FlexiLingoIn one line
French weather uses three structures:
il faitfor a condition,il y afor a phenomenon, and a verb of its own for rain and snow.
The three structures
| Structure | With what | Example |
|---|---|---|
il fait /il fɛ/ + adjective | general condition | Il fait beau. /il fɛ bo/ Il fait froid. /il fɛ fʁwa/ |
il y a /i.lja/ + noun | a phenomenon | Il y a du vent. /i.lja dy vɑ̃/ Il y a du soleil. /i.lja dy sɔ.lɛj/ |
| a dedicated verb | rain, snow | Il pleut. /il plø/ Il neige. /il nɛʒ/ |
All three use
il, which is not a real subject — seeil-impersonnel.English uses "it is" for nearly all of these — "it's fine", "it's windy", "it's raining" — so the single English pattern splits into three French ones.
Il est beauis not the weather; it means "he is handsome".
Nouns
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
le temps | /tɑ̃/ | weather |
la météo | /me.te.o/ | forecast |
le soleil | /sɔ.lɛj/ | sun |
la pluie | /plɥi/ | rain |
la neige | /nɛʒ/ | snow |
le vent | /vɑ̃/ | wind |
le nuage | /nɥaʒ/ | cloud |
l'orage (m.) | /ɔ.ʁaʒ/ | thunderstorm |
le brouillard | /bʁu.jaʁ/ | fog |
la glace | /ɡlas/ | ice |
le verglas | /vɛʁ.ɡla/ | black ice |
la grêle | /ɡʁɛl/ | hail |
la température | /tɑ̃.pe.ʁa.tyʁ/ | temperature |
le degré | /də.ɡʁe/ | degree |
la saison | /sɛ.zɔ̃/ | season |
le climat | /kli.ma/ | climate |
la canicule | /ka.ni.kyl/ | heatwave |
l'averse (f.) | /a.vɛʁs/ | shower |
l'éclaircie (f.) | /e.klɛʁ.si/ | sunny spell |
Verbs
| Verb | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
pleuvoir — il pleut | /plø.vwaʁ/ · /il plø/ | to rain |
neiger — il neige | /nɛ.ʒe/ · /il nɛʒ/ | to snow |
geler — il gèle | /ʒə.le/ · /il ʒɛl/ | to freeze |
faire beau | /fɛʁ bo/ | to be fine weather |
faire mauvais | /fɛʁ mo.vɛ/ | to be bad weather |
souffler | /su.fle/ | to blow |
se couvrir | /sə ku.vʁiʁ/ | to cloud over |
se réchauffer | /sə ʁe.ʃo.fe/ | to warm up |
refroidir | /ʁə.fʁwa.diʁ/ | to get colder |
prévoir | /pʁe.vwaʁ/ | to forecast |
Adjectives
| Masculine | Feminine | English |
|---|---|---|
beau /bo/ | belle /bɛl/ | fine |
mauvais /mo.vɛ/ | mauvaise /mo.vɛz/ | bad |
chaud /ʃo/ | chaude /ʃod/ | hot |
froid /fʁwa/ | froide /fʁwad/ | cold |
doux /du/ | douce /dus/ | mild |
frais /fʁɛ/ | fraîche /fʁɛʃ/ | cool |
humide /y.mid/ | humide /y.mid/ | damp |
sec /sɛk/ | sèche /sɛʃ/ | dry |
nuageux /ny.a.ʒø/ | nuageuse /ny.a.ʒøz/ | cloudy |
ensoleillé /ɑ̃.so.lɛ.je/ | ensoleillée /ɑ̃.so.lɛ.je/ | sunny |
pluvieux /ply.vjø/ | pluvieuse /ply.vjøz/ | rainy |
orageux /o.ʁa.ʒø/ | orageuse /o.ʁa.ʒøz/ | stormy |
venteux /vɑ̃.tø/ | venteuse /vɑ̃.tøz/ | windy |
glacial /ɡla.sjal/ | glaciale /ɡla.sjal/ | freezing |
Set phrases
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
Quel temps fait-il ? | /kɛl tɑ̃ fɛ.t‿il/ | what's the weather like? |
Il fait beau. | /il fɛ bo/ | the weather's fine |
Il fait mauvais. | /il fɛ mo.vɛ/ | the weather's bad |
Il fait chaud. | /il fɛ ʃo/ | it's hot |
Il fait froid. | /il fɛ fʁwa/ | it's cold |
Il fait 20 degrés. | /il fɛ vɛ̃ də.ɡʁe/ | it's 20 degrees |
Il pleut. | /il plø/ | it's raining |
Il neige. | /il nɛʒ/ | it's snowing |
Il y a du vent. | /i.lja dy vɑ̃/ | it's windy |
Il y a du soleil. | /i.lja dy sɔ.lɛj/ | it's sunny |
Il y a des nuages. | /i.lja de nɥaʒ/ | it's cloudy |
Il pleut des cordes. | /il plø de kɔʁd/ | it's pouring |
On gèle ! | /ɔ̃ ʒɛl/ | we're freezing |
Quelle chaleur ! | /kɛl ʃa.lœʁ/ | what a scorcher |
Il pleut des cordesis "it's raining ropes" — the French version of "raining cats and dogs".
Traps
| Trap | Explanation |
|---|---|
le temps means both weather and time | Quel temps fait-il ? (weather) Je n'ai pas le temps (time). |
il fait, not c'est | Il fait froid, not C'est froidC'est froid means "this thing is cold". |
avoir chaud for a person | J'ai chaud = I'm hot Il fait chaud = it's hot out. |
il y a du vent, not il fait du vent | Though il fait du vent is also heard. |
Temperature with il fait | Il fait 20 degrés — not C'est 20 degrés. |
beau about weather means sunny | Not "beautiful". Il fait beau = it's fine and sunny. |
pleuvoir exists only with il | It has no other subject. |
The three verbs of hot and cold
`faire` · `avoir` · `être` — and which goes with what
English uses "to be" for all three of these, which is precisely why they get mixed up:
| French | About | English | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
il fait chaud | the weather | it is hot | /il fɛ ʃo/ |
j'ai chaud | a person | I am hot | /ʒe ʃo/ |
c'est chaud | an object | it is hot | /sɛ ʃo/ |
All three with the same adjective, chaud:
| Pronunciation | ||
|---|---|---|
Il fait chaud aujourd'hui. | it's hot today | /il fɛ ʃo o.ʒuʁ.dɥi/ |
J'ai chaud, j'ouvre la fenêtre. | I'm hot, I'll open the window | /ʒe ʃo ʒuvʁ la fə.nɛtʁ/ |
Attention, c'est chaud ! | careful, it's hot | /a.tɑ̃.sjɔ̃ sɛ ʃo/ |
Saying Je suis chaud does not mean you are warm. It means something quite different in colloquial French, and it is worth avoiding.
The same pattern applies to froid, faim, soif, peur, sommeil:
| Pronunciation | ||
|---|---|---|
J'ai froid. | I'm cold | /ʒe fʁwa/ |
J'ai faim. | I'm hungry | /ʒe fɛ̃/ |
J'ai soif. | I'm thirsty | /ʒe swaf/ |
J'ai peur. | I'm afraid | /ʒe pœʁ/ |
J'ai sommeil. | I'm sleepy | /ʒe sɔ.mɛj/ |
All with
avoir, and all without an article. And their intensity takestrès, notbeaucoup:J'ai très faim.
English says "I am" for every one of them. French says "I have". The full family is in avoir-expressions.