How to Say What Someone Is Wearing in French: Colors and Clothing
Learn to describe what people are wearing in French using clothing items and colors, with the key pattern porter + clothing + color.
By TheaFirst conversations · Yapr Learn
To describe what someone is wearing in French, you use the verb porter (to wear) followed by a clothing item, often with a color. This is different from describing appearance, which uses être (to be) plus an adjective like grand (tall) or blond. Here you will learn the core pattern, common clothing words, color agreement, and how to ask what someone is wearing.
By the end, you can…
- say what someone is wearing using porter and a clothing item.
- add a color to a clothing description and make it agree correctly.
- ask what someone is wearing and answer in a simple exchange.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
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Elle porte une veste bleue.
She's wearing a blue jacket.
el port ewn vest bluh
The core pattern: porter + clothing item + color. Veste is feminine, so bleu becomes bleue.
Il porte un pull noir.
He's wearing a black sweater.
eel port uhn pool nwahr
Pull is masculine, so noir stays unchanged. This is a common everyday sentence.
Je porte un jean et des baskets.
I'm wearing jeans and sneakers.
zhuh port uhn jeen ay day bas-ket
Use des for plural items. Baskets is the usual word for sneakers in France.
Qu'est-ce qu'elle porte ?
What is she wearing?
kess kell port
A natural question to ask about someone's clothes. The answer can start with Elle porte...
Il porte une chemise blanche et un pantalon gris.
He's wearing a white shirt and gray pants.
eel port ewn shuh-meez blahnsh ay uhn pahn-tah-lon gree
Two clothing items with colors. Chemise is feminine, so blanc becomes blanche.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The basic pattern is subject + porter + clothing item + color. For example: Elle porte une robe rouge (She's wearing a red dress). The color usually comes after the noun and must agree with that noun. Une robe is feminine, so rouge stays the same, but une veste bleue adds -e because veste is feminine. With masculine nouns, the basic color form is used: un pull noir, un pantalon gris. Some colors are invariable, such as orange and marron, so they do not change: une veste orange, des chaussures marron.
When to use it
Use this pattern to describe clothes in the present moment. If you want to say what someone usually wears, French often uses the same present tense with a time phrase: Le lundi, elle porte un uniforme (On Mondays, she wears a uniform). To ask a question, use Qu'est-ce qu'il porte ? or Qu'est-ce qu'elle porte ? You can also ask Qu'est-ce que tu portes ? (What are you wearing?). Avoid using être with clothes: do not say Elle est une veste bleue. Use porter instead.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Regarde, c'est qui, cette femme ?
Look, who is that woman?ruh-gard, say kee, set famC'est ma sœur. Elle porte une veste bleue et un jean.
That's my sister. She's wearing a blue jacket and jeans.say ma suhr. el port ewn vest bluh ay uhn jeenEt le garçon à côté d'elle ?
And the boy next to her?ay luh gar-son ah ko-tay delIl porte une chemise blanche et un pantalon noir.
He's wearing a white shirt and black pants.eel port ewn shuh-meez blahnsh ay uhn pahn-tah-lon nwahrA little context goes a long way
In France, porter is the normal verb for wearing clothes, and it is also used for carrying objects. In Quebec, you may hear des espadrilles for sneakers instead of des baskets, and un chandail for a sweater instead of un pull. Colors like marron and orange are invariable in standard French, so they do not add -e or -s.
One thing to watch for
Using être with a clothing item, as in Elle est une veste bleue.
Try this instead: Use porter for clothes: Elle porte une veste bleue. Être is for identity or appearance, as in Elle est grande (She is tall).
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'She's wearing a red dress' in French?
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Elle porte une robe rouge.
Porter is the verb for wearing, and robe is feminine. Rouge ends in -e already, so it does not change. Elle porte une robe rouge is the standard answer.
2Make the color agree: Il porte une chemise (blanc).
Show a sample answer
Il porte une chemise blanche.
Chemise is feminine, so blanc becomes blanche. The sentence is Il porte une chemise blanche.
3Ask 'What is he wearing?' in French.
Show a sample answer
Qu'est-ce qu'il porte ?
This is the usual question form. You may also hear Qu'est-ce qu'il porte comme vêtements ? in a more explicit context.
Use porter + clothing item + color, and make the color agree with the clothing noun. Remember that marron and orange do not change.
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