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10 Places to Visit in Paris, the City of Lights

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Have you ever been to Paris? Few cities around the world have aroused as much passion as the French capital. Locals often grow to hate it for its heavy traffic, pollution, and hectic lifestyle. Visitors love it for its high-class shopping and stunning architecture. Lovers from all over the world choose it as their honeymoon destination.

Whether you love it or hate it, Paris is a city like no other. Centuries of history, countless museums, enough sights and activities to keep you busy for weeks, and several contrasting districts to explore…these are but a few of the city’s most charming qualities.

What’s the best time to visit Paris? And what are the most amazing places to visit? You will know it all by the end of this guide.

A Woman Taking a Photo of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France

Explorer Paris (“Exploring Paris”)

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Table of Contents
  1. Travel Tips
  2. The Top 10 Must-See Places in Paris
  3. Places You Might Want to Skip
  4. Survival French for Travelers
  5. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Travel Tips

Paris is the capital—and by far the most populated—city of France, with more than two million people living in around 100 square kilometers. It lies at the center of the Île-de-France or Paris region, which has a population of twelve million.

Since the seventeenth century, Paris has been one of Europe’s most important centers for finance, business, science, fashion, and the arts. It received around 17.5 million visitors in 2018, ranking as the sixth most visited city in the world (after Hong Kong, Bangkok, London, Macao, and Singapore).

When?

March and May are usually the best months to visit Paris. If you can’t visit during the spring, autumn is another good option.

Winters are mild, but with school holidays in December and February, the streets get unpleasantly crowded. Summer, especially the month of August, can be really hot and wet. This is also when most Parisians go on vacation, and many shops and restaurants are closed for the month.

Getting Around

It’s very easy to navigate the capital and you’ll be offered many options, from strolling on foot (most of the center is beautiful and pedestrian-friendly) to using the Metro, buses, trains, trams, or bicycles. 

Unlike its large metropolitan area, the inner city is rather small and packed with amazing architecture and sight-seeing. If you can afford the time, it’s well worth walking around.

Language

You can visit Paris without speaking French, but the more you learn before your trip, the better. It will allow you to interact with locals, read the signs and menus, and immerse yourself deeper into the culture.

Anyone who deals with tourists in Paris will speak some measure of English. As for the common folks, their level of English literacy is somewhat better than our national average (but still not great), and many Parisians are still completely helpless with English.

Sleeping

At the time of this writing, the cheapest dorm bed in Paris is 23€, and luckily, you can find several more relatively cheap hostels (23-30€) in the inner city. Double rooms can be found from 40€ if you’re adventurous, but it may be better to plan for a minimum of 60€ for something reasonably clean and comfortable.

Eating

You can find cheap meals starting at around 6€ (typically kebab or Chinese menus). A hearty and typical plat du jour (dish of the day) should be around 10-15€, and 15-20€ will buy you a three-course meal. Then, for more sophisticated food, you can find restaurants accommodating the highest budgets. The finest dining in world-class restaurants, such as Le Meurice, will cost you around 500€.

A French Restaurant Called Le Cafe Gourmand

Un restaurant français (“A French restaurant”)


2. The Top 10 Must-See Places in Paris

Whether you’re a culture vulture, a nature-lover, a shopping addict, or a patron of the arts, you’ll find plenty of excitement in Paris. 

In this list, I’ll give you a summary of the sights and attractions in Paris that should not be missed—not because they’re highly touristic, but because I believe they all offer something unique and remarkable.

1 – Tour Eiffel

I bet you didn’t see that one coming! And surprisingly, as cliché as this popular landmark in Paris may appear, the Eiffel Tower is probably the most controversial item on this list. Many Parisians find it ugly or unappealing, and more and more visitors prefer to stay away from its army of tourists, trinket-sellers, and endless waiting lines.

Did you know it was originally meant to be destroyed after serving its purpose?

Towering 300 meters over the Champs de Mars, this colossus of over 10,000 tons of iron was built specifically for the Exposition Universelle in 1889 and was supposed to be destroyed twenty years later. It was only saved by scientific experiments regarding radio transmission and telecommunications.

100 years later, the tower is still standing. It has become the stage for numerous international events, quickly rising to the top of the list of the most-visited monuments in the world.

I keep reading that you can get equally striking sights from the Montparnasse Tower, but would you rather see them from the top of a skyscraper or from this unique four-legged iron monster?

At night, it has to be seen to be believed. Lit up from head to feet, it brightens the city skyline as it gets illuminated with a ten-minute light show every hour, from dusk until one a.m.

La Tour Eiffel, or the Eiffel Tower

La Tour Eiffel

2 – Notre-Dame & Saint Michel

Nested at the heart of Paris, on a small islet called Île de la Cité (“Island of the City”), the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris (Literally: “Our Lady of Paris”) is the most iconic and touristic monument in the whole city. Yes, it gets almost twice as many visitors as the Eiffel Tower!

But then, on April 15, 2019, a ferocious accidental fire raged for around fifteen hours despite the sustained efforts of thousands of firemen. By the time it was extinguished, the spire had collapsed and most of the roof had been destroyed. Luckily, the outside of the structure remained largely intact and a lot of damage was prevented by its stone vaulted ceiling which contained the roof as it collapsed.

The restoration of the cathedral started almost immediately; one year later, the forecourt of Notre-Dame was reopened. It will take at least four more years to bring it back to its former glory, but it’s still worth seeing it from the outside!

Despite its fame, I’ve personally never been that impressed with Notre-Dame. It looks just like many other French Gothic cathedrals in smaller cities such as Reims, Amiens, Chartres, and Anvers.

However, visiting Notre-Dame, you’re right at the center of the most beautiful Parisian districts: 

North of Île de la Cité, you can reach the 4ème Arrondissement, one of the most iconic and sight-filled districts. You’re only one bridge away from another islet called Île Saint Louis, and just south of Notre-Dame, you can stroll through the Saint Michel neighborhood, which features countless restaurants, bookshops, and parks.

Notre-Dame in Paris, France

Notre-Dame de Paris

3 – Musée du Louvre

The Louvre is the world’s most popular museum, greeting ten million visitors every year. It’s home to more than 500,000 pieces of eclectic art, though only 35,000 are available to the public (for some mysterious reason).

Should you visit the Louvre? If you just want to see the Mona Lisa, please don’t and just buy a postcard. This is the single most-visited painting in the museum, and you won’t see much of her enigmatic smile while being ripped to shreds in a forest of selfie sticks.

Of course, there are plenty of other museums in Paris: Musée d’Orsay, Musée de l’Orangerie, Musée Rodin, Centre Pompidou. You could spend a good month just visiting them all. 

But obviously, the Louvre is special—not only for its extensive collection, but also for the monument and its surroundings. The Pyramide du Louvre, a large glass pyramid located in the main courtyard of the Louvre Palace, is a prime example.

Le Musée du Louvre

Le Musée du Louvre

4 – Jardin du Luxembourg

Located next to the Latin district of Paris, the Luxembourg Garden was created in 1612 at the request of Queen Marie de Médicis, to go along the new residence she was having built: the Luxembourg Palace

Spread over 25 hectares of green elegance and floral magnificence, it’s split into two parts with different styles: English and French, separated by a geometric forest and a large pond. There is also an orchard, an apiary, a rose garden, a stunning collection of orchids, more than 100 statues, an enormous fountain, the Orangerie, and of course, the palace itself.

The gardens are a very popular spot for locals and it can get a little crowded. There, you can play chess, bridge, or tennis, stroll through the alleys, or sit next to the pond. Even though it’s right in the middle of the city, it has a pretty relaxed atmosphere.


5 – Montmartre

No matter how touristic it is, you can’t leave Paris without visiting Montmartre, the art district of Paris.

Historically, it’s renowned for attracting painters, writers, musicians, and comedians. And to this day, it’s full of eccentric and interesting people, colorful cafés, art galleries, and way too many souvenir shops.

At the heart of this charming district lies the Butte Montmartre, a small hill at the top of which stands the Sacré-Coeur (“Holy Heart”) Basilica. Take the cheap funicular or climb the 220 steps to reach the top, and you’ll be rewarded with a beautiful view of Paris’ rooftops.

But there’s more! From the top of Butte Montmartre, you’re only a short walk away from the world-famous Moulin Rouge. (If you haven’t watched the dazzling movie from Baz Luhrmann, it’s never too late.)

If you plan to visit Paris by night, are looking for the most iconic Parisian nightlife experience, and are ready to spend big, the Moulin Rouge is exactly what you need. This legendary cabaret has been running every night since 1889, with sparkling burlesque dancers adorned in rhinestones and feathers. (Due to the somewhat erotic nature of the show, it’s probably not the best place to take your kids, though.)

Le Moulin Rouge

Le Moulin Rouge
(Photo by Keven LawCC)

6 – Cimetière du Père Lachaise

Depending on where you’re from, it might sound weird or even disrespectful to visit a cemetery, but this is not the case in France—especially not in the large historical cemeteries in Paris, such as Père Lachaise, Montmartre, and Montparnasse.

Our cemeteries are an integral part of the city’s cultural heritage, visited by people from all around the world who want to see the tombs of the many celebrities buried there (such as Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Edith Piaf). It also makes for an unusual and picturesque walk in a peaceful atmosphere.

Personally, what I love about Père Lachaise is the surreal and eclectic architectures of the graves and mausoleums. All funeral styles are represented and the Gothic crypts are especially impressive.

Le cimetière du Père Lachaise

Le cimetière du Père Lachaise

7 – Le Marais

If you want to take in a deep breath of typical Parisian style, head to one of the city’s oldest and coolest districts. Its typical cobblestone streets and small courtyards will make you feel like you’re strolling in Medieval Paris.

Le Marais (Literally “The Swamp”) was originally built on a swamp, but it’s hard to tell when strolling across its fancy streets and high-end fashion boutiques. It has numerous museums and art galleries, vintage shops, antiques, and nightlife ventures.

The district has become home to various communities over the last few centuries. Traditionally a Jewish quarter, it later became popular with Chinese emigrants after World War I. Nowadays, it’s famous for its thriving LGBT+ community. 

There are lots of small restaurants to choose from and if you’re not in a rush, you can trust the length of the line to locate the best places. For a taste of what Le Marais has to offer, you can’t go wrong with Florence Kahn or L’As du Falafel.

“Pavillon de la Reine”, in Le Marais
(Photo by Alex59300 – CC)

8 – Catacombes de Paris 

If the cemetery didn’t scare you away, how about we take it up a notch and dive into one of the most macabre and unsettling historical attractions Paris has to offer?

The Catacombs of Paris is an underground network beneath the streets of the city, with an ossuary hosting the remains of more than six million people. It was created in the eighteenth century to compensate for the city’s overflowing cemeteries.

There are a lot of creepy stories surrounding the catacombs, as you can probably imagine. But this hasn’t kept half a million visitors from heading down the dark tunnels each year since 1874, when it became open to public visitation. Upon entry, they’re greeted with the sign: “Stop. This is the empire of death.”

No one is certain of how large the catacombs really are, but they’re estimated to be around 320 kilometers. They’re largely inaccessible to date, but clandestine groups of catacomb enthusiasts (known as “Cataphiles”) frequently roam this underworld in search of thrills and uncharted sections.

Due to the illegal nature of these activities, it’s difficult to get in touch with any of these urban explorers. Unless you’re intimate with a member, you’ll have to opt for the organized tour. Just make sure you’re not claustrophobic!

Les Catacombes de Paris

Les Catacombes de Paris
(Photo by Vlastimil Juricek – CC)

9 – Parc de Sceaux

There are many parks in Paris, and some of them are really beautiful, like the Parc des Buttes Chaumont or the Parc Monceau. But as soon as the sun comes up, they get awfully crowded with locals and tourists alike. 

Le Parc de Sceaux is kind of a secret gem and attracts much more of a local crowd than the more central gardens do.

The Domaine de Sceaux is a vast expanse of grass, colorful trees, flowers, and ponds, spread around a typical Renaissance castle. It’s much bigger (and quieter) than other parks in Paris, but just as elegant and beautiful.

Le Domaine de Sceaux

Le Domaine de Sceaux

10 – La Seine

The Seine River splits Paris in half, and unless you’re blindly bus-hopping from one attraction to the next, you’re likely to spend a lot of your time strolling along its paved shores.

First of all, this is arguably the most romantic spot in Paris. Especially near Notre-Dame, strolling on its peaceful piers with the city lights reflecting on the canal is pure magic. (The water doesn’t look dirty at night!)

It’s so romantic indeed that you might have heard of the famous love-locks bridge, where lovers from all around the world attach a padlock as a symbolic way to “Lock their love forever.”

The trend started around 2008, and seven years later, the Pont des Arts (“Bridge of the Arts”) started to crumble under the weight of 700,000 locks for an estimated total of 93 metric tons of romance! At first, the city didn’t seem too keen on listening to grumpy locals calling it vandalism, but when it started threatening the bridge’s integrity, they had to replace the railing entirely.

On a less romantic note, did you know that Parisians used to drink the Seine’s water, use it to wash their laundry, and even swim in it? However, scientific analysis of the water in the 20s revealed that the water was highly toxic, polluted, and absolutely unsuitable for any water activity.

But none of this kept us from creating Paris Plage (“Paris Beach”). This oddity appeared in 2002, turning part of the banks of the Seine into a beach, with tons of sand as well as swimming pools, beach volley nets, ice cream stalls, tanning chairs—you name it! 

Initially meant for those who couldn’t take summer vacations on the coast, Paris Plage is now a popular spot for everyone. Nobody’s crazy enough to actually swim in the Seine, though.

La Seine

La Seine

3. Places You Might Want to Skip

After going through our Top 10, you may be surprised that some of the most iconic locations are missing. This is not an oversight, but rather a deliberate omission.

  • L’Arc de Triomphe

    This enormous piece of stone stands at the center of the Place de l’Étoile (“Star Plaza”). The monument itself is not especially pretty and it’s not tall enough to offer an interesting view of the city. More importantly, it’s right in the middle of one of the world’s busiest and noisiest roundabouts.
  • Les Champs-Élysées

    I never got the appeal of our “Elysian Fields.” This is nothing more than a glorified shopping street with thousands of tourists waiting in endless lines in front of luxury fashion shops. It’s also notorious for attracting pickpockets and scammers.

    Don’t expect to do any regular shopping here, as you’re gonna need very deep pockets to afford a bag from Louis Vuitton or the most expensive Macarons you’ve ever seen.
  • Le Château de Versailles

    This is another timeless classic you could easily avoid. The Versailles Castle is quite remote and will likely take you a full day. As a result, I would only recommend it if you’re spending a week or more in the capital.

    You can find better exhibitions in the central museums and equally interesting gardens in Jardin du Luxembourg or Jardin des Tuileries.

4. Survival French for Travelers

Even if you don’t speak much French, it’s generally recommended to greet people in French, as it will make for a much more positive first impression. Don’t worry, you can switch back to English as soon as you’ve greeted them. That said, they will appreciate you going the extra mile and learning a few more survival phrases. 

Bonjour !
Bonsoir !
“Hello!” / “Good morning!”
“Good evening!”
Au revoir.“Goodbye.”
Merci (beaucoup).“Thank you (very much).”
Non merci.“No, thank you.”
S’il vous plaît.“Please.”
Excusez-moi. “Excuse me.”
(Je suis) désolé(e).“(I am) sorry.”
Où sont les toilettes ?“Where are the toilets?”


    → For more useful travel phrases or pronunciation practice, please have a look at the following resources on FrenchPod101.com:


Pouvez-vous répéter (s’il vous plaît) ?“Can you repeat (please)?”
Un peu plus lentement, s’il vous plaît.“A bit slower, please.”
Je suis désolé(e), je ne comprends pas.“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”
Vous parlez anglais ?“Do you speak English?”

    → These are just some basics to help you get by. For more resources on this topic, be sure to check out our survival guide on French Travel Phrases.

Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned about the most amazing places to visit in Paris, from the obvious Tour Eiffel to some lesser-known gems like the Domaine de Sceaux or Père Lachaise. Did it get you excited about visiting the City of Lights? Or maybe you’ve been there already but missed some of its treasures?

Did we forget any important places you’ve seen or heard about? Don’t hesitate to share it with your fellow students in the comments!

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101.com, as we have plenty of free resources to help you practice your grammar and learn new words before you visit France. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review words and learn their pronunciation.

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching with your own private teacher who will help you practice new travel phrases and more. In addition to providing you with assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples, your teacher will review your work and help improve your pronunciation.

Happy learning on FrenchPod101!

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About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

English Words Used in French: Do You Speak Frenglish?

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Did you know that nearly 30% of English words might be of French origin? This is still a hot topic among linguists, but it speaks volumes about how languages influence each other, especially now that globalization is going full throttle.

Conversely, the English language has long been influential in the evolution of French, but with the rise of the internet, new technologies, and the uncontested power of Hollywood, English terms and expressions have been literally pouring into the French language in recent years. 

In this article, you’ll learn everything about English words used in French and this weird two-headed language called Frenglish. We’ll cover it all, from loanwords to the excesses of business Frenglish, mysterious syntax mutations, and how the French are reacting to all this.

Menu at a Restaurant

At work, after work, Frenglish is everywhere!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French Table of Contents
  1. Frenglish or Loanwords?
  2. Legit Loanwords
  3. Fake Loanwords
  4. Know Your Frenglish
  5. The French Resistance to Anglification
  6. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Frenglish or Loanwords?

