100 Essential French Words for Beginners (with English Translations)

Greetings & basics

16 words

English	French	Type
hello	bonjour	interjection
goodbye	au revoir	interjection
yes	oui	interjection
no	non	interjection
please	s'il vous plaît	interjection
thank you	merci	interjection
sorry	désolé	interjection
and	et	conjunction
but	mais	conjunction
or	ou	conjunction
because	parce que	conjunction
here	ici	adverb
there	là	adverb
always	toujours	adverb
never	jamais	adverb
together	ensemble	adverb

People & family

14 words

English	French	Type
man	homme	noun
woman	femme	noun
boy	garçon	noun
girl	fille	noun
friend	ami	noun
mother	mère	noun
father	père	noun
brother	frère	noun
sister	sœur	noun
son	fils	noun
child	enfant	noun
husband	mari	noun
parent	parent	noun
grandmother	grand-mère	noun

Everyday verbs

16 words

English	French	Type
to be	être	verb
to have	avoir	verb
to do	faire	verb
to go	aller	verb
to come	venir	verb
to eat	manger	verb
to drink	boire	verb
to want	vouloir	verb
to need	avoir besoin	verb
to know	savoir	verb
to speak	parler	verb
to read	lire	verb
to write	écrire	verb
to listen	écouter	verb
to work	travailler	verb
to buy	acheter	verb

Describing words

10 words

English	French	Type
good	bon	adjective
bad	mauvais	adjective
new	nouveau	adjective
old	vieux	adjective
young	jeune	adjective
tall	grand	adjective
short	petit	adjective
nice	agréable	adjective
kind	gentil	adjective
shy	timide	adjective

Colors

8 words

English	French	Type
red	rouge	adjective
blue	bleu	adjective
green	vert	adjective
yellow	jaune	adjective
black	noir	adjective
white	blanc	adjective
orange	orange	adjective
purple	violet	adjective

Numbers

12 words

English	French	Type
one	un	number
two	deux	number
three	trois	number
four	quatre	number
five	cinq	number
six	six	number
seven	sept	number
eight	huit	number
nine	neuf	number
ten	dix	number
zero	zéro	number
twenty	vingt	number

Time

10 words

English	French	Type
today	aujourd'hui	adverb
tomorrow	demain	adverb
yesterday	hier	adverb
morning	matin	noun
afternoon	après-midi	noun
evening	soir	noun
night	nuit	noun
day	jour	noun
week	semaine	noun
month	mois	noun

Food & drink

10 words

English	French	Type
water	eau	noun
coffee	café	noun
tea	thé	noun
milk	lait	noun
bread	pain	noun
cheese	fromage	noun
fruit	fruit	noun
apple	pomme	noun
egg	œuf	noun
rice	riz	noun

Home

4 words

English	French	Type
house	maison	noun
door	porte	noun
window	fenêtre	noun
bed	lit	noun

Emoji: Twemoji, CC-BY 4.0

Learn these French words for good

Watch Your LanguageVocabulary widgets for iPhone & Apple Watch

A list is where learning starts, not where it ends. Watch Your Language puts French words like these on your iPhone Lock Screen and on your Apple Watch face, so you see a few every time you check the time, and it schedules the repeats so the words you keep forgetting come back more often.

You can add your own words too, from a photo, a page of notes or a spreadsheet.

Keep going with French

French vocabulary by topicLonger word lists, one topic at a time French quizTest yourself on what you have learned French vocabulary testFind your level How long does French take to learn?A realistic plan

French for beginners questions

What are the first French words to learn?

Start with the words you use every day: greetings, numbers, the days and times, food, family and a handful of verbs. For French that means words like bonjour (hello), merci (thank you), eau (water) and manger (to eat). The list above groups 100 of them by topic.

How is French written?

French uses the Latin alphabet, so you can read the words above without learning a new script. 19 of the 100 words contain a letter or mark outside plain a–z, so learn those alongside the spelling.

Is 100 words enough to speak French?

No. This is a starting set: enough to greet people, count, talk about time, name food and family, and say what you want or need. Conversation needs more words, and above all hearing and using them. Treat the list as the first step, then add words from topics you care about.

How do I remember these French words?

Read a few at a time, say them out loud, and come back to them on a schedule rather than once. Watch Your Language puts words like these in a widget on your iPhone Lock Screen and on your Apple Watch face, and brings back the ones you keep forgetting more often.