How to Say ‘You have five weeks of paid vacation per year.’ in French
Vous avez cinq semaines de congés payés par an.
voo ah-VAY sank suh-MEN duh kohn-ZHAY pay-YAY pahr ahn
[voo ah-VAY sank suh-MEN duh kohn-ZHAY pay-YAY pahr ahn]
🇫🇷 In France: Five weeks of paid leave is the legal minimum in France, so this isn't a perk to negotiate. Many full-time jobs also add extra days off, called RTT "reduced working time days", which are worth asking about.
Phrase Breakdown
Vous avez cinq semaines
voo ah-VAY sank suh-MEN
You have five weeks
Link 'vous avez' with a Z sound: 'voo-za-VAY'. Pronounce the K sound at the end of 'cinq'.
Vous avez cinq semaines pour finir.
You have five weeks to finish.
Words in this phrase
Vous
[voo]
you
Used to refer to the person or people being addressed.
Vous aimez le film?
Do you like the movie?
avez
[ah-VAY]
have
Auxiliary 'avoir' (vous form) used to build the past tense.
Vous avez mangé ?
Have you eaten?
cinq
[sank]
five
The number 5.
J'ai cinq montres.
I have five watches.
semaines
[suh-MEN]
weeks
Plural of 'semaine', feminine noun.
Deux semaines de vacances.
Two weeks of vacation.
de congés payés
duh kohn-ZHAY pay-YAY
of paid leave
'Congés payés' means paid vacation. Say 'kohn-zhay pay-YAY'.
Il prend ses congés payés en août.
He takes his paid leave in August.
Words in this phrase
de
[duh]
of
Expressing the relationship between part and a whole.
Un verre de lait.
A glass of milk.
congés
[kohn-ZHAY]
leave / days off
Time off from work.
Elle est en congés cette semaine.
She is on leave this week.
payés
[pay-YAY]
paid
Past participle of 'payer'; with 'congés' it means paid vacation.
Les heures supplémentaires sont payées.
Overtime hours are paid.
par an.
pahr ahn
per year
Say 'pa-RAHN' with a falling intonation, since this is a statement.
Une prime par an.
One bonus per year.
Words in this phrase
par
[pahr]
per
Used for rates: per person, per day.
Dix euros par jour.
Ten euros per day.
an
[ahn]
year
Masculine noun for a year.
Une fois par an, nous partons en vacances.
Once a year, we go on vacation.
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