Language/French/Grammar/Give-your-Opinion

French Grammar - Give your Opinion

Hi French learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will focus on giving your opinion in French, which is an important skill that you need to master if you want to express yourself and participate in discussions with French native speakers. We will also provide cultural information and interesting facts to help you understand how to use these expressions in context.
Don't forget to use the hyperlink Grammar to check more resources on French grammar and the hyperlink French to learn more about the French language and culture. Don't hesitate to ask any questions if you have any difficulties. Let's go!

Expressing your opinion

In French, to give your opinion, you can use the following expressions:

French	Pronunciation	English
À mon avis	a mɔ̃ avi	In my opinion
Personnellement	pɛʁsɔnɛlmɑ̃	Personally
Je trouve que	ʒə tʁuv kə	I find that
Selon moi	səlɔ̃ mwa	According to me
Pour moi	puʁ mwa	For me
À mon sens	a mɔ̃ sɑ̃s	As I see it, in my opinion
D'après moi	dapʁɛ mwa	In my opinion

Here's an example dialogue to illustrate the use of these expressions:

• Person 1: Qu'est-ce que tu penses de cette nouvelle loi ? (What do you think about this new law?)
• Person 2: À mon avis, elle ne va pas aider les travailleurs. (In my opinion, it won't help workers.)

Agreeing and Disagreeing

Now that you know how to give your opinion, it's also important to know how to agree or disagree with others. Here are some useful phrases:

Agreeing

French	Pronunciation	English
Je suis d'accord	ʒə sɥi dakɔʁ	I agree
Tout à fait	tu ta fɛ	Exactly
Absolument	absɔlymɑ̃	Absolutely
C'est vrai	sɛ vʁɛ	That's true

Here's an example dialogue:

• Person 1: Il faut investir dans les énergies renouvelables. (We need to invest in renewable energy.)
• Person 2: Je suis tout à fait d'accord. (I completely agree.)

Disagreeing

French	Pronunciation	English
Je ne suis pas d'accord	ʒə nə sɥi pa dakɔʁ	I disagree
Je ne pense pas que	ʒə nə pɑ̃s pa kə	I don't think that
Au contraire	o kɔ̃tʁɛʁ	On the contrary
Ce n'est pas vrai	sə nɛ pa vʁɛ	That's not true

Here's an example dialogue:

• Person 1: La pollution n'est pas un problème urgent. (Pollution is not an urgent problem.)
• Person 2: Je ne suis pas du tout d'accord. (I completely disagree.)

Giving reasons

When you give your opinion or when you express your agreement or disagreement, it's also important to provide reasons to support your point of view:

French	Pronunciation	English
Parce que	paʁs kə	Because
À cause de	a koz də	Because of
Grâce à	ɡʁas a	Thanks to
En raison de	ɑ̃ ʁɛzɔ̃ də	Due to

Here's an example dialogue:

• Person 1: Je pense que le sport est très bénéfique pour la santé. (I think that sports are very beneficial for health.)
• Person 2: Oui, je suis d'accord grâce aux nombreux avantages pour la santé qu'il procure. (Yes, I agree thanks to the many health benefits it provides.)

Cultural information

In French culture, expressing one's opinion, in a polite and respectful way, is considered an important social skill. It's often used in formal or informal contexts, such as debates, meetings, or conversations with friends or family members. Also, it's advisable to avoid being too confrontational or aggressive, and to always listen to the other party before expressing your point of view. Finally, it's common, at the end of a conversation, to summarize the main points of agreement or disagreement, and to thank the other party for their contribution to the discussion.

Remember that the best way to improve your French is to practice, practice, practice! Use the hyperlink Polyglot Club to find language exchange partners and meet other learners or native speakers, ask them any questions, and practice your new skills!

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➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Other Lessons

• Adjectives which follow verbs or verbal expressions
• Non specific use of y
• Agreement of the past participle when using “avoir” with a preceding direct object
• Use of y in constructions where à does not introduce an indirect object
• Object pronouns Correctly identifying the direct and indirect objects in English and French
• French Ditransitive verbs
• Compound nouns
• Adverbs ending in —(é)ment derived from past participles
• Easy way of generating the imperative mood
• Demonstrative pronouns

Sources

• Learn how to express your opinion in French - French Grammar
• French Subjunctive: The Concise Guide - Talk in French