🤒🗣️

How to Say ‘I have a sore throat.’ in French

J'ai mal à la gorge.

zhem ay mal ah lah gorzh

[zhem ay mal ah lah gorzh]

💬 Usage Tip: French says where it hurts with J'ai mal à plus the body part. Swap the ending to reuse it: J'ai mal à la tête "I have a headache", J'ai mal au dos "My back hurts".

Phrase Breakdown

J'ai mal

zhem ay mal

I have pain

The start of a pain expression. Next comes 'à' plus the body part.

Example

J'ai mal à la tête.

I have a headache.

Words in this phrase

[zhem]

I (contracted form of « je »)

« Je » becomes « J’ » before a vowel: « J’aime » = “I like/I love”. Very frequent for opinions about anime.

Example

J' aime ce studio d’animation.

I like this animation studio.

[ay]

have (1st person singular)

« ai » is « avoir » conjugated for « je ». It’s the auxiliary used in the passé composé: « j’ai commencé » = “I started / I have started”.

Example

J’ ai regardé la bande-annonce.

I watched the trailer.

mal

[mal]

pain / ache

Noun meaning pain; 'avoir mal à' means to have pain in a body part.

Example

J'ai mal au dos.

My back hurts.

à la gorge.

ah lah gorzh

in the throat

Tells where the pain is. 'Gorge' is feminine, so it takes 'à la'.

Example

Elle a mal à la gorge.

She has a sore throat.

Words in this phrase

[ah]

at / in / to

A preposition often meaning at, in, or to depending on context.

Example

À l'appartement, l'eau chaude ne marche plus.

At the apartment, the hot water no longer works.

[lah]

the (feminine singular)

Definite article used before a feminine singular noun.

Example

La réservation est déjà confirmée pour samedi soir.

The reservation is already confirmed for Saturday evening.

gorge

[gorzh]

throat

Feminine noun for the throat.

Example

Ma gorge est rouge.

My throat is red.

Guides for French learners

The Most Common French Verbs: the 20 You'll Actually UseThe 20 most common French verbs, with the present-tense forms you need, real example sentences with native audio, and two shortcuts for past and future.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.

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