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How to Say ‘Wow / oh dear’ in French

Là là

lah lah

[lah lah]

🇫🇷 In France: [Oh là là] is a fixed reaction, so people usually say the whole thing, not just [là là]. On its own, [là] normally means "there," so this card is really for recognizing the chunk inside the full exclamation.

Phrase Breakdown

Là

[lah]

there / wow

In this expression, là adds emotional emphasis rather than literal place meaning.

Example

Là, là, le stade explose après le but !

Wow, wow, the stadium erupts after the goal!

là

[lah]

there / wow

Repeated here for emphasis in the emotional expression là là.

Example

Quand il marque, tout le monde crie là, là !

When he scores, everyone shouts wow, wow!

Guides for French learners

The Best App to Learn French: An Honest ComparisonDuolingo, Babbel, Pimsleur, Busuu, italki and PrettyFluent compared for learning French: what each is best at, how you pay, and which fits your goal.French Conversation for Beginners: 5 Everyday Dialogues You'll Actually UseFive short French conversations for beginners, from greeting a neighbour to booking a restaurant, with translations, native audio and the phrases that keep them going.

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