French Phrase
Dis‑moi quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît.
Meaning
A polite, informal way to ask someone to tell you what the next steps are. The speaker uses the familiar ‘tu’ form and adds ‘s’il te plaît’ to keep the request courteous.
When to use
Use this sentence with friends, teammates, or colleagues you address with ‘tu’. It works well in casual meetings, project briefings, or when you need clarification on a process without sounding demanding.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Dis-moiquellessontlesprochainesétapes,s'ilteplaît.
Imperative (2nd person singular)
‘Dis’ is the imperative form of the verb ‘dire’ used with ‘tu’. It drops the final ‘s’ in the affirmative imperative.
Pronoun placement with hyphen
Object pronouns follow the verb in the affirmative imperative and are attached with a hyphen, e.g., ‘Dis‑moi’.
Indirect question
‘Quelles sont les prochaines étapes’ is an indirect question; the word order remains declarative (subject‑verb).
Polite formula ‘s’il te plaît’
The phrase ‘s’il te plaît’ (literally ‘if it pleases you’) is placed after the request to soften it.
Agreement of adjectives
‘Prochaines’ agrees in gender and number with ‘étapes’ (feminine plural).
🗨In Conversation
Dis‑moi quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît.
Tell me what the next steps are, please.
D’abord, on finalise le rapport, puis on envoie les documents au client.
First, we finish the report, then we send the documents to the client.
✕Common Mistakes
Dis‑vous quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît.
‘Dis‑vous’ does not exist; the correct formal imperative is ‘Dites‑vous’ (or simply ‘Dites‑moi’).
Dis‑moi quelles sont le prochaine étapes, s’il te plaît.
Missing article agreement and adjective agreement; it should be ‘les prochaines étapes’. Also, the article ‘le’ is singular and masculine, which does not match ‘étapes’.
Dis‑moi quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il vous plaît.
When you use the informal ‘tu’ form (Dis‑moi), you should pair it with ‘s’il te plaît’, not the formal ‘s’il vous plaît’.
Dis moi quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît.
In the affirmative imperative, the pronoun must be hyphenated to the verb: ‘Dis‑moi’.
↔Alternatives
Peux‑tu me dire quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît ?
Could you tell me what the next steps are, please?
Pourrais‑tu m’indiquer les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît ?
Could you indicate the next steps, please?
Dites‑moi les prochaines étapes, s’il vous plaît.
Tell me the next steps, please.
Quelles sont les prochaines étapes, s’il te plaît ?
What are the next steps, please?
Cultural Tip
In French, politeness is often expressed by adding ‘s’il te plaît’ (informal) or ‘s’il vous plaît’ (formal) after a request. Mixing the two registers—using ‘Dis‑moi’ (informal) with ‘s’il vous plaît’ (formal)—can sound awkward. Also, remember that the affirmative imperative always attaches object pronouns with hyphens, and the final ‘s’ of ‘dis’ disappears.