217 - 5 French Phrases for When You're Stuck

 
 

In this lesson, you'll learn 5 French phrases to save you when you get stuck in a conversation. 🆘

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Links & Cheat Sheet:

Transcript

Bonjour à tous, hello everyone, and welcome back to the French Made Easy podcast! This is episode number 217, numéro deux cent dix-sept. Today, we're going to look at five French phrases you can use when you get stuck in a conversation. So, when you don't understand something, need someone to repeat, or simply need a second to gather your thoughts.

As always, if you're new here — welcome! Make sure to grab your lesson's cheat sheet from the episode notes so you can follow along and see how the words are written.

No exercise for this episode, but you can stil head over to the French Made Easy Exercise Library to practice — all the links are in the episode notes. Alright, let's get into it.

Phrase number 1 is to ask someone to repeat themselves.

  • Vous pouvez répéter, s'il vous plaît ? (Can you repeat, please?)

Or, if you are saying "tu" to someone:

  • Tu peux répéter, s'il te plaît ? (Can you repeat, please?)

And by the way, if you're not sure about whether to use "tu" or "vous", I have a dedicated episode for that. It's episode number 48 of the podcast.

Ok. Phrase number 2 is to ask someone to speak more slowly.

  • Vous pouvez parler plus lentement, s'il vous plaît ? (Can you speak more slowly, please?)

Or:

  • Tu peux parler plus lentement, s'il te plaît ? (Can you speak more slowly, please?)

Perfect. Phrase 3 is to ask someone how to say a certain word in French.

  • Comment on dit […] en français ? (How do you say … in French?)

For example:

  • Comment on dit "umbrella" en français ? (How do you say "umbrella" in French?)

Next, phrase 4 is to ask what something means.

  • Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ? (What does that mean?)

And phrase 5 is to ask for a moment while you gather your thoughts.

Or

Ca veut dire quoi? (What does that mean)

  • Une seconde, s'il vous plaît. (One second, please.)

Or:

  • Une seconde, s'il te plaît. (One second, please.)

Or

  • Un moment, s’il vous plaît. (One moment, please.)

Simple, polite, and very useful when you need a little pause before answering.

RECAP

Let's recap the five phrases:

  • Vous pouvez répéter, s'il vous plaît ? / Tu peux répéter, s'il te plaît ? (Can you repeat, please?)

  • Vous pouvez parler plus lentement, s'il vous plaît ? / Tu peux parler plus lentement, s'il te plaît ? (Can you speak more slowly, please?)

  • Comment on dit … en français ? (How do you say … in French?)

  • Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ? (What does that mean?)

  • Une seconde, s'il vous plaît. / Une seconde, s'il te plaît. (One second, please.)

Et voilà! That's the end of today's short and sweet lesson. Don't forget to grab your cheat sheet — all the links are in the episode notes. À bientôt, bye! 🤍

Mathilde KienComment