French Tools and House Repairs Vocabulary 🛠

I hope you enjoy these lists of French tool & repairs vocabulary.

Please feel free to add relevant tools, renovation, repair related vocabulary (in French and English please) in the comments section below and I will add them up to the lists. Merci!

You may also be interested in my free lesson: 80 French house terms with audio recordings.

45 French Tools Names

1. le marteau –  hammer
2. le tournevis –  screwdriver (do say the final S)
3. le tournevis cruciforme – phillips head screwdriver
4. la clef à molette / la clef anglaise – wrench (F is silent, pronounce the wrench “clé” – you can also spell it this way)
5. la clef à pipe – socket wrench
6. le mètre – tape measure
7. la pince universelle – bull-nose pliers
8. la pince coupante – wire cutters
9. la pince à dénuder – wire strippers
10. le serre joint – clamp
11. la perceuse – hand drill
12. la scie – saw
13. la scie circulaire – circular saw
14. la scie à métaux – hacksaw
15. la scie à ruban – band saw
16. la scie sauteuse – jig saw
17. la scie vilebrequin – ceramic tile saw
18. la hache – axe
19. la pioche – pickaxe
20. le coupe-carreaux – tile cutter
21. la lampe à souder – blow lamp
22. l’échelle (f) – ladder
23. l’escabeau (m) – step ladder
24. le tréteau – trestle
25. la brouette – wheelbarrow
26. le rabot – plane
27. le burin – chisel
28. la lime –  file
29. le niveau – level
30. la vis – screw (do say the final S)
31. la cheville – expanding wall lug
32. le clou – nail
33. le boulon – bolt
34. le joint – washer – also grout
35. l’écrou – nut
36. le foret – drill bit
37. le papier de verre – sandpaper
38. le ruban isolant – insulating tape
39. les lunettes de sécurité – safety goggles
40. la colle – glue
41. le décapant – paint stripper
42. le pinceau – paint brush
43. le rouleau – paint roller
44. le grattoir – scraper
45. la truelle – trowel

13 French Craftsmen & Trades Names

1. un corps de métier – a trade
2. les artisans (m) – craftsmen, skilled workers
3. le maître d’ouvrage – site manager
4. le maçon – builder
5. le couvreur – roofer
6. le charpentier – carpenter (roof structure)
7. le menuisier – carpenter/joiner (doors, windows etc)
8. le carreleur – tiler
9. le plâtrier – plasterer
10. l’électricien – electrician
11. le plombier – plumber
12. le chauffagiste – heating engineer
13. le peintre-décorateur – painter-decorator

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17 French Repair Materials Names

1. l’enduit (m) – filler
2. le plâtre – plaster
3. le contre plaqué – plywood
4. le placo – plasterboard
5. le crépi – stucco
6. le béton – concrete
7. le mortier – mortar
8. le carrelage – ceramic tiles
9. le joint – grout
10. le silicone (or le mastic) – caulk
11. la peinture – paint
12. le vernis – varnish
13. l’amiante – asbestos
14. le béton- concrete
15. la pierre – stone
16. le chêne – oak
17. le bois – wood

In the story of my upper Intermediate French learning method À Moi Paris L5, chapter 6, Mary, Patrick and their friends talk about the renovations they’ve done in their house.

If you enjoy learning French language and culture in context, check out French Today’s downloadable French audiobooks: French Today’s bilingual novels are recorded at different speeds and enunciation, and focus on today’s modern glided French pronunciation.

French Renovation Vocabulary

1. le devis – bill estimate
2. le terrain – the land
3. la parcelle – plot of land (on administrative maps)
4. le plan cadastral – plot boundary map
5. les plans d’architecte – architect’s plans
6. une coupe – cross-section
7. une extension – an extension
8. l’assainissement – sewerage treatment
9. l’ossature bois/métallique – wooden/metal framework
10. une chape liquide – liquid screed
11. la garantie décennale – 10-year guarantee

12 French Repairs Verbs

1. peindre – to paint
2. sécuriser le chantier – to make the worksite safe
3. percer des ouvertures – to make openings (for windows, doors)
4. boucher un trou – to fill in/block a hole
5. casser la dalle – to break up the (old concrete/cement) floor
6. refaire le sol – to put a new floor down
7. poser/installer une fenêtre – to put in a window
8. mettre quelque chose aux normes – to make something meet regulations
9. (se) raccorder au “tout à l’égout” – to connect to the sewerage system
10. poser une fosse toutes eaux – to instal a modern septic tank
11. relier la propriété au réseau d’eau/EDF – to connect the property to the water/electricity system
12. déblayer le site (de gravats) – to clear the site (of rubble)

To practice this French tool and house repair vocabulary, I invite you to read my French / English bilingual story about renovating a house in France.