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Knowing how to agree with someone is very important, and it’s a great way to dip your toe into learning a tough language like French. You might know the basic “oui” as a way to say “yes,” but there are actually many ways to agree with someone or confirm information based on what you’re talking about, what mood you’re in, and what tone you’d like to convey. Getting familiar with the various French words for “yes” can help you pick the best one for you!
Steps
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Say “oui” for a simple “yes.” You can use this word in almost any circumstance, no matter how formal or informal it is. Pronounce this word by saying “wee.” [1] X Research source- If you want to make this response more polite, you can add the French equivalent of “mister,” “missus,” or “miss” to the end of the term.
- Monsieur , pronounced muh-see-euh, translates into “mister.” Oui, monsieur.
- Madame , pronounced mah-dehm , translates into “missus.” Oui, madame.
- Mademoiselle , pronounced mah-dehm-mwah-zel , translates into “miss.” Oui, mademoiselle.
- If you want to make this response more polite, you can add the French equivalent of “mister,” “missus,” or “miss” to the end of the term.
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Politely offer “oui, merci.” This phrase means “yes, thanks.” It’s a great way to accept an offer politely. You should pronounce it like, “WEE, mare-SEE.” [2] X Research source- Merci means “thanks” or “thank you.”
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Reply with “oui, s'il vous plaît.” This is another polite phrase. It means “yes, if it is pleasing to you,” or “yes, please.” Pronounce it like, WEE, sill voo PLEH . [3] X Research source- S'il means “if.”
- Vous means “you.”
- Plaît means “please.”
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Casually respond with “ouais.” This is the French equivalent of the English “yeah.” Pronounce it like oo-way . [4] X Research source- You should only use this in informal situations, like when you’re talking to your friends.
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Use “ouaip” instead. This is the French equivalent of the English “yep.” It should be pronounced like oo-wayp . [5] X Research source- This word is slightly less informal than the one above, but it’s still only good for casual situations.
- You can also say “oeup” if you want to sound like a cool teenager.
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Say “bah oui” for another way to say “yeah.” You can never have too many ways to informally agree, right? Another phrase, pronounced bah WEE , is another casual affirmative. [6] X Research source- There’s no difference between this phrase and “ouais,” so you can use them interchangeably.
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Use “mouais” if you’re not sure. This phrase best translates to “um, yeah,” or “kinda sorta.” Pronounced mwé , you can say it when you’re not super sure if you want to say yes or not. [7] X Research source- You might use this phrase if someone invites you to a party but it doesn’t sound very fun.
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Say “ouah” if you’re passionate about your “yes.” Using this word adds an exclamation point onto your agreement. Pronounce it like wa , or the first part of the word “wow.” [8] X Research source- You can use this to show your enthusiasm if you’re really excited about something.
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State “évidemment.” This translates into “obviously.” Pronounce this French word as eh-vee-dah-mo(n) . The N is silent! [9] X Research source- This is a slightly sassy way to confirm something, so use it sparingly.
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Say “certainement.” In English, this means “definitely” or “surely.” You should pronounce this French term as sir-ten-mo(n) . Again, the N is silent! [10] X Research source- This also roughly translates to “of course.”
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Respond with “carrément.” This word translates into the English word “firmly.” This French word should be pronounced as “kah-ray-mo(n).” [11] X Research source- It can also mean “absolutely.”
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Reply with “tout à fait.” This phrase means “quite,” “completely,” or “altogether.” Pronounce this French phrase as too tah feh . [12] X Research source- Tout means "all" or "whole."
- The French à means "with," "to," "by," or "in" when translated into English.
- Fait means "fact," "event" or "occurrence."
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Answer with "en effet." This translates loosely into “indeed” or “in fact.” Pronounce this French phrase as on -ay-feh . [13] X Research source- En means "in."
- Effet means "effect."
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Exclaim “bien sûr!” This phrase loosely translates into “of course!” This French phrase should be pronounced as byahng soor . [14] X Research source- Bien means “good” or “well.”
- Sûr means “sure” or “certain.”
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Use “exactement” when you’re sure about something. This French word translates to “exactly.” It’s pronounced as exacta-mah . [15] X Research source- You can also use it when talking about something precise.
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Say “absolument” when something is possible. You can use this word when you mean “completely.” Pronounce it as ab-so-loo-mah . [16] X Research source- Even though there’s a “T” on the end of the word, you don’t pronounce it.
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Offer a polite “très bien.” Use this phrase to say “very well.” Pronounce this French phrase as tray byahng. [17] X Research source- Très means “very.”
- Bien means “well” or “good."
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State “C'est bien.” This phrase means “that's fine” in English. This French phrase should be pronounced as say byahng .- C'est means “it is.”
- Bien means “well” or “good.”
