Now that we’ve explored the money-related verbs gagner (to earn) and dépenser (to spend) in an earlier lesson, it's time to discuss other useful terms such as économiser/faire des économies (to save). Even though these verbs are cognates with “economize/economy,” they have additional meanings that you may not be aware of.

Let’s start with the cognate économie, which has similar meanings to English but is much more versatile. For example, you are likely to come across the common phrase faire des économies (to save money):

Conséquence : le changement d'heure est réinstauré pour faire des économies.

As a consequence, daylight savings is reinstated to save money.

Captions 53-54, Le Monde Le changement d’heure ne sert pas à grand-chose, voici pourquoi

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By itself, faire des économies refers to saving money specifically, but you can also use it to talk about saving other things. Just use the structure faire des économies + de + noun, as in faire des économies de charbon (to economize or save up coal):

L'Allemagne, le Royaume-Uni et la France décident alors de faire des économies de charbon et de pétrole dissipés en éclairage inutile.

Germany, the United Kingdom, and France then decide to economize coal and oil squandered on unnecessary lighting.

Captions 31-33, Le Monde Le changement d’heure ne sert pas à grand-chose, voici pourquoi

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Alternatively, you can use the direct cognate économiser (to economize), which applies to any context just as in English:

Pourtant tout part d'une bonne intention : faire économiser de l'énergie.

Yet it all stems from a good intention: saving energy.

Captions 9-10, Le Monde Le changement d’heure ne sert pas à grand-chose, voici pourquoi

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In any case, économiser or faire des économies is the best way to accumulate des économies (savings):

Ils fuient le domicile familial avec pour seul bagage quelques vêtements et leurs maigres économies.

They flee the family home with, as their only luggage, a few clothes and their meager savings.

Captions 108-109, Le Jour où tout a basculé Nos enfants s'aiment - Part 4

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It is no surprise that this versatile noun, l’économie, is also used to refer to the very quality required to save money, frugality, a virtue that the famous fabulist La Fontaine exalts in his fable La Cigale et la fourmi (The Cicada and the Ant). He contrasts the behavior of the spendthrift cicada with its frugal counterpart, the ant:

tandis que la fourmi représente le travail, le mérite, la mesure et l'économie.

whereas the ant represents labor, merit, moderation, and frugality.

Captions 14-15, Le saviez-vous? La Cigale et la fourmi - Part 2

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L’économie (frugality) also involves making choices that are économiques (economical):

Cette machine n'est pas économique, je vous l'assure. Elle gaspille du charbon.

This machine is not economical, I assure you. It wastes coal.

Caption 15, Il était une fois: Les découvreurs 13. Stephenson - Part 2

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Économique also means “economic,” as in la crise économique (the economic crisis):

La crise économique nous guette, les licenciements aussi.

An economic crisis is in store for us, as well as layoffs.

Captions 36-37, Lionel L Le déconfinement

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Likewise, l’économie also refers to the economy of a country: 

En effet, l'économie s'est retrouvée à genoux pendant deux mois

Indeed, the economy has been brought to its knees for two months

Captions 38-39, Lionel L Le déconfinement

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But note that in French, l’économie also refers to the science of economics:

Euh, j'ai fait des études de... d'économie. 

Uh, I studied, uh... economics.

Caption 29, Niko de La Faye "Visages" - Part 2

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Finally, to save you from making this mistake, don’t use the cognate sauver (to save) to mean “economize." For example, you cannot say sauver de l’argent (except in Canadian French). Use the terms mentioned earlier instead.

But do use sauver (to save) in a rescue situation, as in sauver la vie (to save a life):

Puis vint le jour où le prince annonça qu'il était tombé amoureux, mais malheureusement, pas de la petite sirène mais de la jeune fille dont il croyait qu'elle lui avait sauvé la vie.

Then came the day when the prince announced that he had fallen in love, but unfortunately not with the little mermaid, but with the young girl whom he thought had saved his life.

Captions 29-31, Contes de fées La petite sirène - Part 2

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In conclusion, remember that économie is a very versatile noun with meanings ranging from "savings" to "economics," "economy," and even "frugality." And don’t forget that you can’t “save” money with sauver!

You may be familiar with the common money-related verbs gagner (to earn) and dépenser (to spend). While straightforward in a financial context, these French verbs take on meanings that may surprise you when used in non-monetary settings.

Let’s start with the verb gagner, as in gagner de l’argent (to earn money). In the following video, Barbara is desperate to gagner un peu d’argent:

Il fallait absolument que je trouve un moyen de gagner un peu d'argent.

I absolutely had to find a way to earn a little money.

Caption 18, Mère & Fille Crazy Sitting

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We could say that Barbara is ready to start gagner sa vie (earning a living):

Barbara a hâte de pouvoir gagner sa vie comme sa maman.

Barbara can’t wait to earn a living like her mother.

Or Barbara could buy a lottery ticket instead, in hopes of gagner au loto (winning the lottery). That's exactly what happens to Sacha in this video:

Sacha a gagné au loto !

Sacha won the lottery!

Caption 7, Extr@ Ep. 6 - Le jour du loto - Part 5

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Here is something else you can gagner (win) in French: time! The phrase gagner du temps literally means "to win time," or “to gain time." ("To gain" is actually a cognate of gagner!) See how this cider manufacturer gagne du temps (gains time):

Donc, pour gagner un petit peu de temps, les pommes ont donc été préparées, nettoyées et coupées en morceaux.

So, to gain a little bit of time, the apples have therefore been prepared, cleaned and cut into chunks.

Captions 4-6, Frédéric La fabrication du jus de pomme - Part 1

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Gagner du temps also translates as “to save time,” depending on your perspective:

Je n'ai pas besoin de prendre les transports, donc je gagne beaucoup de temps sur ma journée.

I don't need to take public transportation, so I save a lot of time for my day.

Captions 55-56, Français avec Nelly Ma vie à Paris - Part 1

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As for “spending time," there are two ways of doing this in French: dépenser son temps (to use/spend one's time) or passer son temps (to pass one's time). The phrase dépenser son temps is not very common and is often used in a negative context. In the example below, time, like money, is considered a precious commodity that should not be wasted:

Ce n’est pas la peine de dépenser tout son temps à jouer aux jeux vidéos. 

It’s not worth spending all your time playing video games.

On the flip side, dépenser can also carry positive connotations, particularly regarding religious dedication:

L'homme doit dépenser tout son temps au service de Dieu.

Man must spend all his time serving God.

In most cases, however, French speakers use the phrase passer son temps to describe how they spend their time:

C'est un métier où on passe notre temps à ranger d'un côté sur l'autre,

It's a job where we spend our time putting things in place from one side to the other,

Captions 9-10, Gaëlle Librairie "Livres in Room"

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On the other hand, do use the verb dépenser (to spend) in a financial context. For example, in this video, dépenser de l’argent (spending money) is a fun activity for Barbara—until she realizes she has none left:

Si t'as dépensé ton argent, c'est ton problème.

If you spent your money, that's your problem.

Captions 33-34, Mère & Fille L'argent de poche

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Among other things, Barbara needs to watch her dépenses téléphoniques (phone expenses):

Pour maîtriser mes dépenses téléphoniques, ma mère avait opté pour un forfait commun.

To keep my phone expenses under control, my mother had opted for a family plan.

Captions 22-23, Mère & Fille Le coup de téléphone

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In French, it’s not just money that you can dépenser (spend). It’s also possible to se dépenser: literally “to expend energy on oneself,” or in other words, “to exercise” or “work out":

Et si vous alliez vous dépenser avec Maxime?

What if you went for a workout with Maxime?

Caption 60, Le Jour où tout a basculé Des hôtes pas comme les autres - Part 3

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In addition, se dépenser (exercising) is an opportunity to dépenser des calories (burn calories):

C'est mieux de... de faire ça, même si c'est calorique, c'est ci, c'est là... Non mais... -Tu les dépenses après.

It's better to... to do that, even if it's calorific, it's this, it's that... No but... -You use them up [burn them] afterward.

Captions 60-62, Sophie et Patrice Le petit-déjeuner

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Now that we’ve explored ways to gagner (earn, win) and dépenser (spend), how about discussing ways to “save” in a future lesson? Merci d’avoir passer du temps à lire cette leçon ! 

Attitudes toward money are deeply tied to the culture, values, and history of a country. While in some cultures, money is an open topic of conversation, in France, it is often seen as taboo. In her videos The Most Taboo Question in France, Nelly explains the reasons behind French people’s reluctance to talk about money. 

As Nelly explains, l’argent (money) is un tabou (taboo) in France: 

Et je vais t'expliquer dans cette vidéo pourquoi l'argent est un tabou chez nous les Français alors que nous n'avons pas beaucoup de tabous.

