Manual of basic phrases in French

Continued from page 1

Phrases to greet and introduce yourself in French

These phrases will help you greet someone, ask names and introduce yourself. The format of this list is as
follows: the Spanish phrase is in bold, below it is the French phrase and finally the pronunciation of the phrase
is in italics.

Good morning How are you?

Bonjour ( Bohnyur ) Comment allez-vous? ( koh-mahng tah-lei
vu? )
Good afternoon
Bonjour ( Bohnyur ) Fine, thanks
Good, merci ( byahng, mehrsi )
Hello
Bonjour ( Bohnyur ) What is your name?
Comment vous appelez-vous? ( koh-mahng
Good night ah-puhllay vu? )
Bonne nuit ( Bohn nui )
My name is __ ____
Bye Je m'appelle ______ ( Sha mah-pehl
Au revoir ( Oh rvuar ) _____ )

See you later Nice to meet you

À tout à l'heure ( Ah tut ah luhr ) Enchanté ( ahng-chahng-tei )

Please Sorry
S'il vous plaît ( sil vu pleh ) Excusez-moi ( ehks-ku-zei mua )

Thank you Goodbye (informal)

Merci ( Mehrsi ) Salut ( Sah-lu )

You are welcome Aid!

De rien ( De riahn ) Au Secours! ( os kuur! )

Excuse me (asking for forgiveness) Where is the restroom?

Pardon ( Pahrdohn ) What are the toilets? ( Uh sohng lei tualeht?
)
It doesn't matter
Ça ne fait rien. ( Sah ne fey riahn )
 Phrases to ask for help in French
If at any time you need someone's help or simply want to ask someone something during your trip, these
phrases will be very useful.

Excuse me sir Can you help me please?

Pardon, Monsieur ( Pahrdohn mohsyuh ) Pourriez-vous m'aider, s'il vous plaît? ( Purrie-vu
medei, sil vu pleh? )
Lady
Madame ( Mahdahm ) OK
D'accord ( Dahkohr )
Miss
Mademoiselle ( Mahdmuazehl ) Of course
Bien sitr ( Byehn seur)
Speak Spanish?
Parlez-vous espagnol? ( Pahrle vu espagnol? ) Where is she _______?
Où est _______? ( Uh _______? )
Yeah
Oui ( ui ) Thank you so much.
Merci beaucoup ( Mehrsi bohku )
No
Non ( nohn ) Who?
Who? ( Ki? )
I'm sorry
Je suis désolé ( Sho sui dezohle ) That?
What? ( Kua? )
I do not speak French
Je ne parle pas français ( Sho ne pahrl pah Because?
frahnseh ) Pourquoi? ( Purkuah? )

I don't understand When?

Je ne comprends pas ( Sho ne kohmprahn pah ) What? ( Kahn? )

Please speak more slowly Where?

Parlez plus slowly, s'il vous plaît ( Pahrle pleu Oh? ( OR? )
lahntmahn, sil vu pleh )
As?
Repeat please Comment? ( Kohmahn? )
Répétez, s'il vous plaît ( Repeat, sil vu pleh )

Can I ask you a question?

A question, s'il vous plaît? ( Eun kehstiohn, sil
vu pleh? )
 French phrases for travelers in trouble
We hope that you will not have to use the phrases in this section during your trip, however it is important that
you know them in case something unforeseen occurs.

Leave me alone I'm lost

Laissez-moi tranquille! ( less-ei mua trahng- Je suis perdu ( Sho sui pehr-du )
kil! )
I have lost my bag
Do not touch me J'ai perdu mon sac ( Shey pehr-du mong sak )
Ne me touchez pas ( noh moh tushei pah )
I'm sick
I'm going to call the police Je suis malade ( Sho sui molod )
J'appelle la police ( Shapel la poh-lis )
I'm hurt
High! Thief! Je sui blessé ( Sho sui blessei )
Arrêtez! Au voleur! ( ah-reh-tei! oh vo-liur )
I need a doctor
Aid! J'ai besoin d'un médecin ( Shey bezuang dun
Au Secours! ( Oh soh-kur! ) meidsang )

I need your help May I use your phone?

Aidez-moi, s'il vous plaît! ( ei-dei mua, sil vu Can I use your telephone? ( Should you use your
ple ) telephone? )

It's an emergency
C'est une urgency ( seh tun ur-shans )
 French phrases related to transportation
With these phrases in French you can buy train, bus or plane tickets without any problem, you can also give
directions to taxi drivers and you will reach your destination easily.

