Words
| This section includes inline links to audio files. If you have trouble playing the files, see Wikipedia Media help. |
The "Quebec" audio samples here are not necessarily from speakers of Quebec French, which has distinct regional pronunciations of certain words.
| English | French | Quebec accent | Northern French accent |
|---|---|---|---|
| French | Français | /fʁãsɛ/ | /fʁɑ̃sɛ/ |
| English | Anglais | /ãɡlɛ/ | /ɑ̃ɡlɛ/ |
| Yes | Oui (si when countering an assertion or a question expressed in the negative) | /wi/ | /wi/ |
| No | Non | /nõ/ | /nɔ̃/ |
| Hello! | Bonjour ! (formal) or Salut ! (informal) or "Allô" (Quebec French or when answering on the telephone) | /bõʒuːʁ/ | /bɔ̃ʒuːʁ/ |
| Good evening! | Bonsoir ! | /bõswɑːʁ/ | /bɔ̃swaːʁ/ |
| Good night! | Bonne nuit ! | /bɔn nɥi/ | /bɔn nɥi/ |
| Goodbye! | Au revoir ! | /ɔʁvwɑːʁ/ | /o ʁəvwaːʁ/ |
| Have a nice day! | Bonne journée ! | /bɔn ʒʊʁne/ | /bɔn ʒuʁne/ |
| Please/if you please | S’il vous plaît (formal) or S’il te plaît (informal) | /s‿ɪl vu plɛ/ | /s‿il vu plɛ/ |
| Thank you | Merci | /mɛʁsi/ | /mɛʁsi/ |
| You are welcome | De rien (informal) or Ce n’est rien (informal) ("it is nothing") or Je vous en prie (formal) or Je t’en prie (informal) | /də ʁjẽ/ | /də ʁjɛ̃/ |
| I am sorry | Pardon or Je suis désolé (if male) / Je suis désolée (if female) or Excuse-moi (informal) / Excusez-moi (formal) / "Je regrette" | /paʁdõ/ / /dezɔle/ | /paʁdɔ̃/ / /dezɔle/ |
| Who? | Qui ? | /ki/ | /ki/ |
| What? | Quoi ? (←informal; used as "What?" in English)) or Comment ? (←formal; used the same as "Pardon me?" in English) | /kwa/ | /kwa/ |
| When? | Quand ? | /kã/ | /kɑ̃/ |
| Where? | Où ? | /u/ | /u/ |
| Why? | Pourquoi ? | /pʊʁkwa/ | /puʁkwa/ |
| What is your name? | Comment vous appelez-vous ? (formal) or Comment t’appelles-tu ? (informal) | /kɔmã vuz‿aple vu/, /kɔmã t‿apɛl t͡sy/ | /kɔmɑ̃ vuz‿aple vu/, /kɔmɑ̃ t‿apɛl ty/ |
| Because | Parce que / Car | /paʁskə/ | /paʁsøkø/ |
| Because of | à cause de | /a koːz də/ | /a koz də/ |
| Therefore | Donc | /dõːk/ | /dɔ̃ːk/ |
| Maybe | Peut-être | /pœt‿aɛ̯tʀ/ | /pøt‿ɛtʁ/ |
| How? | Comment ? | /kɔmã/ | /kɔmɑ̃/ |
| How much? | Combien ? | /kõbjẽ/ | /kɔ̃bjɛ̃/ |
| I do not understand. | Je ne comprends pas. | /ʒə nə kõpʁã pɔ/ | /ʒø nø kɔ̃pʁɑ̃ pa/ |
| Yes, I understand. | Oui, je comprends. Except when responding to a negatively posed question, in which case Si is used preferentially over Oui | /wi ʒə kõpʁã/ | /wi ʒø kɔ̃pʁɑ̃/ |
| I agree | Je suis d’accord. D’accord can be used without je suis. | /ʒə sɥi d‿akɔːʁ/ | /ʒə sɥi d‿akɔːʁ/ |
| Help! | Au secours ! (à l’aide !) | /o skuːʁ/ | /o søkuːʁ/ |
| Can you help me please? | Pouvez-vous m’aider s’il vous plaît ? / Pourriez-vous m’aider s’il vous plaît ? (formal) or Peux-tu m’aider s’il te plaît ? / Pourrais-tu m’aider s’il te plaît (informal) | /puve vu m‿ɛːde s‿ɪl vu plɛ/ | /puve vu m‿ede s‿il vu plɛ/ |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? | /u sõ le twalɛt/ | /u sɔ̃ le twalɛt/ |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? / Est-ce que vous parlez anglais ? | /ɛs kə vu paʁle ãɡlɛ/ | /paʁle vu ɑ̃ɡlɛ/ |
| I do not speak French. | Je ne parle pas français. | /ʒə nə paʁl pɑ fʁãsɛ/ | /ʒə nə paʁl pa fʁɑ̃sɛ/ |
| I do not know. | Je ne sais pas. | /ʒə (nə) se pɑ/ | /ʒə (nə) sɛ pa/ |
| I know. | Je sais. | /ʒə se/ | /ʒə sɛ/ |
| I am thirsty. | J’ai soif. (literally, "I have thirst") | /ʒ‿e swaf/ | /ʒ‿e swaf/ |
| I am hungry. | J’ai faim. (literally, "I have hunger") | /ʒ‿e fẽ/ | /ʒ‿e fɛ̃/ |
| How are you? / How are things going? / How is everything? | Comment allez-vous? (formal) or Ça va? / Comment ça va ? (informal) | /kɔmã t‿ale vu/ | /kɔmɑ̃ t‿ale vu/ |
| I am (very) well / Things are going (very) well // Everything is (very) well | Je vais (très) bien (formal) or Ça va (très) bien. / Tout va (très) bien (informal) | /ʒə vɛ (tʁɛ) bjẽ/ | /ʒə vɛ (tʁɛ) bjɛ̃/ |
| I am (very) bad / Things are (very) bad / Everything is (very) bad | Je vais (très) mal (formal) or Ça va (très) mal / Tout va (très) mal (informal) | /ʒə vɛ (tʁɛ) mal/ | /ʒə vɛ (tʁɛ) mal/ |
| I am all right/so-so / Everything is all right/so-so | Assez bien or Ça va comme ci, comme ça or simply Ça va.. (Sometimes said: « Couci, couça. », informal: "bof") i.e. « Comme ci, comme ça. ») | /ase bjẽ/ | /ase bjɛ̃/ |
| I am fine. | Ça va bien. | /sa vɑ bjẽ/ | /sa va bjɛ̃/ |
| (How) can I help you? / (Do) you need help? / We need help! | (Comment) pourrais-je vous aider? Avez-vous besoin d'aide? Nous avons besoin d'aide! |
Read more about this topic: French Language
Famous quotes containing the word words:
“Language is filled
with words for deprivation
images so familiar
it is hard to crack language open
into that other country
the country of being.”
—Susan Griffin (b. 1943)
“Could kinder, more altruistic words come from the mouth of man than “Sure, I’ll help”? They sure could. They would be “It’s my turn to take charge.””
—Mary-Lou Weisman (20th century)
“Sentio ergo sum: he feels his way
And words themselves stand up for him like Braille
And punch and perforate his parchment ear.”
—Karl Shapiro (b. 1913)
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