” | |
| turkey | le dindon | The French thought, as did the Turks, that this bird was from India, and so named it «d’Inde». The English thought it was from Turkey. Really, it’s a N.A. native. |
| la dinde | ||
| chicken | la poule | “hen” |
| le coq | “rooster” | |
| le poulet | “chick” | |
| duck | le canard | “drake” Used also to mean “hoax”; ”an old canard”; “canard-wing aircraft” |
| la cane | “duck” | |
| le caneton | duckling” | |
| guinea hen | la pintade |
| flamingo | le flamant | |
| ostrich | la autruche | |
| parrot | le parroquet | also for parakeet |
| peacock | le paon |
I got some of these from a more complete list of French sayings: La Fontaine et La Cuisine
Text in quotes indicates a term or phrase in common use in the language. Other text is translation or explanation.
| «un oiseau» (en référence à une personne) | a guy |
| une jeune femme | ”a bird“ (referring to a person) |
| «oisif», «oisivité» | idle, idleness, slothful |
| personne niaise | “bird-brain” |
| sans valeur | “for the birds” |
| «avoir un estomac d’autruche» | to have an iron stomach |
| «un oiseau de mauvais augure» | a bird of ill omen |
| «faire d’une pierre deux coups» | “to kill two birds with one stone” |
| «un tiens vaut mieux que deux tu l’auras» | “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” |
| «qui se ressemble s’assemble» | “birds of a feather flock together” |
| la personne matinale a succès | “the early bird gets the worm” |
| «comme l’oiseau sur la branche» | “free as a bird” |
| (Belgique) «un oiseau pour le chat» | “one foot in the grave” |
| (Québec) «être aux petits oiseaux» | to be very happy and satisfied |
| «petit à petit l’oiseau fait son nid» | by patient effort one will arrive at one’s goal |
| «faute de grives on mange des merles» |
if you can’t have thrushes, you eat blackbirds (or, beggers can't be choosers) |
| «on ne peut faire d’une buse un epervier» | one can’t make a hawk out of a buzzard |
| «à vol d’oiseau» | “as the crow flies” |
| «voler de ses propres ailes» | “to stand on one’s own two legs” |
| «il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l’ours avant de l’avoir tue» | “don’t count your chickens before they are hatched” |
| «avoir le crâne lisse comme un oeuf» | “to be bald as an egg” |
| se couvrir de ridicule | “to have egg on one’s face” |
| «marcher sur des oeufs» | “to skate in thin ice” |
| “like walking on eggshells” | |
| «on ne fait pas d’omelette sans casser des oeufs» | “you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs” |
| «vue à vol d’oiseaux» | “bird’s-eye view” |
| une personne de la vision affilée | “eagle-eye” |
| «avoir un oeil d’aigle» | to have piercing sight |
| «ce n’est pas un aigle» | not a very intelligent person |
| «mère poule» | overly-attentive mother |
| «poule mouillée» | timid person, milksop |
| «la chair de poule» | “goose pimples” |
| «tuer la poule aux oeufs d’or» (à une fable de La Fontaine). | “to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs” |
| «quand les poules auront des dents» | never |
| très rare (ou n’exist pas) | “like hen’s teeth” |
| «au chant du coq» | “when the cock crows” |
| «comme un coq en pâte» | to be well treated |
| «rouge comme un coq» | “red as a beet” |
| … n’est pas jeune | “… no spring chicken” |
| «bavarder (ou jaser) comme une pie» | to chatter annoyingly, or commit indiscretions |
| «une hirondelle ne fait pas le printemps» | “one swallow doesn’t make a summer” |