Talking about activities, sports and hobbies in French
Learning to speak about your personal life is an essential part of mastering any new language. Whether you are just starting to learn French or have been studying for a while, being able to share your likes, dislikes, routines, and hobbies allows you to connect with native speakers in meaningful conversations.
In this post, we will explore key French vocabulary and phrases for talking about your preferences, describing your typical day, and discussing sports and hobbies you enjoy. From expressing opinions with “j’aime” and “je n’aime pas” to using verb conjugations for daily activities, you will gain useful tools for communicating naturally about your interests and experiences.
Being able to engage in these kinds of everyday topics is so important for building your French conversational skills. With some practice using the expressions and examples we will cover, you will be able to chat about your life, and what you enjoy or dislike doing.
Talking About Hobbies
Hobby in French is passe-temps or loisir. There are numerous ways to talk about hobbies and it also varies with the type of hobby. The two main verbs used to talk about hobbies are faire and jouer.
| Subject | faire- to make/to do | jouer- to play |
| Je | fais | joue |
| Tu | fais | joues |
| Il/Elle | fait | joue |
| Nous | faisons | jouons |
| Vous | faites | jouez |
| Ils/Elles | font | jouent |
With Verb Faire
Let us see how we can use the verb faire to talk about hobbies.
faire + du, de la, des, de l’ + passe-temps
- Il fait du sport (du because the noun sport is masculine singular) – He does sports or He is into sports.
- Elle fait de la danse (de la because the noun danse is feminine singular) – She does dancing or She is into dancing.
- Tu fais des photos? (des because the noun photos is masculine plural. des is also used feminine plural nouns) – You take photos?
More examples:
- Elle fait de la peinture – She does painting.
- Ils font du camping They do campling.
- Elles font du ski – They do skiing.
- Je fais de la randonnée – I do hiking
- Vous faites des gâteaux? – Do you make cakes?
- Il fait de la poterie – He does pottery.
- Nina fait de la boxe – Nina does boxing.
Here’s the list of hobbies in French with their English meanings:
| French | English |
| Faire de la randonnée | Hiking |
| Faire de la poterie | Pottery making |
| Faire de la peinture | Painting |
| Faire de la photographie | Photography |
| Faire de la cuisine | Cooking |
| Faire du yoga | Doing yoga |
| Faire de la danse | Dancing |
| Faire du vélo | Cycling |
| Faire du camping | Camping |
| Faire du bénévolat | Volunteering |
With Verb Jouer
The verb jouer is a little different because the preposition that follows this verb changes depending on the sport, game or musical instrument that you are going to talk about that someone plays.
With Musical Instruments
Jouer, when used to talk about a musical instrument that you play, will be followed by du, de la, des.
- Ellena joue du piano (du because piano is masculine singular) – Ellena plays the piano.
- Les sœurs jouent de la guitar (de la because guitar is feminine singular) – The sisters play the guitar.
- Jean joue des bongos (des because bongos is masculine plural) – Jean plays the bongos.
- La mère de Eric joue de la clarinet (de la because clarinet is feminine singular) – Eric’s mother plays the clarinet.
Here’s a list of musical instruments in French with their appropriate articles:
| Instrument (French) | Instrument (English) |
| Un piano | A piano |
| Une guitare | A guitar |
| Un violon | A violin |
| Une flûte | A flute |
| Une trompette | A trumpet |
| Un saxophone | A saxophone |
| Une clarinette | A clarinet |
| Un trombone | A trombone |
| Une harpe | A harp |
| Un violoncelle | A cello |
| Une contrebasse | A double bass |
| Une batterie | A drum set |
| Un xylophone | A xylophone |
| Un accordéon | An accordion |
| Une harmonica | A harmonica |
| Un banjo | A banjo |
| Une mandoline | A mandolin |
| Un ukulélé | A ukulele |
| Une cithare | A zither |
| Un djembé | A djembe |
| Des bongos | Bongos |
| Des percussions | Percussions |
| Des castagnettes | Castanets |
| Des cymbales | Cymbals |
| Des congas | Congas |
| Des maracas | Maracas |
| Des cloches | Bells |
| Des timbales | Kettledrums |
| Des tambours | Drums |
| Des clochettes | Little bells |
| Des crotales | Crotales |
| Des triangles | Triangles |
With Any Sport
If you are using the verb jouer to talk about a sports or games that you play it will be followed by the au, à la, aux.
- Mes frères jouent au foot tous les jours. (au because foot is masculine singular)- My brothers play football everyday.
- Mark and Celine jouent aux cartes. (aux because cartes is masculine plural) – Mark and Celine play cards.
- Les françaises jouent à la pétanque. (à la because pétanque is feminine singular) – The french play pétanque.
