| Principales traductions |
| think⇒ vi | (reflect, consider) | penser⇒, réfléchir⇒ vi |
| | Bert stepped outside to think for a moment. |
| | Bert est sorti pour réfléchir un moment. |
| think [sth]⇒ vtr | (hold an opinion) | penser [qch] de [qch] vtr |
| | Perhaps this painting would look better on that wall; what do you think? |
| | Peut-être que ce tableau irait mieux sur ce mur, qu'est-ce que tu en penses ? |
think,
think that vtr | (believe) | penser que + [indicatif] vtr |
| | | croire que + [indicatif] vtr |
| | I think Tom's coming with us. I'll just ask him. |
| | I think that we should take that road. |
| | Je pense (or: crois) que Tom vient avec nous. Je vais lui demander. // Je pense que nous devrions prendre cette route. |
think,
think that vtr | (intend, determine) | penser que + [indicatif] vtr + conj |
| | I think I'll go to the grocer's now. |
| | Je pense que je vais aller à l'épicerie maintenant. |
| think about [sth] vi + prep | (consider) | réfléchir à [qch] vtr ind |
| | I don't know at the moment; I need to think about it again. |
| | Je ne sais pas pour le moment ; j'ai besoin d'y réfléchir encore. |
think about [sth/sb],
think of [sth/sb] vi + prep | (be preoccupied) | penser à [qch/qqn] vtr ind |
| | He was saddened, and thought about her situation all the time. |
| | Il était attristé, et pensait à sa situation tout le temps. |
| think of doing [sth] v expr | (consider: doing [sth]) | penser à faire [qch] vtr ind |
| | We're thinking of going to that new Italian restaurant tonight. |
| | On pense aller au nouveau restaurant italien ce soir. |
think about doing [sth],
think of v expr | (consider possibility) | penser à faire [qch] loc v |
| | Don't even think about asking me to do you any more favours! |
| | N'y pense même pas ! Je ne te rendrai plus jamais service. |
| think of [sth] vi + prep | (devise, invent) | trouver⇒ vtr |
| | He thought of a new way to manufacture pencils. |
| | Il a trouvé une nouvelle façon de fabriquer des crayons. |
| Traductions supplémentaires |
| think of [sth/sb] as [sth] v expr | (consider to be) | considérer⇒ vi |
| | I think of him as my friend. |
| | Je le considère comme un ami. |
| think⇒ vi | (meditate, daydream) | réfléchir⇒ vi |
| | Don't bother him, he's thinking. |
| | Ne le dérange pas, il réfléchit. |
| think of [sth/sb] vi + prep | (take into account) | penser à [qch/qqn] vtr ind |
| | You can't leave me! Think of the children! |
| | Tu ne peux pas me quitter ! Pense aux enfants ! |
| think [sth/sb] ...⇒ vtr | literary, formal (consider to be) | penser que [qch/qqn] est... loc v |
| | | considérer [qch/qqn] comme étant... loc v |
| | The first time I met Charles, I thought him a vain man. |
| think [sth] + adj⇒ vtr | (with adjective: regard, consider) (juger) | penser⇒ vtr |
| | He thought it right to pay his taxes. |
| | Il pensait que c'était normal de payer des impôts. |
| think [sth]⇒ vtr | (remember) | se rappeler⇒ v pron |
| | Can you think what we did last weekend? |
| | Tu te rappelles ce qu'on a fait le week-end dernier ? |
| think [sth] vtr | (expect) | penser⇒ vtr |
| | What do you think will happen? |
| | Que penses-tu qu'il va arriver ? |
Verbes à particule
think | thought |
| think ahead vi phrasal | (predict, prepare for future) | anticiper⇒, prévoir⇒ vtr |
| | When I pack for a vacation, I try to think ahead and bring all the items that I might need. |
| | Quand je fais mes valises pour les vacances, j'essaie d'anticiper (or: prévoir) et d'apporter toutes les affaires dont j'aurai besoin. |
| think back on [sth] vi phrasal + prep | (recall, remember) | se rappeler [qch], se remémorer [qch] v pron |
| | | repenser à [qch] vtr ind |
| | | se souvenir de [qqn] v pron |