How much does a ticket to _____ cost? When is this train/bus going to arrive at ______?
Combien coûte le billet pour _____? ( Kom- When will the train/bus arrive at ______? ( kahng
byan kut lo bi-lei pur _____ ) soh trang/bus ah-riv-rah-til ah ______? )

A ticket to ______, please. Cab!

A billet pour _____, je vous prie. ( ung bi-lei Cab! ( tahk-yes! )
pur _____ she vu pri )
Take me to ______, please.
Where is this train/bus going? Déposez-moi a ______, je vous prie. ( Dei-poh-zey-
Où va ce train/bus? ( U va soh trang/bus? ) muah ah _______, shoh vu pri )

Where is the train/bus to ______? How much does it cost to get to _______?
Où est le train/bus pour ______ ( U eh loh Combine the coûte-t-il d'aller à _______? ( Kohm-
trang/bus pur ______ ) byeng soh-la ku-til dah-ley ah _______? )

Does this train stop at ______? Take me there please.

Does the train/bus arrive at _____? ( seh Amenez-moi lá, je vous prie. ( ah-mehn-ei-mua la,
trang/bus sah-ret-til ah _____? ) sho vu pri )

When does the train leave for _______?

When does the train/bus leave for ______? (
kahng par loh trang/bus pur ______ )

French phrases related to accommodation

When you need to look for a hotel, you will need to know the following phrases. You can try to memorize them,
they are not difficult at all.

Phrases to ask for directions and directions in French

Do you have rooms available? ...more clean?

Have you got free rooms? ( ah-vey-vu dey ...plus propre? ( ... pluu prohpr?)
shahmbr libr? )
...cheaper?
How much does a room cost for one person? ...moins chère? ( ...muang shehr? )
What is the size of a room for a person? (
kohm-byahng kut un shahmbr pur un pehr-son? Well, I'll stay
) Ok, you turn it on. ( oh-key, shoh lah prahng )

How much does a room cost for two people? I will stay for _____ night(s).
What is the size of a room for two people? ( Je compte rester _____ night(s). ( shoh komt res-tey
kohm-byahng kut un shahmbr pur duh pehr- _____ nui )
son? )
Can you suggest another hotel?
Does the room have... Can you suggest me another hotel? ( pu-vey vu moh
Est-ce que dans la chambre il y a... ( esk dahng suu-shey-rey ung ohtr oh-tel? )
lah shambr il yah )
Do you have a safe?
...bed sheets? Avez-vous a chest-fort? ( ah-vey vu ung kofr for? )
...des drapes? ( dey drah? )
Breakfast is included?
...bathroom? Le petit-déjeuner est-il inclus? ( loh peti dry-shoh-
...a bathroom? ( a sahl ah bang? ) ney eht-il ang-klu? )

...phone? What time is breakfast?

...a telephone? ( ung tey-ley-fohn? ) What time is the petit-déjeuner? ( ah kel ur eh loh
peti de-shoh-ney? )
...television?
...a television? ( a tey-ley? ) Please clean my room
Merci de nettoyer ma chambre. ( mehr-si der net-
May I see the room first? uah-yey ma shambr )
Can I visit the room? ( puish vi-zi-tey lah
shambr? ) Can you wake me up at ______?
Can you reveal me to _____? ( pu-vey vu moh king-
Do you have a quieter room? vey-yey ah _____ )
Do you ever have a quiet room? ( vu nah-vey
pah doh shahmbr plu trahng-kil? ) I want to register my departure
Je veux vous signaler mon départ. ( shoh voh vu si-
...larger? niah-ley mong dey-par )
...plus big? ( ...pluu grahnd? )
Have you ever gotten lost in a foreign country? If the answer is yes, you must know the frustration of not being
able to communicate to ask for directions and know how to get somewhere. With these phrases, you will have
no problem finding your way.
Where is ______? Street
Où se trouve _____? ( U estruv _____ ) Rue ( ru )

...the train station? Turn left

...the gare? ( lah gahr? ) Tournez à gauche ( ur-ntey ah gaush )

...bus station? Turn right

...the gare routiere? ( lah gahr ru-tyehr? ) Tournez à droite ( tur-ney ah druaht )

...the airport? Left

...the airport? ( lah-ey-roh-por? ) Gauche ( gaush )

