importer/ɛ̃.pɔʁ.tɑ̃/
verb · B1 · Frequency 324
verb
Meanings
to import
Refers to bringing goods or services into a country from abroad; commonly used in economic and trade contexts.
to matter, to be relevant, to be important
Indicates that something has importance or relevance; often used to express 'this matters'.
Examples
L'entreprise réduit ses coûts en important directement ses matières premières.
The company reduces its costs by importing its raw materials directly.
Le pays diversifie son marché en important du café de plusieurs régions.
The country diversifies its market by importing coffee from several regions.
Nous soutenons les producteurs locaux en important seulement les fruits qui ne poussent pas ici.
We support local producers by importing only the fruit that does not grow here.
Collocations
- importer des marchandisesto import goods
Common mistakes
Ça importe moi vraiment.
Ça m'importe vraiment.
When importer means “to matter to someone,” it takes an indirect object pronoun placed before the conjugated verb: m'importe, not importe moi.
Related words
antonymexporterto export
Grammar note
The verb importer means "to import" when used transitively with a direct object; when meaning "to matter" or "to be important," it is often used impersonally followed by a subject clause.