vibes_only_beQuick question. I am an American with A2 French and I dont know Dutch but I'm looking to do a masters here and move for good. I have never visited yet so I am wondering how well French speakers in France and Belgium understand each other?!
Accepted answer
wonderful_be2They understand each other perfectly fine for the most part. You will notice some funny differences though. For one, we say septante and nonante instead of those complicated math words they use in France. Also, the meal names are different because we use déjeuner, dîner, and souper. Even the pronunciation is a bit softer here (the 'R' is much less harsh). I have found that while professional settings are easy enough to navigate, you might struggle with technical or medical jargon if you don't have total fluency yet.
NotSoSure_92You gotta remember that most people here identify as Belgian first and foremost ! They find the idea of being called French pretty ridiculous !
logistics_and_lagerSome people argue you need to learn the local dialects if you actually want to integrate into the social scene (and not just talk about the weather) . If you want to truly belong, you might need more than just standard French.
not_so_sure_guy3The point about the vocabulary being different is agreeable. Also, I have noticed that many Flemish people try to speak English or French just to be helpful to us.