And I'm going to explain to you in this video why money is a taboo among us French people, even though we don't have many taboos.

Captions 20-22, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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Nelly mentions several reasons for this. Here is the first one:

La première, c'est que l'argent est symbole d'inégalité.

The first is that money is a symbol of inequality.

Captions 38-39, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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Indeed, l’égalité (equality) is highly valued in France:

Or l'égalité est une valeur très importante dans notre république.

Now, equality is a very important value in our republic.

Captions 40-41, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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After all, Liberté, égalité, fraternité (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity) is the national motto of the French Republic. This motto, which represents core republican values, is inscribed on French coins and on public buildings:  

D'où la devise Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.

Hence the motto Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.

Caption 42, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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These values have been firmly entrenched since the 1789 French Revolution, a time when French people fought for equality and sought to redress the injustice of la richesse (riches/wealth) concentrating in too few hands: 

Le peuple en avait marre. Il était lassé d'être dominé par la noblesse qui était beaucoup trop attachée aux richesses alors que le peuple avait faim.

The people were fed up. They were tired of being dominated by the nobility, who were far too attached to riches while the people were hungry.

Captions 57-60, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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This explains why French people prefer not to flaunt their wealth, lest it create jealousy:

Les personnes qui ont de l'argent préfèrent ne pas s'en vanter, ne pas dire qu'elles ont de l'argent pour ne pas créer de jalousie.

People who have money prefer not to boast about it, not to say that they have money so as not to create jealousy.

Captions 72-75, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 1

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The second reason why people don’t like to étaler leur richesse (flaunt their wealth) is the influence of religion, which encourages la modestie (modesty):

Et une des valeurs de la religion catholique, c'est la modestie.

And one of the values of the Catholic religion is modesty.

Captions 6-7, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 2

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N'étale pas tes richesses.

Don't flaunt your wealth.

Caption 9, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 2

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The third reason is linked to un système éducatif (an education system) that is designed to offer equal opportunities for all:

Notre système éducatif en France est fait pour donner la même chance à tout le monde et gommer les inégalités.

Our educational system in France is designed to give everyone the same opportunity and wipe out inequalities.

Captions 15-17, Français avec Nelly The Most Taboo Question in France - Part 2

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Finally, here is an old French adage that encompasses traditional attitudes about money:

L’argent ne fait pas le bonheur. 

Money doesn’t buy happiness. 

And yet, some French people, like Isabelle in this video, play des jeux de grattage (scratch-off games) religiously:

Alors à chaque fois qu'un nouveau jeu de grattage apparaissait, elle devait l'essayer.

So every time a new scratch-off game came out, she had to try it.

Captions 3-4, Mère & Fille L'argent ne fait pas le bonheur

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Barbara asks her mother what she would do with tout cet argent (all that money):

Ah ouais ? Et si tu gagnes, tu vas faire quoi de tout cet argent ?

Oh yeah? And if you win, what are you going to do with all that money?

Captions 5-6, Mère & Fille L'argent ne fait pas le bonheur

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So while it is not good form to discuss money in France, it is perfectly fine to ask someone what they would do if they won the lottery!

Do French accent marks really matter or are they merely decorative? We learned from previous lessons that, yes, accents do matter. They are essential for clarity, grammar, and pronunciation in French. This is especially true for pairs of words that look and sound nearly identical. A single, tiny accent mark—easily overlooked—is all that distinguishes their meanings. To help you avoid some common mistakes, we will walk you through some of the most frequently used "accentonyms", such as ou (or) and où (where).

Two of these “accentonyms” are the shortest words in the French language: a and à. Without an accent, a is the third-person singular of avoir (to have) in the present tense, as in il/elle a (he /she has):

Elle a des répliques cultes

She has some famous lines

Caption 20, Français avec Nelly How to Speak Like Marie Antoinette - Part 1

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With an accent grave, à is a preposition meaning "at," "in," or "to":

Alors qu'est-ce qu'il s'est passé à Paris le quinze avril deux mille dix-neuf ?

So what happened in Paris on April fifteenth, two thousand nineteen?

Caption 14, Français avec Nelly L'histoire de Notre-Dame de Paris - Part 1

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On a similar note, do not confuse the feminine definite article la (the) and the adverb of location là (there). They might even appear within a single sentence as shown in the example below, so be sure to spell them correctly: 

Et... là où en fait tu vois la perspective de la Dame de fer, la tour Eiffel.

And... where you actually see the perspective of the Iron Lady, the Eiffel Tower.

Captions 31-32, Marie et Sandra Atelier d'art - Part 26

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Speaking of location, note the difference in meaning between ou (or) and où (where). Don’t forget to add an accent grave on the u to indicate “where” you are or are going:

Et où est-ce qu'on va ?

And where are we going?

Caption 11, Extr@ Ep. 11 - Les vacances - Part 8

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And use the unaccented ou (or) when discussing alternatives: 

Ce virus ou cette pandémie, pour être plus précis, a une envergure mondiale aujourd'hui.

This virus, or this pandemic, to be more precise, now has a worldwide scope.

Captions 19-20, Lionel L La pandémie

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Let’s move on to a different accent, the accent circonflexe (circumflex accent), which can modify all five vowels (â, ê, î, ô, û). For example, the words du (some) and dû (due/must have) have different meanings. The French indefinite article du means “some” in English:

D'abord, prenez du chocolat et faites-le fondre.

First, take some chocolate and let it melt.

Captions 3-4, Extr@ Ep. 5 - Une étoile est née - Part 7

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With an accent circonflexe, dû becomes a past participle (of devoir, "to have to/must") expressing causation or probability:

Ça a dû lui prendre un peu la tête.

It must have given her a bit of a headache.

Caption 33, Français avec Nelly How to Speak Like Marie Antoinette - Part 1

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Likewise, be sure to know the difference between these two very common words: the preposition sur (on) and the adjective sûr (sure).

Cette pluie sage et heureuse / Sur ton visage heureux

That wise and happy rain / On your happy face

Captions 32-33, Le saviez-vous? "Barbara" de Jacques Prévert

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Déjà d'une, on n'est pas sûr de vieillir, hein.

First of all, already, we aren't sure we'll reach old age, you know.

Caption 15, Télésonne Micro Trottoir : Bien vieillir ?

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Circumflex accents don’t affect pronunciation when modifying the vowels u or i. However, in addition to a change of meaning, there is a change in pronunciation with accented ê, â, and ô, providing an additional clue as to their spelling. For example, the unaccented o in notre (our) has a more open, shorter sound than the accented ô in le nôtre (ours). Listen carefully to the two examples below, as the difference is subtle:

Pour notre dernière étape, il faut suivre ce câble.

For our last stop, we have to follow this cable.

Captions 77-78, TF1 Info Week-end à Angers et son trésor médiéval - Part 2

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Ce frère, c'est le nôtre.

This brother, he is ours.

Caption 4, Le saviez-vous? Les pronoms possessifs - Part 2

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The accented ô in le nôtre (ours) has a deeper, longer sound. When in doubt, remember that the adjective notre precedes the noun it modifies, whereas the possessive pronoun le nôtre stands alone.

Likewise, listen for the subtle difference between the more open and shorter-sounding unaccented a, as in tache (stain), and the longer, deeper accented â in tâche (task):

Le plafond du cabinet était couvert d'une tache d'environ soixante-dix centimètres de diamètre.

The ceiling of the office was covered with a stain about seventy centimeters in diameter.

Captions 83-85, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience - Mise en danger par un médecin ? - Part 4

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Pour vous faciliter la tâche

To make the task easier for yourself

Caption 145, Whoogy's Poulet au vin jaune & aux morilles - Part 1

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Finally, here is an example featuring an accent aigu (acute accent) that will change both pronunciation and meaning. Notice how such a tiny accent can make all the difference in the words sale (dirty) versus salé (salty). 

L'eau était s'... sale.

The water was d'... dirty.

Caption 42, Marie et Sandra Atelier d'art - Part 18

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C'est un peu salé. 

It's a bit salty. 

Caption 24, Mère & Fille Cuisine Monster

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We hope this lesson vous a facilité la tâche (made your task easier) and will help you avoid common mistakes in the future. For a more comprehensive list of “accentonyms,” check out this site. Thank you for reading!

In a previous lesson, we explored how the accent grave (è) and accent aigu (é) interact within a single word. But how do these accents function when conjugating certain -er verbs? Specifically, why do verbs like acheter (to buy) take an accent grave (achète), while appeler (to call) has a double l (appelle) in the present tense? Let's find out!

When verbs like these lose their -r infinitive ending during conjugation, a silent e remains in the last syllable, leaving us with two consecutive silent e's separated by a single consonant: "achete," "appele." Since French phonology typically avoids having two consecutive silent e's, the spelling must be altered—via an accent or a doubled consonant—to maintain correct pronunciation. Verbs that do this are known as stem-changing verbs.

