French slang refers to the casual, informal words and phrases French speakers use in everyday life, texting, and online, different from the “textbook French” taught in classrooms.
It includes greeting words like “wesh,” laughing acronyms like “mdr,” and slang for money, friends, and more. Much of it comes from French youth culture, immigrant communities, and the internet.
Key Takeaways
- French slang is the informal, spoken-style French used by real people, not the formal French found in textbooks.
- Much of today’s popular slang traces back to Paris’s suburbs (the banlieues), North African immigrant communities, and French hip-hop.
- Texting and social media have pushed French slang into wider use, especially among teens and young adults.
- Words like “wesh,” “mdr,” and “kiffer” are common, but tone and context matter a lot.
- French slang is mostly casual and friendly, though a few terms can sound rude in the wrong setting.
- It’s still very much alive today, showing up constantly in music, TikTok, and everyday conversation in France.
If you’ve ever tried to read a French text message or TikTok comment and felt completely lost, you’re not alone.
French slang looks nothing like the French in your old textbook. Words get shortened, borrowed from Arabic, flipped backward, or turned into acronyms that don’t spell out anything close to what they mean.
People search for French slang for a lot of reasons. Maybe a French friend texted something confusing. A song lyric made no sense.
Maybe a TikTok video used a word that wasn’t in any dictionary app. Whatever the reason, real spoken French is full of casual expressions that native speakers use constantly but that language classes rarely cover.
This slang shows up everywhere: in text messages, Instagram captions, rap lyrics, and casual conversations between friends.
It’s used by teenagers, young adults, and increasingly by people well beyond that age range, since slang has a way of sticking around once it catches on.
Is it still relevant today? Definitely. French slang keeps evolving, but a lot of the core words have stuck around for decades.
This guide breaks down where the terms came from, what they actually mean, and how to use them without sounding out of place.
What Does French Slang Mean?
French slang means the informal vocabulary French speakers use casually with friends, in texts, and online instead of formal, textbook French. It covers everything from greetings to insults to numbers-based text shortcuts.
Slang isn’t one single thing. It’s a whole category of language that includes:
- Argot: traditional French slang, some of it centuries old, historically tied to criminal or working-class speech
- Verlan: a style of slang that flips syllables backward (like turning “français” into “cefran”)
- Texting abbreviations: shortened spellings used to type faster, like “mdr” for “mort de rire”
- Borrowed words: terms pulled in from Arabic, English, or other languages spoken in France’s diverse communities
Someone might use French slang to sound more relaxed, to fit in with a friend group, or simply because that’s the natural way they talk.
A French teenager texting a friend will seldom use the same phrasing as a formal business email, and that gap is exactly what French slang fills.
Quick Meaning Box
| Meaning | Simple Explanation |
| Informal spoken French | The casual way French people actually talk, different from textbook French. |
| Texting shortcuts | Abbreviations like “mdr” used to type faster. |
| Youth and street language | Words that started in cities and suburbs before spreading nationwide. |
| Borrowed vocabulary | Words pulled from Arabic, English, and other languages spoken in France. |
| Verlan | Slang made by flipping word syllables backward. |
Pronunciation
There’s no single way to “pronounce” French slang as a whole, since it’s a category of language rather than one word. But individual slang terms often have their own quirks:
- Wesh sounds like “wesh” (rhymes with “mesh”)
- Mdr is usually just spelled out letter by letter, “em-day-air,” though people also say it as one quick sound.
- Frérot “fray-roh”
- Kiffe: “kee-fay”
Knowing how a slang word sounds matters more than knowing how “French slang” as a phrase is said, since you’ll mostly encounter these words individually.
History of the Term
French slang isn’t new; argot has roots going back hundreds of years, with some scholars tracing early forms to medieval thieves’ cant. But the slang most people encounter today largely took shape more recently.
In the 1980s and 90s, verlan became especially popular, flipping everyday words into new-sounding terms. Around the same time, French rap and hip-hop artists began weaving banlieue slang into their lyrics, giving it national exposure far beyond the neighborhoods where it started.
The internet changed everything again. Texting abbreviations like “mdr” spread quickly once mobile phones became common, and platforms like Facebook, then Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, gave slang new speed and reach.
A word that once stayed local to a few Paris suburbs can now spread across France, and even internationally, within days of a viral video.
Slang has also seen resurgences. Words that felt dated can suddenly reappear because of a meme, a song, or a viral clip. “wesh,” for example, saw a fresh wave of attention outside France after a UK rapper used it in a song.
