How to Say ‘How are you?’ in French
Comment allez-vous ?
koh-MAHN ah-lay voo
[koh-MAHN ah-lay voo]
💬 Usage Tip: [Allez-vous] flips the usual order to make a question: literally "go you?" You will see the same pattern in formal questions like [avez-vous ?] or [sentez-vous ?].
🇫🇷 In France: This is polite and fairly formal. With in-laws, it can sound respectful, especially if you are not on [tu] terms.
Phrase Breakdown
Comment
[koh-MAHN]
how
Question word used to ask about manner or condition.
Comment allez-vous après le voyage ?
How are you after the trip?
allez
[ah-lay]
are going / are
Form of aller used in the polite question allez-vous ? to ask how someone is doing.
Comment allez-vous ce matin ?
How are you this morning?
-vous
[voo]
you
Formal subject pronoun attached after the verb in an inverted question.
Comment allez-vous pendant cette période ?
How are you during this period?
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