Before going any further, what are loanwords and how are they different from Frenglish?

1 – Le Franglais

Le Franglais (“Frenglish”) is a portmanteau word. It’s the combination of the words Français (“French”) and Anglais (“English”), and it describes the excessive mixing of French and English by French speakers. 

It is a derogatory word used to denounce the overuse of English words in the French language, though it has lost some of its negative connotations over time. At best, you could use it to show self-awareness of your linguistic shortcomings any time you realize you’re using too many English words in your speech.

2 – English Loanwords

A loanword is a word taken from one language and incorporated into another without translation. These are not just look-alikes from a common etymology, but actual copy-pastes of foreign words without translation. 

For example: 

  • Un sandwich (“A sandwich”)
  • Le suspense (“Suspense”)

Let’s dive deeper into English loanwords and see why they’re going to be your best friends!

2. Legit Loanwords

As you learn French, you’re gonna love English loanwords! Because they’re borrowed from English with little to no changes, they are easy for English speakers to understand. And there are so many of them in French that they represent a wealth of free vocabulary you don’t even have to study!

While English loanwords in French are ubiquitous, they’re especially common in certain fields, such as technology and entertainment. Here are some examples:

1 – About Food

Un sandwichUn sandwich au thon, s’il vous plaît. (“A tuna sandwich, please.”)

Un burgerUn burger au bleu. (“A blue-cheese burger.”)

Un steakJ’aime mon steak saignant. (“I like my steak rare.”)
You might come across the word bifsteck, the francization of “beefsteak,” and…what can I say? It looks pretty gross to me, but to be fair, it’s outdated and barely used anymore by the younger generations.

Un cocktailQuel est ton cocktail préféré ? (“What is your favorite cocktail?”)

Un cookieUn cookie au chocolat noir. (“A dark chocolate cookie.”)

Un chewing-gumJ’ai toujours des chewing-gums dans mon sac. (“I always have chewing gum in my bag.”)
If you ever come across the expression gomme à mâcher, know that it’s the French version of “chewing gum.” But it’s so old-fashioned that even my grandmother doesn’t remember about it.

Happy hourÀ quelle heure est l’happy hour ? (“At what time is happy hour?”)

    → If this section made you hungry, why not indulge for a minute and stop by our vocabulary list on French Food? Spoiler alert: It features the amazing chestnut purée.

2 – About Technology

Un mail, Un emailJe t’ai envoyé un mail la semaine dernière. (“I sent you an email last week.”)
The word un mail can be a bit tricky because we only use it for “email.” Paper mail is un courrier.

Also, the strongest advocates for French purity eventually came up with a French word for “email,” hoping to replace un mail. And so, the questionable un courriel was created. Nowadays, except on some official documents, nobody ever uses it.

Un bugIl y a un bug dans la base de données. (“There is a bug in the database.”)

internetJ’utilise internet tous les jours. (“I’m using the internet every day.”)
In writing, you might also read l’internet, but it sounds a bit silly and outdated. If you come across les internet, just take a deep breath and pretend you didn’t hear that. (It sounds old and snobbish.)

Un smartphoneJ’ai vendu mon smartphone. (“I have sold my smartphone.”)

Un chatJe vais lui poser la question sur le chat. (“I will ask him on the chat.”)
This has the same spelling as un chat (“a cat”), but we pronounce it like the English word “chat.”

    → You’ll find a few more of these loanwords on our free list of Technology vocabulary, with recordings for you to practice their pronunciation.

3 – About Movies

Un trailerTu as vu le trailer du dernier James Bond ? (“Have you seen the latest James Bond trailer?”)

Un teaserLe teaser de ce film est incroyable ! (“The teaser for this movie is incredible!”)

Un spoilerC’est difficile d’éviter les spoilers sur internet. (“It’s difficult to avoid spoilers on the internet.”)

Un cliffhangerIl y a un cliffhanger de fou à la fin de cet épisode ! (“There is a crazy cliffhanger at the end of this episode!”)


4 – More Loanwords

Un t-shirtJ’adore ton nouveau t-shirt. (“I love your new t-shirt.”)

Le week-endPasse un bon week-end ! (“Have a good weekend!”)

CoolCe jeu est tellement cool ! (“This game is so cool!”)

Un parkingIl y a un parking à côté du magasin. (“There is a parking lot next to the shop.”)

Du shoppingJe vais faire du shopping demain. (“I’m going shopping tomorrow.”)

Un challengeC’est un vrai challenge de se garer ici. (“It’s a real challenge to park here.”)

Shopping Center

Faire du shopping (“To go shopping”)

3. Fake Loanwords

Although loanwords are an incredible source of easy vocabulary, you should be aware that we’ve laid some traps along the way. A few English words have been improperly incorporated into the French language and have a different meaning.

They’re quite treacherous but not numerous, so all you need to do is keep them in a corner of your mind so you don’t get tricked.

Here are the most common ‘fake’ English loanwords in French:

Le zapping“Channel hopping” or “Channel surfing.” This refers to when you quickly browse TV channels.

Le footing“Jogging”

Un camping“Campsite”

Des baskets“Sneakers,” “Trainers,” or more generally, “Sport shoes”

Un smoking“Dinner jacket” or “Tuxedo”

Un break“Estate car” or “Station wagon”

Le catch“Wrestling”

Un planning“Schedule” or “Work plan”

Un flipper“Pinball machine”

4. Know Your Frenglish

By definition, Frenglish is an overly Anglicized French language. We’ve seen that there are plenty of common English words used in French which have become an official part of the language. But when French speakers start overusing these English terms, expressions, and structures, Frenglish happens.

1 – Frenglish in Business

This tendency to overuse English words is especially obvious in the business world. If you’ve worked in any big French companies—especially in anything related to technology or entertainment—you might have heard this uncanny mixture of French and English words. It can get confusing even for the French themselves.

Here are a few examples with the English words highlighted in red:

  • “I’m super-busy.”
    • French: Je suis très occupé.
    • Frenglish: Je suis super busy.
  • “Can you forward me the report ASAP?”
    • French: Tu peux me transférer le compte-rendu le plus vite possible ?
    • Frenglish: Tu peux me forwarder le reporting ASAP ?
  • “We’re going to debrief on the meeting’s bullet points.”
    • French: On va faire un bilan sur les points importants de la réunion.
    • Frenglish: On va debriefer sur les bullet points du meeting.
  • “Do you want to change the date of the call to attend the workshop?”
    • French: Tu veux changer la date de la conférence pour assister au séminaire ?
    • Frenglish: Tu veux switcher la date du call pour assister au workshop ?

I’m not even exaggerating! And there are still several more English words used by the French in business settings:

  • Burnout
  • Corporate
  • Brainstorming
  • Mainstream
  • Process
  • Management / Manager
  • Marketing
  • Business
A Corporate Meeting

Un meeting corporate (“A corporate meeting”)

2 – Semantic Frenglish

More insidious, semantic Frenglish is when we mimic English expressions using English words that look like French words.

For example, the French word agressive (the feminine form of agressif) really looks like the English word “aggressive.”

However, in French, it means “who is prone to attack” or “to look for conflict.” And in English, it can mean “behaving in a determined and forceful way.”

What do we end up with?

  • Cette société utilise une stratégie agressive sur les prix. 
    (“This company is using an aggressive pricing strategy.”)

This is an improper use of agressive that has become so common that nobody even raises an eyebrow anymore. It’s all over the newspaper and TV, and people have just gotten used to it. And there are many similar words out there.

There are also some increasingly popular Frenglish expressions:

  • “I’ll get back to you.”
    • French: Je vous recontacte.
    • Frenglish: Je reviens vers vous.
  • “I’m in charge of this project.”
    • French: Je suis responsable de ce projet.
    • Frenglish: Je suis en charge de ce projet.
  • “No chance!”
    • French: Aucun risque !
    • Frenglish: Aucune chance !

3 – Syntactic Frenglish

Another subtle effect of English’s influence on French is how it changes the syntax rules. It happens in various ways and it’s often sneaky enough that most people don’t realize it (myself included, for the most part).

Here are a few examples:

  • French adjectives can come either before or after the noun, but under English influence, we now tend to misplace them.

    For example: Actuel (“Current”) should be placed after the noun. However, it’s common to read l’actuel président instead of le président actuel (“the current president”).
  • We juxtapose substantives that should not be placed side by side.

    Les relations clients should be les relations avec les clients (“customer relations”).
  • We overuse the passive form instead of using the typical French active form. This is especially obvious in the French administrative style.

    Des mesures seront prises (“measures will be taken”) should be nous prendrons des mesures (“we will take measures”).

Customer Relations

Les relations clients (“Customer relations”)

5. The French Resistance to Anglification

How would you react if your language was rapidly mutating over the years, affected by globalization and the cultural influence of the biggest cultural superpowers?

In France, some people see it as a blessing. The language is evolving and getting richer with these new words and expressions. Others believe we should fight back, create new words, and reconquer the ones we’ve lost.

Since the 70s, official French committees have worked on creating new words, especially for modern technologies, in order to avoid using the English terms. In rare cases, it works well and the words become an actual part of the language for decades to come:

  • Logiciel (“Software”)
  • Informatique (“Computer science”)
  • Baladeur (“Walkman”)

But more often than not, it fails horribly. In 1994, Jacques Toubon, who was the Minister of Culture at the time, tried to establish a list of replacements for many borrowed English words. The Toubon Law made him infamous for its widely controversial content.

Among many others, it included vacancelles to replace weekend. This abomination of a word was never used but never forgotten.

Some other words have been mildly successful, but most of them sound old-fashioned and ridiculous:

  • Tchatche (“Chat”)
  • Courriel (“Email”)
  • Messagerie instantanée (“Messenger”)
  • Hameçonnage (“Phishing”)
  • Pourriel (“Spam”)
  • Webmestre (“Webmaster”)

A Woman Sending an Email

Envoyer un mail (“To send an email”)

6. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned everything about Frenglish, from loanwords to the crazy blend of business Frenglish, mysterious semantic mutations, and how the French are handling it. Did I forget any important Frenglish expressions that you know?

We’re just scratching the surface here, but as you start interacting with native French speakers, you’ll notice how many of these strange Frenglish verbs they’re using: poker (“to poke”), uploader (“to upload”), checker (“to check”), and many more.

If you enjoyed this lesson, keep in mind that FrenchPod101.com also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings as well as free resources to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining!

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching and practice Frenglish terms and more with your personal teacher. In addition to providing you with assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples, your teacher will review your work and help you improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101.com!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

An Overview of French Culture

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Are you planning on visiting France soon? Or even on settling down? Maybe you’re just curious about the country in general. Whatever the reason, you’ve come to the perfect place to learn about what makes France so special.

France is considered one of the most culturally influential countries in the world, and this is not surprising. This country has a lot to offer: a wealth of history and art, fine food, booming entertainment industries, a chic fashion scene, and strong values.

On this page, you’ll learn the most important French culture facts, from core values to general lifestyle.

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French Table of Contents
  1. French Values
  2. Religions and Cults
  3. Relationships
  4. Lifestyle
  5. Art and Entertainment
  6. Food and Wine
  7. French Holidays
  8. Le Mot De La Fin

1. French Values

Understanding French culture begins with a working knowledge of the values and mindset of the French. 

A- Why is it Difficult to Define a “French Culture”?

While the concept of a “melting pot” is an integral part of the American culture, it has always been a bit more contentious in France. What is the French culture exactly? Should it be viewed as the culture from the mainland? But then what about Corsica and our five overseas regions?

Today, France is not the patchwork of local customs nor the disparate collection of communities it was only two centuries ago. However, it’s still home to numerous indigenous and foreign languages as well as multiple ethnicities and religions—and all of this on top of the regional diversity of the metropolitan territories.

Somehow, France managed to develop a certain shared “cultural identity.” It came not only from the education system, military service, and local politics, but also from profoundly influential historical events such as the French Revolution in 1789, the two World Wars, and the social revolution in 1968.

Despite some recent efforts to promote multiculturalism and communitarianism (through the preservation of regional languages and the decentralization of power), a number of events have put this fragile culture under a lot of pressure: 

  • the depopulation of the countryside
  • large waves of non-Christian immigrant communities
  • centralization
  • market forces
  • the globalization of the world economy

However, there is still a sense of pride in our national identity and in the achievements of France. The interracial blending also makes for a vibrant pool of talents, from popular music to literature, music, art, and more.

B- Core Values of the French Republic 

Liberty, equality, and fraternity have defined the French people since the eighteenth century (often called the Age of Enlightenment). The motto “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité” first appeared during the French Revolution and was later written into the Constitution in 1958, officially becoming part of the French national heritage.

Do these values still hold true in France today? While French citizens are mainly concerned about social inequalities, loss of liberties, and abuses of power, this is a very delicate question. Nevertheless, it remains an ideal we want to hold on to.

C- The French Mindset

There are a few defining French culture characteristics concerning specific values and the French mindset. Of course, this varies a lot depending on one’s social circle and level of education, but there are some general trends.

Freedom is greatly valued and people are often defiant toward authorities: government and police alike. Suspicions of corruption or abuse of power easily arise and can have a huge impact on people’s perception of the current elected officials.

Freedom of speech is usually seen as essential. Nowadays, it is arguably impaired by a certain obsession with political correctness. Public expressions that are deemed inappropriate are even punishable by law as they can potentially foster hatred.

However, we still value critical thinking and education, and the French often try to appear knowledgeable about culture, literature, world events, science, or…well, basically everything. In France, you don’t need to look tough, have perfect hair, or possess amazing dance skills. If you want to stand out, you need to be educated and assertive.

Having an open mind is generally regarded as an important quality. Even though there is still a lot of work ahead of us, the French are rather progressive in their mentalities regarding different religions and are more willing to dive into new cultures. Gender inequalities are on the decline and LGBT rights have come a long way in recent years.

Social classes are still a thing, with the upper class rarely mingling with the ‘commoners,’ a general disconnect from the rural world, and increasing social inequality. On an encouraging note, the public opinion is showing more and more awareness of those issues. For example, when Presidents Sarkozy or Macron were displaying too much wealth or scorning the working class, their popularity quickly went down.

The French Revolution

La Révolution Française (“The French Revolution”) – 1789

2. Religions and Cults

In French culture, religion is a hot topic—making it an essential factor to mention in our overview.

A- Freedom of Religion

France is a secular country. This means that, by law, the French government remains neutral concerning religion; as such, it should neither enforce nor prohibit citizens’ free exercise of religion. French citizens are free to choose any religion (or none), and it’s a private matter that shall never interfere with official affairs.

No “God saves the President” or swearing on the Bible in France. When the loi sur la séparation de l’Église et de l’État (“Law on the Separation of the Church and State”) came into effect in 1905, so did the “freedom to practice religion.”

It’s important to understand that this set of laws is by no means a weapon against religion. It is only returning all religions to the private sector and guaranteeing state secularism in the public sphere. The French state does not favor any particular religion and should aim at maintaining their peaceful co-existence.

In the same spirit, the law of March 15, 2004, prohibits all religious clothing and accessories from being worn in schools (as children are considered more vulnerable to indoctrination). This specific law caused some outrage among part of the Muslim community and is still a hot topic.

B- Dominant Religions in France

According to a recent official poll by the French government:

  • 37% of French people identify with some religion
  • 31% are atheists and 15% agnostics
  • 10% are indifferent to religion

14% of French people take part in some religious practice at least once a month (religious office or events, group prayers, etc.).

Catholicism is by far the most dominant religion in the country, way ahead of Protestantism, Islam, Judaism, and Buddhism. It’s interesting to note how heavily Islam has weighed on the public debate, despite there being a very small number of Muslim believers in France.

Even though France boasts a glorious Catholic legacy, with numerous architectural masterpieces such as Notre-Dame and the Cathédrale de Reims, Christianity is on the decline and few people attend Mass anymore. This decline is especially prominent among the younger generations.

Le Mont Saint Michel

Le Mont Saint Michel

3. Relationships

Every culture has its own ways of perceiving and handling different relationships. Let’s take a look at French cultural norms when it comes to family, couples, and friends.

A- Family

The family is an important cohesive component of French society and each member has certain responsibilities. Gender equality hasn’t been fully achieved yet, but both parents are usually working and making important household decisions together.

Family members are generally close. They take meals together during the week and it’s common to gather with extended family on weekends. When they’re not living under the same roof anymore, they regularly keep in touch.

With 1.87 children per woman (a number that has been slowly but steadily going down since 2010), France remains the most fertile country in the European Union.


B- Couples

Since the 1960s, marriage has been on the decline and France has seen an increasing number of divorces. Getting married is not as popular as it used to be, and a lot of French couples now have a practical approach to it. 

Created in 1999, the pacs or PACS (Pacte Civil de Solidarité, for “Civil Solidarity Pact”) is, along with the classic civil marriage, one of the two forms of civil union in France.

It was originally created to give same-sex couples the same rights and legal protection as straight couples. However, the PACS is getting increasingly popular, especially for straight couples who find it more flexible and less bureaucratically heavy than getting married. They represent more than 95% of the total number of couples getting Pacsed. Numbers are also showing that the PACS is slowly taking over traditional marriage.

As of 2013, France legally recognizes same-sex marriage, thanks to a new law called Mariage pour tous (“Marriage for all”), passed by President François Hollande. The first French same-sex marriage took place on May 29, 2013, in Montpellier.


