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| Mery | Friday 15th of April 2005 10:38:25 PM |
| Beginners - Hi everyone, Some French learners told me they can't take part in the different activities of the French and France forum because they know absolutely nothing about French. I decided to create a new thread for them where they'll be able to post all their questions. I agree to correct some basic sentences if needed, but I won't translate words. Please use an online French - English dictionary if you need translations. Here's an email sent to me by Rahul. I'll answer his questions here. Never be afraid of posting in this thread :) [quote]salut mery, comment-allez vous. je vais bien. cest interessant in francais. Where will we use finite and definite articles. and what is the use of de article. I want a translation for how,what,where,which and when.[/quote] [b]Definite and indefinite articles[/b] = please read this thread: http://www.phrasebase.com/forum/read.php?TID=4729 A very complete explanation has been posted by AaRon. If you want exercises, click on this link: http://www.phrasebase.com/forum/read.php?TID=4643 [b]how[/b] = comment = e.g. = comment vas-tu? (how are you?) [b]what[/b] = different translations (quoi, quel, quelle, qu', que etc.) = e.g. = que fais-tu? (what are you doing?), qu'aimes-tu manger? (what do you like eating?) etc. [b]where[/b] = où = e.g. = où habites-tu? (where do you live?) [b]which[/b] = quel / quelle = quel livre as-tu acheté? = which book did you buy? (quelle is used with feminine words) [b]when[/b] = quand = e.g. = quand partons-nous? (when are we leaving?) [quote]then what is feminine and masculine? what i think is feminine for female using words and maculine for male using words right?[/quote] => in French nouns are either feminine or masculine e.g. = le chien (the dog) = masculine word / la voiture (the car) = feminine word Each time you learn a new word, you have to learn its gender. Sometimes when women are speaking they have to agree some words. e.g. = je suis intelligent (I am intelligent) = said by a man BUT je suis intelligent[b]e[/b] is said by a woman Usually you just have to add an 'e' to the adjective or the present participle. Of course there are exceptions: e.g. = je suis gentil (I am kind) said by a man, but je suis gentil[b]le[/b] said by a woman Examples with present participles: je suis allé à Paris (I went to Paris), but a woman would say je suis allé[b]e[/b] à Paris. If a man is talking about a woman, he'd say elle est allée à Paris (she went to Paris) I hope it can answer your questions Rahul! :) Á bientôt! (see you soon) | |
| addanu | Friday 15th of April 2005 10:49:25 PM |
| i want to learn frech from begin - hi mery , i want to learn french so can u suggest me , wut should i do for begin learn this language | |
| Mery | Friday 15th of April 2005 11:11:53 PM |
| - Salut addanu, I don't really know where you should start. It depends on what you want to learn. Do you only want to learn basic expressions or all the grammar etc.? Don't hesitate to tell me what you need and I'll post explanations here. Would you like to learn how to introduce yourself? *-) Just ask... :) Different lessons have already been posted in this forum, but also in the France forum http://www.phrasebase.com/forum/board.php?FID=194 I really advise you to take the time to read the different posts and ask your questions here. Au revoir! (goodbye) | |
| sharonlynn | Saturday 16th of April 2005 02:35:00 AM |
| - Salut Mery...about french ..I understand almost everything when I read .. a few things when I heard....maybe cause it´s similar to portuguese..I can talk some expressions as well ..greetings and things like that..so to me it´s really good the lessons u post on gmail ..I´m a manager of a shop so I would like to know expressions like: Can i help you? Be confortable Which color do you prefer? These things come from .... We are open since...o´clock until... you can pay by credit card What´s your size? Free size only .. Sorry we don´t have it anymore How much?and(how can i answer it?) Sorry Mery :)I think it´s enough for now .... Thanks for your help merci beaucoup Sharon | |
| Caramelicious | Saturday 16th of April 2005 03:13:06 AM |
| - Sharonlynn, I can answer some of your questions: Somethings you might hear a shop owner say: Quel est ta couleur preferée? - What is your favorite color? Combien coûte ... - How much costs ... ? - You can say - ça coûte... - It costs... Vous désirez - May I help you? Quel est le prix? - What is the price? L'argent = Money Un billet = Bill, Paper Money Une Pièce - Coin Nous sommes ici de.... à.... - We are here from ... to ... Nous sommes ouverts de... á ... - We are open from... to ... Some verbs: - Chercher - To look for - Coûter - To Cost - Penser - To Think - Penser que - To Think (that) - Trouver - To find; To think of These are just some that I looked up. I would probably wait till Mery responds just to make sure. I found these in a book. I don't know if French becomes "outdated" like english does, so I hope all if not most of these are correct | |
| Mery | Saturday 16th of April 2005 03:40:02 AM |
| - Salut! Don't worry :), it doesn't bother me to answer your questions. You can post here each time you want to know something. [i]My translations[/i] [b]can I help you?[/b] = puis-je vous aider? / est-ce que je peux vous aider? [b]be comfortable[/b] = être à l'aise are you comfortable? = êtes-vous à l'aise? [b]which color do you prefer?[/b] = quelle couleur préférez-vous? [b]these things come from...[/b] = ces choses viennent de / du / d' e.g. = du Brésil (from Brazil), de Belgique (from Belgium), d'Italie (from Italy) (d' because Italy begins with a vowel) [b]We are open since...o´clock until...[/b] = nous sommes ouverts de .... à .... [b]you can pay by credit card[/b] = vous pouvez payer par carte de crédit [b]what's your size?[/b] = quelle est votre taille? / quelle taille faites-vous? [b]free size only[/b] = I don't really understand what you mean, one-size ? If so, the translation is taille unique [b]sorry we don't have it anymore[/b] = désolée, nous n'en avons plus [b]how much?[/b] = combien how much does it cost? = combien ça coûte? how much is it? = c'est combien? I'll add an audio file in a few hours ;) À bientôt! PS: the audio file: http://duckie.free.fr/audio1.wav :) | |
| Caramelicious | Saturday 16th of April 2005 04:00:59 AM |
| - When I got into chat rooms everyone seems to say this: Mou@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ I have no idea what this means lol, but it seems to be everyones favorite thing to say. I hope it isn't a bad word or anything, what does it mean though? | |
| Mery | Saturday 16th of April 2005 04:11:40 AM |
| - No, I don't think it's a bad word. I guess it refers to the sound of kissing, also written muah! or mwa! I'm not sure... I never use Mou@@@@@@@, very weird! | |
| rahulchan | Monday 18th of April 2005 12:09:24 PM |
| hi - salut mery, thank you mery, for ur answer. i understand what is feminine and masculine. now onwards i will use a dictionary for translations. regards rahul | |
| Mery | Tuesday 19th of April 2005 12:00:30 AM |
| - Salut Rahul! De rien (you're welcome) :D If you have any other question in the future, feel free to post them here. A good translator: http://babel.altavista.com | |
| sharonlynn | Tuesday 19th of April 2005 04:06:29 AM |
| - MERI AND CARAMEL .. MERCI BEAUCOUP :) I´LL STUDY THESE THEN I´LL POST SOME MORE QUESTIONS I´D LIKE TO KNOW... À BIENTôt!! | |
| rahulchan | Tuesday 19th of April 2005 01:10:06 PM |
| Bonjour chaque(hello all), - hi everyone, I request all of you, what it is this is the beginners forum. so every one should send a message french and as well as in english, like, Bonjour(hello). because, somebody send a message in french, in that case beginners cannot get and read a correct message. I think this is very useful for beginners correct? regards rahul | |
| Mery | Wednesday 20th of April 2005 08:06:58 PM |
| - [color=blue]Sharonlynn[/color]: de rien (you're welcome) [color=blue]Rahul[/color]: very good comment, since now on we'll add the English translations in parenthesis when we write something in French :) Merci! (thank you) | |
| mattie | Sunday 24th of April 2005 05:03:11 AM |
| - Could someone please tell me the difference between 'Je ne connais pas' and 'je ne sais pas' ? Thank you | |
| Doroti | Sunday 24th of April 2005 06:08:07 AM |
| - 'Je ne sais pas' means "I don't know/ I can't" 'Je ne connais pas' meand "I don't know" in different way - like "I don't know from experience/ I'm not familiar with this" or something like this... for exaple, you can say "Je ne connais pas", when somebody asks you if you know that country where he/she comes from and you don't know. If I'm wrong, please correct me, Mery ;) | |
| EmDee1B86 | Wednesday 04th of May 2005 09:07:31 AM |
| - What is the difference between devant, avant and auparavant? How is the word "dès" used in French? | |
| dhairyasheel | Thursday 05th of May 2005 12:58:19 PM |
| French learner - Hi mary, I want to start learning french. I have emailed you once. Let me know how to get started. Dhairyasheel | |
| giana | Friday 06th of May 2005 12:42:27 PM |
| - hi everyone.. I am trying to read some french words from the cd cover my French friend gave me.. i may have memorized it, yet i dunno how to pronounce them still..lol may somebody pls help me where can i get any audio that can guide me? thanks so much | |
