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15,053 questions • 32,731 answers • 1,041,280 learners
Thinking...
Questions answered by our learning community with help from expert French teachers
15,053 questions • 32,731 answers • 1,041,280 learners
How do you know when to use égale vs égal?
I don't understand why "déguise" is used in the translation of "Grandma always wanted us to be dressed up for the occasion". The suggested answer given is "Mamie voulait toujours qu'on soit déguisés pour l'occasion". All the references I look at imply "make unrecognizable/camouflage", so I'm wondering why "déguisé" is preferred to something like "habillé" in this context? Is it an idiomatic expression?
Again, the use of little words like "bien" and "tout" are common in French and not direct translations from English. A unit explaining the uses of these two simple words would be really helpful.
"Il a bien compris." "Il a tout compris." "J'en ai bien envie." "Elle est tout heureuse." "Il y a bien de choses." "Il est a des kilometres de toute trace de civilisation."
Not trying to be a pest, but I would really like to master these simple little words and phrases to feel closer to fluent. Thanks.
Is there one place where the pronunciation of "plus" is explained? I'm halfway through A1 and it seems sometimes the "s" is pronounced and other times not. I did a search but just came up with lots of individual cases. Are there any general rules stated in one place or is it all idiosyncratic except for the liaisons? Thanks!
I hear sept heures moins quart, not sept heures moins le quart. Which is it?
It's more obvious when we're talking about a positive sentence like:
l'un et l'autre viendront => both are coming => plural.l'un ou l'autre viendra => only one is coming => singular.
But when it is negative:
ni l'un ni l'autre = pas l'un et pas l'autre => so it can be plural no?
Multiple sources suggest both singular and plural verb forms are possible for ni l'un ni l'autre:
http://bdl.oqlf.gouv.qc.ca/bdl/gabarit_bdl.asp?id=1490#:~:text=Lorsque%20le%20sujet%20est%20ni,deux%20noms%20coordonn%C3%A9s%2C%20est%20pluriel.
https://www.gymglish.com/fr/frantastique-orthographe/regles-orthographe/ni-lun-ni-lautre-nanont-raison
https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2guides/guides/clefsfp/index-fra.html?lang=fra&lettr=indx_catlog_n&page=9WmCJCDuX_J0.html
Dear all, some queries:
1. Could "I'd been certain" is translated as "je m'étais senti certain" ?
2. Could "la chance n'était pas de mon côté" have been translated as "les chances n'étaient pas de mon côté" ?
3. Could "Nous serions ensuite allés dans sa nouvelle maison" be translated as "Nous serions allés ensuite à sa maison neuve" ? Queries here about "dans sa nouvelle maison" vs "à sa maison neuve" and also about the position of "ensuite" in the sentence.
4. Could "que j'aurais fait meubler au préalable" be translated as "que j’aurais fourni en avance" ?
5. Could "au fil des ans" have been translated as "pendant les années" ?
Thanks in advance as always.
Thanks
For the question: 'How could you say "Gregory is going away for the holidays.",' 3 answers are correct:
Gregory part durant les vacances.
Gregory part pendant les vacances.
Gregory part pour les vacances.
In the lesson it is explained that durant/pendant is only used "to express a duration with a clear beginning and end." Holiday doesn't have it, so shouldn't be 'pour' the only valid option?
On reading your post, and listening to this lesson, the 1st plus does have a soft "s" and the 2nd one is silent. After listening to Forvo and Reverso, I noted that they pronounced the "s" in the 1st plus with a Z sound. Is this regional? Can you clarify please.
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