Curriculum

Learn French from word 1

A guided path through the first 1,000 words of French in frequency order. Chapter 1 is bespoke: an orientation, a starter vocabulary, word order, more pronouns, your first graded story, and the articles. From Chapter 2 onwards, rote ten-word sessions take you the rest of the way, with a milestone story at every hundred-rank mark.

Chapter

Chapter 1

Lesson 1 · Read first
Introduction to French
Read this first. The orientation: how French works, what it costs in hours, what the apps get wrong, and how to use this curriculum.
Lesson 2 · Vocabulary
First words for sentences
A pronoun, a few verbs, the things they act on. Enough to build a real French sentence by the end.
2 je I
9 tu you (informal singular)
14 être to be
16 faire to do, to make
44 tout all, every, quite, everything
66 ici here
89 chose thing
90 bon good, right, okay (adjective and interjection)
94 très very
100 voir to see
Lesson 3 · Grammar primer
Word order in French
Subject, verb, object - and the moments French bends the English order.
Lesson 4 · Vocabulary
More people, more words
Subject pronouns for everyone else, plus the rest of the vocabulary you need for your first story.
14 il he, it (masculine)
15 avoir to have
19 dire to say, to tell
33 nous we, us
34 elle she, her, it (feminine)
62 comme like, as, such as, how
97 aussi also, too, as well, as (comparison)
Lesson 5 · Read a story
Your first story in French
Every word in this story comes from the lessons you've just finished. No lookups required.

Lesson 6 · Vocabulary

French articles

The definite, indefinite, and partitive articles in one place: le / la / un / des / du / de. The next lesson covers when to use which, including the partitive that English doesn't have.

1	le	the (masculine singular)
4	un	a, an (masculine)
6	du	some, any (masculine); of the
7	la	the (feminine singular)
8	de	of, from
29	des	some, of the (plural indefinite and partitive article; also contraction of de + les)

Lesson 7 · Grammar primer
French articles: when to use which
Definite vs indefinite vs partitive - including du / de la / des, the article English speakers consistently drop and shouldn't. Plus the elision rules (l'eau, d'un) that make the difference between French that sounds native and French that sounds wrong.

After the first 1,000

Once you have the first 1,000 down, the Core 1,000 and Core 5,000 lists let you self-pace the rest as a reference.

Browse all Core 1,000 Browse Core 5,000

2	je	I
9	tu	you (informal singular)
14	être	to be
16	faire	to do, to make
44	tout	all, every, quite, everything
66	ici	here
89	chose	thing
90	bon	good, right, okay (adjective and interjection)
94	très	very
100	voir	to see

14	il	he, it (masculine)
15	avoir	to have
19	dire	to say, to tell
33	nous	we, us
34	elle	she, her, it (feminine)
62	comme	like, as, such as, how
97	aussi	also, too, as well, as (comparison)

Introduction to French

First words for sentences

Word order in French

More people, more words

Your first story in French

French articles

French articles: when to use which

After the first 1,000