See also:
👉 À la rigueur — if necessary »
👉 10 French subjunctive examples »
Level A2-B1 (Upper Beginner – Lower Intermediate)
🎧 Audio by Marie Assel Cambier — native speaker & pro voice artist from France
The French Word of the Day is il faut. This little phrase is everywhere in French and absolutely indispensable. Today you’ll learn its:
✅ Meaning
✅ Pronunciation
✅ Example sentences
✅ Related Words & Expressions
✅ Related lessons
📘 Il faut meaning
In French, il faut is an impersonal expression meaning it is necessary or one must. The il translates as “it” but doesn’t refer to anything specific, and the phrase expresses obligation, necessity, or advice, followed by an infinitive, a noun, or que + subjunctive. (See examples below.)
🎧 Il faut pronunciation
Il faut is pronounced /il fo/ and sounds like eel foh, with a clear long oh at the end.
📝 French and English examples
Il faut – it’s necessary, one must
Il faut + infinitive is used to express a general obligation or necessity without addressing anyone in particular.
1. Il faut + infinitive
Il faut travailler pour réussir dans la vie!
You have to work to succeed in life.
2. Il faut que + subjunctive
Il faut que is an impersonal expression that requires the subjunctive. It’s usually translated as one must, it’s necessary to, or you have to.
Il faut que tu fasses attention.
You need to pay attention.
3. Il faut quelque chose à quelqu’un
The structure “il faut quelque chose à quelqu’un” is very similar to “avoir besoin de,” which means “to need.” Here, “à quelqu’un” is the indirect object.
For example, “Il faut une voiture à Pierre” becomes “Il lui faut une voiture,” or “He needs a car.” This pattern uses indirect object pronouns.
Il me faut une fourchette pour manger le steak.
I need a fork to eat the steak.
Il faut in different tenses
In addition to these three uses, il faut can also appear in tenses other than the present.
Future tense
In the futur simple, il faut becomes il faudra.
Il faudra que tu travailles demain.
You’ll have to work tomorrow.
Near future tense
The futur proche (near future) is formed with “aller + infinitive.” For “il faut,” the infinitive is “falloir,” which means “to be necessary.”
Il va falloir que tu fasses quelque chose.
You’re doing to have to do something.
Passé composé
In the passé composé, “il faut” becomes “il a fallu,” which translates as “it was necessary to.”
Il a fallu acheter la voiture.
It was necessary to buy the car.
Imperfect
“Il faut” can also be used in the imperfect tense, where it appears as “il fallait.” This sentence can be loosely translated as “You should have said something.”
Il fallait dire queque chose.
It was necessary to say something.
Past conditional
In the past conditional, il faut becomes il aurait fallu, which literally translates as “it would have been necessary”. In practice, this often conveys the idea of “should have”.
Il aurait fallu acheter la maison l’année dernière.
We should have bought the house last year.
📘 Recommended resource
Camille does a great job explaining tricky expressions like il faut in her À Moi Paris audio course — with clear examples and natural dialogues.
👉 Check it out here »
Disclosure: This is an affiliate link. If you buy the course I will earn a small commission.
🔗 Related words & Expressions
. Common Alternatives and Constructions with il faut
- devoir — to have to, must
- avoir besoin de — to need
- être nécessaire — to be necessary
- être obligatoire — to be mandatory, required
- être essentiel — to be essential
- être indispensable — to be indispensable
- il faut dire que… — it must be said that
- il faut reconnaître que… — one must admit that
- il faut croire que… — it seems that, apparently
- il faut que j’y aille — I have to go
2. Idiomatic Expressions with il faut
- comme il faut — properly, as it should be
- il faut voir — we’ll see, let’s see
- il faut du temps — it takes time
- il faut en profiter — you must take advantage of it
- il faut faire avec — you have to make do
- il faut le voir pour le croire — you have to see it to believe it
- il faut battre le fer tant qu’il est chaud — strike while the iron is hot
- il faut savoir que… — you have to know that
- il faut se rendre à l’évidence — one must face the facts
- il faut souffrir pour être belle — no pain, no gain (literally, one must suffer to be beautiful)
👉 See my full list of French expressions with “n’importe” here.
🚀 Continue building your French vocabulary!
Now that you’ve mastered il faut, check out my lesson on the related expression avoir besoin de (to need, to have to).