How People Use It Today
Today, French slang lives mostly on phones and social platforms. It shows up in texts, Instagram captions, TikTok videos, Discord chats, and casual conversation basically anywhere people aren’t being formal.
Teenagers and young adults are the heaviest users, but slang crosses generational lines more than people expect, especially words that have been around long enough to feel normal rather than trendy.
Musicians, streamers, and content creators also keep slang circulating, since a single popular video or song can push an obscure term into everyday use almost overnight.
French Slang Words You Should Know
Building a basic slang vocabulary makes a huge difference in understanding real French conversations. Some of the most common French slang words include “wesh” (a casual greeting), “mdr” (French for LOL), “kiffer” (to like or enjoy something), “grave” (used to mean “totally” or “very”), and “chelou” (weird or sketchy, a verlan flip of “louche”).
These aren’t obscure; they show up constantly in texts, comments, and casual talk. Learning even ten or fifteen of these words will help a lot more than memorizing formal vocabulary lists, since this is the French people actually speak with friends.
French Slang for Cool
The most common way to say “cool” in French slang is simply “cool”; the English word gets used directly and constantly.
Beyond that, French speakers also say “stylé” (stylish, cool-looking), “trop bien” (really good), and “ouf” (verlan for “fou,” meaning intense, used to mean something is wild or awesome).
“C’est trop stylé” means “that’s so cool,” and “c’est ouf” is a common way to react to something impressive or surprising.
French Slang for Money
French slang has a long list of words for money, much like English has “cash” or “bucks.” Common ones include “thune,” “fric,” “blé” (literally “wheat”), “pognon,” and “oseille” (literally “sorrel,” a leafy plant). “J’ai pas de thune” means “I don’t have any money.”
These terms are casual and used constantly, whether someone’s talking about being broke or splitting a bill with friends.
French Slang for Bro
Common ways to say “bro” or “dude” in French slang include “frérot” (a shortened, affectionate version of “frère,” meaning brother), “mon pote” (my buddy), “gros” (literally “big,” used the way English speakers use “dude” or “man”), and “reuf,” which is verlan for “frère.”
“Wesh, frérot, ça va?” is a very typical casual greeting between friends.
The Most Popular French Slang Word (Wesh)
“Wesh” is one of the most recognizable French slang words, used as a greeting, an interjection, or a way to show surprise.
It comes from Maghrebi Arabic, most likely from a word meaning “what” or “what’s up,” and it entered French through North African immigrant communities in the 1980s.
“Wesh” became so common that it was officially added to the Petit Robert dictionary in 2009. It’s now used across France and has even started spreading into UK slang after a British rapper used it in a song.
MDR French Slang Meaning
“MDR” stands for “mort de rire,” which literally translates to “dead of laughter.” It’s the direct French equivalent of “LOL” in English, used constantly in texts, comments, and casual chats.
“MDR” started as a texting abbreviation but is now sometimes said out loud too, almost jokingly. A related, more intense version is “PTDR” (“pété de rire,” or “broken with laughter”), used when something is even funnier.
How Are You in French Slang
The formal way to ask “how are you” is “Comment allez-vous?” but casually, French speakers almost always say “Ça va?” instead.
Even more relaxed slang versions include “Ça roule?” (literally “it’s rolling,” meaning “is it going well?”) and “Ça gaze?” (a playful, informal check-in). All of these are much more common in daily life than the textbook version, especially between friends or people around the same age.
Bye in French Slang
Formally, French speakers say “au revoir,” but casually there are plenty of shorter options. “À plus” (often written “A+”) means “see you later.”
“Tchao” (borrowed from Italian “ciao”) is extremely common. “On se capte” roughly means “we’ll catch up” or “talk soon,” and is popular in texting. These casual goodbyes are used constantly among friends, family, and coworkers who know each other well.
Grandma in French Slang
The everyday, affectionate word for grandma in French is “mamie,” used far more often than the formal “grand-mère.”
Another common version is “mémé.” In some regions, especially parts of Canada, “mémère” is also used, though it can carry a slightly teasing or old-fashioned undertone depending on context.
These aren’t “slang” in a rebellious sense; they’re simply the warm, informal terms most French-speaking families actually use.
What Does Baby Seal Mean in French Slang
“Baby seal” isn’t really French slang at all; it’s part of an English-language internet meme. The joke centers on the French word for seal, “phoque,” which, when pronounced by an English speaker unfamiliar with French sounds, can come out sounding like an English swear word.
