Summer has come to an end, but I really want to prolong the charm ... Especially to us, Petersburgers and Muscovites, who have not even had summer ... And since we did not have it, then you can still go for it! To Paris, for example, or better - to Nice! The French are sensitive people in everything that concerns their culture and language, and even if they speak English, they will try to hide it to the last so that you speak their language. That is why we have prepared this helpful article - useful expressions in French that are important in everyday life. These expressions mean short but capacious formulas of speech etiquette that are used in everyday communication (a cliche of colloquial speech). This "active minimum" will give you a sense of confidence when dealing with Francophone. Knowing these expressions, you will definitely not be lost in France!

So let's take a look

50 useful expressions in French for everyday speech.

NB! Note: to save effort, you can start by learning one expression for each typical situation. Sometimes you may need expressions that seem to be devoid of any meaning, but in fact they can be very succinct and help keep the conversation going. For example: oui(Yes),quais(yeah) ...

Let's start with reading rules. I only beg you: do not try to learn them right away! Firstly, it will not work - after all, there are a lot of them, and secondly, it is not needed. Everything will settle down over time. You can just peek at this page from time to time. The main thing is to read them carefully (you can even take more than one sitting), look at examples, try to do the exercises and check yourself - there is a sound next to the exercises - the way the French pronounce the same words.

In the first six lessons, in a separate tab you will find a cheat sheet for all French reading rules, so that all the material from this page in a condensed form will always be at your fingertips. :)

In the first six lessons, in a separate tab you will find a cheat sheet for all French reading rules, so that all the material from this page in a condensed form will always be at your fingertips. :)

In French, the stress ALWAYS falls on the last syllable ... This is news to you, isn't it? ;-)

-s, -t, -d, -z, -x, -p, -g (and also their combinations) at the end of words DO NOT READ.

Vowels

e, è, ê, é, ё under stress and in a closed syllable reads like "e": fourchette [buffet] - fork. "But there is a nuance" (c) that can be neglected at the initial stage. Reading a letter e in all its guises is discussed in detail at the third lesson from the very beginning - I must say, there are many.

e v unstressed syllable reads roughly like the German "ö" - like the letter "ё" in the Möbius word: menu [myonyu], regarder [regarde]. In order to make this sound, you need to stretch your lips forward with a bow (as in the picture below) and at the same time pronounce the letter "e".

In the middle of words in an open syllable, this letter is thrown out altogether during pronunciation (e is fluent). So, for example, the word carrefour (intersection) is read as [kar "fur] (unstressed" yo "in the middle of the word is not pronounced). It would not be a mistake to read it [karefur], but when you speak quickly, it falls out, as it turns out to be a weak sound Épicerie (grocery) reads [epis "ri]. Madeleine- [Madeleine].

Metro station "Madeleine" in Paris

And so - in so many words. But you shouldn't be afraid - the weak "e" will fall out on their own, more it's natural :)

In our country, this phenomenon also occurs in speech, we just do not think. For example, the word "head": when we pronounce it, the first vowel is so weak that it falls out, and we practically do not pronounce it and say [chapter]. I'm not even talking about the word "eleventh", which we pronounce as [eleventh] (I found this in my son's notebook; at first I was horrified: how could you make so many mistakes in one word, and then I realized that the child just wrote it down by ear - we really pronounce it like that :).

e at the end of words (see exceptions below) it is not readable (it is sometimes pronounced in songs and poems). If there are any signs above it, it is always readable, wherever it stands. For example: régime [mode], rosé [rose] - rosé wine.

In monosyllabic words e at the end of words it is read - if you don't read it there, you won't form a syllable at all. These are articles, prepositions, pronouns, demonstrative adjectives: le [le], de [de], je [zh], me [me], ce [sy].

Unreadable ending -s, which forms the plural in nouns (something familiar, right?) and adjectives, if it appears, does not make a letter -e at the end of a word readable: régime and régimes are read the same - [mode].

