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must, should, it’s better to — giving advice. This guide explains Exprimer l’Obligation et le Conseil in French with clear rules, real examples and practice for every CEFR level. For instance: « strong, general » — Il faut réserver.
must, should, it’s better to — giving advice
| Structure | Force | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| il faut + inf | strong, general | Il faut réserver. |
| il faut que + SUBJ | strong, personal | Il faut que tu partes. |
| devoir + inf | must / have to | Je dois travailler. |
| il est obligatoire de + inf | formal | Il est obligatoire de valider son billet. |
| Structure | Nuance | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| devrais (conditionnel) | you should | Tu devrais te reposer. |
| il faudrait + inf | it would be good to | Il faudrait revoir ce point. |
| il vaut mieux + inf | it’s better to | Il vaut mieux arriver tôt. |
| pourquoi ne pas + inf | why not…? | Pourquoi ne pas essayer ? |
| Fort → doux | Exemple |
|---|---|
| Tu dois (must) | Tu dois partir. |
| Il faudrait (should, softened) | Il faudrait partir. |
| Tu pourrais (you could) | Tu pourrais partir plus tôt ? |
💡 Les clés à retenir
Il faut que ALWAYS takes the subjonctif: « il faut que je fasse mes devoirs ».
For advice, the conditionnel is your friend: tu devrais, il faudrait, tu pourrais — much softer than the present.
Negative obligation: « il ne faut pas » = you MUST NOT (not “you don’t have to”). For “no need to”, use « tu n’as pas besoin de ».
📚 Free French lessons at learnfrench.co
il faut que je ___ (faire) attention (subjunctive!)
fasse
you should rest = tu ___ te reposer (conditionnel of devoir)
devrais
it’s better to wait = il ___ mieux attendre (fixed structure)
vaut
Translate into French: « You need to go to the doctor. » (translation)
Il faut que tu ailles chez le médecin.
Translate into French: « You should sleep more. » (translation)
Tu devrais dormir plus.
Translate into French: « It’s better to say nothing. » (translation)
Il vaut mieux ne rien dire.
Go further: Your first French conversation — the 4 moves.
must, should, it’s better to — giving advice. Follow the rules and patterns in the lesson above, and practise with real sentences like « strong, general » (Il faut réserver).
Yes — « strong, general » means « Il faut réserver », and « strong, personal » means « Il faut que tu partes ». The lesson above has many more examples with explanations.
This topic is introduced around B1 and refined at higher levels — pick your level from the links at the top of the page. You can also drill it with the interactive exercises and games below.
Games built from this exact page — turn what you just read into play:
5 quick questions on « Exprimer l’Obligation et le Conseil » — guess before the reveal. Practise with the free games → Open this short as a page — transcript included →