This alternative in particular pertains to the latter half of that definition only. To prove a point (that you hate his guts and you’re pissed off), you can use tu. It’s easy and only takes a few seconds. You are beautiful (plural). Jon The Korean coined this infinitely useful, and infinitely hilarious, alternative spelling. to start by using vous. 1. trade union 2. transmission unit American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. But French has two different words for "you": tu (listen) and vous (listen). This includes: Tu is also used when talking to inanimate objects, non-humans, animals, and when praying to God. L’impératif (the imperative) is used to give orders or advice to one or more people. Groups of people: like when you are speaking to an audience of two or more persons (remember plural you=vous). People you’re not familiar with such as strangers you meet on the streets, on the train, on the queue to get your morning coffee. English. The jump from tu into vous would signify that you’re officially back to being strangers again. Add a translation. Phone: + 33 782 171 213 The words Tú and Tu in Spanish frequently confuse English speakers. Want more simplified French grammar explanations like this? In English, Same thing when your computer dies and you curse at it. For more information on the difference between tu and vous, see Personal pronouns: subject. I cannot stress this any further, but when in doubt: use vous. tu translations: you, thou. you can address me as 'tu'. ” in English, even though, there are few tips you need to know as you will see on the next sections. Well yeeaah, that’s a good rule of thumb to follow for starters. a bit more complex. I've chosen a deliberately vague term. We can address each other as 'tu', don't you think? As a general trend, it is more and more common for tu to be used Informally (and to people who as individuals they would address But here’s the awesome part. In French grammar “on” is called an indefinite subject pronoun, meaning that it does not refer to any specific persons, unlike the definite subject pronouns. Tu is the go-to form when addressing someone you are very close to, such as: You also use tu when addressing someone in a similar social standing or situation as you are. to use vous (and I wouldn't have to write one...). Would it bother you if we address each other using  ‘tu’? - Lawless French The words tu and vous both mean you. So there. In French, there are two forms of the imperative that are used to give instructions or orders to someone. Let’s start with the basic rules. Tuesday abbr. Meaning: In French, “raconter des salades” means you’re inventing a story hoping people will believe you. Cela vous dérange si nous nous tutoyons ? Here are some commonly asked questions and their respective answers. But there are some very rare cases where using vous can offend a person. why might they address each other as, Which form of address might you use to translate a poster saying "Win prizes! first time will automatically use tu, and cases where an adult will address a Over 100,000 French translations of English words and phrases. Tu fais quoi ? thou pronoun. Instagram (+ 115 000 followers) Q: Do “formal vous” and “plural vous” always have the same conjugation? A common misconception is that Over 100,000 English translations of French words and phrases. I know you’re thinking, “you gotta be kidding, right?” Nope, not at all. The imperative is conjugated in the same way as the present tense, but the subject pronouns are omitted. comment es tu… as tu), on can also be used to mean 'you (all)'. Tu veux sortir avec nous ce soir ? never met before. With Reverso you can find the French translation, definition or synonym for comment t'appelles-tu and thousands of other words. Laisse tomber… This is a useful French phrase, meaning “just forget it,” or “never mind that.” … Lower ranking personnel should address their higher-ups and important people in the company as vous. In conversational French, the pronoun "vous" ("you") is used for formal address of individuals (as well as plural addressees familiar or otherwise), while the singular pronoun "tu" (also "you," a relative of Middle English "thou") is reserved for use among intimate friends. English counterpart : to talk bullshit, to spin a yarn Plus tu en sais, moins ce sera facile de te raconter des salades. But then again, it all depends on the company culture and the level of formality in the office. Did You Know? They automatically address each 1 – En in French Is Linked to a Notion of QUANTITY. Your husband/wife/lover/partner/boyfriend/girlfriend, People in the same age bracket and social circle: teens talking to other teens, adults introduced by common friends, people in the same party who want to project a warm and friendly atmosphere...etc, (you get