tu or vous — informal and formal address at work

At work, the choice between informal tu and formal vous (le tutoiement and le vouvoiement) is a real art. The safe default with any superior, a client or a stranger is vous; younger companies and close colleagues increasingly use tu. Let a superior offer the switch to tu (on peut se tutoyer) before you use it yourself.

Informal and formal compared

Choose the right form

Insert the formal form

Translate from tu into vous