One group of French -er verbs, including appeler (to call) and jeter (to throw), have a double consonant in certain conjugated forms. Basically, for the je, tu, il/elle and ils/elles conjugations, you take the verb stem (what’s left after you take out the -er of the infinitive), and double the final consonant: appell-, jett-. Then it's just a matter of adding the usual appropriate endings. But note that the stem only changes in the je, tu, il/elle, and ils/elles forms, not nous or vous. So you have j'appelle and tu jettes, but nous appelons and vous jetez.

The change occurs in the present and future tenses, and the conditional mood:

Je m'appelle Nelly.

My name is Nelly.

Caption 31, Français avec Nelly Coco Chanel - Part 1

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Vous verrez que Nico, le voisin, a toutes les qualités d'une star et que Spielberg appellera.

You'll see that Nico, the neighbor, has all the qualities of a star and that Spielberg will call.

Captions 31-33, Extr@ Ep. 5 - Une étoile est née - Part 6

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Et d'ailleurs, il est prévu dans "x" siècles que la Moselle ne se jetterait plus dans le Rhin.

And incidentally, it has been predicted in "x" number of centuries that the Moselle supposedly won't flow into the Rhine anymore.

Captions 75-76, Lionel L'Office de tourisme de Liverdun

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In addition, there is a second group of verbs that don’t double consonants, but require an accent grave on the penultimate e instead. Common verbs in this group include acheter (to buy) and se lever (to get up):

Tu achètes une douzaine d'œufs.

You buy a dozen eggs.

Caption 50, Extr@ Ep. 2 - Sam fait du shopping - Part 5

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Elle se lève à neuf heures.

She gets up at nine.

As with the first group, the verb stem doesn't change in the first- and second-person plural (nous and vous), as the final syllable is now stressed:

Donc c'est un objet en terre cuite, bien sûr, ce que nous achetons

So this is a terra cotta object, of course, which we are buying

Caption 23, Canal 32 Mesnil-Saint-Loup : moines artisans

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Vous vous levez très tôt.

You get up very early. 

Likewise, this rule also applies to the conditional mood and future tense:

Tu achèteras une douzaine d'œufs.

You will buy a dozen eggs.

Elle se lèverait à neuf heures tous les jours si elle avait un réveil.

She would wake up at nine every day if she had an alarm clock.

What happens when an -er verb has an accent aigu in it, as in céder (to cede)? The é changes to an è! 

Les Autrichiens cèdent une partie de leur territoire

The Austrians cede part of their territory,

Caption 58, Le Monde Comment Napoléon a conquis (et perdu) l’Europe - Part 2

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As mentioned in a previous lesson, the 1990 spelling reform changed some accent rules, but these are not universally applied. So, for instance, you will see both je cèderai (per the spelling reform) or je céderai:

Idem pour je céderai.

Likewise for "I will give in."

Caption 31, Lionel L La réforme du français

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Unfortunately, there's no hard and fast rule to determine whether a stem-changing verb takes a double consonant or an è. But to familiarize yourself with the full list of them, click here. Just remember that in all of these cases, the stem only changes in certain persons (je, tu, il/elle, ils/elles) and in certain tenses/moods (present, future, conditional). Thanks for reading! 

Now that we’ve learned about the accent aigu (acute accent), which modifies sound and differentiates meaning, it's time to introduce its counterpart, the accent grave (è, which sounds like the “e” in English “met"). We will explore the differences between both accents and discuss how é, è, and e interact within a single word. 

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Before we embark on this lesson, note that while both accents can modify the sound of the letter e, the accent grave is also used over the letter a as in là (here, there) and the letter u (only in où, "where"), but without affecting pronunciation:

Et voilà, je vais me réfugier, euh... là où je peux

And that's it, I go to take refuge, uh... where I can

Caption 62, Français avec Nelly L'histoire de Notre-Dame de Paris - Part 2

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Going back to the letter e, there is a definite difference in pronunciation between the grave è and the acute é, though this distinction is sometimes missed by French learners. For example, in the word élève (student), the é pronounced like the "ay" in "day," and the è like the "e" in "met." Can you hear the difference between the closed é and open è sound in this example?

C'est une très bonne élève.

She's a very good student.

Caption 68, Français avec Nelly A Simple Technique to Increase Your Vocab - Part 1

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Now that we’ve established pronunciation, let’s focus on the difference in accent placement. Unlike the accent aigu é, which frequently ends a word as in parlé (spoken), the accent grave è never does. But è often appears before a final silent s, as in procès (trial):

Le procès commence par l'audition de la prévenue.

The trial begins with the hearing of the accused.

Caption 57, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience - Volé par sa belle-mère ? - Part 1

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Interestingly, these two accents also share some common characteristics. Neither é nor è can be placed before a word ending in a double consonant, as in poubelle (trash/trashcan):

Or, une bonne partie des journaux finit à la poubelle.

Now, a large proportion of newspapers end up in the trash.

Caption 38, Il était une fois: Notre Terre 25. Technologies - Part 6

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Likewise, no accents are necessary for adjectives that take a double consonant in the feminine, as in muet/muette (mute):

Et bien qu'elle fût muette, le prince donna à la jeune femme mystérieuse une grande place dans son cœur.

And even though she was mute, the prince gave the mysterious young woman a big place in his heart.

Captions 20-21, Contes de fées La petite sirène - Part 2

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However, you guessed it, there are exceptions! Instead of taking on a double consonant in the feminine, a handful of masculine adjectives ending in -et, as in secret, take an accent grave followed by a single consonant in the feminine: secrète. 

Et qu'elle a... une technique secrète qui lui est propre.

And that they have... a secret technique of their own.

Captions 22-23, Lionel L Le truc

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Here is the complete list: complet/complète (complete), incomplet/incomplète (incomplete), concret/concrète (concrete), discret/indiscrète (discreet), indiscret/indiscrète (indiscreet), replet/replète (plump), désuet/désuète (outdated), inquiet/inquiète (worried), and secret/secrète (secret).

The adjectives mentioned above follow this general rule: when a word ends in e + consonant + unstressed e, the first e takes an accent grave. For example, père (father):

Mon père, ben, il était... grand

My father, well, he was... tall

Caption 84, TF1 Info Fontainebleau : l'appel de la forêt - Part 2

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Another rule is that when an e appears before two consonants, an accent grave is required if the second consonant is an l or an r, as in trèfle (clover), règlement (regulation), or lèvre (lip):

Et je remplis ma bouche avec mon rouge à lèvres.

And I fill in my lips with my lipstick.

Captions 44-45, Acelya Maquillage

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Voilà le règlement intérieur du zoo.

Here are the zoo's rules and regulations.

Caption 37, Les zooriginaux 3 Qui suis-je? - Part 3

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The 1990 French spelling reform made some changes to the rules for é and è, as Lionel explains:

Des accents graves vont remplacer des accents aigus.

Some grave accents are going to replace some acute accents.

Caption 27, Lionel L La réforme du français

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For example, événement (event) becomes évènement:

Le plus bel exemple, c'est événement qui avant s'écrivait avec deux accents aigus, et qui maintenant va avoir un accent aigu et ensuite un accent grave.

The nicest example is "event," which was previously written with two acute accents, and which now will have one acute accent and then a grave accent.

Captions 28-30, Lionel L La réforme du français

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The 1990 reform also simplified the conjugation of some first-group verbs. For example, the accent aigu é in the verb je céderai (I will give in) becomes an accent grave è, je cèderai:

Idem pour je céderai.

Likewise for "I will give in."

Caption 31, Lionel L La réforme du français

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That said, the 1990 reform remains controversial, and many writers, educators, and major media outlets choose not to follow it. So both événement and évènement are perfectly acceptable, as are céderai/cèderai. 

Here's a summary to help you remember where an è is necessary:

Before a final silent -s: 

procès (trial), après (after)

Before a final consonant + unstressed e:

père (father), mère (mother)

Before a consonant + le or re:

règlement (regulation), lèvre (lip), trèfle (clover)

Per the 1990 spelling reform, before a syllable containing an unstressed e, although an accent aigu is still acceptable:

évènement/événement (event), je cèderai/céderai (I will give in)

No accent needed before double consonants:

poubelle (trash), muette (mute)

In conclusion, despite the 1990 reform intended to simplify things, accent rules remain complex! So, until the next reform, our Yabla videos are here to help you come to grips with accents. Thank you for reading!

Unlike English, French makes liberal use of accent marks to modify pronunciation and differentiate meanings. They are an essential part of the language. However, since accents are rare in English, they can present a challenge for French learners. They may find the subtle differences in pronunciation challenging, not to mention that accent marks add another layer of difficulty with spelling. In this lesson, we will focus on the most common one, the accute accent (accent aigu), which exclusively modifies the letter e, as in café. 