C- Friendship

When compared to Americans, the French can seem cold or distant at first glance, but it’s just a misunderstanding of their behavior. We show a bit more formality and reserve with strangers and it takes some time for us to open up.

Inviting someone to our home doesn’t come as fast and naturally as it does in other cultures, but once we’re good friends with someone, our door will always be open. Friends are expected to be loyal, help each other, and stay in touch on a regular basis. Loin des yeux, loin du coeur. (“Far from the eyes, far from the heart.”)

A Happy Family Eating Together

La famille (“Family”)

4. Lifestyle

French traditions and culture make for a unique lifestyle in terms of work and leisure time. Take a look.

A- Work 

The business culture in France varies greatly depending on the industry and the company you’re dealing with. It ranges from very casual to uptight and formal. In any case, we strictly adhere to the hierarchy, and the chain of command matters even in small organizations.

The French value their free time most of all, and work is usually considered a means rather than an end. As a result, we have a reputation for working hard and efficiently, without overcommitting. We try to preserve a satisfying work-life balance at all times.

French workers tend to keep their work environment as friendly and casual as possible. You’re likely to develop strong connections with your colleagues and hang out outside of working hours (but this is by no means mandatory).


B- Hobbies

97% of the French believe that hobbies, sports, and social or cultural activities contribute to their quality of life. On average, active French workers can dedicate around nine hours per week to their hobbies.

Le foot (“Football”) is the most-watched sport in France, followed by Rugby, cycling, and tennis. But however popular they are on TV or at school, few people actually practice these sports in their free time. Hiking (in France or abroad), jogging, and dancing are much more common physical activities.

Other popular hobbies among French people include:

  • listening to music
  • watching TV
  • browsing online
  • going out with friends
  • watching movies or series
  • playing video games
  • reading newspapers
  • messaging 

Creative hobbies are also on the rise. 71% of the French take part in at least one creative activity, such as cooking, bricolage (do-it-yourself crafts), painting, and more.


C- Tobacco and Drugs

The legal drinking age is 18, and alcohol can be bought in any supermarket or convenience store and it’s sold in most restaurants. Alcohol plays an important role in social gatherings, be it in bars, clubs, or at home. It’s also common to conduct business over a glass of wine during a déjeuner d’affaires (“business lunch”).

The cigarette smoking age is also 18 years. Contrary to the widespread cliché, France is pretty far down the list of the heaviest cigarette consumers (ranking 60 out of 181). 

Following a series of laws in 2007 and 2008, smoking in all public places (stations, museums, restaurants) is now banned. While it’s possible to have a smoking room in your bar, smoking is so restricted that it usually only happens in the streets or terraces.

Cannabis is still illegal but widely used in France. Around 45% of the French have tried it and 30% smoke it somewhat regularly. It makes France one of the top consumers in the world, even before countries where the substance is legal, such as the Netherlands. Other recreational drugs are often very expensive and are thus marginally used.

Cycling Race

Le Tour de France (Most famous French cycling race)

5. Art and Entertainment

Few things are as defining as a culture’s collective art and entertainment industries. Here’s what you should know about art and entertainment in France.

A- Centuries of Art

France has a long tradition of flourishing art, especially since the twelfth century. This was when Gothic art and architecture originated around Paris before spreading all over Europe. Shortly after, French craftsmen developed the stained glass painting techniques that you can see in so many European Christian buildings.

From Gothic to Baroque, then to Classicism, French art evolved over the centuries to reach a peak around the seventeenth century. This was when famous classical painters, such as Peter Paul Ruben and Nicolas Poussin, emerged—and when impressive works of architecture, such as the Château de Versailles (“Versailles Castle”), were created.

To think that such legendary artists as Toulouse-Lautrec, Monet, Gauguin, Cézanne, and Van Gogh were all alive during the same period in the second half of the nineteenth century is mind-blowing. It’s no surprise that the Louvre museum is host to such an impressive collection.

B- Music, Cinema, and Literature

The music of France reflects the diversity of the country’s ethnicities and cultures, with a wide array of styles. We have the fifth largest music market in the world and have produced many internationally famous artists, especially in electronic music (such as Daft Punk or David Guetta).

France is the birthplace of cinema and home to some of its most important contributions. Today, most French movies don’t go anywhere beyond our borders. Is it deserved? Yeah, pretty much. Except for a vibrant scene in the horror genre, we’re stuck with the same rehashed family dramas and dumb comedies.

French literature is an important part of our cultural lives and is introduced early on in our educational system. This is reinforced by the French media’s focus on book fairs and prizes, such as the Prix Goncourt, Prix Renaudot, and Prix Femina. Reading is a popular pastime for many French people, but it’s losing ground to streaming and other online activities.

All around the world, video games are now bigger than movies, and France is no exception. Thanks to tax cuts from the French government and a fair number of talented studios (such as Arkane, Asobo, and Dontnod), the French gaming industry has recently produced internationally acclaimed titles.

6. Food and Wine

The French culture and cuisine go hand in hand. Food is one of the great passions of French people, who place great emphasis on refined cooking methods that involve careful preparation of fresh ingredients. The cuisine can be really different from one region to the next and relies heavily on what is locally grown.

In 2010, the French gastronomy was awarded the most prestigious award by UNESCO when it was added to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

A- The Top 5 French Dishes

It would be impossible to list all of the delicious dishes France is famous for, but here are a few samples:

  1. Tartiflette
    This consists of potatoes, fried onions, and sliced bacon oven-cooked with wine, garlic, and a massive amount of reblochon (arguably the best mountain cheese France has to offer).

  2. Steak Tartare
    This is raw beef ground or sliced into tiny pieces and served with a mix of herbs, condiments, a fresh egg yolk, capers, and minced shallot.

  3. Cassoulet
    This is a casserole of white beans and slow-cooked meat, often served with duck leg confit cooked in duck fat for the most decadent and amazing results.

  4. Crêpes
    Unlike American-style pancakes, crêpes are thin and delicate, but they share the same list of ingredients. They can be eaten with sweet or savory fillings.

  5. Endives au jambon
    This northern recipe is based on steam-cooked endives (“chicory”) wrapped in cooked ham, bathed in béchamel sauce, and topped with grated cheese.

B- Unique French Products

French wine is one of our biggest national prides. It’s produced across the whole country in large quantities and exported all over the world. It has many styles, terroirs, and labels, and it’s mostly made to accompany the food. No meal is complete without a good bottle of wine.

Short for apéritif, the apéro is a set of pre-dinner drinks and finger food. It’s similar to a cocktail party that we can have before lunch at around 11 a.m. or in the evening from 6 p.m. The French take their apéro quite seriously and it’s an important part of meetings with friends and family.

Cheese is one of the apéro’s best friends, and with around 1600 different French cheeses, there is a lot to be excited about. They all have their unique shape, texture, aroma, and flavor, but as a general rule: the smellier the better. Some cheeses are better suited for cooking and others are eaten in slices, on fresh bread, or melted in sauces.

Another classic apéro item is the charcuterie. It can consist of a wide range of cold cuts, from ham to saucisson, mortadella, smoked ham, cured ham, and much more. It comes mostly from pork and is often smoked or dry-cured.

L’apéro

L’apéro

    → Did this section stimulate your appetite? Make sure to stop by our full guide to French Cuisine for more details on the meals and local delicacies!

7. French Holidays 

Many of the French holidays are of Christian origin. For the most part, their religious implications have been lost, but we still commemorate Ascension Day, Christmas, and Easter Monday. We also have a few French-specific and secular holidays:

  1. National Day (July 14)
    This is the most important national holiday. It commemorates the French Revolution, and more precisely, the fall of the Bastille as a symbol of the French Revolution victory.

  2. Labor Day (May 1)
    The premier mai (“first of May”) or fête du travail (“work holiday”) is Labor Day in France. Almost all companies and stores are closed on that day.

  3. New Year’s Day (January 1)
    Le jour de l’an (Literally, “The day of the year”) or Le premier de l’an (“First of the year”) is the first day of the year. Like many countries, France celebrates the New Year. 

    → Make sure you come prepared when attending a French holiday celebration. Here are a few useful words for the National Holiday with audio recordings on FrenchPod101.com.

8. Le Mot De La Fin

In this French culture overview, you’ve learned everything about the culture of France, from its core values to religion, relationships, lifestyle, art, cuisine, and more. Did we forget any important French culture topics or facts you’ve heard about?

I hope this will inspire you to dive even deeper—and what better way to do so than by learning the language? Learning a foreign language is a window wide open to a new culture if you’re bold enough to take the leap!

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101, as we have plenty of free resources to help you study key grammar points and learn new words. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review words and learn their pronunciation.

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Your private teacher will help you with any topic you’re curious about or struggling with. Along with giving you assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples, your teacher will review your work and help you improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101.com!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

A Finger-Licking Guide to French Food & Cuisine

Food

If you were asked about the most delicious cuisine in the world, what countries would come to mind? According to most of the rankings I’ve read, France is often placed second, with Italy as the solid winner. 

In 2010, UNESCO paid a gracious tribute to French gastronomy by inscribing it on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. Let’s try to understand why French cuisine is held in such high regard around the world, and what makes it special.

In this article, I will present you with a list of eight French foods you must try, a French cuisine overview, the top words and expressions for talking about food and cooking in French, and much more.

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Let's Cook in French Table of Contents
  1. Must-Try French Dishes
  2. Unique French Products
  3. Food Vocabulary
  4. Frogs and Other Misconceptions
  5. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Must-Try French Dishes

To begin with, here are the top eight dishes you should definitely try in France or in an authentic French restaurant. Some of these can be cooked just about anywhere with local ingredients but, especially for the cheesy meals, you often need the original imported product to make it taste and feel right.

1 – Tartiflette

Tartiflette is one of the classic French dishes (and a personal favorite of yours truly), originating from mountainous regions such as the northern Alps. It has everything you could dream of: potatoes, fried onions, lardons (sliced bacon), a hint of white wine and garlic, and an unhealthy amount of reblochon, one of the tastiest cheeses ever conceived.

As long as you get the right ingredients, you cannot fail at cooking a Tartiflette. Just put everything but the cheese in a tray, slice a big reblochon in half along the width, and place each part on top of everything else. Put it in the oven until it looks glorious and golden.

Tartiflette

Une tartiflette (Photo by David Harris under CC BY 2.0)

2 – Steak Tartare

Do you trust your butcher? Are you convinced their meat is fresh, high-quality, and kept refrigerated at all times? If that’s the case, then it’s time to experience the very best way to enjoy beef: raw.

The meat can either be prepared with a grinder (the lazy and lesser option) or minced with a knife (the flavorful yet tedious option—but good things come at a price, right?). Then, mix it with a bunch of herbs and condiments, a fresh egg yolk, capers, minced shallots, and I promise you the time of your life.

Steak Tartare

Un steak tartare (Photo by insatiablemunch under CC BY 2.0)

3 – Cassoulet

Cassoulet is a specialty from the Languedoc region based on white beans and slow-cooked meat. The name comes from the traditional cooking pot called cassole where the cassoulet simmers for over seven hours, through a very specific and controlled process.

It’s something that I’d recommend you try in a good French restaurant before you try it at home, because of the wide variety of ingredients and difficult cooking methods involved.

When cooked properly, the duck leg confit is slow-cooked in duck fat which tenderizes the meat until it just melts in your mouth. It’s nothing like chicken—it’s just on a whole different level.

Cassoulet

Un cassoulet

4 – Crêpes

Let’s start off with an important disclaimer: Crêpes are NOT pancakes (and vice-versa). The list of ingredients is very similar, but American-style pancakes are thick and fluffy while French crêpes are thin and delicate.

You can eat crêpes with sweet ingredients (jam, chocolate, brown sugar) or savory ingredients (bacon, spinach, mushrooms). We even have a special holiday for crêpes called La chandeleur (originally a Christian celebration that lost its religious meaning for most French people over the years).

Crêpes

Des crêpes

5 – Endives au jambon

Being a specialty from my home region, this recipe has always been close to my heart. It’s based on steam-cooked endives (“endives” or “chicory”) wrapped in cooked ham, bathed in béchamel sauce, and topped with grated cheese.

Belgian Endives

Des endives au jambon (Photo by Jeremy Keith under CC BY 2.0)

6 – Coq au vin

Are you looking for French cuisine classics with sophisticated ingredients to impress your friends? Look no further.

Coq au vin is a timeless classic: a casserole of chicken legs slowly stewed in red wine with herbs, spices, olive oil, and tons of fancy stuff that make for a rich and deep flavor.

Coq au Vin

Du coq au vin (Photo by Steven Depolo under CC BY 2.0)

7 – Moule marinières

Often found in the northern regions of France and in Belgium, moules marinières are usually served with fries and simply called moules frites (“mussels and fries”).

The eponymous marinière sauce is made with white wine and shallots (add some cream for a rich and delicious twist). This is a classic dish often found in inexpensive brasseries (simple French restaurants with a cheap lunch menu) in the Hauts-de-France region.

8 – Fondue savoyarde

Take a ton of mountain cheese (typically Comté, Beaufort, or Emmental) and melt it with white wine, garlic, and a bit of kirch. Serve it with bread, charcuterie (cold meat cuts) and more white wine, and there you have it: the most decadent of French specialties!

But how do you eat that? It’s simple enough: stick a piece of bread on a spike and dip it into the cheese right in the cooking bowl. Try not to lose your bread!

Fondue Savoyarde

La fondue savoyarde (Photo by Camille Gévaudan under CC BY-SA 3.0)


2. Unique French Products

Now that I’ve teased you with French recipes, let’s talk about another important aspect of French cuisine that doesn’t involve spending two hours in the kitchen or juggling five pans and long lists of bizarre ingredients.

France is famous for a lot of unique products, many of which feature various region-specific twists: le vin (“wine”), le fromage (“cheese”), le pain (“bread”), and la charcuterie (“cold cuts”).

They all play a big role in the so-called Art de Vivre (“Art of Living”) that we pride ourselves on cultivating. The French sure love their wine, cheese, bread, and charcuterie, especially when all four are combined to make for the happiest apéro (“happy hour”).

1 – “Wine is bottled poetry.”

(Robert Louis Stevenson)

French wine is produced across the entire country in large quantities (around sixty million hectoliters per year, or about eight billion bottles), making France one of the biggest wine producers in the world. 

Most wines are made to accompany food and this is where it gets tricky. Even though there are some general rules, such as “red wine is for red meat, white is for white meat and fish,” it’s more complex than that.

With thousands of different bottles of all shapes and colors, the wine department in a French supermarket is intimidating. Truth be told, it takes lots of research or serious oenology classes before you can choose the right bottle at the right moment. But don’t sweat it too much; unless you’re dining with experts, nobody will notice if the pairing isn’t perfect.

With so many styles, grape types, terroirs, and labels, it’s a whole world of rich and interesting flavors begging to be explored. You can sip it, drink it, share it, gift it, or even cook with it. Wine is a pillar of French culture.

Wine

Du vin (“Wine”) (Photo by PRA under CC BY-SA 3.0)

2 – “Life is great. Cheese makes it better.”

(Avery Aames)

I’ll do my best not to get too emotional in this section, as cheese is my personal weakness and I could praise it for hours.

There are around 1600 distinct French cheeses, each with a unique shape, texture, aroma, flavor, and other properties. They can be made from various kinds of milk and all have different levels of humidity, fat, and calcium.

French President Charles de Gaulle once said: “How can you govern a country which has two hundred and forty-six varieties of cheese?” Fair enough, but we can simplify it by placing them into only eight categories.

French cheese is not for the faint of heart. They range from the easy-going and fairly mainstream Brie to the robust and divisive Roquefort. But the most intense experience lies with the smelliest and most repulsive-looking pieces of the Plateau de fromages (“Cheese platter”).

Cheeses with a lot of character may not be for everyone but once you fall in love, you’re in for a treat. Nothing can compare to the hypnotizing scent of a Munster, and the rich texture of melted Reblochon will make you reach new heights of foodgasm.

Cheese and Wine

Un plateau de fromages (“A cheese platter”)

3 – “Tout est bon dans le cochon.

(“Everything is good in a pig.” – French proverb)

Another classic French apéro, often served alongside wine and cheese, is charcuterie.

It covers a wide range of cold cuts, from ham to saucisson (dry-cured sausage), mortadella, smoked ham, cured ham, and much more.

The word charcuterie originally comes from chair cuite (“cooked flesh”). It can be cooked or raw and comes mostly (but not exclusively) from pork, with salt used as a preservation agent. It’s especially popular in southern France and in the mountains, but still widely enjoyed in the rest of the country.

An all-time classic of charcuterie is the saucisson sec: a thick dry-cured sausage eaten cold in thin slices, and best enjoyed with bread, wine, and friends.

4 – Happiness is a Fresh Baguette

We’ve all heard of the iconic French baguette, and as you walk through the streets of any city in France, you’ll realize that there’s truth in the cliché. The French do stroll around with bread under their arm.

Here are the golden rules of baguetiquette:

  • You can wipe your plate with it.
    Yeah, you can hold it with your fingers and dip it in sauce. It’s fine. (And it makes washing dishes easier. Everybody wins.)

  • Don’t put it on the plate.
    In restaurants, bread is usually served in a basket. In general, you might notice that French people never place bread on their plate but rather next to it on the table.

  • Cover it with cheese…
    …or whatever you like, really. Paté is a prime choice; chocolate spread or crème de marrons (“chestnut paste”) are also highly recommended. Oh, yeah, don’t forget to try sticking squares of chocolate bars into a baguette, especially when it’s still warm.

