French Vocabulary Lesson Hobbies, Sports, Games

Many people have a favorite pastime or two, including sports, games, or other hobbies. Since you are studying French, learn how to talk about your favorites as you expand your vocabulary in the realm of fun activities.  When you have completed this lesson, continue to expand your sports vocabulary  and have even more fun. Hobby, Sports, and Games The specific translations for the terms hobby, sports, and games are as follows: Hobby le passe-temps favorisSports   des sportsGames    jeux Expand your French vocabulary related to these terms by perusing the tables below. In the tables, the word is presented first in English in the left column to make it easier to find the term you need. The French translation for each term is listed in the right column. Many of the French words are linked to audio files. Simply click on the link to listen to the correct pronunciation of the term. Sports, Games and To Play Many of the terms in this section are similar to the English words with which you are already familiar. To speak about the action of playing these sports, use the verb   jouer  au  (to play)  before the name of the sport, as in: To play chess   jouer  aux  Ãƒ ©checsTo play basketball    jouer  au basket English French basketball le basket football le football amà ©ricain soccer le football or le foot hockey le hockey tennis le tennis chess les à ©checs Hobbies and To Make/Do This next set of activities includes sports, hobbies, and other things you might do in your free time. The one thing that they have in common is that they use the verb  faire  (to make or to do). In most cases, you will combine the verb  faire de with the noun, as in: To garden  Ã‚  faire du  jardinageTo ride a bike   faire du  và ©lo However, in some instances, you have the option of using a form of the noun itself when you speak about performing that activity. Those special cases are noted in the fourth column of the chart. For instance, you can say faire  la cuisine  or  cuisiner,  which both mean to cook. English French Noun Use with Or use biking le cyclisme, le và ©lo faire de cooking la cuisine faire cuisiner gardening le jardinage faire de jardiner hiking la randonnà ©e faire de hunting la chasse faire chasser jogging le jogging faire de reading la lecture faire lire sailing la voile faire skiing le ski faire de skier swimming la natation faire de nager television (TV) la tà ©là ©vision (la tà ©là ©) regarder wrestling la lutte faire de lutter Other Hobbies and Verbs The following activities use verbs other than  jouer  au  and  faire. The same rules apply to this set as has been discussed previously, as in this phrase: To go fishing -  aller  Ãƒ  Ã‚  pà ªcher  or pà ªcher English French Noun Use with Or use dancing la danse danser fishing la pà ªche aller à   (to go) pà ªcher television (TV) la tà ©là ©vision (la tà ©là ©) regarder (to watch) a movie un film regarder (to watch) music la musique à ©couter (to listen), jouer de (to play)