Basic messages and asking for help | Learn French in English

French lesson set in a contemporary Paris everyday setting: A beginner practices six useful English phrases about basic messages and asking for help..

EN → FR / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Basic messages and asking for help to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Répétez-le, s'il vous plaît.

reh-peh-TAY luh, seel voo PLEH Please say it again.
B

Écrivez-le, s'il vous plaît.

ay-kree-VAY luh, seel voo PLEH Please write it down.
A

Montrez-le-moi, s'il vous plaît.

MOHN-tray luh MWAH, seel voo PLEH Please show me.
B

Aidez-moi, s'il vous plaît.

eh-DAY MWAH, seel voo PLEH Please help me.
A

Comment puis-je vous aider ?

koh-MAHN pwee-ZHUH voo ZAY-DAY How can I help?
B

Appelez-moi plus tard, s'il vous plaît.

ah-play MWAH ploo TAR, seel voo PLEH Please call me later.

Word by Word

Répétez “Répétez” means “repeat” in the polite instruction “Répétez-le”. This form is used when asking someone to say or do something again; a reusable pattern is “Répétez-le” when referring to something already mentioned.
le “le” means “it” as the object of “Répétez” in “Répétez-le”. It is joined to the instruction with a hyphen, and “Répétez-le” is useful when asking someone to repeat a specific thing.
s'il vous plaît “s'il vous plaît” means “please” and makes the request polite. It is a fixed expression: “s'il” contains the idea “if it”, “vous” refers to the person or people addressed, and “plaît” means “pleases”; together they form the polite request “please”. Use “s'il vous plaît” after or around a request such as “Répétez-le, s'il vous plaît” when asking for help or cooperation.
Écrivez “Écrivez” means “write” in the polite instruction “Écrivez-le”. It tells the person addressed to write something down, and “Écrivez-le” can be reused when the thing to write has already been identified.
Montrez “Montrez” means “show” in the instruction “Montrez-le-moi”. The complete pattern “Montrez-le-moi” is used when asking someone to show a particular thing to you.
moi “moi” means “me” in “Montrez-le-moi” and “Appelez-moi”. After the hyphen, it identifies the person who receives the showing or the call; these patterns are useful when asking someone to show or call you.
Aidez “Aidez” means “help” in the polite instruction “Aidez-moi”. It is used when directly asking the person or people addressed for assistance, and “Aidez-moi” is a reusable request in a situation where you need help.
Comment “Comment” means “how” in “Comment puis-je vous aider ?”. It asks about the way an action can be done, and “Comment puis-je ... ?” is a useful pattern for asking how you can do something.
puis “puis” in “puis-je” contributes to the question “can I” or “may I”. It appears before “je” because this question uses inversion; “puis-je vous aider ?” is useful when offering help politely.
je “je” means “I” in “puis-je”. It identifies the person who can help, and the pattern “puis-je vous aider ?” can be used when offering assistance to someone.
vous “vous” refers to the person or people being addressed in “s'il vous plaît” and “Comment puis-je vous aider ?”. In “Comment puis-je vous aider ?”, it is the person receiving the help; use “vous” when addressing someone politely or addressing more than one person.
aider “aider” means “help” in “puis-je vous aider ?”. After “puis-je”, it names the action the speaker is offering to do, and the complete question is useful when asking someone what help they need.
Appelez “Appelez” means “call” in the polite instruction “Appelez-moi plus tard”. It asks the person or people addressed to make contact by phone later, and “Appelez-moi plus tard” can be reused when arranging a later call.
plus “plus” contributes to the meaning “later” in the expression “plus tard”. It does not give the complete time expression by itself here; together with “tard”, it is used to arrange a follow-up at a later time.
tard “tard” contributes to the meaning “later” in “plus tard”. The complete expression “plus tard” is useful when asking someone to do something at a later time, as in “Appelez-moi plus tard”.

Grammar Points

Impératif avec -ez

Répétez, s'il vous plaît.

reh-peh-TAY, seel voo PLEH

Repeat, please.

For a formal or plural command, many French verbs use the -ez form.

Verbe à l'impératif + pronom objet avec trait d'union

Montrez-le, s'il vous plaît.

MOHN-tray luh, seel voo PLEH

Show it, please.

In an affirmative command, the object pronoun follows the verb with a hyphen.

French Vocabulary

aider verb
eh-DAY to help Aidez

Aidez-moi, s'il vous plaît.

appeler verb
ah-play to call Appelez

Appelez-moi plus tard, s'il vous plaît.

comment adv
koh-MAHN how

Comment puis-je vous aider ?

écrire verb
ay-KREER to write Écrivez

Écrivez-le, s'il vous plaît.

le pron
luh it

Répétez-le, s'il vous plaît.

moi pron
MWAH me

Montrez-le-moi, s'il vous plaît.

montrer verb
MOHN-tray to show Montrez

Montrez-le-moi, s'il vous plaît.

plus tard adv
ploo TAR later

Appelez-moi plus tard, s'il vous plaît.

répéter verb
reh-peh-TAY to repeat Répétez

Répétez-le, s'il vous plaît.

s'il vous plaît phrase
seel voo PLEH please

Répétez-le, s'il vous plaît.

vous pron
VOO you

Comment puis-je vous aider ?

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Please say it again.

Show AnswerRépétez-le, s'il vous plaît.

Please write it down.

Show AnswerÉcrivez-le, s'il vous plaît.

Please show me.

Show AnswerMontrez-le-moi, s'il vous plaît.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

to call

Show AnswerAppelez

to repeat

Show AnswerRépétez

how

Show Answercomment

to write

Show AnswerÉcrivez