Glossary of French words and expressions in English

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Déjeuner: the breakfast of an American who has been to Paris. Variously pronounced.
- Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary


  • à bientôt! -- See you later!
  • adieu! -- Good bye!
  • Au revoir! -- See you again! (or) Good bye!
  • Bon appétit! -- Have a good meal!
  • des bonbons -- candy
  • la baguette -- French bread
  • Bon voyage! -- Have a good trip!
  • Bonjour! -- lit., Good day! but also means Hello!
  • le café -- coffee (or) coffee shop
  • carte blanche -- unlimited authority (literally, blank card)
  • c'est la vie! -- That's life!
  • c'est magnifique! -- That's great!
  • comment allez-vous ? -- How are you?
  • coup d'état -- an overthrow of government
  • coup de grâce -- a strike of grace, aimed at terminating honorably an adversary's suffering
  • un croissant -- a crescent roll (present participle of the verb cro?tre -- to grow (or) to increase (or) to wax (as in the moon))
  • la cuisine -- cooking (or) food
  • déjà vu -- the vague perception or sense that one has had a present experience before. (Literally, to have already seen.)
  • douceur de vivre -- sweetness of life
  • les escargots -- snails
  • faux-amis -- false friends (used to refer to similar words in French and English that have different meanings).
  • madame -- Mrs.; now usually used in French as Ms. is used in English
  • mademoiselle -- miss
  • merci beaucoup! -- Thank you very much!
  • monsieur -- mister
  • le mot juste -- the right word
  • né (or) née -- born (past participle of naître -- to be born), often used to give someone's former or maiden name
  • non -- no
  • oui -- yes
  • la raison d'être -- reason for being
  • répondez s'il vous plaît (R.S.V.P.) -- please reply
  • le ricochet -- rebound
  • le roi est mort. Vive le roi! -- The king is dead. Long live the king!
  • sauté -- tossed (past participle of sauter)
  • s'il vous plaît (S.V.P.) -- please (or) if it pleases you (or) if you please (formal).
  • la soupe du jour -- the soup of the day
  • touché! -- Hit!
  • tout de suite -- Immediately (lit., "all in sequence")
  • Vive la différence / Vive la France -- Long live the difference (between England and France, or between the sexes)/Long live France
  • voilà! -- There you go!