Basic French Words

• Oui/Non (whee/no) - yes/no
• S'il vous plaît (see voo play) - Please
• Parlez-vous anglais? (parlay vooz ong-glay) - Do you speak English?
• Merci (mair-see) - Thank you
• Voici (vwah-see) - Here is
• Voilà (vwah-la)- There is
• De rien (du-rhee-en) - You're welcome
• Je ne comprends pas (zhe nhe comp-rehn pah) - I don't understand
• J'ai besoin d'aide (zhay buh-swahn ded) - I need help
• Excusez-moi (escoosay mwah) - Excuse me
• Je ne sais pas (zhe-nhe say paw) - I don't know
• Il y a (eel ee aw) - There is

Greetings

In France, a greeting is simply being polite. Greet shop owners when you walk into their boutiques, and make sure to say something on your way out as well.

• Bonjour (bon zhoor) - Good morning
• Bonsoir ( bon swar) - Good night/evening
• Bon après-midi (bon ah-pray mee-dee) - Good afternoon
• Madame (mah-dahm) - Miss (or Mrs. preceeded by a last name)
• Monsieur (mihn-see-yuh) - Sir
• Comment allez-vous?(co-mo-tah-lay-voo) - How are you?
• Au revoir (o-rhe-vwa) - Good bye

Informal Greetings

These are not things you would say to someone you don't know, however these familiar phrases are something you'd use with your buddies or peers.

• Salut (saw-loo) - Hi
• Ça va? (saw-vaw) - How's it going?
• Ça va bien (saw-vaw-bee-en) - I'm fine

Note: Salut and ça va are often used together as in, "Salut! Ça va?"

Question Words

While traveling, you may find it very helpful to have a good command of basic question words and phrases.

• Combien? (comb-bee-en) - How much?
• Où? (oo) - Where?
• Quand? (kond) - When?
• Quelle/Quel/Quelles/Quels? (kell) - What?
• Pourquoi? (por-kwah) - Why?
• Comment? (co mo) - How?

On the Go

Pair these words with 'Je vais', and you can tell someone (like the taxi cab driver), where you're trying to go.

• à droite (ah la dwaht) - to the right or on the right
• à gauche (ah go-sh) - to the left or on the left
• au marché (oh mar-shay) - the market
• au restaurant (oh rest-o-rahn) - to the restaurant
• à la plage (ah lah plaj) - to the beach
• à l'hôtel (ah low-tell) - to the hotel
• l'aéroport (l'air-o-por) - airport
• par avion (pahr ah-vee-ohn) - by plane
• aux toilettes (oh twa-lett) - bathroom

http://french.lovetoknow.com/Basic_French_Words