Là or puis

G B.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Là or puis

The sentence to be translated:

And then, after taking a deep breath,

 

The correct response given is:

Et là, après avoir respiré un grand coup

 

Why is là used? I wanted to use puis but it wasn’t given as an option. 

Would puis work?

 

 

Asked 1 year ago
CélineKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Bonjour G,

Maarten is correct with the use of "là" compared to the use of "puis / enuite" as the latter ones express a series of events while "et là" implies a very precise moment in a text/situation etc. (meaning, "right there/then").

I hope this is helpful.

Bonne journée !

Maarten K.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

My take on this - in the context she (‘Naomi’) is effectively describing these things as a part of the same event, rather than being seen as a series of events, which puis, or ensuite, would generally indicate. In English ‘and that’s when’ or ‘and then’ or ‘and at that moment’ etc

‘Et là’ ( “ and there “, basically ) is a colloquial French expression in this context - I can tell you it’s used by at least some native French speakers, but can’t give you a specific written reference to it. Alternatively, I would favour “ à ce moment-là “ ahead of puis or ensuite as a translation . 

As the primary transcript in English is written though, I think it is quite open to the listener/reader to interpret this as a series of events, and translate accordingly - which would include using ‘puis’ or ‘ensuite’ - given ‘and then, after…’. Such an interpretation would not be at all unusual for native English speakers in my opinion.

Là or puis

The sentence to be translated:

And then, after taking a deep breath,

 

The correct response given is:

Et là, après avoir respiré un grand coup

 

Why is là used? I wanted to use puis but it wasn’t given as an option. 

Would puis work?

 

 

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