| Ulven | Friday 06th of May 2005 08:02:38 PM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by mattie[/i] Could someone please tell me the difference between 'Je ne connais pas' and 'je ne sais pas' ? Thank you[/quote] [b]connaitre[/b] is used for nouns/objects (and people). Do you know [u]him[/u]? Do you know [u]this place[/u]? I don't know [u]these people[/u]. [b]savoir[/b] is used for verbs/actions and with question words (what/when/where etc.). Do you know [u]what he is like[/u]? Do you know [u]where[/u] this place [u]is[/u]? We don't know [u]how to do[/u] this. I know [u]what[/u] this [u]is[/u]. Do you know [u]who[/u]? I don't know [u]about[/u] that? I don't know [u]about[/u] these people. | |
| snotra | Tuesday 10th of May 2005 09:37:02 PM |
| - oh thats a gret loss for me mary :( ok can u give a quck formula or idea about how to chang from active to passive and vice versa? plz suggest some exersizes too........ i also want to know abt how to increase vocab with dictionary? merci beaucoup!!! | |
| soccerlover | Wednesday 18th of May 2005 02:45:55 AM |
| i know some french - i took 4 years of french at school, how hard is it to remember most of it, i learn a lot but i forgot a lot too, and my pronounsiation its not so welmming, well should i spend a summer in france to get most of it or because i really need the practice | |
| mattie | Thursday 19th of May 2005 12:28:23 PM |
| - I am having trouble with the 'Perfect tense.' Could someone please explain it. It is really important. :) Meric. :p | |
| Daan | Friday 20th of May 2005 10:21:41 PM |
| - I assume you mean the passé composé? Ok, here we go...please ask if you should have any further questions - I know my explanations aren't the best in the world ;) In French, the passé composé is formed by the personal pronoun + the conjugation of to be (être) or to have (avoir) + the past participle of the verb. Some examples: J'ai écoute. (I have listened). Je is the personal pronoun (I). ai is a conjugated verb (avoir, to have) écoute is the past participle of écouter. Il a téléphone. (He has telephoned) Il is the personal pronoun a is the conjugated verb (avoir again) téléphone is the past participle of téléphoner. The passé composé of the following verbs is formed with être: aller - to go arriver - to arrive descendre (redescendre) - to descend / go downstairs entrer (rentrer) - to enter monter (remonter) - to climb mourir - to die naître (renaître) - to be born partir (repartir) - to leave passer - to pass, spend time rester - to stay retourner - to return sortir (ressortir) - to go out tomber (retomber) - to fall venir (devenir, parvenir, revenir) - to come Verbs are conjugated with être only when they are intransitive. When the above verbs are used transitively, avoir is used as the auxiliary verb. Je me suis rasé. (I have shaved myself.) Note that this passé composé is not formed with avoir but with être! This is because "se raser" (to shave) is a pronominal verb, and you have to use être to form their passé composé. The passé composé of avoir and être is formed using avoir: J'ai été (I have been) J'ai eu (I have had) The past participle does not change when avoir is used to form a passé composé. However, if you use être, there is a minor rule you have to abide by: the past participle has to agree with the subject in gender and number. For example: Il est allé (male, singular = no changes) Elle est allée (female, singular = add an e) Ils sont allés (male, plural = add an s) Elles sont allées (female, plural = add es) The plusqueparfait (I had eaten, etc) is easy to form if you know these rules: just replace the form of avoir/être with their conjugation in the imparfait. Il était allé (He had gone). Please ask when you should have any further questions! :) | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 01st of June 2005 10:13:05 PM |
| - Sometimes when I an reading I see, je me suis? I don't quite understand this, but I believe it means I am myself or something close? | |
| Axystos | Thursday 02nd of June 2005 12:02:58 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Sometimes when I an reading I see, je me suis? I don't quite understand this, but I believe it means I am myself or something close?[/quote] Well, it depends on context, of course, but usually I see "je me suis" in combinations like "je me suis [french reflexive verb in participe passé]." So the translation would depend on what that verb is. | |
| slobo | Friday 03rd of June 2005 12:41:20 AM |
| - bonjour, je suis essayer pour apprendre francais, je suis ne bien pas. Pardon pour mon tres mauvais francais However there is something I dont understand. Comment tu t'appelle - means what is your name? But doesnt How means Comment and What is que Thanks Slobo | |
| Caramelicious | Friday 03rd of June 2005 04:42:19 AM |
| - Comment tu t'appelle translates to what is your name, but word from word it means "How do you call yourself". I beliebe que can mean something different in a different context or is means more than one thing. A mistake I used to make was with "penser" Je pense I would say a lot of the time when I really needed to say je pense que, I believe it translates in this context to "that", I think "that" ... You have some things that look a little funny about, I would try to correct you but I might be wrong also. :D | |
| slobo | Saturday 04th of June 2005 04:48:43 AM |
| - (Please correct me on my poor french) Corriger moi sur mon mauvais francais. Merci Caramelicious, C'est bien savoir. Comment temps/anees avez-vous travaille sur francais? (If it is so bad, how long have you studied french for!) | |
| Caramelicious | Saturday 04th of June 2005 05:24:52 AM |
| - I will try hehe Corriger moi sur mon mauvais francais. (Please correct me on my poor french) I would change this to... S'il te plaît [color=red]corrige[/color]-moi sur mon mauvais français. or Peux-tu corriger mon français, s'il te plaît? [color=red]Red = Imperative[/color] Comment temps/anees avez-vous travaille sur francais? (If it is so bad, how long have you studied french for!) I would say... Si c'est mauvais, comment longtemps tu a étudié le français? or Comment longtemps tu a étudié le français ? | |
| Mery | Saturday 04th of June 2005 08:00:09 PM |
| - NON NON NON :| AHhhaHHHAhhahhhha ;) Corrige mon mauvais français s'il te plaît (I don't think a native speaker would say 'mauvais français'...) PAS corrige-moi sur mon mauvais français. It doesn't mean anything Peux-tu corriger mon français, stp is ok [color=red]Combien longtemps is wrong!!![/color] [b]How long = depuis combien de temps[/b] Depuis combien de temps étudies-tu le français :) | |
| slobo | Saturday 04th of June 2005 11:59:41 PM |
| - Merci beacoup Mery! Je ne sais pas ou vais avec mon francais. J'ai pense c'etait plus facille language du apprendre! Au revior | |
| Mery | Sunday 05th of June 2005 02:17:49 AM |
| - Salut Slobo! You are very welcome :) Never hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about the French language. First, I'd like to correct a mistake you made in your signature: j'essaye d'apprendre le français ;) Also... Merci bea[b]u[/b]coup Hmm I don't really understand your first sentence (je ne sais pas où je vais avec mon français... hmm sounds weird) J'ai pensé que c'était la langue la plus facile à apprendre Are you serious??? :p It's one of the most difficult languages to learn! Au rev[b]oi[/b]r A très bientôt! :) | |
| slobo | Sunday 05th of June 2005 06:33:37 PM |
| - Merci beaucoup pour les votres mots et aide. When I say: Je ne sais pas où je vais avec mon français I meant to say I dont know where to go with my french (in terms on learning more) When I say: J'ai pensé que c'était la langue la plus facile à apprendre I thought it would be the easiest language, but now I have found out it is very hard! Au revoir! | |
| Mery | Sunday 05th of June 2005 11:45:47 PM |
| - Salut Slobo, De rien! :) Correction: merci beaucoup pour VOS mots et VOTRE aide. => [b]vos[/b] is used with plural nouns and [b]votre[/b] with singular nouns Slobo, tu viens de quel pays? On peut savoir? :p | |
| slobo | Monday 06th of June 2005 12:10:17 AM |
| - Qui, tu peut savoir. J'habite en Angeleterre, dans le centre de Londres. Mais, J'etait au habites en France en temps bien. Et toi, habites-tu ou en France? | |
| Mery | Monday 06th of June 2005 12:43:01 AM |
| - WOW :D J'adore Londres. Il y a une semaine, j'étais encore là-bas. J'ai passé cinq jours (du 25 au 30 mai) près de Royal Oak avec un ami canadien de Phrasebase. C'était génial. Dans un an, je vais peut-être aller étudier à Londres. Au fait, je n'habite pas en France. Je suis belge. Je viens du sud de la Belgique. Tu connais la Belgique? | |
| slobo | Monday 06th of June 2005 01:09:14 AM |
| - Salut! Je n'ai pas viste Belgique, mais j'ecouté c'est tres beau. J'espoir t'aimé votre vacances ici, il y a beacoup du faire. | |
| Mery | Monday 06th of June 2005 08:40:45 PM |
| - Quelques petites erreurs... Je n'ai pas visité LA Belgique mais j'ai entendu dire que c'est très beau. => no comma before mais => I heard ... : j'ai entendu dire écouter = to listen (e.g. = j'ai écouté de la musique = I listened to music) J'espère que tu as aimé tes vacances ici. Il y a bea[b]u[/b]coup [b]à[/b] faire. Espoir = hope (noun) Votre = formal form or when you talk about more than 1 person Tes = informal form ([b]ton[/b] is used with masculine words, [b]ta[/b] with feminine words and [b]tes[/b] with plural nouns) Pour répondre à ta question, oui j'ai adoré passer quelques jours à Londres :D J'aimerais tant habiter là-bas. C'est magnifique et je trouve que dans l'ensemble les gens sont gentils. Pourquoi veux-tu apprendre le polonais? | |
