French A1 Vocabulary: 300 Essential Words and Phrases

Build a practical A1 foundation with 300 essential French entries.

300 cardsLast updated 2026-08-16

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This deck gives a new learner a compact but usable French foundation. Its 300 independently selected words and phrases cover greetings, identity, numbers, time, family, home, food, shopping, town, transport, health and the most useful verbs and connectors. Nouns include an article so grammatical gender is learned with the word; verbs use the infinitive; phrases model natural beginner exchanges. Every answer adds a concise English meaning and an original French example with translation. Import it and the whole deck joins your spaced-repetition schedule. Entries you already know stretch out and drop out of sight; the ones that keep slipping come back until they stop slipping. What goes down is the number of entries you still don't know — not the time it takes to flip past 300 cards you mostly do.

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What's inside

Showing 100 representative cards from the full 300-card deck.

Front	Back
bonjour	hello; good morning. Example: Bonjour, Madame. — Hello, ma’am.
au revoir	goodbye. Example: Au revoir, et à demain. — Goodbye, and see you tomorrow.
à demain	see you tomorrow. Example: À demain en classe. — See you tomorrow in class.
s’il vous plaît	please. Example: Un stylo, s’il vous plaît. — A pen, please.
oui	yes. Example: Oui, je comprends. — Yes, I understand.
qui	who. Example: Qui est là ? — Who is there?
quel est ton nom ?	what is your name? Example: Quel est ton nom ? — What is your name?
je suis	I am. Example: Je suis étudiant. — I am a student.
voici	here is; this is. Example: Voici ma carte. — Here is my card.
moi	me; I, for emphasis. Example: Moi, je suis français. — Me, I am French.
lui	him; he. Example: Lui, il est ici. — Him, he is here.
vous	you; you all; polite you. Example: Vous êtes d’où ? — Where are you from?
un homme	a man. Example: Un homme attend dehors. — A man is waiting outside.
une jeune fille	a girl; a young woman. Example: Une jeune fille attend devant l’école. — A girl is waiting in front of the school.
une amie	a female friend; a friend. Example: Une amie arrive bientôt. — A friend is arriving soon.
le mercredi	Wednesday. Example: Je fais du sport le mercredi. — I exercise on Wednesdays.
le vendredi	Friday. Example: Vendredi, nous dînons ensemble. — On Friday, we have dinner together.
un élève	a pupil; a student. Example: Un élève répond en français. — A student answers in French.
une salle de classe	a classroom. Example: La salle de classe est calme. — The classroom is quiet.
un livre	a book. Example: J’ai un livre de français. — I have a French book.
un crayon	a pencil. Example: Le crayon est sur la table. — The pencil is on the table.
une règle	a ruler. Example: La règle est longue. — The ruler is long.
le travail	work; job. Example: Mon travail est près de chez moi. — My job is close to my home.
la fenêtre	the window. Example: La fenêtre est fermée. — The window is closed.
la France	France. Example: J’habite en France. — I live in France.
l’Espagne	Spain. Example: L’Espagne est au sud. — Spain is in the south.
les États-Unis	the United States. Example: Les États-Unis sont grands. — The United States is big.
le Japon	Japan. Example: Le Japon est un pays d’Asie. — Japan is a country in Asia.
français	French. Example: Je parle français. — I speak French.
allemand	German. Example: Elle apprend l’allemand. — She is learning German.
zéro	zero. Example: J’ai zéro idée. — I have zero idea.
deux	two. Example: J’ai deux livres. — I have two books.
quatre	four. Example: Nous sommes quatre. — There are four of us.
six	six. Example: J’ai six crayons. — I have six pencils.
huit	eight. Example: Huit élèves sont ici. — Eight students are here.
dix	ten. Example: Dix, c’est facile. — Ten is easy.
douze	twelve. Example: Douze mois, c’est une année. — Twelve months is a year.
quatorze	fourteen. Example: J’ai quatorze ans. — I am fourteen years old.
d’où viens-tu ?	where are you from? Example: D’où viens-tu ? — Where are you from?
la nationalité	nationality. Example: Sa nationalité est française. — His nationality is French.
l’âge	age. Example: Quel âge as-tu ? — How old are you?
l’après-midi	afternoon; the part of the day after lunch. Example: L’après-midi, elle travaille à la maison. — In the afternoon, she works at home.
aujourd’hui	today. Example: Aujourd’hui, j’ai un cours de français. — Today, I have a French class.
hier	yesterday. Example: Hier, j’ai parlé à ma sœur. — Yesterday, I spoke to my sister.
toujours	always; every time. Example: Il arrive toujours à l’heure. — He always arrives on time.
parfois	sometimes. Example: Parfois, je lis avant de dormir. — Sometimes, I read before sleeping.
la semaine	week. Example: Cette semaine, j’étudie beaucoup. — This week, I study a lot.
le mois	month. Example: Ce mois-ci, je voyage peu. — This month, I travel little.
le calendrier	calendar; a page or app that shows dates. Example: Je regarde le calendrier pour choisir une date. — I check the calendar to choose a date.
le jour de congé	day off; a day without work or school. Example: Le samedi est mon jour de congé. — Saturday is my day off.
à l’heure	on time; not late. Example: Le train arrive à l’heure. — The train arrives on time.
tôt	early. Example: Je me lève tôt le matin. — I get up early in the morning.
se lever	to get up. Example: Je me lève à 6 heures. — I get up at 6 o’clock.
