Business French Vocabulary: Must-Know French-English Words & Phrases for Professionals
Business French is not about sounding fancy. It is about choosing precise words when money, contracts, clients and deadlines are on the table.
Use this guide as a practical French-English phrase bank for finance, commerce, tourism, meetings, emails and realistic workplace practice.
- Finance and banking vocabulary
- Commerce, sales and logistics
- Tourism and hospitality French
- Meetings and presentations
- Business emails and written follow-up
- Practice with realistic business scenarios
- Listen to the original Business French audio practice
- Business French Vocabulary for Professionals: Practical Questions
- More Professional French Guides
- Want more support for life in France?
Want more support for life in France?
Join Survive & Thrive in France — my signature program for expats and retirees who want to feel more at home in France.
Finance and banking vocabulary
Use these words when discussing accounts, transfers, investments and financial documents with French-speaking clients or institutions.
- le compte bancaire → bank account
- le virement → bank transfer
- le taux d’intérêt → interest rate
- la facture → invoice
- le relevé bancaire → bank statement
- un investissement → an investment
Commerce, sales and logistics
These terms help you talk about orders, delivery, stock and negotiation without getting lost in vague English-French approximations.
- une commande → an order
- un devis → a quote / estimate
- le délai de livraison → delivery time
- un fournisseur → a supplier
- la marge bénéficiaire → profit margin
- négocier un contrat → to negotiate a contract
Tourism and hospitality French
If you work in hotels, travel, restaurants or client-facing tourism, these phrases keep service conversations practical and polite.
- une réservation → a booking
- l’accueil → reception / front desk
- la chambre disponible → available room
- un client fidèle → a loyal customer
- le séjour → the stay
- le service client → customer service
Meetings and presentations
Professional French meetings rely on clear turn-taking, confirmation and follow-up language. Learn these before you need them live.
- une réunion → a meeting
- l’ordre du jour → agenda
- présenter les résultats → to present the results
- prendre la parole → to speak / take the floor
- Pouvez-vous préciser ? → Could you clarify?
- Je vous envoie un récapitulatif. → I’ll send you a summary.
Business emails and written follow-up
Email phrases protect you when details matter. Use them to confirm decisions, attach documents and keep the tone professional.
- Madame, Monsieur, → Dear Sir or Madam,
- Veuillez trouver ci-joint… → Please find attached…
- Suite à notre échange… → Following our conversation…
- Je reste à votre disposition. → I remain available if needed.
- Cordialement, → Best regards
Practice with realistic business scenarios
Turn vocabulary into usable French by practising short workplace tasks rather than isolated word lists.
- Confirm a bank transfer and ask for the receipt.
- Request a quote from a supplier.
- Explain a delivery delay to a client.
- Open a meeting and present the agenda.
- Send a short follow-up email after a negotiation.
Listen to the original Business French audio practice
The original article included seven pronunciation/audio blocks. They are preserved below in the same source order so the vocabulary practice stays intact.
Banking words pronunciation
Investment and stock market terms
Business transactions and logistics
Negotiation and contracts
Hotel and customer service terms
Travel and transportation terms
Meetings and presentations
Business French Vocabulary for Professionals: Practical Questions
Choose the vocabulary for the professional situation in front of you, then practise it in one sentence you could actually say this week.
More Professional French Guides
Americans moving to France: what changes first
DELF A2 French for Residency Appointments
Life in Nice Beyond the Expat Bubble: A Real French Conversation with Les Niçois
She Didn’t Just Move to Provence. She Learned to Belong.
Moving to Fontainebleau: The Real Story of Janice in France
