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Body parts in French : vocabulary list and pronunciation

One of the basics while learning French is getting to know how to say and pronounce body parts. It is indeed a very useful vocabulary when it comes to speak about health, hobbies or even describing people.

In this lesson. you'll learn the name of the different parts of the body and how to say them in French.

French body parts vocabulary list

The word for body in French is Le corps, and le corps humain is  for human body. Here are some main parts of the human body.

Take note that when speaking about eyes the singular form is "un oeil" => an eye or l'oeil =eye and the plural is "les yeux".

We say : Avoir les yeux bleus, verts, noirs, marron.

When refering to hair, we say les cheveux

  • noirs =black

  • gris = grey

  • blancs = white

  • blonds = blonds

  • roux = red hair

  • châtains = chestnut

  • bruns = brown

You can refer to the lesson about colors for more. 

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Here is an infographic with the main body parts in French with their pronunciation.

Le corps humain.jpg

Why should you learn to say the French words for body?

 Learning  how to say the  body parts in French will be very useful  in these contexts : 

  • when going to the doctor. Example : J'ai mal à la tête. => I have a headache/My head hurts

  • When describing someone : you can combine the body parts with possessive adjectives or colors. Example : Ma soeur a les cheveux noirs. => My sister has black hair. 

  • talking about sports. Example : Je fais la course à pied.

  • to understand some French expressions in which Body parts are found. Example : donner un coup de main à quelqu'un => to help someone.

  • to speak about beauty. Example :  se  maquiller le visage  (to put on make up on the face)

Ways of using body parts in French 

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  • Body parts can be used with possessives adjectives. Example : tes cheveux sentent mauvais. => Your hair stinks 

  • They are often used with the verb avoir. For example J'ai le visage pale => I have a pale face/My face is pale

  • They are also often used with reflexive verbs. For example se brosser les dents (to brush one's teeth, se laver les cheveux (to wash one's hair), se maquiller le visage (to put make-up on one's face), s'épiler les sourcils (to shave one's eyebrow),  and so non.

Practice activities for body parts

​I have selected some interesting activities on the web for you. Happy practicing !

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  👉 French body parts game

  👉 Exercice parties du corps

  👉 Mots croisés

  👉 List  of lessons and exercises

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Related lessons

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Colors

Fruits and vegetables

Possessive adjectives

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