Start from zero — in depth. Hundreds of worked examples, big vocabulary banks, native audio you can tap, and 100+ quiz questions. Hide the English any time to test yourself. Open a lesson and dive in.
📂 Tap a lesson to open it📖 Examples in every lesson🌐 Hide English to self-test🏆 100+ quiz questions
Section 1 / 6
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👋 WelcomeMindset + free words✓
🔤 SoundsAlphabet · pronunciation✓
📚 GrammarArticles · verbs✓
💬 CommunicateGreet · count · vocab✓
🍁 TEF & TCFExams · scores · plan✓
🏆 Final Quiz60+ questions✓
G
Bonjour — I'm Guri 👋Your TEF / TCF coach · welcome to Day 1
French isn't "impossible" — it's a system, and today I hand you the keys one piece at a time.
Each lesson is a drop-down packed with examples.
Use the 🌐 toggle to hide the English and quiz yourself, and check the quizzes (tap More questions for extra rounds).
Let's go.
1
Welcome — mindset + the hundreds of French words you already know.
2
Sounds — alphabet, accents, every key sound, silent letters, liaison.
Communicate — greetings, tu/vous, numbers, dates, big vocab banks.
5
TEF & TCF — the exams, scoring, and your study plan.
6
Final quiz — 40 questions, then your recap.
Each lesson is collapsible — open what you need.
🎁
Words you already know — identical cognatesFree vocabulary, day one
▼
After 1066, English absorbed thousands of French words. Many are spelled identically — you can read them today (the sound differs, the meaning matches).
Identical / near-identical nouns
The -tion family (always feminine)
Cognate adjectives
Cognate verbs (they all end in -er)
💡 The -tion rule
Almost every English word ending in -tion exists in French, spelled the same, and is feminine. Hundreds of words, free.
⚠️
False friends (faux amis)Words that look English but trick you
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A handful of words look English but mean something else. Learn the famous ones now.
French
Looks like
Actually means
une librairie
library
a bookshop (library = bibliothèque)
actuellement
actually
currently (actually = en fait)
attendre
to attend
to wait for
assister à
to assist
to attend (an event)
une journée
journey
a day (journey = voyage)
le pain
pain
bread
la monnaie
money
change (coins); money = argent
sensible
sensible
sensitive
rester
to rest
to stay
la location
location
a rental
la veste
vest
a jacket
le collège
college
middle school
grand
grand
tall / big
passer un examen
to pass an exam
to take an exam
🧠
How to actually learn thisYour beginner mindset
▼
⏳ Little and often
20–30 focused minutes daily beats a 3-hour weekly cram. Your brain consolidates overnight.
🗣️ Say everything aloud
French is a sound before a spelling. Read every example aloud. Speaking builds the muscle the exam tests.
❌ Mistakes are data
You'll get things wrong — good. Each error marks the boundary. Silent learners don't improve.
🔁 Review before new
Re-read yesterday for 5 minutes. Use 🌐 to hide English and test recall.
📝
Quick checkTap an answer for instant feedback
▼
French is far more regular than English — learn these rules and you can pronounce almost any word on sight. Read each example aloud. Hide the English to test yourself.
6 lessons + a quiz
🔡
The alphabetSame 26 letters, different names
▼
You'll need these to spell your name — Comment ça s'écrit ?
Letter
Name
Letter
Name
Letter
Name
A
ah
J
zhee
S
ess
B
bay
K
kah
T
tay
C
say
L
ell
U
ew
D
day
M
emm
V
vay
E
uh
N
enn
W
doo-bluh-vay
F
eff
O
oh
X
eeks
G
zhay
P
pay
Y
ee-grek
H
ahsh
Q
kew
Z
zed
I
ee
R
air*
—
—
ℹ️ *The French R
Made in the back of the throat, like a soft gargle — not rolled. Try Paris, merci, rue.
é
The accentsLittle marks, big difference
▼
é — accent aigu → "ay"
è / ê — grave & circonflexe → open "eh"
ç — cédille → soft "s"
ë / ï — tréma → pronounce the vowel separately
à / ù — grave → separate look-alike words
🎵
The key sounds — 10–12 words eachMaster these and you can read French aloud
▼🤫
Silent lettersThe #1 thing that throws beginners
▼
Final consonants are usually silent
Also silent: final -e, the ending -ent, and h
💡 The "CaReFuL" exception
Final c, r, f, l often are pronounced: avec, bonjour, neuf, mal.
