French vocabulary · part 5 of 10
Common French words 401–500
French words 401 to 500, ordered by how useful they are. Each comes with its English meaning. Tap the speaker to hear it, then say it back.
| # | English | French |
|---|---|---|
| 401 | bank | la banque |
| 402 | to know (a person) | connaître |
| 403 | bitter | amer |
| 404 | to create | créer |
| 405 | stranger | l'étranger |
| 406 | airport | l'aéroport |
| 407 | to want | vouloir |
| 408 | plastic | le plastique |
| 409 | to kiss | embrasser |
| 410 | station | la gare |
| 411 | soft | doux |
| 412 | to be able to | pouvoir |
| 413 | enemy | l'ennemi |
| 414 | to destroy | détruire |
| 415 | oil | l'huile |
| 416 | library | la bibliothèque |
| 417 | to have to | devoir |
| 418 | hard | dur |
| 419 | class | la classe |
| 420 | museum | le musée |
| 421 | to protect | protéger |
| 422 | smoke | la fumée |
| 423 | to come | venir |
| 424 | water | l'eau |
| 425 | wet | mouillé |
| 426 | lesson | la leçon |
| 427 | to give | donner |
| 428 | food | la nourriture |
| 429 | ice | la glace |
| 430 | to fight | se battre |
| 431 | dry | sec |
| 432 | to dive | plonger |
| 433 | to take | prendre |
| 434 | test | l'examen |
| 435 | bread | le pain |
| 436 | sand | le sable |
| 437 | to put | mettre |
| 438 | milk | le lait |
| 439 | to kill | tuer |
| 440 | cool | frais |
| 441 | homework | les devoirs |
| 442 | to find | trouver |
| 443 | coffee | le café |
| 444 | field | le champ |
| 445 | nice | gentil |
| 446 | to hurt | faire mal |
| 447 | language | la langue |
| 448 | tea | le thé |
| 449 | to think | penser |
| 450 | hill | la colline |
| 451 | meat | la viande |
| 452 | to speak | parler |
| 453 | kind | aimable |
| 454 | sentence | la phrase |
| 455 | to heal | guérir |
| 456 | to fish | pêcher |
| 457 | fish | le poisson |
| 458 | desert | le désert |
| 459 | to eat | manger |
| 460 | funny | drôle |
| 461 | page | la page |
| 462 | fruit | le fruit |
| 463 | to drink | boire |
| 464 | to breathe | respirer |
| 465 | wave | la vague |
| 466 | apple | la pomme |
| 467 | to live | vivre |
| 468 | smart | intelligent |
| 469 | line | la ligne |
| 470 | egg | l'œuf |
| 471 | rainbow | l'arc-en-ciel |
| 472 | to shout | crier |
| 473 | to work | travailler |
| 474 | cheese | le fromage |
| 475 | meeting | la réunion |
| 476 | stupid | bête |
| 477 | to love | aimer |
| 478 | storm | l'orage |
| 479 | rice | le riz |
| 480 | to go shopping | faire les courses |
| 481 | to whisper | chuchoter |
| 482 | company | l'entreprise |
| 483 | brave | courageux |
| 484 | salt | le sel |
| 485 | earthquake | le tremblement de terre |
| 486 | to need | avoir besoin de |
| 487 | sugar | le sucre |
| 488 | business | l'affaire |
| 489 | to promise | promettre |
| 490 | shy | timide |
| 491 | leaf | la feuille |
| 492 | wine | le vin |
| 493 | to look at | regarder |
| 494 | project | le projet |
| 495 | lazy | paresseux |
| 496 | to lie (untruth) | mentir |
| 497 | beer | la bière |
| 498 | to hear | entendre |
| 499 | seed | la graine |
| 500 | juice | le jus |
Questions, answered
What are the most common words in French?
The list on this page runs in order of usefulness. Words 401 to 500 include la banque (bank), connaître (to know (a person)), amer (bitter), créer (to create), l'étranger (stranger).
How many French words do I need to start speaking?
A few hundred well-chosen words cover a large share of everyday conversation. This list has 964 of them in order of usefulness, so working from the top gives you the most for your time.
What is the best way to remember these French words?
Say them in sentences, not alone. Hear a word, say it aloud, then use it in a full sentence. 4ToSpeak's Word Quest and four-step lessons are built around that.
Now say it out loud
Reading a list does not teach you to talk. Practise these in full French sentences, free, no card.