# pile / batterie - battery



## wouagha

Bonjour,

un appareil photo peut par exemple fonctionner avec des piles ou avec une batterie. D'apres mes recherches, en anglais le mot est le meme? Comment fait on la difference?

Merci d'avance!

*Moderator note:* Multiple threads have been merged to create this one.


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## Alipeeps

Je crois que tu as raison - en anglais c'est le mème mot. Est-ce que tu peut peut-être expliquer quelle est la différence entre les deux mots on français?... ça peut peut-être aider à comprendre si c'est possible de traduire cette différence en anglais...?


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## Fred_C

[…]
Une pile électrique en français n'est jamais rechargeable sauf si on précise :   (pile rechargeable)
Une batterie est toujours rechargeable.


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## Alipeeps

Ah! Thank you for that explanation... I kind of suspected that from checking through my dictionary as the entry for batterie had a "voir recharger" notation.. so I guessed that batteries in French were rechargeable. It threw me however when the entry for pile included the option to specify pile rechargeable... it makes sense though given your explanation that piles are not rechargeable _unless_ specified.

Regarding the translation, we wouldn't really differentiate in English between the two types of battery and would just say that the e.g. camera can run on batteries - however, if you wanted to be precise I guess you could state that the camera can run on "standard or rechargeable batteries".


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## floise

Hi,

Here is what the GDT says about 'pile' and 'batterie':
 
Pile:

Définition :
Source d'énergie électrique obtenue par transformation directe d'énergie chimique. 

The GDT gives 'primary cell' as a translation in English, but gives 'battery' as a synonym. They also state that:

  Note(s) :
When ready for delivery, a primary cell or battery also includes terminals and may also include a case. A primary cell is a cell considered individually or before its possible incorporation in a battery. The word "battery" can refer to a single complete cell. 

Définition de 'batterie':

Définition :
Réunion d'éléments de même type (accumulateurs, piles, condensateurs, etc.) générateurs de courant électrique branchés pour obtenir une tension d'alimentation d'appareils mobiles. 

The GDT gives 'battery' as a translation, and warns that 'batterie' in French is an anglicism.

It seems that 'batterie' is an entity larger than 'pile', but that usage has equated the two.

floise


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## wouagha

[…]
I precise my question. In french we use the word piles for the metallic tubes that you can use for electrical devices but that you have to change regularly even if they are recheargeable (and tehy are very costly for the environment). 
But we use a different word - batteries- for the electrical stuff that you can reload again and again, for example for the mobiles or some cameras.

Is that clearer?

Thanks!


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## Alipeeps

That is a little clearer thanks... 

In that case I would say _piles_ would translate in English as _batteries_...

And _batteries_ could be translated either as _batteries_ or perhaps as "_power packs_". However, generally _battery_ is used in English to mean both the disposable/rechargeable tube (or disc) batteries (that are recharged usually by inserting them into a specialist recharger that plugs into the mains electricity) *_and_* the more solid, square power sources that are used in e.g. mobile phones and digital cameras etc (and which are usually recharged by plugging the device itself (the phone or camera) into the mains electricity).


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## Moyamama

How would you translate batterie et piles with 2 different words in ENglish??

Ce serait bien qu’il y ait les deux, batterie et piles, je peux la connecter en USB pour qu’elle se recharge, comme la PS3
 
That would be nice that it had both, the battery and batteries???? a big battery and the smaller batteries??, I can connect it with the USB so that it charges, like the PS3
 
Merci d'avance!!


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## FranParis

Piles = batteries
Batteries = accumulators


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## Already-Seen

"the computer battery" (if it is indeed a computer battery) and "2 (or whatever number needed) AA batteries" or "AAA batteries" ??


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## Teafrog

I believe a "batterie" is the larger type of battery (e.g. for cars) as well as the rechargeable (and smaller) types.
A "pile" is the throw away kind and is much smaller (AA type and smaller), that you find mostly in most electronic gizmos; they also include watches and bicycle batteries.

For any translation, it is best to describe the types of batteries used (i.e. rechargeable or discard).


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## Moyamama

Thanks for all the answers...the batteries are for a game control they are trying to design and this sentence is all I have to go on for what type they are, since the translation is from 5-6 people talking and giving their opinion on the controls


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## Kat123

Hi all,

Does anyone know the difference between a "pile" and a "batterie"?

I have a document where "pile" is classed separately from "batterie" as a type of energy for powering a piece of equipment - what is the difference between the two? 
I had previously thought they both translated as "battery"...


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## wesetters

Pile = cell
Batterie = battery.

In theory a battery is a group of cells, but in English people tend to use the "terme impropre" _battery._


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## Uncle Bob

Both are, I think, "battery" in English.
The "pile" is the sort that one puts in small bits of equipment (like those that are a sort of cylinder with poles at each end or like the little metal pills).
"batterie" is the more "mechanical"-looking sort (car battery, rechargeable batteries of digital cameras etc.)


