French Phrase
Ça pèse 5 livres.
Meaning
The sentence states the weight of an object, saying that it weighs five pounds. It is a straightforward way to give a quantitative measure of weight.
When to use
Use this phrase when you need to tell someone how heavy something is—at a market, when packing a suitcase, describing a product’s weight, or answering a question like “Combien ça pèse ?”.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Çapèse5livres.
Ça (demonstrative pronoun)
‘Ça’ is a neutral demonstrative pronoun meaning ‘this/that’, used here to refer to an object whose weight is being discussed.
pèse (verb peser)
‘pèse’ is the third‑person singular present of the verb *peser* (to weigh). It directly expresses the weight of something.
5 / cinq (numeral)
When spoken, the numeral 5 is read as *cinq* (/sɛ̃k/). French normally writes the number in digits but pronounces the word.
livres (noun, plural)
‘livres’ is the plural of *livre*, a unit of weight equal to about 0.45 kg. It follows the number without an article.
🗨In Conversation
Combien pèse ce sac ?
How much does this bag weigh?
Ça pèse 5 livres.
It weighs five pounds.
✕Common Mistakes
Ça est 5 livres.
‘être’ (to be) is not used to express weight; you need the verb *peser*.
Ça a 5 livres.
‘avoir’ (to have) cannot replace *peser* for weight.
Ça pèse 5 livre.
When the number is greater than one, the noun must be plural.
↔Alternatives
Il pèse 5 livres.
It weighs five pounds.
Le poids est de 5 livres.
The weight is five pounds.
C'est 5 livres.
It's five pounds.
Cultural Tip
In France the metric system is standard, so people usually say “Ça pèse 2,3 kg” instead of pounds. You’ll hear “livres” mainly in older recipes, in contexts involving the United States, or in informal speech. If you’re speaking to a French audience, consider converting to kilograms for naturalness.