appuyées

Appuyées is the feminine plural form of the past participle of the French verb appuyer. It functions as both a past participle and an adjective, agreeing in gender and number with the noun it modifies or with the subject in reflexive constructions.

As an adjective, appuyées describes something that is supported, resting, or leaning on something else. Common collocations include mains appuyées sur la table (hands resting on the table), épaules appuyées contre le mur (shoulders leaning against the wall), and coudes appuyés sur le bureau.

In grammar, appuyées may appear in compound tenses. When used with the auxiliary être in reflexive constructions, it agrees with the subject: elles se sont appuyées contre le mur. With the auxiliary avoir, agreement is determined by whether a preceding direct object exists, which can affect the form in some contexts; however, in everyday use the feminine plural form appears most often when the noun is feminine plural and described by the participle.

Etymology traces appuyées to the verb appuyer, meaning to press, to support, or to lean, itself derived from Old French apuyer. The noun l’appui, meaning support or backing, shares the same semantic field.

See also: appuyer, appui, s’appuyer, appuyé.