Below are some of the key phases you will need to know in French to help you through your visit to Paris. Just a few sentences can ingratuate you with the locals much more
Quelle heure est-il?
You will need to know how to ask the time to ensure that you are on time for any engagements, and if your watch or phone breaks you may have to ask a passer by. You can ask this by saying “quelle heure est-il sil vous plait”, which is pronounced “kel er et il silvoo play”
Ou est?
One of the most frustrating situations to find yourself in whilst in a foreign country is looking for somewhere but not knowing where you are in relation to it. “Ou est”, pronounced “oo ay”, means where is and will help you to ask for directions. For example, “ou est Le Louvre”.
Esque il y a
If you want to know if there is something near to you, you can ask “esque il y a un (word) pres d’ici”. This is pronounced “s killy r un (word) pray dissy”.
C’est combien?
This is a key phrase for asking how much something is. If you point to something or hold it up and as “c’est combine?”, pronounced “say combianne”, the other person will understand that you would like to know how much it costs.
Merci – De rien
You should learn these words in order to convey basic courtesy. “Merci”, pronounced “mer see”, means thank you, whilst “de rien”, pronounced “de rian”, means you are welcome or no problem.
Bonjour – au revoir
You can greet somebody in Paris politely by saying “bonjour” or “salut”, whilst the standard way to say goodbye is “au revoir”, pronounced “oh rev wa”.