The meme usually involves asking someone (or a translation app) to say a sentence like “a baby seal pushed me yesterday” in French, then reacting to how “phoque” sounds. It’s been a recurring joke online for years and had another viral wave on TikTok in 2025 and 2026.
Examples in Everyday Conversation
- “Wesh, ça va ou quoi?” “Yo, how’s it going?”
- “Franchement, c’est trop stylé ton sac.” “Honestly, your bag is so cool.”
- “Je n’ai plus de thune ce mois-ci.” “I don’t have any money left this month.”
- “Mdr, t’es sérieux là?” “Lol, are you serious right now?”
- “Frérot, tu viens ou pas ce soir?” “Bro, are you coming tonight or not?”
- “C’est ouf ce qui s’est passé hier.” “What happened yesterday is unbelievable.”
- “Ça roule, et toi?” “It’s all good, and you?”
- “Je kiffe trop cette chanson.” “I really like this song.”
- “Bon, à plus, je dois y aller.” “Alright, see you later, I have to go.”
- “Il est chelou ce type, non?” “That guy’s kind of sketchy, right?”
Text Message Examples
- “Wesh t’es où” “Yo, where are you”
- “Mdr arrête” “Lol stop”
- “T’as de la thune pour ce soir?” “You got money for tonight?”
- “Grave, je suis chaud” “Totally, I’m down”
- “On se capte demain?” “We link up tomorrow?”
- “C’est trop bien franchement” “It’s really good honestly”
- “Gros, tu m’as manqué” “Man, I missed you”
- “Ouf cette histoire mdr” “Wild story lol”
- “Ça gaze de ton côté?” “You good on your end?”
- “Tchao, à demain” “Bye, see you tomorrow”
Social Media Caption Examples
- Instagram: “Weekend mode: activé wesh la vie est belle”
- TikTok: “Quand ta mamie te donne encore des bonbons à 25 ans mdr”
- X: “Franchement cette soirée était ouf, jamais vécu ça”
- Threads: “Ambiance trop stylée ce soir, merci à tous ceux qui sont venus”
- Facebook: “On se capte ce week-end pour un petit apéro entre potes?”
- Instagram: “Petit rappel:je n’ai plus de thune jusqu’à la fin du mois”
- TikTok: “Mon frérot m’a encore fait une blague pourrie mdr”
- X: “Ça roule tranquille aujourd’hui, journée cool”
- Threads: “Ce type est chelou, personne d’autre a remarqué?”
- Facebook: “Merci mamie pour le meilleur repas de dimanche”
Is It Positive or Negative?
Most French slang is neutral to positive; it’s simply casual, everyday language rather than something rude or aggressive. Words like “cool,” “stylé,” and “kiffer” carry a friendly, upbeat tone, and greeting words like “wesh” are just informal, not disrespectful.
That said, tone and context change everything. A word like “gros” (used to mean “dude”) is friendly between close friends but can sound blunt or even rude when directed at a stranger. Some slang tied to insults or put-downs is clearly negative and meant to tease or criticize.
The safest approach is to notice how the people around you are using a word before repeating it yourself, since the same term can land very differently depending on who’s speaking and who’s listening.
Who Uses This Slang?
Teenagers and young adults use French slang the most, especially in texting and on social media. But usage isn’t limited to one age group.
Musicians and rappers popularize new slang constantly, streamers and content creators keep older slang alive by using it in videos, and plenty of adults use slang terms they picked up years ago that never really went out of style.
Regionally, some slang is tied closely to specific areas; certain verlan terms and Arabic-derived words are more associated with Paris and its suburbs, while other slang, like Canadian French terms, developed independently in Quebec and other French-speaking regions outside France.
Similar Slang Words
| Slang | Meaning |
| Kiffer | To like or enjoy something |
| Grave | Totally, very, seriously |
| Chelou | Weird, sketchy, off (verlan for “louche”) |
| Relou | Annoying (verlan for “lourd”) |
| Ouf | Aggravating, wild, awesome (verlan for “fou”) |
| Meuf | Woman or girlfriend (verlan for “femme”) |
Opposite Words
- Classe / distingué: the opposite of casual slang tone, meaning refined or formal
- Vouvoiement: using the formal “vous” instead of casual “tu,” the grammatical opposite of slang familiarity
- Langage soutenu: “elevated language,” the formal register used in writing, business, or academic settings, as opposed to casual slang speech
Common Mistakes
- Assuming all French slang is understood everywhere in the French-speaking world: regional differences are real, and a word common in Paris might be unfamiliar in Quebec or unknown in West Africa.
