FlexiLingoIn one line
French texts never explain their acronyms — the reader is assumed to know, and exams assume the same.
Administration and civil life
| Acronym | Full form | English |
|---|---|---|
CV /se.ve/ | curriculum vitae /ky.ʁi.ky.lɔm vi.te/ | CV, résumé |
RIB /ʁib/ | relevé d'identité bancaire /ʁəl.ve di.dɑ̃.ti.te bɑ̃.kɛʁ/ | bank details |
CAF /kaf/ | Caisse d'allocations familiales /kɛs da.lo.ka.sjɔ̃ fa.mi.ljal/ | family benefits office |
CPAM /se.pe.a.ɛm/ | Caisse primaire d'assurance maladie /kɛs pʁi.mɛʁ da.sy.ʁɑ̃s ma.la.di/ | health insurance office |
RSA /ɛʁ.ɛs.a/ | revenu de solidarité active /ʁəv.ny də so.li.da.ʁi.te ak.tiv/ | income support |
SMIC /smik/ | salaire minimum interprofessionnel de croissance /sa.lɛʁ mi.ni.mɔm ɛ̃.tɛʁ.pʁo.fɛ.sjɔ.nɛl də kʁwa.sɑ̃s/ | minimum wage |
CDI /se.de.i/ | contrat à durée indéterminée /kɔ̃.tʁa a dy.ʁe ɛ̃.de.tɛʁ.mi.ne/ | permanent contract |
CDD /se.de.de/ | contrat à durée déterminée /kɔ̃.tʁa a dy.ʁe de.tɛʁ.mi.ne/ | fixed-term contract |
RTT /ɛʁ.te.te/ | réduction du temps de travail /ʁe.dyk.sjɔ̃ dy tɑ̃ də tʁa.vaj/ | time off in lieu |
TVA /te.ve.a/ | taxe sur la valeur ajoutée /taks syʁ la va.lœʁ a.ʒu.te/ | VAT |
SIRET /si.ʁɛt/ | — | company registration number |
INSEE /in.se/ | — | national statistics office |
Transport
| Acronym | Full form | English |
|---|---|---|
SNCF /ɛs.ɛn.se.ɛf/ | Société nationale des chemins de fer français /so.sje.te na.sjo.nal de ʃə.mɛ̃ də fɛʁ fʁɑ̃.sɛ/ | French railways |
RATP /ɛʁ.a.te.pe/ | — | Paris transport authority |
TGV /te.ʒe.ve/ | train à grande vitesse /tʁɛ̃ a ɡʁɑ̃d vi.tɛs/ | high-speed train |
RER /ɛʁ.ə.ɛʁ/ | réseau express régional /ʁe.zo ɛks.pʁɛs ʁe.ʒjɔ.nal/ | Paris suburban rail |
TER /te.ə.ɛʁ/ | transport express régional /tʁɑ̃s.pɔʁ ɛks.pʁɛs ʁe.ʒjɔ.nal/ | regional train |
A6 /a sis/ N7 /ɛn sɛt/ | autoroute /o.to.ʁut/ nationale /na.sjo.nal/ | motorway · trunk road |
Education
| Acronym | Full form | English |
|---|---|---|
bac /bak/ | baccalauréat /ba.ka.lo.ʁe.a/ | school-leaving exam |
BTS /be.te.ɛs/ | brevet de technicien supérieur /bʁə.vɛ də tɛk.ni.sjɛ̃ sy.pe.ʁjœʁ/ | two-year technical diploma |
DUT /de.y.te/ | — | two-year university diploma |
IUT /i.y.te/ | — | technical institute |
L1 /ɛl œ̃/ L2 /ɛl dø/ L3 /ɛl tʁwa/ | licence /li.sɑ̃s/ | undergraduate years |
M1 /ɛm œ̃/ M2 /ɛm dø/ | master /mas.tœʁ/ | master's years |
DELF /dɛlf/ DALF /dalf/ | — | French language exams |
TCF /te.se.ɛf/ TEF /tɛf/ | — | French language tests |
FLE /flə/ | français langue étrangère /fʁɑ̃.sɛ lɑ̃ɡ e.tʁɑ̃.ʒɛʁ/ | French as a foreign language |
Written abbreviations
| Abbreviation | Full form | English |
|---|---|---|
M. /mə.sjø/ | Monsieur /mə.sjø/ | Mr |
Mme /ma.dam/ | Madame /ma.dam/ | Mrs, Ms |
