"To miss" is one of those versatile verbs in English that can mean many things: to miss a person, to miss a bus, to miss an opportunity, or even to miss a target. But how do you express all these nuances in French?

Unlike English, French often uses different verbs depending on the specific meaning of "to miss." Knowing these distinctions is crucial for speaking French accurately and naturally.

Let's dive into the various ways to say "to miss" in French, so you can express yourself perfectly in any situation!

The standard 'to miss' (a person, feeling of absence) – manquer à

The standard “to miss” (a person, feeling of absence) – manquer à

Manquer à is the most common and standard verb in French for expressing the feeling of 'missing' someone or something, indicating an absence.

Unlike English, where the person doing the missing is the subject ('I miss you'), with manquer à, the thing or person being missed is the subject of the verb, and the person experiencing the missing is the indirect object (preceded by à or an indirect object pronoun).

A literal translation of manquer à would be 'to be missed by'. So, 'I miss you' in French becomes 'You are missed by me', or more naturally, 'Tu me manques'.

When you miss a person, that person becomes the subject of manquer, and you become the indirect object. For example, to say 'I miss my mother', you would say 'Ma mère me manque' (My mother is missed by me).

This structure also applies when missing an object, a place, or an activity. For instance, 'We miss Paris' is 'Paris nous manque' (Paris is missed by us).

Manquer is a regular -ER verb, meaning its conjugation follows standard patterns. However, always remember to pair it with the correct indirect object pronoun or the preposition à + noun.

A very common mistake for English speakers is to directly translate 'I miss you' as 'Je te manque'. This is incorrect and actually means 'You miss me' or 'I am missed by you'. Always remember the inversion!

Manquer à is a versatile verb used in both formal and informal contexts. It's the go-to expression for conveying a genuine sense of absence or longing.

💡 * Tu me manques beaucoup. (I miss you a lot.)

• Ses amis lui manquent quand il voyage. (He misses his friends when he travels.)
• Notre ancienne maison nous manque. (We miss our old house.)
• Est-ce que tes parents te manquent ? (Do you miss your parents?)
• Ce plat me manque depuis que j'ai déménagé. (I've missed this dish since I moved.)

The 'to miss' (an event, appointment, or class) – manquer

The 'to miss' (an event, appointment, or class) – manquer

When you want to express 'to miss' something in French – specifically an event, an appointment, a class, or a deadline – the verb you'll reach for is manquer.

Unlike missing a person (which uses a slightly different construction, manquer à quelqu'un), when you miss an inanimate object or an occurrence, manquer acts as a transitive verb, taking a direct object.

This makes manquer perfect for situations like missing a train, missing a meeting, missing a deadline, or missing a class. It implies absence from an expected place or time.

The structure is straightforward: subject + manquer + direct object. For example, 'J'ai manqué le bus' (I missed the bus) or 'Elle a manqué son rendez-vous' (She missed her appointment).

Manquer can also mean 'to miss out on' or 'to fail to seize' an opportunity, emphasizing the lost chance. For instance, 'Il a manqué l'occasion de parler' (He missed the chance to speak).

Remember this specific usage of manquer for things, events, and opportunities to avoid confusion with expressing 'missing someone' in French, which uses an inverted construction.

💡 * J'ai manqué le bus ce matin. (I missed the bus this morning.)

• Elle ne veut pas manquer son cours de français. (She doesn't want to miss her French class.)
• Nous avons manqué le début du film. (We missed the beginning of the movie.)
• Tu as manqué une excellente opportunité. (You missed an excellent opportunity.)
• Il a manqué son rendez-vous chez le dentiste. (He missed his dentist appointment.)

The 'to miss' (a target, a bus, or an opportunity) – rater

When you want to express 'to miss' in French, specifically in the sense of failing to hit a target, catch a ride, or seize an opportunity, the verb you're looking for is rater.

Rater is a versatile verb used to describe missing something concrete or a chance. It implies an oversight, a failure to achieve, or simply being too late.

It's important to distinguish rater from manquer, which typically means 'to miss' someone (to feel their absence) or 'to lack' something. Rater focuses on missing an event, an object, or an opportunity.

Rater is a regular -er verb, meaning its conjugations follow the standard pattern for verbs ending in -er. For example, in the present tense: je rate, tu rates, il/elle/on rate, nous ratons, vous ratez, ils/elles ratent.

One common use of rater is to describe missing a physical target or failing to achieve a goal. For instance, a soccer player might rater un but (miss a goal).