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## Beun

Technically, "piles" are not rechargeable, while "batteries" are. Moreover, "piles rechargeables" are also called "batteries"


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## persona67

La distinction entre pile = non rechargeable et batterie = rechargeable tend à disparaître, surtout avec le développement des piles à combustible qui génèrent du courant à partir d'un carburant. Et à part les secteurs qui ont toujours été alimentés en courant par des batteries (industrie automobile), le terme "batterie" a tendance à disparaître. On parle de piles rechargeables, de piles solaires, etc.


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## Beun

tu vas dans des domaines très spécifiques quand même ! Si je prends l'appareil d'un appareil photo, la distinction batterie/pile est fondamentale, et les deux termes désignent des choses bien précises : si ton appareil utilise une batterie alors elle est spécifique à chaque modèle, elle est rechargeable, et coûte relativement cher. S'il utilise des piles, alors tu peux en acheter dans n'importe quel magasin, elles peuvent ne pas être rechargeable et elles coûtent trois fois rien.


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## Kat123

So, to summarize, might I be able to translate the terms as follows:

pile = disposable battery
batterie = rechargable battery

What do you think?


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## xtrasystole

Kat123 said:


> So, to summarize, might I be able to translate the terms as follows:
> 
> pile = disposable battery
> batterie = recharg*e*able battery


Yes, that's exactly right


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## wildan1

Kat123 said:


> pile = disposable _single-use_ battery
> batterie = (_rechargeable)_ battery
> 
> What do you think?


These are the correct the technical terms, but we would only specify them if the context required it. Otherwise, we just say _battery _and assume which kind if needed.


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## Martyn94

Yes but. Unless there is some particular reason to make clear that only disposable batteries will do ( most small devices can use both sorts), you would just say "battery" for "pile". If you need to make clear that the battery in question is rechargeable, then of course you would say that is.


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## Khull

Hello,

I noticed that in English it seems to be the same word for 'batterie' and 'pile'.
I sought about it on Google and found out that the term 'cell' may be used but it seems not common.
So how can you do people to differenciate the both items ?


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## Suehil

You never need to - you merely specify what sort of battery you need.  A car battery, a triple-A battery, etc.


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## Khull

I see.... But for instance if I want to discuss with other people about the topic of a console's gamepad (One requires 'piles' in order to operate and the other requires 'battery') what words do I have to use ? I'm confused... 
By the way, thanks for the reply.


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## Uncle Bob

In conversation I think you could specify with "ordinary battery" for "pile" and "lithium ion battery" (or whatever chemicals are involved) for "batterie" in this case.

Depending on how you organise your conversation it may be obvious from _piles_ being the batteries you buy in a supermarket and "batteries" being the batteries from a specialised shop.


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## Khull

Thank you Bob, I think I got it.


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## wildan1

Both _pile_ and _batterie_ are usually translated as a single word in English--_battery._ Only if more precision is needed, is the word is clarified--_car battery, flashlight battery, cell phone battery, etc._


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## CarlosRapido

For those looking for a more technical breakdown;_

pile_ (voltaique) = battery (usually made up of cells connected in series) << was originally called a (voltaic) pile in English also
_batterie_ = battery (multiple cells connected in parallel or a combination of series(piles) and parallel)
(galvanic) cell = _élément de pile_ (rarement appelé cellule galvanique)

In normal usage, people don't differentiate between series or parallel batteries, but the English tend to mark a difference between single element *cells* and *batteries*.  



> 1. An electrochemical cell is a device capable of either deriving electrical energy from chemical reactions, or facilitating chemical reactions through the introduction of electrical energy. A common example of an electrochemical cell is a standard 1.5-volt "battery". (Actually a single "Galvanic cell"; a battery properly consists of multiple cells, connected in either parallel or series pattern.)
> 
> 2. The voltaic pile was the first electrical battery that could continuously provide an electrical current to a circuit.
> 
> 3. À l'origine, le terme pile désignait un dispositif inventé par le savant italien Alessandro Volta, composé d'un empilement de rondelles de deux métaux différents, séparés par des feutres imprégnés d'un électrolyte. Par extension, le mot « pile » désigne toute batterie monobloc non rechargeable. Cependant, le terme « batterie » désigne un ensemble d'éléments montés en série pour obtenir une tension souhaitée, dans un emballage unique. Mais la locution « pile rechargeable » n'a pas de sens. De même, par abus de langage, le terme « pile » est utilisé pour désigner d'autres générateurs électrochimiques : pile à combustible, accumulateur électrique.


_Multiple Wiki sources_


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## Khull

Thanks for your good explanations.


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## CarlosRapido

J'avais oublié d'ajouter que ce que l'on appele 'piles' en francais sont le plus souvent des 'éléments de pile' (AAA, AA, C, D...) appelées '_cells_' en anglais.


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