...center? Right
...le centre-ville ? ( loh sahng-troh-vil? ) Droite ( druah t)

...The suburbs? Straight ahead

...the banlieue? ( lah bahng-lyu? ) Tout droit ( tut-druaht )

...the hostel? To her _____

...l'auberge de jeunesse? ( lou-behrsh doh shoh- Vers le/la _____ ( vehr loh/lah )
ness )
Passing the _____
...the hotel ______? Après le/la _____ ( ah-preh loh/lah )
...l'hôtel ______ ? ( loh-tel )
Before the _____
Where can I find many... Avant le/la _____ ( ah-vahng loh/lah )
Où y'a-t-il des... ( u yah-til dei )
Look for the _____
...Hotels? Repérez le/la _____ ( roh-pey-rey loh/lah )
...hotels? ( oh-tel )
Intersection
...restaurants? Intersection ( ang-tehr-seck-siohng )
...restaurants? ( res-tau-rahng )
North
...pubs? Nord ( nohr )
...bars? ( bahr )
South
...places of interest? Sud ( su )
...sites to visit? ( sits ah vi-zi-tey )
This
Can you show it to me on the map? Est ( est )
Can you see me on the card? ( pu-vey-vu moh
mohn-trey suur lah kahrt? ) West
Ouest ( uest )

Phrases to ask to order in restaurants in French

This section of the manual of basic English phrases is designed to help you express what you want to order.
A table for one please Egg
Une table pour une personne, je vous prie ( An oeuf ( an ugh )
uun tahbl pur un pehr-sohn sho vu pri )
Salad
A table for two, please Une salade ( une sah-lahd )
A table for two people, your priority. ( uun
tahbl pur diu pehr-sohn sho vu pri ) Fresh vegetables
Des légumes frais ( deh ley-guum freh )
May I see the menu please?
Can I see the card? ( Puish ah-vuahr la caht? ) Fresh fruit
Des fruits frais ( frui freh )
Can I see the kitchen?
Can I visit the cuisines? ( Puish vi-zi-tey law Bread
kui-zin? ) Du pain ( du pang )

Is there a house specialty? Toasted bread

What is the specialty of the house? ( Kel eh lah rôtis ( roh-ti )
espey-si-ah-li-tey do lah meh-zohng? )
Noodles
Are there any local specialties? Des pâtes ( deh paht ) or
And at-il a local spécialité? ( yah-til un espey- Des nouilles ( deh nuey )
si-ah-li-tey loh-kahl? )
Rice
I am vegetarian Du riz ( du ri )
Je suis végétarien. ( shoh sui vey-shey-tah-
ryahng ) Beans
Des haricots ( dez ah-ri-koh )
I don't eat pork
Je ne mange pas de porc. ( sho noh mahnsh Can I have a glass of _____?
pag duh poh r) Puis-je avoir un verre de _____? ( puish ah-vuahr
ung vehr doh _____? )
To the letter
à la carte ( ah lah kahrt ) Can I have a cup of _____?
Can I see a taste of _____? ( puish ah-vuahr a tahss
Breakfast doh ______? )
petit-déjeuner ( peti-dey-sheu-ney )
Can I have a bottle of _____?
Lunch Can I see a bouteille of _____? ( puish ah-vuahr a
déjeuner ( dey-sheu-ney ) bu-tey doh _____? )

Wanna _____ Coffee

Je voudrais _____ ( Sho vu-dreh _____ ) Coffee ( kah-fey )

