Parlez Français!Français 1

Bonjour! ◦ Hello!◦ Good morning!◦ Good day!

Bon soir!◦ Good evening!

Bonne nuit!◦ Good night!

Greetings

In French, it is common to address people by their titles.

◦ Monsieur (M.)- Mister (Mr.)

◦ Madame (Mme)- Misses (Mrs.)

◦ Mademoiselle (Mlle)- Miss

Titles

Bonjour, Monsieur!

Bonjour, Madame!

Salut!◦ Hi!

**Used for friends, family,and other people that you address informally.

Greetings

When French people greet one another, they will either kiss each other on both cheeks or shake hands.

Kissing on the cheek is called “la bise”. (You’ll learn about “la bise” in the next section.)

A handshake in France is different than in the U.S. French people use a light grip, and pump only once- up and down.

These gestures are also used to say goodbye.

Gestures

Comment t’appelles-tu?◦ What’s your name?

Je m’appelle…◦ My name is…

What’s your name?

There are other ways to ask this question, but they

all have some form of “s’appeler” in them.

Using Google Translate will likely lead you astray!

Do NOT use Google Translate!!

This is a literal translation, but this is NOT how French people speak.

Take a minute to practice. Greet the person next to you and ask “Comment t’appelles-tu?”

Pratiquez!

Comment t’appelles-tu?

Je m’appelle Pierre.

There are several ways to ask how someone is doing.

Comment vas-tu?

Comment ça va?

Ça va?

How are you?

All of these would be used

to talk to friends, family,

children, or people you know well.

Ça va…

bien- well mal- badly pas mal- not bad comme ci, comme ça-

so-so très- very

To Answer:

Commentça va?

Bien, merci!

Take a minute to practice. Greet the person next to you and ask “Comment ça va?”

Pratiquez!

Comment ça va? Pas mal.

Comment allez-vous?

◦Je vais bien.◦Je vais mal.◦Je vais comme ci, comme ça.

(You can use these for “Comment vas-tu?” also.)

To Speak Formally

Quel âge as-tu?

◦J’ai quinze ans.

◦J’ai quatorze ans.

How old are you?

This is another example of French not being a translation of English.

The literal translation of “Quel âge as-tu?” is

“What age do you have?”

“J’ai quinze ans.”

translates to “I have 15 years.”

S’il te plaît.◦ Please. (talking to someone you know well)

S’il vous plaît.◦ Please. (talking to someone you address formally)

Merci- Thank you. Merci beaucoup- Thank you very much.

De rien.- You’re welcome. Pas de quoi.- You’re welcome.

Being Polite

aussi- also

avec- with

oui- yes

non- no

et- and

ou- or

Some Extra Phrases

If you believe that you can speak French, you will be able to speak French.

Be polite.

Practice pronunciation.

If you need help, ask!

Remember: