Meal names are one of the everyday differences you encounter across the French-speaking world. The same word can refer to different meals depending on where you are.
In France, le déjeuner is lunch, not breakfast. The usual sequence is le petit-déjeuner, le déjeuner, and le dîner, with le goûter as an afternoon snack.
Names of the main meals in France
In France, each part of the day has its usual meal name:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| le petit-déjeuner | breakfast |
| le déjeuner | lunch |
| le goûter | afternoon snack |
| le dîner | dinner / evening meal |
| un repas | meal |
You can use different verbs to talk about having these meals:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je prends le petit-déjeuner à sept heures. | I have breakfast at seven. |
| Je déjeune vers midi. | I have lunch around noon. |
| On dîne à huit heures. | We're having dinner at eight. |
| Tu as déjà déjeuné ? | Have you already had lunch? |
| Vous dînez avec nous ? | Are you having dinner with us? |
The verbs déjeuner and dîner mean "to have lunch" and "to have dinner." For breakfast, French normally uses prendre with le petit-déjeuner.
Breakfast in France: le petit-déjeuner
Breakfast in France is often relatively simple and may include coffee or tea with bread, butter, or jam. Croissants and other viennoiseries are strongly associated with breakfast, although they are not necessarily everyday breakfast foods at home.
You may encounter this vocabulary when talking about breakfast:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| prendre le petit-déjeuner | to have breakfast |
| une tartine | slice of bread with a topping |
| du beurre | butter |
| de la confiture | jam |
| un croissant | croissant |
| un café | coffee / espresso |
| un thé | tea |
| un jus d'orange | orange juice |
A tartine at breakfast is often a slice of bread with butter, jam, or both.
For more about bakeries and viennoiseries, see Bread and baked goods and Boulangerie, pâtisserie, and viennoiserie.
Lunch in France: le déjeuner
In France, le déjeuner is the midday meal. Restaurant lunch menus may offer a formule with two or three courses at a set price.
You can use déjeuner as a verb when talking about where, when, or with whom you are having lunch:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| déjeuner | to have lunch |
| la pause déjeuner | lunch break |
| déjeuner au restaurant | to have lunch at a restaurant |
| déjeuner sur le pouce | to have a quick lunch / eat on the go |
| On déjeune où ? | Where are we having lunch? |
| Tu veux déjeuner avec moi ? | Do you want to have lunch with me? |
| Qu'est-ce qu'on mange à midi ? | What are we eating for lunch? |
Déjeuner sur le pouce describes eating something quickly rather than sitting down for a longer meal.
The afternoon snack: le goûter
Le goûter is an afternoon snack particularly associated with children and the period after school. It is commonly eaten around four o'clock and may include bread, chocolate, fruit, biscuits, or another small sweet food.
You can use goûter when talking about the snack itself or the time when someone has it:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| le goûter | afternoon snack |
| prendre le goûter | to have an afternoon snack |
| l'heure du goûter | snack time |
| Les enfants prennent leur goûter. | The children are having their afternoon snack. |
Do not confuse the noun le goûter with the verb goûter, which means "to taste" or "to try" a food. For example, Tu veux goûter ? means "Do you want to taste it?"
Dinner in France: le dîner
In France, le dîner is the evening meal. You can also use dîner as a verb meaning "to have dinner."
These expressions are useful when making dinner plans or talking about the evening meal:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| dîner | to have dinner |
| préparer le dîner | to prepare dinner |
| dîner à la maison | to have dinner at home |
| dîner au restaurant | to have dinner at a restaurant |
| inviter quelqu'un à dîner | to invite someone to dinner |
| Qu'est-ce qu'on mange ce soir ? | What are we having tonight? |
| À quelle heure on dîne ? | What time are we having dinner? |
| Vous restez dîner ? | Are you staying for dinner? |
Meal names vary across the Francophone world
The words déjeuner and dîner do not refer to the same meals everywhere in the French-speaking world. Knowing the regional pattern can prevent confusion when someone invites you to eat or talks about a meal.
In France, the usual pattern is:
| Time | France |
|---|---|
| morning | le petit-déjeuner |
| midday | le déjeuner |
| evening | le dîner |
In Quebec, Belgium, and Switzerland, you may encounter a different sequence. Here, déjeuner can refer to breakfast, dîner to the midday meal, and souper to the evening meal:
| Time | Other usage |
|---|---|
| morning | le déjeuner |
| midday | le dîner |
| evening | le souper |
The surrounding context usually tells you which meal someone means. A question such as Qu'est-ce qu'on mange pour le dîner ? may therefore refer to lunch in one French-speaking region and the evening meal in another.
Le souper is also understood in France, but it is not the usual everyday word for the evening meal.
From learning to practice
As you go through your day, connect the French meal names with the meals you actually eat. At breakfast, lunch, or dinner, try to recall the French words and describe what you are eating without looking them up.