Economics plays an important role in the development of any nation. The way we understand economics can decide the progress of a nation. In this lesson, learn how different economic terms are called in French. Use them when you talk to someone about it in French.
1. la production
Meaning: the amount of something that is made or grown by a country or a company:
English: production
Example: Les grévistes ont stoppé la production. (Strikers brought production to a standstill.)
2. la consommation
Meaning:using of goods and services in an economy, or the amount of goods and services used
English: consumption
Example: La consommation d’eau diminue en hiver. (Water consumption decreases in winter.)
3. les biens
Meaning: something that is owned by a person, company, or organization, such as money, property, or land
English: assets
Example: L’entreprise a disposé de tous ses biens. (The business disposed of all its capital assets.)
4. l’échange
Meaning: the process of changing one currency for another
English: exchange
Example: Les taux d’échange sont toujours sujets à variation. (Currency exchange rates are always subject to variation.)
5. les théories économiques
Meaning : the ideas and principles that aim to describe how economies work
English: economic theories
Example: Vous apprendrez quelques théories économiques dans cette leçon. (You will be learning a few economic theories in this lesson.)
6. la gestion
Meaning: the activity of controlling something, or of using or dealing with something in a way that is effective
English: management
Example: Le projet n’a pas été un succès en raison d’une mauvaise gestion. (The project wasn’t a success because of bad management.)
7. la macroéconomie
Meaning: the study of financial systems at a national level
English: macroeconomics
Example: La macroéconomie m’intéresse plus que la microéconomie. (Macroeconomics interests me more than microeconomics.)
8. la microéconomie
Meaning: the study of the economic problems of businesses and people and the way particular parts of an economy behave
Example: La microéconomie moderne concerne l’offre, la demande et l’équilibre du marché. (Modern microeconomics is about supply, demand, and market equilibrium.)
9. le mercantilisme
Meaning :the idea that a country’s government should try to influence trade and business, especially by encouraging exports and putting limits on imports
English: mercantilism
Example: Le mercantilisme considère le commerce international comme un jeu à somme nulle. (Mercantilism views international trade as a zero sum game.)
10. le libre-échange
Meaning: international trade in which companies can import and export each other’s goods without the usual taxes, limits, etc
English: free trade
Example: Les anciennes lois créaient des barrières au libre-échange (The old laws created barriers to free trade.)
11. le marxisme
Meaning :a social, political, and economic theory that is based on the writings of Karl Marx
English: Marxism
Example: Le socialisme moderne est dominé par le marxisme. (Modern socialism is dominated by Marxism.)
12. l’inflation
Meaning: a general, continuous increase in prices
English: inflation
Example: Le chômage et l’inflation sont interdépendants. (Unemployment and inflation are interrelated.)
13. la récession
Meaning: a period when the economy of a country is not successful and conditions for business are bad
English: recession
Example: Des centaines d’entreprises ont fait faillite pendant la récession. (Hundreds of firms went bankrupt during the recession.)
14. l’imposition
Meaning: the system of taxing people
English: taxation
Example: Ils étaient accablés de lourdes impositions. (They were burdened with heavy taxes.)
15. l’équilibre général
Meaning: a situation in which an economy is balanced and not experiencing large changes
English: equilibrium
Example: Nous avons atteint un équilibre dans l’économie. (We have achieved an equilibrium in the economy.)
I hope you enjoyed learning different words related to economics in French. Did you know any of them? Write down which ones in French in comments. For more such vocabulary, keep reading our blog. You can easily learn French online with us. Stay tuned for more interesting blogs.