| mula | Monday 06th of June 2005 11:36:37 PM |
| - Mery, à propos de la ponctuation, est-ce qu'elle est très importante en langue française? Par exemple, j'étudie l'anglais depuis 11 ans mais même maintenant je mets toutes les virgules et tous les traits d'union n'importe comment et ça ne change pas de sens, donc je suppose que la ponctuation en anglais, c'est peu importante. Mais en lituanien la ponctuation correcte est essentielle parce que souvent des sens peuvent différer d'après l'endroit où l'on met la virgule. | |
| Axystos | Monday 06th of June 2005 11:48:49 PM |
| - Il me toujours semble que la ponctuation soit importante dans tous les langues, sauf l'anglais. :) | |
| snotra | Tuesday 07th of June 2005 09:28:49 PM |
| - i m bck :) merci beoucoup :) pour votre opinion madame....... but plz help me with that actif et passif :) | |
| Mery | Wednesday 08th of June 2005 11:42:14 PM |
| - Je vais commencer par répondre à la question de mula. Désolée pour le retard. Vous commencez à me connaitre, je prends toujours mon temps pour répondre :p Je ne pense pas que la ponctuation soit extrêmement importante en français. Le fait de mal placer les virgules etc ne changerait pas le sens de tes phrases. Je ne crois pas. Par exemple, je corrige toujours les gens qui placent des virgules avant 'mais' ou 'et' alors qu'il n'en faut pas. Cette erreur est loin d'être grave. Ce qu'il ne faut surtout pas oublier, ce sont les virgules après les compléments que l'on trouve en début de phrase. Exemple: hier[b],[/b] je suis allée à Paris Il faut bien se rendre compte que c'est indispensable en français, donc il ne faut pas penser que son emploi est facultatif étant donné que le sens de la phrase n'est pas changé si on ne le mentionne pas. [color=red]SNOTRA[/color] ENFIN! You are back! Sorry if I sometimes take too much time to reply to your questions. You probably first asked it when I was on vacation. I don't really know how to explain l'actif et le passif. Hmm does anyone know how to explain this? I don't think le passif is used a lot in French. Exemple: Jean mange une pomme (actif) Une pomme est mangée par Jean (passif), it's correct, but it sounds really weird. Maybe you could give me more details about what you exactly want to know. Au revoir! | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 06:02:11 AM |
| - How do you know when to use the Subjunctive? I think I know, but I can't really put my finger on it... | |
| Mery | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 07:14:52 AM |
| - I'll write a lesson about the subjunctive tomorrow. I promise I'm going to do it this time lol :p | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 07:17:24 AM |
| - C'est bien, no rush. :D I am happy that you recieved my letter < ----- Subjunctive Tense in French hehehehehe :D | |
| Mery | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 07:24:21 AM |
| - Ouiiiiiiiiii exactement :p Je suis content que tu AIES reçu ma lettre. Très bien! :) | |
| snotra | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 11:17:06 AM |
| - i m bck.....:( but my vocab is sooooooo poor that any one will not give me 1 euro for my vocab :D Mery : i want to increase my vocab......in atleats 2 months i want to have 1000 words under my toung.can u help me with that ? i tried to read sm french news-papers but those r too heavy for me.......plz suggest me smthing lite in french and belgic literature.......so that i could b fluent with oral french ( hopefully) Abt active and passif , i know thats wired but , in exams they always ask wired things :D;) i just want to know : 1.how does the order of word changes. 2.how does the tences changes in active passive? i hope u got more clues abt what i want merci beoucoup :) Sno. P.S : i m going to b most regualr here after monsieur Cramilios and vous Madame , so b ready to answer most silly and wired questions lol :D;). | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 14th of June 2005 12:06:24 PM |
| - There is a nice vocabulary section at: [url]www.realfrench.net[/url] go to the games section, don't chose a game but instead scroll to the bottom of the screen. There you will see "Choose a vocabulary list" or something like that. It will ask you what level of vocabulary I suggest you use all of them, then it willt ake you to a page asking you what vocabulary you would like to learn, there are many choices. If you are looking to basics, they are at the bottom of the screen (I am learning the verbs on there), it will say "Print this vocabulary list" it doesn't actually print it, well it doesn't for me, it just takes you to the page where the words are located. | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 15th of June 2005 04:59:47 AM |
| - Mery is there a verb that means "To be caged" like "The bird is caged" | |
| Mery | Wednesday 15th of June 2005 05:30:59 AM |
| - Coucou! to be caged = être en cage | |
| Mery | Thursday 16th of June 2005 08:48:01 PM |
| - Salut Snotra, 1. I can advise you a good website which can help you to learn new vocab: http://www.languageguide.org/eng/ 2. Try to read children stories. It shouldn't be too difficult to find some on the internet. Just type histoires pour enfants or contes pour enfants on Google and see what you get. 3. The actif and passif are more or less the same as in English. Jean mange une pomme (John eats an apple) Une pomme est mangée par Jean (an apple is eaten by John) If you know le passif and l'actif in English, you know how to build it in French. :) | |
| snotra | Thursday 16th of June 2005 09:22:42 PM |
| - merci madame........ new question : is thr any formal differance btwn normal french and busineess french ? what? | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 28th of June 2005 11:00:50 PM |
| - Do people really even use the passif in everyday speach in French? ... I think it is the passif, this one lol: Une pomme est mangée par Jean | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 29th of June 2005 10:35:08 PM |
| - Is there supposed to be a large difference in the prononciation of the "il" form of a regular verb and the "ils" form? | |
| Tier | Saturday 02nd of July 2005 04:36:32 AM |
| - A response to smotra. There is no difference in French between casual and business language. Just when U speak "business like" U try to be more precise in the words U use and U speak to say something :) like in every country I guess. One special thing is the use of the "vous de deference". A very complicated thing the use of "vous" instead of "tu" in French. "Vous" is used when you speak with a superior in hierachy. U can use "tu" instead, but only if the superior have suggest U can employ it. Otherwise he will use "vous" and you respond with "vous", in no ways with "tu"... Using "tu" to a superior when he use "vous" is not far from an insult... :( Tier | |
| Tier | Saturday 02nd of July 2005 04:52:19 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Is there supposed to be a large difference in the prononciation of the "il" form of a regular verb and the "ils" form? [/quote] There is no difference between "il" and "ils" or between the feminine form "elle" and "elles". The pronunciation is exactly the same. Except... (exception is the rule in French...:( Except when a voyel is just after. Example : Il part or Ils partent : no differences for IL/ILS but for : Il arrive or Ils arrivent : you have to make a "liaison" with the "a" and pronounce "il z'arrivent" like a "Z". That the only difference that occur to me right now. You make the "liaison" with the voyels "a, e, i, o, u" and with the voyels preceded by a "H"... with an exception (of course). You have tomake the "liaison" when the "H" is "normal" like in "hôpital" but not with an "H" "aspiré" (take a breath?) like in "haricot". So U prononce "les z'hôpitaux" and "les haricots". Good luck... Tier | |
| Tier | Saturday 02nd of July 2005 05:02:26 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Do people really even use the passif in everyday speach in French? ... I think it is the passif, this one lol: Une pomme est mangée par Jean [/quote] It's a difficult response caramelicious. In fact we will never say "une pomme est mangée par Jean" mais "jean mange une pomme". Because "est mangée" is a short action who take time, who started in the past but is not finished yet. For this kind of actions, we use the "present time". But we will use the "passé time" for the same kind of action, but for a longer action, not a short one. For example we will said "la chambre est louée par Jean and in no way "Jean loue la chambre". Gramatically it's exactly the same sense, but in French it sound badly and uncomon. Good luck... Tier | |
| Caramelicious | Monday 04th of July 2005 10:54:47 AM |
| - A few questions: 1. c'est ce qu'il a de moins cher - Je ne comprends pas le mot "cher" dans le phrase? J'ai pensé que "cher" est "dear". Est-ce qu'il quelque chose autre dans le phrase ici? I hope that I worded that last sentence correct, I am just now getting use to "est-ce" and things that resemble that formation. 2. What is the difference between, une route, une autoroute, un boulevard, un rue, etc. Je ne comprends pas. Merci beaucoup ! | |
