French Phrase
Je te fais signe.
Meaning
Literally, “I give you a sign.” In everyday French it means “I’ll give you a quick signal” or “I’ll let you know by a gesture.” It’s a friendly, informal way to say you’ll get in touch or alert someone.
When to use
Use it when you want to tell a friend, colleague, or family member that you’ll signal them—e.g., when you’ll wave from across the street, give a thumbs‑up, or send a quick text to let them know you’re on your way.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Jetefaissigne
Subject pronoun (Je)
The first‑person singular subject pronoun, always placed before the verb.
Indirect object pronoun (te)
‘te’ replaces ‘to you’; it comes directly before the conjugated verb in the present tense.
Faire + noun (fais signe)
The construction ‘faire + noun’ creates a verb phrase meaning ‘to give/perform the action of the noun’; here ‘faire signe’ = ‘to signal, to give a sign’.
Verb agreement (fais)
‘Faire’ is conjugated in the present simple: je fais, tu fais, il/elle/on fait, etc.
🗨In Conversation
Je te fais signe quand j’arrive devant le café.
I’ll give you a sign when I arrive in front of the café.
Parfait, j’attends ton signe.
Great, I’ll wait for your signal.
✕Common Mistakes
Je te fais signe à.
‘Faire signe’ does not take a preposition; adding ‘à’ makes the phrase ungrammatical.
Je vous fais signe à.
The preposition ‘à’ is unnecessary; simply say ‘Je vous fais signe.’
Je te fais demain signe.
If you want to specify time, place the adverb after the whole clause: ‘Je te fais signe demain.’ The mistake is putting it before ‘signe.’
↔Alternatives
Je te fais un signe.
I’ll give you a sign.
Je te fais signe de passer.
I’ll signal you to come in.
Je te fais signe plus tard.
I’ll give you a sign later.
Cultural Tip
‘Faire signe’ is informal and most common in spoken French. In a formal email you would use a phrase like ‘Je vous tiendrai informé(e)’ instead. Also, the gesture itself can vary by region—some people wave, others give a thumbs‑up, but the expression stays the same.