What does détourner in French mean?

What is the meaning of the word détourner in French? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use détourner in French.

The word détourner in French means divert, hijack, embezzle, misappropriate, distort, twist, turn away, turn away from, deter, divert 's attention, create a distraction, change the subject, look away, avert your eyes, turn a blind eye. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word détourner

divert

verbe transitif (changer le tracé initial)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Les ingénieurs ont détourné la rivière.
The engineers diverted the river.

hijack

verbe transitif (écarter d'un chemin prévu par la force)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Les voleurs ont détourné le fourgon postal.
The thieves hijacked the post van.

embezzle, misappropriate

verbe transitif (soustraire de l'argent de façon illégale)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Le comptable a détourné des sommes considérables.
The accountant misappropriated a considerable sum of money.

distort, twist

verbe transitif (changer la finalité de)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Cet artiste a détourné des affiches publicitaires.
This artist has distorted advertising billboards.

turn away

verbe pronominal (tourner la tête de côté)

(phrasal verb, intransitive: Verb with adverb(s) or preposition(s), having special meaning and not taking direct object--for example, "make up" [=reconcile]: "After they fought, they made up.")
Elle se détourne pour cacher son fou rire.
She turns away to hide her uncontrollable laughter.

turn away from

(prendre ses distances avec [qch/qqn])

Elle s'est complètement détournée de la religion.
She has entirely turned away from religion.

deter

verbe transitif (amener [qqn] à renoncer à [qch])

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Rien ne le détournera d'épouser cette fille.
Nothing will put him off marrying this girl.

divert 's attention

(distraire [qqn])

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

create a distraction

locution verbale (distraire)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

change the subject

locution verbale (changer intentionnellement de sujet)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

look away

locution verbale (regarder intentionnellement ailleurs)

avert your eyes

locution verbale (regarder intentionnellement ailleurs)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

turn a blind eye

locution verbale (figuré (ignorer) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

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French (le français) is a Romance language. Like Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, it comes from popular Latin, once used in the Roman Empire. A French-speaking person or country can be called a "Francophone". French is the official language in 29 countries. French is the fourth most spoken native language in the European Union. French ranks third in the EU, after English and German, and is the second most widely taught language after English. The majority of the world's French-speaking population lives in Africa, with about 141 million Africans from 34 countries and territories who can speak French as a first or second language. French is the second most widely spoken language in Canada, after English, and both are official languages at the federal level. It is the first language of 9.5 million people or 29% and the second language of 2.07 million people or 6% of the entire population of Canada. In contrast to other continents, French has no popularity in Asia. Currently, no country in Asia recognizes French as an official language.