  • Bite the end of the baguette.
    It is scientifically proven that resisting the urge to bite the crunchy end of a freshly cooked baguette is impossible. It usually happens right in the street, seconds after you’ve left the bakery.
Fresh Baguette

Des baguettes (“Baguettes”)

    → Make sure to stop by our free vocabulary list on Famous French Food, with recordings to perfect your pronunciation!

3. Food Vocabulary

Now that your taste buds are all fired up, let’s go over some French food vocabulary you’ll need for your everyday food-related encounters.

1 – Talking About Food

  • J’ai faim. (“I’m hungry.”)
  • Je n’ai plus faim. (“I’m full.” – Literally: “I’m not hungry anymore.”)
  • Je suis affamé(e) ! (“I’m starving!”)
  • J’ai la dalle ! (“I’m really hungry!”) [Casual slang]
  • J’aime le fromage. (“I like cheese.”)
  • Je n’aime pas les champignons. (“I don’t like mushrooms.”)
  • Je ne mange pas de viande. (“I don’t eat meat.”)
  • Je suis allergique au soja. (“I’m allergic to soy.”)
  • Mon plat préféré est la tartiflette. (“My favorite dish is tartiflette.”)

2 – All About Cooking

Ingredients

  • Du sel (“Salt”)
  • Du poivre (“Pepper”)
  • Du sucre (“Sugar”)
  • De l’eau (“Water”)
  • Du lait (“Milk”)
  • De l’huile (“Oil”)
  • Des œufs (“Eggs”)
  • De la farine (“Flour”)
  • Des fruits (“Fruits”)
  • Des légumes (“Veggies”)
  • De la viande (“Meat”)

When reading recipes, knowing the basic fruit and veggie vocabulary will come in handy!

Utensils

  • Une casserole (“A sauce pan”)
  • Une poêle (“A frying pan”)
  • Un four (“An oven”)
  • Un couteau (“A knife”)
  • Une planche à découper (“A cutting board”)

You can find much more vocabulary on utensils and tableware on our free word list at FrenchPod101.com.

Cooking verbs

  • Faire cuire (“To cook”)
  • Mijoter (“To stew”)
  • Faire frire (“To fry”)
  • Faire revenir (briefly fry in a really hot pan with oil or butter)
  • Couper (“To cut”)
  • Éplucher (“To peel”)
  • Râper (“To grate”)
  • Trancher (“To slice”)

3 – Ordering in a Restaurant

  • Le menu (“The menu”)
  • Une table pour deux (“A table for two”)
  • Une carafe d’eau, s’il vous plaît. (“A jug of water, please.”)
  • Une entrée (“A starter”)
  • Un plat (“A main course”)
  • Un dessert (“A dessert”)
  • L’addition (“The bill”)
  • Un pourboire (“A tip”)

For more vocabulary, tips, and phrases for dealing with restaurants in France, be sure to check out our guide on Travel Phrases on FrenchPod101.com.

Restaurant with Lots of Costumers

Un restaurant français (“A French restaurant”)

4. Frogs and Other Misconceptions

The worldwide popularity of French cuisine comes with a fair share of mistakes and misconceptions. Here are a few you might have heard about:

1 – The Frog Fallacy

There’s a common belief, especially among the British, that the French are avid frog eaters. Some people even refer to French people as “Frogs.”

Frog legs are indeed eaten in France but they’re not nearly as popular as you might think. I have lived in various regions of France for most of my life and not once have I encountered frog legs. Sure, I could have gone out of my way to find them and give it a try, but I’ve never seen it as a plat du jour (“dish of the day”) in a restaurant.

It seems to be more popular in the eastern regions where they are usually ordered as a delicacy in restaurants, or for special occasions. The legs are often grilled or deep-fried, but are occasionally boiled, baked, or stir-fried.

Interestingly, they’re also eaten in Southeast Asia, parts of Europe, and the southern U.S. Archeologists found proof of frog-eating in the UK, dating back to 8000 years ago, which makes them the historical first frog eaters in Europe. Just sayin’.

It is true, however, that we eat escargots (“snails”). Then again, it’s a delicacy and absolutely not a common meal, but they’re still rather affordable and presumably delicious. Personally, I never got beyond the psychological barrier and I intend to keep on living a snail-free life.

2 – The Croissant Conspiracy

There is a common belief that the French are eating a lot of croissants and usually having them for breakfast.

Heck, just type “French breakfast” into your usual search engine and you shall find a sneaky croissant in almost every single photo! By the way, you’ll also see a LOT of food on the table, which is another fallacy.

First of all, croissants are not that popular. Sure, it’s a classic viennoiserie (“pastry”) and I wouldn’t mind waking up with one of these buttery babies on the table. However, at best, we’d buy them on a Sunday to celebrate the day off and make breakfast special. Or maybe bring some to work in order to buy our coworkers’ good graces.

Oh, and by the way: Why would anyone buy croissants when you can have pains au chocolat (chocolate croissants) for roughly the same price?

Second of all, in France, breakfast is the least important meal of the day and you’ll rarely see tables full of cereals, bread, fruits, pastries, juices, and whatnot. Why is that? Because we put much more emphasis on lunch, so we wouldn’t want to be full when the time comes for the apéro.

Croissants

Des croissants (“Croissants”)

3 – French Toast, French Bread, French Whatever

French kiss? French lover? Yeah, we invented that, I’m fine with it.

But French fries? No. I have to give credit where it’s due and celebrate Belgium for their love of greasy food, amazing chocolate, and a mindblowing number of different beers! 

If you want to have a good time with deep-fried chunks of potatoes dipped in a thick homemade Dallas sauce, Belgium is the place to be.

We simply call them frites (Literally: “fried”) and every educated French person knows they’re from Belgium.

What about French toast? Nope. That’s actually Italian, dating back from ancient Rome. All credit goes to Apicus, a Roman from the fifth century, for this delightful recipe. 

In France, we call it pain perdu (Literally: “lost bread” or “wasted bread”). How “wasted” became “French” is a mystery I’m not sure I want to solve.

5. Le Mot De La Fin

In this French cuisine guide, you’ve learned everything about French food, from the top must-try recipes to the unique French specialties such as wine and cheese. 

Did we forget any important recipe that you know? Make sure to share your favorite French dishes in the comments below; I might learn a thing or two!

FrenchPod101 also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings as well as a free resources page to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining!

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Your private teacher will use assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples to help you excel in your studies. He or she will also review your work and help you improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101.com!

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About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

A French Grammar Pocket Book

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Are you starting out in French and wondering what to study first? Or maybe you’re already learning French and getting a bit lost in French grammar? 

Regardless of your experience or background, you’ve come to the right place. You’ll always need a concise summary of French grammar at hand as you explore the language’s ins and outs, and that’s exactly what this guide is about.

In this article, you’ll find a general overview of French grammar, from basic sentence structure to conjugation, agreement rules, and negation.

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French Table of Contents
  1. Vocabulary
  2. Sentence Structure
  3. Verbs & Tenses
  4. Nouns & Articles
  5. Adjectives
  6. Negation
  7. Le mot de la fin

1. Vocabulary

Let’s start with some good news: French has a lot in common with English. It has similar types of words, as well as a fair amount of common vocabulary and grammatical structures.

Although eighty percent of French vocabulary comes directly from Latin and Greek, we also use many words from other languages, including English

You’d be surprised how many common French words have been taken straight from English, such as Boss, Remake, Jet, Weekend, Babysitter, Manager, Pullover, and countless more.

Similarly to most Latin languages, French has the following types of words:

1 – Nouns

  • French nouns almost always need an article in front of them.
    You can say le chat (“the cat”) or un chat (“a cat”), but just chat is incorrect.

  • French nouns have a gender.
    Le soleil (“the sun”) is masculine; la lune (“the moon”) is feminine.

  • French nouns have a number.
    Le chat (“the cat”) is singular; les chats (“the cats”) is plural.

  • There are common nouns and proper nouns.
    Un chat (“a cat”) is a common noun. Jupiter, Miyazaki, and Nietzsche are proper nouns.

Don’t forget to stop by our article on the 100+ Must-Know Nouns in French to learn much more about nouns and expand your vocabulary!

2 – Articles

  • Articles are mandatory in French.

  • They agree with the noun in gender and number.

    • Un arbre (“A tree”)
    • Une fleur (“A flower”)
    • Des fleurs (“Flowers”)

  • There are three types of articles:

    • Indefinite articles (Not specific): Un, Une, Des
      Un oiseau (“A bird”), Une loutre (“An otter”), Des papillons (“Butterflies”)

    • Definite articles (Specific): Le, L’, La, Les
      We use them when talking about a specific, previously mentioned noun: Le parc (“The park”)
      When there is only one: Le soleil (“The sun”)
    • Or for a general notion: La vie (“Life”), L’art (“Art”), Le sport (“Sport”)

    • Partitive articles (Some / A certain amount): Du, De La, Des
      Du fromage
      (“Cheese”), De la farine (“Flour”), Des fruits (“Fruits”)

Flowers

Des fleurs (“Flowers”)

3 – Adjectives

Adjectives are used to describe a noun. In French grammar, adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun.

For example:

  • Un petit chemin (“A small path”)
  • Une petite route (“A small road”)
  • Deux petites routes (“Two small roads”)

Here’s our list of the 100 Must-Know French Adjectives, as well as the few grammar rules you need to know!

4 – Possessive Adjectives

Possessive adjectives define whom the noun belongs to. Of course, like everything related to nouns, they agree in gender and number.

For example:

  • Mon jardin (“My garden”)
  • Ma maison (“My house”)
  • Mes affaires (“My belongings”)
  • Ton adresse (“Your address”)
  • Sa faute (“His / Her fault”)
  • Ses fleurs (“His / Her flowers”)
  • Leur voiture (“Their car”)

5 – Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative adjectives are used to point at something or emphasize its importance (this / that / these / those). In French, we have: ce / cet, cette, ces.

For example:

  • Ce jardin (“This / That garden”)
  • Cet arbre (“This / That tree”)
  • Cette maison (“This / That house”)
  • Ces villes (“These / Those cities”)

6 – Adverbs

Adverbs don’t agree in gender or number; they’re invariable. They describe a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. They define how something is done (slowly / violently), how much (a bit / a lot), or more information about when and where (often / yesterday).

For example:

  • Je mange lentement. (“I eat slowly.”)
  • Elle a beaucoup de fromages. (“She has a lot of cheese.”)
  • Je ne dors jamais l’après-midi. (“I never sleep in the afternoon.”)
  • Nous partirons demain. (“We will leave tomorrow.”)

In our 100 Must-Know French Adverbs, you’ll find everything you need to know about adverbs, as well as a massive list of the 100 most useful ones.

A Woman Watching Her Alarm Clock in Bed

Elle ne dort jamais. (“She never sleeps.”)

7 – Verbs

  • French verbs are split between three groups, depending on the spelling of their infinitive form and their behavior. The three types of verbs are:

    • ER (manger, parler, toucher)
    • IR (dormir, partir, venir)
    • RE (répondre, prendre)

  • In French grammar, conjugation takes place for a variety of tenses (past, future, etc.).
    More on French conjugation later in this article!

  • Some verbs are reflexive and start with se, as in: se réveiller (“to wake up”), se lever (“to stand up”), and s’arrêter (“to stop”).
    They are often used to describe things you do regularly or changes of state (such as “to wake up,” “to fall asleep,” “to sit down”) that have an effect on oneself.

The best way to start learning verbs? Our article on the 100 Must-Know French Verbs, with valuable insight on conjugation and an exhaustive guide on tenses.

8 – Pronouns

French pronouns come in many shapes and sizes:

  • Personal pronouns
    • Personal subjects: Elle a faim. (“She’s hungry.”)
    • Stressed pronouns: C’est moi ! (“It’s me!”)
    • Direct pronouns: Nous le donnons. (“We give it.”)
    • Indirect pronouns: Ils vous parlent. (“They talk to you.”)
    • Reflexive pronouns: Je me lève. (“I stand up.”)

  • Impersonal pronouns
    • Impersonal subjects: Ça commence maintenant. (“It starts now.”)
    • Adverbial pronouns: Je veux y aller. (“I want to go there.”)
    • Relative pronouns: Je sais que tu es là. (“I know that you are here.”)
    • Demonstrative pronouns: Celles de gauche. (“These on the left.”)
    • Interrogative pronouns: Qui es-tu ? (“Who are you?”)
    • Indefinite pronouns: Tout est possible. (“Anything is possible.”)

Curious about pronouns? You can learn much more about them by reading our article on the 10 Types of French Pronouns to Keep Things Sleek and Smooth

9 – Conjunctions

Conjunctions are these convenient little words that we use to connect things:

  • Listing things: Des fruits et des légumes (“Fruits and vegetables”)
  • Setting conditions: Je ne bois pas, sinon je m’endors. (“I don’t drink, otherwise I fall asleep.”)
  • Expressing causality: Je mange car j’ai faim. (“I’m eating because I’m hungry.”)
  • Objecting: Je mange du fromage mais pas de camembert. (“I eat cheese but not camembert.”)
  • Expressing purpose: Je médite pour me relaxer. (“I meditate to relax.”)

To learn more on conjunctions, I recommend that you stop by our extensive Guide to French Conjunctions on FrenchPod101.com.

10 – Prepositions

In French grammar, prepositions can be followed by…

  • …a noun:
    Le chat est dans le jardin. (“The cat is in the garden.”)
    Elle t’attendra devant la maison. (“She will wait for you in front of the house.”)
    Avec ou sans patates ? (“With or without potatoes?”)
  • …an infinitive verb:
    Je me prépare à partir. (“I’m getting ready to leave.”)
    Il essaye de partir. (“He’s trying to leave.”)
    J’étudie sur FrenchPod101 pour parler Français. (“I study on FrenchPod101 to speak French.”)
  • …or a stress pronoun:
    On va chez moi ? (“Are we going to my place?”)
    Elle vient avec moi. (“She’s coming with me.”)

Apple and Banana

Une pomme et une banane (“An apple and a banana”)

2. Sentence Structure

The first thing you need to learn to build sentences in French is the word order. Otherwise, even if you learn a lot of vocabulary, it will always be difficult to identify the keywords and the general meaning of what you hear or read.

French follows the SVO pattern (Subject Verb Object). It means that the default word order is: Subject Verb Object.

  • Je bois du vin. (“I drink wine.”)

Unlike other Latin languages, such as Spanish or Italian, where the subject pronouns can be omitted, we almost never skip the subject of a sentence.


A Man Arranging a Big Puzzle

One piece at a time, they all fit nicely.

3. Verbs & Tenses

Conjugation in French has a lot in common with English conjugation, but it adds a hairy layer of complexity; the verb ending changes depending on the person, mood, voice, and tense.

At first, it may seem overwhelming. But luckily, most verbs follow a set of rules and patterns that you can learn rather quickly.

1 – Conjugation Basics

Singular pronouns:
  • je / j’ (“I”)
  • tu / vous (Casual “you” / Formal “you”)
  • il / elle (“he” / “she”)
Plural pronouns:
  • nous (“we”)
  • vous (“you”)
  • ils / elles (Male “they” / Female “they”)

The ending of the verb depends on the person (or pronoun):

  • Je marche (“I walk”)
  • Nous marchons (“We walk”)
  • Elles marchent (“They walk”)

Just like English, French has simple tenses and compound tenses.

Simple tenses are conjugated by changing the verb ending, while compound tenses also add an auxiliary together with the verb.

  • Nous marchons (“We walk”) – Simple tense: Présent.
  • Nous avons marché (“We have walked”) – Compound tense: Passé composé.

At first glance, the list of all seventeen French tenses seems intimidating, but most of them are only ever used in literature. On a daily basis, you won’t need more than five or six to deal with any kind of situation.

2 – Regular & Irregular Verbs

Like in most languages, including English, the most useful and common French verbs are the most irregular. Verbs like être (“to be”), avoir (“to have”), or faire (“to do”) are highly irregular.

However, it’s important to quickly learn how to conjugate the regular verbs, as their conjugation rules will help you deal with the majority of verbs that you’ll encounter. So, let’s start with that.

Regular verb: Marcher (“To walk”) ← This is the infinitive form of a 1st group verb.

March ← This is the “stem.”

Here’s how it looks in present tense:

1st sg (I)2nd sg (you)3rd sg (she)1st pl (we)2nd pl (you)3rd pl (they)
Stem + eStem + esStem + eStem + onsStem + ezStem + ent
Je marcheTu marchesElle marcheNous marchonsVous marchezIls marchent

Now, if you follow this simple pattern, you can conjugate countless similar French verbs:

  • Parler (“To talk”)
    Je parle, Tu parles, Elle parle, Nous parlons, Vous parlez, Elles parlent

  • Penser (“To think”)
    Je pense, Tu penses, Elle pense, Nous pensons, Vous pensez, Elles pensent

  • Aimer (“To love”)
    J’aime, Tu aimes, Elle aime, Nous aimons, Vous aimez, Elles aiment

  • Demander (“To ask”)
    Je demande, Tu demandes, Elle demande, Nous demandons, Vous demandez, Elles demandent

  • Utiliser (“To use”)
    J’utilise, Tu utilises, Elle utilise, Nous utilisons, Vous utilisez, Elles utilisent

3 – The Two Most Important Verbs

Now that you know the basics of French conjugation, let’s have a look at two crucial verbs that don’t follow the rules: 

  • Être (“To be”)
    Je suis, Tu es, Elle est, Nous sommes, Vous êtes, Elles sont
    For example: Je suis heureux. (“I’m happy.”)

