What does the French saying Impossible is not French mean?
David Ramirez
Published Mar 15, 2026
What does the French saying Impossible is not French mean?
Literal translation: “Impossible isn’t French.” Actual meaning: Famously attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte, impossible n’est pas français is the French equivalent of “nothing is impossible”. While it may seem very patriotic, français here doesn’t refer to the French people, but rather to the French language. As in “impossible is not a French word ”.
Can you talk to someone who is not a French speaker?
Of course that person is different for everyone and depends on your interests. However, if you really enjoy talking to someone who is not a native French speaker, but still speaks French very well, keep doing it. You can still learn a lot from non native speakers.
Is it hard to learn French as a language?
So Is French Hard to Learn? In conclusion – no. French is relatively easy to learn but it does take some time and effort. As French is closely related to English, I have to agree with the Foreign Language Institute that says that French belongs to the easiest group of languages to learn for English speakers.
Why is French not considered a phonetic language?
French is not a phonetic language which means that you can’t really tell the way a word is pronounced by the way it’s written. The thing is that English isn’t a phonetic language either. And yet people from all over the world manage to learn to speak it.
Literal translation: “Impossible isn’t French.” Actual meaning: Famously attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte, impossible n’est pas français is the French equivalent of “nothing is impossible”. While it may seem very patriotic, français here doesn’t refer to the French people, but rather to the French language. As in “impossible is not a French word ”.
Of course that person is different for everyone and depends on your interests. However, if you really enjoy talking to someone who is not a native French speaker, but still speaks French very well, keep doing it. You can still learn a lot from non native speakers.
So Is French Hard to Learn? In conclusion – no. French is relatively easy to learn but it does take some time and effort. As French is closely related to English, I have to agree with the Foreign Language Institute that says that French belongs to the easiest group of languages to learn for English speakers.
French is not a phonetic language which means that you can’t really tell the way a word is pronounced by the way it’s written. The thing is that English isn’t a phonetic language either. And yet people from all over the world manage to learn to speak it.