the drift), Colleagues that you are on amicable terms with, Noun: le le tutoiement (which means ‘the act of using tu’) and le vouvoiement (meaning ‘the act of using vous’), Verb: tutoyer (to use tu) and vouvoyer (to use vous), Possessive adjectives: ton, ta, tes; and vous, vos, Possessive pronouns: le tien, la tienne; and le vôtre, la vôtre, VI. In short yes, but not in every case. The phrase “Watcha doin’?” would be the best way to portray the laid-back style of this French phrase. Usage notes: Est-ce que is unique among French expressions in that it doesn’t actually mean anything – it’s just a way of turning a statement into a question, kind of like the word "do" in English.The difference is that the word order changes when asking a question with "do," whereas in French, it stays exactly the same, with est-ce que placed directly in front of the statement. So, while learning the être conjugation, you must've come across the words suis, es , est , sommes, etc. English. other as, A radio interviewer interviews a pop star. More meanings for tu. because B has just crashed into A's car). Regardless of the situations mentioned above such as age bracket, it is expected for students to address their teachers using vous. There is also a form of the imperative that corresponds to nous. You already know that using tu and vous would directly affect the verb conjugations. Q: Is it OK to start a conversation with someone using vous and suddenly switch to tu later on in the conversation? When you’re fervently praying to God, also use tu. Remember though that while using vous is safer and denotes professionalism, politeness and respect, it also has negative connotations such as coldness or being a snob. abbr. So a septuagenarian grandma and her 4-year old grandson can use tu with each other. There is also a … Tutoyer definition, to address (someone), especially in French, using the familiar forms of the pronoun “you” rather than the more formal forms; address familiarly. But things like: So the choice of tu or vous has to do with age, but also to German. The difference in meaning between these two words is very important* - you must understand when and why to use each of them. "tu is for friends and vous is for strangers". A question word is a word like when or how that is used to ask for information. child as vous. When “the” is the masculine definite article “le” in french, the phrase “to the” translates to “au” by putting together ‘’à + le”, where “à” means “to”. Info. Info. You can complete the translation of comment t'appelles-tu given by the French-English Collins dictionary with other dictionaries such as: Wikipedia, Lexilogos, Larousse dictionary, Le Robert, Oxford, Grévisse. Learn more in the Cambridge French-English Dictionary. In a perfect world, using tu and vous when speaking French is a simple walk in the park. As a general rule of thumb: So what does similar social situation mean? God (and tu forms are embedded in the French version of the Lord's Prayer). Or Sign up / login to Reverso account. But in professional environments, it doesn’t hurt to use vous at the get-go. you. The speaker is addressing two or more beautiful women. The sad reality is, the rules can be complicated and French learners who find themselves interacting socially with French people often struggle on which “you” to use. It’s also common for these superiors to reply using vous. Q: Are there ever any instances when using “vous” might offend someone? Thanks for A2A. In French, there are two forms of the imperative that are used to give instructions or orders to someone. Unfortunately in French, there are many French pronouns to chose from according to the grammatical value of the noun, or the way it’s being used.. We use “en” in French to replace a noun modified by a notion of quantity. When screaming at your TV during a football game, use tu. Tu → You It’s the easy and neutral way to ask someone his/her age in French and a very basic sentence that you should know. For example, there are situations where two adults meeting for the Later on you can just ask if you should be on more familiar terms and switch to tu. For example, the child could be a prince or some sort of royalty. When to use Tú. But in situations like a teacher addressing his young pupil, then yes. When “the” is the masculine definite article “le” in french, the phrase “to the” translates to “au” by putting together ‘’à + le”, where “à” means “to”. In that case, you’ll have to use vous. We conjugate the imperative in the 2 nd person singular using the present-tense form of the 1 st person singular. Did You Know? Have I answered all your tu and vous-related troubles? Learn more in the Cambridge French-English Dictionary. The verb tutoyer means to For more information on the difference between tu and vous, see Personal pronouns: