Street French
A free French slang quiz, scored on the page. Bouffer, chelou, du coup: the argot practice your textbook refused to give you, so real spoken French stops sounding like a foreign language inside a foreign language.
The French they actually speak
Fifteen questions on the spoken French of cafés, flatmates and group chats: bouffer, du coup, chelou, grave. Plus two traps on when that vocabulary should stay out of your emails.
Step 1 / 3
A French slang quiz for real conversations
This quiz tests everyday spoken French: bouffer for manger, chelou (verlan for louche), the inescapable du coup, plus bosser, un truc, kiffer. Learners with solid B2 grammar still crash into this wall because argot follows its own logic. Verlan flips syllables, ouf means fou, meuf means femme. And du coup is not in most textbooks at all, despite being the most common discourse connector in casual speech. You cannot deduce these; you have to know them.
Take the quiz, then read the answer key carefully: each explanation tells you what the word means, how casual it is, and when using it would be a mistake, because slang in the wrong register is worse than no slang. Retake it after a week of French YouTube or podcasts and watch the score move. The Learning Center has full guides on spoken French; The French Briefing gives you daily reading to anchor the vocabulary in context.
What does « du coup » actually mean?
Literally "as a result", but in speech it works as an all-purpose connector: so, then, therefore, or nothing at all. « Du coup, tu viens ? » just means « So, are you coming? ». The French use it constantly and mock themselves for it. Understand it always; use it in casual contexts only.
What is verlan and do I need to learn it?
Verlan inverts syllables: l’envers (backwards) becomes verlan. It gives chelou (louche), meuf (femme), ouf (fou), relou (lourd, meaning annoying). Some words are now mainstream French: any B2 learner should recognise meuf and chelou. Producing verlan yourself is optional; understanding it is not, if you watch French films or series.
Is « bouffer » rude?
Not rude, just very informal. Bouffer means to eat, with a hearty, casual shade: « On va bouffer ? » is fine among friends. Avoid it with your boss or your in-laws on the first meeting; use manger. The noun la bouffe (food, grub) follows the same rule.
