Dialogue
Après vous or allez-y: after you and go ahead in French
Let someone go first with après vous, or invite them to act with allez-y. Practise a doorway exchange, a speaking turn and the familiar tu forms.
- A2
- 8 lines
- Practice mode
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In short
Après vous means “after you”: you let the other person go first. Allez-y means “go ahead”: you invite someone to move, act or speak. With one person you call tu, say après toi and vas-y.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
How do you say “after you” in French?
- Visitor
Bonjour. C’est ici pour la réunion ?
English
Hello. Is this the place for the meeting?
- You
Oui, c’est ici. Après vous.
Confirm the place and let the visitor pass first.
English
Yes, it is. After you.
- Visitor
Merci. Vous entrez aussi ?
English
Thank you. Are you coming in too?
- You
Oui, je vous suis.
Say you are following the visitor.
English
Yes, I’m right behind you.
- Visitor
La salle est au fond ?
English
Is the room at the end?
- You
Oui. Allez-y, entrez.
Invite the visitor to enter the room.
English
Yes. Go ahead, come in.
- Visitor
Je peux vous poser une question avant de commencer ?
English
May I ask you a question before we begin?
- You
Bien sûr, allez-y. Je vous écoute.
Invite the visitor to ask the question.
English
Of course, go ahead. I’m listening.
At the first door, Après vous gives the visitor priority. At the room, Allez-y, entrez invites entry. In the final exchange, Allez-y invites a question: the action comes from the previous line.
At the entrance
Find:
How do you say “go ahead” in a French conversation?
- Lina
Je peux ajouter quelque chose ?
May I add something?
- Paul
Oui, allez-y.
Yes, go ahead.
- Lina
Merci. Je propose de commencer plus tôt.
Thank you. I suggest starting earlier.
| Meaning | Vous | Tu |
|---|---|---|
| After you | Après vous. | Après toi. |
| Go ahead | Allez-y. | Vas-y. |
| Go ahead, I’m listening | Allez-y, je vous écoute. | Vas-y, je t’écoute. |
Keep the hyphen in allez-y and vas-y. The familiar imperative is va on its own, but it gains an s before y: Vas-y ! For “follow me”, use Suivez-moi; Après vous puts the other person first.