FAMILY– FRENCH VOCABULARY TESTING GUIDE
55 cards | 7 sub-topics | all 4 skills tested
INTRODUCTION
This section is about the French words and vocabulary used to describe family relationships.
There’s this widely-circulated notion that French children appear to be better disciplined than their counterparts in other (developed) countries. While nobody can accurately validate or invalidate this claim, we can, however, all agree that the definition of “family” in France has become more and more a hot topic (extension of right to gays and lesbians, legalization of gay marriage, etc).
While the French people may not all agree on the definition of “traditional” family, at least, we here can focus to study some very common French words on this subject.
So let’s check out what to call in French the members of our own families.
QUICK NAVIGATION1. MEMBERS OF THE {PARENTS} GROUP2. MEMBERS OF THE {CHILDREN} GROUP3. MEMBERS OF THE {GRANDPARENTS} GROUP4. MEMBERS OF THE {GRANDCHILDREN} GROUP5. MEMBERS OF THE {AUNT/UNCLE} GROUP6. MEMBERS OF THE {IN-LAWS} GROUP7. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS FRENCH FAMILY WORDS
1. MEMBERS OF THE {PARENTS} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
1. la famille
Family
On ne choisit pas sa famille./ You don’t choose your family.
2. la mère
Mother
Ma mère est ma confidente./ My mother is my confidante.
3. maman
Mommy
Je t’aime, maman./ I love you, mommy.
4. le father
Father
Ton père est-il stricte?/ Is your father strict?
5. papa
Daddy
Papa m’a acheté un cadeau./ Daddy bought me a gift.
6. la femme
Wife
C’est la femme de M. Durant./ That’s Mr. Durant’s wife.
7. le mari
Husband
C’est le mari de Mme. O’Donnel./ That’s Mrs. Odonnel’s husband.
8. l’épouse
Spouse (female)
Mon épouse sera à mes côtés./ My spouse will be at my side.
9. l’époux
Spouse (male)
Mon époux est absent./ My spouse is absent.
10. les parents
Parents
Mes parents sont absents aujourd’hui./ My parents are absent today.
2. MEMBERS OF THE {CHILDREN} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
11. les enfants
Children
Combien d’ enfants avez-vous?/ How many children do you have?
12. la fille
Daughter
Ma fille et moi sommes très proches./My daugher and I are very close.
13. le fils
Son
Quel âge a ton fils?/ How old is your son?
14. une fille
Girl
Mes filles sont toutes grandes./ My girls are all grown up.
15. un garçon
Boy
Tu grandis, mon garçon!/ You’re growing up, my boy!
16. la soeur
Sister
J’ai trois soeurs./ I have three sisters.
17. le frère
Brother
Mon frère est un athlète professionnel./ My brother is a professional athlete.
18.
le demi-frère
Half-brother
Comment s’appelle ton demi-frère?/ What’s your half-brother’s name?
19.
le demi-frère
Stepbrother
J’ai deux demi-frères./ I have two stepbrothers.
20.
la demi-soeur
Half-sister
Tu t’entends bien avec ta demi-soeur?/ Do you get along well with your half-sister?
21.
la demi-soeur
Stepsister
Isabelle est ma demi-soeur./ Isabelle is my stepsister.
22.
le fiston
Son; Boy (informal)
Mon fiston entre au collège cette année./ A coffee, please!
23.
la fistonne
Daughter; Girl (informal)
Passe-moi le sel, fistonne!/ Pass me the salt, daughter!
3. MEMBERS OF THE {GRANDPARENTS} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
24.
les grand-parents
Grandparents
Qui sont vos grands-parents?/ Who are your grandparents?
25.
la grand-mère
Grandmother
Votre grand-mère nous rendra visite demain./ Your grandmother will pay us a visit tomorrow.
26.
le grand-père
Grandfather
Mon grand-père est très malade./ My grandfather is very ill.
