The article with the list of important irregular verbs in French has just been updated. New information has been added. Errors have been corrected. If you haven’t already read it, it’s worth checking out. I suggest you memorise at least the first nine (9) verbs on the list. These are être, avoir, faire, aller, venir, devoir, pouvoir, vouloir and savoir.
Read the article at this link.
The French saying “trempé comme une soupe” means literally “soaked like a soup.” It means “soaked,” “wet” or “completely wet.” This is a very old idiom whose exact origins are unknown. It sounds like it is stating the obvious, since a soup is, by definition, wet. But “soupe” originally meant the slice of bread that…
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…
Tenir à is a common French verbal construction expressing importance, attachment, or insistence. It links the verb tenir to a person, thing, or action that the subject considers significant, valued, or non negotiable. Core meaning At its most basic level, tenir à means to care about something or someone, or to consider it important. The…
Homonyms are words that share the same spelling or pronunciation but have different meanings. In this article, we’ll delve into two French homonyms: “parti” and “partie.” Meaning and Usage 1. Le parti: 2. La partie: Etymology 1. Le Parti: Latin Origin: The word “parti” has its roots in the Latin word “partitus,” which is the…
French words with an h aspiré often come from foreign languages where the initial h was truly pronounced. Foreign languages mean non-Latin languages. They include: 1. Germanic languages Many h aspiré nouns and adjectives entered French from Frankish, Old High German, or Dutch during the early medieval period. Examples: 2. Ancient Greek While most French…
The French expression “chanter comme une seringue” translates literally as “to sing like a syringe.” What it really means is “to sing off key,” or “to sing very badly.” The origin of this saying remains a mystery. What is known is that the saying dates from the beginning of the 19th century, ie the early 1800s….