Tu vs vous
The short answer
Vous is the safe default with any adult you do not know, and it is also the plural you. Tu is for friends, family, children, colleagues you are close to, and anyone who has invited it. Getting it wrong in the vous direction is never rude; getting it wrong the other way can be.
Or skip ahead and practise it now: poser une question, free, no signup.
At a glance
Tu or Vous?
| Compare | TuFamiliar, and singular only. | VousPolite singular, and every plural. |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Friends, family, children, close colleagues | Anyone you have just met, and any group |
| Number | Singular only | Singular and plural both |
| Getting it wrong | Can sound over-familiar or dismissive | Can sound distant, but is never rude |
| At work | Common in start-ups and among peers | Standard with clients, and upward |
| Online | Normal on forums and social media | Standard in email to strangers |
| Verb form | tu es, tu as, tu fais | vous êtes, vous avez, vous faites |
How to choose
Ask these, in order
- 1
Have you just met this person, and are they an adult?
Vous. This covers shops, offices, officials, older neighbours and anyone in a professional role.
Bonjour, vous avez l’heure ?
Hello, do you have the time?
- 2
Are you talking to more than one person?
Vous, regardless of how well you know them. The plural has no familiar form.
Vous venez tous les deux ?
Are you both coming?
NBEven to two close friends. Tu simply cannot be plural.
- 3
Is it a child, a family member, or someone your own age in a relaxed setting?
Tu. Using vous with a child sounds strange rather than polite.
Tu veux jouer avec nous ?
Do you want to play with us?
- 4
Has the other person used tu with you, or offered it?
Follow their lead. The person senior in age or position normally proposes the switch.
On peut se tutoyer, si vous voulez.
We can use tu, if you like.
NBThe offer itself is usually made in vous, which is part of why it sounds courteous.
Side by side
Each one, in full
When to use vous
Familiar, and singular only.
Vous is the default with strangers, in shops and offices, with anyone noticeably older, and in any professional context you have just entered. It is also the only plural, so it covers a group of close friends as readily as a room of strangers.
Over-using vous is a mild, forgivable error. A French speaker will read it as reserve or as foreignness, not as an insult, and will often correct it by offering tu. That asymmetry is why vous is the right default while you are unsure.
Excusez-moi, vous pourriez m’aider ?
Excuse me, could you help me?
Vous avez réservé, monsieur ?
Do you have a reservation, sir?
Bonjour à tous, vous allez bien ?
Hello everyone, how are you all?
NBPlural, with no formality implied at all.
When to use tu
Polite singular, and every plural.
Tu covers family, friends, children, pets, and colleagues once the relationship is established. In many workplaces: start-ups, creative agencies, universities among peers: tu is the norm from the first day, so listening to how people address each other is more reliable than a rule.
Tu is also the form used with anyone you are being deliberately informal with online, and it is standard in advertising aimed at younger audiences. What it never does is scale to a group.
Tu as vu le message de Julien ?
Did you see Julien’s message?
Maman, tu peux venir ?
Mum, can you come?
Alors, tu es content de ton nouveau poste ?
So, are you happy with your new job?
NBBetween colleagues who already tutoient each other.
Mistakes to avoid
What learners actually get wrong
Tu êtes prêts ?
Vous êtes prêts ?
Tu has no plural. Addressing two people, however close, requires vous, and the verb has to follow, which is where the error usually shows up first.
Vous es fatigué ?
Vous êtes fatigué ?
Switching pronoun means switching the whole verb form, and vous takes its own conjugation throughout. Mixing tu’s verb with vous is more noticeable than choosing the wrong pronoun in the first place.
Je peux te tutoyer ?
On peut se tutoyer ? / Je peux vous tutoyer ?
Asking permission to use tu while already using it undoes the request. Ask in vous, or use the reciprocal on peut se tutoyer, which sidesteps the problem neatly.
Quand tu arrives, tu m’appelles ?
Quand vous arrivez, vous m’appelez ?
Said to a shopkeeper, the first version is wrong. Commercial and service relationships stay in vous in France by default, in both directions, and using tu there reads as either very young or careless.
Now use it
Poser une question
Rebuild questions with est-ce que and with inversion. Reading a rule and being able to apply it are different skills, and only one of them shows up when you speak.
- 20 questions
- Instant feedback
- No ads, no signup
Questions
Asked and answered
- Does Quebec use tu more than France?
- Yes, noticeably. Tu is common in Quebec in situations where France would keep vous, including some service and workplace contexts. Vous is still correct and never rude there, so the safe default does not change, but expect to be offered tu much sooner.
- How do I switch without it being awkward?
- Say it out loud rather than drifting. On peut se tutoyer ? is the standard phrase and takes the awkwardness out of it. Conventionally the older person, or the more senior one, makes the offer; if someone offers, accepting is expected rather than optional.
- What do tutoyer and vouvoyer mean?
- They are verbs for the act itself: tutoyer quelqu’un is to address them as tu, vouvoyer as vous. French has single words for this because the choice is a real social act, and having the vocabulary to discuss it is part of handling it comfortably.