Day 3: Introducing yourself

Je m'appelle… / Je suis… / J'habite… + nationality, job, where you live · 25 min

The 5-sentence introduction you build today is the backbone of the Day 7 speaking test and the Day 30 final challenge. Do not skim it — fill in your own real details and memorise the result.

1. The 5-sentence skeleton

Why Je m'appelle? Literally it is "I call myself". French states a name as the way you call yourself, not as a thing you are. Learn it as one block.h is silent, so it is not Je habite but J'habite (zha-BEET) — the two words crush together (Day 1, rule 3).

2. Nationality — masculine and feminine

French words change with the speaker's own gender. English has nothing like this; you simply have to pick the right form for yourself. The feminine usually adds -e.

★ There is a sound rule hiding in that table: the masculine form ends in a silent consonant; the -e of the feminine wakes that consonant back up.

• américain a-may-ree-KAN (nasal) → américaine a-may-ree-KEN (nasal broken, n pronounced)
• anglais ahn-GLEH → anglaise ahn-GLEHZ

⚠️ Nationalities are lower-case in French. Je suis américain, never Américain.English capitalises; French does not. This is the most common written mistake English speakers make all month.

3. Jobs

French uses no article before a job. This is the opposite of English.

✅ Je suis étudiant. / ❌ Je suis un étudiant. ("I am a student" → drop the "a")

Or dodge the job noun entirely: Je travaille dans une start-up.(zhuh tra-VYE dahn zewn star-TUP — I work at a start-up)

4. Where you live — habiter

How to guess the country's gender (right ~90% of the time): ends in -e → feminine → la France, l'Angleterre, l'Irlande, l'Australie, la Chine → en Everything else → masculine → le Canada, le Japon, le Portugal → au (Exception to know: le Mexique.)

⚠️ The USA is plural in French — les États-Unis — hence aux. English says "the United States is"; French treats it as a genuine plural.

5. Age — J'ai ___ ans

French has an age; it does not be one. (Je suis 30 ❌ → J'ai 30 ans ✅)

⚠️ This one is a real error, not a style point. Je suis trente means roughly "I am the number thirty" and gets you a blank stare.Liaison alert: the number links into ans. trente_ans → trahn-TAHN (Day 1, rule 4).Full numbers come on Day 8; today just lock in your own age.

6. A finished example — rewrite it with your own details

Bonjour ! Je m'appelle Alex.Je suis américain et j'habite à New York, aux États-Unis.J'ai trente-cinq ans.Je suis entrepreneur — je travaille dans une start-up.J'apprends le français depuis trois jours. Enchanté !

Respelling:

bohn-ZHOOR! zhuh ma-PELL a-LEX.zhuh swee za-may-ree-KAN ay zha-BEET a noo-YORK, oh zay-ta-zew-NEE.zhay trahnt-SANK ahn.zhuh swee zahn-truh-pruh-NUR — zhuh tra-VYE dahn zewn star-TUP.zha-PRAHN luh frahn-SEH duh-PWEE trwa ZHOOR. ahn-shahn-TAY!

★ depuis trois jours = "for three days now" — you are on Day 3 of a challenge, so just bump the number every day and the line stays true.

7. Short dialogue

A: Bonjour ! Comment vous appelez-vous ?bohn-ZHOOR! ko-mahn voo za-play VOO?Hello! What's your name?B: Je m'appelle Alex. Et vous ?zhuh ma-PELL a-LEX. ay VOO?A: Moi, c'est Marie. Vous êtes français ?mwa, seh ma-REE. voo zet frahn-SEH?I'm Marie. Are you French?B: Non, je suis américain. J'habite à New York.nohn, zhuh swee za-may-ree-KAN. zha-BEET a noo-YORK.A: Ah, enchantée !a, ahn-shahn-TAY!

Moi, c'est Marie. is the casual version of Je m'appelle — lighter, and extremely common. Roughly "I'm Marie" versus "My name is Marie".

8. Exercises

A. Fill in the blank.

1. Je ______ appelle Alex. (I'm called)
2. J'______ à Londres. (I live)
3. J'ai trente ______. (30 years old)
4. Je suis ______. (American, male speaker)

B. Choose en / au / aux / à.

1. J'habite ___ Paris. 2. J'habite ___ France. 3. J'habite ___ Canada. 4. J'habite ___ États-Unis.

C. Change masculine → feminine and describe the sound change.

1. américain → ___ 2. étudiant → ___ 3. anglais → ___

D. ⚠️ Fix the English-speaker errors.

1. Je suis un étudiant.
2. Je suis trente ans.
3. Je suis Américain.

E. Write your own 5-sentence introduction. (This is today's real assignment.)

9. Today's 10 sentences

1. Je m'appelle… — My name is… (zhuh ma-PELL)
2. Comment vous appelez-vous ? — What's your name? (ko-mahn voo za-play VOO)
3. Moi, c'est… — I'm… (mwa, seh)
4. Je suis américain. — I'm American (zhuh swee za-may-ree-KAN)
5. Vous êtes français ? — Are you French? (voo zet frahn-SEH)
6. J'habite à New York. — I live in New York (zha-BEET a noo-YORK)
7. J'habite aux États-Unis. — I live in the USA (zha-BEET oh zay-ta-zew-NEE)
8. J'ai trente ans. — I'm 30 (zhay trahn-TAHN)
9. Je suis entrepreneur. — I run a business (zhuh swee zahn-truh-pruh-NUR)
10. J'apprends le français. — I'm learning French (zha-PRAHN luh frahn-SEH)

10. 📲 Upload to LangNote

Upload section 6, rewritten with your own details. It works far better as revision when the sentences are yours and not someone else's example.

langNote is a paid subscription and this course recommends it. The 30 lessons are free and complete either way.