Excusez-moi, pardon or désolé: what to say in each situation

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Choose a French opener or apology with short scenes. Compare excusez-moi, pardon and désolé, check tu and vous, and practise the speaker agreement.

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In short

Use Excusez-moi to get someone’s attention, Pardon ? to ask for repetition and Je suis désolé or désolée to say you are sorry. The expressions overlap; the words that follow tell the other person what you need.

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A colleague politely interrupts someone at an office doorway.
Excusez-moi opens a polite request for attention. Illustration: Atelier

What is the difference between excusez-moi, pardon and désolé?

Excusez-moiExcuse me

Focus: starting a request or apologising for an interruption

Excusez-moi + question

Excusez-moi, vous avez une minute ?
Excuse me, do you have a minute?

PardonSorry / excuse me

Focus: a small intrusion, or repetition when asked as a question

Pardon ? + request to repeat

Pardon, vous pouvez répéter ?
Sorry, could you repeat that?

Je suis désolé / désoléeI’m sorry

Focus: regret about a mistake, delay or inconvenience

désolé pour + noun / désolé de + infinitive

Je suis désolée pour le retard.
I’m sorry for being late.

Let the next sentence do the work

You need to interrupt a colleague
  1. You

    Excuse-moi de te déranger. Tu as une minute ?

    Sorry to disturb you. Do you have a minute?

  2. Colleague

    Oui, je t’écoute.

    Yes, I’m listening.

With a colleague you address as tu, use excuse-moi and te. With someone you address as vous, say Excusez-moi de vous déranger.

You missed a word
  1. Staff member

    Votre rendez-vous est à quinze heures quinze.

    Your appointment is at 15.15.

  2. You

    Pardon, vous pouvez répéter l’heure ?

    Sorry, could you repeat the time?

  3. Staff member

    Quinze heures quinze.

    15.15.

Pardon ? can also express surprise. Adding vous pouvez répéter ? makes the repetition request clear. For a small intrusion, Pardon, je peux passer ? asks someone to let you through.

Camille sends the wrong file
  1. Camille

    Je suis désolée, je me suis trompée de document. Je vous envoie le bon fichier.

    I’m sorry, I used the wrong document. I’ll send you the correct file.

  2. Colleague

    Merci, je vais regarder.

    Thank you, I’ll take a look.

Désolé or désolée: which spelling?

Agreement with the person or people apologising
SpeakerFormExample
One mandésoléJe suis désolé.
One womandésoléeJe suis désolée.
A masculine or mixed groupdésolésNous sommes désolés.
An all-feminine groupdésoléesNous sommes désolées.

Je suis désolé de vous interrompre.

I’m sorry to interrupt you.

De introduces the infinitive; pour introduces a noun in désolé pour cette erreur.

Question 1No account needed
You did not hear the time. Which line asks for repetition?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Pardon, vous pouvez répéter l’heure ?. Répéter l’heure asks the person to say the time again.

Question 2No account needed
Camille is a woman apologising on her own. Which spelling fits?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Je suis désolée.. The adjective agrees with Camille, the feminine singular speaker: désolée.

Question 3No account needed
You address one friend as tu. Which opener keeps that relationship consistent?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Excuse-moi de te déranger.. Excuse-moi and te are both singular informal forms.

Question 4No account needed
Choose the preposition before an infinitive.Je suis désolé ___ vous interrompre.

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

de. Use désolé de + infinitive: désolé de vous interrompre.

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