
5 Types of French Magazines for Entertaining Language Learning
Maybe you want to read some short stories or catch up on the latest sports news.
Or maybe you’d like to test your French vocabulary skills with some games and puzzles.
You may want to check out some French magazines!
Learn with your favorite topic, from fashion to sports to current events. With the variety and accessibility on the internet, there’s something for everyone.
Contents
- French Puzzle Magazines
- French Sports Magazines
- French Literary Magazines
- French Fashion Magazines
- French News Magazines
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
French Puzzle Magazines
Puzzle-focused magazines represent a great challenge for language learners. Crosswords are often difficult even for native French speakers, so don’t be discouraged if you find mots croisés (crosswords) difficult.
Tired of crosswords? Try mots mêlés (word search) or mots fléchés (arrow puzzles)—a variant of a crossword that has arrows inside the grid, with clues preceding the arrows.
- Tele 7 Jeux: The puzzles section of this TV and radio news publication has many crossword puzzles that you can do right on the website.
- Femme Actuelle Jeux: This women’s magazine has different types of puzzles available online, including crosswords and word finds. There are also “cut words,” which has you rearrange letter groups into words—which is an excellent tool for learners.
French Sports Magazines
Just like magazines published in English, these often-monthly publications will typically feature recaps and previews of tournaments and games while also giving tips for novice players.
If you’re local, sports magazines are a great source for discovering new places to hone your skills. For example, skiing magazines suggest the best locations to spend a weekend hitting the slopes. This encourages mingling with others and improving your language skills in a completely unfamiliar setting—on the practice field.
A great way to combine two ways of keeping up with French—reading and listening—is to watch the sports news after you’ve read the most recent edition of a sports magazine. This will complement what you’ve read by providing more updated information and further specifics on tournaments and players.
FluentU is a good place to do this, with the support of dual-language, interactive subtitles.
Along with sports clips, FluentU has other authentic content like movie clips and commercials. These videos have built-in learning tools like clickable subtitles, professional English translations, flashcards and fun quizzes.
Pair FluentU with magazines on any topic that you’re interested in, including sports ones like we mention below.
- Wider: If you’re the outdoorsy type, this one’s for you! Wider publishes articles about outdoor sports as well as hiking and running trails. They post information about trails in France (and abroad), as well as tips and guides for getting involved.
- Skier: Hit the slopes with this skiing publication, the resource that “makes the powder talk.” Besides articles about the sport, you’ll also find a huge database of over 2500 reviews of skis to help you find the perfect pair.
- Sport & Vie: This is a more general sports resource, if you’re looking for a broader view of the world of sports in France and beyond. This magazine publishes articles about training, nutrition, psychology, medicine and other aspects of fitness that aspiring athletes will find useful.
To brush up on your sports vocabulary, check out this post:
Sports in French: 250 Words and Phrases To Get You in the Game | FluentU French Blog
Learn all about sports in French. Check out this list of over 250 words and phrases to learn how to talk about sports in French, whether you’re a player or just a…
French Literary Magazines
When you pick up a literary magazine in French, you get to read some of the best short stories and poetry in the French literary scene, and to discover new writers and poets.
Literary magazines also tend to list great bookstores or reading events in the area. This is a great opportunity to discuss with other literary lovers what you’ve read recently, and will help you practice your vocabulary.
They also discuss the latest news—who’s won recent awards, what book was highly reviewed and other interesting industry information.
- Europe: Founded in 1923, Europe is a prestigious and well-established voice in the literary industry. Besides reviews of books and related cultural features, this magazine has published fiction and poetry within its pages from a diverse range of authors from the French-speaking world and beyond.
- Livres Hebdo: Part of the well-known Charlie Hebdo family, Livres Hebdo is an industry magazine, intended for book professionals like booksellers, publishers and librarians. As a result, the information shared in this magazine is focused more on the business end of the book publishing industry.
French Fashion Magazines
French fashion magazines are a great tool for learning new vocabulary relating to clothes and fashion, since many pages are filled with visual aids.
If you enjoy fashion, these magazines give you great conversation topics with friends who also keep up with the latest: What’s going on at fashion week? Which celebrities changed their fashion style recently? What colors are in for the winter season?
- Marie Claire: This magazine has a long history, dating back to its first publication in France in 1937. While the focus, like Elle, is on women’s fashion and beauty, Marie Claire takes a less fluffy approach and talks about women’s issues, culture, finance and other serious topic.
- Vogue: A high fashion magazine, Vogue is a publication that covers haute couture fashion, the fashion industry as a whole, beauty and other similar topics. Many high-quality images are featured in the magazine, offering plenty of context for readers.
The publication also writes about men’s interests, touching on topics like fitness, music, tech, books and more.
French News Magazines
Picking up a news magazine is a great change from a newspaper because it typically contains more photo essays, giving you an opportunity to read articles with more visual aids. Features are longer and more in-depth, giving extra detail that may not be found in newspapers.
Though magazines don’t provide breaking news stories, they have the unique chance to explore aspects of the news that newspapers just don’t have time for. They can catch you up on international news, keep you knowledgeable about French culture and teach you new vocabulary.
- Le Point: For a more political look at the world, Le Point is a magazine in the style of Newsweek and Time Magazine. It covers news and politics from a largely conservative perspective.
- Le Figaro Magazine: Le Figaro is a daily right-wing newspaper in France that dates back to the impressively long-ago year of 1826. The magazine is the newspaper’s weekly supplement, and it includes news features about current events and politics, as well as coverage of the art and entertainment industries.
- La Revue: This bi-monthly magazine collaborates with key personalities and names in French academics, culture, politics, science and more. Along with general articles on a wide range of topics, you’ll also find interviews and retrospectives.
French Magazines are a great way to learn the language! From puzzles to poetry to news features, magazines provide access to the latest news and culture while introducing new vocabulary and testing your French skills.
Pick one up today and read your way to fluency!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)