How to Say ‘How many days off are there?’ in French
Il y a combien de jours de congés ?
eel ee ah kohm-BYAN duh zhoor duh kohn-ZHAY
[eel ee ah kohm-BYAN duh zhoor duh kohn-ZHAY]
💬 Usage Tip: Il y a means "there is" or "there are", and in everyday speech combien can simply follow it. Swap the ending to reuse it: Il y a combien de jours de télétravail ? "How many remote days are there?"
Phrase Breakdown
Il y a combien
eel ee ah kohm-BYAN
How many are there
'Il y a' means 'there is' or 'there are' and sounds like 'eel-ya'. 'Combien' sounds like 'kohm-BYAN'.
Il y a combien de personnes ?
How many people are there?
Words in this phrase
Il
[eel]
it (impersonal)
Impersonal subject used with verbs like 'rester' meaning 'there is left'.
Il reste du pain.
There is some bread left.
y
[ee]
there
In or at that place.
Y a-t-il une solution?
Is there a solution?
a
[ah]
has (in 'il y a' = there is)
Part of 'il y a', meaning there is/are.
Il y a une terrasse.
There is a terrace.
combien
[kohm-BYAN]
how many
Question word asking about a quantity or number.
Vous êtes combien ce soir ?
How many of you are there tonight?
de jours de congés ?
duh zhoor duh kohn-ZHAY
days off
'Jours de congés' means days of leave. Say 'kohn-ZHAY' and raise your voice at the end for the question.
J'ai dix jours de congés.
I have ten days off.
Words in this phrase
de
[duh]
of
Expressing the relationship between part and a whole.
Un verre de lait.
A glass of milk.
jours
[zhoor]
days
Plural of 'jour', day.
Je reste deux jours.
I'm staying two days.
de
[duh]
of
Expressing the relationship between part and a whole.
Un verre de lait.
A glass of milk.
congés
[kohn-ZHAY]
days off / leave
Time off work; in the plural it means holidays or vacation.
Je prends mes congés en août.
I take my time off in August.
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