croisade

crusade

noun krwah-ZAD Rare

Origin: Old French 'croisade', from croix (cross) — originally the campaign of those 'marked with the cross'

Usage Note

Croisade covers both the historical medieval crusades (les croisades of the 11th–13th centuries) and any vigorous campaign for a cause — une croisade contre le tabac is a crusade against smoking. The agent noun is croisé (crusader). It is always feminine and the historical plural les Croisades is typically capitalised.

Examples

"Il mène une croisade contre la corruption."

Natural Translation

He is leading a crusade against corruption.

Related Words

Explore French by topic

FrenchNow

French Numbers 70, 80, 90 Made Simple

French numbers 70, 80, 90 are soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, and quatre-vingt-dix. Learn three build formulas to make any number 70-99 on the fly.

June 3, 2026 5 min read

FrenchNow

French Noun Gender: Rules to Guess Right 80%

Guess French noun gender right 80% of the time using word endings: -age, -ment, -eau are masculine; -tion, -té, -ette are feminine. A high-yield system.

June 3, 2026 5 min read

FrenchNow

Telling Time in French: Hours, Quarters, 24-Hour

Telling time in French means Il est cinq heures, et quart, et demie, and the 24-hour clock like quatorze heures trente. Read any French schedule.

June 4, 2026 5 min read

FrenchNow

Passé Composé vs Imparfait: When to Use Each

Passé composé tells the story; imparfait paints the scene. Use this 2-second flowchart, trigger words, and paired examples to pick the right French tense.

June 3, 2026 6 min read