I want a dish that contains ______ Tea

Je voudrais un plat avec _____ ( shoh vu-dreh Thé ( tey )
ung plah ah-vek ______ )
Juice
Chicken Jus ( shu )
Du poulet ( du pu-leh )
Mineral water
Beef Eau gazeuse ( oh gah-zuhz )
Du boeuf ( du boff ) Water
Eau ( oh )
Fish
Du poisson ( du pu-song ) Beer
Bière ( byehr )
Salmon
Du saumon ( du sau-mong ) Red/white wine
Vin rouge/blanc ( vang rush/blahng )
Tuna
Du thon ( du tong ) Can I have some _____?
Puis-je avoir du _____? ( puish ah-vuahr du )
Cod
De la morue ( doh lah moh-ru ) Salt
Sel ( sel )
Seafood
Des fruits de mer ( deh frui doh mehr ) Black pepper
Poivre ( puavr )
Lobster
Du homard ( du oh-mar ) Butter
beurre ( bur )
Clams
Des palourdes ( deh pah-lurd ) Excuse me waiter (getting the waiter's attention)
S'il vous plaît, monsieur/madame? ( sil vu pleh moh-
oysters syuh/madam ) *Note: Above all, avoid using "
Des huîtres ( dez uitr ) garçon " to refer to a waiter, as it is considered
offensive.
Mussels
Des moules ( deh mul ) I'm done
J'ai fini. ( shey fini )
Snails
Des escargots ( dez es-car-goh ) It was delicious
C'était délicieux. ( setey delisiuh )
Frogs
Des grenouilles ( deh gruh-nuey ) Please remove the dishes
Can you remove the table? ( vu puvey debahrasey
Ham lah tahbl )
Du jambon ( du shahng-bong )
The check, please
Pig L'addition s'il vous plait. ( lah di syohng sil vu pleh )
Du porc/cochon ( du pohr/du coh-shong )
*Note: Saying cochon is the equivalent of How much is it?
saying cochino, therefore, it is not a formal way C'est combien? ( Seh kohmbyan? )
of ordering. It is preferable to use porc (pork).
Service included?
Sausage Is the service compris? ( Loh sehrvis eh kohmpri? )
Des saucisses ( deh sau-siss )
This is for you
Cheese C'est pour vous ( Seh pur vu )
Du fromage ( du froh-mash )
Eggs
Des oeufs ( dehz uh )

French phrases related to banks and money

It is unlikely that you will carry out procedures in banks during your trip, however, you need to know the
minimum to at least change traveler's checks or foreign currency.

Where is the nearest bank?

Où est la banque la plus proche? (U eh lah bahnk la pleu prohsh?)

Is there an exchange house around here?

And at-il a bureau de change près d'ici? (Yahtil uhn biuroh do shanzh preh disi?)

I would like to exchange a few euros

Je voudrais canger des euros (Sho vudreh shahnze dei euros)

How much is the euro worth?

Combien vaut le euro? (Kohmbian voh loh euro?)

Can I cash traveler's checks?

Est-ce que je peux changer des voyage checks? (Ehskoh sho poh shahnzhe dei shehk do vuahyahsh?)

Where do I sign?
Où est-ce je dois signer? (U ehskoh sho dua siniey?)

Can you give me small bills?

Can you give me silver in petits coupres? (Puveh-vu muh dohnei lahrzhahn ahn petit kupeur?)
 Phrases to ask and give the time in French
What time is it? It's noon
Quelle heure est-il? ( Kehl uhr ehtil? ) Il est midi ( Il eh midi )

It's three Five minutes ago

Il est trois heures ( Il eh truah zohr ) Il ya cinq minutes ( il yah san mineut )

three and a quarter In half an hour

Three heures et quart ( Truah zohr ei kahr ) Dans une demi-heure ( dahn zeun dohmi-
uhr )
Half past three
Three heures et demie ( Truah zohr ei dohmi From 7:00 p.m.
) After seven days of night ( dohpui seht uhr du
suahr )
Quarter to three
Three heures moins le quart ( Truah zohr After 8:00 p.m.
muahn loh kahr ) Après huit heures du soir ( ahpreh uit uhr du
suahr )
Three and ten
Three heures dix ( Truah zohr dis ) Before 9:00 am
Avant neuf heures du matin ( ahvahn noh
Ten to three vuhr du mahtan )
Three heures moin dix ( Truah zohr muahn
dis ) What time does it start?
A quelle heure est-ce que ça commence? ( Ah
It's midnight kehl uht ehskoh sah kohmahns? )
Il est minuit ( Il eh minui )
 Expressions of time in French
To express when things happen, it is necessary to know the following phrases, they are quite simple and should
not cost you any work.

Now _____ hours)

Maintenant ( Mang-nahng ) _____ heure(s) ( eur )

After _____ days)

Plus tard ( Plu tahr ) _____ jour(s) ( shurs )

Before _____ weeks)

Avant ( Ah-vahng ) _____ semaine(s) ( esmen )

After _____ months)

Après ( Ah-prei ) _____ mois ( mua )

The morning _____ years)

Le matin ( Loh mat-tang ) _____ an(s) ( Ahng ) / année(s) ( Ah-nei )

In the morning Diary

Dans la matinée ( Dahn lah mah-tin-ei ) Quotidienne ( Ko-ti-dien )

The afternoon Weekly

Le soir ( Loh suah ) Hebdomadaire ( Eb-doh-ma-deir )

In the afternoon Monthly

Dans la soirée ( Dahng la sua-rei ) Mensuel ( Mang-suu-el )

The night Annually

La nuit ( Lah nui ) Annuel ( An-u-el )

_____ minutes)
_____ minute(s) ( mi-nut )
 The days of the week in French
The days of the week are essential in any language, as are the months, numbers and colors, which we will see in
the following sections.

