65 Ways to Say No in French to Quickly Sound like a Native

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Are you looking for ways to say no in French? You’re in the right place!  In this post, we will go over 65 ways to say no in French language so you can quickly learn this basic word before heading to France.

We both believe that you don’t need to take French lessons before visiting France. That said, knowing a few basic words before you head to any foreign country is a travel tip that has lots of advantages. In particular, it will help you get around more easily and connect with locals. In the country of France, especially, people really appreciate when foreigners make an effort and tend to be nicer to tourists who are trying to speak a couple of French words than those who couldn’t care less.

That’s why we also wrote guides on how to say good morning in French, cheers in French (very important when trying some Champagne!), how to say nice to meet you in French and hello in 150 languages. 

As a French native and French/English bilingual, I (Marie) am excited to help you learn French basic words. I’m also helped by my partner Eric (Canadian, English speaker) as he allows me to identify English speakers pain points when it comes to learning French. 

In this post you will learn:

• How do you say no in French
• Rude ways to say no in French
• What to avoid when saying no in France
• How to pronounce the different ways to say no in French
• and more!

Most common way to say no in French

No in French translation

The most common way to say no in French is using the word “Non”. How to spell no in French is N-O-N and pronounced n-onh. The “onh” sound is the same as the “on” sound in the English word “long”, “song” or “tongue”. 

As you’ll see in our “When not to use no in French” section below, there are instances when using “non” by itself can be a bit too rough, especially when someone is offering something to you like some help or more food. As the person is looking out for you, saying a plain “non” can seem insensitive. Instead, we tend to use a combination of no and I’m okay which in French is “Non, ça va”. By saying that, it’s a little bit less of a straight up no and also lets your interlocutor know that you do appreciate them looking out for you. It can also be followed by “merci” which means thank you. This works in situations when someone if offering to help you or when, for example, a cashier offers you an extra bag that you don’t need:

Would you like an extra bag?

Voulez-vous un autre sac?

No I’m good, thanks

Non ça va, merci

How to use the word non

The word non can be used in different situations to express different emotions or intentions. The most common way to use “non” is simply to express your disagreement of something or a factual no. For example, if you are asked if you’d like ice cream and you don’t, you can say “non”. 

But “non” is also used to emphasise an interrogation you may have. For example, let’s say you are buying shoes but you want someone’s confirmation that the shoes look good on you. In that case you will ask the person “They are nice, right?” which in French would be “elles sont bien, non?”.

The double non

If you’ve ever been to France or lived in France, you might have heard the famous “non non” phrase. just like we like our “oui oui”, we similarly like to double our no to emphasise that we are okay. We generally only do this to confirm that we are sure about something. For example, if someone offers you some help and asks you “Are you sure you don’t need my help?”, you can answer by saying “No no that’s fine” which translates to “Non non, c’est bon”. 

When not to use no in French

There are instances when using “non” can be seen as impolite or inappropriate. Let’s see what those are in this section.

First, if you are invited for dinner, it’s not usually proper to just say “non” if you don’t want something. You will usually need to add a quick phrase afterwards to show your politeness and delicacy. You can see some examples in the next section.

Second, there are actually very few situations when we will only say “non”. We usually like to wrap the no in French with some sort of phrase that will make it easier to accept by our interlocutor. If someone asks you whether a dress suits them and you don’t think it does, you wouldn’t usually give them a straight up no. Instead, we would moderate it by saying “pas trop” (not so much) or “Tu as essayé des choses qui te vont mieux” (you’ve tried other pieces that suit you better). 

Polite way to say no in French

As explained above, there are instances where we wouldn’t generally use the French for no on its own. This is the case in situations where you need to be more polite than usual and includes the following instances:

• when you are invited to dinner at a friend’s house
• when talking to a professor
• when talking to someone you don’t know
• when talking to an elder

Though we tend to use “non” or “non, ça va, merci” with friends and family, “non merci” can also be used in that context. 

The polite “Non merci”

“Non merci” simply means “no, thank you” or “no, thanks”. It seems that the main instance that we use it in is when we are offered some food that we don’t want, for example at dinner. 

