French - Family

Lesson 53 of 159

Smiling learners practicing French family phrases — ages, where relatives live, and relationships.

Goal: Talk about relatives, ages, and where they live

Free French lessons with guided practice, audio, and speaking support.

Bonjour! Ready to talk about family? In this short lesson you'll hear common French phrases used when people describe relatives, ages and where they live. Have fun and repeat out loud.

Level A2: In this lesson you'll practice useful family phrases like saying where someone lives, giving ages, talking about who you grew up with, and describing relationships. We'll focus on repeating short frames (Mon/ma ___ habite à ___; Mon/ma ___ a ___ ans; J'ai grandi avec mon/ma ___, etc.), listening in a natural mini-conversation, and then doing quick quizzes to lock in meaning. This lesson is CEFR-aligned and friendly — a little family chat that gets you speaking.

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Say where a family member lives (Level A2)
  • Give a family member's age and talk about frequency of visits
  • Describe upbringing and closeness (J'ai grandi avec..., Je suis proche de...)
  • Ask and answer informal questions about parents (Ils font quoi, tes parents ?)
Two friends chatting in French about parents, siblings and who they grew up with — family vocabulary for A2 learners.

Ready? Let's go!

When you tap play on phrases, we track your progress through this lesson.

1. Reading + Listening Practice

Hear core phrases, repeat aloud.

Mon/ma ___ habite à ___.

My ___ lives in ___.

Meaning: My ___ lives in ___.

When to use: Use this to say where a family member lives (city or country). Choose mon or ma depending on the relative: mon frère, ma sœur; use à/au/en/aux depending on the place.

Tip: Choose mon or ma based on the relative's gender. Use à/au/en/aux correctly for cities/countries.

Mon frère habite à Lyon.
My brother lives in Lyon.
Ma sœur habite en Espagne.
My sister lives in Spain.

Mon/ma ___ a ___ ans.

My ___ is ___ years old.

Meaning: My ___ is ___ years old.

When to use: Use this to say someone's age: Mon père a 50 ans. Ma cousine a 20 ans.

Tip: Use 'a' (from avoir), not 'est'. Say 'a 20 ans', not 'est 20 ans'.

Mon frère a 30 ans.
My brother is 30 years old.
Ma mère a 52 ans.
My mother is 52.

J'ai grandi avec mon/ma ___.

I grew up with my ___.

Meaning: I grew up with my ___.

When to use: Say this when describing your upbringing or who lived with you as a child.

J'ai grandi avec ma sœur.
I grew up with my sister.
J'ai grandi avec mes grands-parents.
I grew up with my grandparents.

Je suis proche de mon/ma ___.

I am close to my ___.

Meaning: I am close to my ___.

When to use: Use this to express emotional closeness with a relative: Je suis proche de mon père, Je suis proche de ma mère.

Je suis proche de ma mère.
I am close to my mother.
Je suis proche de mon frère.
I am close to my brother.

On s'entend bien.

We get along well.

Meaning: We get along well.

When to use: Use this short phrase to describe a positive relationship with someone (family or friends).

Avec ma sœur, on s'entend bien.
With my sister, we get along well.
On s'entend bien avec les voisins.
We get along well with the neighbors.

Je vois pas très souvent mon/ma ___.

I don't see my ___ very often.

Meaning: I don't see my ___ very often.

When to use: Use this spoken form when you want to say you rarely see a family member; casual speech often drops ne: 'Je vois pas...'.

Tip: This is informal: in formal writing you'd say 'Je ne vois pas très souvent...'.

Je vois pas très souvent mon oncle.
I don't see my uncle very often.
Je vois pas très souvent ma cousine.
I don't see my cousin very often.

Mes parents sont divorcés.

My parents are divorced.

Meaning: My parents are divorced.

When to use: Say this to describe your parents' relationship status.

Mes parents sont divorcés.
My parents are divorced.
Depuis l'année dernière, mes parents sont divorcés.
Since last year, my parents are divorced.

Ils font quoi, tes parents ?

What do your parents do?

Meaning: What do your parents do?

When to use: Use this casual question to ask about someone's parents' jobs or activities: 'Ils font quoi, tes parents ?' (informal).

Ils font quoi, tes parents ?
What do your parents do?
Mon père est professeur et ma mère est avocate. Et les tiens ?
My father is a teacher and my mother is a lawyer. And yours?

___, c'est mon beau-frère.

___ is my brother-in-law.

Meaning: ___ is my brother-in-law.

When to use: Use this to point out or introduce a family member by marriage: 'Lui, c'est mon beau-frère.' For sister-in-law use 'ma belle-sœur.'

Lui, c'est mon beau-frère.
Him, that's my brother-in-law.
Elle, c'est ma belle-sœur.
Her, that's my sister-in-law.

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Two friends ask about family: jobs, relationships, and visits.

Casual conversation in French between friends asking about parents' jobs and family relationships.

What does David say about how often he sees his brother?

Portrait of Anna in a French lesson dialogue

Anna

Ils font quoi, tes parents ?

What do your parents do?

Portrait of David in a French lesson dialogue

David

Ma mère est infirmière, mon père travaille à Lyon. Mes parents sont divorcés.

My mother is a nurse, my father works in Lyon. My parents are divorced.

Portrait of Anna in a French lesson dialogue

Anna

Tu vois souvent ta famille ?

Do you see your family often?

Portrait of David in a French lesson dialogue

David

Je vois pas très souvent mon frère. Mon frère a 30 ans.

I don't see my brother very often. My brother is 30 years old.

Portrait of Anna in a French lesson dialogue

Anna

Tu es proche de quelqu'un ?

Are you close to someone?

Portrait of David in a French lesson dialogue

David

Je suis proche de ma mère. Et lui, c'est mon beau-frère.

I'm close to my mother. And him, that's my brother-in-law.

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

Which French sentence means 'We get along well.'?

Which one asks 'What do your parents do?' (informal)?

Which sentence says 'My parents are divorced.'?

How do you say 'I grew up with my sister.' in French?

My sister is 25 years old.

Translate into French: 'My sister is 25 years old.' -> ___

I don't see my cousin very often.

Translate into French: 'I don't see my cousin very often.' -> ___

My brother lives in Marseille.

Translate into French: 'My brother lives in Marseille.' -> ___

Match the core phrases

Match the extra phrases

4. Speaking Practice

Say phrases yourself (mic/recording).

Recording stays on your device only. Check speech uses your browser's speech tools when available.

Say this phrase out loud:

Mon/ma ___ habite à ___.

My ___ lives in ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

Mon/ma ___ a ___ ans.

My ___ is ___ years old.

Say this phrase out loud:

J'ai grandi avec mon/ma ___.

I grew up with my ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

Je suis proche de mon/ma ___.

I am close to my ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

On s'entend bien.

We get along well.

Say this phrase out loud:

Je vois pas très souvent mon/ma ___.

I don't see my ___ very often.

Say this phrase out loud:

Mes parents sont divorcés.

My parents are divorced.

Say this phrase out loud:

Ils font quoi, tes parents ?

What do your parents do?

Say this phrase out loud:

___, c'est mon beau-frère.

___ is my brother-in-law.