Alouette, Gentille Alouette

🐦 French Song · Beginner Lesson

Read a traditional French nursery song, explore its English meaning, and learn beginner vocabulary for a bird’s body parts, pronunciation, and simple French grammar.

French for kidsBird vocabularyA1 beginnersFrench & English

01 · Read & understand

Read the song in French and English

Choose a verse, then read its French lines and their English translations. Tap an underlined French vocabulary word for its meaning and pronunciation. Each new verse adds another body part.

🇫🇷 French song

Tap words to learn

🇬🇧 English translation

Selected verse · selectable text

Choose a verse:

💡 Reading tip: Read one verse and compare it with its English translation. Switch to the next verse and notice the new body-part word. The traditional lyrics talk about plucking a bird’s feathers, even though the tune is playful. Audio is available only for individual vocabulary words, not for the complete song.

02 · New words

French bird vocabulary

Tap 🔊 next to each word to hear it pronounced in French. Each card also includes its English meaning and IPA pronunciation.

une alouettea lark/yn a.lwɛt/

gentillekind / lovely (feminine)/ʒɑ̃.tij/

plumeraiI will pluck (feathers)/ply.mə.ʁe/

la têtethe head/la tɛt/

le becthe beak/lə bɛk/

les yeuxthe eyes/le.zjø/

le couthe neck/lə ku/

les ailesthe wings/le.zɛl/

les pattesthe legs / feet of a bird/le pat/

la queuethe tail/la kø/

le dosthe back/lə do/

une plumea feather/yn plym/

🔊 Tap a speaker to hear the French word. Playback uses the French voice available on your device.

03 · Pronunciation

How to pronounce the French words

Final consonants

The c in bec is pronounced, but the final s in dos is silent. French endings do not all follow the same pattern.

Sound in gentille

Gentille ends with a y-like sound, as in the English word yes. The spelling -ille can make this sound in French.

Linking sounds

Say les yeux with a linking z sound between the two words. The same kind of link appears in les ailes.

French rounded vowels

In queue and plume, the French vowels require rounded lips. Tap the pronunciation buttons to hear the difference.

04 · Simple grammar

Learn basic French grammar from the song

Le, la, les = the

Use le with singular masculine nouns (le bec), la with singular feminine nouns (la tête), and les with plural nouns (les ailes).

Gentille = lovely / kind

The adjective gentille is feminine to agree with alouette, a feminine noun. Compare un gentil oiseau (a nice bird).

Je and te

Je means I. Te means you as an object (informal singular). In the song, je te plumerai means I will pluck your feathers.

The future: -ai

Plumerai comes from plumer (to pluck feathers). The ending -ai marks the je form of the simple future. Compare je chanterai, I will sing.

05 · Useful examples

Make your own French sentences

L’alouette est un oiseau.The lark is a bird.

Le bec est petit.The beak is small.

Les ailes sont grandes.The wings are big.

L’oiseau a deux yeux.The bird has two eyes.

Je chanterai demain.I will sing tomorrow.

06 · Quick answers

Beginner questions about Alouette

What does “Alouette, gentille alouette” mean?

It means “Lark, lovely lark.” An alouette is a small songbird called a lark.

What does “Je te plumerai” mean?

It means “I will pluck your feathers.” The traditional song refers to removing a bird’s feathers.

Why does each verse repeat words?

The verses build up. Each introduces a new body part and repeats previous ones, making the vocabulary easier to remember.

Can I listen to the whole song here?

No. This learning block plays individual French vocabulary words only. Tap an underlined word in the lyrics or the 🔊 button on a vocabulary card.

GoguEducation · Beginner French songs · Bird vocabulary · Bilingual reading and grammar