Would you like some more gravy?

Voulez-vous plus de sauce?

No, thank you

Non merci

The sarcastic “Non merci”

“Non merci” can also be used sarcastically in conversations if you want to express that you really can’t imagine something, see the examples below.

Living in the north of the city? No thanks

Vivre dans le nord de la vie? Non merci

Keeping him as a friend after what he’s done? No thanks

Le garder comme ami après ce qu’il a fait? Non merci

You’ll notice that in this case, the sentence usually starts with an infinitive verb. 

The grateful “Non merci, c’est gentil”

In certain cases, “non merci” doesn’t reflect the level of gratefulness you can have for someone. To emphasize that, we add “c’est gentil” or “c’est très gentil” afterwards which respectively mean “it’s kind of you” and “it’s very kind of you”. 

This would generally be used when someone wants to do something nice that you didn’t expect, but you still don’t want them to do it, see examples below:

Hi mam’, let me take your luggage

Bonjour Madame, laissez, je vais prendre votre bagage

Oh, no, thank you, that’s kind of you

Oh, non merci, c’est gentil

Informal way to say no in French 

Just like in any language, we love to use our slang in France. No is no exception!

The informal way to say no in France

The most common informal way to say no in French is “Nan”. Nan is spelt N-A-N and is pronounced almost like you would say “naan” for naan bread in English. 

When to use Nan

Nan can be used anytime you don’t need to put on your best behaviour. Whether it’d be at school, with friends or family, it’s probably one of our most used word!

Using the double Nan

Just like non, you can also double nan to emphasize that you mean no. See the example below:

Example 1:

Are you moving to Nashville?

Tu déménages à Nashville?

No no, I’m moving to New York.

Nan nan, je déménage à New york.

Example 2:

Did you go to Elena’s party?

T’es allé à la fête d’Elena?

No no, I was too sick.

Nan nan, j’étais trop malade.

Another way to say non informally

Another way to say non informally in French is “uuh uuh”. The most common ways to use this sound to say no is usually when we are thinking at the same time or when we are trying to say no to a child that doesn’t understand yet. 

Other ways to say no in French

Though the French word for no is officially “non”, there are a lot (probably too many!) more ways to say no in France. French is quite a rich language and it’s not rare for us to have several ways to say one thing. In French, in addition to several words that translate no to French, we also have a number of expressions, some coming from latin, that also mean no. In this section, we cover all these words and expressions so you can bring your French to the next level! We have also included the French pronunciation so you can now exactly how to say these words and expressions.

Saying the impossible French no

The following phrases are ways to say no when you want to express that something is so impossible that you can’t even imagine it/doing it.

No way = Pas question or il n’en est pas question

“Pas question” is the short phrase for “il n’en est pas question”. “Pas question” is pronounced Pah-kest-eeon. “Il n’en est pas question” is pronounced eel-nan-neh-pas-kest-eeon. 

We would usually use “pas question” or “il n’en est pas question” when it’s a definite stern no. For example, think of a parent refusing for their child to go to a party where alcohol is served or of you refusing to wear a certain type of clothing. 

No way = Aucune chance

“Aucune chance” is another way to say “no way” and is pronounced oh-kun-ch-anh-ss. It literally translates to “there’s no chance”. Though it also translates to “no way”, “aucune chance” can be used differently than “pas question”. For example, if someone asks you out for a date, you’d be sounding more French to say “aucune chance” than “pas question” as the latter would sound more harsh. That said, they are both similar so don’t think too much about it, one or the other will work!

No way= Hors de question

“Hors de question” is short for the sentence “il en best hors de question”. It is pronounced or-deuh-kest-eeon. It can be used in the same way as “pas question”. 

It’s not possible/Impossible = Ce n’est pas possible/ Impossible!

This one is rather easy. when you want to say that something is not possible, instead of saying a plain “non”, say “ce n’est pas possible”. If you are surprised or strongly putting forward your position, use “impossible” instead. These two phrases are respectively pronounced ceuh-neh-pah-poss-eeble and uh-poss-eeble. 

