French Blog

The Best French Radio Stations

At least 40 percent of the music on private French radio stations must be of French origin.

That’s the measure decided by the French government to preserve French culture.

And that’s great news because it means you can listen to French radio knowing you’ll hear a fair share of French songs.

Whether you’re looking for great French music to listen to or would like to improve your listening skills, there is a French radio station for you, and this article will help you find it. [Read more…] about The Best French Radio Stations

8 French Greeting Words That’ll Help You Sound Like a Local

By Benjamin Houy 19 Comments

Greeting French people the way you greet American, British or even Spanish people is a recipe for disaster.

You see, the French follow a strange greeting ritual and breaking its unspoken rules is guaranteed to land you into the “rude tourist” category.

Luckily, greeting the French like a local is simple once you know a few basic principles. These are the secret rules you’ll discover in the first part of this article.

Once you know the basics, check out the second part of this article to learn the essential French greeting words that’ll help you unlock French people’s hearts.

19 Fascinating French and Belgian Comics That’ll Bring You Closer to Fluency

By Benjamin Houy Leave a Comment

If the only French language comics you know are Tintin and Asterix, you’re missing out.

These are amazing comics for sure but the bande dessinée (Franco-belgian comics) scene is one of the most diverse in the world and it would truly be a shame not to give other well-known comics a try.

Whether you want to plunge into a fantastic story, discover the everyday life of the typical French family or enter a world of adventure, political scandals and mystery, there is a French comic for you.

Here are 19 of the most popular French-language comics! [Read more…] about 19 Fascinating French and Belgian Comics That’ll Bring You Closer to Fluency

6 Easy French Recipes to Bring France to Your Home

By Akita Ropiquet Leave a Comment

There is more to French cuisine than cuisses de grenouilles (frog legs) and escargots (snails).

In fact, many French people never ate these two dishes.

In this article, Akita from Buffet Français shows you how to make some of his favorite French recipes from the comfort of your home and offers interesting cultural insights about each dish.

I encourage you to adapt the following recipes to your kitchen ustensils and the ingredients you can find in your country.

Make it your own and enjoy! [Read more…] about 6 Easy French Recipes to Bring France to Your Home

The 29 Best French Children’s Books for Beginner and Intermediate Learners

By Benjamin Houy 6 Comments

If you’ve ever opened Le Petit Prince, you know that French children’s books aren’t necessarily easy to understand as a French learner.

Many use the passé simple, a tense even educated French people struggle with.

Others use old-fashioned vocabulary you clearly don’t need as a beginner.

After thinking about all the children’s books I loved as a kid, I selected a few you can read and enjoy whether you’re a beginner or an intermediate French learner! [Read more…] about The 29 Best French Children’s Books for Beginner and Intermediate Learners

The Beginner’s Guide to Mastering the French Present Tense

By Benjamin Houy 4 Comments

The French present tense is the only tense you truly need to know to get by on a trip to France.

You can use it to talk about the present of course but the French sometimes use it to talk about future events as well.

And while it has the reputation of being illogical and hard to master, nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, you can master the present tense conjugation of most French verbs in a matter of weeks if you focus on learning the most common conjugation patterns first.

After reading this article, you’ll know exactly when to use the French present tense and how to quickly master it (oh and the free bonus at the end will help you make sure it doesn’t take forever).

9 Polite and Not So Polite Ways to Say “You’re Welcome” in French

By Benjamin Houy 5 Comments

When someone thanks you, you only have a few seconds to answer with the appropriate “you’re welcome”.

This can be very stressful if you don’t know the differences between “de rien”, “je vous en prie” and “ya pas de quoi”.

Is your answer polite enough? Is it too formal? Do French people actually use that phrase?

After reading this article, you’ll know which French equivalent of “you’re welcome” to use in every situation! [Read more…] about 9 Polite and Not So Polite Ways to Say “You’re Welcome” in French

How to Quickly Improve Your Writing Skills with French Grammar Checkers

By Benjamin Houy 4 Comments

There are lots of tools you can use to check your French for grammar, spelling and conjugation mistakes.

But how well do they perform?

That’s what I wanted to find out so I selected 5 sentences a French learner submitted online and corrected them with a few French grammar checkers.

In this article, you’ll discover how reliable grammar checkers are and learn about a few alternatives.