French Phrase
Garde les contacts d'urgence à portée de main.
Meaning
A reminder to keep your emergency phone numbers or contacts easily accessible, so you can call for help without delay.
When to use
Use this phrase when giving safety advice, preparing for travel, or reminding friends and family to store emergency numbers in a convenient place.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Gardelescontactsd'urgenceàportéedemain
Imperative (Garde)
‘Garde’ is the second‑person singular imperative of the verb *garder* (to keep, to hold).
Plural noun (les contacts)
‘contacts’ is plural; the definite article must agree (les).
Prepositional phrase (d'urgence)
‘d’urgence’ is a contraction of *de urgence* meaning ‘of emergency’, used to qualify the contacts.
Idiom (à portée de main)
Literally ‘at the reach of hand’, this idiom means ‘within easy reach’ or ‘handy’.
🗨In Conversation
Garde les contacts d'urgence à portée de main.
Keep emergency contacts within reach.
Bonne idée, je les ai enregistrés dans mon téléphone.
Good idea, I’ve saved them in my phone.
✕Common Mistakes
Garde le contacts d'urgence à portée de main.
‘contacts’ is plural, so the article must be ‘les’.
Garde les contact d'urgence à portée de main.
The noun should stay plural to match ‘les’.
Garde les contacts d'urgence à portée de la main.
The idiom is ‘à portée de main’, not ‘de la main’.
↔Alternatives
Aie tes contacts d'urgence à portée de main.
Have your emergency contacts at hand.
Assure-toi d'avoir tes contacts d'urgence à portée de main.
Make sure you have your emergency contacts within reach.
Cultural Tip
In French‑speaking countries it’s common to store emergency numbers (112, 15, 17) directly in the phone’s contacts list and also keep a small card with the numbers in a wallet or on the fridge, especially for older relatives who may not use smartphones.