BASIC FRENCH GREETINGS
Quizlet: Practice Basic French Greetings
The basic French greeting is bonjour, which can mean hello, good morning, or good afternoon.
When greeting someone in the evening (beginning around 6pm), say bonsoir.
To greet someone informally at any time of day, you can say salut, meaning hi.
| Bonjour | Hello, good morning, good afternoon |
| Coucou | Hi (very informal) |
| Bonsoir | Good evening |
| Salut | Hi / bye |
| Ciao | Bye |
French greeting tips
You should always greet people by using one of the French greetings above. In some countries, it’s acceptable to greet a sales clerk with just a smile, but not in France – always start out with a polite bonjour.
Even when entering a waiting room at the doctor’s office or boarding a bus or train, the French will say bonjour as a general greeting to everyone within earshot.
If you know the person or are being introduced to someone, you’re also expected to either faire la bise (kiss cheeks) or se serrer la main (shake hands). When arriving at work or school, this means you should go around the room and individually greet each person. Every single person.
| Faire la bise | To kiss cheeks (the number of times varies according to region) |
| Se serrer la main | To shake hands |
Don’t ever greet people by saying “bon matin” or “bon après-midi” – the first is incorrect and the second can only be used as a good-bye.
Exchanging pleasantries about one’s health is typical when greeting someone. There are several ways to ask how someone is, and which one to use depends on whether you want to be formal or informal (formal and informal is a really big thing, especially in France).
Formal
Asking
Whether talking to one person or more than one, ask Comment allez-vous ? (How are you?)
Answering
| Je vais bien. | I’m fine. |
| Bien, merci. | Fine, thanks. |
| Bien, et vous ? | Fine, and you? |
Informal
Asking
The most common question is Ça va? (literally, Is it going?), and it has variations:
| Ça va bien? | Is it going well? |
| Comment ça va ? | How’s it going? |
If you’re just talking to one person, you can also ask Comment vas-tu ?
Answering
| Ça va | I’m fine |
| Ça va bien | I’m doing well |
| Pas mal | Not bad |
| Bien, et toi? | Fine, and you? |
| Je vais bien | I’m fine |
| Je vais mal | I’m not doing well |
| Très mal | Very bad |
| Comme ci, comme ça | So-so |
| Pas très bien | Not so great |
| Ça va très bien | I’m doing great |
| Ça ne va pas du tout | I’m not doing well at all |
| La vie est belle! | Life is beautiful! |
| Tout va bien | All is well |
Familiar
Asking:
| Quoi de neuf? | What’s new? |
Answering:
| Rien de nouveau | Nothing’s new |
| Pas grand chose | Not much |
Saying goodbye
| Au revoir | Goodbye |
| Salut | Bye or Hi |
| À tout de suite | See you in a moment |
| À bientôt, À toute à l’heure | See you soon |
| À plus, À plus tard | See you later |
| À demain | See you tomorrow |
| À la semaine prochaine | See you next week |
| À la prochaine | Until next time |
| À la rentrée | See you in the fall |
| Bonne journée | Have a nice day |
| Bon après-midi | Have a nice afternoon |
| Bonne soirée | Have a nice evening |
| Bonne nuit | Good night |
Good-bye gestures
As you say good-bye, you should also faire la bise (kiss cheeks) or se serrer la main (shake hands).
