essay on my family in french

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The Easy Guide to Talking About Your Family in French

It probably doesn’t sound that difficult to converse without mentioning family.

Think about it, though. How often in a conversation do you say something like, “Sorry, my dad keeps texting me.”

“Oh, you like my sweater? Thanks! My husband gave it to me for Christmas.”

The list of ways our family members come up in conversation is endless, so we’ve put together this post to help you out. Ready to start talking about family in French?

French Vocabulary Related to Family

Your immediate family, your extended family, introducing family members in french, formal introductions, informal introductions, practice talking about family in french, and one more thing....

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Before we get into situations and phrases, let’s start with the basics. What is the French translation for terms related to family members?

• Les parents (parents, or in a more generic sense, relatives of any kind)
• La mère (mother)
• Le père (father)
• La maman (mom or mommy)
• Le papa (dad or daddy)
• Le frère (brother)
• La sœur (sister)
• Les frères et sœurs (siblings)

That’s right, there’s no word for “siblings.” You just have to say “brothers and sisters.”

• La fille (daughter)
• Le fils (son)
• Les grands-parents (grandparents)
• La grand-mère (grandmother)
• Le grand-père (grandfather)
• La mémé (grandma)
• Le pépé (granddad)
• Les petits-enfants (grandchildren)
• La petite-fille (granddaughter)
• Le petit-fils (grandson)
• L’époux / l’épouse    (spouse)
• Le mari (husband)
• La femme (wife)
• La belle-mère (mother-in-law)

The “in-laws” literally translate to “beautiful mother,” “handsome father,” etc. This translation really removes the negative stigma typically associated with in-laws!

• Le beau-père (father-in-law)
• Le beau-frère (brother-in-law)
• La belle-sœur (sister-in-law)
• La belle-fille (daughter-in-law)
• Le beau-fils (son-in-law)
• La belle-mère (stepmother)

You’ll notice that the “in-laws” and “steps” both translate to the same word. Confusing, isn’t it?

• Le beau-père (stepfather)
• Le beau-frère (stepbrother)
• La belle-sœur (stepsister)
• La belle-fille (stepdaughter)
• Le beau-fils (stepson)
• Le demi-frère (half-brother)
• La demi-sœur (half-sister)

• La cousine (female cousin)
• Le cousin (male cousin)
• Les cousins / les cousines (male or mixture of male and female cousins/female cousins)
• L’oncle (uncle)
• La tante (aunt)
• Le neveu (nephew)
• La nièce (niece)

These are the phrases you would whip out at those work and social events, when having people over to your family’s home or if you run into someone you know on the street while out with a family member.

You would use these phrases when introducing family members at an event, or to elders and people you respect.

• Je vous présente… (I present to you…)

Remember to use vous to talk to people who are older or in a position of authority. For example, you might use this phrase when you introduce a family member to your boss or to a friend’s parent.

Monsieur, je vous présente mon mari, Daniel. (Sir, I present to you my husband, Daniel.)

Bonjour, Madame Thierry! Je vous présente ma mère.  (Hello, Mrs. Thierry! I present to you my mother.)

• Je te présente… (I present to you…)

Use the tu form when speaking to a friend, an equal or someone younger than yourself. In this case, you are introducing a family member to someone who fits this profile, but while using a more formal structure:

Salut, Brigitte! Je te présente mon beau-frère, Charles. Charles, Brigitte est ma camarade de classe. (Hi, Brigitte! I present to you my brother, Charles. Charles, Brigitte is my classmate.)

• Il s’appelle… / Elle s’appelle… (His/her name is…)

Je te présente mon oncle. Il s’appelle Nico.  (I present to you my uncle. His name is Nico.)

Bonjour, madame. Je vous présente ma tante. Elle s’appelle Esther. (Hello, ma’am. I present to you my aunt. Her name is Esther.)

You would use these informal introductions with your close pals. Sometimes people use these terms as quick introductions if they are in a hurry or distracted. Let’s say your mom randomly walks into the room while you guys are playing video games. You don’t have time for formalities, you’ve got dragons to kill!