The primary function of the accent aigu is to signal a change of pronunciation of the letter e (which is either silent or pronounced like the "a" in "a dog"), into a closed é (the same as a Spanish e). Unfortunately, such a sound does not exist in English, but it's roughly equivalent to a shortened, denser “ay” as in “day," pronounced with tighter lips. In English, you may be familiar with the loanword café, but can you say it the French way? Listen to the way a native pronounces it:

Enzo retrouve Brice au café.

Enzo meets up with Brice at the café.

Caption 2, Le Jour où tout a basculé À la recherche de mon père - Part 8

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In addition to altering pronunciation, the accent aigu can signal a change in meaning. For instance, the difference between the present tense and past tense of some verbs is only an accent away, as in parle (speak) versus parlé (spoken). In the present tense, parle (speak), like all regular -er verbs, ends in a silent e, pronounced "parl." 

Bon, je parle, je parle.

OK, I'm talking, I'm talking.

Caption 106, Whoogy's Poulet au vin jaune & aux morilles - Part 1

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Conversely, parlé (spoke/spoken) is the past participle, with the final é clearly pronounced, sounding roughly like “parlay” in English. So be sure to pronounce the endings correctly, as all -er verbs have a past participle ending in é:

Il a parlé de haine. Il a parlé d'humiliation.

He spoke of hatred. He spoke of humiliation.

Captions 78-79, France 24 Nicolas Sarkozy condamné à 5 ans de prison

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While parle and parlé are pronounced differently, parler (to speak) and its past participle parlé (spoke/spoken) sound the same but have a different ending, as is the case for all -er verbs. They can be hard to distinguish in speech, so it's best to rely on context and grammar to guide you. Generally, a verb following a conjugated verb will be in the infinitive form, as shown below:

Elle ne veut plus me parler

She doesn't want to talk to me anymore

Caption 54, Français avec Nelly Comment remplacer "mais"

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Moving away from verbs, accent aigu marks are usually less problematic when placed on other parts of speech, as they don’t involve grammar shifts:

Je viens de donner un cours avec un étudiant américain.

I just gave a class with an American student.

Caption 13, Français avec Nelly Les États américains

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Ils marchèrent un moment à travers le marécage

They walked for a while through the marsh

Caption 7, Piggeldy et Frédéric La pluie

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You may encounter words with multiple é’s, such as réédité (reprinted). Ré- here acts as a prefix ("re-" in English), which is followed by the past participle édité (printed):

La ville de Soissons a réédité des affiches de l'époque

The city of Soissons has reprinted posters from the era

Caption 22, Voyage en France Soissons - Part 1

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The record for the number of é’s found in a single word is five, as in hétérogénéité (heterogeneity):

Une riche et fructueuse hétérogénéité culturelle reflète cette variété naturelle.

A rich and fruitful cultural heterogeneity reflects this natural variety.

Here is another succession of vowels that may seem strange to an English speaker: three e’s in a row, as in créée (created)! The first é comes from the stem of the infinitive, créer (to create). The second is the past participle ending (créé, created). And the final (silent) e is the feminine ending:

Alors l'Assemblée générale de l'ONU a été créée après la fin de la Seconde Guerre mondiale en mille neuf cent quarante-cinq.

So the UN General Assembly was created after the end of World War Two, in nineteen forty-five.

Captions 8-10, France 24 On vous explique... l’Assemblée générale de l’ONU

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You'll notice that most of the words with é in the example above are cognates with English: assemblée/assembly, générale/general, créée/created. Cognate nouns ending in é in French often end in y in English, as in assemblée/assembly. 

Although accents aigus seem to pop up just about anywhere within a word, as seen in the example above, there are some restrictions. For instance, they cannot be placed before a double consonant, as in embelli (embellished):

Il fut bâti au treizième siècle et embelli jusqu'au seizième.

It was built in the thirteenth century and embellished until the sixteenth.

Caption 9, Voyage en France Vexin Normand - Gisors - Part 2

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In this word, the second e is pronounced é, but because it precedes a double l, it doesn't take an accent aigu.

When an e appears before a single consonant followed by a silent e, as in collège (middle school), the first e takes an accent grave (è), not an accent aigu:

J'ai douze ans et je pars au collège, en cinquième.

I'm twelve years old, and I go to middle school, in fifth grade [seventh grade].

Captions 2-3, Leïa L'école

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We'll focus on the accent grave in our next lesson. In the meantime, keep taking note of accent marks in our Yabla videos to familiarize yourself. Thank you for reading!

In Part 1, we discussed how textbook French, which is less flexible with grammar rules, is different from conversational French, which often takes shortcuts. For example, small words such as tu es (you are) are shortened to t’es (you’re), and some words, such as the ne in ne...pas, are dropped entirely. This lesson focuses on how some shortcuts can affect sentence meaning and clarity.

As we just mentioned, the ne in the negative construction ne...pas (not) usually disappears in conversational French. Like the two friends in the video below, most people typically drop ne, yet their message remains perfectly clear with pas:

En fait, je peux pas me réveiller si j'ai pas mon café.

In fact, I can't wake up if I don't have my coffee.

Captions 15-16, Sophie et Edmée Le petit-déjeuner

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Here is the textbook version with ne...pas:  

En fait, je ne peux pas me réveiller si je n’ai pas mon café.

In fact, I cannot wake up if I do not have my coffee.

While dropping the ne in ne...pas rarely affects clarity, dropping the ne in ne...plus (no more/no longer) can sometimes cause confusion. Plus on its own might be misinterpreted as a positive statement to mean "more." In the example below, j’ai plus faim could be misconstrued as "I’m hungrier." Fortunately, we can tell from the context that the person doesn’t want any more food:

Tu veux quelque chose ? Un fruit ? Non ? D'accord. -Non, merci. J'ai plus faim.

Do you want anything? A fruit? No? OK. -No thanks. I'm full [I'm not hungry anymore].

Captions 16-17, Le Jour où tout a basculé Notre appartement est hanté - Part 5

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In any case, using the complete expression ne...plus (no more/no longer) would remove any doubt:

Tu veux quelque chose ? Un fruit ? Non ? D'accord. -Non, merci. Je n’ai plus faim.

Do you want anything? A fruit? No? OK. -No thanks. I am full.

But if you're still in doubt, the pronunciation of plus provides an additional clue. Not pronouncing the s at the end of plus implies the negative ne...plus (no more), as in j’ai plus de batterie (I have no more battery, I’m out of battery). Conversely, if the s were pronounced, it would indicate the opposite, "more battery," which would not make sense in this specific context:

Non non non. J'ai plus de batterie, j'ai plus de batterie !

No no no. I'm out of battery, I'm out of battery!

Caption 102, Mère & Fille Soirée interdite

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Again, the use of the full negative phrase ne...plus makes everything clear:

Non non non. Je n'ai plus de batterie, je n'ai plus de batterie !

No no no. I'm out of battery, I'm out of battery!

Here is another common phrase that tends to baffle learners of French when they hear it spoken: je sais pas, often pronounced very fast as one word, "chaipa." It’s roughly equivalent to "dunno" in English:

Je sais pas, ouais, t'as changé les rideaux du salon ?

I don't know, yeah, did you change the living room curtains?

Caption 5, Mère & Fille Le dentiste

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Another potentially confusing trend in spoken French is the use of the very versatile personal pronoun on (one). Traditionally used to mean "one" or “people” when making a general statement, its usage has expanded in informal contexts to replace just about anyone: nous (we), il/elle (he/she), ils/elles (they), and even je (I)!  Essentially, it’s a favorite shortcut for natives who want to keep verb conjugations simple and take advantage of the fact that on remains in the third-person singular no matter who on is referring to. Typically, though, on is an alternative to the more formal nous (we):

T'imagines! -On serait capables.

Can you imagine! -We could do that.

Caption 69, Elisa et Mashal CV

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In the textbook version, the verb would change to the third-person plural nous:

T'imagines ! -Nous serions capables.

Can you imagine! -We could do that.

Here is another expression with on as an alternative to nous (we): the idiomatic expression on y va, which people use when they want to get going: 

On y va ! 

Here we go!

Caption 12, Il était une fois: Les découvreurs 13. Stephenson - Part 5

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Interestingly, as an idiomatic expression, on y va has almost exclusively replaced its formal equivalent nous y allons, which tends to be used in a more literal sense:

Nous y allons !

We're going there!

In conclusion, the use of shortcuts in spoken French is very common and convenient, adding fluidity and simplicity to the language. On the flip side, straying too far from grammatical French can affect meaning and clarity, which can be especially challenging to French learners. But don't worry: tuning in to Yabla videos will greatly improve your comprehension of real-world French. Thank you for reading!

