How to Say ‘I have trouble’ in French
J'ai du mal
zh ay dyoo mal
[zh ay dyoo mal]
💬 Usage Tip: French often uses [avoir] where English uses "be": [j'ai du mal] is literally "I have difficulty," meaning "I'm having trouble." You can reuse it with many things: [J'ai du mal avec la grammaire.]
Phrase Breakdown
J'
[zh]
I
Elided je before a vowel; it means I.
J'ai du mal quand l'exercice est difficile.
I have trouble when the exercise is difficult.
ai
[ay]
have
From avoir; with j', it makes j'ai, meaning I have.
J'ai du mal avec cette leçon.
I have trouble with this lesson.
du
[dyoo]
some / of the
Here du is part of the expression avoir du mal, meaning to have difficulty.
J'ai du mal à suivre aujourd'hui.
I'm having trouble following today.
mal
[mal]
difficulty / trouble
In avoir du mal, mal means difficulty or trouble, not simply bad.
J'ai du mal en géométrie cette semaine.
I'm having trouble in geometry this week.
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