27.
mémé
Grandma
Ma mémé me gâte beaucoup./ Some herbal tea will make you feel all right.
28.
pépé
Grandpa
Je veux voir pépé./ I want to see grandpa.
4. MEMBERS OF THE {GRANDCHILDREN} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
29.
les petits-enfants
Grandchildren
J’adore mes petits enfants./ I love my grandchildren.
30.
la petite-fille
Granddaughter
Ma petite-fille est adorable./ My granddaughter is adorable.
31.
le petit-fils
Grandson
Mon deuxième petit-fils vient de naître./ My second grandson was just born.
5. MEMBERS OF THE {AUNT/UNCLE} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
32.
l’oncle (m.)
Uncle
Oncle Bernard nous rendra visite demain. / Uncle Bernard will pay us a visit tomorrow.
33.
la tante
Aunt
Ma tante et ma mère se ressemblent beaucoup./My aunt and my mother look alike very much.
34.
le neveu
Nephew
Ce garçon est-il votre neveu?/ Is this boy your nephew?
35.
la nièce
Niece
Ma nièce se marie bientôt./ My niece is getting married soon.
36.
le cousin
Cousin (male)
Mon cousin Steve est mon meilleur ami./ My cousin Steve is my best friend.
37.
la cousine
Cousin (female)
Ma cousine s’appelle Julie./ My cousin’s name is Julie
38.
tonton
Uncle (child’s talk)
Tonton m’a donné ce cadeau/ Uncle gave me this gift.
39.
tata
Auntie (child talk)
Papa, je veux aller chez tata./ Daddy, I want to go to tata’s.
6. MEMBERS OF THE {IN-LAWS} GROUP
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
40.
le beau-frère
Brother-in-law
Je joue au foot avec mon beau-frère./ I play soccer with my brother-in-law.
41.
la belle-soeur
Sister-in-law
Ma belle-soeur et ma femme sont très differentes./ My sister in-law and my wife are very different.
42.
le beau-père
Father-in-law
Mon beau-père ne m’aime pas beaucoup./ My father-in-law doesn’t like me very much
43.
la belle-mère
Mother-in-law
Ma belle-mère est super sympa./My mother-in-law is really nice.
44.
le beau-fils
Son-in-law
Mon beau-fils a eu une promotion./My son-in-law has been promoted.
45.
le gendre
Son-in-law
Je m’entends bien avec mon gendre./I get along well with my son-in-law .
46.
la belle-fille
Daughter-in-law
Ma belle-fille attend un bébé./ My daughter-in-law is expecting a baby.
47.
la bru
Daughter-in-law
Ma bru est très gentille./ My daughter-in-law is very kind.
7. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS FRENCH FAMILY WORDS
FRENCH
ENGLISH
SENTENCE EXAMPLES TO PRACTICE
48. le cadet; la cadette
Younger brother/sister
Je m’entends bien avec ma soeur cadette./ I get along well with my younger sister.
49. le/la benjamin(e)
Youngest brother/sister
André est le benjamin de la famille./ Andrew is the youngest in the family.
50. l’aîné(e)
Oldest son/daughter
Marc est l’ aîné de la famille./ Mark is the oldest in the family.
51. le/la frangin(e)
Bro(ther) (informal)
Ma petite frangine est vraiment cool!/ My little sister is really cool!
52. la mère porteuse
Surrogate mother
Nous avons trouvé une mère porteuse pour notre bébé./We’ve found a surrogate mother for our baby.
53. les parents adoptifs
Adoptive parents
Mes parents adoptifs sont toujours là pour moi./My adoptive parents are always there for me.
54. l’enfant adopté
Adopted child
La vérité est que vous êtes un enfant adopté./ The truth is you are an adopted child.
55. l’arbre généalogique
Family tree
Dessinez votre arbre généalogique./ Draw your family tree.
I hope you will find this extensive family member list quite useful. Make sure to let me know if you would like me to add to this list or modify something. Merci et à très bientôt!
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