There are two ways to express notions of height, length, width and depth in French:
faire [dimension] de haut, de long, de large, de profondeur
Note that while the forms de hauteur, de longueur, de largeur can also be used (though less commonly), you can NEVER say de profond.
être + haut de/long de/large de/ profond de [dimension]
Case of measurements
Note: to indicate measurements, you use faire [dimension] sur (by) [dimension].
Examples and resources
Ma chambre fait 4 mètres de large.
Ma chambre fait 4 mètres de largeur.
My bedroom is 4 metres wide.
Ces baignoires sont longues de 2 mètres.
These bathtubs are 2 metres long.
Ce bâtiment est haut de 30 mètres.
This building is 30 metres tall.
Ce bâtiment fait 30 mètres de haut.
Ce bâtiment fait 30 mètres de hauteur.
This building is 30 metres tall.
Ces baignoires font 2 mètres de long.
Ces baignoires font 2 mètres de longueur.
These bathtubs are 2 metres long.
Ce lit fait 2 mètres de long.
Ce lit fait 2 mètres de longueur.
This bed is 2 metres long.
Cette piscine est profonde de 5 mètres.
This swimming-pool is 5 metres deep.
Ce lit est long de 2 mètres.
This bed is 2 metres long.
Ma chambre est large de 4 mètres.
My bedroom is 4 metres wide.
Cette piscine fait 5 mètres de profondeur.
This swimming-pool is 5 metres deep.
measurements
Cette pièce fait 10 mètres sur 4.
This room is 10 by 4 metres.
Q&A
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
10/01/17
Yes, it is absolutely acceptable as well !
Meghna
Kwiziq community member
10/01/17
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
12/01/17
I've looked through your history, and the mistake I found was as follows:
La voiture de Jim fait ________. (Jim's car is 2 meters wide.)
You wrote "2 metres" instead of "2 mètres de large" :)
And in another test, your answer was "2m de" missing "large".
I hope that's helpful!
Meghna
Kwiziq community member
6/05/17
Chris
Kwiziq community member
24 October 2016
1 reply
How to express dimensions with faire/être
As you explain, it is either 1. faire + value + de + dimension (noun) 2. être + de + dimension (adjective) + value You say ...faire 1 m de profondeur. But you also say ...faire 1 m de long Isn't "longeur" the noun for length and "long/ue" the adjective? So why is it not "...faire 1 m de longeur" instead of "1 m de long"? To me this looks like expressing depth works different from all other dimensions. -- Chris.
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
24/10/16
Indeed, while you would use "de long / de large / de haut", for depth you use the noun "de profondeur".
Note that the forms "de hauteur, de longueur, de largeur" can also be used (though less commonly), however you can never say "de profond".
Thanks to you, I've updated the lesson to reflect these nuances.
Merci et à bientôt !
Nicholas
Kwiziq community member
1 October 2017
2 replies
why had "6 mètres de longeur" been given as wrong?
Ron
Kwiziq community member
1 October 2017
1/10/17
Since the complete response was not posted with your question, I imagine that the incorrectness of the response had to do with the verb choice used. If possible, would you repost the complete response phrase to give a better example of your concern.
Merci en avance,
Nicholas
Kwiziq community member
5 December 2017
5/12/17