Tu vs. vous in French (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Tu and vous in French? ›

In a nutshell, tu is informal and singular, while vous is formal and/or plural. That is, if you're talking to more than one person, it doesn't matter what your relationship is – you always need vous. It's only when talking to a single person that the choice must be made.

Remaining on the formal side usually shows politeness, and if you are unsure about whether to use “tu” or “vous”, or if your degree of familiarity changes between you and another person, you can always ask “Est-ce qu'on se vouvoie ou est-ce qu'on se tutoie ?” This happens among French speakers regularly, as their ...

Vous is the formal form of 'you', used with strangers, elderly people, and when we're talking to people in a professional context (at least to begin with). The verb vouvoyer vouvoyer, présent means 'to address someone using the vous form'. Est-ce que je peux vous aider, madame ? Can I help you, madam?

The tu forms mostly follow the same rules as the imperative for the vous and nous forms. The personal pronoun, tu, is not used for commands. Also, with some notable exceptions, the present imperative is almost always conjugated like the present indicative. Tu chantes sous la douche.

"Merci à vous" is the kind of answer that you give to a person who just thanked you, when you believe that this person deserves to be thanked as much as / more than yourself. In English it could be equivalent to "thank you" (with the "you" emphasized) if the other person is the one that deserves the most thanking.

It might seem counter-intuitive, but you should address God as Tu. Use tu with animals, or at least the tu form of the imperative.

Tu: the informal French “you”

Your parents, your husband/wife, your friends, your pet, maybe some of your colleagues. These are people you can use tu with. You can also use tu with: kids and teenagers.

Comment allez-vous ? is the most basic way of asking “how are you” in French. Note that vous, the formal “you,” is what makes the phrase formal.

So with the "vous" example, the first "vous" is there because it's them who's doing the calling. The second "vous" is there because that's the person they are calling, they are calling themselves something (their name). The word for "you" and "yourself" are both "vous" in that example.

"Voulez-Vous" (pronounced [vule vu] voo-lay-voo; French for "Do you want?") is a 1979 song by the Swedish group ABBA, written and composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad shared the lead vocals.

Is vous in French always plural? ›

"Vous" can be either singular or plural. In this respect it is very much like the English "you". If you use "vous" as a polite form of the 2nd person singular you must also match anything that depends on it to be in singular as well. The same goes for "vous" in the 2nd person plural.

“Je m'appelle” is one of the most common ways to say “my name is” in French. It's used for both formal and informal introductions. Pronounced juh mah-pehl, this phrase translates as “I call myself.”

The letter "e" in French can represent three sounds: /e/ as in aller, /ɛ/ as in belle, and /ə/ or "unstable E". Each of these sounds is found in slightly different word positions. a) the 1st sound, /e/, is found at the very end of a stressed syllable (i.e.: no pronounced consonant follows it), e.g.: parler, parlé.

The casual one: Salut!

It's a word with many meanings (including salute, salvation, and cheers), and is generally informal but not rude or slangy. Salut works well for casual work environments, acquaintances, and friends.

Using TOI or VOUS is a matter of etiquette. It defines the relationship between two people. Use of the informal forms TOI or TU (used with verbs) indicates an intimate, amicable, and/or equal relationship between two people (e.g. family, friends, lovers, students, colleagues etc.)

As in English, plural pronouns replace two or more singular pronouns: you and I = we (nous), you and he = you (vous), etc. But when you actually want to use two singular pronouns – saying something like "you and I" as opposed to "we" – French uses stressed pronouns instead.

Over time there have been several attempts to abolish the use of vous. One attempt was after the French Revolution of 1789, when a decree banning the use of vous and its royal connotations was introduced in 1793. The 'tu' form was considered to be the equivalent of the socialists' use of 'comrade'.