ou…ou

ByFast French

In French, the construction “ou…ou” is commonly used to present alternatives or choices. It translates to “either…or” in English.

Examples:

  1. “Tu peux choisir ou le chocolat ou la vanille.” (You can choose either chocolate or vanilla.)
  2. “Nous irons au cinéma ou nous resterons à la maison.” (We’ll either go to the cinema or stay at home.)
  3. “Elle peut prendre le train ou l’avion pour se rendre à Paris.” (She can either take the train or the plane to go to Paris.)
  4. “Veux-tu du café ou du thé?” (Do you want either coffee or tea?)
  5. “Il doit décider s’il veut partir maintenant ou attendre demain.” (He needs to decide whether he wants to leave now or wait until tomorrow.)

Read more:

See the post about the “soit…soit” construction in French.

Don’t miss new articles!

Get 1 email a week with new articles about French

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Similar Posts

  • humour vs humeur

    ByFast French

    Both “humour” and “humeur” are French nouns. But they mean different things. “L’humour” (masculine) means “the humour” or “the comedy.” It corresponds fairly closely to the English word “humour” (or “humor,” in US English). In French culture, especially cultivated and sophisticated French culture, “wit” was seen as more important. The French idea of “wit” is…

  • cuiller/cuillère

    ByFast French

    The French word “la cuiller” means “the spoon.” It can also be spelled “la cuillère,” which is a spelling that more accurately reflects its pronunciation (KWEE YAIR). Both spellings are accepted in modern French. The spelling of “la cuillère” has recently become more popular, however, due to its more logical connection with standard French phonetics…

  • non plus

    ByFast French

    The French phrase “non plus” serves as a negative equivalent to “aussi” (also/too), functioning similarly to the English “neither” or “not… either”. It is exclusively used in negative constructions to indicate that a statement applies equally to someone else. Basic structure “Non plus” typically appears at the end of a negative sentence, following this pattern:Subject…

  • mettre en boîte

    ByFast French

    The French idiom “mettre en boîte” means literally “to put in a can” or “to can.” Figuratively however it means “to make fun of someone,” “to annoy,” “to tease,” or “to kid.” The saying dates back to the end of the 19th century, when “to can” meant “to mock” or “to whistle disapprovingly at.” The…

  • avoir hâte

    ByFast French

    The French phrase “avoir hâte” means “to look forward to” or “to be eager.” The phrase is simple and commonly used in everyday conversation. Structure and Usage The phrase is made up of two parts: When combined, “avoir hâte” literally means “to have eagerness.” It is always followed by de or que to introduce what…

  • tard vs en retard

    ByFast French

    If you’re learning French, you’ve probably come across both tard and en retard in contexts related to time. At first glance, they seem similar—after all, both suggest some kind of lateness—but they are not interchangeable. The Key Difference In short: Examples of tard Use tard to describe actions that happen late in the day or…