Ça a été is a common French phrase that can mean “it was,” “it went,” or “it was okay.” Its exact meaning comes from the context and tone of voice. It is often used to ask about a past event, give a short report, or say that something was acceptable. The basic meaning The phrase…
The safest everyday ways to say “I’m full” in French are J’ai bien mangé, Je suis rassasié(e), and Je n’ai plus faim. You can also say Je suis repu(e), but it sounds stronger and more literary. Do not use Je suis plein(e), which can sound odd or suggest something other than being full after a…
French has two common verbs for “to mean”: vouloir dire and signifier. Both get used every day, but they don’t always work the same way. Vouloir dire is the everyday choice, used in speech and in writing alike. Signifier leans more formal and shows up more in writing, in academic talk, and when discussing signs,…
The French verb aimer can mean both “to like” and “to love.” Its meaning depends on the person or thing that follows it, the article used with it, and the wider context. French also has several other ways to express fondness, strong interest, preference, attraction, and love. Aimer with people When aimer is used with…
The usual French translation of “What is it?” is Qu’est-ce que c’est ? In everyday speech, French speakers often say C’est quoi ? instead. The best choice depends on the setting, the tone, and what “it” means in context. The standard expression Qu’est-ce que c’est ? “What is it?” This is the safest and most…
English attaches “else” to pronouns and adverbs to point to an additional or different one: something else, anyone else, nowhere else, nothing else, somewhere else. French has no single word that does this job. Instead, it builds the same meaning from a small set of parts, chiefly autre (“other”), d’autre (“else”), ailleurs (“elsewhere”) and autre…
Contre is a small French word with a wide reach. Its core meaning is “against,” but depending on the sentence it can also translate as “for,” “to,” or “however.” It works mainly as a preposition, though it also appears as an adverb and as a noun. Part of speech Contre can function in three ways:…
Here are the 19 most frequently used irregular verbs in French. Since these 19 verbs are irregular, the way they are conjugated doesn’t follow the rules of regular verbs. (Conjugation: using the appropriate spellings of the verb to match I, you, he/she/it/one/etc, we, you and they). If you’re wondering why such frequently used verbs are…
Many French expressions ending in que are followed by the subjunctive. These include expressions of condition, purpose, doubt, necessity, emotion, concession and events that have not yet happened. Other expressions ending in que take the indicative instead. The word que itself does not determine the mood. Expressions that take the subjunctive Here is an alphabetised…
Devoir, avoir besoin de and il faut all point at some kind of need or duty in French. They are not the same, and mixing them up can change the sense of a sentence. This article lays out what each one does, when to pick it, and what else you can say instead. Devoir Devoir…