🔗
Liaison — how French flowsWhy spoken French sounds connected
▼
When a silent final consonant meets a vowel, French links them so speech flows (s/x → "z").
🎼
Rhythm & the silent "e"Why French sounds so even
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English punches stress onto one syllable (IM-por-tant). French keeps an even rhythm, with only a light stress on the last syllable of a group — and a final e is usually silent.
💡 Quick win
Don't stress like English. Keep your syllables equal and let the phrase glide up at the end — instantly more "French".
📝
Quick checkPronunciation
▼
The building blocks. Master these and you can make true, useful sentences about yourself today. Read every example aloud, and use 🌐 to self-test.
12 lessons + a quiz
1
Noun genderMasculine or feminine — always
▼
Every noun is masculine or feminine — learn each noun with its article. Endings give strong hints:
-age garage · -ment moment · -eau bureau · -isme · -er
Masculine nouns (le)
Feminine nouns (la)
ℹ️ Tendencies, not laws
There are exceptions (le musée, la page), but these endings get you right most of the time.
2
"The" = le / la / l' / lesThe definite articles
▼
3
"A / some" = un / une / desThe indefinite articles
▼
4
Subject pronounsje · tu · il · elle · on · nous · vous · ils · elles
▼
French
English
French
English
je
I
nous
we
tu
you (informal)
vous
you (formal / plural)
il / elle
he / she (it)
ils / elles
they (m. / f.)
on
one / "we" (casual)
5
être — to beThe most important verb
▼
Pronoun
être (to be)
je
suis I am
tu
es you are
il / elle / on
est he/she is
nous
sommes we are
vous
êtes you are
ils / elles
sont they are
6
avoir — to have+ the "avoir" expressions you'll use daily
▼
Pronoun
avoir (to have)
j'
ai I have
tu
as you have
il / elle / on
a he/she has
nous
avons we have
vous
avez you have
ils / elles
ont they have
"avoir" expressions (French "has" what English "is")
7
-ER verbs — your first 1,000 verbsOne pattern unlocks most French verbs
▼
~90% of French verbs end in -er and share one pattern. Learn it with parler (to speak):
Pronoun
parler (to speak)
je
parle
tu
parles
il / elle / on
parle
nous
parlons
vous
parlez
ils / elles
parlent (silent)
Common -ER verbs to collect
8
3 more essential irregular verbsaller · faire · venir
▼
These three are irregular but unavoidable — learn them now.
aller
to go
je
vais
tu
vas
il/elle
va
nous
allons
vous
allez
ils/elles
vont
faire
to do/make
je
fais
tu
fais
il/elle
fait
nous
faisons
vous
faites
ils/elles
font
venir
to come
je
viens
tu
viens
il/elle
vient
nous
venons
vous
venez
ils/elles
viennent
9
Saying "no" — ne … pas+ other negatives, + your first sentences
▼
Wrap the verb: ne before, pas after (ne → n' before a vowel).
Other negatives (same wrap)
⭐ Put it together — your first sentences
10
Adjective agreementDescribing words must match the noun
▼
An adjective agrees with its noun: feminine usually adds -e, plural adds -s. Most adjectives come after the noun.
ℹ️ Placement
Most adjectives follow the noun (une voiture rouge). A small set comes before — size, age, goodness, beauty: un petit chat, une bonne idée, un beau jardin, un jeune homme.
11
Noun pluralsUsually just add a silent -s
▼
Most nouns add -s to become plural — but it's silent. You hear the plural in the article: le ("luh") → les ("lay").
French possessives agree with the thing owned, not the owner — so son livre = "his book" or "her book". Before a vowel sound, even feminine nouns take mon/ton/son (mon amie).
📝
Quick checkGrammar
▼
Now use it — the practical survival kit, plus big themed vocabulary banks. Greetings, tu/vous, numbers, dates, family, food, places, jobs, and more. Hide English to quiz yourself.
11 lessons + a quiz
🤝
Greetings & politenessEssentials
▼
👥
The two "you": tu vs vousGet this right — it's cultural
▼
tu — informal
One person you know: friend, family, child, peer.
vous — formal / plural
A stranger, someone older, a boss — and any group.
Same question, two registers
💡 Golden rule
When in doubt, use vous. Too formal is polite; too familiar can seem rude.
🙋
Introduce yourselfA real conversation + about-me lines
▼
🗣️ Your turn
Read aloud with your details: Bonjour, je m'appelle ___. Je suis ___ et j'habite à ___. J'apprends le français !
Use Il est … heure(s). Add et quart (:15), et demie (:30), moins le quart (:45). Noon = midi, midnight = minuit.
