cheval-vapeur

French

Alternative forms

• ch (abbreviation)
• cv, CV (abbreviation)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃə.val.va.pœʁ/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

cheval-vapeur m (plural chevaux-vapeur)

1. Metric horsepower

Usage notes

The word, literally steam-horse, derives, as does the English horsepower, from the initial use to rate steam engines by comparison with the power which a draught horse could sustain over several hours. Later, use expanded to cover steam turbines, and then all other sources of sustained power, measured in several ways, including measurements for taxation purposes which bear little resemblance to mechanical horsepower. In most or all English-speaking countries, this usage for Vehicle Tax has lapsed, but in France it persists.

The abbreviation CV or cv is used for tax horsepower, while ch is used for all other horsepowers.

Further reading

• “cheval-vapeur”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.