| think [sth] over vtr phrasal sep | (consider, deliberate) | (bien) réfléchir à vtr ind |
| | Think over what I said and let me know tomorrow what your decision is. |
| | Réfléchis bien à ce que j'ai dit et fais-moi connaître ta décision demain. |
| think [sth] up vtr phrasal sep | (invent, devise) | imaginer⇒, inventer⇒ vtr |
| | (une solution, une excuse,...) | trouver⇒ vtr |
| | Hey Jane, I just thought up a solution to your problem! |
| | Jane, j'ai trouvé une solution à ton problème ! |
Formes composées
thought | think |
| a sobering thought n | (reminder of harsh reality) | [qch] qui donne à réfléchir expr |
| | It's a sobering thought that thousands of graduates will never find a job. |
deep in thought,
in deep thought expr | (thinking intensely) | plongé dans ses pensées, perdu dans ses pensées loc adj |
| | Deep in thought, she didn't hear him call her name. |
| | Perdue dans ses pensées, elle ne l'a pas entendu l'appeler. |
| food for thought n | figurative ([sth] worth thinking about) | to give sb food for thought : donner à réfléchir loc v |
| | | matière à réflexion nf |
| | | pistes de réflexion nfpl |
| | Yes, your ideas have certainly given me food for thought! |
| | Oui, tes idées donnent certainement à réfléchir. |
| | Oui, tes idées m'ont bien donné matière à réflexion ! |
| free thought n | (rationalism) | libre-pensée, libre pensée nf |
| freedom of thought n | (right to hold beliefs) | liberté de pensée nf |
| | The reason most democracies separate church and state is to insure that every citizen has freedom of thought. |
give a second thought to [sth/sb],
give [sth/sb] a second thought v expr | informal (consideration) | accorder de l'importance à [qch] loc v + prép |
| | | s'intéresser à [qch] v pron + prép |
| | | se poser des questions sur loc v + prép |
| Note: Often used in the negative. |
| | Most people don't give a second thought to the problems of the homeless. |
| | La plupart des gens n'accordent aucunr importance aux problèmes auxquels font face les sans-abri. |
| | La plupart des gens ne s'intéressent pas aux problèmes auxquels font face les sans-abri. |
| give it a second thought v expr | informal (rethink) | y réfléchir à deux fois loc v |
| | He dropped what he was doing and went to her without giving it a second thought. |
| | Il a laissé en plan ce qu'il faisait et est parti avec elle sans y réfléchir à deux fois. |
give thought to [sth],
give [sth] thought v expr | (consider) | réfléchir à vi + prép |
| | Before planting a tree you need to give thought to what is suitable for your garden. |
| | Avant de planter un arbre, il faut réfléchir à ce qui est adapté à son jardin. |
| happy thought n | (pleasant thing to think of) | pensée heureuse, bonne pensée, pensée positive nf |
| it might be thought | (some people may imagine) | on pourrait penser |
| | It might be thought that the English are unfriendly, but they are just reserved. |
| | On pourrait penser que les Anglais sont inamicaux, mais ils sont juste réservés. |
| line of thought n | (train of thinking) | cheminement de la pensée de [qqn] nm |
| logical thought n | (rational, coherent thinking) | pensée cohérente nf |
| | She was distressed after the accident and incapable of logical thought. |
| | (Psychologie) | pensée logique nf |
| | (Psychologie) | raisonnement logique nm |
| lost in thought expr | (thinking deeply) | perdu dans ses pensées, plongé dans ses pensées loc adj |
| perish the thought interj | (God forbid) | loin de moi cette idée ! interj |
| | (un peu vieilli) | Dieu m'en garde, Dieu m'en préserve interj |
| | (en fin de phrases) | Ne parle pas de malheur ! interj |
| | Beryl could become my new boss; perish the thought! |
