French language Q&A Forum

Hello all,

I've seen several French expressions/phrases where there is no definite or indefinite article, where there would be one in English. 

For example. C'est bon signe meaning that's A good sign, j'ai rencard avec lui meaning I have AN appointment with him.

Is there a general rule that explains this ?  

Thanks,

Jean

I know certain kinds of weather are expressed with a direct verb, like:

* il pleut

* il neige

* il tonne

But there seems to be multiple ways of describing other kinds of weather, like "it's sunny." I've heard:

* il y a du soleil (which is the example in this lesson)

but also:

* c'est ensoleillé

I've heard both:

* il y a des nuages

as well as:

* c’est nuageux

Are all these versions correct? Is one preferred or in more common use than the other?Thanks!

(1) If the person is female, we still use froid instead of froide? For example, Elle a froid?

(2) How about plural female pronoun like "elles"? Which one of the following is correct: a) Elles ont froid? or b) Elles ont froides?

Merci!

Bonjour Madame Aurélie,

While doing a test named “Conte de fées” I landed up at a mysterious sentence -

Le père était àgé et sortirait rarement de son lit, alors sa fille devait s’occuper du jardin et des animaux.

Here I would like to ask you why a dû was marked incorrect although the English translation specifies ‘so his daughter had to take care of the garden .....’ . I read your lesson which states that one uses Passé Composé for an obligation that was very well met. And here too is the same case.

The link to the test -

https://progress.lawlessfrench.com/my-languages/french/tests/take/2581800

Please help me to figure out the correct option as I am not very clear with this concept.

Merci d’avance ! 

Bonne journée!

I notice that all of the examples here have cues in them to indicate repetitive action. What if the sentence does not contain such cues? Should it be interpreted as continuous action or repetitive action?

e.g. Je faisais du sport.

Without any cues would that mean “I was playing sports” or “I used to play sports” or is it equally ambiguous?