Top ten tips
1 Use vous instead of tu until you are asked to use the familiar form. Do not use first names until you are invited.
2 If you visit French people at their home, your hosts will appreciate a small gift of something typically British, such as tea, jam or biscuits.
3 Do not forget to stamp your train ticket before getting on the train – otherwise it will not be valid.
4 By law, French people must carry their ID cards all the time, and there could be ID inspections in the street (especially in big cities). The police will ask ‘Vos papiers, s’il vous plaît’.
5 If giving someone flowers, you should avoid chrysanthemums (they are funeral flowers) and red roses (they have romantic connotations).
6 Keep your hands on the table at all times during a meal – do not place them on your lap. Elbows, however, should be kept off the table!
7 If you are travelling by car in France, you should always be aware not to leave valuables in plain sight when parking in tourist sites and villages.
8 When addressing a stranger, always add Monsieur or Madame, even if you are only asking for directions.
9 In some areas (especially the countryside) people do not speak a word of English, so have your phrasebook ready!
10 If you are travelling and have a medical issue, you can call SOS Médecins (dial 3624). They will come to your hotel or home at any time, 24/7. You will usually be charged around 50–70 euros for this service.
You will find the French quite formal in their greetings, shaking hands both on meeting and on parting. French people, when they know each other well, greet each other with a kiss on each cheek. Bonjour, madame or bonjour, monsieur are the politest ways to greet someone. Mademoiselle is becoming less frequently used. Salut is more informal than bonjour. If someone offers you something, perhaps an extra serving of food, and you simply reply merci, they will take this to mean ‘no’. You must say oui, merci or you will go hungry!
| Please | S’il vous plaît seel voo pleh |
| Thanks (very much) | Merci (beaucoup) mehr-see (boh-koo) |
| You’re welcome! | De rien! duh ryañ! |
| Yes | Oui wee |
| No | Non noñ |
| Yes, please | Oui, merci wee, mehr-see |
| No, thanks | Non, merci noñ, mehr-see |
| OK! | D’accord! da-kor! |
| Sir/Mr | Monsieur/M. muh-syuh |
| Madam/Mrs/Ms | Madame/Mme ma-dam |
| Miss | Mademoiselle/Mlle mad-mwa-zel |
| Hello/Hi | Bonjour/Salut boñ-zhoor/sa-lew |
| Goodbye/Bye | Au revoir/Salut oh ruh-vwar/sa-lew |
| Bye for now | À bientôt a byañ-toh |
| Good evening | Bonsoir boñ-swar |
| Goodnight | Bonne nuit bon nwee |
| See you tomorrow | À demain a duh-mañ |
| Excuse me! (to catch attention) | Pardon, monsieur/madame! par-doñ, muh-syuh/ma-dam! |
| Sorry! | Pardon! par-doñ! |
| I’m sorry | Je suis désolé(e) zhuh swee day-zo-lay |
| How are you? | Comment allez-vous? ko-mahñ ta-lay voo? |
| Fine, thanks | Très bien, merci treh byañ, mehr-see |
| And you? | Et vous? ay voo? |
| I don’t understand | Je ne comprends pas zhuh nuh koñ-prahñ pa |
| I speak very little French | Je parle très peu le français zhuh parl treh puh luh frahñ-seh |
You don’t need to say complicated things to get what you want. Often simply naming the thing and adding s’il vous plaît will do the trick, even when asking for directions.
| the (masculine) | le luh |
| (feminine) | la la |
| (plural) | les lay |
| the museum | le musée luh mew-zay |
| the station | la gare la gar |
| the shops | les magasins lay ma-ga-zañ |
| a/one (masculine) | un uñ |
| (feminine) | une ewn |
| a ticket/one stamp | un billet/un timbre uñ bee-yeh/uñ tañbr |
| a room/one bottle | une chambre/une bouteille ewn shahñbr/ewn boo-tay-yuh |
| some (masculine) | du dew |
| (feminine) | de la duh la |
| (plural) | des day |
| some wine | du vin dew vañ |
| some jam | de la confiture duh la koñ-fee-tewr |
| some chips | des frites day freet |
| Do you have…? | Est-ce que vous avez…?/Vous avez…? es kuh voo za-vay…?/voo za-vay…? |
| Do you have a room? | Est-ce que vous avez une chambre? es kuh voo za-vay ewn shahñbr? |
| Do you have some milk? | Vous avez du lait? voo za-vay dew leh? |
| I’d like… | Je voudrais… zhuh voo-dreh… |
| We’d like… | Nous voudrions… noo voo-dree-oñ… |
| I’d like an ice cream | Je voudrais une glace zhuh voo-dreh ewn glas |
| We’d like to visit Paris | Nous voudrions visiter Paris noo voo-dree-oñ vee-zee-tay pa-ree |
| Some more… | Encore du/de la/des… ahñ-kor dew/duh la/day… |
| Another… | Un/Une autre… uñ/ewn ohtr… |
| Some more bread | Encore du pain ahñ-kor dew pañ |
| Some more soup | Encore de la soupe ahñ-kor duh la soop |
| Some more glasses | D’autres verres dohtr vehr |
| Another coffee | Un autre café uñ ohtr ka-fay |
| Another beer | Une autre bière ewn ohtr byehr |
| How much is it? | C’est combien? say koñ-byañ? |
| How much is the room? | C’est combien la chambre? say koñ-byañ la shahñbr? |
| large/small | grand/petit grahñ/puh-tee |
| with/without | avec/sans a-vek/sahñ |
| Where is/are…? | Où est/sont…? oo ay/soñ…? |
| the nearest | le/la plus proche luh/la plew prosh |
| How do I get…? | Pour aller…? poor a-lay…? |
| to the museum | au musée oh mew-zay |
| to the station | à la gare a la gar |
| to Brioude | à Brioude a bree-ood |
| There is/are… | Il y a… eel ya… |
| There isn’t/aren’t
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