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Useful French Phrases for Travellers

Difficulties with the language

English	Pronunciation	French
I understand	zhe com-prohn	Je comprends
I don't understand	zhe neh com-prohn pah	Je ne comprends pas
Do you speak English?	Parlay vooz anglay	Parlez-vous anglais?
I don't speak French	zhe neh parl pah frohn-say	Je ne parle pas francais

Useful Words

English	Pronunciation	French
big	grond	grand
small	peh-tee	petit
before	ah-vohn	avant
after	ah-preh	aprés
tomorrow	de-mahn	demain
yesterday	yeah	heir
many/much	boo-coo	beaucoup
cheap	bohn mar-shay pa sher seh cheep	bon marché pas chére c'est cheap
expensive	share	cher

Directions

English	Pronunciation	French
I want to go to...	zhe vur ahlay a...	Je veux aller à...
left	a go-sh	à gauche
right	a drwat	à droit
near	prosh	proche
far	lwahn	loin
here	ee-see	ici
there	lah	là

Getting Around

English	Pronunciation	French
Where is...?	oo eh...?	Ou est?
What time does the... leave/arrive?	a kel ur pahr/ahreev le....?	A quelle heure part/arrive le...?
bus	oh-toh-booss	autobus
train	trahn	train
plane	a-vee-ohn	avion
train station	gar	gare
platform	kay	quai
bus station	sta-seeyon d'ohtoh-booss	station d'autobus
one-way ticket	beeyay sam-pluh	billet simple
return ticket	beeay alay eh reh-tour	billet aller et retour
bicycle	veh-loh	vélo
petrol (gasoline)	eh-sohns/gaz	essence/gas

Accommodation

English	Pronunciation	French
Do you have any rooms available?	ehs-ker voo zah-vay day shombr leebr?	Est-ce que vous avez des chambres libres?
hotel	o-tell	hôtel
youth hostel	o-birzh de zheuness	auberge de jeunesse
a room	oon shombr	une chambre
a double room	oon shombr doobl	une chambre double
with a bathroom	ahvek sahl de bahn	avec salle de bain
with a kitchenette	ahvek kwee-zee-net	avec cuisinette

Around the city

English	Pronunciation	French
bank	bohnk	banque
beach	plazh	plage
the bill	la-dis-yohn le reh soo	l'addition le reçu
bridge	pohn	pont
convenience store	day-pahn-nur	dépanneur
department store	mag-a-zhn	magasin
grocery store	ay-pee-seh-ree	épicerie
museum	mew-zay	musée
opening hours	oh-rair	horaires
post office	bew-roh de post	bureau de poste
the police	la polees	la police
show/concert	spek-tahk'l	spectacle
toilet	twah-leh	toilet
tourist office	bew-ro doo too-rism	bureau do tourisme
travellers cheque	shek vwoy-yazh	cheque voyage

Food and Drink

English	Pronunciation	French
bakery	boo-lohn-zheree	boulangerie
buffet meal	tab'l-doht	table d'hôte
fresh fish store	pwa-sohn-eree	poissonnerie
restuarant	rest-a-rohn	restuarant
snack bar	kass krewt	casse croûte
bread	pahn	pain
cheese	fro-mahj	fromage
vegetables	lay-gyoom	légumes
fruit	frwee	fruit
water	oh	eau
milk	leh	lait
beer	bee-yair	bière
wine	vahn	vin
red wine	vahn roozh	vin rouge
white wine	vahn blohn	vin blanc