You'll frequently use rater when talking about missing a form of transport like a bus, train, or plane, or an appointment. It signifies being late or failing to catch it.

Finally, rater is perfect for expressing the idea of missing an opportunity, a chance, or an occasion. It implies letting a favorable moment pass by.

💡 * J'ai raté mon bus ce matin. (I missed my bus this morning.)

• Elle a raté son examen de maths. (She failed her math exam / She missed her math exam.)
• Ne rate pas cette occasion ! (Don't miss this opportunity!)
• Le tireur a raté sa cible. (The shooter missed his target.)
• Nous avons raté le début du film. (We missed the beginning of the movie.)

The 'to miss out on' (an experience or occasion) – passer à côté de

The French expression passer à côté de literally means 'to pass by the side of'. However, its common idiomatic usage is 'to miss out on' an experience, an occasion, or an important detail.

It specifically conveys the idea of failing to seize, overlooking, or not experiencing something valuable or significant. This implies a missed chance rather than a simple physical failure.

The structure is consistently passer à côté de followed by the noun or pronoun representing what was missed. The preposition de is crucial for linking to the missed element.

Using passer à côté de often suggests a sense of regret or a feeling of loss regarding an unfulfilled experience or an overlooked fact.

💡 * J'ai passé à côté de l'occasion de voyager. (I missed out on the opportunity to travel.)

• Ne passe pas à côté de cette exposition ! (Don't miss out on this exhibition!)
• Il est passé à côté de la vérité. (He missed the truth / He overlooked the truth.)
• Elle ne veut pas passer à côté de sa jeunesse. (She doesn't want to miss out on her youth.)

The 'to miss' (someone or something deeply, regretfully) – regretter

When you want to express a deep sense of 'to miss' someone or something, often accompanied by regret or sorrow, the verb regretter is your go-to in French.

Regretter translates most directly to 'to regret,' but it also conveys a powerful sense of 'to miss' someone or something intensely, feeling their absence or the loss of an opportunity.

You can use regretter to talk about missing a person ('Je te regrette') or missing a past event or situation ('Je regrette nos vacances'). It implies a profound longing or sadness.

It's important to distinguish regretter from manquer. While manquer also means 'to miss,' it often implies a more casual 'missing' or 'lacking' (e.g., missing a bus, lacking an ingredient), whereas regretter carries a heavier emotional weight.

Regretter typically takes a direct object. For example, 'I miss you' is Je te regrette, and 'I miss my old house' is Je regrette ma vieille maison. It can also be followed by a verb in the infinitive or a que clause.

Use regretter when you feel a genuine sense of sorrow, nostalgia, or regret for someone's absence, a lost opportunity, or a past time. It's a verb that speaks to the heart of loss and longing.

💡 * Je regrette vraiment mon enfance. (I really miss my childhood.)

• Elle regrette de ne pas être venue à la fête. (She regrets not coming to the party.)
• Nous regrettons votre absence à la réunion. (We regret your absence from the meeting.)
• Je te regrette tant quand tu n'es pas là. (I miss you so much when you're not here.)
• Il regrette d'avoir dit ça. (He regrets having said that.)

The 'to miss' (a connection, like a train or flight) – rater sa correspondance

The 'to miss' (a connection, like a train or flight) – rater sa correspondance

When discussing travel, specifically missing a connecting train, bus, or flight, the most precise French phrase is rater sa correspondance. The verb rater means 'to miss' or 'to fail,' and correspondance refers to a 'connection' in a travel itinerary.

While rater can generally mean 'to miss' (e.g., rater un rendez-vous - to miss an appointment, rater un examen - to fail an exam), its combination with correspondance specifically denotes the unfortunate event of missing your connecting transport. It implies a failure to catch something that was scheduled.

It's important to distinguish rater sa correspondance from other verbs for 'to miss.' For instance, manquer is used when you miss a person, an opportunity, or when something is simply absent (e.g., Tu me manques - I miss you; manquer une occasion - to miss an opportunity). Rater implies an active failure to catch or achieve something.

Therefore, when you're at the station or airport and realize you won't make your next leg of the journey, j'ai raté ma correspondance is the exact phrase you'll need. It's a common and practical expression for travelers.

💡 * J'ai raté ma correspondance à cause du retard du premier train. (I missed my connection because of the first train's delay.)

