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How to Say ‘You wouldn't happen to have fifty cents?’ in French

Vous n'auriez pas cinquante centimes ?

voo n o-ree-ay pah sankont sahn-TEEM

[voo n o-ree-ay pah sankont sahn-TEEM]

🇫🇷 In France: Cashiers often ask for small change so they can give you back round notes. Dig for coins if you can, but saying no is perfectly fine.

Phrase Breakdown

Vous n'auriez pas

voo n o-ree-ay pah

Wouldn't you have

The conditional 'auriez' makes the question polite. Say 'noh-ree-yay pah'. The 's' of 'pas' is silent.

Example

Vous n'auriez pas un stylo ?

Wouldn't you have a pen?

Words in this phrase

Vous

[voo]

you

Used to refer to the person or people being addressed.

Example

Vous aimez le film?

Do you like the movie?

[n]

not

Contracted first part of negation before a vowel.

Example

Je n'ai pas ma carte aujourd'hui.

I don't have my card today.

auriez

[o-ree-ay]

would have

Conditional tense indicating the likelihood of action.

Example

Vous auriez aimé ce film.

You would have liked this film.

pas

[pah]

not

Used with 'ne' to form a negative.

Example

Je ne comprends pas.

I do not understand.

cinquante centimes ?

sankont sahn-TEEM

fifty cents?

'Centimes' means cents. Both words start with a nasal 'san' sound: 'sang-kahnt sahn-teem'. Raise your voice at the end for the question.

Example

Ça coûte cinquante centimes.

It costs fifty cents.

Words in this phrase

cinquante

[sankont]

fifty

The number following 49.

Example

Il avait cinquante ans cette année-là.

He was fifty years old that year.

centimes

[sahn-TEEM]

cents

Hundredths of a euro, used when giving prices.

Example

Le café coûte quatre-vingts centimes.

The coffee costs eighty cents.

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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