Below are 60 French words for jobs, the office, money and careers, each with its article. Learn these five first: le travail (work, a job), le bureau (office, desk), la réunion (meeting), le salaire (salary) and le collègue (colleague). To say what you do, drop the article: je suis infirmière, not je suis une infirmière.
- Words
- 60: jobs, the office, money, careers
- Variety
- France French
- Level
- A1–B1
- Read them in
- Contos stories (chapters 1–2 free)
60 French words for work
People are given in the masculine (le collègue, l'employé); the first section shows the feminine forms. The Contos web app uses this pack for its work flashcards.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| le travail | job |
| le bureau | office |
| la réunion | meeting |
| le collègue | colleague |
| le patron | boss |
| le responsable | manager |
| l'équipe | team |
| le projet | project |
| la date limite | deadline |
| l'e-mail | |
| le rapport | report |
| le contrat | contract |
| le client | client |
| l'entreprise | company |
| le salaire | salary |
| l'entretien d'embauche | job interview |
| le CV | CV |
| la carrière | career |
| la présentation | presentation |
| l'emploi du temps | schedule |
| la tâche | task |
| l'ordinateur | computer |
| l'imprimante | printer |
| l'appel téléphonique | phone call |
| la pause | break |
| la pause déjeuner | lunch break |
| les vacances | holiday |
| le jour de congé | day off |
| les heures supplémentaires | overtime |
| embaucher | to hire |
| postuler | to apply for a job |
| négocier | to negotiate |
| signer | to sign |
| licencier | to fire |
| le budget | budget |
| le prix | price |
| la facture | invoice |
| le bénéfice | profit |
| la vente | sale |
| le service client | customer service |
| le rendez-vous | appointment |
| envoyer un e-mail | to send an email |
| occupé | busy |
| expérimenté | experienced |
| professionnel | professional |
| l'employé | employee |
| l'employeur | employer |
| démissionner | to resign |
| la promotion | promotion |
| le document | document |
| imprimer | to print |
| la compétence | skill |
| l'expérience | experience |
| le service | department |
| les heures de travail | working hours |
| gagner | to earn |
| le voyage d'affaires | business trip |
| le lieu de travail | workplace |
| prendre sa retraite | to retire |
| l'augmentation de salaire | pay rise |
How do you say what job you do in French?
With être and a job, French leaves out un and une: je suis professeur, elle est médecin, il est serveur. The article comes back with c'est: c'est un bon médecin. To say where you work, use dans for a type of place, chez for a named company and à for a town.
Je suis comptable.
I'm an accountant.
Je travaille dans une banque.
I work in a bank.
Elle travaille chez Renault, à Paris.
She works for Renault, in Paris.
Qu'est-ce que vous faites dans la vie ?
What do you do for a living?
The usual polite way to ask about someone's job.
Many words for people at work change for a woman: l'employé becomes l'employée (same sound), le patron becomes la patronne, le client becomes la cliente. Le collègue and le responsable stay the same; only the article changes: une collègue, la responsable.
Le bureau: the room and the desk
Le bureau is both the office you go to and the desk you sit at. Here it is the desk:
Léa Moreau travaille à son bureau quand son téléphone vibre.Office words that don't mean what they seem
Office French is full of words that look like English ones. These are the ones from the list to watch.
| French | Usually means | Careful |
|---|---|---|
| la tâche | a task | la tache, with no accent, is a stain |
| l'expérience | experience | also an experiment in a lab |
| la promotion | a promotion at work | also a special offer in a shop: en promotion |
| le rapport | a report | also a link or relationship between things |
| le service | a department: le service marketing | also service in a restaurant |
| gagner | to earn: gagner sa vie | also to win |
The list gives le responsable for manager, the everyday word for the person in charge (la responsable for a woman). Le manager is used in French companies too, but it sounds like business jargon, and the boss is le patron or, informally, le chef.
Le responsable du marché arrive.- les vacances is always plural: je suis en vacances. A single day off is un jour de congé, and booking leave is poser des congés.
- l'e-mail is correct; colleagues more often say un mail. Official French in Quebec uses un courriel.
- licencier is to dismiss someone; démissionner is to resign of your own accord.
Phrases for the working day
Colleagues of the same age often use tu with each other, but start with vous with a client or a new manager and let them suggest tu. These lines use words from the list.
Je suis en réunion, je vous rappelle.
I'm in a meeting, I'll call you back.
Je vous envoie le rapport par mail.
I'll send you the report by email.
La date limite, c'est vendredi.
The deadline is Friday.
On fait une pause ?
Shall we take a break?
J'ai un entretien d'embauche demain.
I've got a job interview tomorrow.
Elle a eu une augmentation.
She got a pay rise.
Money comes up early in beginner stories too. In this A1 chapter a young man reads a message on his phone:
C'est un bon salaire.For the days and dates you'll need for deadlines, see the days of the week and months in French; for the verbs behind the job, the most common French verbs.
Read a French story at A1 and tap any word to see its meaning in that sentence.
Read free in your browserFrequently asked questions
Do you say "je suis un professeur" in French?
No. With être and a job, French drops the article: je suis professeur, elle est avocate. Un and une come back after c'est, which you need when you add an adjective: c'est un excellent professeur.
What is the difference between tâche and tache?
The accent changes the word. La tâche, with a circumflex, is a task or a job to do. La tache, without one, is a stain or a spot.
How do you say "email" in French?
In France, people say un mail or un e-mail. Un courriel is the official term and is common in Quebec. To email someone is envoyer un mail à quelqu'un.
Is le patron rude?
No. Le patron (la patronne) is the normal word for the boss or the owner of a business, such as a café. Le chef is more informal, and le directeur is the head of a company or department.