la tombe
grave
Lieu où l’on met le corps d’une personne morte, souvent dans un cimetière.
Definition & meaning
Tombe has two main meanings:
-
A grave or tomb
As a feminine noun, une tombe means the place where a dead person is buried, often marked by a stone or monument.- Il a déposé des fleurs sur la tombe de son grand-père. — “He placed flowers on his grandfather’s grave.”
-
“Falls” or “fall!”
As a form of the verb tomber , it can mean:- il/elle/on tombe — “he/she/one falls” or “is falling”
- que je/il/elle tombe — “that I/he/she fall”
- tombe ! — “fall!” in the informal singular imperative, though this command is uncommon outside particular contexts
The exact meaning depends on the sentence. For example, La feuille tombe means “The leaf is falling,” while la tombe means “the grave.”
Grammar & Word origin
As a noun
The noun comes from Latin tumba, meaning “tomb” or “burial mound,” itself from Ancient Greek túmbos, “mound” or “tomb.”
As a verb
Tombe is a conjugated form of tomber , “to fall.”
- Present indicative: il tombe — “he falls” / “he is falling”
- Present subjunctive: qu’il tombe — “that he fall”
- Imperative: tombe ! — “fall!”
The verb form consists of the stem tomb- plus the appropriate verb ending. The verb tomber is an -er verb.
Synonyms & antonyms
When tombe means “grave”
Possible synonyms include:
- sépulture — a formal term for a burial place
- tombeau — a tomb or monument, often more imposing or literary than tombe
- monument funéraire — a funerary monument, emphasizing the structure or memorial
There is no exact direct antonym for “grave.” Contextual contrasts include vivant , “alive,” or naissance , “birth,” depending on the intended opposition.
When tombe means “falls”
Possible synonyms include:
- chute — a fall, used as a noun; it does not function as a direct replacement for the verb
- s’écroule — “collapses,” stronger and generally involving a structure or a person losing support
- décline — “declines,” used figuratively for a decrease or deterioration rather than a physical fall
Possible antonyms include:
Common phrases & collocations
With the noun tombe
- une tombe anonyme — an unmarked or anonymous grave
- une tombe fleurie — a grave decorated with flowers
- une pierre tombale — a gravestone
- aller sur la tombe de quelqu’un — to visit someone’s grave
- reposer dans la tombe — to rest in the grave
With the verb tomber
- tomber par terre — to fall to the ground
- tomber amoureux/amoureuse — to fall in love
- tomber malade — to fall ill
- tomber de haut — literally “to fall from a height”; figuratively, to suffer a major disappointment
- ça tombe bien — “that works out well” or “that’s good timing”
- la nuit tombe — night is falling
- tomber en panne — to break down or stop working
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Examples
La tombe est près de l’arbre.noun
The grave is near the tree.
Il pose des fleurs sur la tombe.noun
He places flowers on the grave.
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