ils s'appellent
The English phrase "their names are" is translated into French as ils s'appellent.
The phrase ils s'appellent is used to introduce the names of two or more people.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, ils s'appellent means "they call themselves".
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb s'appeler must be conjugated in the third-person plural to match the subject ils or elles. Use elles s'appellent instead of ils s'appellent if the group being introduced consists entirely of females.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid translating "their names are" literally as leurs noms sont. ils s'appellent is the natural way to introduce people in French.
Did you know?
- In French, the use of ils is a 'gender-neutral' plural that absorbs any number of women into a male group, whereas elles is strictly for females.
- The French verb s'appeler is used for names, but in English the word 'call' is often used for the sound of a phone or a voice. In French, using appeler to mean 'to name' reflects a conceptual link between calling someone and their identity.
- The plural pronoun ils is a linguistic survivor from Vulgar Latin illī, but it evolved differently from the word for 'them', eux, which comes from the Latin illōs.
Examples in context
- Voici mes amis. Ils s'appellent Tom et Mary.These are my friends. Their names are Tom and Mary.This sentence is useful for introducing friends using ils s'appellent.Tatoeba #7497991 by tras, translation #7496144 by Ricardo14
- Leurs noms sont Jean-Pierre et Marie.Their names are Jean-Pierre and Marie.
- Ils se prénomment Olivier et Sophie.They are named Olivier and Sophie.
- Ils s'appellent Pierre et Sophie.They are called Pierre and Sophie.
- Regarde les nouveaux voisins, ils s'appellent Marc et Sophie.Look at the new neighbors, their names are Marc and Sophie.
- J'ai rencontré les cousins, ils s'appellent Paul et Lucas.I met the cousins, their names are Paul and Lucas.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Gabriel are looking at a photo of some colleagues.
- LéaQui sont ces personnes sur la photo ?Who are these people in the photo?
- GabrielCe sont mes collègues, ils s'appellent Antoine et Julien.They are my colleagues, their names are Antoine and Julien.
- LéaAh, ils ont l'air très sympathiques !Ah, they look very nice!
- GabrielOui, ils sont vraiment gentils.Yes, they are really kind.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ils, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
