Louisiana French/Numbers and Time
Numbers
Vocabulary
| # | French[note 1] | Pronunciation (IPA)[note 2] | English | Notes |
| 0 | zéro | /zero/ | zero | |
| 1 | un | /ɛ̃/ | one | /ɛ̃n/ before a vowel sound, une /ɛ̃n/ before a feminine noun |
| 2 | deux | /dø/ | two | |
| 3 | trois | /trwa/ | three | |
| 4 | quatre | /kat(r)/ | four | |
| 5 | cinq | /sɛ̃k/ | five | |
| 6 | six | /sis/ | six | /sis/ alone, /si/ before a consonant sound, /siz/ before a vowel sound |
| 7 | sept | /sɛt/ | seven | |
| 8 | huit | /ɥit/ | eight | |
| 9 | neuf | /nœf/ | nine | |
| 10 | dix | /dis/ | ten | /dis/ alone, /di/ before a consonant sound, /diz/ before a vowel sound |
| 11 | onze | /ɔ̃z/ | eleven | |
| 12 | douze | /duz/ | twelve | related to English "dozen" (a group of twelve) |
| 13 | treize | /trɛz/ | thirteen | |
| 14 | quatorze | /katɔrz/ | fourteen | |
| 15 | quinze | /kɛ̃z/ | fifteen | |
| 16 | seize | /sɛz/ | sixteen | |
| 17 | dix-sept | /disɛt/ | seventeen | literally: "ten-seven" |
| 18 | dix-huit | /dizɥit/ | eighteen | |
| 19 | dix-neuf | /diznœf/ | nineteen | |
| 20 | vingt | /vɛ̃/ | twenty | |
| 21 | vingt-et-un | /vɛ̃te.ɛ̃/(?) | twenty-one | |
| 22 | vingt-deux | /vɛ̃dø/ | twenty-two | |
| 30 | trente | /trɑ̃t/ | thirty | |
| 31 | trente-et-un | /trɑ̃te.ɛ̃/(?) | thirty-one | |
| 40 | quarante | /karɑ̃t/ | forty | related to English "quarantine" (a period of 40 days) |
| 50 | cinquante | /sɛ̃kɑ̃t/ | fifty | |
| 60 | soixante | /swasɑ̃t/ | sixty | |
| 70 | soixante-dix | /swasɑ̃tdis/ | seventy | literally: "sixty-ten" (60 + 10 = 70) |
| 80 | quatre-vingts | /katrəvɛ̃/ | eighty | literally: "four twenties" (4 x 20 = 80); the following numbers drop the ⟨s⟩ in -vingts |
| 81 | quatre-vingt-et-un | /katrəvɛ̃.e.ɛ̃/(?) | eighty-one | literally: "four-twenty-one" (4 x 20 + 1 = 81) |
| 90 | quatre-vingt-dix | /katrəvɛ̃dis/ | ninety | literally: "four-twenty-ten" (4 x 20 + 10 = 90) |
| 91 | quatre-vingt-onze | /katrəvɛ̃.ɔ̃z/(?) | ninety-one | literally: "four twenty-eleven" (4 x 20 + 11 = 91) |
| 100 | cent | /sɑ̃/ | (one) hundred | /sɑ̃t/ or /sɑ̃z/ before a vowel sound; related to English "cent" (a hundredth of a currency) |
| 200 | deux cents | /dø sɑ̃/ | two hundred | |
| 1,000 | mille | /mil/ | (one) thousand | invariable; related to English "milli-" (thousand) and "mile" (originally, a thousand paces) |
| 1,000,000 | million | /miljɔ̃/ | million | |
| 1,000,000,000 | billion | biljɔ̃ | billion |
As you can see, you will need to pay special attention to numbers 70 through 99, as they are not as straightforward as they are in English.
Telling time
Vocabulary
| French[note 1] | Pronunciation (IPA)[note 2] | English | Notes |
| asteur (à c’te heure) | /astœr/ | (right) now, nowadays | à ("at") + cette ("this") + heure ("hour, time") |
| à/de bonne heure | /a-, də bɔ̃n œr/ | early | à ("at")/de ("of") + bonne ("good" (f.)) heure ("time") |
| plus de bonne heure | /ply d(ə) bɔ̃n œr/ | earlier | |
| tard | /tar/ | late | related to English "tardy" (late) |
| plus tard | /ply tar/ | later | |
| bientôt | /bɛ̃to/ | soon | bien ("very") + tôt ("early") |
| tantôt | /tɑ̃to/ | soon | tant ("so") + tôt ("early") |
| talheure (t'à l'heure) | /talœr/ | a short while ago, soon | |
| tôt ou tard | /to u tar/ | sooner or later | tôt ("soon") + ou ("or") + tard ("late") |
| le matin | /matɛ̃/ | in the morning | |
| la matinée | /matine/ | morning | |
| à midi | /ɑ̃ midi/ | at noon | |
| le midi | /midi/ | noon | from Old French mi ("middle") + di ("day") |
| l'après-midi | /aprɛ̃midi/ | (in the) afternoon | après ("after") + midi ("noon") |
| le soir | /swar/ | (in the) evening | |
| la soirée | /sware/ | evening | |
| à soir | /a swar/ | this evening, tonight | |
| aujourd'hui | /oʒɔrdɥɪ/ | today | au ("to the") + jour ("day") + de ("of") + hui ("today") |
| ce matin | /sə matɛ̃/ | this morning | |
| cet après-midi | /sɛt aprɛ̃midi/ | this afternoon | |
| ce soir | /sə swar/ | this evening | |
| hier | /(i)jær/ | yesterday | |
| avant-(z-)hier | /avɑ̃(z)jær/ | the day before yesterday | avant ("before") + hier ("yesterday") |
| demain | /dəmɛ̃/ | tomorrow | |
| après demain | /apredəmɛ̃/ | the day after tomorrow | après ("after") + demain ("tomorrow") |
| demain matin | /dəmɛ̃ matɛ̃/ | tomorrow morning | |
| demain après-midi | /dəmɛ̃ aprɛ̃midi/ | tomorrow afternoon | |
