Learning French in Paris, Leçon 1 – 1

Vowel sounds

i – as in ici [isi].	y – as in unique [ynik].	u – as in ouverte [uvɛʁt].
e – as in été [ete].	ø – as in Europe [øʁɔp].	o – as in aucune [okyn].
ɛ – as in elle [ɛl].	œ – as in œil [œːj].	ɔ – as in homme [ɔm].
	a – as in année [ane].

The main point of the vowel sounds chart is to make you aware of and practice the different sounds in French vowels. Especially the placement and movement of the tongue, lips and movement of the mouth.

Meeting someone (formal)

Person speaking	French	English
John	Bonsoir Madame.	Good evening, Madam.
Jane	Bonsoir Monsieur.	Good evening, Sir.
John	Je m’appelle John Doe. Et vous, comment vous appellez-vous?	My name is John Doe. And what is your name?
Jane	Moi, c’est Jane Doe. Enchantée.	I am Jane Doe. It is a pleasure to meet you.

Note the formality of the above conversation with the use Bonsoir, Madame, Monsieur and vous.

Meeting someone (informal)

Person speaking	French	English
John	Salut. Tu t’appelles comment?	Hello. What is your name?
Jane	Jane. Et toi?	Jane. And yours?
John	Moi, c’est John.	Mine is John.
Jane	Tu habites où, John?	Where do you live, John?

In the informal conversation John uses salut for the greeting and toi instead of vous.

Asking someone’s name

You might also ask for somebody else’s name.

Person speaking	French	English
John	Comment elle s’appelle?	What is her name?
Jane	Elle s’appelle Charlotte.	Her name is, Charlotte.

Here, you would be asking for a third persons name. As is is a female you use elle. If it was a man you would use il. For instance,

Person speaking	French	English
Jane	Il s’appelle comment?	What is his name?
John	Il s’appelle Thibault.	His name is, Thibault.
Jane	Et il habite où?	And where does he live?
John	Il habite à côté de Paris.	He lives near Paris.

Other words and phrases

French	English	Formal	Informal	Feminine	Masculine
Vous vous appelles comment?	What is your name?	x
Je	I
Moi	Me
Toi	You		x
Vous	You	x
Lui	Him				x
Elle	Her			x
Ils	They				x
Elles	They			x
J’habite à Paris.	I live in Paris.
Il est nouveau dans le class.	He’s new in the class.				x

Puncuation

Punctuation	French	English
.	Point	Full stop
,	Virgule	Comma
?	Point d’interrogation	Question mark
!	Point d’exclamation	Exclamation mark
:	Deux points	Colon
;	Point virgule	Semi colon
–	Tiret	Dash
_	Tiret bas	Underscore