French/Lessons/Culture

La culture Grammar Regular verbs french-regular-verbs Most verbs in French are regular -er verbs. Others are regular -ir or -re verbs or are irregular. Formation -er verbs -ir verbs -re verbsStem: parl... fin... vend... Subject Ending Example Ending Example Ending Example Je -eparle-isfinis-svends Tu -esparles-isfinis-svends Il -eparle-itfinit- vend Nous -onsparlons-issonsfinissons-onsvendons Vous -ezparlez-issezfinissez-ezvendez Ils -entparlent-issentfinissent-entvendent Common regular verbs -er verbs aimer Fr-aimer.ogg /ɛ.me/ to like J’aime beaucoup ce tableau. I love this painting. arriver Fr-arriver.ogg /a.ʁi.ve/ to arrive, to happen On va arriver à Paris vers 9 heures. We will arrive in Paris around 9 o'clock. chercher Fr-chercher.ogg /ʃɛʁʃe/ to look for Je cherche du boulot. I'm looking for some work. demander Fr-demander.ogg /dǝ.mɑ̃.de/ to ask (for) Je vous demande votre amitié. I ask for your friendship. donner Fr-donner.ogg /dɔ.ne/ to give J'ai donné le paquet au voiturier. I gave the package to the carrier. écouter Fr-écouter.ogg /ekute/ to listen to J’écoute la radio. I listen to the radio. entrer Fr-entrer.ogg /ɑ̃t.ʁe/ to enter Il entre dans la salle. He's entering the room. parler Fr-parler.ogg /paʁle/ to speak, to talk Zoé parle couramment le français. Zoé speaks French fluently. passer Fr-passer.ogg /pa.se/ to pass, to spend (time) On va passer la loi. We're going to pass the law. porter Fr-porter.ogg /pɔʁ.te/ to carry, to wear Quentin porte un sac de blé. Quentin is carrying a bag of wheat. regarder Fr-regarder.ogg /ʁǝ.ɡaʁ.de/ to watch sembler Fr-sembler.ogg /sɑ̃.ble/ to seem, to resemble Voilà ce qui me semble le plus probable. That is what seems most likely. trouver Fr-trouver.ogg /tʁu.ve/ to find, to surprise Je l’ai cherché, et enfin je l’ai trouvé. I searched for it and finally I found it. -ir verbs finir Fr-finir.ogg /finiʁ/ to finish -re verbs attendre Fr-attendre.ogg /a.tɑ̃dʁ/ to wait J’attends mon cousin à la gare. I am waiting for my cousin at the station. entendre Fr-entendre.ogg /ɑ̃.tɑ̃dʁ/ to hear Elle entend des voix. She hears voices. rendre Fr-rendre.ogg /ʁɑ̃dʁ/ to make, to pay (a visit) Tu me rends malade. You make me ill. répondre Fr-répondre.ogg /re.pɔ̃dʁ/ to answer Je vais répondre aux questions que tu m'as posé. I'm going to answer the questions that you asked me. Dialogue Culture National holidays and events in France Date English name Local name Remarks 1 January New Year's Day Premier de l'an / Jour de l' an moveable feast|moveable Good Friday Vendredi Saint Friday Before Easter (observed only in Alsace and Moselle) moveable feast|moveable Easter Monday Lundi de Pâques Monday after Easter (1 day after Easter) 1 May May Day/Labour Day Fête du Travail 8 May Victory in Europe Day Victoire 1945 End of hostilities in Europe in World War II moveable feast|moveable Ascension Day Ascension Thursday, 39 days after Easter moveable feast|moveable Whit Monday Lundi de Pentecôte Monday after Pentecost (49 days after Easter) 14 July Bastille Day Fête Nationale National Day 15 August Assumption of Mary to Heaven Assomption 1 November All Saints' Day Toussaint 11 November Veterans DayArmistice DayRemembrance Day Armistice 1918 End of World War I 25 December Christmas Day Noël 26 December St. Stephen's Day Saint Etienne Observed only in Alsace and Moselle Please take a look here, to have all the dates (French Overseas Departments (DOM) added). Culture Popular myths and stories in France Grammar To believe and to see Croire et voir Croire Croire is an irregularly conjugated -re verb. {| class=wikitable !croire /kʁwaʁ/ krwahr Fr-croire.ogg !! to believe''' |- |je crois /kʁwa/ krwah || I believe |- |tu crois /kʁwa/ krwah || you believe |- |il croit /kʁwa/ krwah || he believes |- |nous croyons /kʁwa.jɔ̃/ kro-yuhoh(n) || we believe |- |vous croyez /kʁwa.je/ kro-yuhay || you believe |- |ils croient /kʁwa/ krwah || they believe |- |cru /kʁy/ krew Fr-cru.ogg || believed |} The verb recroire to re-believe /ʁə.kʁwaʁ/ is conjugated in the same way as croire. Voir Voir is conjugated as an irregularly -re verb. voir /vwaʁ/ vwahr Fr-voir.ogg to seeje vois /vwɑ/ vwah I seetu vois /vwɑ/ vwah you seeil voit /vwɑ/ vwah he seesnous voyons /vo.jɔ̃/, /vwa.jɔ̃/ voh-yuhoh(n), vwah-yuhoh(n) we seevous voyez /vo.je/, /vwa.je/ voh-yuhay, vwah-yuhay you seeils voient /vwɑ/ vwah they seevu /vy/ vew seen The verbs prévoir /pʁevwaʁ/ Fr-prévoir.ogg, meaning to anticipate or to forecast, and revoir /ʁǝ.vwaʁ/ Fr-revoir.ogg, meaning to see again or to re-examine, are conjugated the same way as voir. The following nouns, adjectives, and phrases are derived from voir'': la voyance /la vwa.jɑ̃s/ lah vwah-yuhah(n)s mind reading le voyeur /lə vwa.jœʁ/ luh vwah-yuhewr observer, watcher n'y voir que du feu to be totally hoodwinkedto not spot a thingto be taken in prévu(e)(s) /pʁe.vy/ pray-vew Fr-Paris--prévu.ogg planned, expected prévisible(s) /pʁe.vi.zibl/ pray-vee-zeebl Fr-prévisible.ogg foreseeable, predictable la revue /rə.vy/ ru-vew Fr-revue.ogg magazine Voyons ! /vo.jɔ̃/, /vwa.jɔ̃/ voh-yuhoh(n), vwah-yuhoh(n) Really!, Yeah right!, Come on! Examples Je vois ma mère là. I see my mother over there. Nous voyons la mer pour la première fois. We’re seeing the sea for the first time. J’ai vu ce film. I’ve seen this film. Au revoir. Until [we] see [each other] again. Vocabulary Religions Les religions la religion /la rə.li.ʒjɔ̃/ lah ruh-lee-zhyuhoh(n) Fr-religion.ogg religion le christianisme /lə kʁis.tja.nism/ luh krees-tyuhah-neesm Christianity l'Islam /lis.lam/ lees-lahm Fr-islam.ogg Islam le judaïsme /lə ʒy.da.ism/ luh zhew-dah-eesm Judaism le chrétienla chrétienne /lə kʁe.tjɛ̃/ luh kray-tyuha(n) Fr-chrétien.ogg/la kʁe.tjɛn/ lah kray-tyuhehn Christian le musulmanla musulmane /lə my.zyl.mɑ̃/ luh mew-zewl-mah(n)/la my.zyl.man/ lah mew-zewl-mahn Muslim le juifla juive /lə ʒɥif/ luh zheweef/la ʒɥiv/ lah zheweev Jew l'athée (m) /la.te/ lah-tay Fr-athée-fr-Paris.ogg atheist Vocabulary Birthdays Anniversaires l'anniversaire (m) Fr-anniversaire.ogg /a.ni.vɛʁ.sɛʁ/ birthday, anniversary C'est mon onzième anniversaire. Le deuxième anniversaire de notre marriage. It's my eleventh birthday.Our second wedding anniversary. Quel âge as-tu ?Quel âge avez-vous ? How old are you? J'ai ____ ans. I am ____ years old. lit: I have ___ years. le gâteau (au chocolat) Fr-gâteau.ogg /ɡa.tɔ/ (chocolate) cake le cadeau Fr-cadeau.ogg /ka.do/ gift la bougie Fr-bougie.ogg /buʒi/ candle la fête Fr-fête.ogg /fɛt/ party inviter Fr-inviter.ogg /ɛ̃.vi.te/ to invite Le beau temps nous invite à la promenade. The good weather invites us to take a walk. donner une fête to throw a party Grammar Vocabulary Relationships le mari Fr-mari.ogg /ma.