In French, there are various ways to give commands or instructions, ranging from completely impersonal cooking instructions and orders you might receive in an email from a government official to personal requests, like "please close the door".
Generally, if you are unsure, you can use the imperative form plus s'il vous plaît, but if you want to take things a step further, you can differentiate the way you give instructions in French based on the scenario. You'll also likely find that instructions given to you will be less direct, although still important.
The imperative - This is probably how you learned to give instructions or commands in French class, and it works most of the time. It is best used in interpersonal contexts, such as when communicating with someone out loud in person or when sending a direct message to another person. For emails, official correspondence and signs, you will notice different alternatives.
For someone you do not know, you take the vous form of the verb. For example, fermez la porte (close the door). You should almost always add a s'il vous plaît (please) before or after, as simply using the imperative by itself can come off as brusque.
Use the tu form for someone you know or a child. For example, viens manger avec nous ! (Come eat with us!). You can opt for the first-person plural (nous) form when suggesting an activity to do together. You are probably most familiar with this from the phrase allons-y (let's go).
Can you/ could you/ can I? - If you want a softer way of asking for something, you can also opt for can you 'can you' plus the infinitive of the verb in question. For example, est-ce que vous pouvez laisser la porte ouverte / est-ce que tu peux laisser la porte ouverte are two forms of 'Can you leave the door open?'.
In a more formal situation, you could use 'could' (pourriez-vous laisser la porte ouverte ...)
It's worth noting that you wouldn't use this form to order in a shop, restaurant or café. While in English it's common to say something like 'could I get a coffee' or 'can I have more water' in French this doesn't really translate directly and it sounds like are genuinely asking the waiter whether it is possible to obtain coffee in his café. For more in ordering in French, click HERE.
Infinitive form - Usually, the infinitive form is reserved for impersonal instructions that you might find in textbooks or instruction manuals. You might also see it on signs. For example, a sign at the zoo might read Ne pas nourrir les animaux (Do not feed the animals).
You will also see the infinitive form used in cookbooks. For example, Mettre au four à 200C (Put it in the oven at 200C).
Merci de - While it is less common to hear merci de used in spoken French, it does come up frequently in emails, letters and official correspondence. You might also see it on signs or posters.
By itself, merci means 'thank you', but if you see merci de followed by the infinitive form of a verb, then this means “please do xyz”.
For example, you might see a sign in a waiting room that reads merci de patienter. In English, this means “Please wait”. In emails, the sender might include this phrase as a reminder to do something. For example, you might see someone write Merci de joindre les fichiers demandés (Please attach the requested files).
Veuillez - Similar to merci de, veuillez is more often used in formal, written situations. For example, if you wanted to send an email to your French préfecture, you might write something like Veuillez trouver ci-joint une photocopie de mon permis de séjour (Please find attached a photocopy of my residency permit).
Défense de - You pretty much will only see défense de on signs, oftentimes outside of buildings. Confusingly, it does not have to do with 'defending' anything, but rather it is a command to not do something.
For example, there might be a sign that reads Défense de fumer (No smoking), Défense de filmer (Do not film), Défense de stationner (Do not park here). In this case it's a clear order, rather than a request, often backed up by legal penalities.
Grammar tips
From agreeing adjectives to the subjunctive, French grammar can be fiendishly - some claim deliberately - complicated and almost all French learners have at one point despaired over ever getting it right.
People learn languages in different ways - some people prefer to just throw themselves into chatting, others like to have a textbook and some exercises. But the formal and structured nature of the French language means that if you want to become fluent - and if you need written French - then you are going to have to learn some grammar.
That's the purpose of our weekly series of French grammar tips and tricks - and you can also sign up to receive them as a newsletter.
The tips are not intended as a substitute for formal classes or sweating over those verb tables (sadly, those are necessary for most people), but may be of some help to language learners.
They come from our own experiences of living and working in France, and as with our popular French word of the Day feature, we've tried to focus on examples that will be useful in everyday life.
Read more French grammar tips;
- French grammar tips: Look out for the accent
- French grammar tips: Cheat the future
- Guessing the gender of nouns
- The cheat's guide to the subjunctive
- Understanding French place names
- Getting the date and time right
- Pay attention to your French friend's English mistakes
Which French grammar rules do you find most confusing? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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