What does manquer in French mean?

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

The word manquer in French means miss, fail at, be missing, be lacking, lack, be absent, lack, miss, almost do , nearly do, fail to keep, fail, not-to-be-missed, must-see, I'm going to miss it, be missing, break your word, neglect your duty, neglect your duties, miss dreadfully, miss terribly, be sadly lacking in , be sorely lacking in, be slow off the mark, lack confidence, lack appetite, be out of practice, be short-staffed, lack confidence, lack self-confidence, be staid, lack taste, lack taste, not be very natural, lack energy, be incapable of objectivity, lack stamina, be out of breath, lack stamina, lack determination, be tactless, be short of time, miss school, want for nothing, have a nerve, have a cheek, not fail to do, be sure to do so, just miss each other. To learn more, please see the details below.

Listen to pronunciation

Meaning of the word manquer

miss

verbe transitif (rater)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
J'ai manqué l'avion. Tu as manqué une occasion de te taire. Tu as manqué ton frère, il vient de repartir.
I missed my flight. You missed an opportunity to keep your mouth shut. You've missed your brother; he just left.

fail at

verbe transitif (ne pas réussir [qch], échouer)

Claude a manqué sa mayonnaise. Le pâtissier a manqué ses religieuses.
Claude's mayonnaise went wrong (or: was a failure).

be missing, be lacking

verbe intransitif (faire défaut)

Sur la table, le beurre manque.
The butter isn't on the table.

lack

verbe intransitif (ne pas être là)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Il manque trois employés dans le magasin.
Three of the shop's employees are absent today.

be absent

verbe intransitif (être absent) (person)

Pierre manque encore aujourd'hui.
Peter is absent again today.

lack

verbe transitif indirect (ne pas avoir assez de [qch])

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Ce jeune employé manque d'expérience.
This young employee lacks experience.

miss

verbe transitif indirect (créer un vide) (subject/object inversion)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Tu me manques. Depuis son départ, son père lui manque.
I miss you. He has been missing his father since he left.

almost do , nearly do

verbe transitif (faillir)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Le garçon a manqué tomber dans les escaliers. Ce voyageur a manqué de rater son train.
The boy nearly fell down the stairs. The passenger almost missed his train.

fail to keep

verbe transitif indirect (se soustraire à une obligation morale)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Ce n'est pas la première fois qu'il manque à sa parole.
It's not the first time he's failed to keep his word.

fail

verbe transitif indirect (littéraire (ne pas obéir)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Elle ne supporte pas qu'on lui manque.
She cannot tolerate anyone failing her.

not-to-be-missed, must-see

locution adjectivale (dont il faut profiter)

(adjective: Describes a noun or pronoun--for example, "a tall girl," "an interesting book," "a big house.")
C'est un film à ne pas manquer !

I'm going to miss it

(j'y penserai longtemps)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
Nous déménageons, toutes ces montagnes, ces paysages, ça va me manquer.

be missing

locution verbale (ne pas être présent)

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

break your word

locution verbale (se parjurer)

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

neglect your duty

locution verbale (ne pas respecter les usages)

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

neglect your duties

locution verbale (se dédire)

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

miss dreadfully, miss terribly

locution verbale (faire sentir une absence) (subject/object inversion)

Depuis que nous vivons dans ce petit village la vie d'une grande ville me manque cruellement.

be sadly lacking in , be sorely lacking in

locution verbale (ne plus avoir [qch] de très important)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Les rescapés du séisme manquent cruellement de vivres.

be slow off the mark

locution verbale (ne pas être assez réactif)

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

lack confidence

locution verbale (ne pas être assez sûr de soi)

lack appetite

locution verbale (ne pas avoir faim)

Mon grand-père malade manque d'appétit.

be out of practice

locution verbale (ne pas être assez habitué)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Ce jeune sportif manque d'entraînement pour pouvoir gagner ce match.

be short-staffed

locution verbale (manquer de main-d'œuvre)

Nous sommes à la veille des vendanges et si nous n'embauchons pas plusieurs personnes nous allons manquer de bras.

lack confidence, lack self-confidence

locution verbale (ressentir de l'insécurité)

Il manque trop de confiance en lui pour monter sa propre société.

be staid

locution verbale (être trop prévisible)

lack taste

locution verbale (être fade) (food, drink)

As-tu salé la viande ? Elle manque de goût, elle est fade !

lack taste

locution verbale (figuré (ne pas être assez raffiné)

La décoration de cet appartement manque de goût.

not be very natural

locution verbale (être affecté)

lack energy

locution verbale (manquer d'énergie)

Ce jeune garçon manque de nerf, il va falloir qu'il mange plus que ça !

be incapable of objectivity

locution verbale (figuré (être trop impliqué)

lack stamina

locution verbale (manquer de force)

Je ne sais pas ce qu'il a, il manque de résistance, peut-être lui faut-il des vitamines ?

be out of breath

locution verbale (avoir du mal à respirer)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Le docteur ausculte le jeune garçon car dès qu'il court il manque de souffle.

lack stamina, lack determination

locution verbale (figuré (manquer d'endurance)

Il abandonne dès les premières difficultés, il manque de souffle.

be tactless

locution verbale (ne pas être assez délicat)

Ta sœur manque vraiment de tact, tu as entendu ses réflexions désobligeantes ?

be short of time

locution verbale (ne pas avoir assez de temps)

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

miss school

locution verbale (ne pas aller à l'école)

want for nothing

locution verbale (avoir tout ce dont on a besoin)

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

have a nerve, have a cheek

locution verbale (figuré, familier (beaucoup abuser)

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

not fail to do

locution verbale (faire sans faute)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Je ne vais pas manquer de l'appeler.

be sure to do so

locution verbale (faire assurément [qch])

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

just miss each other

locution verbale (faillir se voir)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Cinq minutes de plus et elles se voyaient ! Elles se sont manquées de peu.

Let's learn French

So now that you know more about the meaning of manquer in French, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in French.

Do you know about French

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.