By the end of this lesson you'll be able to stop someone in the street, ask how to get somewhere, and understand a simple set of directions.
Starting politely
As with all French encounters, you start with a polite greeting. Say Excusez-moi, then madame or monsieur, and use vous. It helps to say bonjour as well.
Asking the way
There are several ways of asking. These all do the same job.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Excusez-moi | ex-kew-zay MWAH | Excuse me |
| Pour aller à… ? | poor ah-lay AH | How do I get to…?Literally 'To go to…?' |
| Il y a… près d'ici ? | eel-yah … preh dee-SEE | Is there a … near here? |
| C'est loin ? | seh LWAN | Is it far? |
| C'est tout près. | seh too PREH | It's very close. |
| à pied | ah PYAY | on foot |
| à cinq minutes | ah sank mee-NEWT | five minutes away |
Pour aller à… ? is the phrase you'll use most. Remember that à melts together with le and les: Pour aller au musée ?, Pour aller à la gare ?, Pour aller à l'hôtel ?
You can also use où from the lesson on question words, along with what you've learned in the lesson on prepositions of place.
Excusez-moi, madame. Pour aller à la mairie, s'il vous plaît ?
Excuse me, madam. How do I get to the town hall, please?
Bonjour, monsieur. Où est la station de métro ?
Hello, sir. Where's the metro station?
Il y a une pharmacie près d'ici ?
Is there a chemist's near here?
Understanding the answer
The answers follow a pattern, and most directions use only a few phrases.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Allez tout droit. | ah-lay too DRWAH | Go straight on.Fixed phrase for now. |
| Tournez à gauche. | toor-nay ah GOHSH | Turn left.Fixed phrase for now. |
| Tournez à droite. | toor-nay ah DRWAHT | Turn right.Fixed phrase for now. |
| Prenez la première rue à gauche. | pruh-nay lah pruh-MYEHR rew ah GOHSH | Take the first street on the left.Fixed phrase for now. |
| Prenez la deuxième rue à droite. | pruh-nay lah duh-ZYEM rew ah DRWAHT | Take the second street on the right.Fixed phrase for now. |
These instructions use the vous form of the verb without a subject, which is how French gives instructions. You'll learn how that works in the lesson on the imperative. For now, learn these as fixed phrases, so you recognize them when you hear them.
Directions often mention landmarks too.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| le feu | luh FUH | the traffic lights |
| le carrefour | luh kar-FOOR | the crossroads |
| au bout de la rue | oh boo duh lah REW | at the end of the street |
Le feu is literally "the fire", and it's a single word for a set of traffic lights.
Allez tout droit, et au feu, tournez à droite.
Go straight on, and at the traffic lights, turn right.
Au carrefour, prenez la deuxième rue à gauche.
At the crossroads, take the second street on the left.
La poste est au bout de la rue, en face de l'église.
The post office is at the end of the street, opposite the church.
Is it far?
Before you set off, it's worth asking how far it is. You can use C'est loin ? The answer may be C'est tout près or a number of minutes.
C'est loin ? — Non, c'est à cinq minutes à pied.
Is it far? — No, it's five minutes on foot.
Putting it together
Here's a complete exchange in the street.
- Excusez-moi, monsieur. Pour aller à la gare, s'il vous plaît ? (Excuse me, sir. How do I get to the station, please?)
- Allez tout droit, et prenez la deuxième rue à gauche. (Go straight on, and take the second street on the left.)
- C'est loin ? (Is it far?)
- Non, c'est à dix minutes à pied. (No, it's ten minutes on foot.)
- Merci beaucoup, monsieur. Bonne journée ! (Thank you very much, sir. Have a good day!)
If you didn't understand all of it, it's fine to ask for it again. You can say Pardon ? or Comment ?, as you learned with the question words, and the speaker will usually repeat it more slowly.
Don't worry if you only catch a few words. Listen for gauche, droite and tout droit, and follow those one at a time. When you get to the next corner, you can always ask someone else.
What's next
Next, the lesson on the imperative explains how French gives commands, including phrases like tournez and allez. For a reminder of how to approach strangers politely, you can go back to the lesson on politeness and la bise.