Speaking
French speakers use the verb s’appeler to introduce themselves and others. Je m’appelle means my name is. The verb appeler means to call. So, Je m’appelle Pierre literally means I call myself Pierre. Elle s’appelle Veronique, literally means she calls herself Veronica.
For example:
In English this construction sounds awkward, so when translating from French to English, you should not translate it literally—just say it the way you would say it naturally in each language.
In the video, you learned how to introduce yourself and how to ask someone’s else’s name. Isabelle, in the picture above, is a young French student. Read her introduction below to see if you recognize the phrases from the video.
For example:
Bonjour! Je m’appelle Isabelle. Je suis française. Je vais à New York pour étudier à l’Université de Columbia. Comment t’appelles-tu?
Think you got it?
Now, see if you can answer these questions about how Isabelle introduced herself. When you have your own answer to the question, click the question to see if you’re right.
| Question | Answer and Audio |
|---|---|
|
Je m’appelle Isabelle. |
|
|
Comment t’appelles-tu? |
You also heard how to ask other people’s names. Remember in the video when Claude asked what Benoit’s or Clarice’s cousins’ names were? Depending on whether you are asking about a male or a female, the expression changes.
For example:
Comment s’appelle-t-il?
Comment s’appelle-t-elle?
If you remember il means he in French and elle means she, you should be able to recognize the meaning of these expressions using appeler.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
|
What is his name? |
|
|
What’s her name? |
French speakers have a quick way to say Nice to meet you. They say enchanté. It literally means enchanted. In English, you might see the word enchanted only in fairy tales, but in French, it’s a common thing to say when you meet someone. For English speakers, it sounds odd to say I’m enchanted to everyone you meet, so the most realistic translation is Nice to meet you.
When the speaker is female, enchanté changes to enchantée. But don’t worry; even with the extra e, they both sound the same. Click on the audio below to hear how these words sound.
For example:
Enchanté
Enchantée.
Let’s look at all the new vocabulary expressions introduced in the lesson so far.
| Vocabulary Expressions | |
|---|---|
| Je m’appelle | My name is |
| Comment t’appelles-tu? | What is your name? |
| Comment s’appelle-t-il? | What is his name? |
| Comment s’appelle-t-elle? | What is her name? |
| Enchanté. | Nice to meet you. |
Now you have all the vocabulary you need to introduce yourself and ask other people their names.
Question
What sound is added to a French word when we add an e at the end?
None. The e is silent.
