French · Real conversations
How to say “Could we have a few more minutes?” in French
Ask for a little more time before ordering or making a choice.
Est-ce qu'on pourrait avoir encore quelques minutes ?
Could we have a few more minutes?
The plural form speaks for your group.
Use it in three situations
Reading a menu
Est-ce qu'on pourrait avoir encore quelques minutes ?
Could we have a few more minutes?
Choosing together
On pourrait avoir encore quelques minutes pour choisir ?
Could we have a few more minutes to choose?
Checking a menu detail
Nous ne sommes pas encore prêts à commander.
We're not ready to order yet.
What to watch for
This asks for time to decide, rather than asking how long cooking will take.
Read the whole expression before replacing a detail. The natural wording may use a different order or construction from the English sentence.
Your turn
Imagine restaurant problems. Say this in French: Could we have a few more minutes to choose?
Reveal a sample reply
On pourrait avoir encore quelques minutes pour choisir ?
Could we have a few more minutes to choose?
Build a useful exchange
Explain a problem with an order and settle the bill.
This expression in other languages
A note on speaking French
Use vous with strangers, staff, and people you address formally; use tu when that relationship is established. Je voudrais and pourriez-vous can make a request considerate. The most appropriate choice depends on the person and the situation.
Keep accents and apostrophes. A familiar spoken expression may differ from its literal English translation. Read the complete line, including the pronoun and the words that connect the request.
