How to use ‘help’ in French
🇫🇷 Today, we will break down the primary verb aider, explore how to ask for a hand politely, and learn the specific phrase you need for urgent emergencies.
Practice with the cheat sheet here:
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#1 The verb 'to help' in French
Let’s start with learning how to use the French verb ‘to help’. The base form (infinitif) is ‘aider‘.
J’aide = I’m helping
Tu aides = You’re helping
Il aide/elle aide = He/she’s helping
Nous aidons = We’re helping
Vous aidez = You’re helping
Ils/elles aident = They’re helping.
Par exemple :
J’aide les touristes quand ils sont perdues = I help tourists when they’re lost.
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#2 French expressions with 'help' to know absolutely
As mentioned, the French use the verb ‘aider’ but when you need urgent rescue, you have to use a different word altogether.
If you want to say ‘help me’ (if you need some help), then you say:
aide-moi = help me
or
aidez-moi = help me (when you don’t know the person)
par exemple :
Aidez-moi à porter ma grosse valise s’il vous plait = Help me carrying my big suitcase please.
If you want to be more formal when asking help, you can say :
Pourrais-tu m’aider ?= Could you help me? (when talking to one person you know)
or
Pourriez-vous m’aider ? = Could you help me? (when you want to sound more formal and sophisticated.
Par exemple :
Pourrais-tu m’aider à apprendre le français ? = Could you help me with learning French?
Pourriez-vous m’aider avec cette réservation ? = Could you help me with this reservation?
When you need urgent help and rescue, you say (or scream!) ‘Au secours !’ (help!)
