Parts of the head and face in French: vocabulary and useful phrases

Imagine you’re at the doctor’s in French-speaking Switzerland. The doctor asks you where it hurts, and you know exactly which area you want to point to… but you just can’t find the word in French. Is it le or la? And how do you simply explain that you have a pain in your head, your eye or your ear?

Knowing the main parts of the head and face in French is particularly useful in everyday life. This vocabulary allows you to talk about your body, understand a question at the doctor’s, ask for advice at a pharmacy or simply describe a pain more precisely.

The main parts of the head in French

Now you’re trying to explain exactly where it hurts. It’s not your whole head, but rather your forehead. Or maybe your temple. In English, these words come naturally. In French, you still need the reflex to find the right vocabulary — and above all the right article.

Here are the words that will take you from “it hurts here” to a much more precise description:

You’ll quickly notice something that may seem surprising: “head” is la tête, a feminine word. However, “forehead” is le front and “face” is le visage, both masculine.

That’s exactly why it’s better not to learn just tête, front or visage. Get into the habit of memorising la tête, le front, le visage directly. The day you need to build a sentence, the article will come much more naturally.

The eyes and eyebrows in French

You’re in front of the mirror before leaving for work. You notice that your eyes are red and that one eyelid is slightly swollen. You want to explain it to a French-speaking colleague or, a few hours later, to a doctor.

You may already know œil, but how do you say eyebrow, eyelid or eyelash?

And when you look at yourself in the mirror, it’s precisely these little details that make all the difference. An eyebrow, an eyelash, an eyelid… in French, you now know how to name them.

The nose, mouth and ears

You’re at the doctor’s and you’re trying to explain what has been bothering you for a few days. It’s not your throat or your head, but another part of your face, such as your ear, nose or mouth.

These are words you’ll come across very often, well beyond a medical context. They come up when you describe a person, talk about your appearance or simply tell someone what happened to you during the day.

The cheeks, chin and face

Once you’ve mastered the main elements, it becomes easier to enrich your vocabulary with terms that let you describe the face more precisely.

You don’t need to memorise all this vocabulary at once. Start with the words you actually use, then gradually add the others.

A few useful phrases to talk about the head and face

And then there’s the moment when it becomes essential to form sentences, even short ones.

You’re at the doctor’s. The doctor looks at you and simply asks:

“Où avez-vous mal ?” Where does it hurt?

This time, you know what to answer.

The structure “J’ai mal à…” is particularly useful for expressing pain.

You can use it with different parts of the body:

J’ai mal à la tête. → My head hurts.

J’ai mal à l’œil. → My eye hurts.

J’ai mal à l’oreille. → My ear hurts.

Watch out for agreement: when the noun is plural, the structure changes. For example:

J’ai mal aux yeux. → My eyes hurt.

This distinction between au / à la / à l’ in the singular and aux in the plural is useful to know as soon as you start building your own sentences. By practising regularly and gradually expanding your vocabulary, you’ll become more and more confident.

Have you now mastered the main French words for talking about the face? Why not take the opportunity to check your overall level with our online French level test?

Test your level online for free >

A little trick to memorise this vocabulary

The next time you look in a mirror, simply try going around your face in French.

la tête → le front → les yeux → le nez → la bouche → les joues → le menton

No need to sit down with a vocabulary list for an hour. A few seconds in a situation you already experience can be enough to create an association between the word, the image and your own face.

When you come across these words a few days later in a conversation, at the doctor’s or in an exercise, they’ll be much easier to recall. And if you’d like to go even further and learn how to make an appointment, explain your symptoms and understand a doctor’s questions in French, also read our article Going to the doctor in French: useful phrases for a consultation.