Impressionner

Impressionner is a French transitive verb meaning to cause someone to be impressed or to make a strong, memorable impression. It is used to describe actions, performances, or appearances that surprise, astonish, or positively affect an observer. While its core sense is figurative, it can also carry a literal nuance in older or specialized registers related to imprinting or stamping, but in contemporary usage it almost always refers to an emotional or cognitive impact on people.

Etymology and related forms: impressionner derives from the noun impression, itself from Latin impressionem, and from the verb imprimer “to press or imprint.” The -ner ending marks a regular -er verb in French, and the usual formation of its conjugations follows that pattern.

Conjugation and usage notes: Impressionner is a regular -er verb. In the present tense: j impressionne, tu impressionnes, il impressionne, nous impressionnons, vous impressionnez, ils impressionnent. The passé composé uses the auxiliary avoir: j'ai impressionné. Other tenses follow standard -er conjugation patterns (imparfait: j'impressionnais; futur: j'impressionnerai; conditionnel: j'impressionnerais). The subjunctive present is: que j'impressionne. The imperative forms are: impressionne, impressionnons, impressionnez. It takes a direct object, typically a person or audience, e.g., impressionner qn. A common construction is faire impression sur qn, meaning to make an impression on someone.

Examples: Son discours a impressionné le public. Cette performance impressionne les spectateurs. Le peintre impressionne par sa maîtrise technique. Adjective related: impressionnant (impressive).

See also: impression (noun), impressionner versus épater or étonner, and the common expression faire impression sur.