Alberto Learns French

How To Greet People In French

2007-08-08T05:21:00.000-07:00

Here are some basic French greetings:

Bonjour [bawn-zhoor]
Translation: Good day

Bonsoir [bawn-swar]
Translation: Good evening

Salut [sah-lew]
Translation: Hello

Example:
- Bonjour, Pierre! (Good day, Pierre!)

After greeting someone, you may also ask how he or she is by saying any of the following phrases:

• Comment ça va? [komawn sah vah] or you can simply say Ça va? [sah vah]
• Comment allez-vous? [komawntaleyvoo]
Translation: How are you?

or

Tu vas bien? [tew vah byan]
Translation: Are you fine/well/good?

Example:
- Salut, Marie! Ça va? (Hello, Marie! How are you?)

When someone asks how you are, you may reply by saying:

Très bien [trey byan]
Translation: Very well

And add in a thank you at the end by saying:

Merci [mer-see]
Translation: Thank you

Example:
- Bonjour! Comment allez-vous? (Good day! How are you?)
- Très bien, merci! (Very well, thank you!)

Ça va? and Ça va.

We've learned that Ça va? is a way of asking someone how he or she is. But ça va may also be used as a statement to tell someone that things are going well.

Example:
- Tu vas bien?
- Ça va.

In this case, answering with ça va would be just like saying things are going well. Instead of ça va being a question, it becomes a positive statement of your well-being.

If things are NOT well, however, you may reply by saying:

Ça ne va pas [sah nuh vah pah]

This means that things are not going well.

So what about you? Ça va?

Asking For Someone's Name And Telling Them What Yours Is In French

2007-08-07T09:23:00.000-07:00

Here are a few ways of asking someone what his or her name is in French:

- Comment tu t'appelles? [komawn tew tapel]
- Vous vous appelez comment? [voo voozaple komawn]
Translation: What is your name?

And if someone asks you, you may answer by saying:

Je m'appelle [your name here]. [zhuh mapel ...]
Translation: My name is [...].

Example:
- Comment tu t'appelles?
- Je m'appelle Albert.

That would be my French name by the way. It's pronounced al ber. The T is silent and when you pronounce the R at the end, you let your tongue kind of vibrate against the roof of your mouth. You've probably heard French people pronounce the letter R. It kinda sounds like they're about to spit on you.

And The Frenchness Begins

2007-08-06T09:01:00.000-07:00

Salut!

I started DAY 1 of my beginner's French course today. The entire module will be conducted in French. The teacher will not use English or any other language to explain things. Just French. So the question is: how are we supposed to learn French if it is taught to us in French, which we do not yet understand? Well... with lots of drawings and hand gestures. It actually works. By the end of the class, my pitiful French vocabulary had grown, albeit by only 5 or 6 words. But it is progress nonetheless, and I look forward to the day when I can speak it fluently. Now if you'll excuse me, I have homework to do.

Au revoir!

Alberto Learns French

2007-08-05T23:55:00.000-07:00

I took a French language class way back in high school and the only French phrases I remember saying are: (1) écoutez, s'il vous plait meaning please listen (which I obviously did not) and (2) je ne parle pas français meaning I do not speak French (which unfortunately remained true even after the semester). So to pick up where I left off in my pitiful attempt to learn French, I have once again decided to take lessons. And this time around, I promise to écoutez whenever the teacher tells me.