Commonly Used French Phrases, Words & Their Meanings

There are a lot of phrases and words frequently used in Louis Prudomme’s Dictionary of People who were condemned to death. They will have you chained to an online translator for eternity. To make it easier for you, I’ve listed some of those words and phrases that show up on a regular basis with their simple definitions

père	father	comme	as
l’aine	the oldest son	convaincu	convinced
cadet	the youngest son	dit/dite	also know as
jeune	young, junior, youth	ci-devant	from before, former
fils	son	séante	court assembly
fille majeur	daughter/girl of legal age	d’arrêt	arrest. warrant
femme	wife	detenu	detained
veuve	widow	faux	false, fake
complice	accomplice	événement	event, occasion
peine	pain

Phrases to Understand

exècuted avec une chemise rouge	(convicted assassins) executed in a red shirt or similar piece of red clothing
mis hors la loi	outlawed, outlaw
de fers	many meanings, but in this context, it means “iron” most likely ‘in chains”
où il étoit dentenu	where he was detained

Brief Meaning of Charges and Crimes

brigand		an armed robber, member of a band of Brigands
(m)conspirateur/conspiratrice (f)		man or woman one who conspires with others to form a plot
fédéraliste (féderé)		a volunteer soldier of the French National Guard
prévaricateur		a corrupt official
émigré		fleeing the country
réfractaire		strong opposition to the law
contre-révolutionaire		counter-revolution; fighting against the emerging French republic
faux-assignats		counterfeit money

Meanings of Punishment

condamnés à morte	condemned to death
condamnés à la deportation	condemned to exile
condamnés à la detention	condemned to prison (for a period of months or years)