Top 50 phrases to get by France: Essential communication

🇫🇷 [Pardon] is what you say to get past someone, lightly apologize, or ask them to repeat. In everyday France it is often more natural than a fuller English-style apology.

💬 [S'il] is a shortened form of [si le], so it only appears in this fixed phrase, not by itself. [Vous] here is the polite/plural [you], as in many common set phrases.

💬 French often puts [ne ... pas] around the verb to say not: [je ne comprends pas], [je ne sais pas]. In real speech the [ne] is often dropped, so you may hear [je comprends pas].