Phrasebook
Je me lave les mains: French body-part articles in useful phrases
Use le, la and les with French body parts in daily routines and simple symptoms. Compare pronouns, avoir mal à and possessives, with pictures and practice.
- A2
- 13 phrases
- 3 situations
- Learn this in the A2 notebook →
In short
French usually says Je me lave les mains: me identifies whose hands are involved, and les mains names the body part. Learn the whole pattern rather than translating English “my” word for word. With avoir mal à, use the definite article too: J’ai mal au dos.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
Morning: the pronoun identifies the person
Notice me, te and se before the verb; the body-part article stays definite.
At the sink: change the person, keep the article
Say where it hurts
These phrases describe the location of pain.
Body parts with their articles
Find:
| Body part | Phrase |
|---|---|
| le dos | J’ai mal au dos. |
| la tête | J’ai mal à la tête. |
| l’oreille | J’ai mal à l’oreille. |
| les dents | J’ai mal aux dents. |
À + le contracts to au; à + les contracts to aux. À la and à l’ stay as two parts. In Je lui lave les mains, lui identifies the other person whose hands you wash. The subject of lave is still je.
Why does French say je me lave les mains, not mes mains?
Je me lave les mains.I wash my hands.
Focus: an action affecting the person named by me
Mes mains sont propres.My hands are clean.
Focus: the hands as the subject of a description
Likewise, Elle a les yeux verts and Ses yeux sont verts both describe green eyes. A possessive works when the body part is the subject. Keep the construction and its meaning together.