Can I say Bonsoir at 10pm?
Bonsoir means “good evening” and is typically used after 6 p.m. or dusk.
Once you reach the end of the afternoon around 6 p.m., you stop saying bonjour and you start to say bonsoir, which means “good evening.” Unlike bonjour, you can use bonsoir when saying goodbye where it would translate more to “goodnight” instead of “hello.” If it's so late in the night that whoever you're saying ...
Both are used to greet people but not a the same time of the day. Say "Bonjour" until the end of the afternoon and "bonsoir" once the evening starts. Bonjour is a greeting and only a greeting at the difference of "bonsoir" that can be used to say good bye in the evening and evening ONLY.
Bonsoir is the equivalent of Bonjour but used at night! Again, it is a polite French greeting word. In the daytime, you can use bonjour. But after a certain hour of the day, Bonsoir becomes more appropriate.
Good Morning / Good Afternoon / Good Evening
The greetings change depending on the time of the day. For example, “Good morning” is generally used from 5:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. whereas “Good afternoon” time is from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. “Good evening” is often used after 6 p.m. or when the sun goes down.
Most of you know the formal expression “bonjour”, and you should since it's the most common way to greet someone in French. We use it to greet people in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening. “Bonjour” is always polite, and works in any situation.
In French, night is nuit, and evening is soirée. Logically, — for once! — “goodnight” is bonne nuit and “good evening” is bonne soirée.
Well, they both generally mean "good evening". But you use one when you greet someone, and you use the other when you are saying farewell. In other words, BONSOIR is in the same category as HELLO, whereas BONNE SOIRÉE is in the same category as GOODBYE.
There is also an other way of responding or greeting someone when replying to bonsoir.It is by responding "Salut". It means Hi.It is used to greet friends or well-known . 9th - 12th grade. Other ways to say you're welcome are pas de probleme (no problem) or je vous en prie, which is more formal.
Bonsoir – Goodnight as a Greeting in French
The word generally means “good evening,” and is used instead of wishing someone a “good night,” or bonne nuit in French. Bonsoir can also be used when you are saying hello or goodbye to someone in the evening.
Is bonjour only for the morning?
“Bonjour” is not only limited to the morning, it can also be used to greet someone you meet for the first time during the day. You can say bonjour in many formal and informal situations. It is the easiest way to greet someone in French. Once you have mastered it, you can use it almost everywhere and at any time.
Soir is “evening” and ce means “this”. You may be wondering why a word that's related to the evening also stands in for “tonight”.

- Rest your head on that pillow and let your worries drift away.
- Good night, love. ...
- Sleep well and dream big.
- You're the best! ...
- Sweetest dreams to the sweetest person.
- Good night, pookie head!
- Sweet dreams. I can't wait to see you soon!
- Good night, good sleep, good vibes.
Bonsoir. In a similar way to bonjour, you can use bonsoir to address people in a range of contexts. Whether it's a formal situation or an informal one, it's appropriate to use bonsoir with anyone (friends and colleagues), as it means 'good evening'.
Good night and Good evening are both formal ways of greeting or saying goodbye to someone.
Say “Good evening” to say “hello” after 6:00 PM. “Good evening” is commonly used at restaurants, in a professional context, and in speeches (when you speak in front of a large number of people):
"Good evening" would be the more normal night-time greeting.
In France, saying bonjour in French is a sign of respect and a cultural norm. It's not optional to forgo the greeting if you want people to know that you understand French manners.
Interjection. bonne soirée. Have a good evening (a phrase uttered upon a farewell)
"Comment ça va" (French for "How is it going?") is a 1983 pop song by Dutch boy band The Shorts.
How do you respond to Bonne nuit?
- Bonne nuit, dors bien. (Good night, sleep well.)
- Toi aussi, dors bien. (You too, sleep well).
Translation of "Bonjour, enchanté" in English. Hello, nice.
Merci, vous aussi! = Thanks, you too!
In English, soiree means “a fancy evening affair.” The word comes directly from French and was formed from the word soir, meaning “evening” or “night.” The French make a subtle distinction between soir, which refers explicitly to the time of day following sunset, and soirée, which refers to some duration of time, ...
Before leaving someone who is going to bed, the French usually say : “bonne nuit“: have a good night's sleep.
The usual response to merci is de rien (You're welcome – literally, It's nothing) or il n'y a pas de quoi. In a more formal context, you could say Je vous en prie or Je t'en prie.
Translation of "oui, salut" in English. Yes, hello.
I'm fine. i am fine. I'm doing great.
However it is accepted in astronomical terms that evening starts before sunset and ends at night. This translates to either 5pm or 6pm when evening starts. Thus, when you wish someone to have a good evening it implies it is not yet night - the start of the hour which the majority of people sleep.
Good evening, girls. Bonsoir, les filles. Evening, ladies.
