Belgian French→English

Translate Belgian French to English the way locals mean it.

Belgian French uses familiar words and small expressions such as septante, GSM, kot and une fois in ways that can make a received message sound different from textbook French.

Going the other way? English to Belgian French

474 local dialects

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What locals actually say

Tu me sonnes sur mon GSM une fois quand t’arrives ?

Give me a call on my mobile when you get there, will you?

Sonner means to call someone, GSM means mobile phone, and une fois is a casual regional softener here, not a request to call only once.

Voilà votre café, s’il vous plaît.

Here’s your coffee.

S’il vous plaît can be used when handing something over, so it means here you are rather than please.

J’ai trouvé un kot près de l’unif, mais c’est septante euros la semaine.

I found a student room near uni, but it’s 70 euros a week.

Kot means student accommodation or a student room, while septante is the Belgian French word for 70.

Ça fait nonante euros, hein ?

That comes to ninety euros, okay?

Nonante is the Belgian French form of ninety and signals Belgian regional usage.

Tu prends la drève juste après le rond-point.

Take the tree-lined avenue just past the roundabout.

Drève is a Belgian French word for an avenue or drive, often one lined with trees.

On va au fritkot du coin pour une mitraillette ?

Shall we get a loaded baguette sandwich from the local chip shop?

Fritkot means Belgian chip shop, while mitraillette refers to a Belgian fries-filled baguette sandwich.

Tu viens chez nous dimanche, une fois ?

Are you coming over to our place on Sunday?

Une fois is a regional Belgian conversational tic here, signaling friendly informality rather than literally meaning one time.

Je viens de recevoir mon C4, je dois m’inscrire au chômage.

I’ve just received my C4, so I have to register as unemployed.

C4 is the Belgian employment certificate used when registering for unemployment, marking the administrative context as Belgian.

Notes like these come with every AIRTranslate translation, so you learn why locals phrase it that way as you go.

How Belgian French differs

Belgian French. Septante and nonante for 70/90 (quatre-vingts stays), GSM for mobile phone, kot for student room, une fois as regional tic only in clearly casual text; s'il vous plaît can mean here you are.

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Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way