would in the Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary

Translations for would in the English»French Dictionary

would <nég wouldn't> [Brit wʊd, wəd, Am wʊd, wəd, (ə)d] VB mod a. 'd When would is used with a verb in English to form the conditional tense, would + verb is translated by the present conditional of the appropriate verb in French and would have + verb by the past conditional of the appropriate verb: I would do it if I had time = je le ferais si j'avais le temps; I would have done it if I had had time = je l'aurais fait si j'avais eu le temps; he said he would fetch the car = il a dit qu'il irait chercher la voiture.
For more examples, particular usages and all other uses of would see the entry below.

1. would (in sequence of past tenses, in reported speech):

she said she wouldn't come

elle a dit qu'elle ne viendrait pas

we thought we would be late

nous avons pensé que nous serions en retard

I was sure you'd like it

j'étais sûr que ça te plairait

we were wondering if he'd accept

nous nous demandions s'il accepterait

they promised that they'd come back

ils ont promis de revenir

soon it would be time to get up

ce serait bientôt l'heure de se lever

it was to be the last chance we would have to leave

ça devait être la dernière chance que nous aurions de partir

he thought she would have forgotten

il pensait qu'elle aurait oublié

I wish he would shut the door!

il pourrait fermer la porte!

I wish you'd be quiet!

tu ne pourrais pas te taire!

2. would (in conditional statements):

it would be wonderful if they came

ce serait merveilleux s'ils venaient

I'm sure she would help if you asked her

je suis sûr qu'elle t'aiderait si tu le lui demandais

if we'd left later we would have missed the train

si nous étions partis plus tard nous aurions raté le train

we wouldn't be happy anywhere else

nous ne serions heureux nulle part ailleurs

what would be the best way to approach him?

quel serait le meilleur moyen de l'aborder?

who would ever have believed it?

qui l'aurait cru?

you wouldn't have thought it possible!

on n'aurait jamais cru que c'était possible!

I would have found out sooner or later

je l'aurais découvert tôt ou tard

wouldn't it be nice if…

ce serait bien si…

we wouldn't have succeeded without his help

nous n'aurions jamais réussi sans son aide

it wouldn't be the same without them

ça ne serait pas la même chose sans eux

it cost far less than I would have expected

ça a coûté beaucoup moins cher que je n'aurais pensé

3. would (expressing willingness to act):

do you know anyone who would do it?

est-ce que tu connais quelqu'un qui le ferait?

they couldn't find anyone who would take the job

ils n'arrivaient pas à trouver quelqu'un qui accepte le poste

he wouldn't hurt a fly

il ne ferait pas de mal à une mouche

she just wouldn't listen

elle ne voulait rien entendre

after that I wouldn't eat any canned food

après cela je ne voulais plus manger de conserves

he wouldn't do a thing to help

il n'a rien voulu faire pour aider

the police wouldn't give any further details

la police a refusé de donner plus de détails

they asked me to leave but I wouldn't

ils m'ont demandé de partir mais j'ai refusé

4. would (expressing inability to function):

the door wouldn't close

la porte ne voulait pas se fermer

the brakes wouldn't work

les freins ne marchaient pas

5. would (expressing desire, preference):

we would like to stay another night

nous aimerions rester une nuit de plus

we'd really love to see you

nous aimerions vraiment te voir

I would much rather travel alone

je préfèrerais nettement voyager seul

she would have preferred a puppy

elle aurait préféré un chiot

which film would you rather see?

quel film est-ce que tu préférerais voir?

I wouldn't mind another slice of cake

je prendrais bien un autre morceau de gâteau

it's what he would have wanted

c'est ce qu'il aurait voulu

6. would (in polite requests or proposals):

would you like something to eat?

voudriez-vous quelque chose à manger?

would you like some more tea?

voulez-vous encore du thé?

would you help me set the table?

est-ce que tu pourrais m'aider à mettre la table?

switch off the radio, would you?

éteins la radio, tu veux bien?

would you be interested in buying a vacuum cleaner?

est-ce que vous seriez intéressé par un aspirateur?

would you like to go to a concert

est-ce que tu aimerais aller à un concert?

would you give her the message?

est-ce que vous voulez bien lui transmettre le message?

would you mind not smoking please?

est-ce que ça vous ennuyerait de ne pas fumer s'il vous plaît?

would you please be quiet

un peu de silence s'il vous plaît

would you be so kind as to leave? form

auriez-vous l'obligeance de partir d'ici? form

7. would (used to attenuate statements):

it would seem that he was right

il semblerait qu'il avait raison

so it would seem

c'est ce qu'il semble

you would think they'd be satisfied with the results!

on aurait pu penser qu'ils seraient satisfaits des résultats!