How did the Romans say good night?
In this text, "Good night" is translated in two different ways, once as "Quiesce molliter!", then again as "Sit fausta nox".
When people enter the workplace and they don't make an effort to acknowledge each other socially, it starts to deteriorate relationships over time so we tend to advise people not to skip it. It's important to acknowledge your co-workers and say good morning back even if it is an interruption to your work.
Answer and Explanation: When someone greets you with, Bonjour!, you can simply reply with, Bonjour also. This basic form of hello can be used in any context, and with any person, whether it's a close friend or a stranger.
To my knowledge, most words in french that end in -ée, with 'Lycée' and a few others as exceptions, are feminine, and so soirée follows this rule, making 'la' it's definite article. 'Soir' is just masculine, and so takes 'le', as does 'Mirior', meaning mirror.
Normally 'nuit' is night and 'soir' is evening. 'Nuit' is associated with dark and sleeping so you will say, Bonne Nuit! to someone only before you go to bed wishing them to have a good night sleep. You will say 'bonsoir!' to someone you greet in the evening.
La nuit, meaning night or dark(ness), is pronounced "nwee." It is a frequently used French intransitive noun that most often describes that part of the day when it's dark, but it's quite common, too, to hear it used figuratively, as a symbol of something dark or fearsome.
- “Sleep tight, love! I'll be dreaming of you!”
- “Good night, the love of my life. Sweet dreams!”
- “Get some rest! ...
- “Goodnight, most handsome guy/ prettiest girl in my life. ...
- "Sleep tonight, sweetheart. ...
- “Night night, baby. ...
- “Good night, sweetness. ...
- “Sweet kisses tonight.”
It is technically incorrect to say good morning as a statement greeting before sunrise, but you can wish someone a good morning in parting: 'have a pleasant morning! ' If you're saying farewell to someone at 3am, you can wish them a goodnight. If you're greeting someone, you can simply say 'hello', or 'how do you do?
Bonsoir - the subject of some debate even when you're greeting people in person, bonsoir is generally not used for emails, even if you are writing in the evening.
Good evening, how are you? Bonsoir Mesdames et Messieurs ! Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.
What is Bonsoir bonjour?
bonjour : hello, good morning, good afternoon. bonsoir : good evening.
Late- afternoon: 3-6 p.m. Evening: 6-9 p.m. Late at night: Midnight-6 a.m. Toward morning: 3-6 a.m.
"Bonsoir"—The Evening "Hello"
Use bonsoir to say hello in the evening. Since the hour that nighttime arrives in France can vary greatly depending on the season, generally start saying bonsoir around 6 p.m. You can also use bonsoir when you leave—so long as it's still evening.
Good night is used only to bid someone farewell. The relevant greeting is Good evening. Thanks for your answer Barrie. While this is what I currently have in place, it does't feel right to greet someone with Good evening at a time such as 11.45PM.
In French, night is nuit, and evening is soirée. Logically, — for once! — “goodnight” is bonne nuit and “good evening” is bonne soirée.
12-hour | 24-hour |
---|---|
8:00 pm | 20:00 |
9:00 pm | 21:00 |
10:00 pm | 22:00 |
11:00 pm | 23:00 |
Evening is from 5:01 PM to 8 PM, or around sunset. Night is from sunset to sunrise, so from 8:01 PM until 5:59 AM.
The hours that are typically considered evening are from 5pm to 11pm. The hours that are typically considered nightfall are from 11pm to 7am. What time is considered morning, afternoon, and evening?
Well, they both generally mean "good evening". But you use one when you greet someone, and you use the other when you are saying farewell. In other words, BONSOIR is in the same category as HELLO, whereas BONNE SOIRÉE is in the same category as GOODBYE.
Simple French greetings will serve you well on your trip to Paris. And don't forget, politeness counts! Polite Parisians always end their greetings with either Madame, Monsieur or Mademoiselle. Therefore, "hello" is always "bonjour, madame" or "bonjour, monsieur".
Is it OK to text at 11pm?
"As a general rule, you shouldn't text somebody after 9 p.m. It may be seen as an intrusion of privacy, or they may feel you're inserting a sense of urgency that doesn't need to be there. As for the morning, if school hasn't started and you wouldn't expect the person to be at work, it's best to wait.
The day is divided into day(time) and night(-time). Daytime is from sunrise (this varies, but we can say approximately 6am) to sunset (we can say approximately 6pm). Night-time is from sunset to sunrise. Every day starts precisely at midnight.
Bonsoir means good evening or good night. Bonsoir is borrowed directly from French, in which it means the same thing.
je vais means I'm going to. dormir means to sleep.
Enchanté(e)
For instance, if someone introduces you to a stranger, a simple handshake or 'bise' (cheek-kiss) with the word 'Enchanté' is all you need to greet them politely.
References
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