What Do You Want to Eat?
Places to Buy Food
When you walk into a food shop it is always exciting to come across an array of delcious options and fragrant smells. In francophone cultures, many specialty shops exist where people can buy a variety of food. Familiarize yourself with the list of shops below. With what you already know about French pronunciations, try to correctly say the name of each word on your own. Then, check yourself by listening to the speaker, and then repeating each word aloud. Click each word to hear the pronunciation.
French | English |
un marché | open-air market |
une boucherie | butcher shop |
une boulangerie | bread bakery |
une charcuterie | deli/store with prepared meats like bacon and ham |
une crémerie | store with dairy products |
une épicerie | store with non-perishable foods. |
une pâtisserie | pastry shop/bakery with sweets |
une poissonnerie | shop with fresh fish and seafood |
Food Items
Now that you know the types of shops in francophone cultures where you can find food, you need to know how to actually name the foods you would like to eat. In this interactivity, you will encounter new vocabulary for saying food items in French. Click the player to begin.
View a printable version of this interactivity.
Quantities
Now that you know how to say where you want to go to buy food, as well as the names of various food items, you will take this information one step further and explore how to say the quantities of items you would like to purchase. Familiarize yourself with the list of quantities below. With what you already know about French pronunciations, try to correctly say the name of each word on your own. Then, check yourself by listening to the speaker, and then repeating each word aloud. Click each word to hear the pronunciation.
French | English |
un kilo de | a kilo of (a kilo equals 2.2 lbs) |
un litre de | a liter of |
un morceau de | a piece or slice of (used with cheese, cake, and pie) |
un paquet de | a package of |
une boîte de | a box of, a can of |
une bouteille de | a bottle of |
une livre de | a half kilo, a pound of |
une tranche de | a piece or slice of (used with meat) |
You may recall that the word de means from, about, or of. When you refer to quantitites, de means of. In addition, you will never change its form to du, de la, de l', or des. It will always be de, or d', before a vowel. For example, you would write, "Une boite de carottes." In another example, you would write, "Une livre d'oranges."
Vouloir and Pouvoir
Expressing your wants and needs is one of life's basic communication necessitites. Similarly, it is imiportant to understand how to ask for and offer food. Using the verbs vouloir and pouvoir will help you accomplish this.
The verb vouloir means "to want," and the verb pouvoir means "to be able to" or "can." Take a moment to look at the tables below and explore how each verb is conjugated. Familiarize yourself with the singular and plural forms of the verbs, and try to correctly say the name of each word on your own. Then, check yourself by listening to the speaker, and then repeating each word aloud. Click each word to hear the pronunciation.
Vouloir
Singular | Plural |
je veux | nous voulons |
tu veux | vous voulez |
il/elle/on veut | ils/elles veulent |
Pouvoir
Singular | Plural |
je peux | nous pouvons |
tu peux | vous pouvez |
il/elle/on peut | ils/elles peuvent |
In this interactivity, you will discover how to apply vouloir and pouvoir in order to express what you want or are able to do. Click the player to begin.
View a printable version of this interactivity.
What Do You Want to Eat? Review
Now that you have learned a little about food shops, food vocabulary, and quantities, as well as how to apply these words using vouloir and pouvoir, review your knowledge in this non-graded activity. Click the player to get started.