A French Railway Vocabulary
Not included in this list are words whose meanings are easily recognized in English, such as locomotive, signal, rail, train, station, sémaphore, lumineux, ballast, tunnel, pantographe, caténaire, direction, traction and so forth. An effort is made to indicate the gender of words, as well as common abbreviations and letters seen on signs. Alphabetization is imperfect. A "diamond" is a square standing on a corner; a "square" rests on an edge. This vocabulary is mainly concerned with operations and signalling. The French terms are from all eras, and from Belgium as well as France; the English terms are mixed British and American. This is a more complete vocabulary than I have seen elsewhere.
- un abri, une cabine: locomotive cab
- un agent: employee
- les agents des trains: train crews
- les agents de voie: track workers
- les aiguilles (une): points, switches
- une aiguille talonnable: spring switch
- un aiguillage: pointwork, switches
- un aiguilleur: switchtender
- une aile: semaphore arm
- à l'arriére: at the rear
- une allumette-tison: fusee
- un attelage: coupling
- un atelier: shop
- en amont: in rear (approaching in direction of movement)
- en aval: in advance (beyond in direction of movement)
- un arrêt: stop
- arrêt: on sign: stop, then proceed only on verbal instructions
- une automotrice: electric motor car, EMU
- un autorail: motor car, DMU
- Un avertissement: warning
- un axe de la voie: middle of the track
- la bande de contrôle: speed recorder tape
- la balise, le mirliton: one of 5 signs counting down to distant signal
- la barrière blanche: earlier form of horizontal balise, 1-5 stripes, like a hurdle
- le bâtiment voyageurs, (BV): passenger accommodation
- le bâton-pilote: train staff
- la bielle: connecting (side) rod
- bis: legend on sign identifying additional warning signal
- le block automatique lumineux (BAL): automatic block with colour-light signals
- le block automatique mécanique (BAM): automatic block with mechanical signals
- le block manuel (BM): manual block, mechanical signalling
- la boîte à feu: firebox
- la boîte à fumée: smokebox
- le bogie: truck, bogie
- la borne kilométrique: milepost
- le bras, l'aile, la palette (in Belgium): semaphore arm
- la bifurcation: junction; also denoted by the letter Y or BIFUR
- la borne kilometrique: milepost
- le boudin, le bourrelet, le mentonnet: flange
- la bourreuse: tamping machine
- briser: to collide
- le butoir: buffer
- le canton: block; (track maintenance) section
- le cantonnement absolu: absolute block
- le cantonnement permissif: permissive block
- le cantonnier: section foreman
- le chauffeur: fireman
- la cheminée: chimney, smokestack
- le chandelier: signal with several masts side by side
showing direction (Belgium)
- le chantier: works area
- le chargement: loading
- le chef de gare, chef de service: stationmaster
- le cheminot: railwayman (informally)
- la cible: target, light signal head
- la circulation: (train) movement
- la circulation paire, impaire: directions of movment; impair: origin to terminus
- la circulation montante, descendante: directions of movement
- la clé de fourgon: coach key
- la cloison: wall between compartments
- le cocarde: rotating signal board (cible on the PLM)
- le coeur de croisement: frog
- le compartiment: compartment
- le conducteur: electric or diesel driver; guard (France)
- le conducteur chef, chef du train: conductor, head guard
- la consigne: instructions (also a cloakroom in a station)
- le contre-rail: guard rail
- le cornet: guard's horn
- le coup de sifflet: whistle sound
- le convoi: train
- le coussinet: chair; bearing brass
- couvrir: to protect
- le crocodile: electrical contact between the rails for cab signals
- crocodilé: equipped with a crocodile; speed limits in a diamond.
- non crocodilé: not equipped with a crocodile; speed limits in a square.
- croiser: cross, meet
- le damier: chequerboard
- en déblai: in cutting
- débrancher: to break up and classify
- dépasser: to pass, overtake
- dételer: to uncouple
- le dépôt (D): maintenance facility
- dérailler: to derail
- la dérive: runaway
- le détonateur: reloading device firing cartridges electrically, used in place of péards
- le disque blanc: Belgian headlamp
- le dôme de prise de vapeur: steam dome
- la double voie: double track
- le drapeau: flag
- la draisine: inspection speeder, M/W tractor
- en pointe, en talon: facing, trailing (points)
- une éclisse: joint bar, fishplate
- un embranchement particulier: private siding
- un employé-pilote: pilotman
- un enclenchement: interlocking
- une exploitation en navette: one engine in steam
- une exploitation par cloches electriques: electric bell system
- facultatif: extra (train), conditional (stop)
- le faisceau: fan of tracks
- le falot: torch, large lamp
- le feu rouge clignotant: flashing red light
- le fourgon: guard's van, luggage van, brake van, caboose
- franchir: pass, surmount
- franchissable (F): permissive
- non franchissable (Nf): absolute
- le frein à vis: hand brake (vis = screw)
- le freinage rhéostatique: dynamic brake
- le frotteur: electrical pickup shoe
- la fusée: journal (of an axle)
- le gabarit: loading gauge
- non gardé: not manned, unstaffed
- le garde-barrière: crossing-keeper
- le garde-block, le garde-sémaphore, le stationnaire: signalman
- le garde-convoi: guard (Belgium)
- le garde-excentrique: early switchtender, points operated by an eccentric.