-er at the end of words reads like "e": conférenci er[entertainer] - speaker, ateli er[studio], dossi er[dossier], canotier, collier, croupier, portier and finally foyer. You will find -er at the end of all regular verbs: parl er[parle] - to talk, mang er[mange] - is; -er is the standard ending for French regular verbs.

a- reads like "a": valse [waltz].

i(including with icons) - reads like "and": vie [vi] - life (quickly remember "C" est la vie ":).

o- reads like "o": locomotive [locomotive], compote[compote] - fruit puree.

u reads like "u" in the word "muesli". Example: cuvette reads [ditch] and means "ditch", parachute [parachute] means "parachute" :), the same happens with purée and c confiture(jam).

To get an open sound "y", use the combination ou(this is familiar from English: you, group [group], router [router], tour [tour]). Souvenir [souvenir] - memory, fourchette [buffet] - fork, carrefour [carrefour] - intersection; pronouns nous (we) reads [well], vous (you and you) reads [woo].

Consonants

Letter l reads in a relaxed manner: étoile [etual] - star, table [table] - table, banal [banal] - banal, canal [channel], carnaval [carnival].

g reads like "g", but before e, i and y it reads like "f". For example: général - reads [general], régime [mode], agiotage [excitement]. A good example of the word garage - reads [garage] - the first g front a reads firmly, and the second g front e- as "well".

Letter combination gn reads like [нь] - for example, in the name of the city Cognac[horse] - Cognac, in the words of champi gn ons [champignon] - mushrooms, champa gn e [champagne] - champagne, lor gn ette [lorgnette] - binoculars.

c reads "k", mas ca rade [masquerade] already mentioned by us co mpote and cu vette. But before three vowels e, i and y it reads "s". For example: ce rtificat read [certificate], vélo ci pède - [bike], moto cy cle - [motocycle].

If you need to change this behavior, that is, make this letter read like [c] in front of other vowels, a tail is attached to it at the bottom: Ç and ç ... Ça reads [sa]; garçon [garcon] - boy, maçon (bricklayer), façon (style), façade (facade). The famous French greeting Comment ça va [coma ~ sa va] (or more often just ça va) means "how are you", but literally "how is it going". You can see in the movies - they say hello like that. One asks: “Ça va?”, The other answers: “Ça va, ça va!”.

At the ends of words c is rare. Unfortunately, there is no hard and fast rule of when it is read and when it is not. This is simply remembered for each word - there are few of them: for example, blanc [bl "an] - white, estomac [estoma] - stomach and tabac[taba] is not readable, but cognac and avec are readable.

Combination ch gives the sound [w]. For example, chance [chance] - luck, luck, chantage [blackmail], cliché [cliche], cache-nez [muffler] - a scarf (literally: hides his nose);

ph reads like "f": photo. th reads like "t": théâtre [theater], thé [those] - tea.

p reads like a Russian "p": portrait [portre]. In the middle of a word, the letter p in front of the t is not read: sculpture [sketch].

j- reads like a Russian "zh": bonjour [bonjour] - hello, jalousie [blinds] - envy, jealousy and blinds, sujet [plot] - a plot.

s reads like a Russian "s": geste [gesture], régisseur [director], chaussée [highway]; between two vowels s voiced and read like "z": fuselage [fuselage], limousine [limousine] - very intuitive. If it is necessary to make the s voiceless between vowels, it is doubled. Compare: poison [poisson] - poison, and poisson [poisson] - fish; the same Hennessy - [Ansi].

The rest of the consonants (are there many of them left? :) - n, m, p, t, x, z- read more or less obviously. Some of the little things about reading x and t will be described separately - more for order. Well and n and m in combination with vowels give rise to just a whole class of sounds, which will be described in a separate, most interesting section.

Here is a list of the words given above as examples - before doing the exercise, it is better to listen to the French pronouncing these words.

menu, regarder, carrefour, régime, rosé, parler, cuvette, parachute, confiture, souvenir, fourchette, nous, vous, étoile, table, banal, canal, carnaval, général, valse, garage, cognac, champignons, champagne, certificat, chance, théâtre, thé, portrait, sculpture, bonjour, sujet, geste, chaussée.

