How do you say "What do you do first?" in French?

"What do you do first?" in French is "Qu’est-ce que vous faites d’abord ?". This phrase is commonly used in France.

What does "Qu’est-ce que vous faites d’abord ?" mean in English?

"Qu’est-ce que vous faites d’abord ?" means "What do you do first?" in English.

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How to Say ‘What do you do first?’ in French

Qu’est-ce que vous faites d’abord ?

k ay suh kuh voo fet d a-BOR

[k ay suh kuh voo fet d a-BOR]

Phrase Breakdown

Qu’est-ce que

k ay suh kuh

what

Question starter asking for information about an action.

Example

Qu’est-ce que vous regardez ?

What are you looking at?

Words in this phrase

Qu’

[k]

what

Part of Qu’est-ce que, the standard way to ask what.

Example

Qu’ est-ce que vous voulez ?

What do you want?

est

[ay]

Form of être appearing in the fixed question phrase est-ce que.

Example

Est-ce utile ?

Is it useful?

-ce

[suh]

this/it

Part of the fixed expression est-ce que used to form questions.

Example

-ce appears in est-ce que.

que

[kuh]

that

Connects the question phrase to the rest of the sentence.

Example

Je sais que vous êtes prêt.

I know that you are ready.

vous faites

voo fet

you do / are you doing

Core verb phrase of the question.

Example

Vous faites quoi ?

What are you doing?

Words in this phrase

vous

[voo]

you

Formal or plural you.

Example

Vous êtes ici.

You are here.

faites

[fet]

do / are doing

Present tense of faire for vous.

Example

Vous faites du sport.

You do sports.

d’abord

d a-BOR

first

An ordering word meaning the first step in a sequence.

Example

D’abord, je regarde les fleurs.

First, I look at the flowers.

Words in this phrase

d’

[d]

of / from

Elided form of de before a vowel; part of d’abord.

Example

D’ abord, nous écoutons.

First, we listen.

abord

[a-BOR]

first

Used with d’ to form d’abord, meaning first or first of all.

Example

Abord appears in d’abord.

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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