| | Beryl pourrait être ma nouvelle chef : loin de moi cette idée ! |
| positive thought n | (optimistic or cheerful idea) | pensée positive nf |
| rational thought n | (reason, coherent thinking) | pensée rationnelle nf |
| school of thought n | (collective view) | école de pensée nf |
| | Markham and Fishburn belong to very different schools of thought. |
second thought,
on second thought (US),
second thoughts,
on second thoughts (UK) interj | informal (change of mind) | réflexion faite loc adv |
| | | à la réflexion loc adv |
| | I need to speak to the kids about this; on second thoughts, perhaps I'll wait until my husband gets home. |
| | Il faut que j'en parle aux enfants. Réflexion faite (or: À la réflexion), je vais attendre que mon mari rentre à la maison. |
| second thought n | (hesitation, consideration) | hésitation nf |
| | She accepted the job without a second thought. |
| | Elle a accepté le travail sans hésitation (or: sans l'ombre d'une hésitation). |
| thought balloon n | (cartoon: bubble showing what [sb] is thinking) (BD) | bulle de pensée nf |
| | Les bulles de pensées sont généralement dessinées en forme de petits nuages. |
| | (BD, technique) | phylactère nm |
| | En bande dessinée, les phylactères ou "bulles" expriment les paroles ou les pensées des personnages. |
| thought bubble n | (comic: balloon showing thoughts) (BD) | bulle de pensée nf |
| | (jargon) | phylactère nm |
| | Les bulles de pensées sont généralement dessinées en forme de petits nuages. |
| thought control n | (brainwashing) | contrôle de la pensée nm |
| thought experiment n | (hypothetical study or question) | exercice mental nm |
| | | expérience imaginaire nf |
| thought leader n | (influential thinker) | leader d'opinion nm |
| | | maître à penser nm |
| thought leadership n | (act of influencing with ideas) | leadership éclairé nm |
| thought of adj | informal (taken into consideration) | pensé adj |
thought out,
thought-out adj | (planned, considered) | pensé, planifié, réfléchi adj |
| Note: hyphen used when term is an adj before a noun |
| thought pattern n | (habitual way of thinking) | schéma de pensée, mode de pensée nm |
| thought process n | (thinking, train of thought) | mécanisme de la pensée nm |
thought provoking,
thought-provoking adj | (that makes you think) | qui fait réfléchir, qui invite à réfléchir loc adj |
| | This book on consumerism is a thought-provoking read. |
| thought shower n | figurative (brainstorm) (anglicisme) | brainstorming nm |
| | Bon, maintenant, on va faire un petit brainstorming. |
| thought to be [sth/sb] expr | (believed or considered to be [sth]) | être considéré comme [qch] v |
| | | on pensait que |
| | He was thought to be a good student, until he was caught with drugs. |
| | Il était considéré comme un bon élève jusqu'à ce qu'on le retrouve avec de la drogue. |
| | On pensait que c'était un bon élève jusqu'à ce qu'on le retrouve avec de la drogue. |
| thought up adj | informal (devised, invented) | conçu, inventé adj |
| train of thought n | (sequence of ideas) | fil de sa pensée nm |
| | I got confused when I was explaining it, and lost my train of thought. |
| | Je me suis embrouillé quand je l'ai expliqué et j'ai perdu le fil de ma pensée. |
well thought-of,
well-thought-of adj | (person: respected) | respecté adj |
| Note: The first hyphen is used when the adjective precedes the noun. |
| | This professor is well thought-of within the department. |
| well-thought-out adj | (carefully considered) | bien pensé, bien conçu loc adj |
who would have thought it?,
who would have thought? interj | (expressing surprise) | qui l'eût cru interj |
| | Wow, that's really interesting – who would've thought? |
| | Voilà qui est intéressant ! Qui l'eût cru ? |