mille
mile
The French translation for 'mile' is 'mille'. In French, 'mille' is used much like 'mile' in English. It refers to a measure of distance. Note that unlike in English, 'mille' does not take the plural form when referring to multiple miles. For example, 'five miles' would be 'cinq mille' in French.
Example sentences using: mille
J'ai mille raisons d'être heureux.
I have a thousand reasons to be happy.
In this phrase, 'mille' is used to express a large, indefinite quantity. It does not literally mean the speaker has counted 1000 reasons, but rather that they have many reasons.
Il m'a donné mille euros pour mon anniversaire.
He gave me a thousand euros for my birthday.
Here, 'mille' is used in a literal sense to denote the quantity of money received.
Nous avons marché mille miles.
We've walked a thousand miles.
The term 'mille' is used figuratively to emphasize the long distance covered.
Cela vaut mille fois plus.
This is worth a thousand times more.
In this phrase, 'mille' is used to indicate a large multiplication factor, emphasizing the high value of something.
Il a mille et une façons de résoudre ce problème.
He has a thousand and one ways to solve this problem.
The expression 'mille et un' is a common hyperbolic phrase in French to indicate numerousness or variety.
J'ai mille choses à faire avant de partir.
I have a thousand things to do before leaving.
The word 'mille' is used in this context to emphasize the multitude of tasks to be completed, not literally a thousand.
Elle parle à mille à l'heure.
She talks a mile a minute.
The French expression 'parler à mille à l'heure' is equivalent to the English 'talking a mile a minute', both indicating fast speech.
Il est un artiste aux mille talents.
He is an artist with a thousand talents.
The use of 'mille' in this phrase is a hyperbolic way of expressing someone's multi-faceted skills.
Il a mille fois raison.
He is a thousand times right.
This phrase uses 'mille fois' to intensify the assertion that someone is correct, functioning as an idiomatic expression.
Elle a lu ce livre mille fois.
She has read this book a thousand times.
In this sentence, 'mille fois' is used in a figurative sense, indicating that the book has been read many times.