For example, “Je vais sortir avec des amis” (I’m going to go out with some friends). To respond, you can say, for example, “Il faut aller tout droit” (You have to go straight) or “Désolé, mais je ne sais pas” (I’m sorry, but I don’t know). We spend a large chunk of our lives introducing ourselves to other people. By Zoe Erotopoulos, Dodi-Katrin Schmidt, Michelle M. Williams, Dominique Wenzel. Learning French becomes fun and easy when you learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks. Introductions don’t have to be complicated or stuffy. Still on the subject of time, knowing how to ask “What time does the train depart for Paris/Marseille/wherever” is pretty useful. And to respond to this question, you can say anything from “Je ne peux pas, désolé !” (I can’t, sorry!) ), “Bien, merci” (Good, thanks) and so on. Zoe Erotopoulos, PhD, teaches in the Department of Modern Languages and Literature at Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut. Tap on the word “suit,” for example, and this is what appears: And FluentU’s “learn mode” lets you learn all the vocabulary in any video with questions. And there you have it, folks! And when that barista responds “Ça coûte sept euros,” telling you that your morning latte is about to set you back a whopping seven euros, you can prepare yourself (and your wallet) adequately for the shock. There’s no better way to get to know someone than by finding out what their favorite hobby is. pooh-ree-ey-vooh pahr-ley plew lahNt-mahN, seel vooh pleh? . To respond to someone else asking this, speak up and say, “Yes, I speak English,” or “Oui, je parle français” (Yes, I speak French). FluentU brings French to life with real-world videos. To respond, you can mimic the structure of the question by saying “Mon passe-temps préferé est…” (My favorite hobby is…). Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you Consider this your friendly guide to taking your vocab from that drab English “How do you do?” to a fabulous French “Comment allez-vous ?”. Below are 50 simple questions to ask to get to know someone. Connect with Talk in French. pooh-ree-ey-vooh rey-pey-tey, seel vooh pleh. (The concert starts at eight o’clock and ends at 10:30. Practice makes perfect, doesn’t it? Questions form the basis of human interaction. FluentU takes music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks, and turns them into French learning experiences. Quand as-tu commencé à apprendre l'anglais ? Comment allez-vous is the equivalent of the English “How are you?” to which you can respond with any variation of “Je vais bien, et vous ?” (I’m doing well, and you? © 2020 Enux Education Limited. Use it to ask where you can find the restroom, a specific classroom, etc. If you’re the one being asked, you can start off with “Je vais…” and carry on with whatever activity you’ll be doing this weekend, using the infinitive form of the verb. FluentU takes music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks, and turns them into French learning experiences. Here are some common starter questions to get you going. If you liked this post, something tells me that you'll love FluentU, the best way to learn French with real-world videos. Chances are, you’ve probably long since mastered the art of asking questions in your mother tongue. Invite a friend to join you and your crew by asking them “Do you want to go out with us tonight?” Replace nous (us) with moi (me) and you can ask someone out on a date, either romantic or platonic. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Specifically, you’ll learn how to ask and answer some of the most common, versatile questions in French. It will give you some new ideas for topics to discuss when meeting someone new. FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. Before we dig into the conversational French, I’d like to say a little bit about conversations in general. ), Où se trouve… literally means “Where is this specific thing found/situated?” But Où est… is just as common. Asking and answering questions is an important part of communication in any language, and we want you to have some pretty awesome conversations in French (you’re on your way there already!). Whether you’ve just been introduced to someone new, find yourself sitting next to a French-speaker on the bus, or end up walking beside a French tourist while visiting an attraction, I’ve got a French conversation starter for you. “Il est onze heures du matin,” or “It’s 11 a.m.,” would be a perfect response. Oh, and here’s how to tell time in French, just in case you need a little refresher! Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play stores. With this starter guide and a little initiative on your end, you’ll be on your way to asking, answering and pondering your own unique questions in French! traveling to France for study or vacation, how the letters of the alphabet are pronounced in French, basic introductory French questions and sentences here, asking for and giving directions in French. Okay, so we’ve convinced you that this post is kinda, sorta important, yes? (It’s Monday. Be creative and resourceful and you’ll never find yourself at a loss for ways to practice all these oh-so-wonderful French questions. To really get to know someone new, move past the small talk and ask these 200 questions instead. Bonus: Sometimes, you’ll hear people use être (to be) instead of venir (to come), as in “D’où êtes-vous ?” or “Tu es d’où ?” Basically, the versions that use venir (“D’où venez-vous ? Tap on any word to see an image, definition and useful examples. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates. And if you do ask Siri what the weather’s like, she’ll likely respond with something like “Il fait chaud/froid,” or “It’s hot/cold.” Oh, and here are some more idiomatic weather expressions to sound more authentically French. Well then, let’s stop dilly-dallying and get to work. Now that you’ve successfully gone through the introductory phase, you might want to ask some more conversational questions. We also participate in other affiliate advertising programs for products and services we believe in. Part of … Said in the past tense, just like the question. From asking what time a concert starts to what time a boring lecture ends, you’ll want this question in your toolbox. But you can also use this in non-shopping contexts, as well. If you’re asked this, don’t panic, just repeat after me: “J’étudie…” So, if you study French, you can respond “J’étudie le français” (I study French) loud and proud! . Whether you’re traveling to France for study or vacation or just an avid French language learner looking to fill out your conversation skills, you’re going to need to be able to ask and answer some questions in French. Take the initiative to walk up to someone and say hello (salut or bonjour). Je travaille en tant que messager à vélo. And if someone else has traveled via time machine and asks you this (or, you know, if a friend just can’t remember what day it is today…), you can say, for example: Nous sommes lundi / C’est lundi. These are more like “Whatsup?” or “How’s everything?” Typical responses include “Ça va (bien)” (Everything’s good), “Pas trop mal” (Not bad), “Ça va pas du tout” (Everything’s going wrong), etc. By Zoe Erotopoulos, Dodi-Katrin Schmidt, Michelle M. Williams, Dominique Wenzel . “What’s the weather like today?” Again, not super useful in the age of the smartphone (unless you’re asking Siri, of course), but it’s still a wonderful go-to question for that good old awkward small talk! We ask ’em, answer ’em and ponder ’em. They both mean “Where is… ?”, Another common variation of the question is more direction-based. Here are some of the most common questions for doing so. It means “How do I get to… ?”. With a language exchange partner, of course. All the common French questions you could ever want to know. What's your favorite piece of clothing you own / owned? Ready or not, here we go! Please check your email for further instructions. And if someone asks you, all you have to do is say “Je viens de…” (I’m from…). And finally, to avoid that uncomfortable moment of “Uh-oh, I didn’t realize this T-shirt/coffee/pastry/etc. Anyone and everyone. What hobby would you get into if time and money weren't an iss…, please be nice to me (said after introduction), it's me who should say that (in response to an introduction), After my mission I would like to get a job, Ask Questions and Listen-Get to Know Someone. To ask what time anything is happening, just start the question off with “À quelle heure…” or “At what time…”, And responding to a question like this is as easy as saying, “Le train part à quinze heures,” or “The train departs at 3 p.m.” (Remember, the 24-hour clock system is pretty common in France, unlike in the U.S.!). AKA the formal and informal ways, respectively, of asking “Where are you from?”. FluentU lets you learn real French with a diverse range of great videos, as you can see here: FluentU brings French videos within reach with interactive subtitles.