Which is correct for still in French, encore or toujours?

Both are. Il est encore malade and il est toujours malade both mean he's still ill. Encore presents the state as temporary, toujours as settled. The practical difference is that encore can also be read as again, so toujours is the unambiguous option.

Can toujours mean again?

No. Repetition belongs to encore, de nouveau, and à nouveau. Il a toujours appelé means he has always called; for he called again you need il a encore appelé or il a rappelé.

What's the difference between pas encore and toujours pas?

Pas encore is a neutral not yet: elle n'est pas encore arrivée. Toujours pas is still not, and it signals that you've been waiting longer than you expected: elle n'est toujours pas arrivée. The facts are the same; the attitude isn't.

How do I say no longer in French?

Ne… plus: il ne fume plus, he doesn't smoke any more. This is the true opposite of encore and toujours in their still sense, and it's a different word entirely rather than a negation of either.

Is there a quick test for choosing between them?

Try replacing still with as always in your English sentence. If it survives, use toujours. If it only works with for now or for the moment, use encore. And if the English word is more or again rather than still, encore is your only option.

French grammar · Intermediate

Encore vs. Toujours: Which One Means Still in French?

Written by Camille Laurent, Lead French Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

Encore and toujours both translate as still, and in that meaning they're usually interchangeable. They part company everywhere else: only encore means again or more, only toujours means always, and their negatives — pas encore and toujours pas — say quite different things.

Il dort encore, et il habite toujours chez sa mère.

He's still asleep, and he still lives at his mother's.

What it is

English still does two jobs at once: it says a state hasn't ended, and it hints that you might have expected it to. French splits that between two words with different centres of gravity. Toujours comes from all days and leans towards permanence. Encore comes from a phrase meaning at this hour and leans towards a moment that hasn't passed yet.

Elle est encore là (she's still here, for now) — elle est toujours là (she's still here, as ever).

How to spot it

Decide what you'd say if you had to be explicit. If the natural expansion is still, for the time being, use encore. If it's still, as always, use toujours.

Le café est encore chaud. — The coffee's still hot. (it won't be for long)
Il est toujours célibataire. — He's still single. (that's just how it is)
Tu veux encore du gâteau ? — Do you want more cake ? (encore only)
Elle est toujours en retard. — She's always late. (toujours only)

When either would work, toujours is the safer choice, because encore in the same position can also be read as again.

Encore vs. Toujours Quick Reference

Where each word can and can't go

Meaning	Encore	Toujours	Example
still	yes	yes	Il travaille encore / toujours ici.
always	no	yes	Il travaille toujours le samedi.
again	yes	no	Il a encore oublié.
more	yes	no	encore du vin
even (+ comparative)	yes	no	encore plus cher
not yet	pas encore	no	Ce n'est pas encore prêt.
still not	no	toujours pas	Ce n'est toujours pas prêt.

Common Encore vs. Toujours Examples in French

The same idea told both ways, and the places where only one word fits:

Where Both Work

Le magasin est encore ouvert.: The shop is still open.
Le magasin est toujours ouvert.: The shop is still open.
Tu habites encore à Rennes ?: Do you still live in Rennes ?
Tu habites toujours à Rennes ?: Do you still live in Rennes ?

Nobody would correct you for choosing either of these. The shade of difference is real but small.

Only Encore

Encore un peu de sel ?: A little more salt ?
Il m'a encore menti.: He lied to me again.
C'est encore mieux comme ça.: It's even better like this.
Encore une minute et j'arrive.: One more minute and I'll be there.

Adding quantity, repeating an action, and intensifying a comparative are all encore's territory alone.

Only Toujours

Il dit toujours la même chose.: He always says the same thing.
Je serai là pour toujours.: I'll be here forever.
En retard, comme toujours.: Late, as usual.
On se connaît depuis toujours.: We've known each other forever.

Every one of these turns on frequency or permanence, which encore cannot express.

The Negatives Diverge

Il n'est pas encore arrivé.: He hasn't arrived yet.
Il n'est toujours pas arrivé.: He still hasn't arrived.
Ce n'est pas toujours simple.: It isn't always simple.
Ce n'est plus simple.: It's no longer simple.

Three different negatives, three different meanings, all built on words that mean still in the positive.

How to Choose Between Them

Four tests will settle almost every case, and they work from the meaning outwards rather than from a memorised list.

Frequency Rules Out Encore

If your sentence counts occasions — every time, each week, without exception — you need toujours. Encore has no frequency reading at all, so putting it there produces a sentence about repetition or continuation instead.

Elle prend toujours le bus de sept heures.

She always takes the seven o'clock bus.

every time → toujours.

