What Are the Branches of Science Called in French? Talking About Scientific Fields

Understanding how to talk about different scientific fields in French is a great way to build confidence if you enjoy science, watch documentaries, or work in a scientific environment. By learning both the vocabulary and the structures in this lesson, you’ll be able to explain what you’re interested in, describe your area of study or work, and speak more naturally about what a scientific discipline focuses on.

1. Core Vocabulary: Les branches des sciences

English
French
astronomy
l’astronomie
biology
la biologie
botany
la botanique
chemistry
la chimie
ecology
l’écologie
engineering
l’ingénierie
geology
la géologie
life sciences
les sciences du vivant
mathematics
les mathématiques
meteorology
la météorologie
natural sciences
les sciences naturelles
oceanography
l’océanographie
physics
la physique
social sciences
les sciences sociales
zoology
la zoologie

As you learn these, try linking each one to something you already know or enjoy: documentaries you watch, books you read, subjects you studied at school, or topics related to your job.

2. Scene Setter: Why this matters

If you watch a French documentary about l’espace, la Terre, le climat, la biodiversité, les animaux or les océans, you’ll often hear references to the branch of science behind the topic. Likewise, if you work or study in a scientific field, being able to describe your discipline in French is hugely useful. This lesson helps you express this clearly and confidently.

3. Talking About Your Field

Sentence Builder
À quoi vous intéressez-vous ? What are you interested in?
Start with
Je m’intéresse… I am interested…
Choose a subject
à la biologie. in biology.
à la physique. in physics.
à l’ingénierie. in engineering.
aux sciences naturelles. in the natural sciences.
s’intéresser à means “to be interested in”.
à la / à l’ Use these before singular subject names.
aux Use this before plural subject names.

Grammar tip:
The preposition à changes depending on the noun:

  • à la — feminine noun (la biologie)
  • à l’ — noun starting with a vowel (l’ingénierie)
  • au — masculine noun (rare here but useful elsewhere)
  • aux — plural nouns (les sciences naturelles)

You can use this structure with any subject you like.

Sentence Builder
Dans quel domaine travaillez-vous ? What field do you work in?
Talk about your professional or academic field
Start with
Je travaille dans le domaine… I work in the field…
Choose a field
de la chimie. of chemistry.
de la météorologie. of meteorology.
de l’ingénierie. of engineering.
des sciences sociales. of the social sciences.
Talk about your research or studies
Start with
Je fais des recherches sur… I do research on…
Choose a topic
les océans. the oceans.
le climat. the climate.
la Terre. the Earth.
de la / de l’ Use these before singular feminine field names.
de + les = des Use des before plural field names.
faire des recherches sur means “to do research on” or “to study”.

After de, the article also contracts:

  • de la → de la météorologie
  • de l’ → de l’ingénierie
  • de + les = des → des sciences sociales

4. How to Describe What a Field Studies

Sentence Builder
Qu’est-ce que cette branche étudie ? What does this field study?
Singular science subjects
Choose a field
L’astronomie… Astronomy…
La géologie… Geology…
La zoologie… Zoology…
Add the verb
étudie… studies…
Choose a topic
les planètes et l’univers. the planets and the universe.
la structure de la Terre. the structure of the Earth.
le comportement des animaux. animal behaviour.
Plural science subjects
Choose a field
Les sciences du vivant… Life sciences…
Add the verb
étudient… study…
Choose a topic
les organismes et leur évolution. organisms and their evolution.
étudie Use this with a singular subject.
étudient Use this with a plural subject.
la branche means “the field” or “the branch”.

Grammar tip:
French nouns keep their articles even when English drops them.
English: “Biology studies living things.”
French: La biologie étudie les êtres vivants.

5. Useful Phrases for Documentaries and Discussions

Sentence Builder
Comment décrire une discipline scientifique ? How can you describe a scientific discipline?
Describe what a branch of science does
Start with
C’est une branche des sciences qui… It’s a branch of science that…
Choose an ending
analyse le climat. analyses the climate.
observe les phénomènes naturels. observes natural phenomena.
s’intéresse à la vie sur Terre. is concerned with life on Earth.
Explain why a discipline is important
Start with
Cette discipline joue un rôle essentiel dans… This discipline plays an essential role in…
Choose an ending
la compréhension du changement climatique. understanding climate change.
la protection de la biodiversité. protecting biodiversity.
le développement de nouvelles technologies. developing new technologies.
une branche des sciences means “a branch of science”.
qui introduces what the scientific field does.
jouer un rôle dans means “to play a role in”.

You’ll hear phrases like these often in documentaries or interviews.

6. Talking About What You Like to Watch or Read

Sentence Builder
Comment vous informez-vous sur les sciences ? How do you learn about science?
Talk about documentaries
Start with
J’aime regarder des documentaires… I like watching documentaries…
Choose a subject
d’astronomie. about astronomy.
de biologie. about biology.
de géologie. about geology.
de physique. about physics.
Talk about articles
Start with
Je lis souvent des articles sur… I often read articles about…
Choose a subject
l’écologie. ecology.
l’ingénierie. engineering.
les sciences du vivant. the life sciences.
un documentaire de… Use de or d’ to describe the subject of a documentary.
des articles sur… means “articles about…”
souvent means “often”.

You can swap in any scientific field or topic.

7. Phrases You Can Use in Conversation or at Work

English French
What field do you work in? Dans quel domaine travaillez-vous ?
I specialise in… Je suis spécialisé(e) en…
I collaborate with researchers in… Je collabore avec des chercheurs en…
Our team focuses on… Notre équipe se concentre sur…

These expressions work well in professional or academic conversations.

8. Grammar Notes

Articles never disappear in French

English often uses bare nouns:
“Physics is fascinating.”
French requires the article:
→ La physique est fascinante.

Another example:
“Chemistry helps us understand matter.”
→ La chimie nous aide à comprendre la matière.

Using “à” and “de” with scientific subjects

Keep the article attached:

  • Je m’intéresse à la chimie.
  • Je travaille dans le domaine de la géologie.
  • Je lis des articles **sur l’**astronomie.
  • Je fais des recherches sur les océans.

This becomes automatic with practice.

9. Practice: Build Your Own Sentence

Try completing this structure:
Je suis passionné(e) par ______ parce que ______.

Possible examples:

  • Je suis passionné(e) par la météorologie parce que je veux comprendre le climat.
  • Je suis passionné(e) par la biologie parce que j’aime étudier les êtres vivants.
  • Je suis passionné(e) par la physique parce que les phénomènes naturels m’intéressent.

Try It Out: True or False? Read each sentence and decide whether the scientific discipline matches the description.
Question 1 of 5 Score: 0
Question 1
L’astronomie étudie les planètes et l’univers.