Learn Hardcore French: Je vais aux toilettes et je reviens. - I am going to the restroom and I will come back.

In French, the room with a toilet is almost always referred to in the plural: les toilettes. The singular la toilette usually means personal grooming (e.g., faire sa toilette).

Can I say Je vais à la toilette?

Yes in Quebec and Belgium (and heard in parts of Switzerland). In metropolitan France, people normally say Je vais aux toilettes; à la toilette there can sound regional or odd.

Is je reviens literally present tense or does it mean “I’ll be right back”?

It’s present tense, but French often uses the present for very near-future actions. Je reviens in this context means “I’ll be right back/coming right back.”

Would Je reviendrai work here?

It’s grammatically correct but sounds less immediate (more like a future plan). For “back in a moment,” stick with Je reviens (optionally add tout de suite).

Do I have to repeat je after et? Could I say Je vais aux toilettes et reviens?

You must repeat it. French requires the subject pronoun: Je vais aux toilettes et je reviens. Dropping je there is incorrect.

Can I drop et and just pause: Je vais aux toilettes, je reviens?

Yes. In speech a small pause is natural, and in writing a comma is fine: Je vais aux toilettes, je reviens (tout de suite).

Why not use retourner or rentrer instead of revenir?

Revenir = come back to where the speaker/listener currently is (best here).
Retourner = go back to a place that is not the current location.
Rentrer = go back in/return home or back inside a place you belong to. Here you’re leaving and coming back to the same spot, so revenir fits.

Could I use dans instead of à: Je vais dans les toilettes?

Use aux toilettes to mean “to the restroom.” Dans les toilettes focuses on being physically inside the room/stalls and sounds off as an announcement of intention.

Is Je vais aux toilettes polite in all contexts?

It’s neutral and fine with friends/colleagues. In very formal situations, prefer something softer:

Excusez-moi, je reviens tout de suite.
Veuillez m’excuser, je m’absente un instant.

Are there synonyms for les toilettes and what are their registers?

Neutral: les toilettes
Informal/common: les WC (pronounced like “vay-say”)
Very informal/slang (avoid in polite contexts): les chiottes
Childish/euphemistic: les petits coins

How do I pronounce the sentence and where are the liaisons?

Approximate tips:

Je = “zhuh”
vais = “veh”
aux = “oh”
Liaison: vais‿aux makes a /z/ link: “veh-zo”
toilettes = “twa-let”
No liaison across et in standard French: pause slightly before je reviens
reviens = “ruh-vyen” (nasal vowel at the end)

Is there a liaison before or after et?

No. Standard French generally avoids liaison around et, so you wouldn’t link sounds across toilettes et or et je.

Can I replace aux toilettes with y?

Yes, if the place is clear from context: J’y vais et je reviens. Don’t say both (Je vais aux toilettes, j’y vais)—just one or the other.

What should I say when I come back? Is Je reviens okay then?

When you’re back, use:

Me revoilà !
Je suis de retour. Je reviens means you’re about to come back, not that you already have.

Anything to know about conjugation/auxiliaries for revenir?

Present: je reviens, tu reviens, il/elle revient, nous revenons, vous revenez, ils/elles reviennent. In compound tenses, revenir takes être: je suis revenu(e).

What’s the gender/number agreement for toilettes?

Feminine plural: les toilettes. So you use plural articles/prepositions: les, des, aux. Example: Je reviens des toilettes (I’m coming back from the restroom).

Common mistakes to avoid?

✗ Je vais au toilette (wrong article and number). ✓ Je vais aux toilettes.
Overusing salle de bains in France for “toilet.” In France, la salle de bains is the bathroom (often without the toilet). Say les toilettes for the restroom.

How can I emphasize “right away”?

Add a time expression: Je vais aux toilettes et je reviens tout de suite / dans une minute / dans un instant.