How do you say my name is in French?

Je m'appelle plus your name: je m'appelle Sarah. Literally it's I call myself, because s'appeler is reflexive. In very casual speech you'll also hear moi, c'est Sarah, and with a title je suis Madame Sarah Lemoine.

Is comment vous appelez-vous formal or informal?

Formal. It uses vous and it inverts the subject, so it's the version you'd use with a stranger, a client, or an official, and the version you'd write. The informal equivalents are comment tu t'appelles ? and, most casually, tu t'appelles comment ?

Why is it je m'appelle with two l's but nous nous appelons with one?

Because appeler doubles its l only when the ending is silent, which is the je, tu, il, and ils forms. In nous appelons and vous appelez the ending is pronounced, so the single l stays. The same pattern governs jeter and acheter.

Can I say mon nom est instead?

It's grammatical but it sounds translated. French keeps mon nom for the surname on a form or in a very formal declaration. In conversation, je m'appelle is the natural phrase and mon nom est will mark you out as a learner.

How do I ask what something is called in French?

Use the third person: comment s'appelle cette fleur ? or, pointing at something whose name you've forgotten, comment ça s'appelle ? To ask for the French word specifically, add en français: comment ça se dit en français ?

French grammar · Beginner

Je M'appelle, Tu T'appelles, Vous Vous Appelez: Saying Your Name in French

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

French gives a name with the reflexive verb s'appeler, literally to call oneself: je m'appelle Claire. The reflexive pronoun changes with the subject (me, te, se, nous, vous) and the spelling doubles its l in four of the six forms. Comment vous appelez-vous ? is the formal question, comment tu t'appelles ? the informal one.

Bonjour, je m'appelle Claire. Et vous, comment vous appelez-vous ?

Hello, my name is Claire. And you, what's your name?

What it is

English states a name with a possessive and a verb of being: my name is. French turns it into an action you perform on yourself. Appeler means to call, and s'appeler means to call oneself, so je m'appelle Claire is closer to I call myself Claire. Once you see the reflexive underneath, the two pronouns in nous nous appelons stop looking like a typo.

Je m'appelle Théo, ma sœur s'appelle Léa, et nos parents s'appellent Marc et Anne. — I'm Théo, my sister is Léa, and our parents are Marc and Anne.

How to spot it

Every form has two parts before the verb: the subject and its matching reflexive pronoun. If only one is there, something is missing.

Je m'appelle Sophie. — My name is Sophie.
Tu t'appelles comment ? — What's your name? (very informal)
Il s'appelle Antoine. — His name is Antoine.
Comment vous appelez-vous ? — What's your name? (formal)

Me, te, and se elide before the vowel of appeler: m'appelle, t'appelles, s'appelle. Nous and vous don't change.

S'appeler: Saying Your Name Quick Reference

S'appeler in the present tense

Subject	Form	In a sentence
je	m'appelle	Je m'appelle Claire.
tu	t'appelles	Tu t'appelles comment ?
il / elle / on	s'appelle	Elle s'appelle Léa.
nous	nous appelons	Nous nous appelons Dupont.
vous	vous appelez	Comment vous appelez-vous ?
ils / elles	s'appellent	Ils s'appellent Paul et Marc.

Common S'appeler: Saying Your Name Examples in French

Giving your name, asking for one, and naming everything else:

Introducing Yourself

Bonjour, je m'appelle Amina.: Hello, my name is Amina.
Je m'appelle Jean-Pierre, mais on m'appelle JP.: My name is Jean-Pierre, but people call me JP.
Moi, c'est Léo.: I'm Léo. (very casual)
Enchanté, je suis Madame Leroy.: Pleased to meet you, I'm Mrs Leroy.

On m'appelle without the reflexive means people call me: the subject is other people, not you.

Asking Informally

Tu t'appelles comment ?: What's your name? (most casual)
Comment tu t'appelles ?: What's your name? (everyday spoken)
Comment t'appelles-tu ?: What is your name? (careful, slightly formal)
Et toi, tu t'appelles comment ?: And you, what's your name?

All three word orders are correct. The question word moves to the end in casual speech and to the front in careful speech.

Asking Formally

Comment vous appelez-vous ?: What is your name?
Comment vous vous appelez ?: What's your name? (formal but relaxed)
Vous êtes Monsieur Bernard ?: Are you Mr Bernard?
Quel est votre nom, s'il vous plaît ?: What is your surname, please?

In the inverted form, the reflexive vous stays in front of the verb and the subject vous moves behind it, hyphenated.

Naming Other People and Things

Comment s'appelle ta sœur ?: What's your sister's name?
Comment s'appelle cette rue ?: What's this street called?
Ce plat s'appelle un cassoulet.: This dish is called a cassoulet.
Comment ça s'appelle en français ?: What's it called in French?

S'appeler works for objects and places as well as people, which makes comment ça s'appelle one of the most useful phrases a learner has.

How S'appeler Works

One reflexive pattern, one spelling quirk, and three ways to turn it into a question.

