#badly...badly is how we copin'

[cornflowersandspoons]

"There will come a Poet whose weapon is his word..."

...or whatever The Oh Hellos said 🙃✨️

How are we copin'???

[languagesarelit]

French in 300 Words

This is inspired by this post by funwithlanguages because it’s such a great concept and I thought it would be helpful to make it in French. Also if there are any mistakes or anything you’d like to add please help me because I am still just learning!

First Verbs

to be - être

there is - il y a

to have - avoir

to make / do - faire

to go - aller

to want - vouloir

to be able to / can - pouvoir

to need - avoir besoin

to think - penser

to know - savoir (a fact or how to do something) or connaître (a person, place, or thing)

to say - dire

to like - aimer

to speak - parler

to learn - apprendre

to understand - comprendre

Conjunctions

that (as in “I think that...”) - que

and - et

or - ou

but - mais

because - parce que

though - bien que

so (meaning “therefore”; e.g. “I wanted it, so I bought it”) - donc

if - si

Prepositions

of - de

to - à

from - de

in - dans / en (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

at - à

with - avec

about - sur

like - comme

before - avant

after - après

during - durant

Question Words

who - qui

what - que

where - où

when - quand

why - pourquoi

how - comment

how much - combien

which - quel(le/s/les)

Adverbs

a lot - beaucoup

a little - un peu

well - bien

badly - mal

only - seulement

also - aussi

very - très  

too ( as in “too tall”) - trop

so (as in “so tall”) - si / tellement (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

so much - si / tellement / tant (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

more - plus

less - moins

as...as - aussi... que...

best - mieux

worst - pire

now - maintenant

then - alors

here - ici

there - y / là (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

maybe - peut-être  

always -  toujours

usually - d’habitude / normalment / habituellement

often - souvent

sometimes - parfois / quelquefois

never - jamais

today - aujourd’hui

yesterday - hier

tomorrow - demain

soon - bientôt  

almost - presque

already - déjà  

still - encore / toujours (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

enough - assez

Adjectives

Since French has grammatical gender, adjectives must agree with the nouns they describe. Most adjectives are made feminine by just adding the letter “e” and most are also made plural by adding the letter “s”. 

the - le (m.s.), la (f.s.), l’ (singular; used when the next word starts with a vowel or the letter h), or les (p.)

a / an - un (m.) or une (f.)

this & that - ce (m.), cet (m.; used when the next word starts with a vowel or the letter h), or cette (f.)

good - bon(ne/s/nes)

bad - mauvais(e/es)

all - tout (m.s.), toute (f.s.), tous (m.p.), or toutes (f.p.)

no - zéro

many - beaucoup de

few - quelques

other - autre

same - même  

different - différent(e/s/es)

enough - assez

one - un(e)

two - deux

first - premier (m.), première (f.)   

second (in an order) - deuxième 

second (like “another”; e.g. “she was like my second mother) - second(e)

last - dernier (m.), dernière (f.)

easy - facile

hard - difficile

early - tôt

late - en retard

important - important(e/s/es)

interesting - intéressant(e/s/es)

fun (about an activity) - amusant(e/s/es)

fun (about a person) - drôle(s) or marrant(e/s/es)

boring - ennuyeux (m.), ennuyeuse (s) (f.)

beautiful - beau (m.s.), bel (m.s.; used when the next word starts with a vowel or an h), belle (f.s.), beaux (m.p.), belles (f.p.)

big - gros(se/ses) or grand(e/s/es) (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

small - petit(e/s/es)

happy - heureux (m.), heureuse(s) (f.) 

sad - triste(s)

busy - occupé(e/s/es)

excited - enthousiamé(e/s/es)

tired - fatigué(e/s/es)

ready - prêt(e/s/es)

favorite - préféré(e/s/es) (more common) or favori(te/s/tes)

new - nouveau (m.s.), nouvel (m.s.; used when the next word begins with a vowel or an h), nouvelle (f.s.), nouveaux (m.p.), nouvelles (f.p.)

right (meaning “correct”) - bon(ne/s/nes)

to be right - avoir rasion

wrong - mauvais(e/s/es)

to be wrong - avoir tort

true - vrai(e/s/es)

Pronouns

I - je

you (singular and informal) - tu

he - il

she - elle

one / we - on

we - nous

you (formal or plural) - vous

they - ils (when all male or mixed), elles (when all female)

Nouns

Since French has grammatical gender, it is easier to learn nouns as “the [noun]” with “the” in the correct gender. This will help you remember the gender of each noun.

everything - tout

something - quelque chose

nothing - rien

everyone - tout le monde

someone - quelqu’un

no one - personne (when used in the negative. Here is a link to help understand how to use it.)

