What you wear can change with the weather, the occasion, and your personal style.
After you learn the words for common clothes, you can add details about color, style, pattern, and material to describe them more precisely.
Describing how clothes look and feel
You can describe clothes by how they look or feel, as well as whether they are light, warm, new, or old. Here are some common descriptions:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| une robe élégante | an elegant dress |
| un pull confortable | a comfortable sweater / jumper |
| une veste légère | a light jacket |
| un manteau chaud | a warm coat |
| des chaussures neuves | new shoes |
A manteau chaud is useful in cold weather, while a veste légère is better when you need a lighter layer.
Describing clothes by color
Color gives you another way to identify or describe an item. You can combine these descriptions with common colors:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| une robe rouge élégante | an elegant red dress |
| un pull bleu confortable | a comfortable blue sweater / jumper |
| une veste noire légère | a light black jacket |
| des chaussures blanches neuves | new white shoes |
When you talk about what someone is wearing, use the complete description with porter:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Elle porte une robe rouge élégante. | She's wearing an elegant red dress. |
| Il porte un pull bleu confortable. | He's wearing a comfortable blue sweater. |
| Je porte une veste noire légère. | I'm wearing a light black jacket. |
Describing clothing patterns
Patterns are another common way to describe clothes. You will see these words when talking about outfits and when looking at clothes in shops:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| à rayures | striped |
| à carreaux | checked / plaid |
| à pois | polka-dot |
| uni / unie | plain / solid-colored |
For stripes, checks, and polka dots, the pattern follows the clothing description:
clothing + à + pattern
| French | English |
|---|---|
| une chemise bleue à rayures | a blue striped shirt |
| une jupe rouge à carreaux | a red checked / plaid skirt |
| une robe noire à pois | a black polka-dot dress |
À rayures can describe stripes of different widths and colors.
À carreaux covers different kinds of checked patterns, including some patterns described as plaid in English.
Uni describes clothing without a pattern. For example, une chemise unie is a plain or solid-colored shirt.
Describing clothing materials
The material tells you what an item is made of. This information is useful when shopping because you may see it on clothing labels, signs, or product descriptions:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| en coton | cotton / made of cotton |
| en laine | wool / made of wool |
| en cuir | leather / made of leather |
| en lin | linen / made of linen |
| en soie | silk / made of silk |
The material follows the clothing description:
clothing + en + material
| French | English |
|---|---|
| un t-shirt blanc en coton | a white cotton T-shirt |
| un pull gris en laine | a gray / grey wool sweater / jumper |
| une veste noire en cuir | a black leather jacket |
| une chemise blanche en lin | a white linen shirt |
Materials can also help you understand what kind of clothing you are looking at. Wool is common in warm clothing such as sweaters, while linen is common in lighter clothing for warm weather.
From learning to practice
When you get dressed, choose one item of clothing and describe it in French. Add the details you can see or know, such as its color, pattern, material, or whether it is light, warm, or comfortable.