The Verb Is Reflexive, So There Are Two Pronouns

The subject does the calling and also receives it, so both have to be marked: je m'appelle, tu t'appelles, il s'appelle. This is why nous nous appelons repeats the word — the first nous is the subject, the second is the object.

Nous nous appelons Martin.

Our surname is Martin.

subject + reflexive + verb.

The Reflexive Pronoun Elides

Me, te, and se lose their vowel in front of appeler because the verb starts with one. Nous and vous have no vowel to lose, so they stay whole and simply appear twice.

Je m'appelle Ana et elle s'appelle Inès.

My name is Ana and hers is Inès.

m', t', s' before a vowel.

The L Doubles Where the Stress Falls

Appeler doubles its l whenever the ending is silent, which is in the je, tu, il, and ils forms. Nous and vous have pronounced endings, so the stress moves off the stem and a single l is enough.

Je m'appelle, nous nous appelons, ils s'appellent.

My name is, our names are, their names are.

appelle, appelles, appelle, appelons, appelez, appellent.

Three Question Shapes, Three Registers

Put comment at the end and you get the most casual version, tu t'appelles comment. Put it at the front with normal word order and you get everyday spoken French. Invert the subject and you get the careful, formal question.

Comment vous appelez-vous, madame ?

What is your name, madam?

End = casual, front = neutral, inverted = formal.

No Verb of Being Is Involved

S'appeler already contains everything the sentence needs, so the name follows it directly. Adding est or c'est produces a sentence with two verbs and no grammar holding them together.

Elle s'appelle Camille.

Her name is Camille.

s'appeler + name, nothing between.

Common Mistakes with S'appeler: Saying Your Name

Incorrect: Je m'appelle est Marie. — My name is Marie.

Correct: Je m'appelle Marie. — My name is Marie.

The English sentence contains is, so learners look for a place to put it. S'appeler already is the verb, and the name follows it directly.

Incorrect: Comment tu appelles ? — What's your name?

Correct: Comment tu t'appelles ? — What's your name?

Without the reflexive pronoun the question means what are you calling, as in what are you naming something else. The te is what turns the calling back on the subject.

Incorrect: Nous nous appellons Bernard. — Our surname is Bernard.

Correct: Nous nous appelons Bernard. — Our surname is Bernard.

The l only doubles when the ending is silent. Nous and vous have audible endings, so they keep a single l: appelons, appelez.

Incorrect: Comment vous vous appelez-vous ? — What is your name?

Correct: Comment vous appelez-vous ? — What is your name?

Vous appears twice in this verb, not three times. In the inverted question the reflexive vous goes before the verb and the subject vous goes after it, hyphenated.

Other Ways to Give and Ask a Name

S'appeler covers most situations, but three other patterns come up often enough to be worth having ready.

C'est and je suis

In relaxed introductions French often skips the verb entirely and uses c'est, or identifies you with être plus a title.

Moi, c'est Théo.: I'm Théo.
Bonjour, Paul à l'appareil.: Hello, Paul speaking.
Je suis le père de Léa.: I'm Léa's father.
C'est de la part de qui ?: Who's calling?

Je suis plus a bare first name is possible but sounds abrupt; with a title or a role it's completely natural.

Nom and prénom on a form

Administrative French asks for the surname and the first name separately, and always in that order.

Nom : Dupont: Surname: Dupont
Prénom : Marie: First name: Marie
Quel est votre nom de famille ?: What's your surname?
Ça s'écrit comment ?: How do you spell that?

Nom on its own means surname in this context. For the whole name, French says nom complet.

Introducing someone else

To present a third person, French uses présenter, and the response is a past participle that agrees with the speaker.

Je te présente Julie.: This is Julie.
Voici mon collègue, Karim.: This is my colleague, Karim.
Enchantée de faire votre connaissance.: Pleased to meet you. (said by a woman)

Enchanté agrees with whoever is speaking: a man says enchanté, a woman enchantée.

S'appeler: Saying Your Name FAQs

How do you say my name is in French?: Je m'appelle plus your name: je m'appelle Sarah. Literally it's I call myself, because s'appeler is reflexive. In very casual speech you'll also hear moi, c'est Sarah, and with a title je suis Madame Sarah Lemoine.
Is comment vous appelez-vous formal or informal?: Formal. It uses vous and it inverts the subject, so it's the version you'd use with a stranger, a client, or an official, and the version you'd write. The informal equivalents are comment tu t'appelles ? and, most casually, tu t'appelles comment ?
Why is it je m'appelle with two l's but nous nous appelons with one?: Because appeler doubles its l only when the ending is silent, which is the je, tu, il, and ils forms. In nous appelons and vous appelez the ending is pronounced, so the single l stays. The same pattern governs jeter and acheter.
Can I say mon nom est instead?: It's grammatical but it sounds translated. French keeps mon nom for the surname on a form or in a very formal declaration. In conversation, je m'appelle is the natural phrase and mon nom est will mark you out as a learner.
How do I ask what something is called in French?: Use the third person: comment s'appelle cette fleur ? or, pointing at something whose name you've forgotten, comment ça s'appelle ? To ask for the French word specifically, add en français: comment ça se dit en français ?