The french words “deux” (meaning “two”) and “de” (meaning “of”) sound different to a French ear. They are easy to confuse for a learner because they are short and share the letter “d.” But the way you say them is not the same. The difference is in the vowel sound. “Deux” has a sound like…
Revenir à is a common French verb phrase with several core meanings. It can mean to come back to a place, to return to a topic, to go back to a previous state, or to amount to a sum. The exact meaning depends on context. The basic idea is movement back toward something, real or…
French uses two distinct nouns with identical spelling but different grammatical gender and meaning: le vague (masculine) and la vague (feminine). They are not interchangeable. Confusing them results in a change of meaning, not a minor grammatical error. La vague La vague is a feminine noun. It refers primarily to a physical wave. By extension,…
The french phrase faire le plein de is a common and useful expression. It literally means to fill up, but it has several figurative meanings. The core meaning: filling a tank The most basic use of faire le plein is for filling the fuel tank of a vehicle. In this context, you will often hear…
The french verb dégager and its past participle dégagé are common words with several distinct meanings. Their use ranges from the physical to the figurative, and from formal to very informal. The verb: dégager At its root, dégager means to free something or someone from an obstacle or obligation. It is the opposite of engager…
The french verb reporter has two main families of meaning. It can mean to postpone something, or it can mean to carry or transfer something. The reflexive form se reporter also has specific uses. Reporter: to postpone or delay This is the most common meaning. It is used when you move an event to a…
À tes souhaits and à vos souhaits are fixed French phrases said after someone sneezes. They are the usual polite response, like bless you in English. The choice between tes and vos depends on whether you address one person informally or one or more people formally. The noun souhait means wish. The phrase literally means…
Pousser un cri is a common French phrase. It means to let out a cry, or to utter a cry. The cry may be loud or soft. It may show fear, pain, shock, joy, anger, or surprise. The verb pousser normally means to push. In this phrase, it means to produce or utter a sound….
In French, the letter e in the middle of a word is not always sounded. Sometimes you say it, sometimes you don’t. This depends on how the word is built and how fast the speaker is talking. The same rules apply to everyday words and to verbs in different tenses, including the future. The basic…
To talk about the date in French, you need to know numbers, the days of the week, the months of the year, plus a few other terms. Days of the week The french week starts on Monday. Days are not capitalised unless they start a sentence. To say “every Monday” or “on Mondays,” use le….