  • Avoir (“To have”)
    J’ai, Tu as, Elle a, Nous avons, Vous avez, Elles ont
    For example: Nous avons un chat. (“We have a cat.”)

These two verbs are not only useful in themselves, but also as auxiliaries to form the compound tenses we mentioned earlier.

  • Elle est revenue de vacances. (“She has returned from vacation.”)
  • Tu es allé au cinéma. (“You have gone to the movie theater.”)
  • J’ai rencontré Julien. (“I have met Julien.”)
  • Nous avons fini de manger. (“We have finished eating.”)

We’re just scratching the surface, but you can learn much more about this in our extensive guide on
French Conjugation and on our free French Verbs resource page.

Woman Holding a Popcorn Inside Movie Theater

Elles sont au cinéma. (“They are at the movie theater.”)

4. Nouns & Articles

    Rule #1: Nouns have a gender.

In French grammar, gender is applied to each and every noun. French nouns are either masculine or feminine.

For example, un mois (“a month”) is masculine, while une semaine (“a week”) is feminine.

    Rule #2: Nouns have an article.

Unlike those in English, French nouns always have an article and cannot be used without one.

You can say un chien (“a dog”) or le chien (“the dog”), but never chien.

    Rule #3: Nouns and articles agree in gender.

How they change when put in the feminine form depends on their initial spelling.

  • Un boulanger / Une boulangère (“A baker”)
  • Un fermier / Une fermière (“A farmer”)
  • Un chanteur / Une chanteuse (“A singer”)
  • Un acteur / Une actrice (“An actor” / “An actress”)
  • Un chien / Une chienne (“A dog”)
    Rule #4: Nouns and articles agree in number.

Like with gender, there are certain changes an article goes through to agree with the noun in number.

  • Un chat (“A cat”) / Des chats (“Cats”)
  • Le chat (“The cat”) / Les chats (“The cats”)

But there are also a bunch of special cases:

  • Un cheval (“A horse”) / Des chevaux (“Horses”)
  • Un hibou (“An owl”) / Des hiboux (“Owls”)
  • Un bateau (“A boat”) / Des bateaux (“Boats”)
  • Une souris (“A mouse”) / Des souris (“Mice”)
Toy Cat

Des chats (“Cats”)

5. Adjectives

    Rule #1: Adjective placement may vary.

The majority of French adjectives are placed AFTER the noun they’re describing.

  • Un mur épais (“A thick wall”)
  • Une voix douce (“A soft voice”)
  • Des assiettes sales (“Dirty plates”)

However, some of the most common adjectives come BEFORE the noun.

  • Un bon film (“A good movie”)
  • Une petite fille (“A little girl”)
  • Un nouveau livre (“A new book”)
    Rule #2: Adjectives agree with the noun in gender. 

Adjectives must also agree in gender with the noun they’re describing.

Most French adjectives have different feminine and masculine forms.

  • Un garçon intelligent (“A smart boy”)
  • Une fille intelligente (“A smart girl”)

But some adjectives are invariable:

  • Un train rapide (“A fast train”) 
  • Une voiture rapide (“A fast car”)
    Rule #3: Adjectives agree with the noun in number. 

Finally, adjectives must agree in number with the noun they’re describing.

Most of them simply take a final -s:

  • Un petit chien (“A small dog”)
  • Des petits chiens (“Small dogs”)
  • Des petites chiennes (“Small dogs” – Feminine)

Adjectives ending with -s or -x are invariable.

A Girl Solving Math Problem in the Board

Une fille intelligente (“A smart girl”)

6. Negation

French negative sentences are built using the particle Ne + one or more negative words.

In French grammar, negation is achieved by placing these two parts around the verb, as follows: 

[Subject] ne [verb] pas.

  • Je mange. (“I eat.”)
  • Je ne mange pas. (“I don’t eat.”)

There’s a collection of negative words you can use:

  • Je ne mange jamais. (“I never eat.”)
  • Je ne mange rien. (“I don’t eat anything.”)
  • Je ne mange personne. (“I don’t eat anyone.”)
  • Je ne mange plus. (“I don’t eat anymore.”)
  • Je ne mange nulle part. (“I’m not eating anywhere.”)
  • Je ne mange aucune viande. (“I don’t eat any meat.”)
  • Je ne mange que de la viande. (“I eat nothing but meat.”)

Negation follows the exact same pattern with any verb…

  • Je ne vais nulle part. (“I’m not going anywhere.”)
  • Nous ne parlons jamais. (“We never talk.”)
  • Elle ne fume plus. (“She’s not smoking anymore.”)
  • Tu ne sais rien, Jon Snow. (“You know nothing, Jon Snow.”)

…except when the verb starts with the vowel and Ne is shortened to N’:

  • Je n’ai rien à dire. (“I have nothing to say.”)
  • Tu n’aimes pas. (“You don’t like.”)
  • Nous n’essayons pas. (“We are not trying.”)

You can also build sentences using several negative words:

  • Je ne dirai jamais rien à personne. (“I will never tell anything to anyone.”)
  • Elle n’est plus allée nulle part après cela. (“She didn’t go anywhere anymore after this.”)

It’s also possible to start a sentence with a negative word:

  • Rien n’arrive sans raison. (“Nothing happens without a reason.”)
  • Personne ne bouge. (“Nobody moves.”)
A Man Whispering Something to His Fellow Man

Ne le dis à personne ! (“Don’t tell anyone!”)

7. Le mot de la fin

In this guide, you’ve learned all of the essential French grammar guidelines, from basic structures to conjugation, agreement rules, and negation.

Whether you’re just getting started in your French studies or consolidating your knowledge, you can use this overview as a small grammar pocket book whenever you need quick access to the basic French grammar rules. Did we forget any important rule you’d like to learn about?

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101.com, as we have plenty of free resources to help you practice your grammar and learn new words. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review words and learn their pronunciation.

Feel like you need more French grammar help? Remember that you can use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Practice these grammar basics with your private teacher so they can give you personalized feedback and advice.

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

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Inspiration On Demand: 25 Famous French Quotes

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Do you know why people love inspirational quotes so much? A quick look at any Instagram feed is enough to be convinced that there’s something universally compelling about them. We print them on T-shirts, display them on our walls or fridges, and even tattoo them on our skin.

I love to learn interesting quotes about a language I’m studying. Not just to memorize them and impress locals (although it can be a neat trick!), but to learn what they tell me about their culture and values. 

This article on famous French quotes aims to give you the same immersive learning experience…”Tell me who you quote, I will tell you who you are.” We’ve gathered for you the best and most famous French quotes about life, love, and much more. Consider it a concentrate of French wisdom. 

P.S.: Be sure to stick with us until the end for a bonus list of some timeless classic quotes from French cinema.

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French Table of Contents
  1. Quotes About Wisdom
  2. Quotes About Love
  3. Quotes About Time
  4. Quotes About Relationships
  5. Quotes From French Movies
  6. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Quotes About Wisdom

If you’re looking for some French quotes to live by, you may discover something valuable in the wise words of these notorious people from France’s past.

#1

FrenchLa difficulté de réussir ne fait qu’ajouter à la nécessité d’entreprendre.
Literally“It is so hard to succeed that it makes it even more necessary to take action.”
Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, the author of this quote, is quite the character.

Born in Paris in 1732, he was a writer, playwright, musician, and businessman. He created the Société des Auteurs, the first official organization for the protection of authors and copyright.

When he wasn’t busy managing four careers, he was also working for the King as both a spy and arms dealer. He was instrumental in the American and French revolutions. This man’s life was so full of action and adventures that it probably served as an inspiration for the dramatic stories he’s famous for.

#2

FrenchLa vérité vaut bien qu’on passe quelques années sans la trouver. 
Literally“Truth is more valuable if it takes you a few years to find it.”
This is a quote from Jules Renard, a French writer from the eighteenth century.

#3

FrenchIl faut bonne mémoire après qu’on a menti. 
Literally“A liar should have a good memory.”
This is a quote from the play Le menteur (1644) by Pierre Corneille, one of the most famous playwrights and poets of his generation.

His five-act tragicomedy, Le Cid, is considered his finest work. It’s written entirely in rhyming couplets with alternating masculine and feminine rhymes, as was typical of French dramas at the time.

#4

FrenchQui craint de souffrir, il souffre déjà de ce qu’il craint.
Literally“He who fears suffering is already suffering that which he fears.”
One of the most influential thinkers of his time, the very quotable French writer Jean de la Fontaine was a widely famous poet and fabulist in the seventeenth century.

His most notorious work is Les Fables, a collection of short tales that features animals as characters and illustrates various moral lessons.

#5

FrenchScience sans conscience n’est que ruine de l’âme.
Literally“Science without conscience is nothing but the ruin of the soul.”
This quote by Rabelais from the novel Pantagruel could be considered the beginnings of bioethics, a discipline that tries to reconcile scientific capabilities and their moral acceptability.



A Woman Thinking about the Future of Science

Science sans conscience n’est que ruine de l’âme.

2. Quotes About Love

Are you in love? A hopeless romantic? A poet at heart? Then you’ll certainly appreciate the beauty of these French quotes about love.

#6

FrenchLe cœur a ses raisons que la raison ne connaît point.
Literally“The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of.”
This is a quote from the French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, moralist, and theologist Blaise Pascal.

Yes, that’s quite an impressive resume. The man has left such a wealth of insightful research and writings in all of these fields that it’s only fair to give him all due credit.

#7

FrenchUn seul être vous manque et tout est dépeuplé.
Literally“Only one person is missing, and the whole world seems empty.”
This is a quote from Alphonse de Lamartine, a French poet, writer, and politician. Lamartine is considered to be the first Romantic poet.

#8

FrenchLa vie est une fleur dont l’amour est le miel.
Literally“Life is a flower of which love is the honey.”
Here’s a quote from Victor Hugo, a French poet and novelist of the aforementioned Romantic movement.

#9

FrenchAimer sans être aimé, c’est comme allumer une cigarette avec une allumette déjà éteinte.
Literally“To love without being loved is like lighting a cigarette with a matchstick that has gone out.”
This is a quote from George Sand, one of the most prominent writers of the Romantic movement in the nineteenth century.

Don’t be fooled by her pen name, “George”: Aurore Dupin was a woman, and what we would call a feminist in today’s day and age. She was primarily known for the exceptional quality of her writing, but also made a name for herself by wearing male clothes (in a time where it was not exactly socially acceptable) and smoking in public.

You’ve heard this quote a few times if you ever had the chance to watch the excellent Moulin Rouge from Australian director Baz Luhrmann.

#10

FrenchAimer, ce n’est pas se regarder l’un l’autre, c’est regarder ensemble dans la même direction.
Literally“Love doesn’t mean gazing at each other, but looking, together, in the same direction.”
This is a quote from Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, comte de Saint-Exupéry, but you may just say Saint-Exupéry.

Internationally, he’s mainly remembered for his novel Le Petit Prince (“The Little Prince”).



A Man Carrying His Girlfriend Near a Waterfall

Le seul vrai langage au monde est un baiser. (Alfred de Musset)
(“The only true language in the world is a kiss.”)

3. Quotes About Time

Time is what binds us to our own mortality. The following French quotes about life express the significance of time, how we use it, and how it affects us. 

#11

FrenchLe temps est un grand maître, dit-on. Le malheur est qu’il tue ses élèves.
Literally“We say that time is a great teacher. It’s too bad that it kills all its students.”
This is a quote from Hector Berlioz, a composer and conductor of the nineteenth century.

#12

FrenchIl y a des gens qui ne savent pas perdre leur temps tout seul. Ils sont le fléau des gens occupés.
Literally“Some people can’t waste time on their own. They’re the bane of the busy ones.”
Louis de Bonald, the author of this quote, was a philosopher and political figure of the nineteenth century. He’s remembered as one of the founders of sociology.

#13

FrenchIl ne faut avoir aucun regret pour le passé, aucun remords pour le présent, et une confiance inébranlable pour l’avenir. 
Literally“You should have no regrets about the past, no remorse about the present, and unwavering confidence in the future.”
This quote is from Jean-Jaurès, a major political figure from the late nineteenth century. Among other accomplishments, he’s one of the main contributors to the 1905 law on the separation of the churches and the state.

This law would then become the backbone of the French concept of laïcité (“secularism”), which is today a crucial part of our national identity.

#14

FrenchCeux qui font mauvais usage de leur temps sont les premiers à se plaindre de sa brièveté.
Literally“Those who make bad use of their time are the first to complain about its brevity.”
This is from Jean de La Bruyère, a French moralist from the seventeenth century.

His most notorious work, Les Caractères, is an essay on the mental traits of individuals and how they interact with each other.

#15

FrenchC’est un malheur qu’il y a trop peu d’intervalles entre le temps où l’on est trop jeune, et le temps où l’on est trop vieux.
Literally“It’s a shame that there is too little time between when we’re too young and when we’re too old.”
Montesquieu was a political thinker and philosopher born in the late seventeenth century. He’s known for his thoughts on the separation of powers that would later influence the development of Western democracies.


    → Whether you want to complain or philosophize about it, you’ll be glad you stopped by our free vocabulary list on Time, with examples and audio recordings.

A Man Panicking because He’s Late for Work

Ceux qui font mauvais usage de leur temps sont les premiers à se plaindre de sa brièveté.

4. Quotes About Relationships

The following French quotes on friendship and other relationships underline the simple truths and concepts behind one of life’s most crucial elements.

#16

FrenchUn homme seul est toujours en mauvaise compagnie.
Literally“A lone man is always in poor company.”
This is a quote from Paul Valéry, a French poet and philosopher who is best known for his glorious mustache.

#17

FrenchL’enfer, c’est les autres.
Literally“Hell is other people.”
This is one of the most famous quotes from Jean-Paul Sartre, from his play Huis Clos (1943).

Huis Clos tells the story of three damned souls who have just been brought to Hell. As they get acquainted and try to figure out how they ended up there, they realize that there’s no torturer nor medieval devices, and that their punishment is to endure each other for all eternity.

Here is the full quote: 

Alors, c’est ça l’enfer. Je n’aurais jamais cru… Vous vous rappelez : le soufre, le bûcher, le gril… Ah ! Quelle plaisanterie. Pas besoin de gril : l’enfer c’est les autres.
(“So, this is Hell. I would never have thought… Do you remember: the smell of sulfur, the stake, the grill… Ha! What a joke. No need for a grill: Hell is other people.”)

#18

FrenchIl est bon de traiter l’amitié comme les vins et de se méfier des mélanges.
Literally“It’s good to handle friendship like wine and to be wary of mixtures.”
This quote is from Colette, a French author, actress, and journalist born in the late nineteenth century.

#19

FrenchCe qui rend les amitiés indissolubles et double leur charme est un sentiment qui manque à l’amour : la certitude.
Literally“What makes friendships unbreakable and doubles their charm is a feeling that is missing from love: certainty.”
This is a quote from Honoré de Balzac, one of the most prominent writers of the nineteenth century with a huge biography of more than ninety novels.

#20

FrenchL’amitié fait deviner des choses dont on ne parle pas.
Literally“Friendship makes you guess unspoken truths.”
This is a quote from Les Pays Étrangers (1982) by Jean Ethier-Blais, a Canadian writer and professor of French literature.


    → For more insightful quotes on this topic, be sure to visit our list of quotes on Friendship. It’s freely available on FrenchPod101.com.

A Girl Comforting Her Friend, Who’s Crying

L’amitié fait deviner les choses dont on ne parle pas.

5. Quotes From French Movies

To close, let’s look at some famous quotes in French from top movies!

#21

FrenchUne femme sans amour, c’est comme une fleur sans soleil, ça dépérit.
Literally“A woman without love is like a flower without the sun, she will wither.”
Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain (“The Fabulous Destiny of Amélie Poulain”), or Amélie (2001) in the U.S., is a fantastic movie full of memorable quotes, by director Jean-Pierre Jeunet.

With its unique tone and aesthetic, it’s a must-watch, especially if you’re looking for movies to practice your French.

#22

FrenchLes cons ça ose tout. C’est même à ça qu’on les reconnait.
Literally“Fools dare everything. That’s how you recognize them.”
Les tontons flingueurs (“The Gunslingers Uncles”), or Monsieur Gangster in the U.S., is a cult classic crime comedy from 1963 with more witty quotes than I can count.

It was written by Michel Audiard, who’s still considered one of the best dialogue writers in French cinema.

#23

FrenchOn ne peut pas faire l’amour du matin au soir. C’est pour ça qu’on a inventé le travail. 
Literally“You cannot make love all day long. That’s why we’ve invented work.”
This is from the movie L’Homme qui aimait les femmes, or The Man Who Loved Women in the U.S. (1977), by François Truffaut.

François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French New Wave or Nouvelle Vague, a French film movement that rejected traditional filmmaking convention in favor of a more experimental style.

#24

FrenchEt dites-vous bien dans la vie, ne pas reconnaître son talent, c’est favoriser la réussite des médiocres.
Literally“Not acknowledging your talent is to encourage the success of mediocre people.”
This is a quote from Le cave se rebiffe, or The Counterfeiters of Paris in the U.S., by Gilles Grangier, with legendary French actor Jean Gabin.

