French · Time, Numbers & Colors

"Evening" in French: soir

le soir

Say it: SWAHRmasculine · le soirnoun/swaʁ/

Note: whole evening: la soirée

Evening in French is le soir. Ce soir means tonight. La soirée stresses the evening as an event or stretch: une soirée entre amis.

Plans

On se retrouve ce soir vers huit heures.
We'll meet tonight around eight.
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How to pronounce soir

Say it

SWAHR

/swaʁ/

Soir is SWAHR with soft r. Article le is a quick luh. Soirée adds -ay: swah-RAY.

"Evening" in French: quick reference

FrenchEnglish
le soirthe evening / in the evening

Time of day.

ce soirthis evening / tonight

Today's evening.

demain soirtomorrow evening

Plans.

la soiréethe evening (as a period / party)

Events and "whole evening".

How to use soir in real life

  1. 1Plans

    On se retrouve ce soir vers huit heures.

    We'll meet tonight around eight.

    Ce soir.

  2. 2Habit

    Le soir, je lis avant de dormir.

    In the evening I read before sleeping.

    Le soir habitual.

  3. 3Invite

    Tu fais quelque chose demain soir ?

    Are you doing anything tomorrow evening?

    Demain soir.

Mistakes English speakers make with soir

Incorrect: Le evening.

Correct: Le soir. / Ce soir.

Use soir.

Incorrect: Bonne soir when leaving.

Correct: Bonne soirée. / Bonsoir.

Wish bonne soirée or greet with bonsoir.

Good to know

Soir marks the clock; soirée is the lived evening — a party, a long dinner, toute la soirée. Bonsoir is the greeting that matches this part of the day.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Texting about tonight

  1. ChatPal

    Tu es libre ce soir ?

    Are you free tonight?

  2. You

    Oui. On mange tôt le soir chez moi.

    Yes. We eat early in the evening at my place.

  3. ChatPal

    Je passe vers dix-neuf heures.

    I'll come by around seven.

  4. You

    Parfait. À tout à l'heure.

    Perfect. See you soon.

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"Evening" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "Evening" in French

What is evening in French?

Le soir.

Soir or soirée?

Soir is the time of day; soirée is the evening as a stretch or event.

How do I say tonight?

Ce soir.

How do you pronounce soir?

SWAHR.

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