Sunday Today
Dimanche ( Di-mahnsh ) Aujourd'hui ( Ou-shur-dui )

Monday Yesterday
Lundi ( Luhn-di ) Hier ( Yehr )

Tuesday Tomorrow
Mardi ( Mahr-di ) Demain ( Doh-mang )

Wednesday This week

Mercredi ( Mehr-kroh-di ) Cette semaine ( Set esmen )

Thursday Last week

Jeudi ( Juh-di ) La semaine dernière ( Lah esmen dehr-niehr )

Friday Next week

Vendredi ( vahn-droh-di ) La semaine prochaine ( Lah esmen proh-
shen )
Saturday
Samedi ( Sahm-di )
 Names of the months in French
January July
Janvier ( shang-viei ) Juillet ( Shui-yei )

February August
Février ( Fei-vriei ) Aout ( Ut )

March September
Mars ( Mahrs ) September ( Set-tahmbr )

April October
Avril ( Ah-vril ) October ( Ock-tohbr )

May November
Mai ( Meh ) November ( Noh-vahmbr )

June December
Juin ( Shuang ) Décembre ( Dei-sahmbr )
 Numbers in French
For money, purchases, and even the date and time, you must know how to express numbers in English, we
highly recommend that you print this page and take it with you on your trip.

0 30
zero ( zeiroh ) trente ( trahnt )

1 40
a ( uhn ) quarante ( kahrahnt )

2 fifty
deux ( duh ) cinquante ( sahkahnt )

3 60
trois ( truah ) soixante ( suahsahnt )

4 70
quatre ( kahtr ) soixante-dix ( suahsahnt-dis )

5 71
cinq ( sank ) soixante et onze ( suasahnt ei ohnz )

6 72
six ( sis ) soixante-douze ( suasahnt-duz )

7 73
sept ( seht ) soixante-treize ( suasahnt-trehz )

8 74
huit ( uit ) soixante-quatorze ( suasahnt-kahtohrz )

9 75
neuf ( nohf ) soixante-quinze ( suasahnt-kanz )

10 76
dix ( dis ) soixante-seize ( suasahnt-sehz )

eleven 77
ounce ( ohnz ) soixante-dix-sept ( suasahnt-di-seht )

12 78
douze ( dooz ) soixante-dix-huit ( suasahnt-di-suit )

13 79
treize ( trehz ) soixante-dix-neuf ( suasahnt-dis-nohf )

14 80
quatorze ( kahtohrz ) quatre-vingts ( kahtroh-vang )

fifteen 81
fifteen ( kanz ) quatre-vingt-un ( kahtroh-vang-uhn )

16 90
seize ( sehz ) quatre-vingt-dix ( kahtroh-vang-dis )

17 91
dix-sept ( di-seht ) quatre-vingt-onze ( kahtroh-vang-ohnz )

18 100
diz-huit ( diz-uit ) cent ( sahn )

19 101
dix-neuf ( diz-nofh ) cent un ( sahn uhn )

twenty 120
vingt ( vang ) cent vingt ( sahn vang )

twenty-one 200
ving et un ( vang tei uhn ) two cents ( du sahn )

22 900
vingt-deux ( vang do ) neuf cents ( nohf sahn )

29 1,000
vingh-neuf ( vang-nohf ) mille ( thousand )
 Colors in French
This is the last section of the manual of English phrases for travelers, we finish with the colors, which will be
very useful to you, more than you imagine. We hope this information has been useful to you.

Black
Noir/noire ( nuar )

White
Blanc/blanche ( blahng/blahnsh )

Grey
Grey/gris ( gri/gris )

Red
Rouge ( rush )

Blue
Bleu/bleue ( bluh )

Yellow
Jaune ( shaun )

Green
Vert/verte ( vehr/vehrt )

Orange
Orange ( oh-rahnsh )

Purple
Violet/violette ( vi-oh-leh/vi-oh-let )

Coffee
Brun/brune ( bruh/bruhn )