Common mistakes
Mec or homme: “guy”, “man” and “my boyfriend” in French
Choose between familiar mec and neutral homme. Follow a lost-wallet scene, recognise mon mec as a partner phrase and practise cet homme versus ce mec.
- B1
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In short
Un mec means “a guy” in familiar French; un homme means “a man” in neutral language. In a relationship introduction, mon mec means “my boyfriend” or “my partner”. Use monsieur when you need to address an unfamiliar man politely.
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Is mec rude in French?
- Nora, to a friend
Un mec a trouvé mon portefeuille et l’a rapporté à l’accueil.
A guy found my wallet and brought it back to reception.
- Nora, at reception
Un homme a trouvé mon portefeuille et l’a rapporté ici.
A man found my wallet and brought it back here.
- Nora, to the man
Merci beaucoup, monsieur !
Thank you very much!
The objects in the lost-property story
Find:
- un meca boyfriend in every sentencea guy; a man, in familiar language
Ce mec a été très sympa.That guy was really nice.
For a neutral account of the same person, use cet homme.
- mon mecan unknown manmy boyfriend or partner, in a relationship introduction
Je te présente mon mec, Samir. Nous habitons ensemble.Meet my boyfriend Samir. We live together.
A neutral introduction can use mon compagnon or mon petit ami. Use mon mari when you mean “my husband”.
- hommea polite way to call a stranger overman; human being in some expressions
Excusez-moi, monsieur, vous avez fait tomber ceci.Excuse me, you dropped this.
To get a man’s attention politely, say monsieur. You will also meet homme in fixed expressions such as les droits de l’homme (“human rights”).
| Pattern | Familiar | Neutral |
|---|---|---|
| un | un mec | un homme |
| ce / cet | ce mec | cet homme |
| le / l’ | le mec | l’homme |
| des | des mecs | des hommes |
The silent h in homme allows l’homme and cet homme. Write ce mec, with ce before the consonant. In an ordinary account, un mec simply introduces a guy. The possessive phrase mon mec gains its partner meaning from a relationship context, as in the introduction above.