French Vocabulary
How to Say Of Course in French
Jun
Once you’ve already mastered how to say yes in French you may want to move on to something with a little more emotion. “Of course” just happens to be such an expression that you can use to not only say yes, but also put some enthusiasm behind it.
Using bien sûr to say of course
Bien sûr – Of course
Let’s cut to the chase. Bien sûr is how you say of course in French. Translated literally as “very sure”, bien sûr is quite versatile because just like “of course” is used in English bien sûr can be used in all sorts of situations both formal and informal.
Although it can be used in all sorts of different situations you’ll most often hear it when responding to a question someone else has asked.
Est-ce que tu aimes la France ? – Do you like France?
Bien sûr ! – Of course!
Peux-tu me rappeler plus tard ? – Can you call me back later?
Bien sûr – Of course
Although it’s not necessary you can add que oui to bien sûr to add emphasis.
Bien sûr que oui – Of course (yes)
Tu veux visiter la Tour Eiffel ? – Do you want to visit the Eiffel Tower?
Bien sûr que oui ! – Of course !
Tu veux aller à la plage avec moi ? – Do you want to go to the beach with me?
Bien sûr que oui – Of course (I do)
How to Say Of Course Not in French
Bien sûr que non – Of course not
If you want to say “of course not” you just have to add que non to bien sûr.
Tu penses que je suis moche ? – Do you think I’m ugly?
Bien sûr que non – Of course not
Est-ce que c’est trop tard pour signer le contrat ? – Is it too late to sign the contract?
Bien sûr que non – Of course not
It’s quite common for people to say bien sûr que oui and bien sûr que non, but you can also put bien sûr que in front of a subject (Je, Tu, Il, Nous, Mon ami, etc..) to make the sentence an “of course” sentence.
Tu penses que je suis intelligent ? – Do you think I’m intelligent?
Bien sûr que tu es intelligent – Of course you are intelligent
Tu es sûr de vouloir rencontrer mon père ? – Are you sure you want to meet my dad?
Bien sûr que je veux rencontrer ton père – Of course I want to meet your dad
Bien sûr can also be used in response to a statement. It’s a little difficult to describe the type of situations where this is appropriate, but it usually takes on a meaning similar to “no problem“.
Attends-moi dehors, je reviens tout de suite – Wait for me outside, I’ll be right back
Bien sûr – Of course
Sors la poubelle avant de quitter la maison – Take out of trash before leaving home
Bien sûr – Of course
Bien sûr can also be used in a more complete sentence and typically joins together two ideas or clauses.
Je fête mes 30 ans ce week-end, tu peux bien sûr inviter ta sœur – I’m celebrating my 30th birthday this weekend, you can of course invite your sister
Mon neveu de dix ans prend l’apéritif avec nous, il boit bien sûr des boissons sans alcool – My ten-year-old cousin has pre-dinner drinks with us, he of course has drinks without alcohol
Just like the English expression “of course”, bien sûr can be used when speaking ironically.
Je suis arrivé chez lui et bien sûr j’ai oublié son cadeau – I arrived as his house and of course I forgot his gift
Je lui ai donné mon couteau, et il s’est coupé le doigt, bien sûr – I gave him my knife, and of course he cuts his finger
At the end of the day my recommendation is to not overthink this one. If you know how to use “of course” in English then you should be able to learn bien sûr without too much difficulty.
For more guides on French vocabulary take a look at the French vocabulary page.
