Au Telephone

that they are saying, politely ask them to slow down:
Pouvez-vous s'il vous plat parler plus lentement ? (Can you

please speak slower?)
You should do the same should the conversation turn to English.
COMMON PHONE PHRASES
Every phone call has to begin somewhere, no matter what the subject is.
Whether you reach the person directly or need to go through a
receptionist, these phrases will be very helpful when you make the call.
In the very least, you can begin the conversation in French and switch to
English if the person on the other end knows it.
Hello? All ?
May I speak to ____? Pourrais-je parler ___ ?
I'd like to speak to ____. Je voudrais parler ___.
Who is calling? C'est de la part de qui ? or Qui est l'appareil ?
____ is calling. C'est de la part de ___. or C'est ___
l'appareil.
Please hold. Ne quittez pas.
I'm transferring your Je vous le passe.
call.
The line is busy. La ligne est occupe.
FRENCH NOUNS ASSOCIATED WITH PHONES
As you learn more French, you will find that these simple nouns are
very useful. They are all associated with phone calls and, as you can see,
many are very similar to the English word.
This should be an easy set of vocabulary to memorize and you can practice
every time you use a phone.
Telephone - un tlphone
Cell phone - un mobile
Phone call - un coup de fil (informal)
Phone number - un numro de tlphone
Phone book - un annuaire
Dial tone - la tonalit
Phone booth - une cabine tlphonique
Collect call - un appel en P.C.V.
Answering machine - un rpondeur tlphonique
FRENCH VERBS ASSOCIATED WITH PHONE CALLS

You will also want to know a few common verbs that describe the actions
taking place during a phone call.
to call - appeler or tlphoner

to dial a number - composer un numro
to pick up (the phone) - dcrocher
to be cut off - tre coup
to leave a message - laisser un message
to hang up - raccrocher
to call back - rappeler
to ring - sonner
CITE
tout ( lheure). (See you (later).)
Formal:
Au revoir. (Goodbye.)
Bonne journe, au revoir. (Have a nice day, goodbye.)
Sample Phone Conversations in French
Did you know that in French, phones dont go ring ring but rather dring dring
? Anyway! Now that youve learned some lines, lets look at some examples, shall
we?
Casual
Dring dring !
M. Durand: All ? (Hello?)
Paul: All, cest Paul, Michel est l ? (Hello, its Paul; is Michel there?)
M. Durand: Ah, Pau l! Tu vas bien ? Oui, Michel est dans le salon. Je te le passe. (Ah,
Paul! How are you doing? Yes, Michel is in the living room. Ill put you through.)
Paul: Merci (Thank you)
Michel: Salut mec, a va ? (Hey, dude, hows it going?)
Paul: a va et toi ? (Everythings good and you?)
Michel: a roule. (Everythings good.)
Paul: coute, je pense avoir oubli mes crampons chez toi. Tu peux regarder dans ta
chambre ? (Listen, I think I forgot my soccer cleats at your house. Can you look in
your room?)
Michel: Pas de souci. Attends une seconde. (No worries. Hold on a second.)
2 minutes plus tard (Two minutes later)
Michel: Ouais, ils sont l. Je te les ramne demain. (Yeah, theyre here. Ill bring them
to you tomorrow).
Paul: Cool, merci. demain, alors. (Cool, thanks. See you tomorrow then.)
Michel: demain, salut. (See you tomorrow, bye).
Now lets take a look at a conversation where things go a little less smoothly.
Dring dring !
Elise: All ? (Hello)
Sarah: All, Elise ? Cest Sarah. a va ? (Hello, Elise. Its Sarah. How its going?)
Elise: Oui et toi ? (Good and you?)
Sarah: Oui je suis la campagne chez ma tante. Je capte trs mal ici. (Yes, I am in the
countryside at my aunts house. My reception is really bad here.)
Elise: All ? All ? Sarah, tu es toujours l ? (Hello? Hello? Are you still there, Sarah?)
Sarah: Oui mais a coupe. (Yes, but youre breaking up.)
Sarah: Je te rappellerai plus tard. a marche ? (I will call you later. Does that
work?)
Elise: Oui, a marche. (Yes, that works.)
Sarah: Daccord. Bises, toute ! (Ok. Kisses! Until later!)
Formal
Dring dring !
Secrtaire: Cabinet medical de Belleville, bonjour. (Belleville Doctors office, hello).
Mme Martin: Bonjour, je vous appelle pour prendre rendez-vous avec le docteur
Boisaubert. (Hello, I am calling to schedule an appointment with Doctor
Boisaubert.)
Secrtaire: Daccord. Ne quittez pas. (Ok. Please hold.)
Quelques instants plus tard (A few moments later)
Secretaire: Merci davoir patient. Le docteur Boisaubert est disponible demain
14h et jeudi 9h30. Quel crneau horaire vous conviendrait ? (Thank you for
waiting. Doctor Boisaubert is available tomorrow at 2 p.m. and Thursday at 9:30
a.m. Which time slot works for you?)
Mme Martin: Demain 14h me convient. (Tomorrow at 2 p.m. works for me.)
Secrtaire: Votre nom, madame ? (Your last name, maam?)
Mme Martin: Martin. Et le prnom cest Elisabeth. (Martin. And the first name is
Elisabeth.)
Secrtaire: Daccord Madame Martin. Je confirme votre rendez-vous avec le docteur
Boisaubert pour demain 14h. (Ok Mrs. Martin. I have booked your meeting with
Doctor Boisaubert for tomorrow at 2 p.m.)
Mme Martin: Merci beaucoup. (Thank you very much.)
Secrtaire: Je vous en prie. Bonne journe, au revoir. (You are welcome. Have a nice
day, goodbye.)
Mme Martin: De mme, au revoir. (You too, goodbye.)
And to think that some people say scheduling appointments is a hassle! Now, lets
take a look at a formal phone conversation in which the person of interest is
unavailable.
Dring dring
Secrtaire: Relations publiques, bonjour. (Public relations, hello.)
M. Portier: Bonjour, Jean Giraud lappareil. Puis-je parler Jean-Bernard Watteau
? (Hello, Jean Giraud speaking. May I please speak to Jean-Bernard Watteau?)
Secrtaire: Veuillez patienter, sil vous plait. (Be so kind as to wait, please.)
Quelques instants plus tard (A few moments later)
Secrtaire: Monsieur Giraud ? Je suis dsol(e). Monsieur Watteau est en runion.
Voulez-vous laisser un message ?(Mr. Giraud? Im sorry, Mr. Watteau is in a meeting.
Do you want to leave a message?)
M. Portier: Je vais le rappeler un autre moment. Merci beaucoup. (I will call him
back at another time. Thank you very much.)
Scretaire: Je vous en prie. Bonne journe, au revoir. (You are welcome. Have a nice
day, goodbye.)
M. Portier: Bonne journe vous aussi, au revoir. (Have a nice day as well,
goodbye.)
.

Au Telephone

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Au Telephone

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that they are saying, politely ask them to slow down:

Pouvez-vous s'il vous plat parler plus lentement ? (Can you

You should do the same should the conversation turn to English.

COMMON PHONE PHRASES

FRENCH NOUNS ASSOCIATED WITH PHONES

FRENCH VERBS ASSOCIATED WITH PHONE CALLS

to call - appeler or tlphoner

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