célébrer
to celebrate
verb say-lay-BRAY Less Common
Origin: Latin 'celebrare' (to frequent, honor)
Usage Note
Célébrer is used for both festive events (célébrer un anniversaire) and religious or ceremonial marking (célébrer une messe). The related noun is célébration and the adjective célèbre means 'famous' — a false-friend trap since English 'celebrate' and 'celebrated/famous' share Latin roots but differ in French.
Examples
"Nous allons célébrer la victoire ce soir."
Natural Translation
We are going to celebrate the victory tonight.
Related Words
Explore French by topic