How to Talk Sports in French

How to Talk Sports in French Are you that fan of European sports who gets up in the wee hours to watch games in France? If you just love sports in general or simply want to know more about talking sports in French, weve got you covered. We have the names of the sports, the verbs to use with each, and the terms for  players (usually with both masculine and feminine forms), equipment, and playing fields. Its a long, useful list, so buckle up. Note that we discuss exceptionally popular French sports like soccer, tennis, and cycling elsewhere on their own pages. Many of the words below are linked to audio files. Simply click on the link to hear the correct pronunciation and then repeat it a few times to commit it to memory. Names of Sports (Noms de sports) Note that, in many instances, the French and English words are nearly identical. archery le tir l'arc baseball le base-ball basketball (specific terms below) le basket biking or cycling le cyclisme boxing la boxe diving la plongà ©e fishing la pà ªche football le football amà ©ricain golf (specific terms below) le golf (ice) hockey (specific terms below) le hockey (sur glace) jogging le jogging sailing la voile skating le patinage rollerskating le patin roulettes or le skating skiing (specific terms below) le ski cross-country skiing le ski de randonnà ©e or le ski de fond downhill skiing le ski de descente or le ski de piste water skiing le ski nautique soccer le foot(ball) swimming la natation tennis le tennis volleyball le volley(ball) wrestling la lutte The French Verbs Used With Sports In French, playing or doing sports is normally expressed with  jouer au  or  faire. Sports That Use Jouer au 1. Jouer au  (to play): Just add the name of the sport after the verb, like this: to play golf   jouer au golfto play hockey   jouer au hockey to play... jouer au... baseball base-ball basketball basket soccer foot(ball) football football amà ©ricain golf golf hockey hockey tennis tennis volleyball volley(ball) Sports That Use Faire 2.  Faire  (to do):  The verb  is usually followed by de article noun, like this: to swim   faire de la natationto do archery    faire du tir  Ã‚  larc ​There are exceptions where just the noun is used, without the partitive and article. For example: to hike faire  une randonnà ©e Some sports also have their own verb, which is a one-word verb form of the noun. Those are listed in the right-hand column below. For example: to wrestle   faire de la lutte  or  lutter Notice that le golf can use either jouer au or faire and is on both  lists. to do... faire... or this to box de la boxe boxer to ride a horse du cheval to bike du cyclisme or monter sur bicyclette rouler to golf du golf to jog du jogging to wrestle de la lutte lutter to swim de la natation nager to skate du patin(age) patiner to inline skate du patin roulettes or du skating to dive de la plongà ©e plonger to ski du ski skier to downhill ski du ski de descente or du ski de piste to cross country ski du ski de randonnà ©e or du ski de fond to water ski du ski nautique to shoot archery du tir l'arc to sail de la voile to hike une randonnà ©e Anomaly: la  Pà ªche Uses Aller But,  la  pà ªche uses neither of these verbs and goes on a separate list with aller, as in  aller   la pà ªche (to go fishing), or its used with its own verb  pà ªcher (to fish). to go... aller... or this to go fishing la pà ªche pà ªcher Basketball (Le Basket) If you like basketball, youll enjoy learning essential basketball terms.  You can practice these words while playing or watching your teams. Learning a language is like sports: The more you practice, the better you get. Basketball  Team basketball team à ©quipe de basket basketball player basketteur (m) or basktteuse (f) guard arrià ¨re offensive player attaquant jumper sauteur Basketball Equipment   equipment matà ©riel basketball ballon de basket court terrain de jeu basket panier opponent's basket panier adverse rim, ring anneau backboard panneau Basketball Action to catch the ball attraper le ballon to block bloquer to dribble dribbler to steal the ball intercepter le ballon to handle the ball manier le ballon to guard a player marquer un joueur to pass passer Golf (Le Golf) You could practice this vocabulary the next time you hit the links. Golf Players golfer joueur de golf or golfeur (m)joeuse de golf or golfeuse (f) foursome quatuor The Golf Course golf course terrain / parcours de golf greens fee droit de jeu driving range terrain d'exercice fairway allà ©e grass bunker fosse d'herbe sand trap fosse de sable waste bunker fosse naturelle water hazard obstacle d'eau green vert hole trou Golf Equipment   equipment matà ©riel golf bag sac de golf caddie cadet(te) cart chariot, voiturette de golf golf ball balle de golf ball marker repà ¨re golf glove gant de golf set of clubs jeu de bà ¢tons de golf golf club club, crosse, canne (de golf) wood bois iron fer driver bois n ° 1 pitching wedge cocheur d'allà ©e sand wedge cocheur de sable putter fer droit Golf Action to golf faire du golf or jouer au golf tee tà © tee marker jalon de dà ©part handicap handicap golf stroke coup de golf swing à ©lan backswing montà ©e half swing demi-à ©lan chip approche roulà © pitch approche lobà © divot motte de gazon The Golf Score score card carte de pointage par normale birdie oiselet bogey boguey double bogey boguey double eagle aigle double eagle albatros hole in one trou d'un coup The Golf Ball ball trajectory trajectoire de balle hook crochet de gauche slice crochet de droite draw là ©ger crochet de gauche fade là ©ger crochet de droite Hockey (Le Hockey) Ice hockey, a popular sport in French-speaking Canada and elsewhere, has a special set of terms. Notice that when we speak of hockey players, French-speaking Canadians tend to use a different word than the French do. Both terms will be understood in both countries. Hockey Players hockey player hockeyeur/euse (France)joueur/euse de hockey (Canada) goalie gardien de but opponent adversaire The Hockey Rink   rink patinoire goal but or cage goal crease territoire de but Hockey Equipment equipment matà ©riel hockey stick crosse de hockey puck palet helmet casque protecteur face mask protecteur facial glove gant skate patin Hockey Action to play hockey jouer au hockey to check mettre en à ©chec to clear the puck dà ©gager le palet to score a goal marquer un but to shoot lancer or tirer Skiing (Le Ski) Skiing is another popular sport in many French-speaking countries. Types of Skiing and Skiers to ski faire du ski or skier cross-country skiing ski de fond downhill skiing ski de descente or ski aval cross-country skier skieur de fond or fondeur downhill skier descendeur forerunner ouvreur de piste freestyle libre classical classique jumping saut downhill descente giant slalom slalom gà ©ant slalom slalom super-G super gà ©ant Skiing Equipment equipment matà ©riel hat bonnet headband serre-tà ªte or bandeau goggles lunettes glove gant ski pole bà ¢ton de ski skis skis boot chaussure coverboot surchaussure binding fixation On the Hill ski course parcours de ski trail piste marked course piste balisà ©e hill tremplin or piste de saut start platform plate-forme de dà ©part length of the trail longueur de la piste flag fanion or drapeau jump tremplin mogul bosse finish time temps l'arrivà ©e control point poste de contrà ´le gate porte