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Imagine a land with centuries-old abbeys and cobblestone streets, serene country landscapes, proud chocolatiers, Liège waffles, charming boutiques, and linguistic diversity. La Belgique (Belgium) provides all of the above—and so much more! Did you know there are three official languages in Belgium: Dutch (Flemish), French, and German, though many other unofficial languages and dialects are spoken by its residents.
If you’re keen on learning Belgium French, you’ll have a good start by learning Standard French since French in Belgium is much more similar than Canadian French. There are some differences to know, so we’ll help you discover why you can speak French in Belgium, different words to know, and common phrases to use in Brussels or the beautiful countryside of Belgium!
What languages are spoken in Belgium?
We know that language groups do not fit neatly within the borders defined by one’s passport. So, there is no language called “Belgian.” Instead, there are three official languages spoken by the vast majority of the population: French, Dutch, and German. Many citizens also learn English as an additional native language.
Native Belgians speak these languages due to geographic proximity, with French being the second-most-spoken language in Belgium since the Région Wallonne (Wallonia), or southern region, borders France. Roughly 36 percent of Belgians speak French fluently as their first language, but the majority of Belgians are still comfortable using basic French and English.
If you’re in the Région Flamande (Flemish/Flanders Region) which is the northern part of the country, you’d actually be more likely to hear the Belgian dialect of Dutch. This area is closest to the Netherlands where Dutch is the native language, so about 60 percent of Belgians speak Dutch.
As far back as the Roman Empire, wars have often been fought on the soil that is now modern-day Belgium. At different points, parts of the land belonged to the XVII Provinces, the Austrian Empire, and Napoleon’s Empire. With so many changes in power came influence from other cultures and languages.
How the languages were adopted
By the 13th century, the French language was already quite powerful in the framework of literature, culture, and the arts. The elite and politically powerful prized their knowledge of French, and many communities soon felt pressured to adopt it. By the time Belgium won their independence from the Netherlands in 1830, French was used in classrooms across the country, and lawmakers insisted that it be the sole official language.
Consequently, Dutch speakers and French speakers contended for status, divided not only by language but by economic and social class distinctions. Laws around the rights and use of languages were enacted to respond to the conflict, but the Belgian Constitution has had language-related changes even as recently as 1970.
Certain areas and communities of Belgium are only required to make announcements and provide signage in the local dominant language, which differs from region to region. If you find yourself trotting across Belgium, you’ll want to know the names of destinations in both French and Dutch.
How many people speak French in Belgium?
There are nearly 12 million people in Belgium, and 36 percent of them speak French, which is approximately 4.3 million people. If you’re in the southern part of Belgium, near France, you’ll find that nearly 89 percent of people will speak French as either their first or second language.
If you’re traveling to Belgium as a tourist, you’ll have no trouble finding someone to help you with your French phrases (or even assist you in English). Connect with just one or two sympathetic locals who love to meet travelers, and you’ll be set.
What to know about the Belgian French accent
Many US citizens don’t think they have an accent, but they do, especially to a foreigner. It might even be possible to identify the region where you grew up based on a few characteristics of your speech and pronunciation. Think of the variety of English speakers from these areas: South Carolina, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, Alabama, Mississippi, Minnesota, Boston, New York, Ottawa, London, and Liverpool.
You may wonder: Is there a French Belgian accent? Yes, but it’s similar to English, where there are regional differences even between areas that are only separated by an hours’ drive. For someone who has grown up in Belgium, the accents might be obvious between cities, whereas for a learner, there may be little distinction between speakers from France and Belgium.
If you’re a careful listener, you might here some of these languages differences between Belgian French and French.
- Some vowels might be pronounced with more clarity in Belgian French.
- Words such as nuit (night) could feature more of an o sound.
- Belgian French speakers pronounce the w in wagon similarly to English instead of a v like voiture (car).
- Some people say that French in Belgium sounds even more “nasal” than Metropolitan French.
- Depending on the region, Belgian French speakers may use a stronger guttural r sound from the back of the throat, a rolled r almost like the Spanish “erre,” or an American rhotic r.
- The intonation of the sentence may follow a different rhythm.
Is Belgian French hard to learn?
Learning any language takes time, practice, and patience. If you are a beginner or intermediate French learner, you’ll need to spend some time speaking with a native Belgian who can help you learn French. Whatever dialect of French they speak, they may need to slow down, enunciate well, and sometimes shift their vocabulary to a more universally understood word.
