French · People & Family

"Grandfather" in French: grand-père

le grand-père

Say it: grahn-PEHRmasculine · le grand-pèrenoun/ɡʁɑ̃.pɛʁ/

Note: everyday: papi

Grandfather in French is le grand-père, masculine. Mon grand-père is my grandfather. In warm family talk you also hear papi, but grand-père is the clear standard word.

Family dinner

Mon grand-père raconte toujours les mêmes histoires.
My grandfather always tells the same stories.
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How to pronounce grand-père

Say it

grahn-PEHR

/ɡʁɑ̃.pɛʁ/

Grand-père is grahn-PEHR: nasal grand, then père like pehr. Keep the hyphen in writing.

"Grandfather" in French: quick reference

FrenchEnglish
le grand-pèrethe grandfather

Neutral standard.

mon grand-pèremy grandfather

Family talk.

papigrandpa

Affectionate everyday form.

les grands-parentsthe grandparents

Both sides together.

How to use grand-père in real life

  1. 1Family dinner

    Mon grand-père raconte toujours les mêmes histoires.

    My grandfather always tells the same stories.

    Mon grand-père for possession.

  2. 2Phone call

    J'appelle mon grand-père tous les dimanches.

    I call my grandfather every Sunday.

    Routine contact.

  3. 3Photo album

    Sur la photo, mon grand-père a vingt ans.

    In the photo, my grandfather is twenty.

    Talking about the past.

Mistakes English speakers make with grand-père

Incorrect: La grand-père.

Correct: Le grand-père.

Grand-père is masculine.

Incorrect: Mon grandfather vient demain.

Correct: Mon grand-père vient demain.

Use grand-père, not English.

Good to know

Papi is common with kids and close relatives; grand-père stays natural with strangers or in more formal family introductions.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Planning a weekend visit

  1. ChatPal

    Tu vois ton grand-père ce week-end ?

    Are you seeing your grandfather this weekend?

  2. You

    Oui, mon grand-père habite près d'ici.

    Yes, my grandfather lives nearby.

  3. ChatPal

    Tu lui apportes quoi ?

    What are you bringing him?

  4. You

    Des gâteaux. Il adore ça.

    Cakes. He loves that.

This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.

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"Grandfather" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "Grandfather" in French

How do you say grandfather in French?

Le grand-père.

What is papi?

An affectionate everyday word for grandpa.

How do you say my grandfather?

Mon grand-père.

How do you pronounce grand-père?

Grahn-PEHR.

Learn a word, then use it out loud

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  3. Step 3: Get feedback
  4. Step 4: Use it in real scenarios

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