Skip to content

contour

outline, contour

noun kohn-TOOR Rare
Descriptions & Qualities Sizes & Shapes

Also means

bend, curve (in a road)

Usage Note

Contour is used in art and cartography for the outline or silhouette of a shape, and in geography for terrain contour lines (courbes de niveau). In everyday speech it also refers to bends in a road (les contours d'une route) or the curves of a face or body. The plural contours often conveys the overall shape of an object.

Examples

"Dessine les contours du visage au crayon."

Natural Translation

Sketch the contours of the face in pencil.

Free starter pack

Building your French vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common French words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore French by topic