frémir

to shudder, to tremble

verb freh-MEER Rare

Origin: Latin fremere 'to roar, to murmur'

Also means

to simmer

Usage Note

Frémir covers both the physical shudder of fear or cold and the culinary sense of liquid barely simmering — l'eau frémit (the water is just below a boil). The noun frémissement means a shudder or a gentle trembling. In cooking, faire frémir is a precise instruction to bring liquid to a near-simmer.

Examples

"Elle frémit en entendant ce bruit."

Natural Translation

She shuddered when she heard that noise.

Literal Translation

She shuddered on hearing that noise.

Free starter pack

Building your French vocabulary?

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

Related Words

Explore French by topic

FrenchNow

Avoir or Être? Picking the Right Past-Tense Helper

Use avoir for the passé composé unless the verb is reflexive or one of ~16 DR MRS VANDERTRAMP motion verbs, which take être and force agreement.

June 4, 2026 5 min read

FrenchNow

French Liaison Rules: When to Link Words (and Not To)

French liaison links a silent final consonant to the next vowel. Learn the obligatory, forbidden, and optional rules, plus the s→z and d→t sound shifts.

June 4, 2026 5 min read

FrenchNow

French Adjective Placement: Before or After the Noun?

French adjectives usually follow the noun, but a small common set goes before it — and a few change meaning depending on which side they sit. Here's the rule.

June 4, 2026 5 min read

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