After discovering French greetings, you will now learn how to introduce yourself in French.
Step 1: listen to the dialogue and repeat what you hear
Bonjour, je m’appelle Benjamin
Salut ! Moi c’est Marie. Enchantée
Step 2: understand the dialogue
Bonjour
You probably already know “bonjour”. This is the most common way to say “hello” in French. You can safely use in all situations.
Salut
“Salut” is the equivalent of “hi” in English. You can use it with people you know or with children. If you are not sure, use “bonjour” instead.
Je m’appelle Benjamin
This literally means “I call myself Benjamin”. It’s the equivalent of “my name is Benjamin” in English.
Like “hello”, it can be used in all situations. However, in a formal situation, you need to add your family name.
“M’appelle” is the first person conjugation of the verb “s’appeler” (to be called) at the present tense. You don’t need to know the present tense conjugations by heart at this point, but a basic knowledge is useful, so check out The Beginner’s Guide to Mastering the French Present Tense.
Moi c’est Marie
Literally “me, it’s Marie”.This is a casual way to introduce yourself after someone just did.
Don’t worry about the construction of this sentence. For now, all you need to know is that the conjugation of French verbs is different depending on the pronoun used. “Est” is the equivalent of “is” in English.
In a casual situation, you can skip “je suis”, “je m’appelle” or “moi c’est” and just say your name after “bonjour” or “salut”.
Salut, je m’appelle Benjamin
Salut, Marie
Enchanté(e)
“Enchanté”, literally means “delighted”. It’s the equivalent of “nice to meet you“. You can use it in all situations.
Unlike English, French uses different genders (masculine and feminine). Adjectives, pronouns and verbs change depending on the gender of the subject.
In the case of “enchanté”, you need to add a “e” at the end if you’re a woman. It becomes “enchantée”.
Since genders are an essential aspect of the French language, mastering them from the start will help you tremendously. Before you start the next lesson of this Beginner Conversational French course, check out how to know the gender of French nouns with 80% accuracy.
Step three: introduce yourself
If you want to have your first French conversation within six months, you need to start practicing immediately, so don’t be shy, introduce yourself in the comment section below :).