There’s no way = Y a pas moyen

“Y a pas moyen” is pronounced yah-pah-mwa-yuh. It means there is no way and can be used in any situation. 

The sad no in France

Sometimes, saying no isn’t what we were hoping for. In French, we have several ways to say the “sad” no. 

Unfortunately no = Malheureusement non

“Malheureusement non” can be used to answer a yes or no question. See the example as follows:

Are you over your cold?

Est-ce que ton rhume va mieux?

Unfortunately no.

Malheureusement non.

Unfortunately not =Malheureusement + ne pas

Another way to say the sad no in French is to use the word “malheureusement” followed by the word conjugated with the negative. The negative in French is indicated by the use of the combination of “ne” and “pas”. “Ne” is placed between the subject and the verb while “pas” is placed after the verb. For example of a negative, to say “I don’t eat”, you’ll say “Je (subject) ne mange (verb) pas”. 

In this case, the way your form the sentence will depend on the verb used in the question. See example below:

Does the TV work?

Est-ce que la télé fonctionne?

Unfortunately not.

Malheureusement, la télé ne fonctionne pas. 

In French, how do you say your final no to close the debate?

Sometimes, after you’ve stated your position repetitively, you just want to give a final no. That’s what we are seeing in this section. 

No, no and no again = Non, non et renon

This is a common phrase used in French, mostly in informal instances. We wouldn’t use “Non, non et renon” in a professional setting or with a stranger. However, we would use it with a sibling or a child. 

Forget it = Oublie

“Oublie” is pronounced oo-blee and is used when someone offers something to you that you really don’t want, see the example as follows:

Would you like to go skiing?

Voudrais-tu aller skier?

Forget it!

Oublie!

Sometimes, we will add the reason afterwards to make it make more sense! In this case, the reason could be that you broke your leg. Usually, we use “oublie” when the reason for saying no is something out of our control like a fear of height or a calendar conflict. 

For the last time, no! = Pour la dernière fois, non! 

This one is self-explanatory! If you’re tired of saying no, this is the one phrase to use. Again, we wouldn’t really use this in a professional setting or with a stranger but it works with friends and family. We definitely use this phrase when we are getting irritated or frustrated to be asked something. “Pour la dernière fois, non!” is pronounced poor-lah-deyr-nee-yehr-fwa-non. 

And that’s all = Et puis c’est tout

“Et puis c’est tout” is pronounced eh-pooee-ceh-too. It is used when you want to say no and no longer want to hear any argument or pushback from the other party. Again, I wouldn’t advise using this in a professional setting or with a stranger but you could definitely use this when frustrated at your partner or when your teenager is pushing you for something! 

Stop! = Arrête!

“Arrête” which is pronounced ah-rhett is used when we are irritated with someone. Think of a child who keeps trying to touch the TV with slimy fingers. Instead of saying a plain no, we’ll just say stop but it means the same thing. 

When I say no, I meant no! = Quand je dis non, c’est non!

Mostly used with kids, “quand je dis non, c’est non!” is pretty self-explanatory. It is pronounced kanh-jeuh-dee-non-ceh-non. 

When it’s a definite no 

In this section, we have included a number of phrases that mean a definite no. The difference with the previous section is that although these are definite, they don’t close a debate. 

Not at all = Pas du tout

You know by now, that the French for not is “ne” and “pas” around the verb. You can also sometimes use “pas” on its own. One example of this is the phrase “pas du tout” which is pronounced pah-duu-too. “Pas du tout” is often used to say no in the sense that someone is wrong, see the example as follows:

Didn’t you say you were coming?

N’as-tu pas dit que tu venais?

Not at all

Pas du tout

I don’t think so! = J’crois pas non! 

In “J’crois pas non!”, you’ll see that the apostrophe replaces the “e” of “je” which means “I”. It is common in French to contract “je” into “j’” as it’s faster. This is a good way to sound more French than you are! “J’crois pas non!” is pronounced jkrwa-pah-non. The first sound might be a bit difficult to pronounce for an English speaker (it can be for Eric!) but keep practicing and eventually, by saying it fast, you’ll get there!