💡 24-hour clock
Schedules in France & Canada use the 24-hour clock: 14 h = 2 p.m., 20 h 30 = 8:30 p.m. Only "one o'clock" uses singular heure; all others use heures.
❓
Asking questionsQuestion words + real questions
▼
French
English
French
English
qui
who
comment
how
quoi / que
what
pourquoi
why
où
where
combien
how much/many
quand
when
quel(le)
which / what
Real questions you can ask today
3 ways to ask yes/no — easiest first
🆘
Survival phrasesKeep these in your back pocket
▼
🗂️
Vocabulary banks — everyday wordsFamily · food · drinks · places · jobs & more
▼
👨👩👧 Family — la famille
🍽️ Food — la nourriture
🥤 Drinks — les boissons
🎨 Colors — les couleurs
📍 Places — les lieux
💼 Jobs — les métiers
⭐ Common adjectives
🌦️ Weather — le temps
🐾 Animals — les animaux
🚗 Transport
🧍 Body — le corps
👕 Clothes — les vêtements
🏠 The house — la maison
🍎 Fruits — les fruits
🥕 Vegetables — les légumes
⏰ Time words — le temps
🔑 More key verbs (infinitives)
🎒 In the classroom
📝
Quick checkCommunication & vocabulary
▼
The bigger picture — why you're learning French and where it's heading. If your goal is Canada, the TEF Canada or TCF Canada exam proves your French to IRCC.
6 lessons + a quiz
🍁
Why these exams matterFrench = points & possibilities
▼
Express Entry (PR)
Proving French can add a large number of CRS points — often the difference that earns an invitation to apply for PR.
Citizenship & PNPs
French results also support citizenship and many Provincial Nominee streams. One result opens several doors.
⚖️
TEF Canada vs TCF CanadaTwo official tests, one purpose
▼
Both are official and IRCC-accepted. You take one. They test the same four skills and convert to the same CLB/NCLC scale.
TEF Canada
TCF Canada
Run by
CCI Paris Île-de-France
France Éducation international
Skills
Reading · Listening · Writing · Speaking
Reading · Listening · Writing · Speaking
IRCC-accepted
Yes
Yes
Speaking
2 tasks, ~15 min
3 tasks, ~12 min
ℹ️ Which to pick?
Usually based on test-centre availability and style. Compare on Choose TEF vs TCF (/programs).
🎯
The four skills — with sample tasksWhat you'll actually do
▼
📖
Reading
Compréhension écrite
Ads, emails, articles → answer questions.
🎧
Listening
Compréhension orale
Announcements, conversations, recordings.
✍️
Writing
Expression écrite
A message, then an argued opinion text.
🗣️
Speaking
Expression orale
Get info in a role-play, then argue aloud.
📊
Scoring → CLB / NCLCThe number that actually counts
▼
IRCC converts your raw score to a CLB level (NCLC in French), 1–12. The key target for most candidates is CLB 7 — where French starts paying real CRS points.
Skill (CLB 7)
TEF Canada
TCF Canada
Reading
207–232 /300
453–498 /699
Listening
249–279 /360
458–502 /699
Writing
310–348 /450
10–11 /20
Speaking
310–348 /450
10–11 /20
⚠️ Confirm the official tables
These follow current IRCC charts, but IRCC can revise them. Full CLB 4–10 table on the Roadmap (/roadmap).
🗺️
Where Day 1 fits — the roadmapFrom foundations to CLB 7
▼
A1
Foundations — sounds, articles, être/avoir, first sentences. ← you are here.
A2
Toward CLB 4 — past & future basics, everyday topics.
B1
CLB 5 — hold a conversation; write & speak on familiar topics.
B2
CLB 7 — argue a position, read between the lines — the band that pays.
Next: Level Check (/level-check) and the Roadmap (/roadmap).
📆
Your daily study planConsistency beats intensity
▼
1
Review yesterday for 5 minutes (use 🌐 to self-test).
2
Learn one new point — a grammar idea + ~10 words.
3
Speak it aloud — make 3–4 of your own sentences.
4
Quiz yourself to lock it in.
5
Listen to a little French to tune your ear.
📝
Quick checkExam basics
▼
Last step — prove your Day 1. A big bank of questions from everything you learned, served 10 at a time. Tap for instant feedback; tap More questions for the next round. There's no failing — every answer teaches you something.
French Forward · Day 1 — your first class. Built for TEF & TCF Canada learners. À bientôt — see you in the next class! 🇫🇷🍁
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