Learners of French strive for grammatically correct speech, only to discover that native speakers usually don't speak "textbook" French. Some rules taught in the classroom don't always apply in real life, as spoken French abandons some conventions in favor of a more fluid and authentic way of communicating. While this fluidity feels natural to natives, these discrepancies can be confusing for students. In this lesson, we will explore how to navigate some of the main differences between “textbook” and spoken French.

Elision is a phenomenon in which certain short words, such as que (what/that) and je (I), lose their final vowel when they come before a word starting with a vowel or mute h. For example, you'd say j'ai (I have) as opposed to je ai, and quelqu'un (someone) instead of quelque un. This is a standard, obligatory aspect of both textbook and conversational French. But conversational French also does this with another word: tu (you). For example, French speakers like to condense tu as (you have) into what now sounds like one word: t’as (you’ve).

T'as encore faim ?

Are you still hungry?

Caption 26, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mes parents se préparent à la fin du monde - Part 3

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In textbook French, we would say the following:

Tu as encore faim ?

Are you still hungry?

Likewise, the expression tu n’as qu’à (you just have to) often gets shortened to t’as qu’à, which might sound like a strange new word to a French learner: “taka” instead  of “tunaka." This involves a double shortcut: the omission of ne (not) and the compression of tu as (you have) into t’as (you’ve). Omitting ne is also very common in conversational French:

Ben, t'as qu'à l'appeler. -Ben, t'as qu'à l'appeler.

Well, you just have to call her. -Well, you just have to call her.

Caption 84, Mère & Fille Mère ou sœur

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Fast-speaking Barbara could have slowed down and said to her mother:

Ben, tu n'as qu'à l'appeler. -Ben, tu n'as qu'à l'appeler. 

Well, you just have to call her. -Well, you just have to call her.

You'll also often hear t'es (you're) as opposed to tu es (you are):

T'es tranquille, quoi.

You're tranquil, you know.

Caption 13, Sophie et Patrice Dépendance des jeux vidéo

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Here is the textbook French version:

Tu es tranquille, quoi.

You are tranquil, you know.

French speakers frequently shorten common expressions made up of a succession of very short words. The phrase il y a (there is), for example, becomes y a (there’s), dropping the pronoun il entirely. Sophie uses the casual y a (there’s) in her friendly conversation with Patrice:

Y a beaucoup de poésie.

There's a lot of poetry.

Caption 11, Sophie et Patrice Dépendance des jeux vidéo

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She could have used il y a (there is), which sounds just as natural in a conversation but is a bit more formal:

Il y a beaucoup de poésie. 

There is a lot of poetry.

The negative form of il y a involves a striking string of short words: il n’y a pas (there is not). As you might expect, French speakers have found a way to simplify this! In casual speech, it becomes y a pas, which sounds almost like a single word: "yapa." 

Y a pas que ça.

It's not just that.

Caption 55, Mère & Fille Un vent de liberté

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The more formal version is seldom used in casual spoken French. Note here the use of cela, a more formal alternative to ça (that):

Il n’y a pas que cela.

It is not just that.

Here is another il y a expression: the impersonal phrase il n’y a qu’à (we just have to), which can be shortened to y a qu’à (“yaka”):

Y a qu'à lui en trouver un autre.

We just have to find him another one.

Caption 66, Les zooriginaux 6. Tiger Minor - Part 2

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Il n’y a qu'à lui en trouver un autre.

We just have to find him another one.

To sum up, here's a list of the shortcuts mentioned in this lesson:

tu as –> t'as (you've)

tu n’as qu’à –> t’as qu’à (you just have to)

tu es –> t’es (you're)

il y a –> y a (there's)

il n’y a pas –> y a pas (there's not)

il n’y a qu’à –> y a qu’à (you/we just have to)

We hope you will be able to use those shortcuts yourself and be on your way to sounding like a native! Refine your comprehension skills by listening to the way French speakers manipulate the language in casual conversation in our Yabla videos. And stay tuned for another round of textbook vs. spoken French!

In the first part of this lesson, we learned how to avoid the subjunctive by using an infinitive. In this part, we will explore how to use the infinitive in impersonal expressions. We will also focus on other creative ways to get around the subjunctive in negative sentences and other phrases, and discuss some of the pitfalls to avoid while making changes.

Some impersonal expressions that trigger the subjunctive such as il faut que (it's necessary that) and il est important que (it’s important that) can change to il faut + infinitive (it's necessary to) and il est important de + infinitive (it's important to). However, bear in mind that using the infinitive changes the meaning slightly, as we switch from a command addressed to a specific person to a general statement.

In the example below, Sophie uses il faut que tu + subjunctive (you have to) to tell Olivier to be patient when growing avocadoes from seeds:

Et puis là, il faut que tu sois patient.

And then there, you have to be patient.

Caption 25, Sophie et Olivier Les avocatiers de Sophie

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Sophie could have used the infinitive instead, but as mentioned earlier, it would change the meaning slightly. In this case, il faut + infinitive would no longer be a personal recommendation addressed specifically to Olivier, but general advice for avocado growers:

Et puis là, il faut être patient.

And then there, one has to be patient.

Likewise, c’est important que (it’s important that), which calls for the subjunctive, can be reworked with an infinitive without altering the meaning. The problem is that it would require making some major changes that might seem tricky:

C'est important que le sucre soit bien dissout et que la vanille infuse correctement.

It's important that the sugar be well dissolved and that the vanilla infuse properly.

Captions 52-53, Whoogy's Crème brûlée facile & ultra-onctueuse

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C'est important de bien dissoudre le sucre et d’infuser la vanille correctement.

It's important to dissolve the sugar well and infuse the vanilla properly.

Indeed, this required us to overhaul the whole sentence structure. In the end, it may be simpler to learn how to use the subjunctive! 

Other times, switching to the infinitive may look deceptively easy, but under close scrutiny, we realize that it is not grammatically possible:

Il faut que j'y aille. J'ai un métro à prendre, moi.

I have to go. I have a metro to catch.

Captions 73-74, Sophie et Patrice Les transports publics

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Since this is a first-person sentence, it wouldn't make sense as a general statement, which involves more than one person. It would only work if the recommendation was made by someone else, for example by changing je to tu:

Il faut y aller. Tu as un métro à prendre.

You have to go. You have a metro to catch.

Il faut + infinitive is really a euphemism for “you should" here. It would also work if we used nous/on:

Il faut y aller. On a/Nous avons un métro à prendre.

We should go. We have a metro to catch.

If that sounds far too complicated, there's a simpler way to avoid all this: find a synonym instead! Instead of il faut que j’y aille, you can say je dois y aller (I must/have to go).

Je dois y aller. J'ai un métro à prendre.

I have to go. I have a metro to catch.

There are other creative ways to avoid some subjunctives. One of them is to split a main clause and dependent clause into two independent clauses:  

Mais je suis content que ce soit toi qui l'achètes.

But I'm glad it's you who's buying it.

Caption 42, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience: Détournement d'argent dans le couple ? - Part 2

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Instead of saying je suis content que tu + subjunctive, we could split the sentence in two after content:

Mais je suis content. C’est toi qui l'achètes.

But I'm glad. It's you who's buying it.

Or we could keep it all one sentence and link the two clauses with parce que (because) or puisque (since):

Mais je suis content parce que/puisque c’est toi qui l'achètes.

But I'm glad because/since it's you who's buying it.

There is yet another way to avoid the subjunctive: replacing an impersonal expression with an adverb. For instance, il est heureux que (it’s fortunate that) can change to heureusement (fortunately):

Il est heureux que la Confédération ne connaisse pas de problèmes pour l'heure.

It's fortunate that the Confederation isn't experiencing any problems for the time being.

Caption 17, Il était une fois: L’Espace 3. La planète verte - Part 2

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Rephrasing the sentence with an adverb makes it less formal and more concise:

Heureusement, la Confédération ne connaît pas de problèmes pour l'heure.

Fortunately, the Confederation isn't experiencing any problems for the time being.

It is also possible to avoid the subjunctive by finding a close alternative. For example, replace subjunctive-triggering expressions such as je ne suis pas sûr que (I am not sure that) with je ne sais pas (I don’t know). Here, we're removing the degree of uncertainty, so we don’t need the subjunctive anymore:

Je suis pas sûre que ça soit la bonne version, par contre.

I'm not sure that's the right version, though.

Caption 14, Le Jour où tout a basculé À la recherche de mon passé - Part 7

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Je ne sais pas si c’est la bonne version, par contre.

I don't know if that's the right version, though.