| Tier | Tuesday 05th of July 2005 04:48:04 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] A few questions: 1. c'est ce qu'il a de moins cher 2. What is the difference between, une route, une autoroute, un boulevard, un rue, etc. Merci beaucoup ! [/quote] Cher = expensive (a 2nd signification) Route is a road in open land Autoroute is a highway Rue is a road in a town Boulevard is a big road in a town (like an avenue) We have a lot of names for streets : chaussée (same as rue), chemin (petite rue), ruelle (petite rue), impasse (rue qui s'arrête en cul-de-sac : elle ne donne sur aucune autre rue), passage (petite rue entre 2 rues), etc Good luck Tier | |
| Caramelicious | Thursday 07th of July 2005 02:08:08 AM |
| Se ... - Verbs with "se" in front of them, I don't understand these. Do they represent actions or something and when I conjugation them do I conjugate the "se" part also or leave it alone.... - S'attacher a - Se taire - Se mettre a - S'en faire - Se faire mal Things like above, I believe that these are verbs... but they confuse me... Can someone give me a little information about them? :D | |
| Tier | Thursday 07th of July 2005 04:53:27 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Verbs with "se" in front of them, I don't understand these. Do they represent actions or something and when I conjugation them do I conjugate the "se" part also or leave it alone.... - S'attacher a - Se taire - Se mettre a - S'en faire - Se faire mal Things like above, I believe that these are verbs... but they confuse me... Can someone give me a little information about them? :D[/quote] Lo Caramelicious :) Very hard question and I'm affraid that my answer could be a little confuse (and not verry accurate). These are pronominals verbs. U have to conjugate them to have a proper use of the verb. Singular 1st person : me (m') 2nd person : te (t') 3rd person : se (s') Plural 1st person : nous 2nd person : vous 3rd person : se (s') The "me", "te" and "se" become m', t' and s'when they are used before a word beginning by a vowel or a mute h (s'attacher or s'habiller). We use pronominal forms when the subject does something to itself (reflexivity). Example : Je me fais mal = I hurt myself (pronominal form with reflexivity) Je fais mal à ma soeur = I hurt my sister (normal form) A lot of reflexive verbs exist in the two forms : pronominal or simple (ex : se faire / faire) Some verbs are ONLY reflexive. Ex : se souvenir (to remember). This is the basics. But you will found a lot more examples and other situations when pronominal forms are used here : http://www.languageguide.org/francais/grammar/reflect/ Enjoy and good luck (grammar always make me headaches... :( Tier | |
| Tier | Thursday 07th of July 2005 04:55:05 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Tier[/i] [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Verbs with "se" in front of them, I don't understand these. Do they represent actions or something and when I conjugation them do I conjugate the "se" part also or leave it alone.... - S'attacher a - Se taire - Se mettre a - S'en faire - Se faire mal Things like above, I believe that these are verbs... but they confuse me... Can someone give me a little information about them? :D[/quote] Lo Caramelicious :) Very hard question and I'm affraid that my answer could be a little confuse (and not very accurate). These are pronominals verbs. U have to conjugate them to have a proper use of the verb. Singular 1st person : me (m') 2nd person : te (t') 3rd person : se (s') Plural 1st person : nous 2nd person : vous 3rd person : se (s') The "me", "te" and "se" become m', t' and s'when they are used before a word beginning by a vowel or a mute h (s'attacher or s'habiller). We use pronominal forms when the subject does something to itself (reflexivity). Example : Je me fais mal = I hurt myself (pronominal form with reflexivity) Je fais mal à ma soeur = I hurt my sister (normal form) A lot of reflexive verbs exist in the two forms : pronominal or simple (ex : se faire / faire) Some verbs are ONLY reflexive. Ex : se souvenir (to remember). This is the basics. But you will found a lot more examples and other situations when pronominal forms are used here : http://www.languageguide.org/francais/grammar/reflect/ Enjoy and good luck (grammar always make me headaches... :( Tier[/quote] | |
| Pathfinder05 | Monday 18th of July 2005 02:03:12 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Tier[/i] [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] Verbs with "se" in front of them, I don't understand these. Do they represent actions or something and when I conjugation them do I conjugate the "se" part also or leave it alone.... - S'attacher a - Se taire - Se mettre a - S'en faire - Se faire mal Things like above, I believe that these are verbs... but they confuse me... Can someone give me a little information about them? :D[/quote] Lo Caramelicious :) Very hard question and I'm affraid that my answer could be a little confuse (and not verry accurate). These are pronominals verbs. U have to conjugate them to have a proper use of the verb. Singular 1st person : me (m') 2nd person : te (t') 3rd person : se (s') Plural 1st person : nous 2nd person : vous 3rd person : se (s') The "me", "te" and "se" become m', t' and s'when they are used before a word beginning by a vowel or a mute h (s'attacher or s'habiller). We use pronominal forms when the subject does something to itself (reflexivity). Example : Je me fais mal = I hurt myself (pronominal form with reflexivity) Je fais mal à ma soeur = I hurt my sister (normal form) A lot of reflexive verbs exist in the two forms : pronominal or simple (ex : se faire / faire) Some verbs are ONLY reflexive. Ex : se souvenir (to remember). This is the basics. But you will found a lot more examples and other situations when pronominal forms are used here : http://www.languageguide.org/francais/grammar/reflect/ Enjoy and good luck (grammar always make me headaches... :( Tier[/quote] So, those reflexives work just like Spanish? (Me, lo, se, etc.) | |
| Maverick | Thursday 21st of July 2005 10:03:59 AM |
| Anyone? - How does one use "anyone" in French conversation? I've looked it up and it is "ne importe qui", but how is it used? Could someone give me an example? How about if I wanted to say, "is anyone there?", how would I say that? Thanks for the help. | |
| mula | Thursday 21st of July 2005 04:16:58 PM |
| - Je viens de me rappeler la chanson célèbre "Les Champs-Elysées" par Joe Dassin: Je me balladais sur l'avenue, le coeur ouvert à l'inconnu J'avais envie de dire bonjour à [b]n'importe qui, N'importe qui[/b] et ce fut toi, je t'ai dit n'importe quoi <...> Quant à "Is anyone there?", je dirais "Y'a-t-il quelqu'un?". Pourtant, je ne peux jamais être sûr. | |
| Tier | Friday 22nd of July 2005 11:58:34 PM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Maverick[/i] How does one use "anyone" in French conversation? I've looked it up and it is "ne importe qui", but how is it used? Could someone give me an example? How about if I wanted to say, "is anyone there?", how would I say that? Thanks for the help.[/quote] Hi Maverick :) Anyone may be translated is several ways in french. "N'importe qui" but also "une personne quelconque" or by extension "tout le monde" etc... It depends on the sentence. ex : anyone could do it = n'importe qui pourrait le faire but "tout le monde pourrait le faire" it's okay too. In usual french the meaning is the same. But when U say "is anyone there" the translation is incorrect if U use one of these words/expressions. In french U say "Y a-t-il quelqu'un?" as mula said. Saying "Y a-t-il une personne quelconque ici?" is correct in sense and gramatically, but a little strange and absolutely not "french" and unused. "Y a-y-il n'importe qui?" is the same (more strange if possible ;) Goood luck Tier | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 24th of July 2005 11:49:03 PM |
| - How do I say words like "anything", and "something"? I think that it is "quelque chose"? Lately I feel as if everything I am learning is slowly dripping away. :( What are these words even called (as in the part of speach?) Oye! | |
| Tier | Tuesday 26th of July 2005 03:53:44 AM |
| - Lo Caramel :) Je ne suis pas aussi bon que toi en anglais, mais je vais essayer de t'aider un peu. Littéralement : anything = quelque chose = something Le mot à la même signification. Mais il s'utilise différemment, comme en anglais et avec des traductions non littérales : Something wrong? = Y a-t-il un problème? ou encore "quelque chose ne vas pas?" Is there anything left to drink? = Reste-t-il quelque chose à boire? mais également "Reste-t-il des boissons?" C'est le sens qui prime en fait sur la traduction littérale. L'idée est de traduire l'idée, pas forcément d'utiliser "quelque chose" à tout prix. Tier | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 26th of July 2005 06:30:51 AM |
| Now i have another... - (I hope that no one minds that I ask all of these questions, I only have 3 weeks before school begins, this is my first year in French Class and I decided to Enroll in French 3 (As If I have taken three years of French?!?!?!?!?!) ) Pronunciation.... How does "Parlerai" differ from "Parlerais" I can hear the difference between the rest, but first person in both of these tenses sound a like to me ?!?!?!? | |
| Mery | Thursday 28th of July 2005 12:39:18 AM |
