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How to Say ‘Can I tell you something?’ in French

Je peux vous dire quelque chose ?

zhuh puh voo deer kel-kuh shohz

[zhuh puh voo deer kel-kuh shohz]

🇫🇷 In France: Asking permission before a compliment softens it. It gives the other person an easy way to decline and makes you seem considerate, not forward.

Phrase Breakdown

Je peux vous dire

zhuh puh voo deer

Can I tell you

Polite 'vous' form of 'pouvoir' (can) plus 'dire' (to tell). 'Peux' sounds like 'peu'. Do not pronounce the 'x' or the 's' of 'vous'.

Example

Je peux vous dire la vérité.

I can tell you the truth.

Words in this phrase

[zhuh]

Pronoun used by the speaker to identify themselves.

Example

Je suis content.

I am happy.

peux

[puh]

can / may

From the verb pouvoir; used to ask permission or say what you are able to do.

Example

Est-ce que je peux vous parler après le cours ?

May I speak to you after class?

vous

[voo]

to you

Indirect object pronoun: the person receiving something.

Example

Je vous donne la monnaie.

I give you the change.

dire

[deer]

to say; to tell

Common verb meaning to say something or tell something to someone.

Example

Je vais dire la vérité.

I am going to tell the truth.

quelque chose ?

kel-kuh shohz

something?

A fixed expression meaning 'something'. Say it as 'kel-kuh shoz', and in casual speech even 'kek-shoz'. Raise your voice at the end for the question.

Example

Tu veux quelque chose ?

Do you want something?

Words in this phrase

quelque

[kel-kuh]

some

Part of the expression quelque chose, meaning something.

Example

Je cherche quelque idée originale.

I am looking for some original idea.

chose

[shohz]

thing

Means thing; with quelque, it becomes something.

Example

Cette chose est pour vous.

This thing is for you.

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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