Skip to content

spontané

spontaneous, unplanned

adjective spohn-tah-NAY Rare

Origin: Latin spontaneus (of one's own will)

Usage Note

spontané describes actions or people that are natural and unforced. The feminine form is spontanée. The adverb spontanément ('spontaneously') and noun spontanéité ('spontaneity') are frequent companions. Combustion spontanée ('spontaneous combustion') is a fixed phrase.

Examples

"Sa réaction spontanée m'a surpris."

Natural Translation

His spontaneous reaction surprised me.

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