| - I already gave an explanation about this a few months ago. I think it was Arteum who asked me exactly the same question. I can't find the thread in which I gave explanations :( (even in the archives) I can tell you that there's a clear difference between parler[b]ai[/b] (é) and parler[b]ais[/b] (è). We'll have to practice this on Skype ;) That's what I did with Arteum and he doesn't have any problems anymore. Btw, feel free to ask as many questions as you want :D You know we are glad to answer them! | |
| Caramelicious | Thursday 28th of July 2005 12:06:11 PM |
| - Merci! Ça j'aimerais beaucoup! | |
| Salanti | Wednesday 03rd of August 2005 10:41:25 AM |
| - Salute, I'm Salanti, I have taken a year of French 1 in 9th grade, and scrape a C+ cause I wasn't good at conjugating the verbs, grades over all A, B, D, B final C. mostly because I missed two days of school of a family emergency and it was the wrong days. and noone woould let me borrow their notes until the notebook check. I was going to give up on it till 12th grade, but my aunt encouraged be to go on learning on my own until then so here I am. I'd really like to go on with French. Merci for this site. | |
| Maverick | Tuesday 09th of August 2005 12:14:33 PM |
| - If someone could teach me the difference between parlerai and parlerais I would be very grateful. I have not used Skype yet, but it can't be too difficult. Mery, if you or anyone else could work with me on this it would be wonderful. Thanks. | |
| patrick123 | Tuesday 09th of August 2005 01:59:21 PM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Maverick[/i] If someone could teach me the difference between parlerai and parlerais I would be very grateful. I have not used Skype yet, but it can't be too difficult. Mery, if you or anyone else could work with me on this it would be wonderful. Thanks.[/quote] The tense of "parlerai" (sound 'é' at the end) is the futur. Example: Je parlerai couramment français l'année prochaine. [i]I'll speak French fluently next year.[/i] "Parlerais" (sound 'è' at the end) is conditional. Example: Si j'avais le temps, je parlerais plus souvent. [i]If I had more time I'd speak more often.[/i] | |
| Nikitazonas | Tuesday 09th of August 2005 02:26:00 PM |
| Salut tout la monde - Comment ca va? Je sais Francais une peu. Je voudrais aimer a etudie en AF pour Francais D'accord Au revoir | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 09th of August 2005 07:29:03 PM |
| - I can't quite understand. How are you. I know how to speak a little French. I would like to study in AF (?) pour French. OK Goodbye If this is correct please respond in this post, and I can try to help you with your statements, if Mery doesn't beat me to the punch lol. | |
| EmilET | Wednesday 10th of August 2005 08:24:08 AM |
| Hi nice people - I learn French on my own and all of a sudden came out to this amazing site. It's going to take some time to look around and ask questions. Just want to say Salut! And thank you for the good place. Emil | |
| Nikitazonas | Wednesday 10th of August 2005 12:43:14 PM |
| HI - D'accord ________ tre interessant!!! | |
| Caramelicious | Saturday 13th of August 2005 08:32:25 AM |
| - Est-ce que le mot "groupuscule" n'est pas un bien mot dire? Ma liste de vocabulaire le montre comme un mot "dirogative" ou "bad". Est-ce que vrai? J'ai pensé qu'il est "a small social group", comment est le mot mal? | |
| Mery | Sunday 14th of August 2005 09:19:28 PM |
| - Déjà il faut savoir que ce mot est très rarement employé. Le dictionnaire confirme ce que tu viens de dire. Ce mot est péjoratif. Groupuscule = (péj.) petit groupe politique | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 14th of August 2005 09:29:50 PM |
| - Merci... J'ai besoin de un dictionnaire | |
| Mery | Sunday 14th of August 2005 09:39:10 PM |
| - J'ai besoin [b]d'un[/b] dictionnaire. Oui, le Larousse ou le Robert sont les plus connus des dictionnaires monolingues. | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 14th of August 2005 11:17:12 PM |
| - What would be a good translation of the word "silly". I told my friend "You are silly", he didn't understand, he used an electronic translator and it said "idiot" and he thought that I was insulting him, but I wasn't is there a way to translate this word, in a way that I am using it? Or possible another word that means close to the same thing... | |
| patrick123 | Monday 15th of August 2005 03:44:07 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] What would be a good translation of the word "silly". I told my friend "You are silly", he didn't understand, he used an electronic translator and it said "idiot" and he thought that I was insulting him, but I wasn't is there a way to translate this word, in a way that I am using it? Or possible another word that means close to the same thing...[/quote] You can say "bête" Tu es bête -> You are stupid/silly | |
| osmansafa | Tuesday 16th of August 2005 01:34:39 AM |
| - salut i wanna ask the negative form for example i wanna say i dont live in spain how can i say je ne vivre pas en espagne or je ne vis pas en espagne | |
| Mery | Tuesday 16th of August 2005 01:37:31 AM |
| - Salut! Je ne vis pas en Espagne is the correct sentence. You need to conjugate the verb 'vivre' otherwise your sentence is wrong. | |
| dhairyasheel | Wednesday 17th of August 2005 11:05:36 AM |
| J'aime - j'aime voyager beaucoup | |
| Caramelicious | Thursday 18th of August 2005 08:21:24 AM |
| Imperative - How do I form the Imperative of reflexive verbs? | |
| Mery | Thursday 18th of August 2005 07:57:32 PM |
| - [u]Exemple:[/u] [b]se laver[/b] = to wash oneself Lave-toi! = 2nd person singular Lavons-nous! = 1st person plural Lavez-vous! = 2nd person plural | |
| Neila | Thursday 18th of August 2005 09:16:18 PM |
| - could someone explain me why it has to be Moi aussi, je pense qu'une conversation est mieux qu'écrire seulement un mot pour pratiquer le français but je suis meilleur en anglais qu'en allemand. ? Pourqoui une fois l'adverbe mieux et l'autre fois l'adjective meilleur? c'est dans tous les deux sentences une comparaison et c'est etre dans both sentences. merci en anvance et sorry pour the language mixture | |
| Nikhilkizvas | Friday 19th of August 2005 05:32:22 PM |
| - What is the difference b/w Tirage and Impression. Both are some sort of Printing | |
| Nikhilkizvas | Sunday 28th of August 2005 05:51:37 PM |
| Salut, Tout le monde - Bonjour, Je connais Francais une peu. I veux apprendre plus. Merci NIKHIL | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 06th of September 2005 08:52:10 AM |
| - Qu'est-ce que le difference entre "lorsque" et "quand" et les autre mots qui translate être "when" en l'anglais? | |
| osmansafa | Sunday 11th of September 2005 11:06:57 PM |
| a question again - i want somebody to explain these sentences i dont understand the form est-ce qu'il y a un homme sur cette maison? oui,il y en a un non,il n'y en a pas | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 11th of September 2005 11:25:08 PM |
| - Where did you get these sentences from? I think that they have some mistakes. :S Nonetheless are they saying? - Is there a man in this house? (If so, they used the wrong preposition) - I don't understand this one. :S - No, there is not.... (I don't understand this one either) Perhaps they should be: - Est-ce qu'il y a un homme dans cette maison - Oui, il y a d'un or Oui, il y a un homme dans cette maison. - Non, il n'y a pas un homme dans cette maison. | |
| Mery | Sunday 11th of September 2005 11:53:21 PM |
| - Est-ce qu'il y a un homme sur cette maison? would mean that there's a man on the roof. Hmm it's weird. I also think you meant: est-ce qu'il y a un homme DANS cette maison? Réponse: Oui, il y en a un = yes, there's one Non, il n'y en a pas = no, there isn't any Caramel, 'il y a d'un' is completely wrong. It doesn't mean anything. Osmansafa's sentence was right. Same for 'non, il n'y a pas un homme' => il n'y a pas [b]d'[/b]homme ;) | |
| Caramelicious | Monday 12th of September 2005 12:20:52 AM |
| - Ah ok! Glad you were here then lol. | |
| Mery | Monday 12th of September 2005 12:26:04 AM |
| - He he, oui :D Je ne sais pas comment vous allez faire sans moi quand je serai à Vancouver (je rigole ;)) | |
| Caramelicious | Monday 12th of September 2005 12:35:38 AM |
| - DUH! Nous sommes aller à parler comme ci! (Je ne fais pas une plaisanterie..... nononon, Je fais une plaisanterie.... j'espère :p *Je lis l'esprit de Mery "Quand je retourne j'espère qu'ils parlent toujours le français et pas le chinois :S" ) :D :D | |
| Mery | Monday 12th of September 2005 12:38:25 AM |
| - Ha ha ha :D:D:D Tu es trop drôle! | |
| osmansafa | Monday 12th of September 2005 05:27:02 PM |
| thank you - oh i was flabbergasted you are so quick to give answer but everything i wrote in the question was original i dint change anything and i got them from rosetta stone level 1 unit 1 lesson 7 someone can recheck there are two pics in first there is a man on the roof in second there is nothing on the roof question is the same and there are 2 answers i wonder why they teach wrong things "mais merci beaucoup" | |
| chacha | Tuesday 13th of September 2005 01:30:19 AM |
| excited to learn french, where do I start - Hi Everyone, I know some french, and have lost most words over time, because my lessons were incomplete. I was excited when I saw this, but where do I start for french lessons.. Are these just chat rooms? | |
