Questions about choices of words

Question

I have several questions about word choices I made that were crossed out as though incorrect, so I need to understand why my choices were wrong.

I used « En général » instead of « D’habitude »

I used « je n’ai pas envie de courir » instead of « je n’aime pas courir »

I used « passionnant » instead of « excitant »

I used « ils ne touchent plus la terre » instead of « ils ne touchent plus par terre » or « ils ne touchent plus le sol »

I used « soudainement » instead of « soudain »

Were my choices incorrect, or were they just not one of several sentence constructions that could have been made? It is hard to benefit from these exercises if you don’t know!!

Thank you!

Accepted Answer

Hi Cornelia, 
1. For usually, the choices accepted are d'habitude and d'ordinaire.
Is generally different from usually - that is the question in both languages?
2. Je n'ai pas envie de courir is incorrect as it conveys a particular feeling on that day, the person says 'I don't like running' not 'I don't feel like running'.
3. You would not use 'passionnant' for an activity like 'running', maybe for reading a book or studying archeology...
4. The English is ' they ( my feet) aren't touching the ground' - accepted are 'le sol' or ' par terre' . La Terre can refer to the Earth or the soil but the ground is something else in my opinion.
5. For 'soudain', take a look at my answer to Robin below.  'Tout à coup' is also accepted.
https://french.kwiziq.com/questions/view/soudain-vs-soudainement
Hope this helps!

Answer

Hi Cornelia,Context, context, context.This the key to your query.In each case, your choice may be correct but it depends always on the context.A couple of examples from your long list:-En général --> as standard,  D'habitude --> usuallyAvoir en de --> to feel like / fancy,    Aimer  --> to likePassionnant  --> exciting,  Excitant  --> thrillingI'm sure that you will understand my point.Suggest you revisit the exercise and understand the context of the text and have another go at doing it.Hope this helps.Jim

Answer

Thank you, Jim and Cécile. Your answers were somewhat helpful, but is there a context reference source that you can suggest? I rely on WordReference, which does not distinguish, for example, between en général, normalement, d’habitude, d’ordinaire; they appear to be synonyms in that dictionary.

Also, is there a reason to use «plus PAR terre » instead of « plus LA terre »? One of your correct translations is « plus LE sol », so I don’t understand why « plus LA terre » is incorrect..

Also, sorry for my long list, Jim!!

Answer

Hi Cornelia,Yes, there is!   Try here:-http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/Jim