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commencer in real spoken French

« commencer » — jump to your level:A1A2B1B2C1C2Native

One phrase you will hear when patience runs out.

Real spoken French

« Ça commence à bien faire ! » means enough is enough — that’s about as much as I can take. It is a fixed grumble and cannot be varied.

You will also hear « tu commences ! » or « il commence, lui ! » as a warning that someone is starting to be annoying. And speech drops the ne: « ça commence pas avant huit heures ».

💡 Focus at this level: Native slang

👨‍🏫 How to use « commencer » at this level

1. « Ça commence à bien faire » = enough. Frozen phrase.

2. « Tu commences ! » is a warning, not a compliment.

3. Drop the « ne ». « Ça commence pas tout de suite. »

Ça commence à bien faire !Enough is enough!
Tu commences, toi !You’re starting to annoy me!
Ça commence pas avant huit heures.It doesn’t start before eight.
On commence quand ?When do we start?
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