| Caramelicious | Tuesday 13th of September 2005 04:57:55 PM |
| - There are many lessons chacha in the French2 Forum, and please, don't be afraid to post any questions that you have here, and to practice, make sure that you participate in the games and the conversation threads! Bienvenue! :D | |
| osmansafa | Friday 16th of September 2005 04:04:24 PM |
| a few more questions - 1-what does the meaning of "Que fait le garçon?" 2-While i was studying i saw two different pics the question is the same but the answers are different here they are: Q:Qu'est-ce que c'est,cet aliment? A:Ce sont des fraises 2.A:C'est du pain is it because "du pain" is uncountable and "fraise"is countable? 3-what's difference between "ce" and "cette" 4-is this sentence a full sentence if not is it used commonly? "Qui a les cheveux rouges?" i will really appreciate thanks in advance | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 21st of September 2005 05:38:47 AM |
| - Once again I will try, but I will probably be wrong 1. I have no idea 2. Qu'est-ce que que c'est, cet aliment? I think: What is this, this food? 2.A:C'est du pain is it because "du pain" is uncountable and "fraise"is countable? - Yes 3. Ce = Used for masculine singular words that do not begin with a vowel. - Ce prof parle trop. This (That) teacher talks too much. Cette = Use for feminine singular words - Cette fille est perdue. This (That) girl is lost. 4. Yes this is a full sentence. Is it commonly used, I don't know. If you need a translation it means: "Who has red hair?" Do you use this a lot in your native language? | |
| Mery | Wednesday 21st of September 2005 05:41:21 AM |
| - 1. What is the boy doing? For the rest, look at Caramelicious answers ;) | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 21st of September 2005 05:43:51 AM |
| - Ah! I did it almost right this time! With the phrase: Que fait le garçon I forgot that "faire" can mean "to do" lol, I was thinking "to make" and when I was translating in my head, I was coming up with all kinds of weird things lol, more so because I was thinking "Made" as in the past participle "fait". | |
| Mery | Wednesday 21st of September 2005 05:47:55 AM |
| - Bah, c'est pas grave. T'as bien répondu à toutes les autres questions. Comme je vois, tu es prêt à prendre ma place pour 5 semaines :D:D:D Heureusement que tu es là! | |
| rahulchan | Wednesday 28th of September 2005 10:48:42 AM |
| hi every one - Any body knows how to use conditional forms in french. Plz,tell me. Regards Rahul | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 28th of September 2005 05:44:15 PM |
| - Sure! There is a lesson on the conditionnel also in the French2 Forum, but basically you have the infinitive of a verb. We'll use "Marcher - to walk", then you add the déterminants of the Imperfect Marcherais Marcherais Marcherait Marcherions Marcheriez Marcheraient but not all verbs follow this pattern. Verbs like "Venir" and it's "Group" Venir, revenir, souvenir, etc. use are irregular and so is "être" Etre - Je serais Tu serais Il/Elle/On serait Nous serions Vous seriez Ils/Elles seraient Venir - JE: viendrais TU: viendrais IL/ELLE: viendrait NOUS: viendrions VOUS: viendriez ILS/ELLES: viendraient With venir, you take the stem of the verb used in the "Futur Simple" and add the imperfect endings, this is going to be the same with most if not all of the irregular verbs in this tense. To get other verbs in this "group", just add the beginning parts. "Revenir" = JE: reviendrais TU: reviendrais IL/ELLE: reviendrait NOUS: reviendrions VOUS: reviendriez ILS/ELLES: reviendraient | |
| Nikhilkizvas | Tuesday 18th of October 2005 12:46:14 PM |
| A Question ( Une Question) - What is the difference when we ask name in different forms in French? like - comment tous t'appelle? comment t'appelle-tous? quel etre votre nom? | |
| CKootsillas | Wednesday 26th of October 2005 06:04:27 AM |
| Hello, new... - I am trying to learn French. I need to know a good place to start. Like...where a good site with the alphabet and such is. Any info. would be extremely helpful. Merci, Coco | |
| Sybelle | Saturday 29th of October 2005 09:10:53 AM |
| Diffrences - I really want to learn french and i was thinking take a french course in Canada but i saw a web-page with pronunciation and i listened many differences between canadian french and french from France, how important is it in the oral practice of french?. Now i'm not sure if i should take french class in Canada or what other option could i have?? | |
| Mery | Saturday 29th of October 2005 02:27:09 PM |
| - OK, I am gonna try to answer all your questions. Nikhi: Almost all your sentences are wrong. => comment tu t'appelles? => informal => comment vous appelez-vous? => formal => quel est votre nom? => OK CKootlsillas: Have a look at the French 2 forum. You can find many lessons which can certainly help you with your learning. If you need a recording of the alphabet, feel free to PM me. I can send you a file. Sybelle, You're right about the big number of differences between Canadian French and French spoken in France/Belgium. In my opinion you shouldn't learn Canadian French. If you want to be understood by everyone, study French as it is spoken in Europe. I am from Belgium and sometimes I am not able to understand people who speak Canadian French mostly because of their accent which I btw find terrible (sorry to mention it). Anyway it's just my opinion :) Hope you'll come back here to ask your questions when you start learning the language. We're always here to help :D Bye everyone | |
| Morkenhai_Hawa | Saturday 29th of October 2005 09:02:02 PM |
| - Sybelle, There are many differences between Canadian French and "proper" French (not that I have anything against Canadians, and a lot of Canadians cross the Atlantic, often talented). The accent is one thing: it is, to some, pretty awful. And it can be rather hard to understand. Even people from Spain or Italy (for example) speaking French as a foreign language can be easier to understand (despite their sometimes strong accent). But then again, it's probably just a matter of getting used to it (try putting a guy with a strong Glaswegian accent in front of an American!). If you plan to go and live in Canada or stay in a Canadian French speaking environment, then you might aswell learn Canadian French. Otherwise, I advise to learn "French" French (the most widespread and understandable). Canadian French has some of the weirdest expressions (I say that, but they probably find some of our expressions weird). And being close to the US, some of the things they say are directly (litterally) translated from English, things "Rest of the World" French speakers wouldn't use. For example: -shopping = magasinage (instead of "faire des courses", "faire les boutiques" or..."faire du shopping") -fall in love = tomber en amour (instead of "tomber amoureux/amoureuse") Obviously people from Belgium, Switzerland or even different parts of France (especially North opposed to South) have different accents and expressions, but the gap between that and "conventional" French is not nearly as wide. To sum it all up, if you have the choice, you want to pick up a non Canadian French accent (France, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg...). Besides French expats you may meet, the closest French speaking places would be French Guiana, Martinique and Guadeloupe (though they have a particular way of speaking, it is way better than Canadian French). But if you don't have the choice, then... Pero si necesitas ayuda, mándame un mensaje. | |
| Maverick | Monday 31st of October 2005 09:58:59 PM |
| - Hi everyone, I've been watching the French In Action videos and I can't figure out a phrase/expression. It uses the word "peine". Some examples are: ce n'est pas la peine... ce n'est pas la peine de chercher... Someone calls for the girl and she yells, "ce n'est pa la peine de creer, je ne suis pas sourd." Can someone explain to me what this means? Thanks for the help. | |
| Maverick | Monday 31st of October 2005 10:03:51 PM |
| - I'm sorry, I think that last phrase should be: "ce n'est pa la peine de criailler, je ne suis pas sourd." That makes more sense, although I still don't quite understand what it means. | |
| Morkenhai_Hawa | Monday 31st of October 2005 10:12:26 PM |
| - I haven't seen the French in Action videos, but from what you've written, I guess the person must have said: "Ce n'est pas la peine de [u]crier[/u], je ne suis pas sourd." It means: "No need to shout, I'm not deaf." | |
| Maverick | Monday 31st of October 2005 10:53:14 PM |
| - Yes, thank you, that makes better sense. So, Ce n'est pas la peine de crier, je ne suis pas sourd. I still don't quite understand what the peine has to do with it. Is there a literal translation of this phrase? What does peine mean? The translations in the dictionary just don't seem to fit. | |
| Morkenhai_Hawa | Monday 31st of October 2005 11:59:31 PM |
| - Ce n'est pas la peine is "no need to" or "you needn't" but can be translated "you needn't bother". Peine doesn't mean one precise thing, but it's always with some sort of a negative idea. You don't need to make the effort of closing the door for example. You probably have the right litteral translations in your dictionary (depending on the context), but remember that if something sounds weird when translated litteraly, and if you haven't misunderstood it, then chances are it's an idiom. I don't know that "ce n'est pas la peine" (shortened to "c'est pas la peine" in everyday conversations) would fall in that category. But maybe. I hope I helped anyway. | |
