80 French House Terms & Audio Pronunciation

Author: Camille Chevalier

Learn the French house vocabulary with audio recordings and English translation. Learn the various room names in French, appliances, furniture, home decoration

How Do You Say House in French?

House is French is “la maison“. It’s a feminine French word.

La maison est grande – the house is big.

This free French lesson – like many on French Today’s blog – features audio recordings. Click on the link next to the headphones to hear the French pronunciation.

How Do You Translate Home in French?

The notion of home in French is a bit more difficult to translate. You can use “la maison” :

On est à la maison – we’re home !

A common way to translate the notion of home in French is “(mon) chez moi“.

Ici, c’est (mon) chez moi – here, it’s my home.

You’ll modify the stress pronoun (the “moi”) to match the subject :

  1. for je: chez moi,
  2. for tu : chez toi,
  3. for il: chez lui,
  4. for elle: chez elle,
  5. for on: chez soi,
  6. for nous: chez nous,
  7. for vous: chez vous,
  8. for ils: chez eux,
  9. for elles: chez elles

  10. or use a name : chez Pierre, chez Anne


What Are the French Names of The Various Rooms in a House?

  1. l’entrĂ©e – entrance, foyer
  2. la salle de sĂ©jour – family room
  3. le salon – (fancy) living room
  4. le bureau – office
  5. la chambre – bedroom
  6. la salle à manger – dining room
  7. la cuisine – kitchen
  8. le garage – garage
  9. l’atelier – workshop
  10. la buanderie – linen / laundry room
  11. le sous-sol – basement
  12. le grenier – attic
  13. la cave – cellar

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Kitchen in French = La Cuisine

  1. la cuisine – kitchen
  2. le frigo – refrigerator
  3. le congĂ©lateur – freezer
  4. l’évier (m) – sink
  5. la cuisiniùre à gaz – gas stove
  6. la cuisiniĂšre Ă©lectrique – electric stove
  7. le four – oven
  8. le micro-ondes – microwaves
  9. les provisions (f) – food

Learn the French house vocabulary as a longer list and then illustrated within the context of the real-life like story translated into English and recorded in French at different levels of enunciation (traditional and modern) in my French learning method.

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More Details & Audio Samples

Living-room in French = Le salon

  1. le salon – living room
  2. le divan – couch
  3. le fauteuil – armchair
  4. les bibelots (m) – knick-knacks
  5. l’étagĂšre (f) – shelf
  6. le bureau – desk
  7. le lustre – chandelier (more French light vocabulary)
  8. le tĂ©lĂ©viseur – TV set
  9. la stĂ©rĂ©o – stereo
  10. le tableau – painting in a frame (art)

Bedroom in French = la chambre

  1. la piĂšce = room (any room)
  2. la chambre = bedroom (not any room)
  3. la chambre Ă  coucher = bedroom (very specific)
  4. le lit – bed
  5. le matelas – mattress
  6. le drap-housse – fitted sheet
  7. le drap normal – flat sheet
  8. la couverture (en laine) – (wool) blanket
  9. le dessus-de-lit – bedspread
  10. l’oreiller (m) – pillow
  11. la table de chevet – night stand
  12. la lampe de chevet – bedside lamp
  13. le rĂ©veil (Ă©lectronique) – (electronic) alarm clock
  14. la penderie – wardrobe
  15. la commode – dresser
  16. le tiroir – drawer
  17. le linge – laundry

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Bathroom in French = La Salle de Bains

More about how to ask where the bathroom is in French + French bathroom vocabulary.