French - le français

English - l’anglais (m.)

thing - chose

person - la personne

place (meaning a location) - l’endroit (m.) or le lieu (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

time (as in “a long time”) - le temps

time (as in “I did it 3 times”) - la fois

friend - l’ami(e)

woman - la femme

man - l’homme (m.)

money - l’argent (m.)

country - le pays

(name of your home country; the United States) - les États-Unis

city - la ville

language - la langue

word - le mot

food - la nourriture or l’aliment (m.) (Here is a link to help understand how to use them)

house - la maison

store - le magasin

office - le bureau

company - l’entreprise (f.)

job - le travail

work (as in “I have a lot of work to do”) - le travail

problem - le problème

question - le question

idea - l’idée (f.)

life - la vie

world - le monde

day - le jour

year - l’an (m.), l’année (f.) (Here is a link to help understand difference and use)

week - la semaine

month - le mois

hour - l’heure (f.)

mother, father, parent - la mère, le père, le parent

daughter, son, child - la fille, le fils, l’enfant (either gender)

sister, brother - la sœur, le frère 

wife, husband - la femme, le mari

girlfriend, boyfriend - la copine, le copain

More Verbs

to work (as in a person working) - travailler

to work (meaning “to function”, e.g. “the TV works”) - marcher

to see - voir

to use - utiliser

to believe - croire

to practice - pratiquer

to seem - sembler

to come - venir

to leave - partir

to return (aka “to go back”) - retourner

to give - donner

to take - prendre

to bring - apporter

to look for - chercher

to find - trouver

to get (meaning “to obtain”) - obtenir

to receive - recevoir

to buy - acheter

to try - essayer

to start - commencer

to stop (doing something) - arrêter

to finish - finir

to continue - continuer

to wake up - se réveiller

to get up - se lever

to eat - manger

to eat breakfast - prendre le petit-déjeuner

to eat lunch - déjeuner

to eat dinner - dîner

to happen - arriver

to feel - se sentir

to create (aka “make”) - faire

to cause - causer

to meet (meeting someone for the first time) - faire la connaissance de

to meet (meaning “to bump into”) - rencontrer

to meet (an arranged meeting) - retrouver

to ask (a question) - demander (use the phrase “poser des questions” to say “to ask questions”)

to ask (aka “request”) - demander

to wonder (meaning “to be amazed”) - s’émerveiller

to wonder (meaning “to reflect”) - réfléchir

to wonder (meaning “to ask oneself”) - se demander

to reply - répondre

to mean - vouloir dire

to read - lire

to write - écrire

to listen - écouter

to hear - entendre

to remember - se souvenir or se rappeler (Here is a link to help understand difference and use)

to forget - oublier

to choose - choisir

to decide - décider

to be born - naître

to die - mourir

to kill - tuer

to live - vivre or habiter (meaning to live on a street or in a house, etc)

to stay - rester

to change - changer

to help - aider

to send - envoyer

to study - étudier

to improve - améliorer   

to hope - espérer

to care (meaning to worry) - s’inquiéter

Phrases

hello - bonjour

goodbye - au revoir

thank you - merci

you’re welcome - de rien

excuse me (to get someone’s attention) - s’il vous plaît or excusez-moi (either could also be followed by monsieur or madame)

sorry - Je suis désolé(e)

it’s fine (response to an apology) - Ce n’est pas grave.

please - s’il vous plaît (formal or plural), s’il te plaît (informal and singular)

yes - oui  

no - non

okay - okay

My name is - Je m’appelle

What’s your name? - Comment tu t’appelles?

Nice to meet you. - enchanté (if you’re male you’d say this) or enchantée (if you’re female you’d say this)

How are you? - Comment ça va?

I’m doing well, how about you? - ça va bien, et toi? (change toi to vous to be more formal)

Sorry? / What? (if you didn’t hear something) - quoi? (very informal), comment?, or Je n’ai pas entendu. Vous pouvez répéter s’il vous plaît (most polite)

How do you say _____? - Comment dit-on ____?

What does _____ mean? - Qu’est-ce que le mot ____ veut dire?

I don’t understand. - Je ne comprends pas.

Could you repeat that? - Vous pouvez répéter s’il vous plaît? (formal) or Tu peux répéter s’il te plaît? (informal)

Could you speak more slowly, please? - Pourriez-vous parler plus lentement, s’il vous plaît?

Well (as in “well, I think...”) - donc

Really? - Vraiment?

I guess that - Je suppose que

It’s hot. (talking about the weather) - Il fait chaud. 

It’s cold. (talking about the weather) - Il fait froid.