| Maverick | Tuesday 01st of November 2005 05:30:10 AM |
| - Yes, thank you. That is what I needed to know. | |
| Maverick | Wednesday 02nd of November 2005 09:44:20 PM |
| - Voila, un autre question: Qu'est-ce que veut dire en l'anglais la expression "quand même"? | |
| Rion | Wednesday 02nd of November 2005 10:06:02 PM |
| - It means "all the same", or "even so". Also, 'peine' can simply mean 'pain' or 'bother', so 'c'est pas la peine' means it's not (worth) the bother. ^_^ There is also the phrase "Il vaut pas la peine", in which the word 'to be worth' is more obvious. | |
| Morkenhai_Hawa | Thursday 03rd of November 2005 01:01:51 AM |
| - I thought of "worth" but since the sentence was "c'est pas la peine" and not "ça n'en vaut pas la peine", I thought you may wonder where the worth came from. Even so, I don't know why, my brain seems to make a slight difference between "valoir la peine" and "être la peine". I advise you to use "ça ne vaut pas la peine" for "it's not worth it/the bother" and "c'est pas la peine" (sometimes shortened to "pas la peine") for "no need to/you don't need to". Personally, I see a difference, even in English. As to quand même, it has several meanings: -even if/even though (but in a litterary context, usually "même si" in a normal conversation) -anyway -even so (or "still" but with an "even so" meaning) -it can also be used to emphasize: "Tu aurais pu lui dire, quand même!" ("You [i]could[/i] have told her!"). Sometimes it comes out as "come on!" (but not implying a movement) -surely (in some cases). "Il a pas pu faire ça quand même!/Il a quand même pas pu faire ça!" ("He can't have done that, surely!") | |
| Maverick | Thursday 03rd of November 2005 01:24:08 AM |
| - Merci beaucoup mes ami. L'aide est super! | |
| mattie | Friday 04th of November 2005 03:00:38 PM |
| - What does à ++ mean? :( I'm having so much trouble understanding people when they use this. merci | |
| Caramelicious | Friday 04th of November 2005 05:08:56 PM |
| - It means "See you soon" as in A bientôt. Bientôt = soon, therefore it's kind of reasonable for internet usage and language, to replace it with a symbol. Soon can think of adding more time I am assuming, so the use of "+" keeping the "A" A++ A+ :D I also read in a French slang book that some people say "A plus". | |
| Morkenhai_Hawa | Friday 04th of November 2005 11:24:22 PM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by Caramelicious[/i] It means "See you soon" as in A bientôt. Bientôt = soon, therefore it's kind of reasonable for internet usage and language, to replace it with a symbol. Soon can think of adding more time I am assuming, so the use of "+" keeping the "A" A++ A+ :D I also read in a French slang book that some people say "A plus".[/quote] To be more precise, à+ (or à++ or often with a "@" replacing the "à") actually comes from à plus. It's phonetic (the plus sign being pronounced the same way). It's a bit like using "2" for "to/too" or "4" for "for". People do say "à plus" a lot. I knew it was colloquial, but not that it could be considered slang. It's short for "à plus tard" (see you later), but in the full form, the "s" isn't pronounced contrary to the short form. It's like writing "cya" for "see you later" in a way. | |
| ashxth | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 04:22:44 PM |
| Comment vous portez-vous?//=//How do you do? - hi, **Comment vous portes-vous? ==>How do you do?(formal of "how are you doing?" in UK English). Uk English Use "How do you do?" in formal Greeting and the answer would be also "How do you do?" someone told me that : "How do you do?" in English mean "Comment vous portes-vous" in French So does french use it in formal language, or it just in old books??? thanks for every body and have a nice day every day !!! | |
| ashxth | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 05:37:01 PM |
| Comment vous portez-vous?//How is your health? - Salut tout le monde!!! Salut Mery, Caramelicious, Morkenhai Hawa, et tout le French/French2 forum!!! Is this right!! =========================== =========================== *Comment vous portez-vous? Commnet te portes-tu? ===>How is your helth? =========================== *Je me porte bien. ===>I am well. Je me porte mieux. ===>I am better. Je me porte beaucoup mieux. ===>I am much better. *Je me porte mal. ===>I am "bad?"/"ill?"/not will ===>"I feel bad/ill" Je me porte plus mal. ===>I am "worse?". ===>"I feel worse" ???Je me porte ..... ===>I am much worse ===>"I feel much worse" ========================================= ========================================= **Comment va la sante? ===>How is the helth? ========================================= bine. bien, sans plus.==>???Good, no more. *bien sante.==>Good health. mauvaise sante.==>bad health. Meilleure sante.==>Better health. ????????? sante.===>worse health. *Merveille sante.==>wonderfully well. Parfaite(???) sante.==>perfect health. Bonne sante.==>??? ==>*Je suis en bien/bonne/meilleure/amerveille/.../ sante. ==>*?*C'est bien/bonne/meilleure/amerveille/.../ pour la sante. ==>*?*Je suis plein(?) de sante. ==>*Je ne me sens pas bien. >> I don't feel well. ==>*J'ai la peche. ==>**J'ai une sacree peche. =========================== Je vous remercie!!! Mery, Caramelicious, Morkenhai Hawa, et tout le French/French2 forum Merci, Merci beaucoup, Merci mille fois, Merci infinment... Je ne sais pas comment vous remercier!!! et Je ne vous remercierai jamais assez!!! Je vous souhaite le bonjour.... ..... | |
| ashxth | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 06:04:15 PM |
| Très, Trop// bien, mal !?!?!? - Salut... is this right... Très >> very, very much. Trop >> too, too much. Bien >> Good. Mal >> Feel "bad"/ill Pas bien.>??>not well. Pas mal.>>not bad. Tres bien.>>Very good. Tres mal.>>Very bad. *? ---- bien(??Bien mieux:far better)>>???>Better? *Plus mal>> worse? Pas tres bien. Pas trop mal.(X>Pas tres mal.)>>not too bad!!! Pas trop bien. >> ??not too good!!! Merci!!! | |
| clea_kashmere | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 06:19:17 PM |
| tagalog - if you want to learn tagalog or translate english words to tagalog. i can help you... just email me at clea_kashmere@yahoo.com | |
| Caramelicious | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 09:50:31 PM |
| - [quote] Salut... is this right... Très >> very, very much. Trop >> too, too much. Bien >> Good. Mal >> Feel "bad"/ill Pas bien.>??>not well. Pas mal.>>not bad. Tres bien.>>Very good. Tres mal.>>Very bad. *? ---- bien(??Bien mieux:far better)>>???>Better? *Plus mal>> worse? Pas tres bien. Pas trop mal.(X>Pas tres mal.)>>not too bad!!! Pas trop bien. >> ??not too good!!! Merci!!! [/quote] Je crois oui. | |
| Mery | Wednesday 09th of November 2005 10:15:59 PM |
| - Je crois QUE oui* Dans l'ensemble, c'est vrai que ça a l'air correct. Il manque juste quelques accents 'très' pas 'tres'. mieux => better pire => worse | |
| hotgal_4u13 | Thursday 10th of November 2005 02:46:59 PM |
| - i recently got an email from my singing teacher it was in french (i think) could you please translate it for me: vous informer ici que je commencerai vos leçons de chant bientôt thankyou | |
| Mery | Thursday 10th of November 2005 07:22:24 PM |
| - Hi, Your teacher just wanted to inform you that your singing lessons will start again soon :) | |
| hotgal_4u13 | Friday 11th of November 2005 02:40:25 PM |
| - thankyou for your help greatly appreciated | |
| jeewee | Monday 14th of November 2005 12:27:27 AM |
| - Hi all, Once upon a time I took French classes in high school. Unfortunately I don't remember a lot of the grammar rules but I would like to start with some of the basics on the tenses. I guess that is a good place to start (?) I am looking for a good explanation on how the tenses work in French and I bet there is already a magnificent explanation somewhere on this forum. I just can't find it :-) I already noticed "Le jeu des temps" which will be a good exercise once I know more about the tenses. Any help is greatly appreciated! - JW | |
| Caramelicious | Monday 14th of November 2005 05:45:38 PM |
| - If you go into the French2 Forum, there are many many lessons there. Some of them don't work, but right now I am in the process of writing more lessons. If you cannot find the French2 Forum, you can go into the French Forum and scroll down to the bottom of the screen, you will see a pull down menu with all the Forum names listed, simply choose the French2 Forum and you will go there. | |
| joshy | Monday 14th of November 2005 09:54:59 PM |
| French - Bonjour everyone. J'ai Josh and if you could tell me something cool about France that would be great. Je will try to start putting these messages into French and see what happens. | |
| Mathieu | Monday 14th of November 2005 10:11:28 PM |
| - * Je [b]suis[/b] / [b]m'appelle[/b] Josh Hehe, whoever thought I'd even make it to the French forum some day :D Now to get the hell out of here.. ;) | |
| ashxth | Wednesday 16th of November 2005 08:28:10 PM |
