{"id":119769,"date":"2023-05-16T16:09:40","date_gmt":"2023-05-16T20:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/how-are-you-in-french\/"},"modified":"2025-01-01T19:17:23","modified_gmt":"2025-01-02T00:17:23","slug":"how-are-you-in-french","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/how-are-you-in-french\/","title":{"rendered":"18 Easy Ways to Ask “How Are You” in French"},"content":{"rendered":"

Knowing how to ask “How are you?” is fundamental for meeting people or making friends in French<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read on to learn different ways to ask “How are you?”<\/strong> in French, with a brief explanation of each phrase.<\/p>\n

And don’t forget to click on the phrase to hear it pronounced<\/a>!<\/p>\n

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

<\/p>\n

How to Ask “How Are You” in French<\/h2>\n

1. Comment allez-vous ?<\/em> \u00a0\u2014 <\/em>How are you?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Formal<\/p>\n

Comment allez-vous ?<\/em> is the most basic way of asking “how are you” in French. Note that vous<\/em>,<\/a> the formal “you,” is what makes the phrase formal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

You would use this version with people seen as superior to you<\/strong> such as a boss, a teacher or an elder.<\/p>\n

You also use\u00a0vous\u00a0<\/em>for a plural “you,” so if you’re asking two or more people how they are, you use this version as well.<\/p>\n

Notice that with the verb aller <\/em>(to go), <\/em>you’re not so much asking “How are you?” but rather “How are you going?”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Also note that we use a hyphen and switch the subject and the verb in order to form a question.<\/p>\n

2. Comment \u00e7a va ?<\/em> \u2014 How’s it going?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Comment \u00e7a va ? <\/em>is an informal version<\/strong>\u00a0of Comment allez-vous ? <\/em>so you should expect a similar response.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It’s worth noting that while the intent of the question is the same, the general or open phrasing of this question might encourage a longer answer, although this will often depend on your relationship with the person you are talking to.<\/p>\n

Use this less formal version with friends, family and those of similar social status to you<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

3. Comment vas-tu ?<\/em> \u2014 How are you?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Comment vas-tu ? <\/em>is a more informal<\/strong> way of saying Comment allez-vous ? <\/em>Note that, again, the verb aller<\/em> is used, giving this phrase a more direct meaning of “How are you going?”<\/p>\n

The main difference between these two phrases is that in Comment vas-tu ? vous <\/em>has been replaced by\u00a0tu<\/em>, which is the informal singular pronoun for “you” in French.<\/p>\n

Comment vas-tu ?<\/em> is often used in French with\u00a0friends, family and people you are on familiar terms with<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

4. \u00c7a va ?<\/em> \u2014 How’s it going?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

\u00c7a va <\/em>(“How’s it going?” or “Are you okay?”) is an even more informal<\/strong> way of asking\u00a0Comment \u00e7a va ?<\/em> Alternatively, it can express concern as in asking if someone is okay.<\/p>\n

This question is simple to use and also to respond to: \u00c7a va bien\/\u00e7a va mal <\/em>(It’s going well\/It’s not going well).<\/p>\n

It’s generally used with people you know very well, although it’s not uncommon to hear it used between strangers or acquaintances.<\/p>\n

5. Tu vas bien ?<\/em> \/ Vous allez bien ?<\/em> \u2014 <\/em>You’re doing well?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Tu vas bien\/vous allez bien ? <\/em>(You’re doing well) can be used to ask “How are you?” or to express preoccupation, depending on the tone and context.<\/p>\n

In these phrases, tu <\/em>is used as the informal singular “you” and vous<\/em> can be used either as a formal singular “you” or the plural “you” form.<\/p>\n

When speaking French, we can ask questions by just raising the tone of our voice<\/strong>, so we don’t have to use Est-ce que <\/em>or a hyphen.<\/p>\n

6. Quoi de neuf ?<\/em> \u2014 What’s new?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Quoi de neuf ? <\/em>isn’t exactly asking “How are you?” but it’s still a question you can ask when you start a conversation.<\/p>\n

It can also be translated as “What’s up?”<\/strong> and is an informal question you ask someone you haven’t seen in a while.<\/p>\n

Quoi de neuf ?<\/em> is more colloquial than the other phrases previously listed and is used in informal contexts, such as with close friends or family members. It’s one of those phrases that when used correctly, you come off sounding a lot more natural and native as a French speaker. You can learn more in the FluentU French YouTube video<\/a> below:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

7. Qu’est-ce qu’il y a ?<\/em> \u2014 What’s wrong?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Formal and Informal<\/p>\n

Qu’est-ce qu’il y a ?<\/em> is used to express concern<\/strong> and can be both formal and informal. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Although it doesn’t exactly mean “How are you?” it’s a common way to start a conversation with someone you know.<\/p>\n

This question will often encourage a longer response from the person you are talking to as it’s open and initiates further conversation.<\/p>\n

8. Que fais-tu ?<\/em> \u2014 What’s up?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Que fais-tu ?<\/em> literally means “What are you doing?” in English, but it’s a great conversation starter because it can also be interpreted as “What’s up?”<\/strong><\/p>\n

As well as the general meaning of this phrase being more colloquial, leading to it being used in informal contexts, this question is also informal because of the use of tu<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Despite being used in similar contexts to the other phrases used to say “How are you?” in French, it’s likely that the responses you’ll receive with this question will vary.<\/p>\n

9. \u00c7a roule ? <\/em> \u2014 How’s it going?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Another informal way to ask someone “How are you?” in French is by saying \u00c7a roule ?<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

When translated directly into English this phrase means “it rolls?” but is used in French as an informal way of asking someone “How’s it going?”<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a phrase that you should mainly use in informal situations with people you are familiar with such as friends or family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It’s worth noting that \u00c7a roule<\/em> is also used in other situations as a question or response for confirmation or agreement.<\/p>\n

10. Comment tu te sens ?<\/em> \u00a0<\/em>\u2014 How are you feeling?<\/h3>\n

Formality:<\/strong> Informal<\/p>\n

Comment tu te sens ?<\/em> translates directly into English as “How are you feeling?”<\/strong> and is often used to ask someone how they are in French.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Like its equivalent in English, it’s most commonly used in informal contexts, particularly when you are familiar with the person you’re talking to. This phrase can be interpreted as a more open question, inviting the person you’re speaking with to share more about their feelings and life.<\/p>\n

If you haven’t been exposed to too much French yet, there are some great resources out there that’ll help you practice asking and replying to “How are you?” as well as other basic greetings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For example you could try watching TV shows in French<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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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