Mlle /mad.mwa.zɛl/ | Mademoiselle /mad.mwa.zɛl/ | Miss — obsolete |
Dr /dɔk.tœʁ/ | Docteur /dɔk.tœʁ/ | Dr |
av. /av.ny/ | avenue /av.ny/ | avenue |
bd /bul.vaʁ/ | boulevard /bul.vaʁ/ | boulevard |
RDV /ɛʁ.de.ve/ | rendez-vous /ʁɑ̃.de.vu/ | appointment |
SVP /ɛs.ve.pe/ svp /sil.vu.plɛ/ | s'il vous plaît /sil vu plɛ/ | please |
etc. /ɛt.se.te.ʁa/ | et cetera /ɛt.se.te.ʁa/ | etc. |
càd /sɛ.ta.diʁ/ c.-à-d. /sɛ.ta.diʁ/ | c'est-à-dire /sɛ.ta.diʁ/ | i.e. |
p. ex. /paʁ ɛɡ.zɑ̃pl/ | par exemple /paʁ ɛɡ.zɑ̃pl/ | e.g. |
env. /ɑ̃.vi.ʁɔ̃/ | environ /ɑ̃.vi.ʁɔ̃/ | approx. |
réf. /ʁef/ | référence /ʁe.fe.ʁɑ̃s/ | ref. |
PJ /pe.ʒi/ | pièce jointe /pjɛs ʒwɛ̃t/ | attachment |
n° /ny.me.ʁo/ | numéro /ny.me.ʁo/ | no. |
Cie /kɔ̃.pa.ni/ | compagnie /kɔ̃.pa.ni/ | Co. |
1er /pʁə.mje/ 1re /pʁə.mjɛʁ/ | premier /pʁə.mje/ première /pʁə.mjɛʁ/ | 1st |
2e /dø.zjɛm/ | deuxième /dø.zjɛm/ | 2nd |
Mlleis no longer used in official writing — it was removed from official forms in 2012. UseMmefor every woman.Note that French abbreviations take no full stop when the last letter is kept:
Mme,Dr,bd.M.takes one because the.replaces the missing letters. English is less consistent about this.
Words shortened in speech
French speakers clip long words — and the short form dominates in speech:
| Short | Full | English |
|---|---|---|
le resto /lə ʁɛs.to/ | le restaurant /ʁɛs.to.ʁɑ̃/ | restaurant |
le ciné /lə si.ne/ | le cinéma /si.ne.ma/ | cinema |
la télé /la te.le/ | la télévision /la te.le.vi.zjɔ̃/ | TV |
le métro /lə me.tʁo/ | le métropolitain /lə me.tʁo.po.li.tɛ̃/ | metro |
la fac /la fak/ | la faculté /la fa.kyl.te/ | university |
le prof /lə pʁɔf/ | le professeur /lə pʁo.fɛ.sœʁ/ | teacher |
l'appart /la.paʁt/ | l'appartement /a.paʁ.tə.mɑ̃/ | flat |
l'ordi /lɔʁ.di/ | l'ordinateur /ɔʁ.di.na.tœʁ/ | computer |
la muscu /la mys.ky/ | la musculation /la mys.ky.la.sjɔ̃/ | weight training |
le petit-déj /lə pə.ti.deʒ/ | le petit-déjeuner /pə.ti.de.ʒø.ne/ | breakfast |
sympa /sɛ̃.pa/ | sympathique /sɛ̃.pa.tik/ | nice |
d'ac /dak/ | d'accord /da.kɔʁ/ | OK |
l'aprem /la.pʁɛm/ | l'après-midi /la.pʁɛ.mi.di/ | afternoon |
la pub /la pyb/ | la publicité /la py.bli.si.te/ | advert |
l'info /lɛ̃.fo/ | l'information /lɛ̃.fɔʁ.ma.sjɔ̃/ | news |
le vélo /lə ve.lo/ | le vélocipède /lə ve.lɔ.si.pɛd/ | bike |
la photo /la fo.to/ | la photographie /la fo.to.ɡʁa.fi/ | photo |
l'expo /lɛks.po/ | l'exposition /lɛks.po.zi.sjɔ̃/ | exhibition |
le dico /lə di.ko/ | le dictionnaire /lə dik.sjɔ.nɛʁ/ | dictionary |
bio /bjo/ | biologique /bjo.lo.ʒik/ | organic |
The pattern is clear: the first syllable or two survives and the rest drops. And the gender of the full word is kept:
la téléis feminine becausetélévisionis.
