Why is this not translated as "she was wearing . . ." which would be consistent with the description of imparfait from the specific grammar lessons on Imperfect being equivalent to English use of 'was . . ' or 'was ..ing'. It seems to me that 'she wore . . ' would be more consistent with passé compose (Elle a porté . . .)? Noting further that for 'I bought . . . ' the origin of the translation was passé composé - 'J'ai acheté ...' in the same set of examples above.
Look at these adjectives:
Je parle une langue étrangère dans un pays étranger.I speak a foreign language in a foreign country.
Note that adjectives ending in -er in the masculine form change to -ère in the feminine form.
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
Q&A Forum 5 questions, 8 answers
Unfortunately, the correspondence of English and French is often misleading when it comes to the use of imparfait. Don't get hung up on the English tense. Try to get a sense of what one tries to express.
She wore a coat when she went out. -- Elle portait un manteau quand elle est sortie.
In this example you can use perfect tense in English but you'd use imparfait in French for the first part because it describes a kind of state (she wears the coat for a period of time, it's not an event).
It gets even more obvious when in this sentence:
I loved chocolate. -- J'aimais le chocolat.
I was at school today. -- J'étais à l'école aujourd'hui.
There are so-called verbs of state, which describe a state of being rather than a specific action (as, e.g., aimer or être). They will usually ask for the imparfait.
Maarten asked:View original
Translation of 'Elle portait un manteau cher . . "
Why is this not translated as "she was wearing . . ." which would be consistent with the description of imparfait from the specific grammar lessons on Imperfect being equivalent to English use of 'was . . ' or 'was ..ing'. It seems to me that 'she wore . . ' would be more consistent with passé compose (Elle a porté . . .)? Noting further that for 'I bought . . . ' the origin of the translation was passé composé - 'J'ai acheté ...' in the same set of examples above.
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PeggieKwiziq community member
Why is Cher Matt, chère Kate, vous me manquez I miss you and not you miss me
Asked 8 months ago
Hi Peggie,
Here is the Kwiziq lesson to explain the particularity of the verb 'manquer á quelqu'un' -
Hope this helps!
Chris Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
That's an often asked question and it confuses people because manquer works the other way around from the English verb "to miss".
Vous me manquez. -- I miss you. (NOT You miss me.)
Peggie asked:View original
Why is Cher Matt, chère Kate, vous me manquez I miss you and not you miss me
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AnnKwiziq Q&A regular contributor
why are ses dons jardinière used rather than dons jardiniers in the weekend writing challenge. We are speaking of a woman. But it is not dons de
jardinière, so the adjective is modifying masculine dons
Asked 1 year ago
Bonjour Ann!
Actually in the French sentence jardinière is not an adjective, but a noun used as a complement: literally "gifts of gardener / gardener's gifts", hence the agreement with the gifted person :)
Bonne journée !
Ann asked:View original
why are ses dons jardinière used rather than dons jardiniers in the weekend writing challenge. We are speaking of a woman. But it is not dons de
jardinière, so the adjective is modifying masculine dons
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RosalieKwiziq community member
Query about one of the questions using the adjective dernier
Asked 1 year ago
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DianeKwiziq community member
English translation - subject/object confusion
In the above statement: Cher Matt, chère Kate, vous me manquez. is translate to:
Dear Matt, dear Kate, I miss you. Why wouldn't it translate to: You miss me? I am having difficulty sorting the word order required in French for this English translation. Thank you
Asked 3 years ago
LauraKwiziq team member
Bonjour Diane,
Thia is a particularity about the French verb manquer, please see Manquer (à) = To miss someone/something emotionally
DianeKwiziq community member
Bonjour Laura, Thank you for your reply. The lesson link you provided helped remind me of that particularity.
Diane asked:View original
English translation - subject/object confusion
In the above statement: Cher Matt, chère Kate, vous me manquez. is translate to:
Dear Matt, dear Kate, I miss you. Why wouldn't it translate to: You miss me? I am having difficulty sorting the word order required in French for this English translation. Thank you
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