In today’s lesson we’ll focus on what’s proven to be a major stumbling block for many of my private students over the years: How to say the year in French. The reason that this is tricky is because you must get the numbers in the right order. By the end of this lesson you should be able to easily say any year!
Saying the year in French
Years and example sentences
When writing this lesson I came up with some sample years that we’d use in conversation. Some of the years are historic and others are years that would apply to our lives.
For the “19” in 1985, you can use thousands and say mille neuf cent or hundreds and say dix-neuf cent. In modern spoken French you’d hear “mille neuf cent”.
1985. Je suis né en mille neuf cent quatre-vingt-cinq.
1985. I was born in 1985.
For 1905, do not say “zéro” where we’d say “o” in English.
1905. Ma grand-mère est née en France en mille neuf cent cinq.
1905. My grandmother was born in France in 1905.
When talking about history and in historical documentaries, you’d mostly likely hear the years using hundreds. Hence, the “16” in 1622 for this next example is “seize cent”. Molière was a famous French playwright and poet.
1622. Molière est né en seize cent vingt-deux.
1622. Molière was born in 1622.
The same applies to this example with Louis XIV. For 1715, the “17” is “dix-sept cent”. Louis XIV was one of the most famous French kings.
1715. Louis XIV est mort en dix-sept cent quinze.
1715. Louis XIV died in 1715.
For 2005, don’t say “zéro”, as in “deux mille zéro cinq”. Simply say “deux mille cinq”.
2005. Où est-ce que tu habitais en deux mille cinq ?
2005. Where were you living in 2005?
For 2024, simply say “deux-mille vingt-quatre”.
2024. Les Jeux olympiques auront lieu en France en deux mille vingt-quatre.
2024. The Olympic Games will take place in France in 2024.
Related lessons
French vocabulary | Lessons by David Issokson
