FlexiLingoIn one line
With body parts, French uses the article rather than a possessive:
Je me lave les mains— and pain is expressed withavoir mal à.
Nouns
Head and face
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
la tête | /tɛt/ | head |
le visage | /vi.zaʒ/ | face |
les cheveux (m. pl.) | /ʃə.vø/ | hair |
l'œil (m.) les yeux | /œj/ · /jø/ | eye · eyes |
le nez | /ne/ | nose |
la bouche | /buʃ/ | mouth |
la dent | /dɑ̃/ | tooth |
la langue | /lɑ̃ɡ/ | tongue |
l'oreille (f.) | /ɔ.ʁɛj/ | ear |
la joue | /ʒu/ | cheek |
le menton | /mɑ̃.tɔ̃/ | chin |
le front | /fʁɔ̃/ | forehead |
le cou | /ku/ | neck |
l'œil→les yeux— a completely irregular plural, one of the very few French words whose stem changes in the plural. English has one of these too: tooth → teeth.
la languemeans both "tongue" and "language" — exactly like English "tongue" in "mother tongue".
Torso and limbs
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
le corps | /kɔʁ/ | body |
le dos | /do/ | back |
la poitrine | /pwa.tʁin/ | chest |
le ventre | /vɑ̃tʁ/ | stomach, belly |
l'épaule (f.) | /e.pol/ | shoulder |
le bras | /bʁa/ | arm |
le coude | /kud/ | elbow |
la main | /mɛ̃/ | hand |
le doigt | /dwa/ | finger |
la jambe | /ʒɑ̃b/ | leg |
le genou | /ʒə.nu/ | knee |
le pied | /pje/ | foot |
la cheville | /ʃə.vij/ | ankle |
le cœur | /kœʁ/ | heart |
l'estomac (m.) | /ɛs.tɔ.ma/ | stomach (the organ) |
le sang | /sɑ̃/ | blood |
la peau | /po/ | skin |
l'os (m.) | /ɔs/ · plural /o/ | bone |
genoutakesgenouxin the plural — with anx. So dobijou,caillou,chou,hibou,joujou,pou. Seven words, all withx.
Verbs
| Verb | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
avoir mal à | /a.vwaʁ mal a/ | to have a pain in |
se laver | /sə la.ve/ | to wash |
se brosser | /sə bʁɔ.se/ | to brush |
se coiffer | /sə kwa.fe/ | to do one's hair |
se casser | /sə kɑ.se/ | to break (a limb) |
se blesser | /sə blɛ.se/ | to hurt oneself |
bouger | /bu.ʒe/ | to move |
respirer | /ʁɛs.pi.ʁe/ | to breathe |
saigner | /sɛ.ɲe/ | to bleed |
grandir | /ɡʁɑ̃.diʁ/ | to grow |
Adjectives
| Masculine | Feminine | English |
|---|---|---|
grand /ɡʁɑ̃/ | grande /ɡʁɑ̃d/ | tall |
petit /pə.ti/ | petite /pə.tit/ | short |
gros /ɡʁo/ | grosse /ɡʁos/ | large, heavy |
mince /mɛ̃s/ | mince /mɛ̃s/ | slim |
fort /fɔʁ/ | forte /fɔʁt/ | strong |
faible /fɛbl/ | faible /fɛbl/ | weak |
blessé /blɛ.se/ | blessée /blɛ.se/ | injured |
cassé /ka.se/ | cassée /ka.se/ | broken |
gauche /ɡoʃ/ | gauche /ɡoʃ/ | left |
droit /dʁwa/ | droite /dʁwat/ | right |
Set phrases
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
J'ai mal à la tête. | /ʒe mal a la tɛt/ | I have a headache |
J'ai mal au ventre. | /ʒe mal o vɑ̃tʁ/ | I have stomach ache |
J'ai mal aux dents. | /ʒe mal o dɑ̃/ | I have toothache |
Je me suis cassé le bras. | /ʒə mə sɥi ka.se lə bʁa/ | I've broken my arm |
Je me lave les mains. | /ʒə mə lav le mɛ̃/ | I'm washing my hands |
avoir les cheveux longs | /a.vwaʁ le ʃə.vø lɔ̃/ | to have long hair |
avoir les yeux bleus | /a.vwaʁ le.z‿jø blø/ | to have blue eyes |
à la main | /a la mɛ̃/ | by hand |
à pied | /a pje/ | on foot |
de la tête aux pieds | /də la tɛt o pje/ | from head to toe |
donner un coup de main | /dɔ.ne œ̃ ku də mɛ̃/ | to lend a hand |
J'ai mal à la têteis "I have pain at the head". English has a noun for each — headache, toothache, backache — and French builds them all from one pattern:mal à+ the part.
Traps
| Trap | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Article, not possessive | Je me lave les mains, not mes mains |
avoir mal à with the contraction | mal au ventre mal aux dents mal à la tête. |
les yeux is the plural of l'œil | It bears no resemblance to its singular. |
le cheveu in the singular means one hair | For hair in general, always the plural les cheveux. |
l'os /ɔs/ but les os /o/ | The s is silent in the plural. |
la jambe and le pied are different | la jambe is the whole leg, le pied is from the ankle down. |
se casser le bras, not son bras | And the participle does not agree: Elle s'est cassé le bras. See accord-pronominaux. |
Why the article replaces the possessive
because ownership is already obvious
In French, when the ownership relation is self-evident, a possessive is considered redundant.
And nothing is more self-evident than the fact that your hands are yours.
| English | French | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| I'm washing my hands | Je me lave les mains. | /ʒə mə lav le mɛ̃/ |
| My head hurts | J'ai mal à la tête. | /ʒe mal a la tɛt/ |
| He opened his eyes | Il a ouvert les yeux. | /il a u.vɛʁ le.z‿jø/ |
Where did the ownership go? Into the verb. The me in je me lave is what tells you the hands are mine.
And in sentences with no reflexive verb, the subject supplies it: J'ai mal à la tête — whose head? Obviously mine.
The exception: when an adjective is added, the possessive comes back.
| Pronunciation | ||
|---|---|---|
Il a ouvert les yeux. | ordinary | /il a u.vɛʁ le.z‿jø/ |
Ses grands yeux bleus… | with an adjective — this is description, not action | /se ɡʁɑ̃.z‿jø blø/ |
English keeps a trace of the same pattern in fixed expressions: "he was hit in the face", "she took him by the hand", "a punch in the stomach". Notice that English switches to "the" there too, for the same reason — the ownership is obvious from the sentence. French simply generalises that habit to every mention of a body part.
The practical rule: whenever you talk about your own body, put me/te/se first, then the article. That is almost always right.