I don’t think so! = Je n’pense pas non!

In the same way as above, here it is the word “ne” that is contracted into “n’”. It is pronounced jeuh-npanhss-pah. 

I disagree = J’suis pas d’accord

“J’suis pas d’accord” is pronounced jswee-pah-dah-core.

Never! = Jamais!

“Jamais!” is pronounced jah-may and is a good way to make it clear it’s a no from you. When saying “jamais”, people that are facing you rarely pushback!

Never in my life = Jamais d’la vie

“Jamais d’la vie” is a phrase that could be considered as slang. It’s mostly used by kids, teenagers or young adults. It infers that you have quite a bit of a lifetime to go through still so it wouldn’t really make sense for an older person to use it. It is pronounced jah-may-dla-vee. 

Me alive, never! = Moi vivant, jamais!

This is a funny phrase that is actually often used in movies. It’s so extra yet so clear as to what it means. When hearing this phrase, I often think of an older dad who is reluctant to the new ways of the youth. It essentially means that you’d rather die than saying yes. It is pronounced mwa-veevanh-jah-may. 

The no that means maybe 

There are instances when you can’t say no right away as you might be able to say yes later. In other instances, a statement might only be partially incorrect so saying no wouldn’t be correct or fair. In this section, we go through the different of saying a no that means maybe or a partial no.

Not yet = Pas encore

“Pas encore” is pronounced pah-anh-core.

Not really = Pas vraiment

“Pas vraiment” is pronounced pah-vrey-manh.

Not now = Pas maintenant

“Pas maintenant” is pronounced pah-muh-teuh-nanh.

Not exactly = Pas tout à fait

“Pas tout à fait” is pronounced pah-too-tah-feh.

Maybe later = Peut-être plus tard

“Peut-être plus tard” is pronounced peuh-taytr-pluh-tahr.

When the answer is obviously no

Sometimes, people ask questions where the answer is obviously no. In this section, we cover the different ways to cover that.

Of course not = Bien sûr que non

“Bien sûr que non” is pronounced bee-uh-suur-keuh-non.

Certainly not = Certainement pas

“Certainement pas” is pronounced sayr-tay-neuh-manh-pah.

Absolutely not = Absolument pas

“Absolument pas” is pronounced ab-soh-luu-manh-pah.

Surely not = Sûrement pas

“Sûrement pas” is pronounced suu-reuh-manh-pah.

The surprised no in French

Tone in French is very important. When using the following phrases to say no in French, you’ll have to adopt a surprised tone. It will make you sound more French. 

Oh no! = Oh non!

“Oh non!” is used when you are surprised but in a negative way. Usually when using “Oh non!”, it means that you are disappointed or sad for the person or yourself. 

Ah no but = Ah non mais

“Ah non mais” is mor editen used to show your surprise when a bit frustrated, irritated or angry with a situation.

But no?! = Mais non?!

“Mais non?!” is the way to say “but no” in French. This equivalent of but no in French is used to show your surprise in relation to something you can’t believe happened. See the below example:

My boyfriend left for Canada!

Mon copain est parti au Canada!

But no?!

Mais non?! (as in I can’t believe it!)

Saying that it’s not you or not for you

The following phrases to say no in French are very commonly used in France.

Me neither = Moi non plus

“Moi non plus” is pronounced mwa-non-pluu.

Me, no! = Moi, non!

“Moi, non!” is pronounced maw-non.

Me? Never! = Moi? jamais!

“Moi? jamais!” is pronounced mwa-jah-may. 

The challenging no

Are you trying to challenge someone by saying no? Then you can say “It won’t happen this way” which translates to “Ça ne va pas se passer comme ça” in French. It is pronounced sah-neuh-vah-pah-seuh-pah-sey-com-sah. That often means that you won’t let something happen and are going to take the situation in your own hands. 

