{"id":118363,"date":"2024-01-22T15:14:32","date_gmt":"2024-01-22T20:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/french-baby-talk\/"},"modified":"2025-06-29T05:10:33","modified_gmt":"2025-06-29T09:10:33","slug":"french-baby-talk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-baby-talk\/","title":{"rendered":"38 Fun French Baby Talk Words"},"content":{"rendered":"

When learning French, most people focus on adult conversations\u2014practical for travel, work or socializing. But there’s a corner of the language often overlooked: French baby talk. These whimsical, playful words not only help you communicate with young Francophones but also offer unique insights into French culture and humor.<\/p>\n

These 38 terms will help you learn how French children\u2014and their parents\u2014use language in everyday life.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

38 French Baby Talk Words<\/h2>\n

In this post, I’ve defined “French baby talk” as the language you’ll use to talk to\u00a0<\/em>babies and\u00a0about babies.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

1. Areuh areuh<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the meaningless noise that babies make, like our “goo goo ga ga,” as interpreted by the French ear.<\/p>\n

2. Mama<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the short version of maman\u00a0<\/em>(mommy) which is what very young children call their mothers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3. Papa<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

The informal version of p\u00e8re<\/em> (father). When you have an ornery, feisty, poopy or vomity young Frenchman on your knee, you can say Allez hop, tu veux aller voir ton papa ?<\/em> (Here we go, wanna go see your dad?)<\/p>\n

4. Bobo<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is an “owie” but also, hilariously, the French term for a “hipster” (shortened from bourgeois boh\u00e8me<\/em>, or “bourgeois bohemian”).<\/p>\n

5. Toutou<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

A doggy; un chien<\/em>\u00a0is the standard word.<\/p>\n

6. Dada<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

A horsey; un cheval\u00a0<\/em>is the standard word.<\/p>\n

7. Dodo<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This noun refers to the act of sleeping or to bedtime. Au dodo !<\/em> means “let’s get to bed!” The life of Parisians is often described as m\u00e9tro, boulot, dodo\u00a0<\/em>(metro, work, sleepy time).<\/p>\n

8. Lolo<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Breast milk; le lait<\/em>\u00a0is the standard term.<\/p>\n

9. Zizi<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the willy or wee-wee; la\u00a0bite<\/em> is the slang that older kids and grown-ups use for the penis, and le p\u00e9nis\u00a0<\/em>is the standard word.<\/p>\n

10. Prout<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a fart, and also, according to the French ear, the onomatopoeia for the sound you make while performing one. I personally find it a challenge to even form that French r<\/em><\/a>\u00a0and particular ou<\/em> vowel sound<\/a> with my front end.<\/p>\n

11. Pipi<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is wee, that is, the childish term for “urine.” Grown-ups may call it la\u00a0pisse<\/em>, and doctors, l’urine<\/em>.<\/p>\n

12. Popo<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Poop.<\/p>\n

13. Caca<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is also poop. Faire caca<\/em> is a common way to talk to children about doing number two, and you can even leave off the noun object itself to get a sentence like Il a fait dans sa culotte.<\/em>\u00a0(“He pooped himself,” or literally, “He made in his underpants.”)<\/p>\n

14. Doudou<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is any blankey or cuddly object that a small child drags around. This may be used as a feminine word with some speakers.<\/p>\n

15. Nounours<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is more specifically a teddy bear.<\/p>\n

16. Ouah-ouah<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This can be a term for “doggy,” and it’s also more commonly what the dog says.<\/p>\n

17. Minou<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a kitty or a pussycat. It’s used with children in this sense, but be aware that among adults it can have the same, crude second meaning as the English word, referring just to the female sex genitals (not to a woman herself) and does not sound harsh or sexist.<\/p>\n

18. Joujou<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a toy; the standard word is jouet<\/em>. Faire joujou\u00a0<\/em>is the verb for “to play” (jouer<\/em> in standard French). I’ve found that T’as envie de jouer ?<\/em> (Do you feel like playing?) is pretty worthless for trying to distract a sobbing young Frenchman, whereas Montre-moi ton joujou pr\u00e9f\u00e9r\u00e9.<\/em> (Show me your favorite toy) works wonders.<\/p>\n

