French Survival Phrases with Fluent City's Andrew Olshevski

Dreaming of a trip to France? Struggling to learn the language? Andrew Olshevski, a french teacher at Fluent City, has the answers you need to survive in the country with just a few key phrases.

French can be tricky to learn, especially if it’s your first attempt at a foreign language. We asked Andrew Olshevski, a french teacher at Fluent City, what phrases a non-francophone (non-french speaker) could learn to survive in France.

French Phrases, Pronunciation and English Translations:

Oui, c’est formidable [we say forh-me-dabl]  – “Yes, it’s wonderful/terrific/marvelous/fantastic/splendid”

Ouais [way] – “Yeah”

Euh, bah, mm – “Umm”

Qu’est-ce que c’est ___? [kes kuh say] – “What is ___?”

C’est ___. [say]  – “It’s ____ .”

Qu’est-ce qu’il y à ___ ? [kes keel e ah] – “What is there ___?”

Il y à ___. [eel e ah] – “There is ___ . “

Comment ça va? [co-moh sah vah] – “How are you doing?”

Ça va. [sah vah] – “Doing okay.”

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