  1. la salle de bains – bathroom
  2. la baignoire – bathtub
  3. la douche – shower
  4. le carrelage – tiles
  5. le lavabo – sink
  6. les toilettes (f) – the toilet

Various French House Terms

  1. l’allĂ©e (f) – driveway, pathway
  2. le jardin – garden
  3. la cour – courtyard
  4. la porte – door
  5. la porte d’entrĂ©e – front door
  6. le couloir – corridor
  7. le mur – a wall
  8. le tapis – carpet
  9. la moquette – wall to wall carpeting
  10. la cheminĂ©e – fireplace
  11. la fenĂȘtre – window
  12. le rideau – curtain
  13. le porte manteau – coat rack
  14. le papier peint – wallpaper
  15. l’étage (m) – floor
  16. l’ascenseur – elevator
  17. les escaliers (m) – staircase
  18. le plafond – ceiling
  19. le sol – the ground / the floor (as opposite to the ceiling)
  20. le plancher – hardwood floor
  21. le carrelage – tile floor

If you’d like to help me make a better list, please suggest more French house terms in French with English translation in the comment below and I’ll add your suggestions to the list. Thank you!

How To Count Floors in French?

The French word for floor is “l’étage“.

In French, we count the floors from one floor up from the ground/street level. So the street level floor is “le rez-de-chaussĂ©e“. Then you have “le premier Ă©tage“, “le deuxiĂšme Ă©tage“, “le troisiĂšme Ă©tage” and so on


So watch out! The floor your rental apartment is on may be one floor up than what you expected!

Since buildings are often quite old in France, they don’t always have an elevator. And if they do, chances are it will be very small
 You may actually have to put your bags in the elevator, then climb the stairs and call the loaded elevator to your floor!

How to say Porch in French?

Many houses in the US feature a porch. It can be a closed or an open porch. It’s not something very common in France. Just like the wooden deck, some 19th century “beach” houses – like in Arcachon – would have an open porch, but it’s not a typical French feature.

So how would you translate porch in French? It’s a bit tricky. The dictionary would tell you that the translation for porch is “un porche”.

OK. However a French person may never have seen a typical American house porch
 In which case you’d have to describe the idea to them.

How to say an open porch in French?

To translation the notion of an open porch, I would say “une galerie en bois”.

Devant ma maison, il y a un galerie en bois avec une jolie barriĂšre et des fauteuil en osier pour s’asseoir et boire un thĂ© glacĂ©.
In front of my house, there’s a wooden porch with a pretty fence and wicker armchairs to sit down and enjoy an iced-tea.

How to say a closed porch in French?

To translate the notion of a closed porch in French, we would say “une vĂ©randa”, or “une salle-Ă -manger d’étĂ©â€ (a summer dinning-room !!).

Quand j’habitais Ă  Boston, sur le cĂŽtĂ© de ma maison il y avait une salle-Ă -manger d’étĂ© : une piĂšce avec des fenĂȘtres partout et des moustiquaires, un peu comme une vĂ©randa fermĂ©e.
When I lived in Boston, on the side to my house, there was a closed porch: a room full of windows with mosquito screens, a bit like a closed verandah.

How to say balcony in French?

Who hasn’t seen pictures of typical Paris apartments featuring beautiful balconies with wrought iron?

A balcony in French is called “un balcon”. It can be very narrow and extend just in front of a window, or be like an outdoor path sticking out of the building wall. Sometimes a balcony leads to a patio.

In any case, having even a small balcony in a city apartment can be a real luxury!

How do you say a deck, a patio in French? This will be part of my French garden vocabulary lesson. You may also enjoy my lesson about French home repair words.

Browse our French vocabulary section for over 150 Free French vocabulary lessons, many with audio recordings.

Houses in France video

Finally, would you like to know how French houses look like? Here is a fun, unscripted “live” practice video I shot in my home town of Paimpol, Brittany, France.

Although there are many beautiful older houses in France, and the look and architecture of the French houses vary tremendously throughout the various regions of France, you’ll see that not every French house is an old traditional stone house


This video comes with French subtitles I personally checked and a YouTube auto-generated English translation.

Author: Camille Chevalier

Camille Chevalier

Born and raised in Paris, I have been teaching today's French to adults for 25+ years in the US and France. Based on my students' goals and needs, I've created unique downloadable French audiobooks focussing on French like it's spoken today, for all levels. Come to Paimpol and enjoy an exclusive French immersion homestay with me in Brittany.

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