ENGLISH
REFERENCE

forte

n. countable
C1 Advanced US //ˈfɔɹt// forte

n. something that you are particularly good at. It is your strongest skill or talent.

n. a person's strong point or a particular area of expertise. Derived from the French word for 'strong', it refers to a skill or subject in which one excels.


SIMPLE

Cooking has never been my forte.

CONTEXTUAL

While she is a brilliant coder, public speaking is not exactly her forte.

COMPLEX

The diplomat found that while high-level negotiations were his forte, the tedious administrative tasks of the embassy were far more challenging.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology 1

Borrowed 1640–50; earlier fort < Middle French; disyllabic pronunciation by association with Italian forte, from Latin fortis (“strong”). Doublet of fort and fortis.

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Italian forte (“strong”).

Usage

Commonly used in the negative ('not my forte') to politely admit a lack of skill.

Pitfall

He is very forte at mathMath is his forteForte is a noun, not an adjective; you cannot be 'forte at' something, but something can be your forte.

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