Saying No in French at the store 

At the store, French people use specific phrases to say no to the butcher or cheese monger. 

That will be all/That’s all = Ce sera tout/ c’est tout

“Ce sera tout/ c’est tout” are used when you have just ordered one or several items and don’t want any more. It is pronounced seuh-seuh-rah-too and sey-too.

I’m just looking = Je regarde juste / Je ne fais que regarder

“Je regarde juste / Je ne fais que regarder” are used to tell a sales attendant that you don’t need information or their help. For example, when you walk into a store in France, someone usually comes to ask you if you need help. This is when you can use this phrase unless you do want the help!

Questions that mean no in France

In French, we have a few questions that means no. We cover them in this section.

Are you joking? = Tu plaisantes? / Vous plaisantez? 

“Tu plaisantes? / Vous plaisantez?” are pronounced tuu-pleyh-zanht. These phrases are often used in the sense that you are surprised and don’t think this could happen.

You’re joking right? = Tu plaisantes j’espère?

“Tu plaisantes j’espère?” is pronounced tuu-pley-zanht. This phrase is usually used in a way that means “you better be kidding”. It can sometimes be a bit aggressive. 

Are you out of your mind? = Ça va pas la tête/ Ça va pas?

“Ça va pas la tête/ Ça va pas?” are pronounced sah-vah-pah-lah-teyt and sah-vah-pah. these too phrases can be used in the same way as “mais non?!”. 

Expressions that means no in French 

There are so many ways how to say and how to write no in French but one of my favourite ways is to use French expressions. Knowing them will definitely make you sound more French when visiting Paris and France in general! 

When hens will have teeth = Quand les poules auront des dents!

“Quand les poules auront des dents!” is pronounced kanh-ley-pool-oh-ronh-deh-danh. Obviously, hens don’t have teeth and the likeliness of that ever changing is pretty low. By using this expression, you’re pretty much saying never.

The week of the four Thursdays = La semaine des quatre Jeudis

“La semaine des quatre Jeudis” is pronounced lah-seuh-man-deh-ka-treuh-jeuh-dee. Again, no week ever has four Thursdays so the phrase pretty much means never as well.

On Glinglin day = A la Saint Glinglin

“A la Saint Glinglin” is pronounced ah-lah-suh-gluh-gluh. You probably need a bit of background to understand this one. In France, we celebrate a name every day. The names usually match certain Saints according to the Catholic religion though it is more of a tradition than a religious custom anymore. For example, St Marie is on 15th of August. When it is your name day, people will usually wish it to you and it can be considered a bit rude not to. Some people even give small gifts or money to you on your name day. 

Of course, no saint was ever named Glinglin and no day has ever been attributed to any possible St Glinglin. As the St Glinglin doesn’t exist, when someone tells you “on Glinglin day”, it simply means no, never!

No way = Des clous

“Des clous” is pronounced deh-cloo and is another way to say no way.

Nay = Que nenni

“Que nenni” is pronounced keuh-neh-nee. It is rarely used nowadays as it is a bit of an older phrase. That said, people will often use it when joking or playing, see the example as follows:

Can you loan me $100? (talking to the bank at the Monopoly game)

Est-ce que tu peux me prêter $100? (en parlant à la banque du Monopoly)

Nay!

Que nenni!

In your dreams = Dans tes rêves

“Dans tes rêves” is pronounced danh-teh-reh-veuh.

Rude ways to say no French people use

If you’re trying to pick up on the real native French language, then you absolutely need to know rude phrases as well. It’s maybe best however not to use them too much!

Are you fucking with me? = Tu te fous de ma gueule ou quoi? 

“Tu te fous de ma gueule ou quoi?” is pronounced tuu-teuh-foo-deuh-mah-goal-oo-kwa. It literally means “are you fucking with my clock (slang British word for face). It’s not proper at all but it is often used by teenagers to say the equivalent of “no way”. 

Are you kidding me? = Tu te fiches de moi? 

“Tu te fiches de moi?” is pronounced tuu-teuh-feech-deuh-mwa and is slightly less rude than the first phrase. It’s used more widely and can also be translated as “no way”. 

