By the end of this lesson you'll be able to tell people your name, ask theirs in both a casual and a polite way, reply naturally when you meet someone, and introduce a friend.
Saying your name
In the greetings lesson you learned to say hello. The next thing you'll usually say is your name. French has two everyday ways to do it.
Je m'appelle… is the standard choice in any situation. Literally it means "I call myself": je (I) + m' (myself) + appelle (call). You don't need to analyse it yet. Learn it as one chunk.
Moi, c'est… ("Me, it's…") is relaxed and very common among friends, at parties, or anywhere informal.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Je m'appelle… | zhuh mah-PEL | My name is…Literally 'I call myself…' |
| Moi, c'est… | mwah, SEH | I'm… (casual) |
| Tu t'appelles comment ? / Comment tu t'appelles ? | tew tah-PEL koh-MAHN / koh-MAHN tew tah-PEL | What's your name? (informal) |
| Comment vous appelez-vous ? / Vous vous appelez comment ? | koh-mahn voo zah-play VOO / voo voo zah-PLAY koh-MAHN | What's your name? (polite)Comment vous appelez-vous ? is the more formal form. |
| Enchanté / Enchantée | ahn-shahn-TAY | Nice to meet youWrite enchantée if you're a woman. It sounds the same. |
| Et toi ? | ay TWAH | And you? (informal) |
| Et vous ? | ay VOO | And you? (formal, or to several people) |
| Voici… | vwah-SEE | This is… / Here is… |
| Je te présente… | zhuh tuh pray-ZAHNT | Let me introduce… (to one person you know well) |
| Je vous présente… | zhuh voo pray-ZAHNT | Let me introduce… (formal, or to several people) |
| le prénom | luh pray-NOHN | first name |
| le nom (de famille) | luh NOHN (duh fah-MEE) | surname, family name |
You may also hear Je suis Paul (I am Paul). It's correct, and you'll learn the verb behind it soon, but je m'appelle is what most people say when they first meet.
Asking someone's name
How you ask depends on who you're talking to. You saw in the greetings lesson that French has a casual register and a polite one. The same split applies here.
With friends, children, and people your age in casual settings:
- Tu t'appelles comment ? is the most common way in everyday speech.
- Comment tu t'appelles ? means exactly the same.
With strangers, older people, and anyone in a professional setting:
- Comment vous appelez-vous ? is the more formal form.
- Vous vous appelez comment ? is also polite, and a little more relaxed. Yes, vous appears twice. The first means "you", the second "yourself".
The quickest way of all is to give your name and turn the question around: Je m'appelle Sam, et toi ? or, politely, et vous ?
Responding
When you meet someone for the first time, say enchanté: "delighted", or "nice to meet you". Women write it enchantée, but it sounds exactly the same. This is an early example of something you'll see everywhere in French: some words change their spelling to match the person they describe.
Introducing someone else
To introduce a friend, the simplest way is Voici… ("Here is…" / "This is…"). For a little more ceremony, use Je te présente… with one person you know well, or Je vous présente… in formal situations or when you're introducing someone to a group.
Bonjour ! Je m'appelle Camille.
Hello! My name is Camille.
Moi, c'est Hugo. Et toi ?
I'm Hugo. And you?
Tu t'appelles comment ?
What's your name? (casual)
Bonjour madame, comment vous appelez-vous ?
Hello, madam. What's your name? (polite)
Enchantée, Thomas !
Nice to meet you, Thomas! (written by a woman)
Je te présente Léa.
This is Léa. (literally 'I present Léa to you')
First names and surnames
On forms and at reception desks you'll see prénom (first name) and nom or nom de famille (surname). In formal French paperwork, people often give the surname first and sometimes write it in capitals, for example MARTIN Sophie. That's when your spelling skills from the alphabet lesson come in handy: Ça s'écrit comment ? (How do you spell that?)
What's next
You've now used tu and vous without studying them properly. The subject pronouns lesson explains all the French words for I, you, he, she, we and they, and exactly when to choose tu or vous. For more on greeting rituals like the handshake and la bise, see the lesson on politeness and la bise.