French · A1 · Phrases

Introducing Yourself in French: Je m'appelle, Je suis and J'ai … ans

To introduce yourself in French, start with your name: Je m'appelle Marc ("my name is Marc") or Je suis Marc. Say where you live with J'habite à Lyon, give your job with Je suis professeur (no "a"), and your age with J'ai trente ans — French uses avoir, "to have", for age. Reply to an introduction with Enchanté.

A good self-introduction is three or four short lines you can say on autopilot: your name, where you live, what you do, and how old you are. French builds each one from a small fixed pattern, so once you know the patterns you just swap in your own details. Here are the lines, the one verb that trips up English speakers, and how to answer when someone introduces themselves to you.

Published 15 November 2026

Start with your name

The core phrase is je m'appelle, literally "I call myself":

• Je m'appelle Claire. — My name is Claire.
• Je m'appelle Marc Dubois. — My name is Marc Dubois.

It comes from the verb s'appeler ("to be called"), and the m' is the "myself" part. Two shorter options work just as well when you're being casual:

• Je suis Claire. — I'm Claire.
• Moi, c'est Claire. — I'm Claire. (relaxed and very common)

Once you've met French greetings, you simply put one of these straight after Bonjour.

Asking someone's name, and replying

To ask back, the formal and informal versions differ — the same tu-or-vous choice you make everywhere in French:

When you're introduced, the standard reply is one word:

• Enchanté ! — Pleased to meet you! (literally "enchanted")

A woman writes it enchantée — the extra e doesn't change the sound. For something a touch more formal you can say Ravi de faire votre connaissance ("delighted to meet you"; a woman writes ravie).

Where you're from and where you live

Two patterns cover origin. Use je viens de ("I come from") with a town, and j'habite à ("I live in") for where you are now:

• Je viens de Londres. — I come from London.
• J'habite à Paris. — I live in Paris.
• Je viens d'Istanbul. — I come from Istanbul. (de → d' before a vowel)

You can also give your nationality with je suis plus an adjective. The adjective agrees with you and takes no capital letter: a man uses the plain form, a woman usually adds -e:

Your age: J'ai … ans, not Je suis

Here is the one line English speakers get wrong. French does not use "to be" for age; it uses avoir ("to have"). You literally say how many years you "have":

• J'ai trente ans. — I'm thirty. (literally "I have thirty years")
• J'ai vingt et un ans. — I'm twenty-one.

Saying Je suis trente is the classic beginner slip. The pattern is fixed: J'ai + a number + ans, and you can never drop ans ("years") the way English drops "years old". To ask, say Quel âge as-tu ? (informal) or Quel âge avez-vous ? (formal). Brushing up on French numbers 1–100 makes this line effortless, and the verb avoir itself is laid out in être and avoir.

What you do

To give your job, use je suis and then the profession with no "a" — French leaves out the article here where English keeps it:

• Je suis professeur. — I'm a teacher.
• Je suis étudiant. / Je suis étudiante. — I'm a student. (man / woman)
• Je suis ingénieur. — I'm an engineer.

So it's je suis médecin, not je suis un médecin. If you're still studying, name the subject instead: J'étudie l'informatique ("I study computing").

Put it together: a first meeting

A first meeting simply strings three or four of these lines together:

That's a complete introduction from four patterns. For the wider opening exchange that follows, see your first French conversation.

Try it

Put these into French. Answers below.

1. My name is Paul.
2. I live in Nice.
3. I'm a student. (said by a woman)
4. I'm twenty-five.
5. Pleased to meet you!

Show answers

1. Je m'appelle Paul. (or Je suis Paul / Moi, c'est Paul)
2. J'habite à Nice.
3. Je suis étudiante. (woman → -e; and no "a")
4. J'ai vingt-cinq ans. (avoir, and keep ans)
5. Enchanté ! (a woman writes enchantée)

Questions people actually ask

How do you introduce yourself in French? Give your name with Je m'appelle… or Je suis…, then add where you live (J'habite à Paris), your job (Je suis professeur, with no "a") and your age (J'ai … ans). Reply to someone else's introduction with Enchanté.

Why do the French say J'ai 20 ans and not Je suis 20? Because French states age with avoir ("to have"), not être ("to be"). J'ai vingt ans literally means "I have twenty years." Use the fixed pattern J'ai + number + ans, and never leave off ans.

How do you say your nationality in French? Use je suis plus the nationality adjective, which agrees with your gender and takes no capital letter: a man says je suis anglais, a woman je suis anglaise. You can also name your town with je viens de….

The way Je m'appelle…, J'habite à… and J'ai … ans become automatic is by saying them aloud, in order, many times — which is exactly the kind of practice Gora's French course is built around. Start your seven-day free trial — no card required — or search "Gora Academy" in the Apple App Store or Google Play.