Vocabulaire · niveau survie

French A2 vocabulary

Q: What does CEFR level A2 actually mean?

The Common European Framework calls A2 the “survie” stage (niveau survie). Elementary: connected everyday language, common past forms, and practical topics.

Reviewed words for elementary French — errands, travel, routines, and the verbs that let you talk about yesterday and tomorrow. Every entry has a real example sentence and translations in six languages.

91 words46 nouns · 29 verbs6 languages91 examples

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l’argent n.

the money

« J’ai dépensé tout mon argent. »

I spent all my money.

en · es · pt · de · it · ar

What A2 means — and what this list covers

A2 is the CEFR “survival” level (niveau survie): sentences about familiar things — shopping, neighbours, daily routines — and the first real past tenses. The vocabulary that matters here is practical: transport, time, money, and the high-frequency verbs that organise a day.

This list is deliberately focused. Rather than a frequency dump, it is a reviewed selection of high-value A2 words — words like la boulangerie, la carte, apporter from this list — each published with a natural example sentence and checked translations in English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Italian, and Arabic. Each entry passes automated quality gates and human approval before publication.

On this pageNoms · 46 Verbes · 29 Adjectifs · 9 Adverbes · 7 Stories Grammar FAQ

Noms · nouns 46

l’argent n. the money J’ai dépensé tout mon argent. I spent all my money. la boulangerie n.f. the bakery Je vais à la boulangerie acheter du pain. I'm going to the bakery to buy some bread. la carte n.f. the map J’ai besoin d’une carte pour trouver l’adresse. I need a map to find the address. le conseil n.m. the advice Merci pour ton bon conseil. Thanks for your good advice. le cours n.m. class / course Mon cours de français commence à 14 heures. My French class starts at 2 PM. la date n.f. date La date de l’examen est le 12 mai. The date of the exam is May 12. le début n.m. the beginning C’est le début du film. This is the beginning of the movie. le déjeuner n.m. lunch Le déjeuner est à midi. Lunch is at noon. le devoir n.m. homework J’ai beaucoup de devoirs ce week-end. I have a lot of homework this weekend. la douche n.f. shower Je prends une douche tous les matins. I take a shower every morning. l’escalier n. stairs, staircase Je monte l’escalier chaque matin. I climb the stairs every morning. l’étudiant n. student L’étudiant pose une question au professeur. The student asks the teacher a question. l’expérience n. the experience Cette expérience m’a beaucoup appris. This experience taught me a lot. la fenêtre n.f. the window Ouvre la fenêtre, s'il te plaît. Open the window, please. la fête n.f. the party, the celebration Il y a une fête chez Marie ce soir. There is a party at Marie's place tonight. la gare n.f. the train station Le train part de la gare à 8 heures. The train leaves from the station at 8 a.m. l’histoire n. the story Raconte-moi une histoire avant de dormir. Tell me a story before bed. l’hôpital n. the hospital Ma sœur travaille à l’hôpital. My sister works at the hospital. l'idée n. the idea J'ai une bonne idée pour le week-end. I have a good idea for the weekend. l’immeuble n. apartment building Mon immeuble a six étages. My apartment building has six floors. le livre n.m. the book J'ai lu un livre passionnant ce week-end. I read a fascinating book this weekend. le marché n.m. the market On achète des fruits frais au marché. We buy fresh fruit at the market. le matin n.m. morning Je me lève toujours tôt le matin. I always wake up early in the morning. le moment n.m. the moment C’est le bon moment pour partir. This is the right moment to leave. la note n.f. grade J’ai eu une bonne note en maths. I got a good grade in math. le nuage n.m. cloud Il y a beaucoup de nuages dans le ciel. There are a lot of clouds in the sky. l’ordinateur n. the computer J’utilise mon ordinateur pour travailler. I use my computer to work. le parc n.m. park On se retrouve au parc à 15 heures. We’re meeting at the park at 3 PM. la place n.f. the place, seat Y a-t-il une place libre ici ? Is there a free seat here? la pluie n.f. the rain La pluie a commencé ce matin. The rain started this morning. le prix n.m. the price Le prix de ce livre est trop élevé. The price of this book is too high. le problème n.m. the problem Nous avons un problème avec la voiture. We have a problem with the car. le professeur n.m. teacher Le professeur a expliqué la leçon très clairement. The teacher explained the lesson very clearly. le projet n.m. the project Nous travaillons sur un projet important. We are working on an important project. la raison n.f. the reason C’est la raison pour laquelle je suis parti. That’s the reason why I left. le repas n.m. the meal Nous préparons le repas ensemble. We prepare the meal together. la réponse n.f. the answer Connaissez-vous la réponse à cette question ? Do you know the answer to this question? le résultat n.m. the result Le résultat de l’examen était bon. The result of the exam was good. le retard n.m. delay Le train a eu un retard de vingt minutes. The train was delayed by twenty minutes. la réunion n.f. the meeting La réunion commence à 14 heures. The meeting starts at 2 p.m. le soir n.m. evening Le soir, je regarde souvent un film. In the evening, I often watch a movie. la table n.f. the table Mettons les plats sur la table. Let's put the dishes on the table. le temps n.m. the time, weather Il fait beau temps aujourd’hui. The weather is nice today. le ticket n.m. the ticket Où puis-je acheter un ticket de train ? Where can I buy a train ticket? le travail n.m. the work, job Il cherche un nouveau travail. He is looking for a new job. le vélo n.m. the bicycle Je vais au travail à vélo. I go to work by bicycle.

