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verb

divertir

entertain

Definition & meaning

Divertir is a French verb with several related meanings:

  1. To entertain or amuse someone: to make someone enjoy themselves or laugh.
    Le spectacle divertit le public. — “The show entertains the audience.”

  2. To distract someone or take their mind off something:
    Cette activité le divertit de ses soucis. — “This activity takes his mind off his worries.”

  3. To divert or redirect something—such as traffic, attention, or resources—from its usual path or purpose. In some contexts, diverting funds can imply misappropriating them.

The reflexive form se divertir means to have fun or to enjoy oneself.

Grammar & Word origin

Divertir is a regular verb in the second French verb group, ending in -ir. Its present-tense forms include je divertis, nous divertissons, and ils divertissent. The reflexive form is se divertir.

The verb comes from Latin divertere, meaning “to turn aside” or “to go in a different direction.” This origin relates to both the sense of redirecting something and the idea of turning someone’s attention away from everyday concerns.

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms depend on the meaning:

  • amuser — “to amuse”; often emphasizes making someone laugh or feel entertained.
  • distraire — “to distract” or “to entertain”; especially common when taking someone’s mind off something.
  • réjouir — “to delight” or “to gladden”; stronger emphasis on making someone happy.
  • détourner and dévier — “to redirect” or “to divert”; appropriate for routes, attention, or resources rather than entertainment.

Possible antonyms for the entertainment sense include:

  • ennuyer — “to bore”; the clearest opposite of entertaining.
  • attrister — “to sadden”; an opposite in emotional effect, though not a direct antonym in every context.

Common phrases & collocations

  • divertir quelqu’un — to entertain someone.
  • se divertir — to have fun or enjoy oneself.
  • divertir le public — to entertain the audience.
  • divertir quelqu’un de ses soucis — to take someone’s mind off their worries.

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Examples

Ce spectacle divertira sûrement les enfants.verb

This show will surely entertain the children.

Cette activité les a divertis malgré la pluie.verb

This activity entertained them despite the rain.

Les jeux simples divertissent parfois toute la classe.verb

Simple games sometimes entertain the whole class.

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