Adding Quantity Rules Out Toujours

In front of a noun phrase, encore means an extra helping. Toujours cannot go there at all: encore du pain means more bread, while toujours du pain would be an odd fragment meaning bread as always.

Il a repris encore deux parts.

He took another two slices.

more of something → encore.

The Compound Past Separates Them

Between an auxiliary and a past participle, the two words stop being alternatives. Il a encore appelé means he called again; il a toujours appelé means he has always called. The still reading disappears almost entirely in this position.

Il a encore changé d'avis.

He's changed his mind again.

a encore = again, a toujours = always.

Ambiguity Favours Toujours

Il pleut encore can mean it's still raining or it's raining again, and there's nothing in the sentence to tell them apart. Il pleut toujours has only one reading. When precision matters, toujours removes the risk.

Il pleut toujours depuis ce matin.

It's been raining since this morning without stopping.

Need clarity → toujours.

Common Mistakes with Encore vs. Toujours

Incorrect: Il est encore le meilleur joueur de l'équipe depuis dix ans. — He's still been the team's best player for ten years.

Correct: Il est toujours le meilleur joueur de l'équipe depuis dix ans. — He's still been the team's best player for ten years.

With depuis and a long stretch of unbroken time, toujours is what a French speaker expects. Encore would imply the run is nearly over.

Incorrect: Tu veux toujours du café ? — Would you like more coffee ?

Correct: Tu veux encore du café ? — Would you like more coffee ?

Toujours du café asks whether an earlier request still stands. To offer a refill you need encore, which is the only one of the two that can add quantity.

Incorrect: Il n'a pas toujours payé la facture. — He still hasn't paid the bill.

Correct: Il n'a toujours pas payé la facture. — He still hasn't paid the bill.

One bill can't be paid on some occasions and not others, so the frequency reading makes no sense. Still not is toujours pas.

Incorrect: Il n'habite pas encore ici, il a déménagé. — He doesn't live here any more, he's moved.

Correct: Il n'habite plus ici, il a déménagé. — He doesn't live here any more, he's moved.

Pas encore means the event is still to come. Once a state has ended, the negative you want is ne… plus.

Pas Encore, Toujours Pas, and Ne… Plus

The negatives of these two adverbs are where learners lose most marks, partly because a third word joins the set.

Pas encore: not yet

Pas encore says the expected event hasn't happened, with no comment on how you feel about it.

Je n'ai pas encore commencé.: I haven't started yet.
Elle n'est pas encore rentrée.: She isn't back yet.
Tu as fini ? — Pas encore.: Have you finished ? — Not yet.

Pas encore works as a complete answer on its own, which is why it's one of the first negatives learners meet.

Toujours pas: still not

Toujours pas says the same thing with impatience layered on top: you've been waiting, and nothing has changed.

Il n'a toujours pas répondu.: He still hasn't replied.
Le train n'est toujours pas annoncé.: The train still hasn't been announced.
Tu n'as toujours pas rangé ta chambre.: You still haven't tidied your room.

Don't confuse it with pas toujours, which negates the frequency: il n'est pas toujours à l'heure, he isn't always on time.

Ne… plus: no longer

The genuine opposite of still is not toujours pas but ne… plus, which says the state has ended.

Il ne travaille plus ici.: He doesn't work here any more.
Je n'ai plus faim.: I'm not hungry any more.
Elle n'habite plus à Nice.: She no longer lives in Nice.

So the three-way set is: encore or toujours for still, ne… plus for no longer, pas encore for not yet.

Encore vs. Toujours FAQs

Which is correct for still in French, encore or toujours?: Both are. Il est encore malade and il est toujours malade both mean he's still ill. Encore presents the state as temporary, toujours as settled. The practical difference is that encore can also be read as again, so toujours is the unambiguous option.
Can toujours mean again?: No. Repetition belongs to encore, de nouveau, and à nouveau. Il a toujours appelé means he has always called; for he called again you need il a encore appelé or il a rappelé.
What's the difference between pas encore and toujours pas?: Pas encore is a neutral not yet: elle n'est pas encore arrivée. Toujours pas is still not, and it signals that you've been waiting longer than you expected: elle n'est toujours pas arrivée. The facts are the same; the attitude isn't.
How do I say no longer in French?: Ne… plus: il ne fume plus, he doesn't smoke any more. This is the true opposite of encore and toujours in their still sense, and it's a different word entirely rather than a negation of either.
Is there a quick test for choosing between them?: Try replacing still with as always in your English sentence. If it survives, use toujours. If it only works with for now or for the moment, use encore. And if the English word is more or again rather than still, encore is your only option.