Electronics

1. le portable

   Mobile phone

   Usage

   In France "le portable" is the phone — but it also means a laptop, so say "le téléphone portable" when it matters. Quebec says "le cellulaire"

2. la tablette

   Tablet

   Usage

   Security will ask you to take it out of your bag. The same word means a bar of chocolate, so show the device if the context is unclear

3. l'ordinateur portable

   Laptop

   Usage

   Shortened to "le portable" or "l'ordi". Show it when looking for a seat with a socket

4. le chargeur

   Charger

   Usage

   For losing one, buying one or borrowing one: "pourriez-vous me prêter un chargeur ?"

5. le câble de recharge

   Charging cable

   Usage

   Say the connector too — "USB-C" or "Lightning". Since the end of 2024 the EU requires USB-C on new portable devices

6. la batterie externe

   Power bank

   Usage

   Also called "le power bank". Lithium cells must travel in your hand luggage, never in the hold

7. l'adaptateur de prise

   Plug adapter

   Usage

   France and Belgium use the round two-pin Type E with an earth pin, at 230V. Switzerland has its own Type J, and a French adapter often will not fit it

8. la prise électrique

   Power socket

   Usage

   Show it when hunting for a socket: "je peux utiliser la prise ?". In speech "la prise" alone is enough

9. la multiprise

   Power strip

   Usage

   One adapter plus one of these charges the whole party. An extension lead is "une rallonge"

10. les piles

    Batteries

    Usage

    Sizes are simply "AA" and "AAA". A built-in rechargeable is "la batterie", a different word

11. le wifi

    Wi-Fi

    Usage

    Pronounced roughly "wee-fee" in France. The opening question at a café: "vous avez le wifi ?"

12. le mot de passe wifi

    Wi-Fi password

    Usage

    Show it and staff will write it on your receipt. To check the case, ask "en majuscules ?" — in capitals?

13. la carte SIM

    SIM card

    Usage

    A prepaid one is "une carte prépayée" and buying it needs ID. An eSIM is simply "l'eSIM"

14. la carte mémoire

    Memory card

    Usage

    Show it in an electronics shop such as Fnac or Darty when your camera fills up

15. les écouteurs

    Earphones

    Usage

    The in-ear kind. The over-ear sort has its own word, "le casque"

    Grammar Note

    Always used in the plural

16. l'enceinte

    Speaker

    Usage

    Point at it to ask for the volume down. "Le haut-parleur" also works, but a portable Bluetooth one is usually "une enceinte"

17. l'appareil photo

    Camera

    Usage

    A stills camera; a video camera is "la caméra". Museums often post "sans flash"

18. la lampe de poche

    Torch / Flashlight

    Usage

    Literally "pocket lamp". Needed for caves and power cuts. A head torch is "une frontale"

19. la climatisation

    Air conditioning

    Usage

    Shortened to "la clim". Many older Paris flats and small hotels have none, so check before booking in summer

20. la télécommande

    Remote control

    Usage

    For asking reception where the TV or aircon remote has got to

21. le ventilateur

    Fan

    Usage

    Ask for one where there is no aircon. A hand fan is "un éventail" — a different word

22. le frigo

    Fridge

    Usage

    "Le frigo" in speech, "le réfrigérateur" in writing. The one in a hotel room is "le minibar" and its contents are usually charged

23. la bouilloire

    Kettle

    Usage

    French hotel rooms rarely have one — ask reception: "auriez-vous une bouilloire ?"

24. le micro-ondes

    Microwave

    Usage

    "Vous pouvez le réchauffer ?" is how you ask for something to be heated up

    Grammar Note

    Masculine with the same form in both numbers

25. la machine à laver

    Washing machine

    Usage

    A coin laundry is "une laverie automatique" and the dryer "le sèche-linge"

26. le sèche-cheveux

    Hairdryer

    Usage

    Reception will usually lend one: "avez-vous un sèche-cheveux ?"

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