#25

FrenchMoi, Monsieur, je suis ancien combattant, patron de bistrot et militant socialiste, c’est vous dire si des conneries dans ma vie j’en ai entendu quelques-unes. 
Literally“I, sir, am a war veteran, bartender, and socialist activist. So you can imagine that in my life, I’ve heard my fair share of nonsense.”
This is from Un idiot à Paris (“An Idiot in Paris”), a 1967 movie from Serge Korber.


    → If my movie quotes made you itch for a big-screen experience in France, check out our Movie-Going vocabulary list to come prepared!

Two Women Watching Movies

Time for watching some French movies.

6. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned the best quotes from French authors in a variety of categories, from love quotes to quotes about life and time, and even some of the finest lines from classic movies.

Did we forget an amazing French quote you’ve heard about? Don’t hesitate to share it in the comments below!

Going further, FrenchPod101 also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings and free resources to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining. Quotes are even better when you can translate them yourself.

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching and practice new words and structures with a private teacher. In addition to providing assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples just for you, your teacher will review your work and help improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

Get Down to Business in French

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Can you imagine going to a business meeting in France with no knowledge of business French? With a bit of reckoning and preparation, you can spare yourself a lot of embarrassment. All you need is a small set of business French phrases.

The world of work can be wildly different from one country to another, and when traveling somewhere for business—either permanently or as a visitor—you’ll have to quickly find your mark to make the best of your new business environment. 

In this guide to phrases for doing business in French, you’ll learn everything you need to work in France or conduct your business with French-speaking partners. We’ll cover everything from coworkers and meetings to job interviews, letters, and even professional phone calls. Let’s take care of business!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Business Words and Phrases in French Table of Contents
  1. Getting Started
  2. Business Words and Phrases
  3. Coworkers and Meetings
  4. Nail a Job Interview
  5. Emails and Letters
  6. Business Calls
  7. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Getting Started

Jobs

Before we dive into specific business French phrases, let’s cover the basics and work on your first impressions. 

In this section, you’ll learn how to greet, how formal you should be, and what words and expressions you need to know if you want to work or conduct business in French.

1 – Greetings and Goodbyes

  • Bonjour (“Hello”) is the magic greeting that works for everybody at almost any time of day. Literally meaning “Good day,” it’s neither too formal nor too relaxed, so you really can’t go wrong with it.
  • Bonsoir (“Good evening”) is basically bonjour for evening and night.

When meeting someone for the first time, you might want to add a polite “Nice to meet you.” Here are a few options:

  • Enchanté(e). (“Delighted.”) 
    • This one can be used with anyone in any situation. It takes a final E in the feminine form.
  • Ravi(e) de vous rencontrer. (“Happy to meet you.”)
  • C’est un plaisir de vous rencontrer. (“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”)

Saying goodbye is even more straightforward. In any formal situation, always stick with Au revoir (“Goodbye”), and nothing else. Then, only once you become more casual with coworkers or business partners, you could use the relaxed Salut (“Bye”) or a similar alternative.

    → You’ll find everything on saying “Goodbye” and “See you later” in our blog article on Saying Goodbye in French.

2 – “Tu” or “Vous”?

The French have two distinct pronouns for “you”: vous and tu (formal and casual “you”). Whenever in doubt, you can’t go wrong with vous.

A simple rule: Follow your partners’ or coworkers’ lead. If they use tu when addressing you, answer with tu. Otherwise, just stick to the formal vous.

2. Business Words and Phrases

Business Phrases

Now we’ll introduce you to some of the most useful business French vocabulary. These are words and phrases that you’ll hear and use often in the French working world, so we recommend memorizing the ones that are most relevant to your situation. 

1 – The Company

We have two main words for “company” in French:

  • Une entreprise
  • Une société

There are some legal differences if you explore the working laws, but most people use both indiscriminately.

  • Yves Rocher est une entreprise de cosmétique. (“Yves Rocher is a cosmetics company.”)
  • Je travaille pour une société de transport. (“I work for a transport company.”)

In a more relaxed context, the casual word for “company” is une boite (literally, “a box”).

  • Je bosse pour une boite d’informatique. (“I work for an IT company.”)
    Note that I’m using the verb bosser, which is the casual slang term for travailler (“to work”).

Here are a few technical business French terms you might want to learn:

  • Le bureau (“The office”)
  • Un open space (“An open space” / “A bullpen”)
  • Une société par actions (“A joint-stock company”)
  • Une multinationale (“A multinational company”)
  • Une PME (Petite et moyenne entreprise) (“SMB – Small and medium-sized business”)
  • Une association (à but non lucratif) (“A non-profit organization”)
People Inside the Company

Une entreprise (“Company”)

2 – To Work

Now, here are some useful words and expressions for talking about work and employment.

  • Travailler (“To work”)
  • Bosser [Casual] (“To work”)
  • Gérer (“To manage”)
  • Recruter (“To hire”)
  • Chercher un emploi (“To look for a job”)
  • Un métier (“Occupation”)
  • Le travail (“Work”)
  • Un boulot [Casual] (“Job”)
  • Un taf [Slang] (“Job”)
  • Un poste (“Position”)
  • Une carrière (“Career”)
  • Un stage (“Internship”)
  • Un contrat (“Contract”)

3 – Top Business Words

You’ll notice that some words have a feminine form and some words don’t. I’m only adding the feminine form when it’s relevant and commonly used. This is because, in many cases, it’s still customary to use the masculine form for any gender.

Let’s start with the workforce:

  • Le personnel (“The staff”)
  • Un employé [Male] / Une employée [Female] (“An employee”)
  • Un stagiaire / Une stagiaire (“An intern”)
  • Un apprenti / Une apprentie (“An apprentice”)
  • Un cadre (“An executive”)

The management:

  • Le patron (“The boss”)
  • Le PDGPrésident-directeur général (“The CEO”) 
  • Un directeur / Une directrice (“A director”)
  • Un manager (“A manager”)
  • Un employeur (“An employer”)
  • Le comité de direction (“Top management”)

And now some departments and geographical terms:

  • Le siège social (“Head office”)
  • Une succursale (“A branch”)
  • Une filiale (“A subsidiary”)
  • Les ressources humaines or RH (“Human Resources”)
  • Le service marketing (“The marketing department”)
  • Le service des ventes (“The sales department”)
  • Le service technique (“The technical department”)
  • La comptabilité (“The accounting department”)
The CEO

Le PDG (“The CEO”)

4 – Talking About Money

If you’re doing business, chances are you’ll eventually find yourself talking about money.

Let’s start with the basics before we move on to some technical financial vocabulary:

  • L’argent (“Money”)
  • Un salaire (“Salary”)
  • Un bulletin de salaire (“Payslip”)
  • Une avance (“An advance payment”)
  • Une retenue sur salaire (“A payroll deduction”)

  • Les impôts (“Taxes”)
  • Les charges salariales (“Wage costs”)
  • Un RIB (“Bank details”)
    • Veuillez joindre votre RIB à ce formulaire. (“Please, attach your bank details to this form.”)
  • Les bénéfices (“Revenue” / “Profit”)
    Le bénéfice net (“The net revenue”)
    Le bénéfice brut (“The gross revenue”)

  • Le chiffre d’affaire (“Turnover”)

  • Les actions (“Stocks”)
    • Mes actions sont en hausse. (“My stocks are rising.”)
    • Mes actions sont en baisse. (“My stocks are declining.”)

3. Coworkers and Meetings

Now that you have a large business vocabulary to talk about companies and money, let’s dive into more specific topics, starting with your coworkers’ meetings. Quite a program, right? No worries, we’ll keep it simple!

  • Un collègue (“Colleague” / “Coworker”)
  • Un partenaire (“Business partner”)
  • Un associé (“Associate” / “Partner”)

Now, onto the most useful French business phrases for interacting with coworkers and speaking up in business meetings.

1 – Asking a Colleague for Help

It’s perfectly fine in France to ask for assistance if you don’t understand something, if you’re lacking some important piece of information, or if you just think your current task should be tackled with outside help.

Below, I’ll write some example sentences using tu (casual “you”), as this is by far the most common way to address your coworkers unless you’re working in an unusually uptight work environment.

  • Est-ce que tu peux m’aider ? (“Can you help me?”)
  • Tu pourrais m’expliquer ça ? (“Could you explain this to me?”)
  • Je ne comprends pas ce document. (“I don’t understand this document.”)
  • Est-ce que tu sais utiliser ce logiciel ? (“Do you know how to use this software?”)
A Woman Helping Her Colleague

Est-ce que tu peux m’aider ? (“Can you help me?”)

2 – Thanking or Congratulating

  • Merci pour ton aide. (“Thank you for your help.”)
  • Merci pour le coup de main ! [Casual] (“Thanks for the help!”)
  • Bon travail. (“Good work.”)
  • Excellent travail ! (“Excellent work!”)

3 – Raising Concerns

You can have many reasons to voice your concerns, and in most places, French employees do so rather freely. If something is wrong, good managers will always prefer to know the hard facts than having you sugarcoat it and later find out the truth.

Ideally, you should express your concern in a polite and constructive manner, showing that you’re trying to solve a problem and not just complain for the sake of it.

  • Je n’ai pas été formé pour cela. (“I haven’t been trained for this.”)
  • Le délai est trop court. (“The deadline is too short.”)
  • Nous n’avons pas le budget pour ___. (“We don’t have the budget for ___.”)
  • Nous n’avons pas les ressources pour ___. (“We don’t have the resources for ___.”)
  • Nous n’aurons pas le temps de terminer. (“We won’t have enough time to finish.”)
  • Il faudrait reporter cette réunion. (“We should reschedule this meeting.”)
  • Il y a une erreur dans ce document. (“There is a mistake in this document.”)
  • Nous n’avons pas de documentation là dessus. (“We don’t have documentation on this.”)

When the French complain about their hectic lifestyle, lack of leisure time, or how they’re having trouble balancing their professional and personal lives, they use the expression: Métro, boulot, dodo. (“Metro, work, sleep.”). This is the equivalent of talking about the rat race.


4 – Making Apologies

We all make mistakes, and as long as you’re not denying them and take accountability, you should be just fine!

  • Je suis désolé. (“I’m sorry.”)
  • Désolé pour tout à l’heure. (“Sorry about earlier.”)
  • Désolé de ne pas avoir pu t’aider. (“Sorry I couldn’t help you.”)
A Chaos Scene in the Office

It’s all about working through your differences.

5 – Afterwork Mingling

Getting to know your coworkers or business partners is important, and France has a well-established tradition of handling crucial decisions and agreeing on lucrative contracts over what we call déjeuner d’affaire (“business lunch”).

Among colleagues, it’s also common to have a drink after work or meet in informal settings to get to know each other better.

  • Tu travailles dans quel service ? (“In what department do you work?”)
  • Tu bosses sur quel projet ? (“On what project are you working?”)
  • Tu travailles dans l’équipe de Nicolas ? (“Are you working on Nicolas’s team?”)
  • Tu travailles ici depuis longtemps ? (“Have you been working here for a long time?”)
  • Tu faisais quoi avant de travailler ici ? (“What did you do before working here?”)


4. Nail a Job Interview

Job Interviews

If there’s one situation where you’ll need a lot of business phrases and vocabulary, it’s certainly a job interview. You may have done well with your letter, and nobody saw you sweat during the phone call, but can you make it through the actual interview? Now is your time to shine.

You’ll need some practice to bring your game to the next level, but once you’ve rehearsed what you want to say and how to answer the most common questions, you’ll do just fine!

And now, here are a few examples of common questions in a job interview and how to answer them:

    Pouvez-vous me parler de vos études ? (“Can you tell me about your studies?”)
    Quels sont vos diplômes ? (“What degrees do you have?”)
    Quel est votre parcours scolaire ? (“What is your education background?”)

      J’ai un master en gestion de projets. (“I have a masters degree in project management.”)
      J’ai un diplôme en comptabilité. (“I have a degree in accounting.”)
      J’ai étudié le droit à l’université de Toulouse. (“I studied law at the university of Toulouse.”)
    Quelle est votre expérience professionnelle ? (“What is your professional experience?”)
    Pouvez-vous me parler de votre parcours professionnel ? (“Can you tell me about your job history?”)

      J’ai travaillé chez Yves Rocher pendant 4 ans. (“I have worked for Yves Rocher for four years.”)
      Je travaille pour Remedy Software depuis 2 ans. (“I have been working for Remedy Software for two years.”)
    Quelles langues parlez-vous ? (“Which languages do you speak?”)

      Je parle couramment Anglais. (“I speak English fluently.”)
      Je parle un peu Français. (“I speak a bit of French.”)
      J’ai des notions d’Allemand. (“I have German basics.”)

If you didn’t understand the question, don’t hesitate to ask the other person to repeat:

  • Vous pouvez répéter, s’il vous plaît ? (“Could you repeat, please?”)
  • Pardon, je n’ai pas bien entendu. (“Sorry, I didn’t hear that.”)
  • Excusez-moi ? (“Excuse me?”)
    → For more details on how the interview is handled and many more question examples, make sure to stop by our full guide on How to Get a Job in France.
A Woman Interviewing A Man

Il passe un entretien d’embauche. (“He’s interviewing for a job.”)

5. Emails and Letters

Let’s face it, you’ll probably never send an actual letter for any business purpose in France. Surprisingly, we still use paper for a ridiculously big portion of our administrative procedures, but private companies moved to the digital era a couple of decades ago.

Nonetheless, you may read the word une lettre (“a letter”) in a business context. Just remember that we usually don’t mean a paper letter, and are rather referring to an email. This is the case for une lettre de motivation (“a cover letter”), for example, which nobody’s sending through the post office anymore.

When writing a French business letter, you’ll typically want to include three things before getting to the point:

1. Your personal details (name, address, phone number, email).

2. The other person’s details, to make sure it gets into the right hands. If you don’t know the person’s name, you can mention the name of the department. Another option is to write the name of the company and add à qui de droit (“to whom it may concern”).

3. [Optional] The topic of the letter, such as Candidature pour un poste de professeur d’Anglais (“Application for an English teaching position”) or Récapitulatif de nos conditions de distribution (“A summary of our distribution terms”).

Then, you should open the letter with a greeting. If you know the name of your reader, feel free to use it. For instance: 

  • Monsieur Morel, (“Mister Morel,”)
    You should always use the last name.
  • Cher Monsieur Morel, (“Dear Mister Morel,”) is not formal enough for a cover letter, but it’s fine for most business transactions. 

If you’re not sure, you can’t go wrong with: Madame, Monsieur, (“Madam, Mister,”).

There are tons of options for ending a French business email or letter, but you don’t want to be too submissive or old-fashioned. Here are a few timeless options:

  • Veuillez agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes meilleures salutations.
    (“Please accept, Madam / Mister, my best salutations.”)
  • Veuillez recevoir, Madame, Monsieur, mes respectueuses salutations.
    (“Please receive, Madam / Mister, my respectful salutations.”)

6. Business Calls

In many big companies, Skype, Teams, or other similar audio conference solutions are already much more popular than phone calls. In the last company I worked for, I don’t believe I saw more than a couple of phones for 200 people.

However, in small businesses and administration, the phone is still alive and kicking. Luckily, the phrases and vocabulary are pretty similar to what we’ve covered already, except for a few added technical terms for online solutions.

Here’s some useful French for business phone calls and other long-distance interactions:

  • Allo ? (“Hello?”) is toned as a question, to make sure the other person can hear you. It can be used over the phone or in online calls, but never in person (unless you’re in Quebec). Most phone conversations start with Allo ?

Then, you may want to make sure you’ve dialed the right number or that you’re talking to the right person:

  • Bonjour, c’est bien le magasin Darty à Toulouse ? (“Hello, is this the shop ‘Darty’ in Toulouse?”)
  • Bonjour, monsieur Morel ? (“Hello, is it monsieur Morel?”)
  • Je cherche à joindre monsieur Morel, s’il vous plaît. (“I’m trying to reach mister Morel, please.”)
  • Pouvez-vous me mettre en relation avec le service financier, s’il vous plaît ? (“Could you please connect me to the finance department?”)

Should you be on the other side of the phone, here are a few useful sentences to handle calls:

  • Ne quittez pas. (“Hold the line.”)
  • Je vous le (la) passe. (“I will put you through to him [her].”)
  • La ligne est occupée. (“The line is busy.”)
  • Est-ce que je peux prendre un message ? (“Could I take a message?”)
  • Est-ce que vous voulez patienter ? (“Would you like to hold a moment?”)
  • Pourriez-vous rappeler plus tard ? (“Could you call back later?”)
A Woman Working Overtime

Allo, monsieur Morel ? (“Hello, is it mister Morel?”)

And finally, here are a few expressions for online calls specifically:

  • Est-ce que vous m’entendez bien ? (“Can you hear me well?”)
    Oui, on vous entend très bien. (“Yes, we can hear you very well.”)
  • La connexion est très mauvaise. (“The connection is very bad.”)
  • Je vous entends assez mal. (“I can hear you rather poorly.”)
  • La connexion a été coupée. (“The connection was lost.”)

And of course, remember the old trick you’ve learned talking to your mother-in-law:

  • Désolé, ça va couper. Je passe dans un tunnel ! (“I’m sorry, you’re breaking up. I’m going through a tunnel!”)

7. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned everything about business French phrases, from useful French vocabulary to business letters, emails, phone calls, and workplace interactions. Did I forget any important topic you’d like to learn about?

