Start here: French basics for beginners
When you begin learning French, focus on sounds, survival phrases, and predictable patterns. This helps you speak sooner and recognize words in real conversations. From day one, aim to hear and repeat short, useful lines.
Pronunciation keys: nasal vowels (an, en, on), silent final letters, and liaison (linking sounds). Learn how letters map to sounds so you can read new words with confidence, even as a beginner.
- Learn the alphabet, accents (é, è, ê), and basic phonics.
- Mimic 10 high-frequency phrases with audio, twice daily.
- Master numbers, dates, and polite greetings.
- Drill survival verbs: être, avoir, aller, faire.
- Build a mini phrase bank for cafes, transport, and shops.
A 30-day, 1-hour plan to learn consistently
Consistency beats marathons. One focused hour each day compounds fast, especially for beginners. Split your hour into short blocks that hit listening, vocab, grammar, and speaking.
Use weekly themes so your practice stacks. You will recycle the same words and patterns in different contexts, moving from beginner recognition to confident use.
- 00–15: Listen and shadow slow French audio.
- 15–30: Learn 8–12 words with spaced repetition.
- 30–45: Study one grammar bite and 3 examples.
- 45–60: Speak: role-play, record, or tutor chat.
- Week 1: Survival phrases, greetings, numbers.
- Week 2: Present tense, gender, articles.
- Week 3: Past basics (passé composé) with avoir.
- Week 4: Daily routines, questions, opinions.
Free tools and courses you can trust
You do not need to pay to learn effectively. Combine a structured free French course, short podcasts, and simple readers. Add downloadable pdf checklists for offline study when you are away from your phone.
Keep your stack lean: one course for structure, one deck for vocab, one audio source for listening, and one speaking outlet. If a tool does not help you speak or understand more, swap it out.
- Open MOOC or university French course (A1–A2 syllabi).
- Beginner podcasts with transcripts and slow audio.
- Bilingual short stories with printable PDF pages.
- Shared SRS flashcard decks for top 1000 words.
- Language exchange partners from beginner-friendly groups.
Grammar quickstart without overwhelm
Target the 20% that unlocks 80% of beginner French. Start with gender and articles (un/une, le/la/les), adjective placement and agreement, present tense of -er verbs, and the most common irregulars (être, avoir, aller, faire).
Next, learn negation (ne... pas), question patterns (est-ce que, inversion, intonation), key prepositions (à, de), and connectors (mais, parce que, aussi). Watch for false friends from English and keep examples short.
- Article map: un/une, le/la/les, des/de after negation.
- Verb mini-table: je/tu/il/nous/vous/ils for -er verbs.
- Negation frame: subject + ne + verb + pas.
- Question starters: où, quand, pourquoi, comment.
- Connect ideas: et, mais, parce que, donc, puis.
Practice smart and track progress
Speak a little every day. Shadow audio, read out loud, and record yourself. Micro-writing (3–5 sentences) cements grammar and vocab better than long sessions.
Track only a few metrics: minutes practiced, words learned, phrases recorded, and a weekly self-quiz from a printable pdf. Small wins keep motivation high.
- Shadow 5 minutes of slow audio daily.
- Read one short text and mark unknown words.
- Write 3 sentences using today’s grammar.
- Record a 30-second monologue on your day.
- Do a weekly A1 self-check with a PDF checklist.
FAQ
- How many hours to reach A1 or early A2 in French?
- A1 often takes 60–80 hours of focused study; early A2 can take 120–180 hours. With a 1-hour plan, that is about 2–6 months.
- What is the best way to learn French pronunciation?
- Shadow slow audio daily, practice minimal pairs, and record yourself. Focus on nasal vowels and liaison, not perfection.
- Should I use a free PDF course or an app?
- Use both: a PDF course for structure and reference, an app for drills and review. Keep the same syllabus across tools.
- What is the difference between beginner (A1) and A2?
- A1 handles survival tasks and simple phrases. A2 manages routine topics, short past events, and 2–3 sentence answers.
- How can I memorize French vocabulary faster?
- Use spaced repetition, learn phrases not isolated words, study high-frequency lists, and review from your phone during idle moments.