September 3, 2025

# 30+ common French phrases for your trip to France

A little bit of French goes a long way 🇫🇷 Use these phrases on your trip to France!

There’s no better way to level up your trip to France than by practicing your French! Learning a few key phrases will help you feel more confident ordering in a French pâtisserie (pastry shop) and chatting with locals at a marché (market).

Here are the most important phrases you’ll need in France. On y va !

## French 101

**You don’t have to be fluent to have fun with French.**

You’re on vacation, so don’t stress! Enjoy using the French you know and see what else you learn along the way. (And you might be pleasantly surprised that [even beginners can have real conversations](https://blog.duolingo.com/fluency-language-learning/)!)

**It’s the effort that counts.**

Using some French shows locals that you’re interested in [their culture and community](https://blog.duolingo.com/untranslatable-french-words/).

**Study smart, not hard.**

Focus on the most useful [French words and phrases](https://blog.duolingo.com/common-french-phrases/), and worry less about getting every grammar detail right. A few key words go a long way!

## Greetings

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| Hello / Good morning / Good afternoon | Bonjour |
| Good evening | Bonsoir |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Please | S’il vous plaît |
| Thank you | Merci |
| You’re welcome | De rien |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| My name is… | Je m’appelle… |

## Asking for help

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| The bathroom, please? | Les toilettes, s’il vous plaît ? |
| I’m sorry, I don’t understand. | Je suis désolé(e), je ne comprends pas. |
| Can you help me? | Pouvez-vous m’aider ? |
| I’m lost. | Je suis perdu(e). |

## Getting around town

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| I want to go to ___. | Je veux aller à ___. |
| How much does it cost? | Ça coûte combien ? |
| Where is ___? | Où est ___ ? |
| the museum | le musée |
| the beach | la plage |
| the train station | la gare |
| the city center (downtown) | le centre-ville |

## Ordering food

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| A table for 1 / 2 / 3 / 4. | Une table pour une / deux / trois / quatre personne(s). |
| I would like ___. | Je voudrais ___. |
| (More) water / coffee / beer / wine. | (Encore) de l’eau / du café / de la bière / du vin. |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
| The menu, please. | La carte, s’il vous plaît. |
| The check, please. | L’addition, s’il vous plaît. |
| pay by cash / credit card | en espèces / par carte de crédit |
| with / without | avec / sans |
| breakfast | le petit déjeuner |
| lunch | le déjeuner |
| dinner | le dîner |
| appetizer | l’entrée / l’amuse-bouche / le hors-d’œuvre |
| main course | le plat principal |
| dessert | le dessert |
| pastry | la viennoiserie |

## Local language

**Bonjour !**

It’s considered polite to greet people with _bonjour_ when you enter stores, cafés, or souvenir shops during the day. In the evening, you’ll start greeting people with _bonsoir_.

And to say “have a good day” or “have a good evening” [when you’re leaving a place](https://blog.duolingo.com/8-french-phrases-for-visiting-paris/#bonne-journ%C3%A9e-and-bonne-soir%C3%A9e), it’s bonne journée and bonne soirée!

**Truc**

The word truc is a favorite of the French, so you might overhear locals use this casual word for “thing,” like in C’est quoi ce truc ? (What’s this thing?).

**Apéro**

A common tradition in France when people get together with their friends or family is apéro (short for apéritif): a pre-dinner drink, often with small snacks. If someone says Viens prendre l’apéro chez moi ce soir ! (Come have _apéro_ at my place tonight!), you know you’ve made a French friend!

## The beginning of your journey with French 🇫🇷

These basics will get you far in France, but there’s [a lot more French](https://blog.duolingo.com/french-dialects/) where that came from. To make real connections during your trip, let Duolingo be your guide! Our bite-sized lessons make it easy to fit study time into your busy schedule, and our entire French course is free—so you can save your euros for souvenirs.