Speak French with less hesitation, by learning full French sentences.
Want all the vocabulary of the lesson ?
1. When you didn’t understand everything
For example:
- Je veux dormir. = I want to sleep.
- J’ai une idée. = I have an idea.
- Je croyais que ça allait marcher. = I thought it would work.
There’s nothing worse than stopping in the middle of a French sentence to think about how to say what you want to say. But when you learn a whole French sentence like these, you can tweak them and use them later in your own conversation.
For example: Je veux partir. = I want to go. By learning this simple sentence, you’ll always have in mind the construction: Je veux + [verb] = I want to [verb].
2. Speak French with less hesitation: Using songs
Some sentences give you several constructions at once. As in:
C’est là que tu te sens chez toi. = That’s where you feel at home.
With this sentence, you get the construction:
- C’est là que = That’s where…
- Tu te sens = You feel…
- Chez toi = At (your) home
And it’s in a song too! In: Il y a (Fredericks Goldmans Jones)
This song was written by Jean-Jacques Goldman, the greatest French singer-songwriter alive. Learning with a song and a melody helps you remember the lyrics. That’s why learning full sentences from songs is particularly effective – if all works well, they’ll get stuck in your head!
3. Speak French with less hesitation: More songs
Pick any of his songs and pore over the lyrics. For instance, in Là-bas, a heartbreaking and motivating song about a man leaving his wife to emigrate to America, you’ll find this sentence:
C’est pour ça que j’irai là-bas. = That’s why I’ll go over there.
With this sentence in your head, you’ll always feel confident using:
- C’est pour ça que = That’s why / That’s the reason why
- J’irai = I’ll go, the first person of “aller” in the future tense
- Là-bas = Way over there, out there in this direction
Goldman loves to sing about travel, as in On ira for instance.
The chorus goes: On ira. On partira, toi et moi. Où ? Je sais pas.
= We’ll go. We’ll leave, you and me. Where? I don’t know?
And Où ? (= Where?) and especially Je sais pas. (= I don’t know in informal French) are very common in French conversations.
Now pick a song, learn the lyrics, and sing it in your shower!
Singing helps you remember, that’s been true since Homer.
4. Speak French with Less Hesitation: Je Marche Seul
In our final song, Je marche seul (= I walk alone) (Goldman again, live version), you’ll get a common slang French sentence:
Je m’en fous (de tout). = I don’t give a damn (about anything)
(Now you know this sentence, and most of all, you understand it if someone else uses it!)
Finally, the chorus uses:
Je marche seul, sans témoin, sans personne. = I’m walking alone, without a witness, without anybody.
→ Seul = alone, on my own. Sans personne = without anybody (around)
And now you’re ready to do that yourself!
You can pick any French sentence that you think sounds cool, from movies or pop culture – but to me, songs work best.
That’s why I give you explanations on songs by Édith Piaf, Françoise Hardy and Rose (2006).
Click on the link to get to the full lesson:
- Learn French with a Love Song: Hymne à l’amour – Edith Piaf
- Learn French with a Love Song: Message Personnel – Françoise Hardy
- Learn French with a Love Song: La Liste – Rose
À tout de suite.
I’ll see you in the next video!
And now:
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It would be helpful to have a list of words that are the same in french and english. that would increase confidence in constructing sentences using familiar words.
Merci beaucoup, j´ adore aussi JOE DASSIN
Yes, a few French songs will definitely do me good. Thank you, Geraldine.
No worries, our pleasure, Lee.
Fabien
Comme Une Française Team
Oui, pourquoi pas, personne me n’arret pas sauf, mon confidence a moi-meme?
Thanks Géraldine for these tips! It is a good idea to learn simple sentences to reassure French learners. Bérénice from French Tutoring Fun.
Merci beaucoup, Géraldine! C’était la première fois que j’ai entendu des chansons de Jean-Jacques Goldman. Je vais les télécharger et écouter souvent.
Merci Géraldine! J’adore les chansons de Georges Moustaki, et, comme vous dîtes, les chansons m’aident à apprendre beaucoup d’ expressions en français. Ma chanson préférée est ‘ Il est trop tard’.
Très belle chanson Catherine !
Fabien
Comme Une Française Team
Merci beaucoup Géraldine cet leçon est très utile
Bonne journée
Anne
Merci beaucoup
Merci Géraldine
Thank you.very much useful indeed.
Very helpful, Geraldine, I also Iike ‘est ce que tu m’aime’ by Maitre Gimms very enjoyable,saw it on the French voice duos
Loved this lesson. Always good to hear music and associate a few sentences.
Thanks, merci beaucoup!
Fabien
Comme Une Française Team
Do what French people do: “comment dirais-je?” holds people’s attention while you find the word you need. Works a treat!