| Bien/Mal a la sante1 - Hi, Sorry but I still in the same thing!!! I just want to know if French use this or if there other phrase thay use The basic are 1. We ask someones about him by: Comment allez-vous? Comment va-tu? >>How are you (doing)? Comment ca va? >>How is it going? 2. The answer would be : Je vais bien. >>I am (doing)fine. or Ca va bien. >>It's (going) fine. 3.The other words we could use like bien are : Bien >> Good. Mal >> Bad. Pas bien >> Not good. Pas mal >> Not bad. Tres bien >>Very good. Tres mal >>very mal. The phrase I want to know if we can use or does the French use them are : Pas tres bien.. Pas tres mal.. Pas trop bien.. Pas trop mal.. What does thes mean in English and what is the deferant betwen Tres and Trop and when can we use them? Merci | |
| kurtosis | Saturday 19th of November 2005 04:37:05 AM |
| - [quote][i]Originally posted by ashxth[/i] Pas tres bien.. Pas tres mal.. Pas trop bien.. Pas trop mal.. What does thes mean in English and what is the deferant betwen Tres and Trop and when can we use them? [/quote] "Très" means very, or much. It just adds weight to the adjective placed after. A meal can be very good (très bon), a picture very beautiful (très belle), the music very loud (très forte), etc. It describes facts, not your point of view. "Trop" means litterally "too much". So, you cannot say that a meal is too good (trop bon), or a picture too beautiful (trop belle). But you can tell that the music is too loud (trop forte). It describes your point of view, just like if you ended the sentence by "... according to me" BUT, only in usual language, saying that a meal is "too good" (trop bon), or that a soccer player is "trop fort", adds emphasis, it is just like if you said "It is so good that it shouldn't exist !". It is some kind of teenager and skaters slang, though. Adults do not use "trop" when they mean "très". They only use "trop" for "too much". So, when asked "Comment vas-tu ?", if you say : "Pas très bien" -> Not very good (objective) "Pas trop bien" -> Implicitely, the same thing (it means litterally : "I do not feel too much good". "Pas très mal" -> Never used in this context. Forget it. "Pas trop mal" -> often used when you want to say : "I feel so-so". Implicitely, you have to understand it as "It could be worse". I hope this helps you. I tried to be as clear as I could :) | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 20th of November 2005 07:48:44 AM |
| - OK Ma question: Si "S'il te plait" et "S'il vous plait" sont "If it pleases your" vraiment, mais c'est "Please" comment est-il qu'on peut dire "If it pleases you". S'on dit "S'il te plait" est-ce que l'autre personne va comprendre qu'on veut dire "If it pleases you" et pas "Please"? | |
| kurtosis | Sunday 20th of November 2005 07:13:26 PM |
| - Your question is : how can we say "if it pleases you", like, for example in a shop "we can buy it, if it pleases you" ? The answer is really easy : we say "On peut l'acheter si il te plaît" :) Usually, everyone understands the meaning, depending on the context. But if you want to be very accurate, there are two different pronounciations : "S'il te plaît" is an expression that we say everyday, so we contracted the words, and say "s'il", juste like if it was one word "sil". So we say "Please" in 3 syllabs : "Sil-te-plait" When we say "Si il te plaît", just like in my shopping example, we separate "si" and "il" with a small pause, pronouncing the 4 syllabs : " si-il-te-plait ". | |
| Caramelicious | Sunday 20th of November 2005 08:21:48 PM |
| - Merci! | |
| ashxth | Sunday 20th of November 2005 08:55:13 PM |
| Bien/Mal with Mieux, Pire - hi and thanks for your time I jusst wont to ask about this and if French use it or not and if they use it how or in whats way!! 1. Plus what does it mean and can we use it with Bien/Mal Plus bien! Plus mal! 2.mieux >>better Can we say : "Mieux bien" or "Bien mieux" and if we can what does it means!!! 3.Pire >> worse. "Pire mal" or "Mal pire" I just want to say thanks very much to say the deferant betwin Tree and Trop Many thanks and have a nice day every day !!! Bye!!! | |
| aniretake | Monday 21st of November 2005 08:37:32 AM |
| Bonjour!/Bon soir! - je m'appelle Katrin. Je ne parle pas francaise bien. Actually i just started learning it. I could not attend classes in college as I work in the mornings and my tutor sucks! I wonder where I could find some French reading materials, something for beginners. Is there anything online? Also, is Canadian French much different from French in France? | |
| Neila | Wednesday 23rd of November 2005 05:16:11 AM |
| - WElcome to the French Forum, Katrin. You will find a list of all the grammar and other lessons here: [url]http://www.phrasebase.com/forum/read.php?TID=7226[/url]. I hope that you'll find what you are looking for. Moi, j'ai aussi une question: Au cours de francais on a écouté à un dialogue francais et un des locuteurs a dit: "Votre maison est grande common?" La prof a dit que cette question serait correcte mais de langage familier. Pour moi elle sonne très bizarre. Comment faut-il la poser dans un langage pas familier? De quelle taille/grandeur est votre maison? PS: well, perhaps a stupid question, but to whom should/can I send the exercises from the french forum2? Is it okay if I'll send them to you Mery? Just thinking 'cause they were posted by Caramel... | |
| Mery | Wednesday 23rd of November 2005 05:31:38 AM |
| - Oui, exactement, de quelle grandeur est votre maison? Une erreur que je vois souvent c'est: comment grande est votre maison? Personne ne dirait ça. Sinon, ta prof a raison par rapport à la phrase que tu as écrite, c'est familier. Je ne sais pas si je l'utiliserais. Je pense que j'obterais pour 'de quelle grandeur est votre maison'. | |
| Ignas | Saturday 03rd of December 2005 09:16:41 PM |
| - Salut, can someone check this excercise? I tryed to write in "good" words into ( ). 1. Vous avez été (au) bord (de) la mer. Vous avez assité (à) la montée (de) flots. (What is "montée de flots"?) 2. Il s'assit (au) chevet (de) lit. 3. Ils ont acheté une belle maison (aux) environs (de) la ville. 4. Il ne prêtait pas beaucoup d'attention (aux) bruits (de) quartier. 5. Madame de Rênal permit (à) ses enfants d'aller se promener. 6. Nanon participait toujours (à) toutes les fêtes (de) la famille Grandet. 7. Eugénie n'avait jamais reproché (à) son père son avarice. 8. La voiture (du) médicin était (au) bord (du) trottoir. 9. C'était un homme de cinquante ans (de) visage sévère, (de) regard dur, qui ne riait jamais et ne parlait (à) personne. 10. Martine n'allait plus ni (au) cinéma, ni (au) théâtre. Merci Ignas | |
| Mery | Sunday 04th of December 2005 05:07:18 PM |
| - Salut Ignas, Désolée de répondre si tard. 1. OK, montée des flots (= quand l'eau monte) 2. DU lit 3. OK 4. du quartier 5. OK 6. OK 7. OK 8. médecin 9. ,de visage sévère OK 10. OK C'était très bien :D Pas beaucoup d'erreurs, vraiment. Si t'as encore des questions, n'hésite pas... | |
| Ignas | Sunday 04th of December 2005 11:26:44 PM |
| - Thanks again I'm very glad to find help here couse learning French on my own is quite difficult. Here's another one... 1. Denise maintenant avait (du) pain tous les jours. 2. Martine se levait, s'asseyait, dégustait, ajoutait (du) sel, (du) sucre. 3. Une jeune fille venait chercher (de l') eau à la fontaine. 4. Maigret alla acheter (du) tabac. 5. C'était un homme agréable et qui avait (de) talent, mais qui n'a pas réussi parce qu'il n'a jamais rien fait. 6. Il y a (de la) viande dans le réfrigérateur. 7. Pendant les moments les plus difficiles de sa vie elle a toujours montré (du) courage et (de la) dignité. And no need to hurry |:) correcting. | |
| Mery | Sunday 04th of December 2005 11:29:05 PM |
| - You're very welcome! :D 5. ... DU talent All the rest is correct, excellent! :) | |
| oreshkin | Sunday 11th of December 2005 08:44:31 PM |
| - Hi I am new to this thread. And brand new to French. I was wondering if there were any new rules to pronunciation. Whenever I read a word I always seem to pronounce it wrong. any hints?? Thankyou | |
| Nightwraith | Sunday 25th of December 2005 03:09:38 AM |
| - well yes there are many rules in french...about how to pronounciate.... i'm typing a list here: e= i in first é= e in yet è= a in man ai= é au= o in olive a + 2 consonants (generally), ex: antérieur[onteriör] eau= au = o ei= é, (like eiffel tower) eu= e in french, i in first, with an exception: the participle of "avoir" = eu and it is read as "u" ,u in fury e + 2 consonants , ex: enfer [onfère] il , ill (generally)= iy ex: ailleur: [ayör], but there are some exceptions, ex: ville [vil], mille [mil] i + 2 consonants (nearly always), intelligent [entelijon] i + 1 wovel + 1 consonant, inéquation [inekuassion] oi= gives the voice in english: u+a, ex: froid [frua] ou= oo in shoot c + e,i,y => c gives the voice "s" ex: citron [sitron] c + a,o,u,any consonant(except h) => c gives the voice "k" ex: cassette [kasset] c + h + consonant (generally) => c gives the voice "k" ex: christian [kristian] c + h + wovel (generally) => c gives the voice "sh" ex: chaise [shez] g + e,i,y => g gives the sound "j" (in french),if there are not these letters then the g gives the voice "j" in jacket, ex: garage t + i = si,ex: international [enternassional] p + h = f wovel + s + wovel => s gives the sound " z " in the other cases it is always "s". ex: chaise. ss= always "s" in 95% of the words if there is no "e" at the end, the last letter isn't read. except "-ir verbs", ex: finir, plaisir, choisir......here you have to read the "r" ... i don't know if i forgot something but if i remember some thing else..i will add. or the other french teachers can add.. i hope it helps. | |
| Ignas | Tuesday 27th of Decembe |