- Using slang in formal writing or professional emails, where it reads as unprofessional.
- Misreading tone: a slang word that’s friendly between close friends can sound rude coming from a stranger or in the wrong setting.
- Overusing outdated slang, which can come across as trying too hard rather than sounding natural.
- Mixing up similar-sounding verlan words without understanding the base word they came from.
When NOT to Use It
French slang doesn’t belong in professional emails, school assignments, job interviews, or formal writing.
In these settings, French speakers switch to standard, grammatically formal French, since slang can come across as careless or overly casual in contexts where precision and professionalism matter.
Business meetings, official documents, customer service, and academic essays all call for standard French vocabulary and grammar. Even native French speakers who use slang constantly with friends will naturally switch it off in these situations, the same way an English speaker wouldn’t text-speak in a cover letter.
Fun Facts
- “Wesh” was officially added to the French dictionary Le Petit Robert in 2009.
- Verlan gets its name from flipping the syllables of the word “l’envers,” meaning “the reverse.”
- French argot has roots going back centuries, with some scholars tracing early forms to medieval criminal slang.
- “MDR” has less common cousins, including “PTDR” (“pété de rire”) and “XPTDR,” used for even bigger laughs.
- French hip-hop played a major role in spreading banlieue slang to mainstream audiences starting in the 1990s.
- Some French slang words, like “mamie” for grandma, aren’t edgy at all; they’re just warm, everyday family language.
- “Wesh” started gaining attention in the UK after a British rapper used it in a collaboration with a French artist.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is French rizz?
“French rizz” isn’t an official French slang term; it’s a playful mashup of the English internet slang word “rizz” (meaning charisma or the ability to attract someone) with “French,” often used jokingly to describe charm associated with speaking French or having a French accent. It shows up mostly in memes and social media videos rather than in actual French vocabulary. If you’re looking for real French flirting phrases, that’s a separate topic from internet slang like “rizz,” which originated in English-speaking online culture, not in France.
What are 20 French words?
Rather than listing 20 random words, it’s more useful to focus on the most common slang ones: wesh, mdr, kiffer, grave, chelou, relou, ouf, meuf, frérot, gros, thune, fric, blé, pognon, stylé, mamie, papi, tchao, à plus, and ça va. Learning these gives a strong foundation for understanding real, casual French conversations, texts, and social media posts far better than a random vocabulary list would.
What is cool in French slang?
The most direct answer is that French speakers often just say “cool,” borrowed straight from English. Other options include “stylé” for something stylish or impressive, and “ouf” for something wild or amazing. Context matters: “cool” fits calm, easygoing situations, while “ouf” fits more surprising or intense ones. Both are extremely common in casual conversation and texting, and neither sounds forced or old-fashioned the way some other slang can.
How to flirt in French slang?
Flirting in casual French often relies on compliments and playful teasing rather than specific slang words. Phrases like “t’es trop bien” (you’re really great) or “je te kiffe” (a casual, affectionate way to say you like someone) are common among younger speakers. Tone, confidence, and timing matter more than memorizing lines. It’s worth noting that “rizz,” the English slang word for charisma, isn’t French; actual French flirting leans more on genuine compliments and conversation than trendy internet vocabulary.
Final Thoughts
French slang isn’t some separate, secret language; it’s simply how real people talk when they’re relaxed, texting friends, or hanging out.
From “wesh” and “mdr” to money words like “thune” and friendly terms like “frérot,” this vocabulary shows up constantly in modern French life, whether that’s in a text thread, a caption, or a conversation on the street.
Learning it takes more than memorizing a word list. Paying attention to tone, context, and who’s using a word makes a huge difference in understanding it correctly. Slang keeps changing too, so what feels fresh today might shift again in a few years, just as it always has.
Whether you’re learning French, chatting with French-speaking friends, or just trying to decode a confusing text, this vocabulary opens up a much more authentic side of the language than any classroom textbook ever will.
James Carter is a slang researcher and writer at Slang Insight, dedicated to exploring the origins and meanings behind today’s most popular internet expressions. With a background in linguistics and a love for pop culture, James brings a unique perspective to every article, making slang easy to understand for everyone.
