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The 50 most common French words

The words no French conversation can do without: to be, to have, to do, yes, no, thank you. Each comes with IPA, a translation and an example you can listen to — plus three exercises at the end to make them stick.

  • 50 words
  • Audio and IPA
  • An example for every word
  • 3 exercises
  • No sign-up
To the wordsPractice

Why start with these words

A small set of words — articles, pronouns, a few verbs and prepositions — turns up in almost every French sentence. Once you know them, you’ll recognise the backbone of a sentence even in an unfamiliar text.

Learn the words together with the examples so you know straight away how to use them. And the verbs être, avoir, faire and aller are worth learning in all their present-tense forms — they matter most.

The word list

The words go by frequency: the first ones are the most common. Tap a word or an example to listen.

Speed
  1. to be
  2. to have
  3. I
  4. of, from
  5. not
  6. the
  7. you (informal)
  8. a, an; one
  9. to, at, in
  10. he, she
  11. and
  12. that, what
  13. this, it is
  14. you (formal, plural)
  15. to do, to make
  16. to go
  17. can, to be able to
  18. in, inside
  19. in; some, of it
  20. we (informal); one, people
  21. for; in order to
  22. we
  23. who; which
  24. my
  25. to say
  26. to want
  27. to know
  28. yes
  29. no
  30. well, good
  31. with
  32. but
  33. all, everything
  34. to see
  35. on
  36. to come
  37. there
  38. like, as
  39. very
  40. where
  41. when
  42. if; yes (after a negative)
  43. more; (ne… plus) no longer
  44. nothing
  45. also, too
  46. it’s necessary, you need
  47. to take
  48. thank you
  49. day
  50. time; weather

Practice: test yourself

10 words from the list per round. After every answer you hear the word and the right option lights up.

Choose an exercise

How to remember the words

  • 10 words a day: listen, repeat aloud and do the “Translate” exercise.
  • Learn whole examples: “Je ne sais pas”, “C’est bon !” — ready-made phrases stick better than single words.
  • Come back to the exercises after a day and after a week — spaced repetition makes words stay.
  • Listen for these words in French songs and series: you’ll be surprised how often they come up.

FAQ

Didn’t find your answer? Send us a request — we’ll tell you everything.

Where does this list come from?

We based it on French frequency lists built from film and TV subtitles — the closest thing to everyday spoken language. Forms of one word are grouped (le, la, les), and words a beginner doesn’t need on their own were replaced with the most useful conversational ones: merci, oui, non.

Are 50 words enough to speak French?

No, but they’re a solid base: these words make up a noticeable share of any text. The next step is 300–500 words by topic (food, the city, work) and basic grammar.

Why are there so many short words on the list?

Articles, pronouns and prepositions are the most frequent words in any language. You can’t build a sentence without them, so they come first.

How fast can I learn these words?

In a week, if you learn 7–10 words a day and review them with the exercises. The key is to come back to them a few days later.

What’s next

Next step

Keep learning with a mini-course

Short online courses by Slay School teachers: a 15-minute lesson a day with audio, exercises and dialogues, and the words you forget come back on their own.

  • Day 1 is free
  • 15 minutes a day, at your own pace
  • Every word has audio
  • Lifetime access once paid
Start for freeAll mini-courses

All you need to start is an email or a Google account.