• Elle a peur de rater sa correspondance pour New York. (She's afraid of missing her connection to New York.)
• Si nous nous dépêchons, nous ne raterons pas notre correspondance. (If we hurry, we won't miss our connection.)
• Il vérifie toujours son horaire attentivement pour ne pas rater ses correspondances. (He always checks his schedule carefully so as not to miss his connections.)

The 'to miss' (a detail or a point) – ne pas saisir

When you want to express that you missed or failed to grasp a detail, a point, or an idea in French, the verb phrase ne pas saisir is the perfect choice.

Unlike verbs for missing a person (manquer) or missing a physical object (rater), ne pas saisir specifically refers to an intellectual oversight. It means you didn't understand, comprehend, or catch what was being communicated.

This phrase always uses the negative construction ne...pas around the verb saisir. You typically use it with a direct object representing the concept or information that was missed.

💡 * Je n'ai pas saisi votre question. (I didn't grasp your question.)

• Il n'a pas saisi l'importance de ce détail. (He didn't grasp the importance of this detail.)
• Si tu ne saisis pas le concept, demande-moi de t'expliquer à nouveau. (If you don't grasp the concept, ask me to explain it again.)
• Elle a expliqué, mais je n'ai pas tout à fait saisi l'idée principale. (She explained, but I didn't quite grasp the main idea.)

The 'to miss' (a shot, a throw, or a goal) – manquer sa cible

When you want to express the idea of missing a shot, a throw, or a goal in French, the most direct and common phrase is manquer sa cible.

Literally translating to 'to miss one's target,' this phrase is frequently used in sports and competitive contexts. It refers to failing to hit what one aimed for.

Beyond physical targets, manquer sa cible can also be used figuratively to mean to fail to achieve an objective or to miss the point in a discussion or strategy. It implies a failure to hit the intended mark.

The core verb here is manquer, which means 'to miss' or 'to lack.' Combined with sa cible (one's target), it creates this specific and versatile expression.

💡 * Le joueur a manqué sa cible et le ballon est passé à côté du but. (The player missed his target and the ball went past the goal.)

• Dans ce débat, il a complètement manqué sa cible en ne répondant pas à la question principale. (In this debate, he completely missed his target by not answering the main question.)
• Malgré tous ses efforts, le tireur a manqué sa cible. (Despite all his efforts, the shooter missed his target.)
• Son argument a manqué sa cible ; personne n'a été convaincu. (His argument missed its mark; no one was convinced.)

The 'to miss' (the past, a nostalgic longing) – avoir la nostalgie de

When you want to express a deep, often bittersweet longing for the past, a time, or a place in French, the most accurate phrase to use is avoir la nostalgie de.

Literally translating to "to have the nostalgia of", avoir la nostalgie de precisely captures the sentiment of missing something from a bygone era or a cherished memory. It is always followed by the preposition de (or d' before a vowel).

This expression is specifically used for things, places, or times that are in the past, evoking a sense of wistful remembrance. It's not typically used for missing a person in the present sense (for which manquer is more appropriate).

You can use avoir la nostalgie de with a noun or a noun phrase to indicate what is being missed. For instance, avoir la nostalgie de mon enfance (to miss my childhood) or avoir la nostalgie de cette époque (to miss that era).

💡 * J'ai la nostalgie de mes années d'université. (I miss my university years.)

• Elle a la nostalgie de sa ville natale. (She misses her hometown.)
• Nous avons la nostalgie des années 80. (We miss the 80s.)
• Il a toujours la nostalgie de l'ancienne maison. (He always misses the old house.)
• Avez-vous la nostalgie de votre jeunesse? (Do you miss your youth?)

Are there other ways to say 'to miss' in French?

Are there other ways to say 'to miss' in French?

Our list features the most common ways to say 'to miss' in French. But the French language is rich with nuances, and you might encounter other expressions, from formal ones to regional slang or idiomatic phrases.

To explore further, you can do an online search for 'comment dire manquer en ___' followed by a specific Francophone country or region to discover local variations.

While you might discover interesting alternatives for 'manquer' on various lists, always verify their definitions and observe how they're used in context before incorporating them into your vocabulary.

Pay close attention as you read, watch, and listen to French media — you may pick up on different idiomatic expressions to convey the feeling of missing someone or something.

For a comprehensive look at the various meanings and uses of 'manquer' and related expressions, the WordReference entry for manquer is an excellent starting point!

I hope this article has helped you navigate the various ways to express 'to miss' in French. To leave you with a thought on absence and memory, here's a poignant quote from Victor Hugo: Le souvenir, c'est la présence invisible. (Memory is invisible presence.)