couvrez

Couvrez is a form of the French verb couvrir, used as the second person plural present indicative (vous couvrez) and as the imperative form (Couvrez!). The verb itself means to cover in a wide range of senses, from physical covering to figurative or abstract coverage.

Etymology and relatives: couvrir comes from Old French covrir, which in turn derives from Latin cooperire “to cover over.” It has cognates in other Romance languages, such as Spanish cubrir, Italian coprire, and Portuguese cobrir, reflecting a common Latin root.

Usage and senses: The core meaning is transitive, requiring a direct object. Common uses include covering a physical object (cover a dish or a wound), covering costs or expenses (couvrir les frais), and covering topics or events (couvrir une actualité, couvrir un sujet). The verb also appears in idiomatic expressions such as couvrir quelqu’un de quelque chose (to cover someone with something) and se couvrir (to cover oneself or to protect oneself, often with clothing or an umbrella). In press or journalism, couvrir is used for reporting on events (to cover a story). The past participle is couvert, used with avoir to form the passé composé (J’ai couvert).

Grammatical notes: As with many French -ir verbs in -vrir, the conjugation follows a regular pattern in the present tense for vous: vous couvrez, and the imperative form to a group is also Couvrez! The verb can take various prepositional or idiomatic complements depending on the sense.

Examples: Couvrez le plat de papier aluminium. Ou: Vous couvrez les frais de voyage. Ou: Le journaliste a couvert l’événement toute la journée.