The French language is deservedly considered the most sensual language in the world - in its use there are several hundred verbs denoting emotions and feelings of various kinds. The lyrical melodiousness of the throat sound "r" and the exquisite precision of "le" give a special charm to the language.

Gallicisms

The French words used in Russian are called gallicisms; they have firmly entered the Russian-speaking conversation with a large number of words and derivatives from them, similar in meaning or, conversely, only in sound.

The pronunciation of French words differs from Slavic by the presence of throat and nasal sounds, for example, "an" and "he" are pronounced by passing the sound through the nasal cavity, and the sound "en" through the lower part of the front wall of the throat. Also, this language is characterized by the stress on the last syllable of the word and soft hissing sounds, as in the word "brochure" and "jelly". Another indicator of gallicism is the presence in the word of the suffixes -azh, -ar, -ism (plume, massage, boudoir, monarchism). Already these subtleties make it clear how unique and diverse the state language of France is.

An abundance of French words in Slavic languages

Few people realize that "metro", "baggage", "balance" and "politics" are original French words borrowed by other languages, beautiful "veil" and "nuance" too. According to some reports, about two thousand gallicisms are used every day on the territory of the post-Soviet space. Items of clothing (pantaloons, cuffs, vest, pleats, overalls), military subjects (dugout, patrol, trench), trade (advance payment, credit, kiosk and regime) and, of course. words accompanying beauty (manicure, cologne, boa, pince-nez) are all gallicisms.

Moreover, some words are consonant by ear, but have a distant or different meaning. For example:

• A coat is a piece of men's wardrobe, and literally means "on top of everything."
• Buffet - we have a festive table, the French have it just a fork.
• A dude is a dapper young man, and a dude in France is a dove.
• Solitaire is French for "patience", but here it is a card game.
• Meringue (a kind of airy brownie) is a beautiful French word for kiss.
• Vinaigrette (vegetable salad), vinaigrette is just vinegar from the French.
• Dessert - originally this word in France meant cleaning the table, and much later - the last dish, after which they clean up.

Language of love

Tet-a-tête (one-on-one meeting), rendezvous (date), vis-a-vis (opposite) - these are also words from France. Amor (love) is a beautiful French word that has excited the minds of lovers so many times. A stunning language of romance, tenderness and adoration, the melodic murmur of which will not leave any woman indifferent.

The classic "same tem" is used to denote a strong, all-consuming love, and if you add "bian" to these words, the meaning will already change: it will mean "I like you."

Peak of popularity

French words in Russian first began to appear at the time of Peter the Great, and from the end of the eighteenth century they significantly shifted their native language aside. French became the leading language of high society. All correspondence (especially love) was conducted exclusively in French, beautiful long tirades filled the banquet halls and meeting rooms. At the court of Emperor Alexander III, it was considered shameful (bad manners) not to know the language of the Franks, a person was immediately branded as an ignoramus, so French teachers were in great demand.

The situation changed thanks to the novel in verse "Eugene Onegin", in which the author Alexander Sergeevich acted very subtly by writing a monologue letter from Tatyana to Onegin, in Russian (although he thought in French, being Russian, as historians say.) the former glory of the native language.

Popular phrases in French now

Comil'fot in translation from French means "as it should", that is, something made comme il faut - made according to all the rules and wishes.

• Ce la vie! is a very famous phrase meaning "this is life."
• Same tam - the singer Lara Fabian brought worldwide fame to these words in the song of the same name "Je t'aime!" - I love you.
• Sherche la famme - also the well-known "look for a woman"
• ger, com a la ger - "in war, as in war." Words from the song that Boyarsky sang in the popular film of all times "The Three Musketeers".
• Bon mo is a sharp word.
• Fezon de parlet - the manner of speaking.
• Ki famm wyo - die le wyo - "what a woman wants, God wants."
• Antr well sau di - it is said between us.

The history of the occurrence of several words

The well-known word "marmalade" is the warped "Marie est malade" - Marie is sick.