English clips words the same way — telly, uni, photo, info — so the habit is familiar. Two things differ. First, French clips far more of its everyday vocabulary, so a conversation can be full of forms you have never seen written. Second, some clipped forms look like English words that mean something else:
la pubis an advert, not a pub;biois organic, not biology.
Where you see and hear them
| Type of text | Which abbreviations | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| job advert | CDI, CDD, SMIC, BTS, CV | /se.de.i/ · /se.de.de/ · /smik/ · /be.te.ɛs/ · /se.ve/ |
| property advert | T2, RDC, CC, m² | /te dø/ · /ɛʁ.de.se/ · /se.se/ · /mɛtʁ ka.ʁe/ |
| official text | CAF, CPAM, RIB, PJ | /kaf/ · /se.pe.a.ɛm/ · /ʁib/ · /pe.ʒi/ |
| station announcement | SNCF, TGV, RER, TER | /ɛs.ɛn.se.ɛf/ · /te.ʒe.ve/ · /ɛʁ.ə.ɛʁ/ · /te.ə.ɛʁ/ |
| everyday speech | resto, ciné, sympa, d'ac | /ʁɛs.to/ · /si.ne/ · /sɛ̃.pa/ · /dak/ |
RDV, SVP, càd, PJ | /ɛʁ.de.ve/ · /ɛs.ve.pe/ · /sɛ.ta.diʁ/ · /pe.ʒi/ |
Traps
| Trap | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Acronyms are read letter by letter | SNCF = /ɛs ɛn se ɛf/ CV = /se ve/. |
| Except those that have become words | SMIC /smik/ SIDA /si.da/ INSEE /in.se/. |
| The gender comes from the head word | la SNCF is feminine because société is. |
CDI is good news, CDD is not | In a job advert, permanent versus fixed-term. |
Do not use Mlle | Mme for every woman. |
| A clipped form keeps its gender | la photo feminine, le vélo masculine. |
| French letter names are not English ones | G is /ʒe/, J is /ʒi/, E is /ə/ — see the note below. |
That last row causes real trouble. French letter names are not the English ones, and several are swapped in a way guaranteed to confuse:
Letter French Sounds like English G/ʒe/ "J" J/ʒi/ "G" I/i/ "E" E/ə/ "uh" So
CDIspelled aloud sounds like "say day ee", and a French speaker spelling their name will say letters that map onto different English ones. This matters most on the phone.
Why French has so many acronyms
a centralised administration with very long institution names
French institutions have extremely long names:
Caisse primaire d'assurance maladie— five wordsSociété nationale des chemins de fer français— six words
They are unusable in everyday speech, so the acronym replaced the name — and today most French people do not know the full form either.
The practical consequence: learn the acronym as a word, not as an acronym. You do not need to know what CAF stands for; you need to know it is the family benefits office.
And in an exam you are never asked to expand an acronym — only to know what it refers to.
Two priority groups:
| Priority | Which | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| essential | CDI CDD SMIC CV RDV SNCF RER TGV bac | /se.de.i/ · /se.de.de/ · /smik/ · /se.ve/ · /ɛʁ.de.ve/ · /ɛs.ɛn.se.ɛf/ · /ɛʁ.ə.ɛʁ/ · /te.ʒe.ve/ · /bak/ |
| useful | CAF CPAM RIB TVA BTS | /kaf/ · /se.pe.a.ɛm/ · /ʁib/ · /te.ve.a/ · /be.te.ɛs/ |
And the clipped spoken forms (resto, sympa, d'ac) matter more in the listening section than the administrative acronyms do.