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How to Say ‘We can use 'tu' with each other.’ in French

On peut se tutoyer.

on puh suh tew-twah-YAY

[on puh suh tew-twah-YAY]

💬 Usage Tip: Tutoyer means to address someone with tu. Its opposite is vouvoyer, which means to use vous.

🇫🇷 In France: Many French offices switch to tu quickly between peers, but it is usually offered, not assumed. Wait for a colleague or your manager to suggest it, especially in more traditional workplaces.

Phrase Breakdown

On peut

on puh

We can

'On' is the common spoken form of 'we'. It is a nasal 'ohn'. 'Peut' sounds like 'puh', with a silent 't'.

Example

On peut parler ?

Can we talk?

Words in this phrase

[on]

Used by a speaker to refer to themself and one or more other people considered together.

Example

On y va maintenant.

We are going now.

peut

[puh]

can

Form of 'pouvoir' (to be able to) used with il/elle/on.

Example

Il peut venir demain.

He can come tomorrow.

se tutoyer.

suh tew-twah-YAY

use 'tu' with each other.

'Tutoyer' means speaking informally with 'tu' instead of 'vous'. It sounds like 'tew-twah-yay'.

Example

Entre collègues, on aime se tutoyer.

Among colleagues, we like to use 'tu'.

Words in this phrase

[suh]

each other / oneself

"Se" marks the reciprocal idea of helping one another.

Example

On se soutient beaucoup. Personne ne reste isolé.

We support each other a lot. No one is left isolated.

tutoyer

[tew-twah-YAY]

to use 'tu'

To address someone informally with 'tu' instead of 'vous'.

Example

On peut se tutoyer ?

Can we use 'tu' with each other?

Guides for French learners

The Most Common French Verbs: the 20 You'll Actually UseThe 20 most common French verbs, with the present-tense forms you need, real example sentences with native audio, and two shortcuts for past and future.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.

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