French Vocabulary Not Learned at School: French Slang for Money

6 Comments

Last Updated: June 5, 2023

Follow Us Now

Learn French on Your Own with…

Sign up below to get started:

In English it’s cash, money, dough, moolah, bill, bucks, bread, fund, and so many other words, yet it all means the same thing.

No matter what we do or where we go, money talk can’t escape us (or the other way around). So if you find yourself walking on French soil, you’ll invariably come across talk about money. You might as well arm yourself with these French money vocabulary and slang to help you get your thoughts across and vice versa.

French Vocabulary Money

Or you could learn this simply because it’s cool to know this stuff too. All up to you, really.

For Starters...

Here's a short video to get you started with this lesson. Check out some standard French words related to money, plus some example sentences.

Get this list in PDF format

No time to go through the list now? You can grab a copy of the French money slang list by signing up below! Plus, you get lots of other cool freebies!

French Money Vocabulary (Slang)

EnglishFrench
moneyLe fric
Le pognon
Le pèze
La galette
La braise
L’oseille (f)
Les ronds (m)
Le flouse
La thune
Loose changeLa ferraille (literally, scrapiron)
Francs/ EurosLes balles (f) (as in “ca coute quinze balles” = it costs fifteen euros)
10,000 francs/ eurosUne brique
To be brokeEtre fauché, être a sec
To not have a beanNe pas avoir un radis,e (le radis = radish)
Ne pas avoir un rond
Filthy richRupin,e*
A spiled daddy’s boyUn fils à papa
To be loadedEtre plein aux as
cheapskateRadin,e
A skin-flintUn grippe-sous
To fork outCasquer
To blowClaquer (la thune)
To be hadSe faire avoir
To con, to rip offSe faire Rouler / couillonner**
It’s a fake, it’s imitationC’est du toc
Junk, rubbishDe la camelote
ExpensiveChéro
FreeA l’œil
profitLe bénef (short for “le benefice” = the gain, profit)

Want more? Check out the French Vocabulary Mastery Course!

Speak, Listen, and Write French like a Native with a Talk in French Membership

  • Learn French on your own terms with our comprehensive, self-paced beginner, intermediate, and advanced courses, each with a step-by-step plan tailored to your level. 
  • Master French pronunciation and sound like a native with our pronunciation course.
  • Receive personalized feedback and guidance from a dedicated French teacher.

Please tell me in the comment section if there are French vocabulary topics that you would like to review here at Talk in French.

About the author 

Frederic Bibard is the founder of Talk in French, a company that helps french learners to practice and improve their french. Macaron addict. Jacques Audiard fan. You can contact him on Instagram

    • True, you do not need to know everything here. But just find the one you might use from time to time. You need to practice your french on a regular basis with those words in fact.

  • Thank you!!! I love this site, it is so helpful! There are not a lot of French speakers where I live and my French is getting rusty 🙁 This def. helps me exercise my language muscle!!!

  • Un défis pour moi est le fait que je suis canadien, et je ne suis pas certain jusqu’a quel point vos commentaires appliquent au Canada ….

  • {"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}

    >

    Get our Free French Study Guide

    The ultimate (& free) roadmap to master the French language. Save countless hours of ineffective study. Designed to keep your motivation high.