bon après-midi
/bɔ.n‿a.pʁɛ.mi.di/
In French, "have a good afternoon" is bon après-midi.
bon après-midi is a polite way to wish someone a pleasant time during the afternoon. While the English "have a good afternoon" functions as a wish, in French, bon après-midi is often used as a parting salutation (goodbye) rather than a greeting upon arrival. You may also use bonne fin d'après-midi to mean "good late afternoon", or Profitez de votre après-midi! to say "Enjoy your afternoon!"
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase bon après-midi can be used as both masculine and feminine in French, though the masculine form is more common.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /bɔ.n‿a.pʁɛ.mi.di/. It consists of 5 syllables.
Did you know?
- The word midi is also used to refer to the southern region of France, known as le Midi.
- In France, midi is used as a noun to refer to the midday meal, which is typically the main and largest meal of the day.
- The word bon shares an ancient lineage with the Latin 'bonus', which is the ancestor of many English words like 'bonus' or 'bonanza'.
Examples in context
- Madame Dupont, passez un bon après-midi.Mrs. Dupont, have a good afternoon.
- Salut Marie, passe un bon après-midi!Hi Marie, have a good afternoon!
- Passez un bon après-midi.Have a good afternoon.
- Je vous souhaite un bon après-midi.I wish you a good afternoon.
Example conversation
Hugo is leaving a bakery where Manon works.
- HugoMerci pour le pain, Manon.Thank you for the bread, Manon.
- ManonDe rien, Hugo. À bientôt !You're welcome, Hugo. See you soon!
- HugoMerci, bon après-midi !Thanks, have a good afternoon!
- ManonMerci, vous aussi !Thank you, you too!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry bon après-midi, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries après-midi, bon, CC BY-SA 4.0.