Are you joking? = Tu déconnes?

“Tu déconnes?” is pronounced tuu-dey-con ans is used quite often as it is a lot less rude than the first two. It is also the equivalent of no way. 

Physical ways to say no in France

As you probably know, a language is more than just words! In this section, I’ll share with you what us, French people, do and how we move to say no. 

Head shake to the sides

The first physical way to say no in French is pretty common worldwide and is a simple head shake to the side. It is sometimes accompanied by rolling our eyes if we are feeling frustrated.

Waving fingers from left to right 

The second physical way to say no in French is waving our index finger from left to right. We use this a lot to show “no” to children that don’t yet speak. 

Tongue clicking 

Finally, the tongue clicking isn’t very well known of foreigners but it is quite a common way to say no in French. We use our tongue to do a clicking sound and will sometimes accompany it of a sigh or of a head shake or both. We usually do that when we are tired, feeling frustrated or when something isn’t working the way it should. We also use it to tell no to children as the clicking attracts their attention. 

No in French Canadian

Surprisingly enough, no in French Canadian is simply “non”, just like in France’s French. French Canadians also use English so don’t be surprised if you hear them say no.

How to say no in French Creole

There are two ways to say no in French Creole. In Martinique, people speak French and Martinican Creole. In Martinican Creole, no is “Awa”. This is pronounced Ah-wah. 

On other islands, people simply use “non”. 

No in French Corsican

Corsica is a small island in the south of France in the Mediterranean Sea near Sardinia and Italy. Though Corsica is part of France and Corsican people speak French, they also speak their local language called Corsican. Corsican is very similar to Italian and even is pronounced the same in some instances. The spelling, however, changes from Italian. 

In Corsican,“no” translates to “nò”. If you want to emphasize that your answer is no, you can use “innò”. 

No in French Q&As

What is French word no?

The French word for no is non. “Nan” can also be used in more informal instances such as with friends or family. 

Do French people say non merci?

Yes, French people say “non merci” to say “no thank you”. It is more polite than just saying non.

Why do French people say oui?

French people say our to say yes. 

Why do French people say mais non?

“Mais non” is used to either express surprise when saying no or to express irritation. For example, if someone is telling you that the queen is downstairs ready to meet you, you’ll say “Mais non!” as in “I can’t believe it”. However, if someone insists on borrowing something from you and you have already told them not to, you can say “mais non!” with a bit of anger in the tone to be more assertive. 

What is no longer in French ?

“No longer” in French is translated by using “ne” or its contraction “n’” and “plus”. For example, to say “it is no longer available”, you will say “ce n’est plus disponible”.

What is no one in French?

“No one” in French translates to “personne”. 

No in other languages

France shares borders with a number of countries including Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, and Italy. France is also very close to Portugal. Because of the close geography, a lot of visitors decide to start their trip to France and then head to other European countries as they are easily accessible. For that reason, we thought it would be helpful to include how to say no in other European languages so you can get around more easily, even outside of France. 

• No in German = Nein (pronounced like the number 9)
• No in Spanish = No (that’s pretty easy!)
• No in Italian = No or No, grazie (the equivalent of no thank you, pronounced gla-tzee-ay)
• No in Portuguese = Não (pronounced like no)
• No in Luxembourgish = Nee (pronounced like Neh)
• No in Greek = όχι or ohi (pronounced Oh-chee)

Other basic French vocabulary

How to say the in French?

“The” in French is “le” for masculine words or “la” for feminine words. For example, “cat” in French is masculine so you will need to say “le chat”. “Table” on the other hand is feminine so you will need to say “la table”. 

How do you say please in French?

There are different ways to say “please” in French but the most common is “s’il te plait”. 

How do you say yes in French?

“Yes” in French is “oui” or “oui oui”.

How do you say I love you in French? 

“Je t’aime” is most common in French to say “I love you”. 

How to say is in French?

“Is” in French translates to “est”. To say “it is” in French, you will need to say “c’est”. 

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