Do you feel ready to jump right in and start handling your French partners in their native languages, or go and apply for a French company?

FrenchPod101 also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings and free resources to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining!

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Your private teacher will help you practice your business French and more, using assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples for you (they can review yours, too, to help improve your pronunciation). 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101.com!

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About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

10 of the Best YouTube Channels to Learn French

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Have you noticed how difficult it can be to stop aimlessly scrolling through YouTube videos, from one channel to the next recommendation? Before you know it, it’s three a.m. and tomorrow’s alarm clock will sound like really bad news.

And have you noticed how difficult it can be to learn a language? 

But what if you could combine business with pleasure and turn some of your relaxing YouTube time into French learning? Wouldn’t that be amazing?

In this article, I’ll present the best French YouTubers and channels to practice French in 2020, from the best French learning channels to the most informative and entertaining content by popular French YouTubers. When coupled with the FrenchPod101 channel, you’ll find that the channels on this list have everything you need to immerse yourself in the French language and make quick progress.

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Table of Contents
  1. Learning French with FrenchPod101 and YouTube
  2. FrenchSounds
  3. 100% Chanson Française
  4. Easy French
  5. Golden Moustache
  6. Le Monde
  7. InnerFrench
  8. 750g
  9. Dr. Nozman
  10. YouLearnFrench
  11. Les Shadoks
  12. Le Mot De La Fin

Man Watching Video on Tablet

Regarder des vidéos (“To watch videos”)

1. Learning French with FrenchPod101 and YouTube

If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re already familiar with the FrenchPod101 YouTube channel. As far as French learning goes, this is your number-one destination for a wide variety of free content and resources, ranging from listening and pronunciation exercises, grammar lessons, new vocabulary, cultural insights—you name it.

But at the end of the day, you might feel like you want to expand your YouTube horizons and complement FrenchPod101 with more channels in popular categories: documentaries, comedies, science shows, sitcoms, reaction videos, and cooking how-to’s, to name a few. There are so many channels out there!

As a learner myself, I strongly believe in the power of exposure for language acquisition; immersing yourself in French can help you more than any grammar lesson ever could. You can effortlessly become more fluent by listening to French music and podcasts; watching movies, series, and documentaries; and reading books, articles, or magazines in French.

In 2019, video streaming was king, with eighty percent of the total Internet traffic being related to streaming—and YouTube was by far the biggest player. With a wealth of content in every language, it has countless channels for you to practice your French with. But it can be overwhelming to find the best channels, for sure.

Let me narrow it down for you, with a list of the best YouTube channels to complement your French studies!

2. FrenchSounds

Category: Language
Level: Everyone

This old-school channel may be the best place to learn and practice the sounds of French on YouTube. It features the most thoroughly detailed explanations of how to produce the various sounds of the French language. I recommend this channel to students of all levels, even if you’re already fluent.

How do you move your lips and tongue to produce our set of nasal vowels? How do you channel the air through your throat to make the French guttural R? Everything is explained on FrenchSounds, with lots of carefully articulated examples and practical exercises.

This channel isn’t active anymore, but with sixty tutorials going from the most basic sounds to the most advanced topics (sentence musicality, rhythmic groups, poetic recitation), you’ll have more than enough material to truly master French pronunciation.

3. 100% Chanson Française

Category: Music
Level: Everyone

With a sizable collection of French music hits in various genres, 100% Chanson Française is an entertaining way to immerse yourself in the language and practice your listening skills. It’s worth noting that it doesn’t have many recent tracks, as French record companies are pretty touchy about copyright laws.

For some even older classics, you can check out the massive collection of Chanson Française. But if you want to listen to specific artists, you’ll have to target their individual channels, such as Gims or Angèle.

You may find that older artists, who use less slang and are overall more articulated, are easier to understand at an intermediate level. You can try Francis Cabrel or Johnny.

    → If you like talking about music and your favorite artists, make sure to stop by our free list of vocabulary about Music Day on FrenchPod101.com.

4. Easy French

Category: Listening practice
Level: Everyone

The concept behind Easy French is as easy as it is compelling: going through the streets of French cities to ask locals questions about…anything! And then recording their answers and reactions.

The result is a joyful blend of accents, paces, and manners of speech. These French YouTube videos are a great way to practice your street French by listening to real people. You’ll also get to learn a great deal about the culture and local mindset.

The questions are as varied and incongruous as:

And most importantly, these videos feature excellent subtitles in French and English

    → Inspired by these short interviews? Discover the Top 15 Questions you could ask your French-speaking friends.

5. Golden Moustache

Category: Comedy
Level: Intermediate & Advanced

Golden Moustache is a comedy studio that produces original videos on YouTube, mainly focusing on comedy and parody. They make fun of pop-culture icons such as Harry Potter and Game of Thrones, as well as popular music and actors. They produce one-shot sketches, a long-running web series, and they even have a movie!

Backed by the French TV channel M6, they can afford sets and costumes with a production value that goes beyond what home-made amateur YouTubers could ever pull off—and they do so with undeniable panache.

Although comedy is not the easiest genre to follow as a student, these videos come with good subtitles, making them a great way to practice your listening skills while having a fun time.

6. Le Monde

Category: News & Culture
Level: Intermediate & Advanced

Le Monde (“The World”) is a French newspaper created in 1944, and today, it’s one of the most popular and influential in the country. It claims to have no political stance, and it tries to remain as neutral as possible, though it’s often considered to be in line with center-left ideas.

The YouTube channel features lots of videos, covering a wide range of topics: general news, politics, climate, Internet, music, cinema, television, science, sports, and more.

A lot of these videos are very well-articulated, in the typical slow-paced journalistic style. They also feature rather simple vocabulary, which makes this channel a great choice for intermediate or advanced learners who are willing to practice their listening skills and expand their minds.

7. InnerFrench

Category: Language & Culture
Level: Everyone

InnerFrench offers a mix of French learning videos for all levels, as well as interesting playlists such as Learning Strategies and Podcasts.

The Podcasts are perfect for intermediate students looking for interesting content in accessible French on a variety of topics (history, politics, sociology, psychology, media). They speak slowly and won’t burden you with convoluted sentences or weird slang.

Last but not least, you’ll find a sizable collection of TED Talks in French with subtitles in several languages, including English and French.

8. 750g

Category: Cuisine
Level: Intermediate & Advanced

Food and wine are two of the pillars of French culture, and this list couldn’t be complete without at least one French YouTube channel about food and cuisine.

Although arguably not the most exciting or exotic cooking channel on YouTube, 750g is a major player with a thriving online community, lots of informative videos, and countless recipes for every skill level and budget.

For something a bit crazier, head to the fast-food channel FastGoodCuisine, or maybe check out Hervé Cuisine and his mouth-watering collection of cake recipes.

    → Ready for some cooking time? Make sure to visit our vocabulary list on Utensils and Tableware, with audio recordings to practice your pronunciation. It’s freely available on FrenchPod101.com.

9. Dr. Nozman

Category: Science
Level: Advanced

Dr. Nozman offers a large collection of well-documented videos on science. From silly experiments to serious videos on biology, physics, epidemiology, and high-tech gadgets, this channel has a lot going on. It’s meant for a wide audience, especially those with no technical background.

However, it features this typical “modern YouTubers” style with a frantic montage, elevator music, and relentless jump cuts. But this is the curse of all the best science channels I’ve found, such as e-penser and Max Bird.

10. YouLearnFrench

Category: Language
Level: Beginner & Intermediate

Although very classic and barren in its presentation, this channel features a spectacular amount of content in the form of dialogues, grammar, conjugation lessons, and a wealth of vocabulary lists like the ones on FrenchPod101.com.

You’ll select a topic, and for each item on the list, you’ll see a picture, read the word and its translation, and hear the recording in French. 

No frills and no fuss here: even the illustrations are super-simple and not distracting. Having the combination of image, sound, and text is super-effective in accommodating all types of learners and creating more connections in your brain. In short, it’s a great option for learning French on YouTube.

11. Les Shadoks

Category: Cartoon
Level: Intermediate

Les Shadoks is a French animated series with 208 very short episodes of two to three minutes. It was created by Jacques Rouxel and first shown on TV in 1968. It quickly became an iconic part of French culture, still fondly remembered to this day.

With a very unique brand of absurd humor, nonsensical science, and a cast of offbeat characters of all shapes and sizes (including stupid alien birds and a very angry gluttonous bug), there was nothing like the Shadoks when they first appeared fifty years ago. And when the series finally concluded in 2000, it was still as weird and unique as ever.

Voiced by legendary French actor Claude Piéplu, the speech is slow, articulated, and accessible for intermediate learners thanks to its simple vocabulary. The cartoons might seem childish, but if you’re onboard with the absurd premises, you’ll find it enjoyable for all audiences.

12. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned about the top ten YouTube channels to practice French. From French YouTubers to classic language podcasts, comedies, science shows, and cartoons, there’s definitely something for your taste and level! 

Did we forget any interesting channel that you’re already watching, or maybe a category you’re interested in? Make sure to let us know in the comments below!

The more you immerse yourself in the French language, the more beneficial it will be in the long run. It will help you practice your listening and reading skills, learn new vocabulary, and get familiar with common grammar structures as you hear them over and over. But most of all, if you watch some of this content on a regular basis, it will keep you connected with the language.

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101, as we have plenty of free resources to help you practice your grammar and learn new words. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review new words and learn their pronunciation.

And of course, the FrenchPod101 YouTube channel should be your first stop for language podcasts, grammar lessons, and vocabulary videos. Be sure to explore our playlists so you can easily pick the category and topic you need.

Remember that you can also use our premium service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Practice your conversation skills with your private teacher, and they can give you personalized feedback and advice, and help you with your pronunciation.

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About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

22 Ways to Say Goodbye in French

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Do you want to leave a dashing and lasting impression after you’ve met someone? It’s time to work on your grand exit and make sure you choose the right words when leaving the room.

Earlier on this blog, you learned the various ways to say hello and how to introduce yourself. Now it’s time to study how to say goodbye in French when it’s time to part ways. Overall, French really isn’t complicated in that regard, and you could get by using only two expressions. But there’s more to learn if you’re willing to expand your horizon and want to impress your friends with typical French expressions.

In this article, you’ll learn how to say goodbye in French, from fun casual words to formal expressions. Together, we’ll go through the twenty-two most useful ways to say goodbye, with explanations and examples. By the end of this guide, you’ll be ready to walk away with style! Start with a bonus, and download the Must-Know Beginner Vocabulary PDF for FREE!(Logged-In Member Only)

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Beginner Vocabulary in French Table of Contents
  1. Two Expressions to Rule Them All
  2. Various Ways to Say Goodbye
  3. French Culture: Goodbye Gestures
  4. Le Mot De La Fin

People Waving Goodbye

Ce n’est qu’un au revoir. (“This is not really goodbye.”)

1. Two Expressions to Rule Them All

Do you remember how to say “Hello”? There are many ways to say it, but you can get by with only two words without ever having to use any of the others. Luckily, it’s exactly the same with “Goodbye.”

For almost any formal or informal situation, you can use one of these two expressions:

Au revoir.[Formal](“Goodbye”)
Salut ![Casual](“Bye!”)

When you’re among strangers, at a job interview, in a shop, or leaving a restaurant, you can say: Au revoir. If you’re among friends, family, colleagues, or people you’re generally casual with, you can say: Salut.

But of course, you wouldn’t be reading a complete guide on how to say goodbye if you were looking for the easy way! So let’s dive into the various ways to say goodbye so you’ll be prepared for just about any situation.

2. Various Ways to Say Goodbye

Most Common Goodbyes

1 – Casual Goodbye

In French, casual goodbyes abound. Feel free to use any of the words or phrases listed below with friends and family, or in other informal situations.

Salut ![Casual](“Bye!”)
Interestingly, Salut can be used to mean either “Hello” or “Goodbye.” It’s the Jack-of-all-trades when it comes to goodbyes, and as you interact with French-speakers, you’re bound to hear it often.

Now, let’s have a look at your alternatives when dealing with friends, relatives, colleagues, or other people you know pretty well.

Ciao ! / Tchao ![Casual](“Bye!”)
Both Ciao and Tchao are correct and can be found in French dictionaries, but Ciao is often considered the more correct form. Tchao is only the Frenchified version of the Italian greeting word.

Bye ! or  Bye bye ![Casual](“Bye!”)
Bye has also been integrated into the French dictionary, and is now rather common.

Bisous ![Very casual](“Kisses!”)
This is the most casual form, and it’s equivalent to ending a message with XXX for “Kisses.” We use it with family, partners, and close friends—and it’s gonna sound funny if you use it with people you’re not really intimate with.


A Man Peace Sign

Ciao!

2 – Have a Good One

These are the kind of French goodbye expressions you would use to wish someone a good day, evening, or vacation. 

Bonne journée.[Neutral](“Have a good day.”)
We use this phrase like its English equivalent, referring to the rest of the current day.

Bonne soirée.[Neutral](“Have a good evening.”)

Bon week-end.[Neutral](“Have a good weekend.”)

Bon ___. / Bonne ___.[Neutral](“Have a good ___.”)
This is the blueprint for a variety of custom goodbyes. You can adjust it by adding any day or part of the week, keeping in mind that the adjective bon / bonne (“good”) agrees with the object (the thing that is good). 
  • Bon dimanche. (“Have a good Sunday.”)
  • Bon week-end. (“Have a good weekend.”)
  • Bonne fin de semaine. (“Enjoy the end of the week.”)
    Here, une fin (“end”) is a feminine word, so we would say bonne.

3 – See You!

A tout à l’heure.[Neutral](“See you later.”)
If you translate à tout à l’heure word for word, it would be “to everything at the hour,” which doesn’t make much sense. This is a purely idiomatic expression and the most common way to say “See you later!” in French.

Tout à l’heure is a versatile expression that can be used to say “soon,” “later,” or “in a moment”:
  • Je la verrai tout à l’heure. (“I will see her later.”)
But it can also mean “earlier” / “a moment ago.” However, once placed in context, it’s never confusing:
  • Je l’ai vue tout à l’heure. (“I saw her a moment ago.”)

A toute ![Very casual](“See you!”)
This is a shortened and very casual version of à tout à l’heure.

In the full expression, there’s a liaison between tout and à, making tout sound like toute. To match this sound, we change the spelling to make à toute.

A plus tard.[Neutral](“See you later.”)
Plus tard means “later,” so this basically translates to “until later,” and it’s a mildly casual way to say “See you later.”

You could use it in semi-formal interactions (such as leaving a shop), but it may be a bit too relaxed for serious business and job interviews.

A plus ![Very casual](“See you!”)
This is a shortened and very casual version of à plus tard.

Note that in the full expression, the S at the end of plus is silent, while in à plus, we pronounce it.

A tout de suite.[Neutral](“See you in a bit.”)
Tout de suite means “right now,” so it’s a bit of an exaggeration, like when Spanish-speakers use ahora (“now”) to mean “very soon.”

A bientôt.[Neutral](“See you soon.”)

A demain.[Neutral](“See you tomorrow.”)

A une autre fois.[Neutral](“See you another time.”)

A la prochaine.[Casual](“See you next time.”)
Originally a short version of à la prochaine fois, this phrase has become much more popular than the extended cut, so I would advise using à la prochaine.

A la ___ prochaine.[Neutral](“See you next ___.”)
This template can be used for a variety of “see you” phrases, such as:
  • A la semaine prochaine. (“See you next week.”)
  • A l’année prochaine. (“See you next year.”)


Friends Waving Goodbye to Each Other

A plus ! (“See you!”)

4 – Farewell

Adieu[Vintage & Formal](“Farewell”)
This old-school expression is mainly seen in works of historical fiction or is used sarcastically.

Created around the thirteenth century, the French goodbye adieu comes from à Dieu (“to God”) and is meant to express the idea that you’ll only see each other again when meeting God.

In the professional world, it can also be used in the context of un pot d’adieu or une soirée d’adieu (“a farewell toast” or “a farewell party”) when someone is retiring.

5 – Good Luck

Bonne continuation.[Formal](“All the best.”)
This one doesn’t have a direct translation, but in English, it would look like “Good continuation.” Whatever you’re doing, may you continue it well.

It’s mainly used professionally, at the end of a working collaboration, for instance. The persons parting ways would wish each other bonne continuation for the next steps of their careers. However, you could use it in other situations after you’ve met someone that you’re not expecting to see anytime soon (a fellow tourist on a trip, for example).

Bonne chance.[Neutral](“Good luck.”)
Bon courage.[Neutral](“Best of luck.”)
In English, we use the translation “Good luck” for bonne chance and bon courage, but they’re different.

Bonne chance is literally “Good luck” and implies that there’s an element of chance involved, such as external factors you can’t control.
  • Bonne chance pour ton examen ! (“Good luck for your exam!”)

    When taking an exam, you don’t know what the exact topic will be and you’re not equally prepared for any potential topic that might come up. You’ll need some luck to achieve the best outcome.
Bon courage is based on the word “courage,” so you’re wishing someone strength and bravery. Maybe they’re working on something difficult or tedious, or they’re about to experience pain and discomfort.
In any case, it’s more about them being strong than lucky.
  • Bon courage pour ton opération. (“Best of luck for your surgery.”)
In practice, they tend to be pretty interchangeable, so you could use either one in a given situation.


Man and Woman Chatting Each Other

Bonne chance pour ton entretien ! (“Good luck with your interview!”)