• C’est… (This is…)

C’est is a casual way to say, “This is.”

Salut! C’est mon cousin. (Hi! This is my cousin.)

• Voilà… (Here is…)

This would be used in a situation when you are surprised to see someone. For example, if you weren’t expecting a family member to walk in at that moment, you use voilà  as a quick announcement of their arrival.

Oh, voilà  ma femme!  (Oh, here is my wife!)

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I bet you didn’t even think about how many family members existed until you saw that list. But don’t be overwhelmed! There are plenty of free online learning tools where you can practice memorizing all this vocabulary. Check out these simple exercises on The French Experiment . 

Even watching videos in French can help you get used to new vocabulary. There are limitless videos to be found on YouTube .

Of course, you can talk in-depth about your family for hours.

But hopefully these basics will get you started!

This way, when a date or coworker asks you about your family, you won’t have to go hide out in the bathroom to avoid the conversation.

FluentU has a wide variety of great content, like interviews, documentary excerpts and web series, as you can see here:

FluentU brings native French videos with reach. With interactive captions, you can tap on any word to see an image, definition and useful examples.

For example, if you tap on the word "crois," you'll see this:

Practice and reinforce all the vocabulary you've learned in a given video with learn mode. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning, and play the mini-games found in our dynamic flashcards, like "fill in the blank."

All throughout, FluentU tracks the vocabulary that you’re learning and uses this information to give you a totally personalized experience. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

Related posts:

81 French Acronyms and Abbreviations

9 Best French-English Dictionaries and Apps for French Learners in 2024

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Learn the vocabulary needed to describe, “Ma famille”, you will find a reading of family members in French with their corresponding translation in English. Here you will learn how to say brother and sister, friends, etc, in French.

Enjoy the reading about : Ma famille.

Reading : My family

Short video: the family.

VIDEO QUIZ Now watch the video and answer the following questions :

Practice more about the family: review more vocabulary, try a dictation, listen to the reading and enjoy the conversation:, more french readings practice here:.

Explore More French Reading Levels: Click on the level of your interest:

• Readings Level 1 
• Readings Level 2
• Readings Level 3
• Readings Level 4
• Readings Level 5
• Readings Level 6
• Readings Level 7
• Readings Level 8

French Resources for Level 1:

Do you want to practice another Resource? Click on the image of your interest:

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Common French phrases: talking about family

Family is an important topic of conversation in any language, and being able to talk about your family in French is a useful skill.

In this lesson, we’ll go over some common French phrases for talking about family.

Ma famille est très importante pour moi. (My family is very important to me.) This phrase is used to indicate the significance of your family in your life.

J’ai une grande famille. (I have a big family.) This phrase is used to describe the size of your family.

Mes parents s’appellent ____ et _____. (My parents are named ____ and _____.) This phrase is used to introduce the names of your parents.

Mon père/mère est _____. (My father/mother is ___.) This phrase is used to describe the occupation or characteristics of your parents.

J’ai ____ frères/sœurs. (I have ____ brothers/sisters.) This phrase is used to describe the number of siblings you have.

Mon frère/ma sœur s’appelle _____. (My brother/sister’s name is _____.) This phrase is used to introduce the names of your siblings.

Ma famille est originaire de ____. (My family is originally from ___.) This phrase is used to describe the origins of your family.

Nous avons une tradition de ____. (We have a tradition of ___.) This phrase is used to describe a tradition that your family has.

Nous aimons passer du temps ensemble. (We like to spend time together.) This phrase is used to describe the time you spend with your family.

Ma famille me soutient toujours. (My family always supports me.) This phrase is used to indicate the support you receive from your family.

Learning these common French phrases for talking about family will help you to communicate more effectively with native French speakers and better express yourself in a French-speaking environment. Additionally, it is helpful to learn some basic French vocabulary related to family, such as different family members or family-related activities. With practice and persistence, you’ll soon be able to speak confidently about your family in French.

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