par rapport à

“Par rapport à” is a French prepositional phrase that is widely used. It means three different things: “compared with/in comparison with/against,” “in relation to,” and “with regard to/towards.”

Compared with/against

  • il est généreux/petit par rapport à son frère (he is generous compared with his brother)
  • le chômage a augmenté par rapport à l’an dernier (unemployed increased compared with last year)
  • par rapport au dollar (against the dollar)

In relation to

  •  le nombre de voitures par rapport au nombre d’habitants (the number of cars in relation to the number of inhabitants)
  • un angle de 40° par rapport à la verticale (an angle of 40º to the vertical)
  • un changement par rapport à la position habituelle du parti (a change from the usual party line)

With regard to/towards

  • notre position par rapport à ce problème (our position with regard to this problem)
  • l’attitude de la population par rapport à l’immigration (people’s attitude towards immigration)

Don’t miss new articles!

Get 1 email a week with new articles about French

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Similar Posts

  • How to say “under” in French

    Translating prepositions from one language to another can be a tricky task. One group of prepositions that often poses challenges in learning French is the one containing “under,” “underneath,” “below” and “beneath.” “Sous” The most common and straightforward translation for “under” in French is “sous.” This word is the primary equivalent of “under” and is…

  • “-tie” pronunciation

    French words like “démocratie,” “acrobatie,” “aristocratie,” or “patienter” all contain the letter combination “tie.” How are words like these pronounced in French? What about words like “amnistie” or “dynastie”? The “tie” letter combination in French can either be pronounced as “SEE” or as “TEE.” How do you know which pronunciation to use? The easiest way…

  • beaucoup de monde

    The French word monde means “world” but is frequently used to mean “people.” When combined with certain expressions, it refers to crowds, gatherings, or simply “a lot of people.” The two most common expressions are beaucoup de monde and du monde. They both indicate the presence of many people, but they differ slightly in register…

  • |

    singing

    How do you talk about singing in French? There are a few words – some verbs, some nouns. The verb “to sing,” which is “chanter.” The noun “a song,” which is “une chanson.” And the noun “the singing,” which is “le chant.” There is another verb “entonner,” which means “to start singing,” or “to launch…