Expressing Preferences & Opinions

Why This Matters

Expressing what you like, dislike, and think is the heart of any real conversation. Whether you're at a dinner party in Lyon or chatting with a colleague in Paris, French people love sharing opinions — and they expect you to too.

🦝 Remy says: "French culture thrives on debate and personal expression. Don't be shy — share your opinion! Even disagreeing politely is a sign of respect and engagement."

Core Lesson

The Preference Scale

From strongest love to strongest dislike:

| Expression | Meaning | Example | |

|

|

| | adorer | to love | J'adore le cinéma français. | | aimer beaucoup | to really like | J'aime beaucoup cette chanson. | | aimer | to like | J'aime le sport en général. | | aimer bien | to quite like | J'aime bien ce café. | | apprécier | to appreciate | J'apprécie son talent. | | ne pas aimer | to not like | Je n'aime pas le bruit. | | détester | to hate | Je déteste me lever tôt! | | ne pas supporter | to not stand | Je ne supporte pas la foule. |

Expressing Opinions

| Phrase | English | Register | |

|

|

| | Je pense que... | I think that... | neutral | | Je crois que... | I believe that... | neutral | | Je trouve que... | I find that... | neutral | | À mon avis... | In my opinion... | neutral | | Selon moi... | According to me... | slightly formal | | Il me semble que... | It seems to me that... | polite |

Agreeing and Disagreeing

| Agreeing | Disagreeing | |

|

| | Je suis d'accord. | Je ne suis pas d'accord. | | Tout à fait! | Pas du tout! | | C'est vrai! | Tu as tort. | | Tu as raison. | Je ne pense pas. |

🦝 Remy says: "Memory trick — À mon avis literally means 'to my advice/view.' Think of it as giving your personal verdict. It's the classiest way to start an opinion sentence!"

📝 Exercise 1 — Fill in the blank

Choose the correct word to complete each sentence.

1. J'___ la musique classique, c'est magnifique! (adore / déteste)
2. Je ___ que ce film est trop long. (trouve / supporte)
3. À mon ___, le tennis est plus intéressant que le golf. (avis / accord)
4. Je ne suis pas ___ avec toi. (d'accord / préférer)
5. ___ moi, il faut voyager plus. (Selon / Parce que)

✅ Answers:

1. adore
2. trouve
3. avis
4. d'accord
5. Selon

📝 Exercise 2 — Transform

Make these sentences more natural by replacing the underlined word with a more precise expression.

1. J'aime (vraiment beaucoup) le foot.
2. Je n'aime pas (du tout) les films d'horreur.
3. Je pense (fortement) que c'est injuste.

✅ Model answers:

1. J'adore le foot.
2. Je déteste les films d'horreur. / Je ne supporte pas les films d'horreur.
3. Je suis convaincu(e) que c'est injuste. / Il me semble clairement que c'est injuste.

📝 Exercise 3 — Translate

1. In my opinion, this restaurant is the best in the city.
2. I think that learning French is very useful.
3. I completely disagree — classical music is not boring!
4. She appreciates his honesty.
5. It seems to me that you're right.

✅ Answers:

1. À mon avis, ce restaurant est le meilleur de la ville.
2. Je pense que apprendre le français est très utile.
3. Je ne suis pas du tout d'accord — la musique classique n'est pas ennuyeuse!
4. Elle apprécie son honnêteté.
5. Il me semble que tu as raison.

🎯 Today's Challenge

Think of a film or book you've seen or read recently. Write 5–6 sentences giving your opinion: what you loved, what you didn't like, and what you'd recommend (or not). Use at least three different opinion phrases and include a reason introduced by parce que or car.

⭐ Key Takeaways

• Adorer is stronger than aimer — use it when you really mean it.
• À mon avis and Je trouve que are the most natural ways to introduce opinions in conversation.
• Disagreeing politely with Je ne suis pas d'accord is perfectly normal and even expected in French culture.