You can also watch videos online and on social media. Use subtitles and playback tools to rewatch, slow down, and take advantage of hashtags and creators that indicate or use a Belgian dialect. With enough exposure, you’ll start to understand French in Belgium as fluently as the French you have studied. Ultimately, you can learn Belgian French as easily as you learn Standard French.
What are the differences between Belgian French and French?
Since France and Belgium are closely positioned, Belgian French and French have a fair amount of similarities compared to Haitian Creole or French-speaking African countries. Still, there are some differences in vocabulary and pronunciation that you’ll want to be aware of so you don’t get too confused.
Dutch influence
Since many Dutch speakers have learned French, and vice versa, you’ll see a lot of influence between the two languages in terms of borrowed vocabulary and when translating common structures word-for-word. One well-known example of this is the phrase une fois. This is a filler word commonly heard mid-sentence or at the end of a thought.
It translates to “once” or “one time,” but doesn’t necessarily carry the same meaning. It comes from a direct translation of the Dutch een keer (once) and can be a verbal filler like “you know,” “so,” or “right?”
French speakers from other regions could use different filler words like bon, ben, euh, quoi, alors, or dis in much the same way. These words don’t necessarily carry their literal meaning but are used to fill a pause or emphasize confusion or surprise.
Though many speakers of Standard French will emphasize the “une fois” as a caricature of French in Belgium, it tends to be used most by speakers whose first language is Dutch. You might see that it’s similar to the stereotypes that all Canadians say “eh?” and the British say “innit?” But it’s not always a characteristic of people whose first language is French.
The use of savoir
A Belgian French speaker may ask you, “Tu sais ouvrir la fenêtre?” and you’ll think “Sure, of course I know how to open the window.” But what they’re really asking is, “Can you open the window?”
You’ll need to know the French verb savoir (to know, to know how) in any dialect, especially the je form in order to use je ne sais pas (I don’t know). In Belgium, this verb can also mean the same thing as pouvoir (can, to be able to), especially in spoken French.
Linguists believe that this usage was standard in older French though it has disappeared from the French spoken in France today, while living on in the Belgian dialect.
| Belgian French | Standard French | English Meaning |
| Saurais-tu mettre la table? | Pourrais-tu mettre la table? | Could you set the table? |
| Tu sais me passer la fourchette? | Tu peux me passer la fourchette? | Can you pass me the fork? |
| Je ne saurai pas venir demain matin. | Je ne pourrai pas venir demain matin. | I won’t be able to come tomorrow. |
| La fenêtre ne savait plus s’ouvrir. | La fenêtre ne s’ouvrait plus. / ne pouvait pas s’ouvrir. | The window couldn’t open anymore. |
Standard French also uses savoir to mean “to know how to do something,” which does have a similar meaning to “to be able to.” Avoid confusion and use the context to comprehend which way savoir is being used.
- Je ne sais pas nager. = I don’t know how to swim. = I can’t swim.
- Elle ne sait pas cuisiner! = She doesn’t know how to cook. = She can’t cook.
Numbers
If you state a number in the seventies, eighties, or nineties in Standard French, it takes a bit of mental math to figure out. This puzzling feature of French numbers is especially frustrating to beginner learners. Here’s what it looks like every time you need to state a number when discussing prices, phone numbers, addresses, dates, and more:
- soixante-quinze (60+15) = seventy-five (75)
- quatre-vingt-dix-sept (4×20+10+7) = ninety-seven (97)
Luckily, Belgian French makes some numbers easier. While you’ll still need to rely on quatre-vingts (80), septante (70) and nonante (90), there are simpler alternatives. You may hear some speakers use huitante (80) and octante (80), but the former is primarily used in Switzerland and the latter is quite antiquated.
| Belgian French | Standard French | Number |
| septante | soixante-dix | 70 |
| septante et un | soixante-onze | 71 |
| septante-trois | soixante-treize | 73 |
| quatre-vingts | quatre-vingts | 80 |
| nonante | quatre-vingt-dix | 90 |
| nonante et un | quatre-vingt onze | 91 |
| nonante-deux | quatre-vingt-douze | 92 |
Names of meals
In English, you have breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But there’s also brunch, supper, tea, and second breakfast. Do you use the words “dinner” and “supper” interchangeably? Does “tea” refer to a brewed beverage or a bit of information to share with friends and family?
