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How to Say ‘Please have a seat.’ in French

Asseyez-vous, s'il vous plaît.

ah-seh-yay voo seel eel voo pleh

[ah-seh-yay voo seel eel voo pleh]

Phrase Breakdown

Asseyez-vous,

ah-seh-yay voo

Sit down,

Polite imperative of 's'asseoir'. Say it 'a-sé-yé-vou'. The 'ey' sounds like 'yay'.

Example

Asseyez-vous ici.

Sit here.

Words in this phrase

Asseyez

[ah-seh-yay]

sit

Formal plural/passive command to be seated.

Example

Asseyez-vous ici, s'il vous plaît.

Please sit here.

-vous

[voo]

yourself

The pronoun attached to the imperative, meaning the action is done to yourself.

Example

Dans Présentez-vous, -vous montre qu'il faut parler de soi.

In Présentez-vous, -vous shows that you must speak about yourself.

s'il vous plaît.

seel eel voo pleh

please.

Formal 'please'. Say it 'seel-vou-plè'. The final 't' is silent.

Example

Un café, s'il vous plaît.

A coffee, please.

Words in this phrase

[seel]

Shortened form in the polite phrase 's'il vous plaît.' Literally it comes from 'if.'

Example

S' il vous plaît est une formule très polie.

'S'il vous plaît' is a very polite expression.

[eel]

Used as a subject pronoun for things or concepts.

Example

Il fait beau aujourd'hui.

It is nice today.

vous

[voo]

you

Used to refer to the person or people being addressed.

Example

Vous aimez le film?

Do you like the movie?

plaît

[pleh]

pleases

Verb form from 'plaire.' In the full expression it contributes to the meaning 'please.'

Example

Le mot plaît est très fréquent dans la formule polie.

The word 'plaît' is very common in the polite expression.

Guides for French learners

Ordering in French: Cafés, Bakeries and Restaurants (with Menu Vocabulary)How to order in French at a café, a bakery and a restaurant: the phrases, the questions staff ask, and the menu and food vocabulary to understand the answers.Hello in French: Greetings, Good Evening and How to Answer "How Are You?"How to say hello in French, when to switch to good evening, how to ask how are you and what to answer, with tu vs vous and native audio.

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