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Manners don\u2019t cost a thing, so there\u2019s no excuse for not saying \u201cplease\u201d and \u201cthank you\u201d<\/a>. Whenever you visit a foreign country, it\u2019s basic courtesy to know how to say a few simple words in the local language: \u201chello\u201d, \u201cgoodbye\u201d, \u201cplease\u201d, and \u201cthank you\u201d. If you\u2019re new to learning French or are planning a trip to the land of baguettes, cheese and wine, then you definitely need to know how to say \u201cplease\u201d in French.<\/p>\n In French, we do not say \u201cplease\u201d with one word, but rather a sentence. In fact, there are two different ways to say it, depending on who you are speaking to. The first way that you need to know to say \u201cplease\u201d in French is s\u2019il vous pla\u00eet<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s break this down:<\/p>\n Si + il + vous + pla\u00eet<\/strong><\/p>\n S\u2019il vous pla\u00eet <\/em>therefore means \u201cif it pleases you\u201d, or as we would more commonly say \u201cif you please\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The second way to say please in French is s’il te pla\u00eet<\/strong><\/em>. This is also French for if you please<\/em>, but the difference lies in the personal pronoun. The verb \u201cplaire\u201d, meaning \u201cto please\u201d, is followed by the preposition \u201c\u00e0\u201d, making it an indirect transitive verb that requires an indirect object pronoun: me, te, lui, vous, nous <\/em>or leur<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cTe\u201d is used in informal situations, for family and friends, people you know well, anyone younger than you, and all children. Unlike vous<\/em>, te<\/em> is only ever singular.<\/p>\n The little accent on the \u201ci\u201d is a circumflex accent. For verbs ending in –a\u00eetre<\/em> or –o\u00eetre<\/em>, as well as plaire<\/em>, the “i” takes on a circumflex accent as soon as it is followed by a “t”, for example in \u201cil conna\u00eet\u201d and \u201cil para\u00eet que\u201d. This means that in the expressions s’il vous pla\u00eet <\/em>and s\u2019il te pla\u00eet<\/em>, we must always write the \u201c\u00ee\u201d with a circumflex accent.<\/p>\n In English, we like to use \u201cplease\u201d a little too often compared to other languages. British people in particular are renowned for their overuse of manners. In French, they don\u2019t say \u201cplease\u201d after every request, and it\u2019s not particularly rude either. There are other ways you can phrase a request politely, but sometimes you don\u2019t need to say anything aside from the request itself.<\/p>\n You can ask someone if something bothers them using the verb d\u00e9ranger<\/strong>. This is the equivalent of saying \u201cdo you mind?\u201d.<\/p>\n Vouloir<\/a> <\/em>is a frequently used verb meaning \u201cto want\u201d. We can also use this verb in the 2nd person plural with the imperative as a polite way to say \u201cplease\u201d. The imperative is used to give orders, in this case in a courteous manner, or to politely ask people to do something in formal situations.<\/p>\n In public notices, it is preferable to use the expression pri\u00e8re de<\/strong><\/em>. Pri\u00e8re de<\/em> followed by a verb in its infinitive form means \u201cplease\u201d or \u201ckindly\u201d do something. This expression is only ever used in writing.<\/p>\n The final way to give a polite command is merci de<\/strong><\/em>. This literally means \u201cthank you for\u201d and is followed by an infinitive verb.<\/p>\n In many other languages, particularly in Europe, it\u2019s not considered impolite to ask for something without saying \u201cplease\u201d. That said, your tone of voice and body language will affect the way you come across. Smiling kindly and asking for something is very different to being imposing and aggressive, even if you use the exact same words.<\/p>\n To increase the formality and politeness, we can use the conditional tense. Let\u2019s take a look at which verbs to use with please in French, and which tenses\u2026<\/p>\n The most formal way to ask for something would be using the conditional tense<\/strong>. This makes it sound like the person you are speaking to has a choice to accept or refuse your request, which is more polite than just asking them to do something outright. Using \u201ccould\u201d in French is formal enough to omit the \u201cplease\u201d, although we would rarely do this in English.<\/p>\n When you want to say please can I have <\/em>in French, we modify the verb \u201cpouvoir<\/a>\u201d to say \u201ccan I?\u201d or \u201cmay I?\u201d. When inverting the subject and the verb, we cannot say peux-je, instead we use \u201cpuis-je\u201d, which is said with liaison, practically pronounced as one word.