closeup of a rose

 

I’ve gathered up these beautiful French sayings

for tattoos, Instagram…or just to inspire you! Many people have enjoyed my post about Badass Latin Phrases for Tattoos and now that I’ve started to study French, I thought I’d share some French quotes and proverbs about love, life, and more. They include common phrases, old French military phrases, and quotes in the public domain.

 

Eiffel Tower at sunset | Beautiful Phrases In French...Quotes for Instagram, Tattoos, or Just Inspiration #classy French Instagram captions #French proverbs about love #French military phrases #French expressions #common French sayings #French quotes about family

 

Of course, these don’t have to be for tattoos. You can share them as classy French Instagram captions, on Facebook, Twitter, or anywhere else you like. I don’t know if they’re common French sayings or if they’re more obscure, but either way, they’re inspirational.

her knight at the museum by bryn Donovan, featuring a knight in shining armor kneeling and taking the hand of a cute nerdy woman in a museum

 

By the way, the hero in my romcom novel speaks French!


He’s an actual knight in shining armor from late medieval England, so of course he does. He’s a gentleman of culture, after all! But he’s still very confused by many things in the modern world. Check out the book here

 

 

Because I’m just doing research on the Internet, and I’m a complete beginner with French, please…

 

Double- and triple-check the spelling and the meaning before you use any of these beautiful French quotes in a permanent fashion.

 

(Don’t ask me to pronounce them correctly, either…I’m still working on my French ‘r’ and several vowel sounds.)

 

Beautiful French Quotes

 

joie de vivre

This is my “word of the year,” even though it’s a phrase rather than a word. It’s a great motto to live by.

 

La famille avant tout.

This is one of the simplest French quotes about family: “Family comes first.”

 

Il ne faut pas attendre d’être parfait pour commencer quelque chose de bien.

A quote from the religious leader L’Abbé Pierre. “Don’t wait to be perfect to start something good.” Wise advice.

 

l’amour l’emporte

One of the best French quotes about love: “Love wins.” Always!

 

amour sans fin

“Endless love.”

 

Savoir, penser, rêver. Tout est là.

“To know, to think, to dream. That is all.” By the wonderful writer Victor Hugo.

 

Il n’est rien de réel que le rêve et l’amour.

“Nothing is real but dreams and love.” This terribly romantic quote is from the French writer Anna de Noailles.

 

cœur fidèle

“A faithful heart.”

 

J’accepte la grande aventure d’être moi.

“I accept the great adventure of being me.” The great Simone du Beauvoir.

 

Petit a petit, l’oiseau fait son nid.

I was looking for a phrase about persistence and perseverance, and I found this one: “Little by little, the bird makes its nest.” I don’t know why, but I think it’s so cute…and it really does speak to the nature of success.

 

n’oublie pas de vivre

This pithy French quote means, “Don’t forget to live.”

 

la vie en rose

“Life in pink.” This means seeing life through rose-colored glasses. Some people might see that as a negative, but I don’t.

 

l’amour et l’amitié

“Love and friendship.”

 

L’amour est la poésie des sens.

“Love is the poetry of the senses,” a quote from the writer Honoré de Balzac.

 

qui cherche trouve

This is a Christian one: “Seek and ye shall find.” Matthew 7:7.

 

Le cœur a ses raisons que la raison ne connaît pas.

“The heart has its reasons, of which reason knows nothing.” This is a quote from the mathematician and philospher Blaise Pascal. It’s no excuse for unethical behavior, of course, but an acknowledgment that sometimes, you have to follow your heart.

 

Voyager, c’est vivre.

“To travel is to live.”

 

Sois belle á ta façon.

“Be beautiful in your own way.”

 

je passe quand même

“I pass, anyway.” This is a good saying for someone who feels unstoppable.

 

belle âme

“Beautiful soul.”

 

Qui n’avance pas, recule.

“If you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward.” It’s so true…we always have to keep on learning and growing.

 

ce que femme veut, Dieu le veut

“What woman wants, God wants.”

 

C’est cela l’amour, tout donner, tout sacrifier sans espoir de retour.

This is a quote from Albert Camus: “That’s love, to give away all, to sacrifice all, without the desire to get anything in return.” It’s a very romantic and noble sentiment.

 

Créer, c’est vivre deux fois.

“To create is to live twice.” Also Albert Camus. To me, this is one of the most beautiful French quotes.

 

toujours debout

“Always standing,” or still standing. This is a good message for someone who’s a survivor.

 

vouloir, c’est pouvoir

“To want is to be able.” This reminds me of the quote attributed to Hannibal: “I will either find a way or make one.”

 

Paris skyline at sunset | Beautiful French Quotes and Phrases

 

Do you have other French expressions or quotes that you like? Let us know in the comments!

And if you’re in the mood for more beautiful thoughts and inspiration, you may like with my gratitude and manifestation journal, The Book of Dreams Come True. It’s full of writing exercises designed to make you feel better about life and about yourself, to start dreaming again…and to make those dreams into realities. Check it out here!

 

THE BOOK OF DREAMS COME TRUE: A JOURNAL OF SELF-DISCOVERY, GOALS, AND MANIFESTATION | #best gratitude journal #manifestation journal #best gratitude journal #daily gratitude prompts #gratitude journal #barnes and noble Egratitude journal prompts #gratitude list #gratitude writing prompts #thanking the universe

 

Thanks for reading, and bonne journée!

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