Click on the French expressions to hear pronunciations.
FRENCH | ENGLISH |
---|---|
The French do not have tag questions like "do you?", "don't you?" or "are you?" as in English. They use the followings for confirmation. | |
"Hein" /ɛ̃/ - very common, casual, slightly nasal | |
Hein ? | Right? / Isn’t it? / Don’t you think? |
C'est bien, hein ? | It's good, right? |
Il est sympa, hein ? | He's nice, right? |
On a bien mangé, hein ? | We ate well, didn't we? |
Ça arrive, hein ? | These things happen, right? |
Ça a l’air pas mal, hein ? | (It looks/sounds) Not bad, huh? |
"Non ?" - after a positive sentence → you expect disagreement or confirmation | |
C'est fou, non ? | Crazy, right? |
Ça a l'air chouette, non ? /ʃwɛt/ | That looks/seems cool, right? |
Ça a l’air bien, non ? | (It looks/sounds)Sounds good, right? |
J'ai bien fait, non ? | I did a good job, right? |
"Si ?" - after a negative sentence → to seek contradiction | |
Ça, t’aimes pas, si ? | You don't like that, do you? |
C'est pas si grave, si ? | It's not that bad, right? |
Ça compte pas, si ? | It doesn't count (/matter), right? |
"c'est ça ?" - to seek confirmation | |
Sophie, c'est ça ? | You are Sophie, right? |
À cause de la chaleur, c'est ça ? | Because of the heat, right? |
Tu sors avec elle, c'est ça ? | You are dating her, right? |
On a bien fait, c'est ça ? | We did well, right? |
"D’accord ? / C’est bon ? / Ça va ?" - asking for approval or agreement | |
Je te rappelle, d'accord ? | I will call you back, okay? |
Appelle-moi si t'as besoin, d'accord ? | Call me if you need, okay? |
Reste là. Je reviens tout de suite, d'accord ? | Stay here. I'll be right back, okay? |
Je ferme la fenêtre, c’est bon ? | I'm closing the window, is that alright? |
Je me rattraperai, c'est bon ? | I will make it up to you, is that okay? |
Je prends une pizza pour nous deux, ça va ? | I’ll grab a pizza for the two of us — sound good? |
On se retrouve devant le ciné, ça va ? | Let's meet in front of the movie theatre, is that okay? |
Le déjeuner à midi, ça te va ? | Lunch at noon, is that okay with you? |
"Tu vois ? / Tu sais ? / Tu comprends ?" - you see / know / understand ? | |
C'est un peu compliqué, tu vois ? | It's a little complicated, you know? |
Tu le refais, tu vois ? | You're doing it again, you see? |
Tu me réponds même pas, tu vois ? | You don't even answer me, you see? |
Je suis allergique au lactose, tu sais ? /alɛʀʒik/ /laktoz/ | I am allergic to lactose, you know? |
Tu peux tout me dire, tu sais ? | You can tell me anything, you know? |
Tu sais pas tout, tu sais ? | You don't know everything, you know? |
Je n’ai pas d’argent, tu comprends ? | I have no money, you understand? |
À cause de l’inflation, tu comprends ? /ɛ̃flasjɔ̃/ | Because of the inflation, you understand? |
C'est la nouvelle règle, tu comprends ? | That's the new rule, you understand? |
On n’a pas le choix, tu comprends ? | We don't have a choice, you understand? |
"pas vrai ?" - asking confirmation | |
Je fais chier personne, pas vrai ? /ʃje/ | I'm not annoying anyone, right? |
C'est incroyable, pas vrai ? | It's incredible, right? |
C'est pas dangereux, pas vrai ? | It's not dangerous, right? |