Saint Louis University – Baguio City

School of Teacher Education and Liberal Arts

Foreign Language (French)

Module 1: Meeting and Greeting

Unit 1: Back to school

Engage: How do you introduce yourself - or invite another to do so - in English?

Explore: Bonjour/Salut/Je m’appelle/Au revoir… [‘Good day {=morning till afternoon}/Hello/My name
is/See you later’]

*In English, we tend to open a conversation by greeting someone, wishing him/her well, and – if still
needed – telling him/her our own name, so he/she can call on us in return. A typical time for making
new acquaintances is at the opening of classes in a new school year. In French, there is a specific term
for that moment, which means ‘the return’: La rentrée. It is typically situated in the month of
September.

*Introducing yourself often also implies giving the other your contact details. For this purpose, numbers
are inevitable. French numbers have some particularities in their formation:

0= zéro;1= un; 2= deux; 3 = trois; 4= quatre; 5= cinq; 6= six; 7= sept; 8= huit; 9= neuf; 10= dix.

11= onze; 12= douze; 13= Treize; 14= quatorze; 15= quinze; 16= seize; 17= dix-sept; 18= dix-huit; 19=
dix-neuf; 20= vingt.

21= ‘vingt-et-un’; 22= ‘vingt-deux’; 23= ‘vingt-trois’, etc. ; 30= ‘trente’; 40= ‘quarante’; 50= ‘cinquante’;

60= ‘soixante’. Attention: 70= ‘soixante-dix’; 71= ‘soixante-et-onze’; 72= ‘soixante-douze’; 73= ‘soixante-
treize’; 77= ‘soixante-dix-sept’; 80= ‘quatre-vingts’; 81=’quatre-vingt-un’; 82= ‘quatre-vingt-deux’; etc.
90= ‘quatre-vingt-dix’; 91= ‘quatre-vingt-onze’; 92= ‘quatre-vingt-douze’; 98= ‘quatre-vingt-dix-huit’; 99=
‘quatre-vingt-dix-neuf’; 100= ‘cent’; 101= ‘cent un’; 102= ‘cent deux; 200= ‘deux cents’; 1000= ‘mille’.

*Another important element in someone’s identity is his/her nationality, city and country of origin:

Most well-known country names and their corresponding adjectives are as follows:

Les Etats-Unis (d’Amérique): américain; Les Philippines: philippin;

La France: français; Les Pays-Bas/La Hollande: hollandais

L’Allemagne: allemand; L’Espagne: espagnol;

L’Italie: italien; La Belgique: belge;

La Suisse: suisse; Le Danemark: danois;

L’Angleterre: anglais; L’Ecosse: écossais;

Le Portugal: portugais; La Russie: russe;

La Chine: chinois; La Corée (du Sud): coréen

Le Japon: japonais; Le Vietnam: vietnamien;

Le Canada: canadien; Le Congo: congolais;

La Thailande: thailandais L’Indonésie: indonésien.

Note:

As said above, the final consonant is usually not pronounced, unless in the feminine version: français
sounds different from française; or vietnamien doesn’t sound like vietnamienne. Take note of the
duplication of the consonant (n), and of the ‘e’ muet (silent ‘e’). The latter makes it possible to
pronounce the final consonant.

Other expressions that play a role in the early stages of getting acquainted:

➔Comment ça va? Ça va bien/ mal/ comme ci, comme ça… [How is it {How are you}? It’s
fine/bad/somewhat in between…]

➔Oui/non/et /ou/aussi [yes/no/and/or/too]

➔Zut/merci [darn/thanks]

➔Note the difference between ‘Comment vas-tu?’ [How are you {singular}?] and ‘Comment allez-vous?’
[How are you {plural OR politeness form}?] When addressing an unknown adult, or any person who is
higher ranked than oneself in the social ladder or in an organization, one SHOULD use the plural, even if
the addressed person is alone. The same may be applied to: ‘Comment t’appelles-tu?’ and ‘Comment
vous appelez-vous?’.

Dialogue: Faire connaissance (‘getting acquainted’)

Explain: Differences with English?

In French, ‘hello’ is expressed by saying ‘good day’ – bonjour. If possible, the word is followed at once by
the name or title of the person we’re addressing: Bonjour Véronique, Bonjour Maurice, Bonjour
Monsieur, Bonjour Madame, Mademoiselle. A popular alternative, especially among young people, is to
‘greet’ someone with salut! In the next step, you may give the other your name, literally saying ‘I am
calling me’ X: Je m’appelle X. You ask the other’s name by saying: Comment t’appelles-tu? (=question by
inversion of the subject and the verb of the sentence; alternative = Comment est-ce que tu t’appelles?).

If you want to emphasize your respective positions, you can add the accented pronouns for ‘me’ and
‘you’: Moi, je m’appelle Marc, et toi, comment-t’appelles- tu?