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Say “Ça va.” Use this phrase to offer a simple “okay.” When pronouncing this French phrase, pronounce it as sah vah . [18] X Research source- Ça means “it.”
- Va is derived from the French verb aller, meaning “to go,” “to do,” or “to be.”
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Reply with “d'accord.” The English equivalent of this French term is “agreed.” This French phrase should be pronounced as dah-korr . [19] X Research source- It could also mean “okay” or “all right.”
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Exclaim “volontiers!” This phrase means “willingly!” or “gladly!” You should pronounce this French phrase as vol-on-tee-yay. [20] X Research source- It’s another exciting word.
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Excitedly answer with “avec plaisir!” In English, this phrase means “with pleasure!” You should pronounce this French phrase as ah-vehk play-zear . [21] X Research source- Avec means “with.”
- Plaisir means “pleasure.”
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Say “ça marche.” This translates as “okay, that works.” Pronounce this phrase as sah marsh . [22] X Research source- This is one of the most common phrases in the French language for the affirmative, so it’s good to know!
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Use “c’est ça.” Literally translated, this phrase means “that’s it” or “exactly.” You can pronounce this phrase as say sah . [23] X Research source- This is another way to say “you’re right.”
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Use this “yes” to say yes while also contradicting a statement. It seems confusing, but there may come a time when you want to answer in the affirmative but not agree with the whole statement. You can use the contradictory yes to still agree while adding on information. [24] X Research source- Literally, it means “but yes” or “actually, yes.”
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Say “si” for a contradictory yes. You can pronounce this word like see . It’s a quick, small word, so it can get lost in conversation. [25] X Research source- It’s pronounced the same way as “yes” in Spanish.
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For example: If someone asks, “You seem tired. Did you not sleep enough last night?” You might answer, “Yes I did sleep enough last night, I’m just tired from the trip.” This is a case where you would use the contradictory yes. [26] X Research source- In French, your answer would be, “ Si j’ai assez dormi. Je suis juste fatigué du voyage.”
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Community Q&A
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QuestionHow do I say "I love you" in French?Community AnswerJe vous aime (group of people or formal/respectful situation) or je t'aime (one person, informal).
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QuestionIs there a site where I can hear the French pronunciation?Dodo47Top AnswererYou can hear good pronunciation of words on Wordreference.
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QuestionI was taught that "ça va" meant "how are you?" It apparently means "okay", and "comment ca va?" is "how are you?" Which is right?Community AnswerJust "ça va" is informal, similar to how English speakers say, "You okay?" or "You alright?" The distinction between the two is the following: "Comment ça va?" is formal, or introductory, while just "ça va" is informal, or quick.
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References
- ↑ http://www.europa-pages.co.uk/lessons/french-basics.html
- ↑ https://frenchtogether.com/thank-you-in-french/
- ↑ http://www.europa-pages.co.uk/lessons/french-basics.html
- ↑ https://frenchtogether.com/yes-in-french/
- ↑ https://frenchtogether.com/thank-you-in-french/
- ↑ https://www.talkinfrench.com/yes-in-french/
- ↑ https://www.talkinfrench.com/yes-in-french/
- ↑ https://www.talkinfrench.com/yes-in-french/
- ↑ https://frenchtogether.com/yes-in-french/
- ↑ https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/french-english/certainement
- ↑ https://www.thelocal.fr/20190329/french-word-of-the-day-carrement
- ↑ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/expressions/tout-a-fait/
- ↑ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/expressions/en-effet/
- ↑ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/expressions/bien-sur/
- ↑ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/french-english/exactement
- ↑ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/french-english/absolument
- ↑ https://frenchtogether.com/bien-bon/
- ↑ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/expressions/ca-va/
- ↑ https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/french-english/d-accord
- ↑ https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/french-english/volontiers
- ↑ https://www.dictionary.com/browse/avec-plaisir
- ↑ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/expressions/ca-marche/
- ↑ https://www.thelocal.fr/20190226/french-expression-of-the-day-cest-ca
- ↑ https://www.talkinfrench.com/yes-in-french/#tab-con-1
- ↑ https://quizlet.com/388022223/french-102-a-lecon-14-oui-affirmative-yes-vs-si-contradictory-yes-examples-flash-cards/
- ↑ https://www.talkinfrench.com/yes-in-french/#tab-con-1
About This Article
Article Summary
X
To say “yes” in French, you can simply say, “Oui,” which is pronounced as “wee.” If someone is offering you something, try saying, “Oui, merci,” or “Yes, thanks.” For a more casual way to say, “yes,” say, “Ouais,” which is similar to saying, “yeah,” in English. In order to affirm something in a more emphatic way, try using, “évidemment,” or, “certainement.” Alternatively, to agree with something someone has said, you can say, “D’accord.” To learn how to say other affirmative expressions in French, like "okay" and "with pleasure," keep reading!
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