It should come as no surprise that the names of meals in French would also include some variation. This not only arises from cultural norms for when meals are taken, but can also be somewhat affected by the language used from generation to generation.
| Belgium French | French | English Meaning |
| Le déjeuner | Le petit-déjeuner | the first meal in the morning, breakfast |
| Le dîner | Le déjeuner | mid-day meal
Lunch, luncheon, dinner (depending on English-speaking region) |
| Le souper | Le dîner | evening meal
Dinner, supper (depending on English-speaking region) |
| Un dix-heures | un encas | A light snack between meals, especially between breakfast and lunch in Belgium |
| Un dix-heures | le goûter/le quatre-heures | Le goûter or le quatre-heures is generally in the afternoon between lunch and dinner. |
| Un dix-heures | la collation | La collation is a light meal or refreshment. |
Feminine Terms for Professions
The Belgian government has published guidelines for promoting linguistic equality for women by using more inclusive or feminized forms of titles and professions. This is unique from English since French gender rules do not exist in English. So, in the past, women used masculine terms for professions and positions that historically had only been held by men, such as “Madame le professeur” (Madam teacher), but this is becoming a thing of the past, as feminized forms such as la professeure (the teacher) are encouraged.
The 2012 guidelines from the Council of Europe encourage the use of Madame instead of Mademoiselle for any adult woman, regardless of her marital status. This societal shift and linguistic change is not unique to Belgium; however, the usage or feminization of words might differ from what you’ve learned from older resources or from what has been adopted for common use in other regions.
Belgian French words and phrases to know
Your French will work well in Belgium since Belgian French speakers are exposed to plenty of Standard French from French television and movies. That said, there aren’t as many opportunities for exposure to Belgian French. You’ll need to seek these out—through travel, podcasts, films, or conversations with French speakers native to Belgium.
To get you started, we’ve put together a list of words and phrases unique to Belgian French. Keep in mind that many of these words could be commonplace in various Francophone regions, while not used at all in other parts of Belgium.
Socializing
| Belgian French | Standard French | English Meaning |
| A tantôt! | A bientôt! | See you soon! See you shortly! |
| Il fait douf! | Il fait douf! | It’s extremely hot out! |
| Il fait caillant! | Il fait caillant! | It’s extremely cold out! |
| Il drache! | Il tombe des cordes! | It’s raining very hard! |
| Je te dis quoi. | Je te dis quoi. | I’ll let you know. |
| Dis-moi quoi. | Dis-moi quoi. | Let me know. |
| Faire une baise | donner un baiser/faire une bise/bisou | To give a kiss (can be vulgar as a verb) |
| Un GSM / Un “G” | un téléphone portable | a cell phone/mobile phone |
| Je te sonne. | Je t’appelle. | I’ll call you. |
| Je vais à la toilette. | Je vais aux toilettes. | I’m going to the bathroom. |
| Il faut faire la file. | Il faut faire la queue. | You must line up/queue/stand in line. |
| être bleu de quelqu’un | être amoureux/amoureuse | To be in love/smitten |
| un cokotteur / une cokotteuse | un/une colocataire | A roommate/housemate |
Common objects and places
| Belgian French | Standard French | English Meaning |
| une farde | un classeur | a binder/a folder |
| le papier collant | le scotch | adhesive tape |
| une latte | une règle | a ruler |
| un bic | un stylo | a pen |
| un journal de classe | un cahier | a notebook |
| une chemise | une feuille de papier | a sheet of paper |
| un marqueur fluo | un surligneur/un feutre | a highlighter |
| une mallette | un sac à dos | a backpack |
| un kot | un logement d’étudiant | student housing/apartment |
| un essuie | une serviette | a bath towel |
| un essuie (de vaisselle) | un torchon | a dishcloth |
| un torchon | une serpillière | a floor cloth or mop |
| un plumier | une trousse | a pencil case |
| le clinche | la poignée (de porte) | the doorknob |
| une tirette | une fermeture éclair | a zipper |
Food and Beverage
| Belgian French | Metropolitan French | English Meaning |
| un pistolet | un petit pain (rond) | a small bread bun |
| du sucre impalpable | du sucre glace | powdered sugar/confectioners sugar |
| un chique | un bonbon/un chewing-gum | a candy or piece of gum |
| des chicons | des endives | endives |
| des patates | des pommes de terres/des frites | fries |
| une couque | une brioche | a sweet roll |
| le lait russe | un café au lait | coffee with milk/latte |
Explore French in every region with Rosetta Stone
Whether you’re planning a trip or just connecting with Belgian culture online, learning new belgicismes (Belgian French phrases) will enrich your language learning experience. Brush up on the difference between savoir and pouvoir while eating un pistolet or un petit pain! If you’re interested in perfecting your pronunciation of French, you’ll love Rosetta Stone’s TruAccent that uses AI technology to ensure you say French words correctly.