I wouldn't say that

je ne dirais pas ça

I would have thought it was obvious

j'aurais pensé que c'était évident

I wouldn't know

je ne pourrais pas vous le dire

8. would (when giving advice):

I wouldn't do that if I were you

je ne ferais pas ça à ta place or si j'étais toi

I really wouldn't worry

à ta place je ne m'en ferais pas

I would check the timetable first

tu ferais bien de vérifier l'horaire d'abord

I'd give her a ring now

tu devrais lui téléphoner maintenant

wouldn't it be better to write?

est-ce que ce ne serait pas mieux d'écrire?

9. would (expressing exasperation):

‘he denies it’—‘well he would, wouldn't he?’

‘il le nie’—‘évidemment!’

of course you would contradict him!

bien sûr il a fallu que tu le contredises!

‘she put her foot in it inf’—‘she would!’

‘elle a mis les pieds dans le plat’—‘tu m'étonnes!’, ‘c'est bien d'elle!’ inf

10. would (expressing an assumption):

what time would that be?

c'était vers quelle heure?

I suppose it would have been about 3 pm

je pense qu'il était à peu près 15h 00

being so young, you wouldn't remember the war

étant donné ton âge tu ne dois pas te rappeler la guerre

let's see, that would be his youngest son

voyons, ça doit être son plus jeune fils

it would have been about five years ago

ça devait être il y a environ cinq ans

you'd never have guessed she was German

on n'aurait jamais cru qu'elle était allemande

11. would (indicating habitual event or behaviour in past: used to):

she would sit for hours at the window

elle passait des heures assise à la fenêtre

every winter the fields would be flooded

tous les hivers les champs étaient inondés

the children would be up at dawn

les enfants étaient toujours debout à l'aube

12. would (if only) form:

would that it were true!

si seulement c'était vrai!

would to God that …

plût à Dieu que … form

would-be [Brit ˈwʊdbi, Am ˈwʊd ˌbi] ADJ

1. would-be (desirous of being):

would-be emigrants/investors

des émigrés/investisseurs en puissance

would-be intellectuals pej

des soi-disant or prétendus intellectuels pej

2. would-be (having intended to be):

the would-be thieves were arrested

les voleurs ont été arrêtés avant qu'ils aient pu passer à l'acte

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

that would be self-defeating

cela irait à l'encontre du but recherché

that would be treason

ce serait une trahison

would you like it gift-wrapped?

est-ce que je vous fais un paquet-cadeau?

would you like cashback?

voulez-vous retirer de l'argent?

I would question the soundness of his judgment

je mets en doute la sûreté de son jugement

it would be more seemly to…

ça serait plus convenable de…

Translations for would in the French»English Dictionary

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

je vous serais reconnaissant de bien vouloir faire form

I should ou would be grateful if you would do

il serait prématuré de faire

it would be premature to do

would in the PONS Dictionary

Translations for would in the English»French Dictionary

would [wʊd] VB aux

1. would pt of will

2. would (in indirect speech):

he said he would come

il a dit qu'il viendrait

I thought I would have arrived on time

j'ai cru que j'arriverais à l'heure

3. would (conditional):

I would come if I had time

j'irais si j'avais du temps

it would have been hard to drive

cela aurait été difficile de rouler

I would travel if I were rich

je voyagerais si j'étais riche

4. would (implied condition):

it would be a pleasure

ce serait avec plaisir

my mother would know

ma mère le saurait

5. would (desires and preferences):

I'd like some water

j'aimerais un peu d'eau

would you mind ...?

auriez-vous l'obligeance ...?

I wish they'd go

j'aimerais qu'ils partent

I would have preferred

j'aurais préféré

I would rather/sooner do sth

je préférerais faire qc

would I were there

si seulement j'étais là

6. would (regularity in past):

as a child, I would work from 6 to 6

enfant, je travaillais de 6 heures à 18 heures

7. would (characteristic behaviour):

she would say that, wouldn't she?

c'est ce qu'elle dirait, non?

she would never do that

elle ne ferait jamais une telle chose

8. would (probably):

that would be his mother on the phone

cela devait être sa mère au téléphone

9. would (offering polite advice):

I would come early if I were you

j'arriverais tôt si j'étais vous

I wouldn't go on Thursday

je ne partirais pas jeudi à ta place

10. would (asking motives):

why would he do that?

pourquoi ferait-il une telle chose?

