Frères

Frères is the French plural noun meaning "brothers." It is the masculine plural form of frère, the word used for a male sibling. In ordinary speech, possession is expressed as mon frère, mes frères, etc. For groups that include both men and women, the common construction is frères et sœurs to mean "brothers and sisters."

Etymology and form: Frère derives from Latin frater and entered Old French as frere; the modern plural frè res is formed with the standard French plural ending -s, though the pronunciation remains [fʁɛʁ] for both singular and plural in contemporary French.

Usage notes: Beyond describing familial relationships, frere and its plural freres appear in religious and fraternal contexts. In many Christian orders, frère is a title akin to "brother," used to address male members, with the collective form Les Frères referring to the members of a community. The term also appears in various cultural works, where Frères is used as a title or thematic reference in French-language literature, film, and music, without implying a specific work.

See also: Brotherhood, fraternal organizations, etymology of frère.

Frères thus functions primarily as a straightforward familial term in French, with broader cultural and institutional uses when employed as a title or designation for a group of male participants.