S’empêcher (en. To prevent oneself)

/sɑ̃peʃe/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench

verb

To refrain from acting, from performing an action.

He tries to hold back from screaming when he is frustrated.

Il essaie de s’empêcher de crier quand il est frustré.

To limit or control one's actions.

She held herself back from returning to the feast to avoid overeating.

Elle s’est empêchée de retourner au festin pour ne pas trop manger.

To consciously avoid doing something.

I hold myself back from thinking about it so as not to be sad.

Je m’empêche de penser à ça pour ne pas être triste.

From the verb 'empêcher' with the reflexive pronoun 'se'.

to hold back from speaking

Not saying something even if you want to.

s’empêcher de parler

to hold back from laughing

Not letting a laugh escape.

s’empêcher de rire

impediment

An obstacle or a cause that prevents doing something.

empêchement

to prevent

To intervene to stop an action.

empêcher

Putting up barriers for oneself.

He puts up barriers for himself to avoid going out too often.

Il se met des barrières pour ne pas sortir trop souvent.

To hold oneself back.

She holds herself back to avoid spending too much money.

Elle se freine pour ne pas dépenser trop d'argent.