However, it is sometimes not possible to make changes without losing the meaning of the sentence. For example, in both French and English you cannot change je ne crois pas qu'ils soient (I don’t believe they are) to je crois qu’ils ne sont pas (I believe they are not) without changing the meaning:

Je ne crois pas que ce soit [qu'ils soient] des amis.

I don't believe they are friends.

Caption 9, Il était une fois: les Explorateurs 10. Amerigo Vespucci - Part 7

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If we were to restructure the sentence to avoid the subjunctive, we'd be switching from a doubt to a categorical statement:

Je crois qu’ils ne sont pas des amis.

I believe they are not friends.

In conclusion, you can avoid the subjunctive for the sake of simplicity, as French speakers often do, using many different techniques. Just be aware that it is not always advisable or possible to avoid it, as it can alter the meaning of a sentence. For some practice rewording subjunctive sentences, click here. Thank you for reading!

Many situations in French call for the use of the subjunctive mood, a tricky concept for English speakers learning the language. Fortunately, there are some ways of avoiding subjunctives by using an infinitive or another turn of phrase instead. Let's focus on one of these ways in this lesson.

Some subordinating conjunctions that trigger the subjunctive, such as afin que (in order to) and avant que (before), can sometimes change to afin de/avant de + infinitive, as long as the main clause and dependent clause share the same subject.

Let's start with some sentences where the subjunctive is unavoidable. In the example below, we have two different subjects, on (an indeterminate third-person pronoun rendered by the passive voice in English) and les voleurs (the thieves). Both subjects perform different actions: on (they, someone) place crocodiles, and les voleurs (the thieves) pull back. Therefore, we have to keep the subjunctive:

Et selon la légende, on y aurait même installé des crocodiles afin que les voleurs fassent définitivement marche arrière.

And according to the legend, crocodiles might even have been placed there so that the thieves would definitely pull back.

Captions 28-29, Voyage dans Paris Le 17ème arrondissement de Paris

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Likewise, in the following example, we can't change avant que + subjunctive to avant de + infinitive, because we're dealing with two conflicting parties (tu and les humains): 

Croqueur, tu dois partir du zoo avant que les humains ne viennent te chercher.

Croqueur, you have to leave the zoo before the humans come looking for you.

Captions 15-16, Les zooriginaux La rage de Croqueur - Part 4

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Certain fixed, idiomatic expressions like avant qu’il ne soit trop tard (before it’s too late) can't be reworded to avoid the subjunctive either: 

Il nous faut absolument démasquer les coupables avant qu'il ne soit trop tard.

We absolutely must uncover the culprits before it's too late.

Caption 45. Il était une fois: L’Espace - 6. La révolte des robots - Part 7

Now here's an example that can be reworded:

Ensuite on va enlever du feu, rajouter la farine d'un bloc et remuer très rapidement afin que ça ne forme pas de grumeaux.

Then we're going to take [it] off the heat, add the flour in one go, and stir very quickly so that it doesn't form lumps.

Captions 7-9, Asma Le roulé mangue, vanille et fruits de la passion - Part 2

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Here, afin que + subjunctive can be changed to afin de + infinitive because the subject is identical in both the main and dependent clauses. The main subject, on (we, i.e. the cook) is taking food off the heat to avoid a chemical reaction, former des grumeaux (forming lumps). (Technically, ça is the subject of the dependent clause, but the sentence as a whole is describing the action of one person, the cook.) So now we can get rid of the subjunctive and say afin de ne pas former de grumeaux (so as not to form lumps): 

Ensuite on va enlever du feu, rajouter la farine d'un bloc et remuer très rapidement afin de ne pas former de grumeaux.

Then we're going to take [it] off the heat, add the flour in one go, and stir very quickly so as not to form lumps.

Likewise, this example with avant que can be reworded since the subject (nous) is the same in both clauses:

Ne pouvons-nous pas nous reposer un peu, avant que nous arrivions au ciel ?

Can't we rest a little before we arrive at the sky?

Captions 21-22, Piggeldy et Frédéric Le ciel

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Ne pouvons-nous pas nous reposer un peu avant d'arriver au ciel ?

Can't we rest a little before arriving at the sky?

Piggeldy also could have avoided the subjunctive in another way, by using avant + noun: 

Ne pouvons-nous pas nous reposer un peu, avant notre arrivée au ciel ?

Can't we rest a little before our arrival at the sky?

On the flip side, there are some instances where afin de/avant de is preferable to afin que/avant que. Take this sentence:

Avant de conclure, j'aimerais quand même te montrer quelques exemples qui se construisent

Before concluding, I'd still like to show you a few examples that are constructed

Captions 63-64, Français avec Nelly À ou De ? - Part 2

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Although the alternative with avant que + subjunctive is technically correct, it would sound stilted in French:

Avant que je conclue, j'aimerais quand même te montrer quelques exemples…

Before I conclude, I'd still like to show you quelques exemples…

In conclusion, keep these constructions in mind afin d'éviter le subjonctif (in order to avoid the subjunctive). Bon courage and thank you for reading!

There is no shortage of fun and unusual places to stay in France. In this lesson, we’re going to travel vicariously and explore various types of accommodations, from old-timey luxury hotels and castles, to barges, to treehouses for nature lovers. 

For those who want to immerse themselves in history and travel back in time, why not try the castle experience? In his video, Daniel Benchimol will take you to the Château d’Urtubie in the Basque country, which is now un hôtel (with a silent h in French) and un monument national at the same time:

Je vous propose de découvrir un château extraordinaire, le château d'Urtubie, qui est à la fois un monument national, mais aussi un hôtel.

I invite you to discover an extraordinary castle, the Château d'Urtubie, which is at once a national monument, but also a hotel.

Captions 2-4, Voyage en France Château d'Urtubie

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What’s more, you get to sleep in the oldest part of the castle, dating from the fourteenth century. Can you guess where the English word “chamber” comes from?

Alors les chambres sont dans la partie la plus ancienne du château.

So the rooms are in the oldest part of the castle.

Caption 16, Voyage en France Château d'Urtubie

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Take the opportunity to discover the history of the castle and of the family who has lived there for many, many générations—vingt-quatre (twenty-four), so far:

Alors ça permet effectivement découvrir l'histoire de ma famille, bien évidemment, puisque ma famille est là depuis vingt-quatre générations

Well, indeed it allows people to discover my family history, of course, since my family has been here for twenty-four generations

Captions 22-23, Voyage en France Château d'Urtubie

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For those seeking the luxury of yesteryear with a touch of glamour, l’Hôtel Negresco in Nice is the place for you. It’s le dernier palace à la française (the last French-style luxury hotel) that is still privately owned:

Bref, c'est un lieu historique pour la ville de Nice mais aussi pour la France car l'hôtel Negresco est le dernier palace à la française, le dernier hôtel de luxe qui appartient à une famille française et non à un groupe d'hôtels, souvent international.

In short, it's a historic place for the city of Nice but also for France, because the Hotel Negresco is the last French-style luxury hotel, the last luxury hotel that belongs to a French family and not to a group of hotels, often international.

Captions 17-23, Le saviez-vous? L'hôtel Negresco - Part 2

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L’Hôtel Negresco attracts prominent figures, artists and celebrities from all over the world. For example, Salvador Dali often visited accompanied with his guépard de compagnie (pet cheetah):

Salvador Dali par exemple y venait fréquemment. Il y venait, accompagné de son guépard de compagnie.

Salvador Dali, for example, came here frequently. He came here, accompanied by his pet cheetah.

Captions 8-9, Le saviez-vous? L'hôtel Negresco - Part 2

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For a quieter, low-key experience, how about spending the night in a traditional fishing boat–turned houseboat called une toue, typical of the Loire Valley:

Cette toue cabanée est un bateau à fond plat qui servait à pêcher le saumon sur la Loire.

This houseboat is a flat-bottomed boat that was used to fish for salmon on the Loire.

Captions 21-22, TF1 Info Week-end à Angers et son trésor médiéval - Part 2

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This toue is tout confort, meaning it has been refurbished to include all the comforts of home:

C'est vrai. C'est tout confort.

That's true. It has every comfort.

Caption 25, TF1 Info Week-end à Angers et son trésor médiéval - Part 2

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Other utilitarian types of boats called péniches (barges), used for transporting goods along rivers and canals, have been repurposed to house people. Some péniches are available for rent, while others are permanent homes:

Vous habitez tous les deux dans le bateau, c'est vrai? -Oui. -D'accord. Comment c'est de vivre à bord d'une péniche alors ?

You both live on the boat, is that true? -Yes. -OK. How is it living on board a barge, then?

Captions 31-32, Voyage en France Saint-Mammès

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You can opt for a larger vessel called un bateau hôtel (hotel boat) that includes cabines (cabins), offering des croisières (cruises) along canals and rivers:

Le Princess, c'est un bateau... -C'est un bateau hôtel... Avec des cabines... -donc qui fait des croisières, voilà.

