👂❓🙉

How to Say ‘I can barely hear you.’ in French

Je vous entends mal.

zhuh voo ahn-TAHN mahl

[zhuh voo ahn-TAHN mahl]

💬 Usage Tip: Putting mal "badly" after a verb is a handy way to say you can't do something well. For example, Je vous vois mal means "I can't see you well".

🇫🇷 In France: Using vous with someone you've just met at a bar is polite without sounding stiff. It leaves room to switch to tu once things warm up.

Phrase Breakdown

Je vous

zhuh voo

I ... you

Subject 'je' plus the formal object pronoun 'vous', which comes before the verb. In the full phrase, link it to the next word with a 'z' sound: 'vou-z-entends'.

Example

Je vous vois.

I see you.

Words in this phrase

[zhuh]

Pronoun used by the speaker to identify themselves.

Example

Je suis content.

I am happy.

vous

[voo]

you

Used to refer to the person or people being addressed.

Example

Vous aimez le film?

Do you like the movie?

entends mal.

ahn-TAHN mahl

hear badly.

'Entends' is nasal 'an-TAN', with a silent 'ds'. 'Mal' means badly or poorly.

Example

J'entends mal ici.

I can't hear well here.

Words in this phrase

entends

[ahn-TAHN]

hear

Form of 'entendre' (to hear) for je/tu.

Example

J'entends la musique.

I hear the music.

mal

[mahl]

badly

Shows that the breathing is abnormal or difficult.

Example

Elle respire mal ce matin.

She is breathing badly this morning.

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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