How to Express Your Opinion in French

In France, there are not many subjects that are considered taboo, and the French will frequently speak their mind without holding back. At a dinner party in France, you might be asked to share your opinion on your political beliefs, relationships, spiritual tendencies, the environment, immigration, etc. In discussions, there is one topic that many avoid which is people’s finances or salaries.
You will rarely hear someone asking you how much you make at your job. However, they will willingly let you know what they think about the cost of living. The French thrive on a good debate and it is difficult for them to stay neutral. I’m writing this article from my home in California, and I ran into a French friend a few weeks ago who was telling me that she was no longer getting involved in the heated conversations taking place on Facebook related to politics and the pandemic. She had decided that she wanted to stay neutral. I responded by laughing and saying to her that it must be quite difficult to be French and not give an opinion. With a big smile she responded: En fait, c’est impossible (Actually, it’s impossible)!

In this article, I would like to give you some of the most popular phrases and words that the French use to express their opinions whether they’re “for” or “against” something, they agree or not, or they’re unsure.

First, have a look at these short words that are frequently used to emphasize a personal opinion:

1. Perso and moi, je / toi, tu

These words are used to open a discussion when sharing an opinion. Perso is short for personnellement (personally).
Example:
– Perso, je pense que c’est une bonne idée. = Personally, I think that it’s a good idea.

Another word that you will hear a lot which emphasizes one’s position when sharing an opinion is by adding a pronoun such as moi in front of je. This also happens with the other subjects:

toi with tu, vous with vous, lui with il, elle with elle, eux with ils, elles with elles. You can interpret it as: “As for me” or “as for you.”

Examples:
– Moi, je pense que c’est une bonne idée.
– Vous, vous pensez quoi ?
– Lui, il pense que c’est une mauvaise idée.
– Et eux, ils pensent que l’idée est bonne ?
– Et elles, elles aiment bien aussi cette idée ?

Again, you will often hear the French start with either one, so don’t hesitate to use these to position your thoughts.

1. How to ask someone what they think

Here are the typical ways of asking someone:

– Et vous ? Qu’en pensez‐vous ? = And you? What do you think?
A more casual way to ask (if you know the person) = Qu’est‐ce que t’en penses ?/T’en penses quoi ?
– Quelle est votre opinion ? = What is your opinion?
A more casual way to ask (if you know the person) = C’est quoi ton opinion sur ça ? = What’s your opinion about that?
– Quel est votre avis ? = What is your opinion? (another choice instead of the French word opinion, the French use both very frequently).
A more casual way to ask (if you know the person) = C’est quoi ton avis sur ça ? = What’s your opinion about that?
– Tu es pour ou contre ? = Are you for or against?

2. How to express your opinion when you agree

You will hear the following expressions and words in bold here below. Notice how I started some of these sentences by adding perso or a pronoun to emphasize the position.

– Perso, je suis d’accord ! = Personally, I agree!
– Moi, je suis pour le passeport vaccinal. = Personally, I’m
for the vaccine passport.
– Tu as raison pour le passeport vaccinal. = You’re right for the vaccine passport.
– Je pense que le passeport vaccinal est une bonne idée. = I think that the vaccine passport is a good idea.
– Je trouve que c’est bien. = I agree that it’s good.

3. How to express your opinion when you disagree

Some of the above expressions can be simply formed in a negative sentence:
– Perso, je ne trouve pas que c’est normal. = Personally, I don’t find this to be normal.
– Perso, je ne suis pas d’accord. = Personally, I don’t agree.
– Je pense que non. = I don’t think so.
– Moi, je suis contre la peine de mort. = (As for me) I’m against the death penalty.
– Tu as tort. = You’re wrong

4. How to express your opinion when you’re unsure or feeling neutral

Undecided? Here are a few options:

– D’un côté, je suis pour un seul système éducatif dans le pays. = On one hand, I’m for only one education system in the country.
– D’un autre côté, je suis contre l’idée de n’avoir qu’un seul choix d’éducation. = On the other hand, I am against the idea of only one choice of education.
– Je ne suis pas sûre, je dois réfléchir à la question. = I’m not sure, I have to think about the question.
– Je suis plus ou moins d’accord avec vous. = I more or less agree with you.

5. Additional words to introduce an opinion at any time

If you wish to take the initiative in expressing your opinion, these phrases will be useful:

– Selon moi, on doit laisser les enfants s’exprimer. = According to me (but it really means “in my opinion”), we have to let children express themselves.
You can also replace selon moi by D’après moi. It means exactly the same thing.
– Quant à moi, je crois que les enfants doivent apprendre la discipline. = As for me, I think that children must learn discipline.
– À mon avis, tu es trop stricte. = In my opinion, you’re too strict.
– Pour ma part, je trouve que la nouvelle génération doit manifester. = As far as I’m concerned, I think that the new generation must protest.
– Je suis convaincu que les jeunes sont l’espoir dans ce monde incertain. = I’m convinced that the young ones are the hope in this incertain world.

Again, I chose the phrases and words that you will hear most likely hear, there are a few more but this is already a long list.

Céline Van Loan