This collection of lessons was created by David Issokson, a McGill graduate and French teacher since 2014. Each lesson explains common words or expressions with clear explanations and real-life examples. All of the audio was recorded by Marie Assel Cambier, a native French speaker and professional voice artist.
French slang words are the informal words and expressions that French people use in everyday conversation. They’re essential for understanding real spoken French, whether you’re chatting with friends, watching French movies, or spending time in France. Most lessons focus on standard vocabulary, but to truly understand how French people speak, you need to know the casual words and expressions they use naturally.
Common examples include mec (guy), pote (buddy), fric (money), and bosser (to work). More colorful expressions like chelou (weird), relou (annoying), and avoir la flemme (to not feel like doing something) help you understand informal conversations and sound more natural when speaking French.
In this lesson, you’ll find 100 useful French slang words and informal expressions, grouped by purpose — people, family, money, food, everyday activities, emotions, and more — to help you understand real-life conversations and speak French more confidently.
Most Useful French Slang Words for Everyday Conversation
👥 People & friends
- un mec – guy, dude
- un gars – guy, fellow
- un type – guy, character
- une meuf – woman, girl
- une nana – girl, chick
- une gonzesse – woman, chick (can be disrespectful)
- un pote / une pote – buddy, pal
- un keum – guy, boyfriend
- un gamin / une gamine – kid, child
- un gosse / une gosse – kid, child
- un môme / une môme – kid, youngster
👨👩👧👦 Family & relationships
- ma reum – my mom
- mon reup – my dad
- mon frangin – my brother
- ma frangine – my sister
- une belle-doche – mother-in-law
- un fiston – son
- un tonton – uncle
- une tatie – aunt
- un rencard – date
- draguer – to flirt, hit on
- larguer – to dump, break up with
💰 Money & shopping
- le fric – money, cash
- le pognon – money, dough
- la thune – money, cash
- l’oseille (f.) – money
- le blé – money, cash
- une balle – buck
- reuch – expensive, pricey
- être fauché – to be broke
- être à sec – to be out of money
- un radin / une radine – cheapskate
- douiller – to pay a lot
🍔 Food & eating
- bouffer – to eat, chow down
- la bouffe – food, grub
- avoir la dalle – to be starving
- un casse-dalle – snack
- le petit déj – breakfast
- l’apéro (m.) – pre-dinner drinks
- bon ap’ – enjoy your meal
- dégueu – disgusting, gross
- miam ! – yum!
- beurk ! – yuck!
💼 Work & everyday activities
- bosser – to work
- le boulot – work, job
- le taf – work, job
- taffer – to work
- glander – to loaf around
- galérer – to struggle
- se planter – to mess up, make a mistake
- louper – to miss
- choper – to catch, grab
- piquer – to steal, swipe
- mater – to look at, check out
- paumer – to lose, misplace
- filer – to give, hand over
- se barrer – to leave, take off
- se casser – to leave, get out
😎 Describing people & situations
- chelou – weird, strange
- relou – annoying, a pain
- ouf – crazy, amazing
- naze – lousy, rubbish
- nickel – perfect, excellent
- canon – gorgeous, attractive
- dingue – crazy, unbelievable
- crevé(e) – exhausted
- bourré(e) – drunk, wasted
- balaise – strong, impressive
- chiant / chiante – annoying, a pain (vulgar origin)
🗣 Reactions & everyday expressions
- grave ! – totally!, absolutely!
- carrément ! – definitely!, totally!
- bof ! – meh!, not really
- bah – well, uh
- ben – well, um
- ouais – yeah
- nan – nah, nope
- j’en ai marre – I’m fed up
- avoir la flemme – to not feel like doing something
- ça craint – that sucks, that’s bad
- ça me saoule – that annoys me
- ça roule – all good, sounds good
- laisse tomber – forget it, never mind
- pas de souci – no problem
- n’importe quoi ! – nonsense!, ridiculous!
👕 Body, clothes & everyday objects
- le pif – nose, schnozz
- le bide – belly, gut
- le bidon – belly, tummy
- la tronche – face, mug
- la gueule – face, mug (can be vulgar)
- les tifs (m.) – hair
- les fringues (f.) – clothes
- les godasses (f.) – shoes
- les pompes (f.) – shoes
- une bagnole – car, ride
🚓 Professions & social status
- un flic – cop, police officer
- un keuf – cop, police officer
- un mécano – mechanic
- un proprio – landlord, property owner
- un bourge – wealthy, bourgeois person
- un prolo – working-class person
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🗂️ French Slang Reference Card
🇫🇷 Keep building your everyday French vocabulary!
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👉 French interjections and exclamations (hub) »
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