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From Bonjour to Au revoir
Let's review those greetings and courtesy expressions that you've learned to say:
| Hello. | Bonjour. |
| Hi. | Salut. |
| Good-bye. | Au revoir. |
| How are you? (familiar) | Comment vas-tu? |
| How are you? (polite) | Comment allez-vous? |
| I’m fine. | Ça va. |
| What’s your name? (familiar) | Comment t’appelles-tu? |
| What’s your name? (polite) | Comment vous appelez-vous? |
| Mrs. | Madame |
| Mr. | Monsieur |
| Miss | Mademoiselle |
Vous or tu?
Did you notice that there are two ways of asking how someone is or what someone’s name is? One is familiar, used with friends, family, and children. Those are the questions with tu, which is the familiar way of saying you:
| Comment vas-tu? | How are you? |
| Comment t’appelles-tu? | What's your name? |
The others use the polite form for you, vous. They’re used with adults you don’t know well, colleagues, and people in formal situations:
| Comment allez-vous? | How are you? |
| Comment vous appelez-vous? | What's your name? |
So, in French tu and vous both mean you, but the first is familiar and the second is polite. When in doubt, use vous unless you’re invited to use tu.