See also will², will¹

I.will² [wɪl] N

1. will no pl (faculty):

will

volonté f

strength of will

force f de caractère

against sb's will

contre la volonté de qn

to lose the will to live

perdre la raison de vivre

2. will LAW:

will

testament m

Phrases:

where there's a will, there's a way prov

quand on veut on peut

with the best will in the world

avec toute la bonne volonté du monde

II.will² [wɪl] VB trans

1. will (make happen):

to will sb to do sth

faire faire qc à qn

to will sb to win/live

souhaiter de toutes ses forces que qn gagne/survive +subj

2. will form (ordain):

will

décréter

3. will (bequeath):

will

léguer

will¹ <would, would> [wɪl] VB aux

1. will (expressing future):

I/we will [or I'll/we'll] do sth

je ferai/nous ferons qc

you won't be late, will you?

tu ne seras pas en retard, n'est-ce pas?

she won't pay — yes she will!

elle ne paiera pas — si, elle paiera!

2. will (polite form):

will you please follow me?

voulez-vous me suivre, s'il vous plaît?

will you be so kind as to sit down?

auriez-vous la gentillesse de vous asseoir?

3. will (wish, agree):

will

vouloir

say what you will

dis ce que tu veux

will you wait?

veux-tu attendre?

the engine won't start

le moteur ne veut pas démarrer

4. will (emphatic):

a drama will happen

on ne pourra éviter le drame

he will leave the door open

il laissera la porte ouverte

I will succeed despite you

je persisterai malgré toi

5. will (explaining a procedure):

they'll give you an anaesthetic

on te fera une anesthésie

6. will (conjecture):

will

devoir

that will be the doctor

cela doit être le médecin

would-be [ˈwʊdbi] ADJ

would-be

soi-disant(e)

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

I would prefer you to do sth

je préférerais que tu fasses qc subj

sb would prefer that

qn aimerait mieux que +subj

it would be fatal to stop now

ça serait catastrophique de s'arrêter maintenant

sth would not go amiss

qc serait le bienvenu

sb would like sth

qn aimerait qc

how would you like ... ?

comment aimerais-tu/aimeriez-vous ...?

would you mind brewing up a cuppa?

tu veux bien me faire un thé?

I wish the ground would open and swallow me up

je voudrais pouvoir disparaître dans un trou

it would be suicide to +infin

ce serait suicidaire de +infin

Translations for would in the French»English Dictionary

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

il est/serait prématuré de +infin

it is/would be premature to +infin

would Examples from the PONS Dictionary (editorially verified)

would you mind brewing up a cuppa?

tu veux bien me faire un thé?

it would be fatal to stop now

ça serait catastrophique de s'arrêter maintenant

would you oblige me with your book?

auriez-vous l'amabilité de me prêter votre livre?

do as you would be done by Brit prov

ne faites pas à autrui ce que vous ne voudriez pas qu'on vous fît

I would prefer you to do it

je préfère que tu le fasses (subj)

I would like to help you more

je souhaiterais t'aider davantage

he would like to be a doctor

il voudrait être médecin

would you like to take a seat

veux-tu/voulez-vous [ou veuillez] [ou voudriez-vous] prendre place (poli)

would you like another cup of tea?

voulez-vous encore une tasse de thé?

would you like to come to dinner?

vous plairait-il de venir dîner?

Monolingual examples (not verified by PONS Editors)

English

We handled all aspects of production ourselves, working on weekends and whenever our collective personal schedules would permit.

en.wikipedia.org

Doing so would neutralize that player, preventing him/her from earning any exemptions offered in that round.

en.wikipedia.org

She lived across from a dairy farm; this rural setting would later influence many of her works.

en.wikipedia.org

The bears would not have returned north except in pursuit of food.

en.wikipedia.org

His long-term view was that deflation would, in any case, be the best way to help the economy.

en.wikipedia.org

We would have the odd bit of pilfering of potatoes and onions, but this was deliberate.

www.independent.ie

The club were advised that the planning permission required would not necessarily be granted, and chose not to take the scheme further.

en.wikipedia.org

Although there are catchwords in the manuscript, each scribe would have been responsible for all of the pages of each of his assignments.

en.wikipedia.org

For typical laser wavelengths, this method would require billions of micrometre-size antennae.

en.wikipedia.org

The scale of the proposed scheme is such that very large quantities of seawater would be evaporated.

en.wikipedia.org