se doucher	to shower. Example: Je me douche après le sport. — I shower after sport.
le petit déjeuner	breakfast; the morning meal. Example: Je prends le petit déjeuner à 8 heures. — I have breakfast at 8 o’clock.
la famille	family. Example: Ma famille habite ici. — My family lives here.
les parents	parents; father and mother. Example: Mes parents sont en vacances. — My parents are on holiday.
la fille	daughter; girl. Example: Leur fille lit un livre. — Their daughter is reading a book.
la sœur	sister. Example: Ma sœur chante dans sa chambre. — My sister sings in her room.
la maison	house; home. Example: Notre maison est petite. — Our house is small.
la salle de bain	bathroom. Example: La salle de bain est à droite. — The bathroom is on the right.
le mur	wall. Example: Le mur est blanc. — The wall is white.
le jardin	garden; yard. Example: Les enfants jouent dans le jardin. — The children play in the garden.
le sac	bag. Example: Je mets mes livres dans le sac. — I put my books in the bag.
faire le lit	to make the bed. Example: Je fais le lit après le petit déjeuner. — I make the bed after breakfast.
porter	to wear; to carry. Example: Il porte un pull bleu. — He is wearing a blue sweater.
le pantalon	trousers; pants. Example: Mon pantalon est noir. — My trousers are black.
la veste	jacket. Example: Il prend sa veste avant de sortir. — He takes his jacket before going out.
le chapeau	hat. Example: Elle porte un chapeau bleu. — She is wearing a blue hat.
grand	big; tall. Example: Mon frère est grand. — My brother is tall.
beau	beautiful; handsome. Example: C’est un beau jour. — It is a beautiful day.
le pain	bread; a basic baked food. Example: Je prends du pain pour le petit déjeuner. — I take bread for breakfast.
la pomme	apple; a round fruit with a crisp taste. Example: Je mange une pomme après le repas. — I eat an apple after the meal.
le riz	rice; a common grain eaten as a side or main dish. Example: Nous mangeons du riz avec des légumes. — We eat rice with vegetables.
l’eau	water; a basic drink. Example: Vous voulez de l’eau froide ? — Do you want cold water?
le marché	market; a place where people buy fresh food and goods. Example: Nous allons au marché samedi. — We go to the market on Saturday.
le prix	price; the amount of money something costs. Example: Quel est le prix de ce sac ? — What is the price of this bag?
le panier	basket; a container for carrying shopping. Example: Je mets les pommes dans le panier. — I put the apples in the basket.
la ville	town/city; a populated urban place. Example: La ville est calme le dimanche. — The town is quiet on Sunday.
la gare	train station; the place where trains leave and arrive. Example: Nous attendons à la gare. — We are waiting at the station.
l’aéroport	airport; the place where planes leave and arrive. Example: Mon frère travaille à l’aéroport. — My brother works at the airport.
le taxi	taxi; a car you pay to take you somewhere. Example: Nous prenons un taxi tard le soir. — We take a taxi late in the evening.
la valise	suitcase; a case for carrying clothes and travel items. Example: Ma valise est lourde. — My suitcase is heavy.
la mer	sea; a large body of salt water. Example: J’aime la mer en vacances. — I like the sea on holiday.
le vent	wind; moving air. Example: Le vent est fort ce matin. — The wind is strong this morning.
froid	cold; having a low temperature. Example: L’eau est froide ce matin. — The water is cold this morning.
aller	to go; to move from one place to another. Example: Je vais au marché avec ma mère. — I go to the market with my mother.
boire	to drink; to take a liquid into the body. Example: Elle boit de l’eau après le sport. — She drinks water after sport.
trouver	to find; to discover or locate something. Example: Je trouve ma clé dans le sac. — I find my key in the bag.
habiter	to live; to have your home in a place. Example: J’habite en ville. — I live in town.
avec	with; indicates accompaniment or connection. Example: Je bois du thé avec du miel. — I drink tea with honey.
et	and; links words or ideas. Example: J’achète du pain et du fromage. — I buy bread and cheese.
donc	so/therefore; shows a result. Example: Il est tard, donc nous rentrons. — It is late, so we are going home.
d’abord	first; before the other steps. Example: D’abord, je prends mon petit déjeuner. — First, I have breakfast.
ici	here; in this place. Example: La pharmacie est ici. — The pharmacy is here.
la pharmacie	pharmacy; a shop that sells medicine and health products. Example: Je vais à la pharmacie pour des médicaments. — I go to the pharmacy for medicine.
un cousin	male cousin. Example: Mon cousin habite à Paris. — My cousin lives in Paris.
un animal	animal. Example: J’ai un animal à la maison. — I have a pet at home.
la musique	music. Example: J’écoute de la musique le soir. — I listen to music in the evening.
le rendez-vous	appointment; meeting. Example: J’ai un rendez-vous à dix heures. — I have an appointment at ten.

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Is this an official CEFR A1 word list?

No. CEFR specifies communicative ability, not one mandatory 300-word list. Memly independently selected these entries to support common A1 tasks.

Why do French nouns include an article?

The article helps you learn grammatical gender with the noun from the start. Cards also flag common elision or plural patterns where useful.

Editorial method and sources

Memly's editors use the primary sources below to check scope and terminology, then independently write and review the cards.

Europass (European Commission): CEFR self-assessment grid