<\/p>\n If we are offered something and want to take someone up on their offer, we will naturally say \u201cyes, please\u201d. In French, this isn’t necessary. You can simply say yes. Alternatively, we can say \u201cyes, thank you\u201d, which seems backwards considering they haven\u2019t given us anything yet. Think of \u201coui, merci<\/a>\u201d as saying \u201cyes\u201d and then thanking them for the offer, or thanking them in advance for what they are about to give you.<\/p>\n In some parts of Belgium and Eastern France, s’il te pla\u00eet<\/em> and s’il vous pla\u00eet<\/em> are used instead of voici<\/em> when presenting or giving an object to someone. This could be in any circumstances, from the formal exchange of paperwork to the shopkeeper handing you your groceries. Here are some examples of when you could use s’il vous pla\u00eet<\/em>:<\/p>\n You could extend this \u201cs’il vous pla\u00eet\u201d to \u201cs’il vous pla\u00eet de bien vouloir prendre l’objet en question\u201d meaning \u201cplease take the object in question\u201d. This is thought to sound more polite than just voici <\/em>ou voil\u00e0<\/em>, but is not commonplace in most of France and other French-speaking countries.<\/p>\n French salutations are pretty long and wordy, and one of the commonly used phrases in letters and emails is actually another French term we would translate as please. <\/em>\u201cJe vous prie de bien vouloir\u201d literally means \u201cI ask you to want to\u2026\u201d. It\u2019s much easier to understand this long-winded sentence in context:<\/p>\n In French slang, the informal and colloquial way to say “please” is s’il te pla\u00eet<\/em> or its abbreviated form stp<\/em> (pronounced “ess-tay-peh”). You will come across this in written French in informal situations such as text messages and on social media. Kids and teenagers even go as far as to pronounce the letters when speaking rather than using the real words, despite it not being much shorter or easier to say.<\/p>\n I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve already heard children begging their parents for something. In English, it sounds something like this: \u201cPleeeeeease!\u201d<\/p>\n In French, children will shorten s’il te pla\u00eet<\/em> until it sounds almost like one word. This can be written s’te pla\u00eet<\/em>. When the kids are saying it to cajole their parents into doing what they want, it sounds more like \u201cstuh-plaaaay\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s not only in informal writing that we can use abbreviations. In professional emails, you could also abbreviate s\u2019il vous pla\u00eet<\/em> to S.V.P<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Be careful not to use this in highly formal correspondence, and never in spoken language.<\/p>\n Finally, don\u2019t underestimate the power of non-verbal cues<\/strong> such as body language, which can convey politeness in French conversation. Tone of voice can also complement verbal expressions of courtesy. Vouvoiement, or using \u201cvous\u201d instead of \u201ctu\u201d, is also a sign of manners which shows you are being polite.<\/p>\n Clozemaster\u00a0<\/strong>has been designed to help you learn the language in context by filling in the gaps in authentic sentences. With features such as Grammar Challenges, Cloze-Listening, and Cloze-Reading, the app will let you emphasize all the competencies necessary to become fluent in French.<\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cPlease\u201d in French \u2013 Formal<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>Examples of s’il vous pla\u00eet<\/em> in French<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>\u201cPlease\u201d in French \u2013 Informal<\/h2>\n
<\/a>Examples of s’il te pla\u00eet<\/em> in French<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Why is there an accent on pla\u00eet<\/em>?<\/h2>\n
<\/a>French word for \u201cplease\u201d: alternatives<\/h2>\n
<\/a>\u00c7a vous d\u00e9range<\/em>\u2026<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Veuillez<\/em>\u2026<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Pri\u00e8re de<\/em>\u2026<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Merci de<\/em>\u2026<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Just ask for what you want<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Which tense to use with \u201cplease\u201d in French?<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>\u201cMay I please have\u201d in French<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>\u201cYes please\u201d in French<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>Other uses of s\u2019il vous pla\u00eet<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Je vous prie de bien vouloir<\/em>\u2026<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>Slang ways to say \u201cplease\u201d in French<\/h2>\n
<\/a>How kids say \u201cplease\u201d in French<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>Polite abbreviations<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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<\/a>Body language and tone<\/h2>\n
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