frapper

Frapper is a French verb meaning to strike, to hit, or to knock. It covers physical blows as well as figurative impact, such as ideas or emotions, and is used with both direct objects and prepositional phrases. Common transitive uses include frapper quelqu’un (to hit someone) and frapper à la porte (to knock on the door). It can also appear in idiomatic expressions such as frapper l’imagination (to strike the imagination) or frapper fort (to hit hard).

Etymology and history: Frapper derives from Old French fraper, itself from Latin frappare, meaning to strike. The modern form and spelling have remained regular in standard French.

Conjugation and forms: Frapper is a regular -er verb. In the present tense: je frappe, tu frappes, il frappe, nous frappons, vous frappez, ils frappent. The passé composé uses the auxiliary être or avoir depending on construction, with the past participle frappé (e). Other common forms include the imperfect: je frappais; the future: je frapperai; and the subjunctive: que je frappe, que nous frappions. The past participle frappé is also used in passive or compound tenses (la porte a été frappée).

Usage notes: Beyond literal violence, frapper appears in many figurative contexts to denote impact, influence, or success in reaching a goal (frapper dans le mille, to hit the bullseye) or to convey a strong impression (frapper l’imagination). The reflexive se frapper is used to describe hitting oneself or to describe mental or physical self-striking in certain expressions.

See also: frapper (noun forms may yield la frappe, meaning a blow or, in other senses, a batch, or the beverage frappé).