The Princess is a boat... -It's a hotel boat... With cabins... -so, which does cruises, right.

Captions 60-61, Lionel L'écluse de Réchicourt-le-Château - Part 1

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Back on land, nature lovers might prefer un gîte d’hébergement insolite (an alternative accommodation facility) such as une cabane perchée (a tree house). Or, you can enjoy the forest without having to climb a tree by staying in une chambre d'hôtes (bed and breakfast) or un chalet instead:

Donc je gère un gîte d'hébergement insolite sur Arbonne-la-Forêt qui est un petit village à dix kilomètres de Fontainebleau, qui est spécialisé dans de l'hébergement en nature au cœur de la forêt, avec cabanes perchées, chambres d'hôtes et chalets.

So I manage an alternative accommodation facility in Arbonne-la-Forêt, which is a small village ten kilometers from Fontainebleau, which specializes in accommodation in nature in the heart of the forest, with tree houses, bed and breakfasts, and chalets.

Captions 2-8, Sandra Gérante de "Gîte Arbonne"

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Of course, you can always fall back on the more budget-friendly option, le camping. This nice campground is on the banks of the Seine:

Donc si vous êtes à la recherche d'un camping sympa sur les bords de Seine, eh bien vous pourrez trouver cette alternative à Maisons-Laffitte.

So if you are in search of a nice campground on the banks of the Seine, well, you will be able to find this alternative in Maisons-Laffitte.

Captions 33-34, Voyage en France Maisons-Laffitte - Part 4

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Instead of sleeping in un camping, you might prefer to go underground, literally, and spend the night in une maison troglodyte (a cave dwelling). Rest assured, they have all the modern trappings:

Et une des particularités de cette ville, c'est d'avoir des logements et des maisons troglodytes.

And one of the peculiarities of this town is having cave dwellings and houses.

Captions 9-10, Voyage en France Carrières-sur-Seine

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To sum up the incredible choices available, here is a list of useful terms mentioned in this lesson:

un château: a castle

une chambre: a room

un logement: an accommodation, dwelling

un palace: a luxury hotel

un gîte d'hébergement insolite: an alternative accommodation facility

un bateau hôtel: a hotel boat

une cabine: a cabin

une croisière: a cruise

une cabane perchée: a treehouse

une chambre d’hôtes: a bed and breakfast

un chalet: a chalet

une péniche: a barge

une toue cabanée: a houseboat

une maison troglodyte: a cave dwelling

We hope you will take up this invitation au voyage as Baudelaire would say. Meanwhile, feel free to travel vicariously through Yabla's travel videos. Thank you for reading, and bon voyage!

The French have an appreciation for quality living. The enjoyment of fine food, wine, and life’s simple pleasures are an essential part of French culture. Hence the abundance of French terms—such as bon vivant, gourmet, gourmand, connaisseur and more—that capture this ethos. Many of these expressions have filtered into the English language, highlighting the influence of French culture and values. 

Some of these terms are loanwords and are left as is. In France people who enjoy food fall into two broad categories, gourmet and gourmand. Both words convey the idea of enjoying food but in a slightly different way. A gourmet has a more refined taste than a gourmand, who may not have the same knowledge or might enjoy food to excess, especially sweet food:

Ou que vous soyez gourmet ou gourmand, je vous propose aujourd'hui de faire des crêpes

Or whether you're a gourmet or gourmand, today I propose that you make crêpes

Captions 2-3, Le saviez-vous? Comment faire des crêpes

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As a noun, when referring to people, "gourmand" and "gourmet" are considered loanwords and are usually not translated. However, when used as adjectives, they take on different meanings in English depending on context. In this video, la Bretagne gourmande refers to “the foodies of Brittany," which is a more specialized meaning:

Difficile alors d'échapper au Marché des Lices à Rennes; c'est comme si toute la Bretagne gourmande s'y retrouvait.

It's difficult then to escape the Lices Market in Rennes; it's as if all the foodies of Brittany were there.

Captions 4-5, Le Journal Gourmet en Bretagne

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Usually though, the adjective gourmand/gourmande simply refers to someone with a sweet tooth:

Je suis pas très gourmand...

I don't have much of a sweet tooth...

Caption 12, LCM Recette: Crêpes

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In addition, the adjective gourmand can also apply to food itself to mean “delicious.” In his cooking series Whoogy’s, Hugo uses the word gourmand to describe one of his tasty creations, une crème méga gourmande (a mega-tasty cream): 

Pour une crème méga gourmande, on va utiliser de la crème.

For a mega-tasty crème, we're going to use cream.

Captions 34-35, Whoogy's Crème brûlée facile & ultra-onctueuse

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In another video, Hugo describes his mushroom gnocchi dish using this simple phrase: C’est gourmand. Interestingly, gourmand translates as “gourmet” in English here, conveying the idea that Whoogy’s dish is not only delicious but refined:

C'est bon. C'est gourmand.

It's good. It's gourmet.

Captions 9-10, Whoogy's Gnocchis maison faciles (champignons & parmesan)

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Speaking of delicious food, each region of France offers its own variety of gourmandises (treats or delicacies). In this video, a shopkeeper will tempt you with une gourmandise called a madeleine: 

À savoir, une gourmandise, un magnifique gâteau qui est déjà assez ancien et qui se nomme la "madeleine".

Namely, a sweet treat, a magnificent cake that is quite old already and that is called the "madeleine".

Captions 23-25, Lionel La boutique de madeleines de Liverdun - Part 1

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Une gourmandise can also mean a “delicacy” that is not necessarily sweet:

Des gourmandises de toutes sortes vous attendent dans cette épicerie fine.

All kinds of delicacies await you in this delicatessen.

Une gourmandise has a synomym, une friandise. Une friandise more often describes a treat for grownups, although that’s not always the case. In this video, Saint-Nicolas is in charge of giving out friandises to good children:

C'est pour ça qu'il fait le tour, euh... -Des écoles -Des écoles pour donner... des friandises.

This is why he is doing a tour of, uh... -Schools -Schools to give... treats.

Caption 3, Grand Lille TV Focus: la tradition de Saint-Nicolas

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Here is an interesting quote from Mazouz Hacène contrasting the word gourmandise (gluttony) and friandise (delicacy):

Ne sois pas la gourmandise des hommes mais la friandise d’un homme.

Be not the gluttony of men but the delicacy of one man.

Indeed, the word gourmandise spells pleasure and indulgence. When discussing different types of wine in France, this winegrower makes an interesting distinction between vins de garde (wines to keep) and vins de gourmandise (wines to indulge in):

Et ça, c'est plus un vin de garde alors que le "Dentelle" était plus un vin... de gourmandise à boire rapidement.

And this is more of a wine to keep, while the "Dentelle" was more of a wine... to indulge in, to drink quickly.

Captions 17-18, Provence Domaine Rouge-Bleu - Part 1

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Speaking of indulgence, the term "guilty pleasure" comes to mind, but the French prefer to call it a “cute sin” (un péché mignon), sans guilt:

Ça a toujours été mon péché mignon, avec le vin et le fromage.

It's always been my guilty pleasure, along with wine and cheese.

Caption 22, Le Village de la Bière Ceci n'est pas un bar!

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In fact, there is a special word in French and English for people who know how to enjoy life to the fullest. They are called bons vivants (literally, "good living"). According to Merriam-Webster, a bon vivant is "a sociable person who has cultivated and refined tastes especially with respect to food and drink.” According to this video, there is no shortage of bons vivants in the Burgundy region:

Dijon est l'une des capitales de la gastronomie française. Et ses habitants sont réputés pour être de bons vivants. On adore manger ici en Bourgogne.

Dijon is one of the capitals of French gastronomy. And its inhabitants are known for being bons vivants. We love to eat here in Burgundy. 

Captions 73-78, TF1 Info Week-end à Dijon, capitale des ducs de Bourgogne - Part 1

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And people who know a lot about food and wine especially are connaisseurs (with an a—don't let autocorrect change it to the English spelling “connoisseur” when writing in French!). In this humorous video, wannabe cook Isabelle leaves it to un connaisseur to judge her dubious entry in a cooking competition:

C'est un connaisseur, lui.

He's a connoisseur.

Caption 78, Mère & Fille Cuisine Monster

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Finally, here is one expression that is often used in anticipation of a delicious meal:

On va se régaler.

We're going to enjoy it [It's going to be delicious].

Caption 57, Sophie et Patrice Les ustensiles de cuisine

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Sample some of Yabla's food-related videos and learn how to prepare some gourmandises (delicacies). In no time, you will become a connaisseur! Régalez-vous! 

