la livre

Definition & meaning

The word livre has two primary meanings depending on its grammatical gender:

1. Un livre (masculine noun): A book. It refers to a set of written, printed, or blank pages bound together into a volume.
2. Une livre (feminine noun): A pound. This refers to a unit of weight (approximately 500 grams in the metric system) or a historical unit of currency (such as the French livre used before the adoption of the franc).

Grammar & Word origin

• Grammar: This word is a homonym distinguished by its gender (le vs. la). It is essential to check the article to determine the meaning.
• Origin:
  • For the masculine noun (book), it comes from the Latin word liber, which originally referred to the inner bark of trees, used as a writing surface in ancient times.
  • For the feminine noun (pound), it comes from the Latin word libra, which referred to a Roman unit of weight and a balance scale.

Synonyms & antonyms

For the masculine noun (book):

• Synonyms: ouvrage ↗, volume ↗, manuel ↗, publication ↗.

For the feminine noun (pound):

• Synonyms: demi-kilo ↗ (for the weight unit).

There are no direct antonyms for these nouns.