ça marche
/sa maʁʃ/
The English phrase "sounds good" is translated into French as ça marche.
ça marche is used to agree to a suggestion or to confirm that a plan is acceptable.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, ça marche means "that works" or "that walks."
Which one should you use?
While ça marche is colloquial, use ça me convient or cela me convient in formal professional settings to express that a plan is acceptable.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
ça marche is an informal way to express agreement and is best suited for friends, family or casual colleagues. In more formal conversations, you can use Très bien (very good) or C'est parfait (it's perfect) to convey approval. In informal settings, Ok is also used to mean "sounds good."
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Belgium, particularly in Brussels, the informal phrase ça roule (it rolls) is used to mean "sounds good." In Quebec, you can use c'est correct (that's fine) to express the same idea.
How do you pronounce it?
/sa maʁʃ/
Did you know?
- Even though 'sounds good' refers to hearing in English, the French equivalent ça marche focuses on the functional movement of the idea.
- The pronoun ça is considered a calque of the German word Es, which is a substantivized pronoun.
- The informal ça marche is so common that it is often used as a quick one-word confirmation in texts, functioning almost exactly like the English 'k' or 'cool'.
Examples in context
- « Je vais aller à AA donc j'ai autre chose à faire que de boire » « Ok ! Ça marche, mais ne bois pas de Kool Aid »"I'm going to AA so I have something to do other than drink." "OK, sounds good, but don't drink the Kool-Aid."This example shows how to use ça marche when agreeing to a plan in a casual conversation.Tatoeba #10812683 by Sorasama, translation #8872918 by shekitten
- Ok, ça marche !Ok, sounds good!
- On se voit à huit heures ? Ça marche.We'll see each other at eight? Sounds good.
- On commande une pizza ce soir ? Ça marche pour moi.Shall we order a pizza tonight? That sounds good to me.
Example conversation
Two friends are making plans for the weekend.
- ManonOn va au cinéma samedi après-midi ?Shall we go to the cinema on Saturday afternoon?
- NathanÇa marche, j'adore ce film.Sounds good, I love that movie.
- ManonParfait, je réserve les billets.Perfect, I'll book the tickets.
- NathanMerci Manon, à samedi !Thanks Manon, see you Saturday!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ça marche, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries marche, ça, ça marche, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
