Jeunesse, retraites et choix gérontocratiques en France

Does “la retraite” mean retirement or pension in French?

In French, one word covers two English ideas. “La retraite” is both the life stage after you stop working and the monthly pension money you receive. So “partir à la retraite” means to retire, and “toucher sa retraite” means to collect your pension. When this speaker says France should not spend everything “pour payer les retraites,” she means the pension payments. “Les retraités” are the retired people. One word, two meanings — context shows you which.

In the clip: « ça suppose de ne pas consacrer toutes nos ressources pour payer les retraites » — “that means not putting all our resources into paying for pensions.” Here “les retraites” = the pension payments, not the life stage. “Retraite” comes from “se retirer” — to withdraw or pull back. That older meaning is still there today: “une retraite” can mean a quiet retreat or refuge, and in the military “battre en retraite” means to retreat. So the word looks like the English word “retreat” — and it is related — but the social meaning (retirement, pension) is the one you will hear in everyday French news. The key phrases to learn: “partir à la retraite” or “prendre sa retraite” (to retire), “être à la retraite” (to be retired), “toucher sa retraite” (to collect one’s pension). A retired person is “un retraité / une retraitée.” The whole pension system is “le système de retraite” — a constant topic in French news and politics.