- la gare: station with train control functions
- la gare de formation, la gare de triage: marshalling yard
- la guérite: booth;
- le guetteur: lookout, warning-man
- le guidon: stationmaster's hand signal to start trains
- la halte: halt (unstaffed stopping place)
- haut-le-pied: light (engine alone)
- le heurtoir: buffer stop; abbr. H
- une impériale: outside top of a vehicle
- une impasse: dead end; abbr. Imp
- une impasse de securité: safety shunt
- lancer: to collide
- la latte de calage: fouling bar
- la levée: fill
- la ligne de grande vitesse (LGV): high-speed line (V ≥ 200 km/h)
- la limite par les mouvements de manoeuvre (LM): shunting limit
- la limite pour garage par refoulement (LGR): fouling limit
- le livret de marche des trains (LMTr): time table
- la locomotive-tender: tank engine
- le tender: tender
- la locomotive d'allège: helper engine
- le locotracteur: small B diesel shunter
- la manivelle: crank
- les manoeuvres: shunting, switching
- la marche à vue (MV): restricted speed
- le mât, le fût: mast of a signal, stock, shaft
- la machine de manoeuvre: switcher; shunting locomotive
- la machine de secours: engine sent to rescue failed engine
- le machiniste: engineman, driver (Belgium)
- marcher: to run
- le matériel roulant: rolling stock
- le mécanicien: engineman, driver (France)
- le mirliton: countdown boards, 3, 2 and 1 strokes, 100 m spacing
- non gardé: not manned
- un ouvrage d'art: not a work of art, but a lineside structure
- la palette levante, baissante: upper, lower quadrant arm
- le pare-brise: windscreen
- le passage à niveau (PN): road (level) crossing
- la pédale d'homme mort: dead man's pedal
- le pétard: torpedo, detonator, placed by hand
- le poste d'aiguilleurs: switchtender's hut
- le poste de block: signalbox (note gender)
- le portique, la passerelle: signal bridge
- la potence: signal bracket
- la palette en oriflamme: fishtail signal arm
- la pancarte d'execution (Z): sign at start of speed restriction
- la pancarte repère: reference sign
- le panneau repère: reference sign; e.g. location of a crocodile
- le panneau sifflet (S): whistle post
- le panneau Y: sign on signal preceding divergence but not specifying route
- le piocheur: section-hand; lit., digger
- la plaque tournante: wagon turntable
- la pleine voie: plain track
- le pont tournant: turntable
- le poseur: platelayer, sectionman
- le poste de cantonnement: block post
- la poulie à coulisse: grooved pully for two-wire operation
- le quai, le trottoir: platform (generally low in France)
- le ralentissement: slowing
- la rame: rake of carriages, consist, cut
- le rebroussement: setting back
- la reddition: giving line clear (lit., surrender)
- le refoulement: setting back
- le remblai: fill, embankment
- la remise: engine shed
- la remorque: trailer
- le repère d'arrêt: stopping point (when no wayside signals, as on LGV)
- le reprise de vitesse (marche) normale (R): resume speed
- le robinet d'urgence: emergency valve
- le sabliére: sandbox
- le saut-de-mouton: flyover
- le sens de la circulation: direction of movment
- le service omnibus: stopping train
- serrer: to apply (brakes)
- le serre-freins, le garde-frein: brakeman
- la serrure Annett: Annett's key lock
- siffler: to whistle
- le sifflet à vapeur: steam whistle
- le signal à main: hand signal
- le signal à fleur-de-sol: ground signal
- le signal d'abri: cab signal
- le signal d'arrêt: home signal
- le signal avertisseur: distant signal
- le signal de cantonnement: block signal
- le signal électrique à cloches: electric bell signals
- le signal de manoeuvres: shunting signal
- le signal de queue: end-of-train marker
- la station: stopping-place
- stop: stop, then proceed if possible
- la soupape de sûréte: safety valve
- sous scellé: sealed
- le tableau de marche: timetable
- le tableau indicateur de vitesse (TIV-D): advance speed limit sign
- le talon: heel (turnout)
- en talon, en pointe: trailing, facing
- le tampon: buffer
- tamponner: to collide
- le taquet: tappet, dog (interlocking)
- le taquet d'arrêt: stop block
- tirez, poussez, lancez: pull, push, kick (in shunting)
- la torche à flamme rouge: fusee
- le train de banlieue: suburban train
- le train du chantier: work train
- le train de marchandises: freight train
- le train de messageries: parcels train
- le train de travaux: work train
- le train de voyageurs: passenger train
- le train omnibus: stopping train
- la tranchée: cutting
- la traverse: sleeper, crosstie; also, pilot beam
- la traversée de voie: crossing
- la traversée à aiguilles: movable-point crossing
- trier: to sort, classify; cf. triage
- le trottoir: platform
- le veilleur: lookout
- le verrou: facing-point lock
- la voie banalisée: single track with track circuits or axle counters and automatic block
- à voie étroite: narrow-gauge
- la voie d'évitement: avoiding line, siding, loop
- la voie de garage: side track, storage track, siding, loop
- la voie impaire: odd track; i.e. one from Paris or No. 1
- la voie libre: clear track
- la voie paire: even track; i.e. one to Paris or No. 2
- la voie de service (G): track other than a main track
- la voie unique: single track
- la voiture: passenger car, carriage, coach
- la voiture-pilote: driving trailer
- le voyant: target, vane of a signal(see cocarde, cible); any indicator
- le wagon-lits, wagon-restaurant: sleeping car, restaurant car
- le wagon-citerne: tankcar
- le wagon plat: flatcar
- le wagon couvert, fermé: boxcar
- le wagon-tombereau: dump car
References
The Petit Larousse (Paris: Librarie Larousse, 1960) illustrates railway signals in colour opposite p. 992, and railway terms on p. 198. Locomotives are illustrated on p. 608f.
I would greatly appreciate any additions or corrections to this vocabulary. Thanks to Christophe Boissau for pointing out my errors.
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Composed by J. B. Calvert
Created 27 May 2004
Last revised 11 March 2008