bien

Etymology

From Latin bene (“well”).

Adverb

bien

1. well
2. a lot, very

Numeral

bien

1. genitive plural of bi

Noun

bien c

1. definite singular of bi

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French bien, from Old French bien, from Latin bene (“well”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bjɛ̃/
• Rhymes: -jɛ̃

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

bien (invariable, comparative meilleur)

1. good, all right, great
2. good looking, nice

Adverb

bien (comparative mieux, superlative le mieux)

1. well

   Ça va bien ? ― How's it going? (literally, “It goes well?”)

   Il joue vraiment bien au football.

   He plays soccer really well.

2. indeed; so

   Synonym: alors

   Bien, on peut partir maintenant ?

   So, can we leave now?

3. (followed by de, des, or du) a lot (of)

   Macy Gray a traversé bien des épreuves.

   Macy Gray got through a lot of ordeals.

4. very; really

   C’est bien aimable à vous. ― it's very considerate of you.

   C’est bien beau, mais... ― It's all very well, but...

   Je te trouve bien silencieux aujourd’hui. ― You seem very quiet today.

   Il est bien moche, ce type. Ce type est vraiment moche. ― That guy is really ugly.

   • 2018, Zaz, On s'en remet jamais:

     Est-ce que les parfums s’évaporent, ou restent-ils dans notre tête comme ces étoiles qui brillent encore, mais qui sont bien loin de la fête ?

     Do the perfumes evaporate, or do they stay in our heads like these stars which still shine, but which are very far from the party?

5. (in comparisons) much (more, less, better, etc.)

   Jérémie est bien plus fort que moi.

   Jérémie is much stronger than me.

   bien meilleur que […]

   much better than […]

6. Used to confirm or ask for confirmation

   Tu as bien fermé les fenêtres ?

   Did you make sure to close the windows?

Noun

bien m (plural biens)

1. good as opposed to evil
2. a commodity, a good
3. a possession

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• béni

Romanization

bien

1. Rōmaji transcription of びえん

Alternative forms

byén

Etymology

From Old Spanish from Latin bene (“well”), from Latin bonus (“good”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bjẽn]

Adjective

bien m (Latin spelling, Hebrew spelling ביין, plural bienes)

1. good
2. conforming to duty

Adverb

bien (Latin spelling, Hebrew spelling ביין)

1. good, well

Etymology

From Old French bien.

Adverb

bien

1. well (in a positive way; in a way that meets or exceeds expectations)

References

• bien on Dictionnaire du Moyen Français (1330–1500) (in French)
• Godefroy, Frédéric, Dictionnaire de l’ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IX^e au XV^e siècle (1881) (bien, supplement)

Alternative forms

• bia

Noun

bien m or f

1. definite masculine singular of bie

Alternative forms

• ben

Etymology

From Latin bene.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbi͡ɛn/
• Rhymes: -en

Adverb

bien (comparative and superlative mielz or miex)

1. well
   • c. 1170, Chrétien de Troyes, Érec et Énide:

     "Oïl, mout m'an sovient il bien.
     Seneschaus, savez vos an rien?

     Yes, I remember it well
     Seneschal, do you know anything about it?

2. indeed (used for emphasis)

Noun

bien oblique singular, m (oblique plural biens, nominative singular biens, nominative plural bien)

1. possession; object of value
2. good (as opposed to evil)

Etymology

Inherited from Old Spanish, from Latin bene (“well”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbjen/ [ˈbjẽn]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -en
• Syllabification: bien

Adverb

bien

1. well (adverbial form of bueno)

   Antonym: mal

   Toca bien el piano.

   He plays the piano well.

2. well, fine, okay (state of being satisfied with the status quo)

   hasta aquí todo bien ― so far so good

3. properly
4. willingly
5. (colloquial) very

   Ya es bien tarde.

   It's so late already.

6. as well

   Bien podrías acabar con ello temprano.

   You might as well get it over with early.

Adjective

bien m or f (masculine and feminine plural bienes)

1. (postpositive, colloquial) well-to-do; affluent; wealthy; upper-class

   Amanda y Carlos vienen de una familia bien.

   Amanda and Carlos come from a well-to-do family.

2. (postpositive, colloquial) exclusive; upscale; high-class

   Las colonias bienes están en las afueras de la ciudad.

   The upscale neighborhoods are in the city suburbs.

Noun

bien m (plural bienes)

1. good (as opposed to evil)

   Antonym: mal

   Es por el bien de toda la comunidad.

   It's for the good of the whole community.

2. goodness
3. good, better (substantive)

   para bien o para mal ― for better or for worse

   He vuelto para bien esta vez.

   I'm back for good this time.

4. welfare, benefit
5. (in the plural) goods, property, possessions, assets, wealth, estate
6. (dated) darling

   Despierta, mi bien.

   Wake up, my darling.

Further reading

• “bien”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Etymology

Borrowed from German Biene, English bee.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈen/

Noun

bien (nominative plural biens)

1. bee
   • 1959, “Lak drenas”, in Volapükagased, number 2, page 7:

     Böd nonik kanitonöv / us lidi in yof e fred; / kriks, biens us vegonsöv / in seil de bled lü bled.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Etymology

From Old Frisian bēn, from Proto-Germanic *bainą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biə̯n/

Noun

bien n (plural biennen, diminutive bientsje)

1. bone
2. leg