Verbes · verbs 29

apporter v. to bring (something) Apporte ton livre demain, s’il te plaît. Bring your book tomorrow, please. arrêter v. to stop, to quit (doing something) Il a arrêté de fumer l’année dernière. He stopped smoking last year. attendre v. to wait Je dois attendre le bus devant l’école. I have to wait for the bus in front of the school. changer v. to change Je veux changer de coiffure. I want to change my hairstyle. chercher v. to look for Elle cherche ses clés partout. She is looking for her keys everywhere. choisir v. to choose Tu dois choisir entre le rouge et le bleu. You have to choose between red and blue. décider v. to decide Nous devons décider du menu pour la fête. We need to decide on the menu for the party. demander v. to ask Il demande le chemin à un policier. He is asking a police officer for directions. discuter v. to discuss Nous devons discuter de ce problème. We need to discuss this problem. écouter v. to listen J'aime écouter de la musique classique. I like to listen to classical music. expliquer v. to explain Peux-tu m’expliquer comment utiliser cette application ? Can you explain how to use this app to me? gagner v. to win Elle veut gagner le concours. She wants to win the competition. marcher v. to walk; to work (of a machine) Je marche vingt minutes pour aller au travail. I walk twenty minutes to get to work. montrer v. to show Peux-tu me montrer le chemin ? Can you show me the way? organiser v. to organize Elle va organiser une fête pour son anniversaire. She is going to organize a party for her birthday. oublier v. to forget J’ai oublié mon parapluie dans le train. I forgot my umbrella on the train. partir v. to leave Nous partons en vacances la semaine prochaine. We are leaving for vacation next week. perdre v. to lose J'ai perdu mes clés hier. I lost my keys yesterday. quitter v. to leave (a place) Il a quitté la maison tôt ce matin. He left the house early this morning. ranger v. to tidy up, to put away Je range ma chambre le samedi. I tidy my room on Saturdays. refuser v. to refuse Elle a refusé de venir. She refused to come. regarder v. to watch On regarde un film ce soir. We are watching a movie tonight. réparer v. to repair, to fix Je dois réparer mon vélo avant samedi. I have to repair my bike before Saturday. répondre v. to answer Peux-tu répondre à ma question ? Can you answer my question? retourner v. to return Il retourne à Paris demain. He is returning to Paris tomorrow. revenir v. to come back Je vais revenir demain. I am going to come back tomorrow. tomber v. to fall Le livre est tombé de la table. The book fell off the table. traverser v. to cross Regarde bien avant de traverser la rue. Look carefully before crossing the street. trouver v. to find J’ai trouvé un bon restaurant. I found a good restaurant.

Adjectifs · adjectives 9

content adj. happy Il est content de son nouveau travail. He is happy with his new job. dernier adj. last (previous, just past) Le mois dernier, nous avons visité Paris. Last month we visited Paris. fatigué adj. tired Je suis fatigué après cette longue journée. I am tired after this long day. plein adj. full Le bus est plein ce matin. The bus is full this morning. prêt adj. ready Je suis prêt à partir en vacances. I’m ready to go on vacation. prochain adj. next (upcoming) Le prochain train arrive dans dix minutes. The next train arrives in ten minutes. propre adj. clean Ma chambre est propre maintenant. My room is clean now. rapide adj. fast, quick Ce train est très rapide. This train is very fast. vide adj. empty La salle est vide. The room is empty.

Adverbes · adverbs 7

déjà adv. already J’ai déjà vu ce film. I have already seen this film. jamais adv. never Je n’ai jamais vu ce film. I have never seen this movie. presque adv. almost Le repas est presque prêt. The meal is almost ready. rarement adv. rarely Il pleut rarement en été ici. It rarely rains here in the summer. souvent adv. often Nous allons souvent au cinéma. We often go to the cinema. tard adv. late Nous sommes arrivés tard à la fête. We arrived late at the party. toujours adv. always Elle est toujours à l’heure. She is always on time.

Common questions

How many words do I need for A2?

Around 1,000 word families are commonly cited for comfortable A2 communication. You do not memorise them from a list — most arrive through reading and listening. This page gives you the highest-value items to study deliberately; the rest come from stories at your level.

What does CEFR level A2 actually mean?

The Common European Framework calls A2 the “survie” stage (niveau survie). Elementary: connected everyday language, common past forms, and practical topics.

Are these translations machine-generated?

Drafts are generated with structured tooling, then pass automated quality gates and human approval before anything is published — no entry appears here without review. Found an error? Report it to support@toba.solutions.

What should I study after this list?

Pair the words with the A2 grammar lessons and the A2 stories where the same vocabulary reappears in context. When recognising feels easy, move to the B1 list.

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