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Lesson 197 of 240

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Online shopping and returns in French

Sam's shirt for Lyon has arrived, but it is the wrong size. He sits at Café des Tilleuls with his phone.

Inès joins him after a night shift. Gaspard is at the next table, still not at the window.

By the end, you'll order online, ask about shipping, track a parcel, and send something back.

The shirt stays in the bag. The refund takes a few days.

By the end of this lesson

Order online, track a delivery, and send something back.

  • J'ai commandé ça en ligne.I ordered it online.
  • Je peux suivre ma commande ?Can I track my order?
  • Il y a des frais de port ?Is there a shipping fee?
  • Je voudrais renvoyer l'article.I'd like to send the item back.
  • Ce n'est pas la bonne taille.It's the wrong size.
  • Le remboursement prend combien de temps ?How long does the refund take?

Scene — the wrong size

Sunday at Café des Tilleuls. Sam has a shopping bag on the chair and his phone on the table.

Inès sits across from him after a night shift. Odile wipes the zinc counter. Gaspard occupies two chairs by the window table, café crème unfinished.

The brass sign on the window table is still blank. Nobody sits there.

A wide Sunday-morning view of Café des Tilleuls with Sam and Inès at a table, Gaspard on a pair of chairs by the window, and the window table empty.

Learn — order, track, return

Six lines cover an online order, tracking, shipping fees, a return, the wrong size, and a refund wait.

You say them at a café table, not at a shop counter.

  1. Sam sits at the café table with one hand on the shopping bag, presenting an online order to Inès.

    J'ai commandé ça en ligne.

    I ordered it online.

    When to use it: Say this when the thing came from a website, not a shop.

    J'ai commandé is how you say you already ordered; it does not change for a man or a woman.

    Say it: The an in commandé is a nasal sound.

  2. Inès reaches toward the face-down phone on the table to check a delivery, with Sam's hand on the bag.

    Je peux suivre ma commande ?

    Can I track my order?

    When to use it: Ask this on a site or app when you want the parcel status.

    Suivre here means track a parcel, not follow a person down the street.

  3. Inès turns in profile toward Odile at the zinc with an open-hand question about a shipping fee.

    Il y a des frais de port ?

    Is there a shipping fee?

    When to use it: Ask this to check if delivery or return shipping costs extra.

    Frais de port is the usual name for shipping costs on a French site.

  4. From over Inès's shoulder, Sam lifts the shopping bag off the chair as if to send the purchase back.

    Je voudrais renvoyer l'article.

    I'd like to send the item back.

    When to use it: Say this when you want a return, not a shop-counter refund.

    L'article is the thing you bought; the apostrophe joins le to article.

    Say it: The e of le drops before article.

  5. From above, Inès looks down into the open shopping bag at a shirt that is the wrong size.

    Ce n'est pas la bonne taille.

    It's the wrong size.

    When to use it: Give this reason when the clothes you got do not fit.

    Bonne agrees with taille, which is feminine; a man still says bonne here.

  6. From a low angle, Sam holds a phone and opens a hand toward Inès, waiting on how long the refund takes.

    Le remboursement prend combien de temps ?

    How long does the refund take?

    When to use it: Ask this after a return, when you want the money back.

    Remboursement is the money coming back to your card, not a new parcel.

    Say it: The last s in temps is silent.

Story — the shirt for Lyon

Watch Sam check the parcel on his phone, then ask Inès how to send the shirt back.

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

  1. The bag is for the Lyon weekend. Sam's phone is on the table.
  2. InèsTu l'as acheté où ?Where did you buy it?
  3. SamJ'ai commandé ça en ligne.I ordered it online.
  4. He pulls the shirt out. It looks huge on the marble table.
  5. SamCe n'est pas la bonne taille.It's the wrong size.
  6. InèsC'est trop grand.It's too big.
  7. SamJe peux suivre ma commande ?Can I track my order?
  8. InèsOui, dans l'appli. Tu vois le suivi ?Yes, in the app. Can you see the tracking?
  9. SamIl y a des frais de port ?Is there a shipping fee?
  10. InèsPour le retour, souvent c'est gratuit.For the return, it's often free.
  11. SamJe voudrais renvoyer l'article.I'd like to send the item back.
  12. InèsBonne idée.Good idea.
  13. SamTu peux m'aider ?Can you help me?
  14. InèsBien sûr. On le fait ensemble.Of course. We'll do it together.
  15. SamJe dois faire quoi ?What should I do?
  16. InèsTu demandes l'étiquette, puis tu déposes le colis.You ask for the label, then you drop the parcel off.
  17. SamLe remboursement prend combien de temps ?How long does the refund take?
  18. InèsUne semaine, en général.A week, usually.
  19. Gaspard looks at the bag, then at his unfinished café crème. The window table stays empty.
  20. GaspardMoi, je commande toujours trop grand.I always order too big.

Practice — fees and refunds

Eleven short exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, fill a gap, and match a line.

They stay on the order, the size, and the return.

0 of 11 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. What does it mean?

    Il y a des frais de port ?

  3. What do you say?

    Inès asks whether the size works. Tell her it is the wrong size.

  4. Fill the gap

    Can I track my order?

    Je peux ____ ma commande ?

  5. Pick the reply

    Inès says:

    Tu veux le garder, ou tu le renvoies ?

    Do you want to keep it, or are you sending it back?

    And you reply with:

  6. Fill the gap

    How long does the refund take?

    Le remboursement prend combien de ____ ?

  7. Swap the word

    You want to send the shirt back, not keep it.

    Je voudrais ____ l'article.

  8. Match the pairs

    French

    Je peux suivre ma commande ?Drop the English here
    Il y a des frais de port ?Drop the English here
    Le remboursement prend combien de temps ?Drop the English here

    English

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

  9. True or false?

    This line means the shirt is too big.

  10. What do you say?

    You want Inès to help you start the return on the phone.

  11. Pick the reply

    Inès says:

    Voilà, tu es sur la page retours.

    There, you're on the returns page.

    And you reply with:

Say it — send it back

Now you're Sam with the wrong-size shirt. 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. InèsTu l'as acheté où ?Where did you buy it?
  2. Sam (you)Tell her you ordered this on the internet.

    J'ai commandé ça en ligne.

    I ordered it online.

0 of 6 said

Recap — what you can say now

FrenchEnglish
J'ai commandé ça en ligne.I ordered it online.
Je peux suivre ma commande ?Can I track my order?
Il y a des frais de port ?Is there a shipping fee?
Je voudrais renvoyer l'article.I'd like to send the item back.
Ce n'est pas la bonne taille.It's the wrong size.
Le remboursement prend combien de temps ?How long does the refund take?
Next: lesson 198Giving advice

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Want to keep these order and return lines handy? Grab the Yak Cards for this lesson and review them anywhere.

A quick round with the Yak Cards each day keeps your tracking and return lines ready.

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