“There’s the French that you learn formally, and then there’s the French that French people actually use.”
Thus begins your new favorite language tutorial from Rosie of YouTube channel Not Even French, partnering with native Francophone and French teacher Aurélie from parisoclock.com. In this video, Rosie and Aurelie give tips on how to sound more like an actual French person when speaking French. Main things include smooshing your words together Parisian style, dropping the “ne” in negative sentences, and using filler words. Try starting your sentence with du coup (“So…”), en fait (“Actually…), or bref (“Long story short”) or experimenting with verlan to spice up your French. Insert grave into every sentence, and lose the famous très in favor of the more hip trop.
And, as Rosie reminds us, when all else fails, you can figure out what you’re going to say next by stalling with a good, long, Euuuuuuuuuuh.
