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contributed by Franck Silvestre If you are planning to travel to France, Quebec, or any of the numerous French speaking countries, the first thing you need to do is to learn how to present yourself. Don't worry, it is extremely easy, and here I will show you the different kinds of greetings, and explain why you should use this one instead of that... We assume that you are the English Native (John), and that you are talking with a French native (Marc). Note: Marc is a common French name. Be careful, Marc doesn't take a K at the end (like the English name Mark). Ok, ready? Let's start. 1) Formal French Greetings (Adults) John: Bonjour! = Hello! Marc: Bonjour! John: Comment allez–vous? = How are you doing? or How are you? Marc: Je vais bien, Merci. = I'm fine thanks. (literally "I go well".) Explanation: you can use this form of French greeting in a business context without any problem. You can also use it at an interview. However, this is not modern French, and as we will see, it is not for younger people. This kind of greeting is used by adults only. As a teen, I've never said bonjour to one of my friends... 2) French Greetings (Teenagers) John: Salut, ça va? = Hi, How are you doing? Marc: Ça va, et toi? = Fine, what about you? John: Tu fais quoi là? = What are you doing right now? Marc: Je vais á l'école = I'm going to school In this case, two teenagers are talking. Note that they are not using the famous "bonjour"! 3) French Greetings (slang) John: Ca se passe Marc? = Everything is OK, Marc? Marc: Tranquille = Smooth, no problems. John: Quoi de neuf? = What's new? Marc: Rien que du vieux! = Only old news! This form of greeting is Slang. You do not want to use it with adults or at work... Teenagers speak like this. They use the modern French language which tends to vary from one region to another. You now have three different ways to say "Hi". According to the situation, use the appropriate one. Be aware that the French language is really rich, and that what you are learning right now can be old-style French which is not used any more! Advice for everybody who wants to learn modern French: do your homework! You need to be sure that your teachers are real French speakers who actually lived in France! Not one year or two, but decades... About the Author: Franck Silvestre is a French native speaker, teacher, and web master of Learn To Speak French. He writes about the fastest way to learn French and provides many tips for adults learning French On The Internet. |
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