Regarding the 3 examples using "seulement"

Judy V.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Regarding the 3 examples using "seulement"

Why isn't the translation for the "il mange seulement des pates le samedi, translated "He eats only" as in the first 2 examples since seulement is an adverb which is usually translated "He only eats:...
Asked 7 years ago
Ron T.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Note: You can also use seulement which means only in French, though it is not as elegant. J'aime seulement les pommes. I only like apples.I like only apples. Tu lis seulement le soir. You only read at night.You read only at night. Il mange seulement des pâtes le samedi. He eats only pasta on Saturdays. Try looking at this example rephrased: Le samedi il mange seulement des pâtes. this then becomes a statement of his habit on Saturday which is to eat pasta. Hope this helps.
Judy V.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor
So if I translate "Il mange seulement des pates le samedi" as "He only eats pasta on Saturdays" we will both be happy! :) If you wanted to, you could change the example to translate: "He only eats pasta on Saturdays."
AurélieNative French expert teacher in Kwiziq
Bonjour Judy ! This is actually an interesting difference between French and English: indeed, in English you would use intonation to stress which element of the sentence is being restricted by "only", whereas in French we move "seulement" or "que" directly in front of the restricted element. Here we tried to show this nuance by moving "only" accordingly: "Il mange seulement des pâtes le samedi." (He only eats PASTA on Saturdays.) "Il mange des pâtes seulement le samedi." (He only eats pasta ON SATURDAYS.) I hope that helps! À bientôt !
Ron T.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Merci, Aurélie. C'est très clair.
Judy V.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor
Merci for all your help. I didn't make myself clear on the question. I was asking about the english translation of the 3rd "seulement" example. Aurelie has now made it clear in the example she gives above-- "Il mange seulement des pâtes le samedi." (He only eats PASTA on Saturdays.) "He only eats" is what I would expect after reading the first two english translations. Will you be changing it?
AurélieNative French expert teacher in Kwiziq
Bonjour Judy ! I've now changed the English in the 3rd example :) Bonne journée !
Grossebebe L.B1Kwiziq community member

why using seulement is not elegant? I don't understand... How do you tell which one is and which one isn't?

Regarding the 3 examples using "seulement"

Why isn't the translation for the "il mange seulement des pates le samedi, translated "He eats only" as in the first 2 examples since seulement is an adverb which is usually translated "He only eats:...

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