French course

Lesson 57 of 240

New here? This is lesson 57 of a free 240-lesson French course.

Start hereHow this works

Hot, cold, rainy in French

Rain hits the terrace at Café des Tilleuls. Gaspard looks at the sky, starts a sentence, and stops.

Odile does not look up. She finishes it for him from the counter.

By the end, you'll say if it is hot, cold, nice, rainy, windy, or just bad.

These lines are for today, right now, not for tomorrow's forecast.

By the end of this lesson

Describe today's weather.

  • Il fait chaud.It's hot.
  • Il fait froid.It's cold.
  • Il fait beau.It's nice out.
  • Il pleut.It's raining.
  • Il y a du vent.It's windy.
  • Il fait mauvais.The weather's bad.

Scene — rain on the glass

Same café on rue des Tilleuls. Rain beads on the terrace chairs. Sam pushes the door, still a little wet.

Odile is at the zinc counter and does not look up. Gaspard sits on two chairs by the window table, café crème untouched, and stares at the sky.

A wide rainy café interior with Sam just inside the door still wet, Odile at the zinc not looking up, and Gaspard on two chairs by the window staring at the sky.

Learn — hot, cold, rainy

Six short lines name today's weather: hot, cold, nice out, rain, wind, and bad weather.

Learn each one as a whole piece you can say at the door.

  1. A profile of Odile at the zinc counter in the warm steamy café, not looking up, while rain streaks the window.

    Il fait chaud.

    It's hot.

    When to use it: Say this when the air outside feels hot today.

    Learn it as one piece for a hot day.

    Say it: The d at the end of chaud is silent.

  2. Sam entering the café still wet, hunched just inside the door and rubbing both arms against the chill.

    Il fait froid.

    It's cold.

    When to use it: Say this when the air outside feels cold today.

    Learn it as one piece for a cold day.

  3. A close view of Gaspard on two chairs by the window, café crème untouched, looking up at the sky through wet glass and stopping.

    Il fait beau.

    It's nice out.

    When to use it: Say this when the sky is clear and pleasant today.

    Learn it as one piece for a clear nice day.

  4. An over-the-shoulder view from behind Sam watching rain fall on the empty terrace chairs beyond the glass door.

    Il pleut.

    It's raining.

    When to use it: Say this when rain is falling right now.

    Learn it as one piece when rain is falling.

    Say it: The t at the end of pleut is silent.

  5. A low view from the windy terrace looking in at Gaspard on two chairs as rain is driven sideways against the window.

    Il y a du vent.

    It's windy.

    When to use it: Say this when the air is blowing hard today.

    Learn it as one piece for a windy day.

    Say it: The en in vent is a nasal sound.

  6. A close view of Odile's hands on the zinc counter in shifting rain light, not turning toward the room.

    Il fait mauvais.

    The weather's bad.

    When to use it: Say this when today's weather is ugly or grim.

    Learn it as one piece when the weather is ugly.

    Say it: The s at the end of mauvais is silent.

Story — she does not look up

Watch Gaspard start a weather line and stop. Odile finishes it without looking up.

The highlighted words are the lines you just learned. Turn on Show English if you need it.

  1. Rain ticks on the terrace glass. Gaspard looks at the sky.
  2. OdileBonjour.Hello.
  3. SamBonjour.Hello.
  4. GaspardIl fait…It's…
  5. He looks at the sky and stops.
  6. OdileIl fait mauvais.The weather's bad.
  7. GaspardIl fait froid.It's cold.
  8. SamIl pleut.It's raining.
  9. GaspardIl y a du vent.It's windy.
  10. A scrap of sun hits the marble table. The window table stays empty.
  11. GaspardIl fait beau.It's nice out.
  12. OdileIl fait chaud.It's hot.

Practice — name the weather

Ten quick exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, fill a gap, and build a line.

They stay tiny, so the round moves fast.

0 of 10 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    French

    Il fait chaud.Drop the English here
    Il fait froid.Drop the English here
    Il fait beau.Drop the English here

    English

    Drag an English line onto its French, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    The rain has stopped. The terrace is bright and pleasant.

  4. Fill the gap

    It's windy.

    Il y a du ____.

  5. What does it mean?

    Il fait chaud.

  6. Swap the word

    You step outside and the air is icy.

    Il fait ____.

  7. Build the line

    The weather's bad.

    .

    Tap the words in order.

  8. What do you say?

    You walk into Café des Tilleuls in the morning. Odile is at the counter.

  9. True or false?

    This line is about rain tomorrow.

  10. Pick the reply

    Gaspard says:

    Ça va ?

    How are you?

    And you reply with:

Say it — say today's weather

Now you're Sam at the café door, talking about today's weather. When it's your turn, tap the microphone and speak the line.

Tap ▶ first if you want to hear the line. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. OdileBonjour.Hello.
  2. Sam (you)Say hello back. It is still morning.

    Bonjour.

    Hello

0 of 5 said

Recap — what you can say now

FrenchEnglish
Il fait chaud.It's hot.
Il fait froid.It's cold.
Il fait beau.It's nice out.
Il pleut.It's raining.
Il y a du vent.It's windy.
Il fait mauvais.The weather's bad.
Next: lesson 58Write it down for me

Save your progress — it’s free

Keep your place in the course and see which lines you’ve learned.

Want the next lesson in your inbox?

Get the next lesson by email, one a day.

Where should we start?
Join the newsletter

Daily lesson emails are coming soon. Newsletter subscribers get them first.

Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Want to keep today's weather handy? Grab the Yak Cards for this lesson and review them anywhere.

A quick round with the Yak Cards each day keeps hot, cold, and rain ready at the door.

Open Yak Cards