In the Middle Ages, Stewart suffered from seasickness during her travels and refused to eat. A personal doctor prescribed her orange slices with peels, thickly sprinkled with sugar, and a French chef prepared decoctions of quince to whet the appetite. If these two dishes were ordered in the kitchen, the courtiers would immediately whisper between the courtiers: "Marie is sick!" (marie e malad).

Shantrapa - the word for idlers, street children, also came from France. Children who did not have an ear for music and good vocal skills were not taken to the church choir as singers ("chantra pas" - does not sing), so they wandered around the streets, making bad smokes and having fun. They were asked: "Why are you messing around?" In response: "Shantrapa".

Podshofe - (chauffe - heating, heater) with a prefix under-, that is, heated, under the influence of heat, took for "warming". A beautiful French word, but the meaning is just the opposite.

By the way, everyone knows why it was called that? But this is a French name, and her handbag is also from there - a reticule. Chapo - translates as "hat", and "gag" is akin to a slap. A flip-flop hat is a fold-over top hat that the mischievous old lady wore.

Silhouette is the surname of the controller of finance at the court of Louis the Fifteenth, who was famous for his thirst for luxury and a variety of spending. The treasury emptied too quickly and, in order to rectify the situation, the king appointed the incorruptible young Etienne Siluet to the post, who immediately banned all festivities, balls and feasts. Everything became gray and dull, and the fashion that arose at the same time for images of the outlines of a dark-colored object on a white background - in honor of the curmudgeon minister.

Beautiful French words add variety to your speech

Recently, word tattoos have ceased to be only English and Japanese (as the fashion dictated), more and more often they began to come across in French, and some of them with an interesting meaning.

The French language is considered quite complex, with many nuances and details. To know him well, you need to painstakingly study for more than one year, but to use several catchy and beautiful phrases, this is not necessary. Two or three words inserted at the right time into a conversation will diversify your vocabulary and make your French speech more emotional and lively.

French-Russian and Russian-French online dictionary ABBYY Lingvo
Online version of the ABBYY Lingvo dictionary.
Enter a word in the field, select a language pair, from which language to translate and into which and click "Translate". To enter letters that are not on the standard keyboard, you can open the virtual keyboard by clicking on the corresponding icon.

French-Russian and Russian-French Dictionary Multitran

French-Russian and Russian-French Dictionary and Short Text Translation
service of the PROMT company, it is possible to choose the subject of the translated text to improve the quality of automatic translation.

Translation of words and short texts
REVERSO, translation of words and short texts from French into Russian, English, German, from English into Russian, French, Spanish, from German into French and English, from Spanish into English.

Online dictionary - translation from / into 67 languages ​​- translation from / into 67 languages, including from French into others and vice versa, search in several dictionary databases.

Explanatory dictionaries of the French language, encyclopedias

Big Glossary
enter a word in the field and click on the button with the "magnifying glass" symbol. The word definition, synonyms and translations in English and Latin will be displayed.

Explanatory dictionary of the French language
enter a word and click OK. After obtaining the meaning of the word, you can click on one of the inscriptions under the input field for additional information: SYNONYMES - synonyms, CONJUGAISONS - conjugations, FRANCAIS / ANGLAIS - translation from French into English.

To select a word, click on the letter of the alphabetical index. A page with dictionary entries for this letter will open.

The official names of the countries of the world in French. Gender (feminine or masculine) and the article are indicated next to the name. If you click on the name of the country, a page with a summary of the country will open - the official languages ​​of the country, the full and short name of the country in the official language and in English, French and Spanish.

Enter a word or phrase and press the Enter key on your keyboard. When you enter a word, lowercase and uppercase letters have meaning, for example, you get different synonyms if you enter the word Dieu or dieu.

Dictionary of male and female names
besides the fact that here you can see the spelling options for names, you can also type in the name and find out its etymology, how widespread it is, as well as the name day.

Dictionary of names
on the left in the menu, click on the desired initial letter of the name. Names and their meanings are displayed in alphabetical order, as well as the day on which the name day is celebrated.