19. Ma\u00eetre\/Ma\u00eetresse<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the term for “teacher” that is used by elementary school students. It’s common for children to use just these words when directly addressing their teachers, in addition to the obvious Monsieur\/Madame<\/em>\u00a0(Mr.\/Ms.) [last name here].<\/p>\n

20. \u00c9l\u00e8ve<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is used to describe students in elementary, middle and high schools. Elementary and preschool students are also often just referred to as les enfants<\/em> (the children).<\/p>\n

21. \u00c9tudiant\/\u00e9tudiante<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Be careful not\u00a0<\/em>to use this with children; this\u00a0word is generally reserved to describe\u00a0university students.<\/p>\n

22. Professeur<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a teacher of junior high, high school and university students. Occasionally, professeure<\/em>\u00a0is used for a female teacher, though the\u00a0Acad\u00e9mie Fran\u00e7aise<\/em> (French Academy) hates this<\/a>. The shortened prof<\/em><\/a> is actually the most common way to refer to a teacher at these levels, and avoids the complicated issues of feminization of nouns describing job positions.<\/p>\n

23. Bibi<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a baby’s bottle, and is short for biberon<\/em>.<\/p>\n

24. Hop-l\u00e0<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Say this when an inexperienced walker takes a tumble, like our “oopsy-daisy.”<\/p>\n

25. Nounou<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the babysitter or nanny; children who are too young for la maternelle<\/em> (see below) may aller\u00a0chez la nounou\u00a0<\/em>(go to the babysitter’s\/day care) while their parents work.<\/p>\n

26. Risette<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

That little scrunchy, contented half-grimace that babies make and that their parents delightedly interpret as a smile has no proper descriptor in English, but now you at least have the word for it in French. Tu fais une risette ? <\/em>(Are you making a little grin?) is what a mother might crow to her delighted young man before she realizes that the source of his pleasure is having just defecated himself.<\/p>\n

27. Coco<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is a childish term for “egg,” borrowed from the term coquille\u00a0<\/em>(shell). The standard French term is \u0153uf<\/em>. Mon coco\u00a0<\/em>means “my darling” and\u00a0coco\u00a0<\/em>is also the standard word\u00a0for “coconut.”<\/p>\n

28. Quenotte<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

A tooth; the standard word is une dent.<\/em><\/p>\n

29.<\/strong> Tantine<\/em><\/h3>\n

Auntie; the standard word is une\u00a0tante.\u00a0<\/em>This baby talk word is a little bit old-fashioned, so you might not be able to use it so much with modern babies.<\/p>\n

30. Tata<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is another word for “auntie,” but be careful as it doubles as a dated pejorative for “homosexual” or “sissy.”<\/p>\n

31. Tonton<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Uncle; un oncle<\/em>\u00a0is standard.<\/p>\n

32. P\u00e9p\u00e9<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Grandpa, gramps; un grand-p\u00e8re<\/em>\u00a0is standard.<\/p>\n

33. M\u00e9m\u00e9<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Grandma, granny; une grand-m\u00e8re\u00a0<\/em>is standard. For both of these baby talk words for grandparents, keep in mind that there are tons of variations, just as there are in English!<\/p>\n

34.<\/strong> Menotte<\/em><\/h3>\n

This is a child’s cute little hand or fist; une main<\/em> is the standard word. In its plural form, les menottes<\/em>\u00a0are, in contrast, handcuffs.<\/p>\n

35. Non<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This, of course, means “no” and most kids seem to go through a phase in which it’s just hilarious to say this in response to\u00a0everything.<\/p>\n

36. Faire sisite<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is the childish slang verb for “to sit down”; s’asseoir\u00a0<\/em>is the standard version.<\/p>\n

37. Casse-pieds<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

This is what you call a child who is getting on your nerves (but please not to his face). It literally means “break-feet.”<\/p>\n

38. Jouet de bain<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Bath toy.<\/p>\n

One of the best ways to learn French baby talk and more informal French vocabulary is to immerse yourself in French content so you can see how the language is actually used by native speakers.<\/p>\n

For example, you could watch French cartoons<\/a> or try listening for some of these terms on an immersive language learning program like FluentU<\/a>.

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

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You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n

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