How to Say Please in French: 15+ Polite Expressions

The Short Answer

The most common way to say please in French is s'il vous plaît (seel voo PLEH). It literally means "if it pleases you," one of the most beautifully courteous etymologies in any language. With friends and family, the informal version is s'il te plaît (seel tuh PLEH).

French is spoken by approximately 321 million people across 29 countries, according to the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie's 2022 report. Across every one of those countries, politeness markers like s'il vous plaît are not optional decorations but load-bearing structures of daily communication. Ordering a coffee without it? You will notice the difference in the waiter's demeanor.

"Politeness in French is not merely a social nicety but a deeply embedded linguistic system. The choice between tu and vous alone carries more social information than entire sentences in many other languages."

(Brown & Levinson, Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage, Cambridge University Press, 1987)

This guide covers 15+ ways to say please in French, organized by formality level: standard, formal, casual, and indirect. Each includes pronunciation, usage context, and the cultural knowledge you need to sound genuinely polite rather than just grammatically correct.

Quick Reference: French "Please" Expressions at a Glance

Standard "Please", The Essential Two

These are the two forms every French learner must know from day one. The only difference between them is the tu/vous distinction, one of the most important social markers in French.

S'il vous plaît

S'il vous plaît breaks down into three words: s'il (if it), vous (you, formal), plaît (pleases). This etymology ("if it pleases you") reflects the deep respect embedded in French politeness culture. According to the Académie française, this construction has been in continuous use since at least the 16th century.

In practice, this is the phrase you will use most. At a bakery, at a restaurant, asking for directions, in a meeting: any interaction where vous is appropriate. And when in doubt, vous is always the safer choice.

S'il te plaît

The informal twin. The only change is the pronoun: te (informal you) replaces vous (formal you). This mirrors the broader tu/vous system that governs all of French social interaction.

Formal and Elegant "Please"

French has an exceptionally rich set of formal politeness expressions. These go beyond everyday s'il vous plaît and signal refinement, respect, or professional register. As Le Petit Robert documents, each occupies a specific niche in the formality hierarchy.

Je vous en prie

This expression has a fascinating dual function. When used before a request (Je vous en prie, entrez, "Please, come in"), it means "please." But when used as a response to merci (Je vous en prie), it means "you're welcome." This dual role confuses many learners, but context always makes the meaning clear.

The informal version is je t'en prie, used with people you address as tu. Both carry a gracious, generous tone: the speaker is essentially saying "I implore you" or "it is my pleasure."

Veuillez

Veuillez is the formal imperative of vouloir (to want). It literally means "be willing to" and is the gold standard of written French politeness. You will encounter it in every formal French letter, government notice, and professional email. The classic French letter closing (Veuillez agréer l'expression de mes salutations distinguées) is a cultural institution unto itself.

Auriez-vous l'amabilité de

This is French politeness at its most ornate. You are unlikely to use this in daily conversation, but you will encounter it in formal letters, academic correspondence, and situations requiring maximum deference. Variations include Auriez-vous l'obligeance de (Would you have the obligingness to) and Auriez-vous la gentillesse de (Would you have the kindness to).

Casual and Spoken "Please"

In fast-paced spoken French, native speakers naturally shorten and abbreviate. These casual forms are what you will actually hear on the streets of Paris, Lyon, or Montreal.

S'te plaît

In rapid spoken French, s'il te plaît often contracts to s'te plaît (the il simply vanishes). This is standard casual pronunciation, not sloppy speech. You will hear it constantly among friends and family. It mirrors how English speakers say "please" rather than "if you please."

SVP

STP

SVP and STP are to French texting what "pls" is to English, except they are far more widely accepted. You will see SVP on signs in shops (Fermez la porte SVP), in work emails, and across every messaging platform. They are not considered lazy or rude; they are simply efficient.

Indirect Politeness. The Conditional Tense

French has a built-in grammatical tool for politeness: the conditional tense. Using the conditional automatically softens any request, turning a demand into a courteous question. Brown and Levinson's foundational research on linguistic politeness identifies this as a "negative politeness" strategy that avoids imposing on the listener by framing the request as hypothetical.

Pourriez-vous... ?

This is the workhorse of polite French requests. Compare: Répétez ! (Repeat! a direct command) vs. Pourriez-vous répéter ? (Could you repeat? a courteous request). The conditional tense transforms the entire tone. The informal version is Pourrais-tu... ? for people you address as tu.

Est-ce que vous pourriez... ?

Adding est-ce que at the front creates a softer, more conversational question. While Pourriez-vous uses formal inversion, Est-ce que vous pourriez feels slightly warmer without sacrificing any politeness. Both are perfectly correct.

Je voudrais

The difference between je veux (I want) and je voudrais (I would like) is the difference between sounding demanding and sounding civilized. French speakers overwhelmingly prefer the conditional for any request. At a restaurant, Je veux un café would raise eyebrows. Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît is the natural, polite form.

Formal Written Requests in French

French business and administrative writing has its own ecosystem of polite request formulas. Here are the most common:

These formulas may seem elaborate to English speakers, but they are standard in French professional communication. Skipping them in a formal email would be the equivalent of writing "Hey, send me that file" to a CEO in English: technically communicative, but socially tone-deaf.

How to Respond When Someone Says "Please"

The Culture of Politeness in France

French politeness is not decorative; it is structural. Understanding this distinction is perhaps the single most valuable insight for anyone learning the language.

Research from the Centre National de Ressources Textuelles et Lexicales (CNRTL) shows that French has approximately three times more dedicated politeness expressions than English. This is not an accident; it reflects a culture where the form of a request matters as much as its content. A French waiter who receives a bare Un café without s'il vous plaît isn't being dramatic when they respond coldly. They are reacting to a genuine social transgression.

In Quebec and other Francophone regions, s'il vous plaît functions identically, though the overall conversational style may be slightly more relaxed. The core principle (that every request deserves a politeness marker) holds constant across the entire Francophone world.

Practice With Real French Content

Reading about politeness is essential, but hearing these expressions in natural conversation is what makes them second nature. French films are particularly valuable here because politeness registers shift constantly between characters: a scene between strangers uses vous forms, while the next scene among friends switches entirely to tu forms.

Wordy lets you watch French movies and shows with interactive subtitles, so you can tap on s'il vous plaît, je vous en prie, or any polite expression to see its meaning, formality level, and cultural context in real time. Instead of memorizing a table of phrases, you absorb them from authentic conversations with native speakers.

For more French content, explore our blog for guides including the best movies to learn French. You can also visit our French learning page to start practicing politeness in context today.