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Politesse
After bonjour, polite phrases like "please" and "thank you" are the most important French vocabulary you’ll ever learn. When you visit France, knowing just these few phrases will go a long way, even if the very next thing you say is Parlez-vous anglais ?
please |
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| plural or formal | s’il vous plaît | SVP | ||
| singular and familiar | s’il te plaît | STP | ||
| before a verb please wait please sit down |
veuillez + infinitive* veuillez patienter veuillez vous asseoir |
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thank you |
merci | |||
| thank you very much | merci beaucoup merci bien |
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| thank you so much thanks a million bless you |
mille fois merci, merci mille fois (literally, "thanks a thousand times") |
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| More ways to say “thank you” Merci de vs merci pour |
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you’re welcome |
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| it was my pleasure (plural or formal) (singular and familiar) |
je vous en prie je t’en prie |
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| it was nothing | de rien | |||
| don’t mention it | pas de quoi | |||
| More about responding to merci | ||||
excuse me |
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| (to get past someone) | pardon | |||
| (to get someone’s attention) | excusez-moi | |||
| I’m sorry to bother/disturb you | Excusez-moi de vous déranger | |||
I’m sorry |
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| (for something you did) | je suis désolé(e) | |||
| (in response to sad news) | je suis navré(e) | |||
good wishes |
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| cheers (when toasting) (plural or formal) (singular and familiar) |
à votre santé ! à ta santé ! |
à la vôtre ! à la tienne ! |
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| More about saying “cheers” | ||||
| enjoy your meal | bon appétit ! |
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| More about saying bon appétit | ||||
| bless you (after a sneeze) (plural or formal) (singular and familiar) |
à vos souhaits à tes souhaits |
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| More about saying “bless you” | ||||
Titles |
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| Sir, Mr. | Monsieur | M. | ||
| Ma’am, Mrs. | Madame | Mme | ||
| Miss | Mademoiselle | Mlle | ||
* Veuillez is the imperative of vouloir.
Quiz
Test yourself on the most important aspect of politeness with this fill-in-the-blanks exercise:
Related lessons
- Saying "thank you"
- Merci de vs merci pour
- Expressing regret and sorrow
- Greetings
- Introductions
- RSVP
- Social niceties
- Titles
- When do you need definite articles with titles?
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