| le jour | /ʒur/ | day | related to English "journal" (daily record) |
| la nuit | /nɥi/ | night | |
| une seconde | /səgɔ̃d/ | a second | |
| une minute | /minyt/ | a minute | |
| une heure | /œr/ | an hour | |
| un jour | /ʒur/ | a day | |
| une semaine | /s(ə)mɛ̃n/ | a week | from Latin septimāna (loosely translated: "of seven (days)") |
| un mois | /mwa/ | a month | |
| un an | /ɑ̃/ | a year | used when counting, related to English "annual" (yearly) |
| une année | /ɑ̃ne/ | a year | |
| une décade | /dekad/ | a decade | |
| un élan | /elɑ̃/ | a while | |
| la fin de semaine | /fɛ̃ d(ə) s(ə)mɛ̃n/ | the weekend | fin ("end") + de ("of") + semaine ("week") |
| un jour de semaine | /ʒur d(ə) s(ə)mɛ̃n/ | a weekday |
Days of the week
| Les jours de la semaine / The days of the week | ||
| French[note 1] | Pronunciation (IPA)[note 2] | English |
| dimanche | /dimɑ̃ʃ/ | Sunday |
| lundi | /lœ̃di/ | Monday |
| mardi | /mardi/ | Tuesday |
| mercredi | /mærkrədi/ | Wednesday |
| jeudi | /ʒødi/ | Thursday |
| vendredi | /vɑ̃drədi/ | Friday |
| samedi | /sɑ̃mdi/ | Saturday |
The days of the week in French are masculine and are not usually capitalized.
Some expressions involving the days of the week mirror expressions in English:
| Expressions | |
| French | English |
| toute la journée mardi | all day Tuesday |
| tous les dimanches | every Sunday |
Some expressions are less similar to their English counterparts:
| Expressions, cont. | |
| French | English |
| lundi passé | last Monday (lit.: past Monday) |
| mardi en huit | next Tuesday (lit.: Tuesday in eight (days)) |
| vendredi en quinze | two weeks from Friday (lit.: Friday in fifteen (days)) |
| de bonne heure samedi matin | early Saturday morning (lit.: of good hour Saturday morning) |
When we want to express that an event occurs regularly or has occurred on a certain day, we say le before the given day.
| Examples | |
| French | English |
| Le lundi, j'aime aller à la pêche. | On Mondays, I like to go fishing. |
| Pas de danses le dimanche! | No dances on Sundays! |
| Le mardi, j'ai vendu mon char. | On Tuesday, I sold my car. |
Months of the year
| Les mois / Months | ||
| French[note 1] | Pronunciation (IPA)[note 2] | English |
| janvier | /ʒɑ̃vje/ | January |
| février | /fevrije/ | February |
| mars | /mars/ | March |
| avril | /avri/ | April |
| mai | /me/ | May |
| juin | /ʒwɛ̃/ | June |
| juliette (juillet) | /ʒyljɛt/ | July |
| août | /au/ | August |
| septembre | sɛptɑ̃b(r) | September |
| octobre | /ɔktɔb(r) | October |
| novembre | /novɑ̃b(r)/ | November |
| décembre | /desɑ̃b(r)/ | December |
Like the days of the week, the months of the year in French are masculine and are not usually capitalized.
To say "in January, in February...", we say "en janvier, en fevrier...."
Seasons
| Les saisons / Seasons | |||
| French[note 1] | Pronunciation (IPA)[note 2] | English | Notes |
| le printemps | /prɛ̃tɑ̃/ | spring | from Old French prime tans (“first time, first season”) |
| l'été | /ete/ | summer | |
| l'automne | /otɔ̃n/ | autumn/fall | |
| l'hiver | /ivær/ | winter | |
To continue the pattern, the seasons in French are also all masculine and are not usually capitalized.
Like the months, to say "in the summer, in the fall, in the winter" we say "en été, en automne, en hiver". But to say "in the spring", we say "au printemps", not "en printemps".
| Examples | |
| French | English |
| Au printemps, ma mère passe son temps dans le jardin. | In the spring, my mother spends her time in the garden. |
| L'équipe pratique boucoup en été. | The team practices a lot in the summer. |
| Nous-autres, on aime voyager en hiver. | Us, we like to travel in the winter. |
| En automne, les enfants commence l'école. | In the fall, the children start school. |
Notes
- ↑ a b c d e Louisiana French spelling is not as standardized as it is in some other languages. Certain expressions may have variant spellings which are not listed here for the sake of simplicity, and individual authors often tinker with established spelling norms to match their writing preferences.
- ↑ a b c d e These transcriptions do not represent all the variety of Louisiana French speech. Many variant pronunciations have been excluded here for the sake of simplicity.
| Louisiana French |