This is one of those words that demonstrates the importance of learning collocations rather than individual words. Collocations are simply words that naturally go together in a language. You can know every word in a sentence and still miss the meaning if you translate them one by one. Mine is a perfect example of this. On paper, the dictionary will tell you mine means appearance, look or complexion. But that’s not how it usually translates. Tu as bonne mine. = You look well. It’s a lovely way to compliment someone in French. Have you heard this expression before?

So yes. Chouette is a noun and it means owl. There are numerous other words for owl (hibou, chevêche, grand-duc d’Europe) but let’s not get bogged down in ornithology! Unless you’re a twitcher, you won’t need those words for everyday life in France. Because here’s the important bit … Chouette is FAR more useful as an adjective. As an adjective, chouette = great / lovely / nice / cool. Examples you will actually hear: - J’adore Rosie. Elle est chouette. ➜ I love Rosie. She’s really nice. - La soirée était chouette. ➜ It was a great night. - C’est chouette, ça ! ➜ That’s great! Chouette is a really useful word because : - It’s informal but totally acceptable in daily life - It’s positive without being over-the-top - You can use it at work, with friends, with neighbours - You do not need to think about agreement or complexity. Just say it. If you’re ever stuck for vocabulary and want to say something was nice without sounding like a GCSE oral exam, chouette is your baby. What was chouette in your life this weekend?

A nice, simple one today for the weekend! Pompette means tipsy. Not drunk, not out of control, just that light, slightly giggly stage after a drink or two. You’ll hear it used in a very relaxed, often affectionate way. It’s not harsh or judgemental at all, and it’s perfectly normal in everyday conversation. For example:“Il était un peu pompette.”He was a bit tipsy. It’s one of those words that’s handy to recognise even if you don’t use it yourself straight away. You’ll definitely hear it at dinners, parties or family gatherings. Tu étais pompette hier soir ?

You probably didn't learn this one in school… but if you’re planning on working in France, this is a word you need to know. And will very possibly grow to hate! ‘Cotisation’ can mean subscription or membership fee, for example the amount you pay to join an association. Je voudrais adhérer à l’association. C’est combien, les cotisations ? I’d like to join the association. How much is the subscription? So far, so innocent. BUT… in real life, I use it far more often to mean contribution — more specifically national insurance / social security contributions, aka ‘cotisations sociales’. As in: Les cotisations sociales ont encore augmenté cette année. National insurance contributions have gone up again this year. Fun fact (well… “fun” 😅): this happens a lot. They have just gone up again. I now pay 25.6% of my turnover in social security contributions. And that doesn't include tax. 🎉 The two are often confused so make sure you are clear on the difference if you're thinking of starting a business in France. Have you come across the word ‘cotisation’ before… or is this your first encounter with it?

If you learned French at school, you were probably taught: nous allons, nous faisons, nous habitons… Then you arrive in France and realise almost no one actually talks like that. In everyday spoken French, people very often use 'on' instead of 'nous' to mean we. For example: - On va au marché ? → Shall we go to the market? - On habite ici depuis deux ans. → We’ve lived here for two years. - On se voit demain. → We’ll see each other tomorrow. - On y va. → Let's go. Grammatically, 'on' is singular, so it uses 'il/elle' verb forms, but in real life it often means we. Why do French people do this? - It’s shorter - It’s more natural - It sounds less formal - And it’s what people actually say in daily conversation Using 'nous' isn’t wrong — it’s just more formal and is used more frequently in written French. If you want to sound more natural when speaking, 'on' is your friend. 👉 Is this something you’d noticed already, or did it come as a surprise when you arrived in France?