French abbreviation dictionaries

search in the most complete and constantly updated dictionary of abbreviations, abbreviations in many languages ​​of the world.

Search for abbreviations
another dictionary of abbreviations online.

Abbreviations in chemistry
reduction of chemical compounds; I bet that someone with a high school knowledge of chemistry would never guess that DMSO is dimethyl sulfoxide and THF is tetrahydrofuran.

For permanent use, for learning French or performing translations from French, a dictionary is a must. You can buy it online for home delivery or at a pick-up point.

Buy a French-Russian or Russian-French dictionary
here are presented general, school, technical, military, medical, economic French-Russian and Russian-French dictionaries that you can buy without getting up from your computer.

Buy a French phrasebook
going on a trip to France but don't know a word of French? A phrasebook with transcription in Russian will help you. For those looking to learn more, Crash Self-Study French Courses, preferably with audio apps, are a good choice.

Buy French audio course
audio courses for both beginners to learn French and for those who are improving their knowledge.

French spelling, difficulties

Difficulties in French spelling
Online check of difficult-to-write words (for the entered noun in the singular, the plural will be given, for the verb in an indefinite form - the conjugation table of this verb in different tenses). Here (in the "Games" section) you can test your knowledge of the French language.

Interactive French grammar
You can use it to test your knowledge or for training.

A variety of games aimed at improving your knowledge of the French language. 35 games for spelling, grammar, syntax, vocabulary replenishment.

Interactive tests of knowledge of the French language
you can choose from several possible tests. The tests are small, about 15-20 questions. Choose the correct answer from the list and when finished, click on the "Show results" button. All test questions will be displayed, correct answers are shown in green, incorrect ones in red (the correct answer to this question will be given).

Popular game in French
An exciting online flash game gallows: the computer will offer you one of 2855 words from its dictionary to guess. Good practice for French learners.

Magnificent France is a country of romance and hearts in love. Traveling to France is the dream of every couple in love. There is everything for a romantic getaway.

Nice cozy cafes, wonderful hotels, a lot of entertainment and nightclubs. Holidays in France will appeal to any person, whatever their tastes. This is a unique, very diverse country. And if you also communicate with its inhabitants, you will completely fall in love with this wonderful corner of the Earth.

But in order to communicate with the local population, you need to know at least the basics of the French language, or have at hand our Russian-French phrasebook, which consists of important sections.

Common phrases

Appeals

At the train station

At customs

In a hotel, hotel

City walks

In transport

In public places

Emergencies

Numerals

In the shop

In the restaurant

Tourism

Greetings is a list of words that you can use to greet or greet the people of France.

Standard phrases are all you need to maintain or develop a conversation. Common words used in daily conversation.

Train Station - Frequently asked questions at train stations and common words and phrases that will come in handy both at the train station and at any other station.

Passport control - having arrived in France, you have to go through passport and customs control, this procedure will be easier and faster if you use this section.

Orientation in the city - if you don't want to get lost in one of the big French cities, keep this section from our Russian-French phrasebook close at hand. With it, you will always find your way.

Transport - When traveling in France, you will have to use public transport on several occasions. We have collected translations of words and phrases that will be useful to you in public transport, taxis and more.

Hotel - translation of phrases that will be very useful to you during registration at the hotel and throughout your stay in it.

Public places - with the help of this section you can ask passers-by what interesting things can be seen in the city.

Emergencies are a topic that should not be neglected. With its help, you can call an ambulance, the police, call passers-by for help, report that you feel bad, etc.

Shopping - when going shopping, do not forget to take a phrasebook with you, or rather this topic from it. Everything that is in it will help you make any purchases, from vegetables on the market to branded clothing and shoes.

Restaurant - French cuisine is famous for its sophistication and you will most likely want to taste its dishes. But in order to order a meal, you need to know at least minimal French in order to be able to read the menu or call the waiter. In this, this section will serve you as a good helper.

Numbers and Numbers - a list of numbers from zero to one million, their spelling and correct pronunciation in French.

Tours - translation, spelling and correct pronunciation of words and questions that will come in handy for every tourist on a trip more than once.