subject. Did You Know? When a speaker wants to be deliberately disrespectful to somebody (e.g. What does tu mean in French? The imperative only exists in the second person singular (tu), the first person plural (nous) and the second person plural (vous). Young adults around this age range can pretty much address each other as tu except for cases when a junior employee is talking to his young boss. French. But when in doubt, the positives of using vous could still outweigh the negative. dog, shouting at their computer...). The English for Comment vas-tu? There are other cases for sure, but off the top of my mind, those are some examples when using vous could actually be somewhat hurtful or offensive. They've "tu is used for talking to children and vous for talking to adults" or Je crois que tu as envie de te retirer. The speaker is complimenting one beautiful lady. tu translations: you, thou. ", If you know or are learning another language that has honorific forms (e.g. French Translation of “meaning” | The official Collins English-French Dictionary online. French. Translation for 'comment vas-tu ?' Tutoyer definition is - to address familiarly. How to conjugate l’impératif in French 2nd person singular (tu). So what can we make of this complex situation? Still a little bit tricky for you? In short yes, but not in every case. Free Resources – Talk in French Free Library, II. Did You Know? French Grammar and Usage (Hawkins & Towell). API call; Human contributions. Add a translation. Regardless of age, family members use tu when talking to each other. In French, which word for you is used depends But during the course of the conversation, you either got asked to switch to tu (On peut se tutoyer?) They are pronounced the same (homophones), are written a little differently but have completely different meanings. Find more French words at wordhippo.com! social status etc of that person. This is not only more professional and respectful, it is also a way for teachers to distance themselves from the students on a personal level. It sometimes depends on company protocol, so better observe or ask around when you’re new. vous, on, te, toi. The French pronoun “en” replaces a noun. A: It’s possible. tu vois, exp. ; You can use a question word with one of the methods described above: This is an analoguous situation to the 'hierarchy gap' mentioned above. That’s good news, right?However, for adjectives, the plural vous and the singular vous would matter. Otherwise, you may inadvertently insult someone by … you pronoun. From professional translators, enterprises, web pages and freely available translation repositories. Techniquement, tu as une hallucination hypnopompique. Note that some of them do refer to age, and that particular ages should of course One is aged 28 and the other 38. This means that regular-er verbs end with -e, while all other verbs end with -s. For irregular present-tense forms, see the list of irregular verbs. I hope so. is how are you?. People with ages 15 onwards can automatically use tu when talking to children younger than 15, but there are specific social cases that would entail using vous. An alternative to the word "touche", which is defined as "Used to acknowledge a hit in fencing or a successful criticism or an effective point in argument." Pascal explains how to translate You subject and object into French, as we have 3 words tu, te and toi. With Reverso you can find the French translation, definition or synonym for comment t'appelles-tu and thousands of other words. Meaning: “La bise” is a non-romantic kiss used as a greeting in France. 'automatically', particularly by younger speakers. examples. On the other hand, if there is a deep closeness between two people despite a huge age gap (say, a 25-year old and a 50-year old), this age range can be extended further and the two could still use tu when speaking to each other. They've never met before;  English-French dictionary, Suggest a change / proposez une modification, Generally, adults up to the age of about 30 (and often up to 40) automatically use, Generally, somebody above the age of about 15 would automatically use, A young child (up to about 10) talking to an adult (aged about 15 onwards) would commonly use, Children under the age of about 15 will automatically use. If you're unsure whether to use tu or vous, it's safer to start by using vous. / Quel âge as-tu ? For this conjugation, it's best to learn it by heart. To young children in any social situation, Participants in on-line forums, Internet Relay Chat etc, New contacts meeting or exchanging e-mails for the first time would generally use. ? ” Nope, not at all important people in the company as vous singular ( tu ),... Dictionary online, which word for you is used to give orders or advice one! 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