What does tantôt in French mean?

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

The word tantôt in French means shortly, soon, sometimes, earlier, this afternoon. To learn more, please see the details below.

Listen to pronunciation

Meaning of the word tantôt

shortly, soon

adverbe (bientôt)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Il passera nous voir tantôt.
He will come and see us shortly (or: soon).

sometimes

adverbe (une fois ... une fois)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Mon frère me rendait visite, tantôt triste, tantôt joyeux.
My brother would come to see me, sometimes sad, sometimes joyful.

earlier

adverbe (Belgique, Luxembourg, Canada, Afrique (récemment, plus tôt)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Marc a appelé tantôt, ce matin je crois.
Mark called earlier; this morning, I think.

this afternoon

adverbe (régionalisme, familier (cet après-midi)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Le docteur ne peut pas passer ce matin, mais il viendra tantôt.
The doctor can't call in this morning, but he will come this afternoon.

Let's learn French

So now that you know more about the meaning of tantôt 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.