Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| se passer | |
| arriver | /a.ʁi.ve/ |
| se produire | |
| advenir | /ad.və.niʁ/ |
Which one should you use?
arriver is the most common way to say 'to happen' when referring to an event or an accident occurring. se passer is often used to ask about the way an event unfolds or what is going on. For a more formal tone, especially in technical contexts or news reports, se produire is used to mean 'to occur' or 'to take place'. Finally, advenir is a highly formal or poetic verb used in literature to describe things that happen or befall someone.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
se produire is a formal way to say 'happen'. advenir is reserved for literary or poetic contexts.
How does it change in a sentence?
se passer is a pronominal (reflexive) verb, which means it requires a reflexive pronoun such as me, te, se, nous or vous when you conjugate it.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers sometimes confuse arriver with its primary meaning 'to arrive'. However, when used in the context of an event, it means 'to happen'.
Did you know?
- The word arriver is built from the French word rive, meaning 'bank' or 'shore'. It literally describes an event reaching a destination, like a boat reaching the shore.
- The poetic verb advenir is the root of the common French word avenir, which means 'the future'.
- The formal verb se produire shares a linguistic root with the English word 'produce'. In French, it implies that an event 'produces' itself or comes into existence within a specific context.
Examples in context
- Que va-t-il arriver ?What's going to happen?This sentence uses arriver to ask what is going to happen.Tatoeba #2041068 by sacredceltic, translation #1886703 by CK
- Rien ne va se passer.Nothing will happen.This sentence uses se passer to state that nothing will happen.Tatoeba #4427596 by sacredceltic, translation #2249649 by CK
- Que se passerait-il ?What would happen?This sentence uses se passer to ask what would happen.Tatoeba #9416669 by Micsmithel, translation #25140 by CK
- L'accident s'est produit sur l'autorouteThe accident happened on the highway
- La panne d'électricité est survenue pendant la tempêteThe power outage occurred during the storm
- Qu'est-ce qui se passe ici ?What's happening here?
- La fête aura lieu demain soirThe party will happen tomorrow evening
- Hier, une tempête s'est produite dans la régionYesterday, a storm happened in the region
- Qu'est-ce qui s'est passé pendant ton absence ?What happened while you were gone?
- La réunion aura lieu dans la salle de conférenceThe meeting will happen in the conference room
- 581 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Léa are discussing a strange noise in the hallway.
- NathanQu'est-ce qui vient de se passer ?What just happened?
- LéaJe ne sais pas, c'était étrange.I don't know, it was strange.
- NathanEst-ce que tu as vu quelque chose ?Did you see anything?
- LéaNon, rien ne s'est passé de visible.No, nothing visible happened.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “happen” translations and entries arriver, advenir, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries advenir, arriver, passer, produire, se, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