3. French Culture: Goodbye Gestures

Like in many other countries, the most common gesture in France for saying goodbye is to wave. Raise your hand, tilt it left and right, and you’re good to go! But what if you want to get more personal?

1 – “La Bise” : The French Can Also Kiss Goodbye

Have you heard about la bise? The typical air-kissing technique the French are famous for can also be used when saying goodbye.

    ❖ HOW?
    To do la bise (faire la bise), lean forward and touch cheeks with the other person while mimicking a kiss. There’s no actual lips-to-cheek contact during the typical bise, just a slight brush of the cheeks. Then, change cheeks and repeat on the other side.
    ❖ WHO?
    If you’re a woman, you can do the bise with friends, family, or peers, no matter their gender, and vice-versa. It doesn’t mean that you have to, though.

As a man, you can do the bise with female friends, family, peers, or female strangers met in informal contexts. You can also do the bise with your male friends and family, but it usually takes a higher level of intimacy and some people just don’t do it.

Doing la bise when saying goodbye is not as common as it is when saying hello, and if you’re not comfortable, feel free to skip it!

    → If you want to know all about la bise, be sure to check our blog article on How to Say Hello in French. In the last chapter, “The Secret Art of French Kissing,” you’ll find all the details on why, when, and how to do la bise.

2 – A Handshake or a Hug?

The French don’t usually hug to say hello or goodbye. The fact that we don’t even have a word for it speaks volumes about our inclination toward hugging. It’s usually reserved for close family and romantic partners, but some friends might initiate it. Just follow their lead.

Shaking hands, however, is perfectly fine. When you’re not sure whether you should kiss or shake hands, you can’t go wrong with a firm and crisp handshake. Women on the giving or receiving end could be met with a bit of awkwardness, as this is still mainly a masculine habit, but there’s nothing wrong with it.

A Man Kissing a Woman's Hand

When you can’t decide whether you should kiss, hug, or shake hands.

4. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned everything about how to say goodbye in French in both casual and formal situations. You’ve also seen several variations of how to say “See you later” and “Have a good one.”

Did I forget any important goodbye words that you know? Do you feel ready to make a grand exit using what you’ve learned today?

FrenchPod101 also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings, and free resources to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining!

Remember that you can also use our premium service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Your private teacher will help you practice your French goodbye phrases and more, using assignments, personalized exercises, and recorded audio samples for you—they’ll even review your own recordings to help you improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101.com!

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About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

How Hard is it to Learn French (Really)?

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Is French hard to learn, or is it easy? Which parts are harder for foreign learners, and which are easier?  

Whether you’re just contemplating the idea of learning French, or are struggling with something and looking for comfort, you’ve come to the right place.

With 230 million speakers, French is the official language of twenty-eight countries. It’s also a very prominent language in the international business and cultural scenes, making it a must-learn language for anybody interested in foreign cultures.

Overall, French is generally considered to be mildly challenging, but to be honest, it greatly depends on your native language. Students from English-speaking countries will enjoy a big headstart for many reasons that we’ll explain shortly. And if you’re a native speaker of a Romance language (Spanish, Italian, etc.), it’s not even a head start—it’s an unfair advantage!

In this article, I’ll do my best to give the language a fair trial and examine what makes French difficult and what things are easy about it. This knowledge will allow you to assess how hard it truly is to learn French!

Log in to Download Your Free Cheat Sheet - Learning French Table of Contents
  1. The Easy Parts of Learning French
  2. Challenging Parts of Learning French
  3. What are the Best Ways to Get Started?
  4. Why is FrenchPod101 Great for Learning French?
  5. Le Mot De La Fin

1. The Easy Parts of Learning French

A Trio of College Students Having Fun While Learning

It’s easier to learn when you’re having fun!

Is French really that hard to learn? Not according to the FSI (Foreign Service Institute) or the ELC (European Language Center). French consistently scores as “Easy” in these two rankings of the most accessible languages for native English-speakers.

In their language difficulty ranking, the Foreign Service Institute puts French in the top ten easiest languages to learn for English-speakers, alongside notoriously easy languages such as Spanish and Italian. The FSI determines that it should take around twenty-four weeks (~600 hours) for an average student to reach a general professional proficiency (speaking and reading).

Why is that? Let’s go through the main reasons why French is much easier than you might think.

1 – French is a Romance Language

If you’re reading this article, chances are your understanding of English is quite solid already. Good news: this gives you a huge headstart on many things that are typically difficult to learn, such as the Latin alphabet or the core grammatical structures.

And if you’re a native speaker of another Romance language such as Spanish, Portuguese, or Romanian (the list goes on), your luck keeps on coming! For example, the French language is so similar to Spanish that before I ever learned any of it, I was able to read some simple Spanish text and understand a good half of it.

Knowing a Romance language before beginning your French studies also allows you to show off your understanding of complicated technical terms you’d normally have no business knowing—just because these terms are almost identical across Romance languages.

As an English-speaker, if you try to learn an Asian language, such as Mandarin, you’ll be thrown into uncharted waters with nothing to hold on to. Believe me, I tried. The alphabet is different, there are no familiar words or sounds, and the grammar seems completely alien. Sentences can sometimes omit a verb or subject, and it takes a lot of persistence to assimilate the grammar logic. But when learning French, you’ll be on familiar ground.

2 – Lots of Words are Identical in English and French

Many linguists are still arguing about the exact origins of the English language, but you may have noticed how many French words can be found there. It’s all over the place! It’s believed that nearly thirty percent of English words have a French origin.

Any of these words look familiar?

  • Un lion
  • Un dragon
  • Un capitaine
  • La justice
  • Le commerce
  • La musique
  • Une terrasse
  • Une carotte

As you learn French, you’ll truly appreciate this wealth of free vocabulary that you don’t really have to learn. And believe me, there’s a hefty list. English vocabulary has more in common with French than with any other Romance language.

A bit of history?

To be honest, many of these words are technical terms that you’re not likely to use every day. This is because English began as a Germanic language, and as a result, many of English’s core elements are of German roots. These elements include its grammatical structures and the most crucial words (prepositions, auxiliaries, pronouns, and more).

Then, later on, during the reign of William the Conqueror, the first Norman King of England, French began being spoken in court and quickly became fashionable for the upper class to learn. It was spoken in schools and universities, which explains why many of the borrowed French words are scientific and technical terms.

Image of French Nobility with Wigs

Inexplicable vintage French fashion

3 – Grammar Structures are Similar

At first, you might find French grammar confusing, and this is mainly because the word order can differ. However, the basic structures are very similar in English and French!

The French language has subjects, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, prepositions, and all that good stuff. I used to take it for granted before I started studying languages from different roots (Asian, Slavic, etc.), and now, I really appreciate little things like having a subject and a verb in my sentences!

Just look at simple sentences like:

  • Je marche doucement.
    “I walk slowly.”
  • Elle a une grande maison.
    “She has a big house.”
  • Nous avons perdu un peu de poids.
    “We have lost a bit of weight.”

It’s no coincidence if you can translate these sentences word-for-word.

And as you can see, whether we’re looking at adjectives or adverbs, they behave in very similar ways. Only the word order will differ in some cases.

4 – Conjugation is Much Easier Than it Seems

Has your first contact with French conjugation been a shock? Did you get anxious looking at all the specific endings, as well as the plethora of convoluted tenses? I get it, it’s intimidating. But don’t let it scare you away!

Sure, the verb endings will be challenging at first, until you realize that a vast majority of them behave in the exact same way. 

Like in any other language, the most common verbs are also the most irregular (just think about “to be” or “to go” in English…it’s quite a mess). You’ll have to learn these irregular conjugations before you get to the easy ones, but at least you know there’s a nice and cozy plateau at the top of this hill. 🙂

And what about all the tenses? What if I told you that out of the seventeen French tenses, you only need five to deal with any situation on a daily basis (and even less in spoken French)! Almost all of the complicated stuff is for literary purposes.

So, what do you think? Is French hard for English-speakers to learn, after all?

2. Challenging Parts of Learning French

Now, let’s have an honest look at the more complex aspects of the French language and how you can soften the blow with some quick and dirty tricks.

1 – False Friends are Worse than Open Enemies

Remember those thirty percent of English words with a French origin? Well, it turns out that it’s a double-edged sword. On one hand, it’s great to have this free vocabulary. But on the other hand, many similar—or even identical—words have different meanings! 

We call them faux-amis (“false friends”).

For example: J’aime le pain et le poisson. 

This doesn’t mean: “I love pain and poison.” It means: “I love bread and fish.”

Similarly, you should not confuse “Preservative” (Conservateur) with Préservatif (“Condom”) or you might make embarrassing mistakes at a fancy Sunday dinner.

Here are some of the worst offenders:

You should not confuse…With…
Une librairie (“A bookshop”)“A library” (Une bibliothèque)
Une fabrique (“A factory”)“Fabric” (Le tissu)
Sensible (“Sensitive”)“Sensible” (Raisonnable; Sensé)
Actuellement (“Currently”)“Actually” (En fait; Effectivement)
Attendre (“To wait”)“To attend” (Assister à)
Prétendre (“To claim”)“To pretend” (Faire semblant)

    → Do you want to know more? Here’s an extensive list of the French-English false friends.
Fish

“Hi, I’d like three pounds of poison, please!”

2 – Everything Has a Gender

If your native language has gendered nouns, like the majority of European languages, this aspect of French should not particularly frustrate you. However, this is something English-speakers often find confusing.

I mean, why is le soleil (“the sun”) masculine and la lune (“the moon”) feminine? What about une voiture (“a car”) being feminine while un vélo (“a bicycle”) is masculine? 

If you were to take a deep linguistic dive into the language’s history and its roots, you’d probably find a lot of good reasons for all of this. But for now, let’s just say it’s arbitrary.

Oh, and that’s not it. Gender has an influence on many parts of the language, such as the ending of verbs and adjectives, pronouns, or articles. For example:

  • Ma voiture est verte. (“My car is green.”)
  • Mon vélo est vert. (“My bicycle is green.”)

Look how the possessive pronouns ma and mon agree in gender with the noun. For the same reason, the adjective verte ends with an extra “e” in its feminine form.

3 – Pronunciation is Tough

Now, things are getting officially hairy. French pronunciation is tough, and there’s no way to sugarcoat it. One thing that might make you feel better about it is that it’s much easier than English pronunciation.

Yes, things like silent letters, the infamous guttural R, and there being around twelve ways to spell any given sound can make words in French hard to pronounce—but at least it’s consistent. For example, there are specific letter combinations that almost always create the same sound. Once you get used to the rules, you can start to rely on them.

  • Un chateau / Un bateau / Un blaireau / De l’eau
    All of these words end with the same letters AND the same [o] sound.

Sure, if you dig deep enough, you’ll always find some exceptions here and there, but nothing remotely close to the level of inconsistency found in English pronunciation. Just think about how many different sounds are produced using the letter combination “ough.” The answer is eleven.

  • “Cough” / “Though” / “Through” / “Plough”
    And the list goes on.

Check out this video if you’re not convinced yet.

Back to French, there are a few common pronunciation mistakes and pitfalls to avoid. It will take some practice and getting used to, but nothing you can’t handle. 🙂

  • The French guttural [R]
  • Our three infamous nasal sounds
  • The two “ay” sounds, each with countless possible spellings
  • The many traps and snares of silent letters
    → Don’t miss our complete French Pronunciation Guide to learn about these common mistakes, the thirty-six sounds of the French language, and how to produce them all, with lots of examples and study material.
A Woman Getting Her Mouth Checked by a Doctor

Careful not to hurt your tongue speaking French!

4 – Weird Spelling and Twisted Accents

As I mentioned earlier, the French way of spelling words is not exactly straightforward. Each sound can be spelled in several different ways, and we use a set of special characters that don’t exist in English, such as ç, é, ê, and à, just to name a few.

Here’s a list of all the special French characters:

  • Accent aigu: é
  • Accent grave: à, è, ù
  • Accent circonflexe: â, ê, î, ô, û
  • Tréma: ë, ï, ü
  • Cédille: ç

The good news is that out of the twelve possible combinations of accentuated characters (and this is already not an overwhelming number), only a few are commonly used, while the rest are rather marginal. 

On a regular basis, you’ll deal mostly with é, è, ê, and à, and that’s it!

    → If you’re not afraid of the more complex aspects of the language, jump right into our list of the most common mistakes you make while learning French!

3. What are the Best Ways to Get Started?

Have you decided it may not be that hard to learn French, after all? Are you ready to start your language-learning journey, but don’t know where to begin? 

Here’s a brief overview of where you can start and how to make your learning endeavors successful! 

1 – Where to Start?

When learning a new language, your priority should be to learn a tight package of useful words and structures that you can use in as many sentences and situations as possible. 

Quickly learning the core features of the language—such as pronouns, auxiliary verbs, and the most common adjectives—will help you get started with practical tools you can use in almost every sentence. Learning these things early on will also allow you to recognize some important keywords while listening.

For starters, you could check our Top 100 articles and make yourself some flashcards with your personal top twenty verbs, nouns, and adjectives. This will provide you with a solid foundation to play with.

2 – Practice Makes Perfect

There’s no need to stuff yourself with vocabulary if you don’t create the opportunities to use it. I would recommend that you start making sentences from day one, using whatever basic words you’ve learned.

You can start small, with a modest Subject + Verb + Object structure, and then keep building upon it. Simple sentences will serve as a base for countless more complex statements.

For example:

  • Elle aime. (“She loves.”)
  • Elle aime les chats. (“She loves cats.”)
  • Elle aime beaucoup les chats. (“She loves cats a lot.”)
  • Elle aime beaucoup les gros chats. (“She loves fat cats a lot.”)

Every new word is an opportunity to practice your sentence-building skills! Not only will building sentences this way help you remember the word by putting it into context, but you’ll also be practicing French grammar and conjugation at the same time.

Image of a Man Walking a Trail with a Backpack and Map

Learning is a journey, not a destination.

3 – Speak From Day 1

You should take every single opportunity to practice, whether you’re living or traveling in France, or learning from home. In case of the latter, we recommend that you find a teacher or tutor whom you can practice with (perhaps using our MyTeacher program!).

You don’t need many words or a thorough understanding of French grammar to communicate. It’s fine to speak dirty French for a few months, as long as you get to talk. You can always refine your French by learning the grammar later on, but you don’t need any of it to get started.

No native speaker ever learned their language using grammar books. First, we learn by imitation, trials, and errors. Only later can we truly learn about the rules and how they apply to what we already empirically know.

4 – Exposure is Key

Last but not least, I believe exposure is the most important aspect of learning French (or any language, really). Immerse yourself in the language by listening to music or podcasts, watching movies and series, and reading articles or books.

This will help you practice your reading and listening skills, and will also teach you loads of vocabulary. At first, most of this will be passive vocabulary: words you can understand but not use. But as you keep bumping into these words, structures, or expressions, you’ll get to the point where you internalize them and can use them yourself.

If you only learn the language academically, it will always seem cold and abstract. But if you expose yourself to it through thought-provoking articles or entertaining material, it will create emotional connections and help you solidify your knowledge much more effectively than by just repeating exercises.

    → Have a look at our list of the best French series on Netflix, and you’ll find many suggestions for a fun immersion experience into the French culture!

4. Why is FrenchPod101 Great for Learning French?

To summarize, I would say that French is rather easy to learn but hard to master, which makes it fun and interesting in the long run, yet not too frustrating for students. And whether you want to learn the basics or refine your advanced knowledge of the language, FrenchPod101 has a lot to offer.

1 – An Integrated Approach

First of all, we offer an integrated approach. Instead of artificially splitting lessons between reading practice and listening practice, and so on, we blend several skills into every lesson. 

This makes learning French more natural and more effective. You’ll practice your listening skills with podcasts and recordings while reading text materials and completing writing exercises—all in one conveniently tight package.

2 – A Massive Offering of Free Content

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced learner, FrenchPod101 offers a huge depth and breadth of content for all levels. From vocabulary lists to customizable flashcards, you’ll find a variety of free tools that can be tailored to your needs. Some of these resources can even be downloaded and used offline.

After you complete the assessment test, you’ll be directed to the level that matches your needs. From there, you’ll find a wide variety of pathways to follow, depending on the type of French you’re interested in (for casual encounters, professional interactions, romance, etc.).

3 – Premium Personal Coaching

As you go through the lessons on FrenchPod101.com, you’ll practice your reading, listening, and writing skills. Now, if you spice it up with the Premium MyTeacher service, you can also practice speaking and improve your pronunciation thanks to the feedback from your private tutor.

MyTeacher grants you the services of a French teacher to guide you through your journey of mastering the language of Love. You can send your teacher text or audio, get personalized exercises and assignments, and much more. Together, you’ll focus on the areas you need to work on the most and give your studies a serious boost.

A Woman Weightlifting While Being Spotted by a Coach

Flex these brain muscles with your personal coach on MyTeacher!

5. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned about the easiest and most challenging aspects of the French language and why it’s easier than you might think—from a common alphabet to a wealth of shared vocabulary, similar grammar structures, and only a few truly useful tenses.

Did we forget an important aspect of the language you’d like to know about? Do you feel ready to dive right in and start speaking right from the start using whatever few words you know?

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101, as we have plenty of free resources for you to practice your grammar and learn new words. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review new words and learn their pronunciation.

Remember that you can also use our premium service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Practice speaking French with your private teacher so they can give you personalized feedback and advice, and help you with pronunciation.

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

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