Here’s the list of sports in French with their English meanings:
| French | English |
| Le football | Soccer |
| Le basket-ball | Basketball |
| Le tennis | Tennis |
| Le volleyball | Volleyball |
| Le rugby | Rugby |
| Le cricket | Cricket |
| Le badminton | Badminton |
| Le golf | Golf |
| La natation | Swimming |
| L’athlétisme | Athletics/Track and Field |
| La pétanque | French game game of balls |
| Les arts martiaux | Martial Arts |
| Le cyclisme | Cycling |
| L’équitation | Horseback Riding |
| Le skateboard | Skateboarding |
| La planche à voile | Windsurfing |
| Le ski | Skiing |
| Le snowboard | Snowboarding |
| L’escalade | Rock Climbing |
| La plongée sous-marine | Scuba Diving |
| Le patinage sur glace | Ice Skating |
| Le patinage à roulettes | Rollerblading |
| Le hockey sur glace | Ice Hockey |
| Le baseball | Baseball |
| La gymnastique | Gymnastics |
| Jouer aux échecs | Playing chess |
| Jouer aux jeux vidéo | Playing video games |
Using Other Verbs to Talk About Hobbies
You can also use other verbs to talk about certain activities that you like to do in your free time. The conjugation for these verbs will follow the usual patterns of conjugations for ‘er’, ‘ir’ and ‘re’. If you need to look up the conjugation of any specific verbs you can go to the reverso conjugator.
Here’s a table with verbs used to talk about certain activities that you like to do in your free time in French, along with their English meanings:
| French Verb | English Meaning |
| Aimer | To like |
| Adorer | To love |
| Pratiquer | To practice |
| Faire | To do |
| Jouer | To play |
| Aller | To go |
| Regarder | To watch |
| Lire | To read |
| Écouter | To listen |
| Dessiner | To draw |
| Peindre | To paint |
| Cuisiner | To cook |
| Bricoler | To do DIY |
| Jardiner | To garden |
| Randonner | To hike |
| Nager | To swim |
| Courir | To run |
| Voyager | To travel |
| Photographier | To photograph |
| Collectionner | To collect |
| Pêcher | To fish |
| danser | To dance |
| Chanter | To sing |
| Tricoter | Knitting |
| Dormir | To sleep |
| Sortir avec des amis | To go out with friends |
These verbs can be used in various tenses and conjugations to express your hobbies and interests in French. For example:
- Je peins pendant le weekend – I paint during the weekends.
- Nous pratiquons le tennis tous les weekends. – We practice tennis every weekend.
- Ils vont randonner dans les montagnes. – They go hiking in the mountains.
- Elle nage a la piscine – She swims in the swimming pool.
- Julie lit beaucoup de romans – Julie reads a lot of novels.
- Les enfants jouent d’un instrument de musique – The children are playing a musical instrument
- Vous collectionnez des timbres? – Do you collect stamps?
How do you say you like or hate to do something?
Some common verbs used to express what one like to do or hates to do are:
| Subject | aimer- to like | adorer- to adore | préférer- to prefer | détester- to hate |
| Je | aime | adore | préfère | déteste |
| Tu | amies | adores | préfères | détestes |
| Il/Elle | aime | adore | préfère | déteste |
| Nous | aimons | adorons | préférons | détestons |
| Vous | aimez | adorez | préférez | détestez |
| Ils/Elles | aiment | adorent | préfèrent | détestent |
These verbs will be used together with another verb which shows the activity that one likes or hates to do. We know that in French when two verbs appear together we conjugate the first one according to the subject of the sentence and the second verb will be infinitive. Let us look at some examples:
- J’aime lire des romans. – I like to read novels.
- Elle adore faire du yoga. – She loves to do yoga.
- Il préfère jouer de la musique classique – He prefers to play classical music.
- Marie déteste faire de la randonnée -Marie hate hiking.
Download all vocabulary lists used in this post here.
A Game of Pétanque
Image by patrick gantz from Pixabay
Pétanque, a beloved pastime in France, is a quintessentially French game played with metallic balls on a compacted gravel or dirt surface. Originating in Provence in the early 20th century, this leisurely sport has since captured the hearts of enthusiasts worldwide. Players, typically adorned in casual attire and armed with metallic boules, aim to throw or roll their balls as close as possible to a smaller target ball, known as the cochonnet. Strategy, precision, and a touch of finesse define this leisurely yet competitive game, often accompanied by the clinking of metal balls and jovial banter among players gathered in parks, squares, and boulevards throughout France. Pétanque encapsulates the spirit of leisurely competition and conviviality, embodying the essence of French leisure culture.