ʁi/ husband la femme Fr-femme.ogg /fam/ wife le/la fiancé(e) Fr-fiancé.ogg /fi.jɑ̃.se/ fiancée le/la partenaire /paʁ.tǝ.nɛʁ/ partner un amant Fr-amant.ogg /a.mɑ̃/ lover Vocabulary Popular mythical and fictional characters french-characters le père Noël /pɛʁ nɔ.ɛl/ Santa Claus Marianne /ma.ʁjan/ the personification of the republic Cendrillion Cinderella La Belle au bois dormant Fr-Paris--Belle au bois dormant.ogg /bɛ.l‿o bwa dɔʁ.mɑ̃/ Sleeping Beauty La version de La Belle au bois dormant que Jacob et Wilhelm Grimm ont publié est postérieure à celle de Charles Perrault. The version of The Sleeping Beauty that Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published is after that of Charles Perrault. Blanche-Neige /blɑ̃ʃ.nɛʒ/ Snow White Le Petit Chaperon rouge Fr-Paris--Petit Chaperon rouge.ogg /pə.ti ʃa.pə.ʁɔ̃ ʁuʒ/ /pə.ti ʃa.pʁɔ̃ ʁuʒ/ Little Red Riding Hood Le Petit Poucet Hop-o'-My-Thumb Le Chat botté Puss in Boots Vocabulary Holidays french-holidays Les Jours Fériés le Nouvel An /nu.vɛl‿ɑ̃/ New Year's Day 1 janvier la Fête du Travail Labor Day 1 mai jour de l'Armistice Memorial Day, Armistice Day la fête nationale /fɛt na.sjɔ.nal/ Bastille Day 14 juillet le Réveillon Christmas Eve 24 décembre Noël /nɔ.ɛl/ Christmas, Yule 25 décembre Usage notes To give Donner french-donner Donner /dɔ.ne/ Fr-donner.ogg is a common verb which usually means to give: J'ai donné le paquet au voiturier. - I gave the package to the carrier. Similarly to English, it can also have other meanings, such as to produce, to cause, to present, to pay, to establish, to attribute, to publish, or to administer: Cette grande fatigue lui a donné la fièvre. - This great weariness gave him a fever. Le professeur donne une conférence. - The professor is lecturing. (The professor is giving a lecture.) Il me donne de la joie. - It gives me joy. Examples Donnez-nous à manger. Give us something to eat. Donnez-moi le loisir d’y penser. Give me time to think. lit: Give me the leisure of thinking. Vous êtes bien aimable de nous donner votre soirée. You are very kind to give us your evening. Elle lui a donné beaucoup d’enfants. She gave him many children. Cette école a donné des peintres célèbres. This school produced famous painters. Donnez-nous-en la preuve. Give us proof (of it). Olivier a donné une relation de son voyage. Olivier gave an account of his journey. Il donne un ouvrage au public. He publishes a work. On lui donne tout le blâme. We give him all the blame. Quel âge donnez-vous à cette personne ? What age do you give (attribute to) this person ? Combien donnez-vous à vos domestiques par mois ? How much do you give your servants per month ? On lui donne mille euros. We give (pay) him a thousand euros. Donnez-en un example. Give an example (of it). Robert va donner une réponse. Robert is going to give a response. Il donne des avis et des conseils. He gives guidance and advice. Elle va vous donner une tâche. She's going to give you a task. Text Exercises Exercises french-exercises Donner translations Translate each sentence into English. Je vais donner une soirée. I'm going to give a formal party. On lui a donné les remèdes. We gave him the remedies. Il va donner les papiers à un notaire. He's going to give the papers to a notary. Sa femme lui a donné un fils. His wife gave him a son. Je lui ai donné une leçon à étudier. I gave him a lesson to study. Donnez-moi du temps. Give me some time. Le prêtre donne un sermon. The priest is giving a sermon. School Shopping