French language Q&A Forum

The lesson states:

To express to need + [noun], you will use :avoir besoin de/d' + (article) + noun

The examples cited show the use of the indefinite article but none include the definite article and it could be implied that the definite article is never used after  avoir besoin de/d' which is obviously wrong. It is the old problem of the specific vs the general. Since this is a perrenial problem for French learners, it might be an idea to spell it out more explictly in the lesson.

Tom

As it is the girl who says that she is sure, shouldn't it be "Je suis sûre que ... " instead of "Je suis sûr que ... ? 

Also, is "Ce n'est pas grave" (with silent "ne") an accepted alternative for "C'est pas grave" in writing dictation? (I often can't hear all the little words in spoken French but still try to include them in my written responses)