In a previous lesson, we learned that it is common to start a question with qu'est-ce qui to find out “what is going on" or "what’s happening.” You can use handy phrases such as Qu’est-ce qui se passe ? (What's going on?) or Qu’est-ce qu’il y a ? (What's wrong?) to inquire about general situations, or phrases like Qu’est-ce qu’il t’arrive ? (What’s happening to you?) to ask about one person in particular. Let’s explore the various ways these questions can be used.

When asking about a situation that does not involve a specific person, you can use the phrase Qu'est-ce qui se passe ? In this video about rainy weather in Paris, Alexandre asks what happens when someone forgets their umbrella:

Et qu'est-ce qui se passe ?

And what happens?

Caption 85, Sophie et Alexandre Et la pluie ?

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In a different context, though, when asking about a specific situation that's happening right now, qu’est-ce qui se passe translates as “what’s going on” or "what's happening." Note how the English uses the present progressive tense here, a tense that does not exist in French: 

Qu'est-ce qui se passe ?

What's going on?

Caption 18, Extr@ Ep. 6 - Le jour du loto - Part 4

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If the same question is loaded with concern, as when asking about a friend's health, qu’est-ce qui se passe is better translated as “what’s wrong": 

Qu'est-ce qu'il se passe ? Tu n'as pas l'air bien. Explique-moi.

What's wrong? You don't look good. Explain it to me.

Captions 34-35, Français avec Nelly 25 Phrases for Mastering Everyday Conversation - Part 1

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Note that Nelly uses the slightly more formal qu'est-ce qu'il se passe (Qu'est-ce que + il se passe) here. This is also correct, since il se passe is an impersonal expression.

Instead of saying qu’est-ce qui se passe or qu'est-ce qu'il se passe, you can use the equivalent phrase qu’est-ce qu’il y a ("what’s the matter," literally "what is there"):

Qu'est-ce qu'il y a, Annie ?

What's the matter, Annie?

Caption 24, Extr@ Ep. 7 - La jumelle - Part 7

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Just as with qu’est-ce qui se passe, qu’est-ce qu’il y a can also mean “what’s wrong” when expressing worry or concern:

Mais qu'est-ce qu'il y a ?

But what's wrong?

Caption 15, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mes grands-parents sont infidèles - Part 7

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The speaker in the above video immediately follows up her question with another one:

Qu'est-ce qu'il t'arrive ?

What's happening to you?

Caption 16, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mes grands-parents sont infidèles - Part 7

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This question, with the verb arriver (to happen), can only be used to ask after a specific person. Its structure is: qu’est-ce qui (or qu'est-ce qu'il) + indirect object pronoun + arriver.

Qu'est-ce qui t'arrive ?

What's the matter with you?

Caption 2, Sara et Lionel J'ai mal aux dents

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Qu'est-ce qui t'arrive ?

What's wrong?

Caption 67, Le Jour où tout a basculé Rivalité cachée - Part 5

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There is another question with a similar structure to qu’est-ce qui t’arrive, which is qu’est-ce qui te prend (what’s gotten into you). It works in the same way, requiring the indirect personal pronoun before the verb, but the meaning is slightly different. It’s the question you ask when you are surprised by someone’s behavior:

Mais enfin, qu'est-ce qui te prend?

But what's gotten into you?

Caption 72, Le Jour où tout a basculé À la recherche de mon passé - Part 5

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In conclusion, there are various ways of asking what’s happening in French. However, the same expressions in French can mean different things in English, so the translations can vary greatly. Pay attention to context, tone of voice, and background information when watching our Yabla videos. This will help you understand the different meanings behind the same questions. Thank you for reading!

There are several ways of formulating an open-ended question in English using interrogative pronouns such as “what,” as in “What are you doing?" In French, there are four equivalents to “what”: the interrogative pronouns que, quoi, qu’est-ce que, and qu’est-ce-qui. Which one should you use? That depends on grammar and the desired level of formality. Let's explore how to use these four different versions of “what.”

The most common way to form a “what” question in French is with the somewhat convoluted phrase qu’est-ce que (literally, "what is it that"), as in Qu’est-ce que c’est ? ("what is it" or "what is that," or literally, "what is it that that is?") Here is an example from our Sophie et Patrice video series:

Mais ces gens crient là-bas. Qu'est-ce que c'est ?

But those people are shouting over there. What is that?

Caption 38, Sophie et Patrice Charles III

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In another Sophie et Patrice video, Sophie adds an extra que to qu'est-ce que c'est to make the idiomatic expression qu’est-ce que c’est que. This is a way to ask about something you're not familiar with or are surprised by. In this case, Sophie is expressing surprise at Patrice's new mustache:

Alors qu'est-ce que c'est que cette moustache ?

So what's with this mustache?

Caption 1, Sophie et Patrice Patrice va jouer Proust

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Going back to qu’est-ce que c’est, here is another example for you:

Alors globalement un four banal, qu'est-ce que c'est ?

So what is a communal oven, basically? [So basically a communal oven, what is it?]

Caption 21, Voyage en France Montmorency - Part 3

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You'll notice that the word order is reversed in the translation. Putting what is it at the end may seem back to front to an English speaker, but it is perfectly natural in French and quite common.

Here is an example where French follows the same sentence structure as in English, with qu’est-ce que (what) at the start of the question:

Qu'est-ce que tu vas faire après? Est-ce que tu vas danser, [chanter]...?

What will you do next? Are you going to dance, sing...?

Caption 25, Actus Quartier Fête de quartier Python-Duvernois - Part 4

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Our speaker could have started his question with que instead, which would mean the same thing. However, grammatically speaking, starting questions with que is trickier as it requires an inversion (when subject and verb switch places). In addition, the tone might have seemed slightly too formal in this very casual conversation with the locals:

Que vas-tu faire après ? 

What will you do next? 

On the other hand, the use of que does not seem out of place in the slightly more formal context of this next example, where a restaurant owner is being interviewed. 

Que vas-tu nous préparer au menu du jour à huit euros soixante-dix ?

What are you going to prepare for us for today's menu for eight euros seventy?

Caption 5, Alsace 20 Grain de Sel: Au Caveau de l'étable à Niederbronn-les-Bains

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Still, the difference in formality is so subtle that both qu’est-ce que and que would have been appropriate for the situation:

Qu'est-ce que tu vas nous préparer au menu du jour à huit euros soixante-dix ?

What are you going to prepare for us for today's menu for eight euros seventy?

On the other hand, if our speaker had used quoi instead, he might have sounded too casual:   

Tu vas nous préparer quoi au menu du jour à huit euros soixante-dix ?

What are you going to prepare for us for today's menu for eight euros seventy?

Indeed, quoi is reserved for more casual settings, such as a conversation among friends or addressing young kids, like the interviewer in the following video. There is no need to switch verb and subject with quoi, but note that quoi always comes after the verb, unlike in English:

Tu fais quoi ici? -Tu fais quoi ici, Nougra, toi?

What are you doing here? -What are you doing here, Nougra?

Caption 77, Actus Quartier Fête de quartier Python-Duvernois - Part 3

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Quoi can also act as a standalone interrogative pronoun. Quoi ? is the equivalent of “What?” in English, often used when expressing surprise. In this video, Sacha is shocked to hear about Sam’s impending marriage:

Quoi ?

What?

Caption 3, Extr@ Ep. 13 - Un mariage dans l’air - Part 5

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Note that you cannot use que as a standalone pronoun. 

Finally, here is a trickier equivalent to “what,” qu’est-ce qui, which is often used to ask what is going on or what happened. As this frequently involves using impersonal verbs that have no real subject, qu’est-ce qui becomes the subject. In other words, unlike qu'est-ce que, which precedes a subject + verb, qu'est-ce qui only precedes a verb. Here is an example with the expression Qu’est-ce qui t’arrive ? (What’s the matter with you?)

Tu as mal à la dent ? Qu'est-ce qui t'arrive ?

Do you have a toothache? What's the matter with you?

Captions 1-2, Sara et Lionel J'ai mal aux dents

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Quoi ? This lesson is over? Not quite. Remember that qu’est-ce que and que are pretty much interchangeable but are grammatically different, and qu’est-ce qui is often used to ask what is going on. As for quoi, it's more suited to casual situations. Feel free to browse through our Yabla videos to know what’s what and familiarize yourself with the various ways of asking questions. Thank you for reading!

In a previous lesson, we learned that the preposition depuis + a period of time or a point in time is the general equivalent of “since” or “for,” when describing an action that started in the past but is still ongoing. In the first part of this lesson, we will explore some informal alternatives to depuis. In the second part, we will discuss which prepositions can be used when referring to an action that started and was completed in the past.

Voilà + period of time + que (for + period of time) is often used in conversation as an informal equivalent to depuis. While the wording is different, voilà...que works in the same way as depuis for an action that started in the past but is still ongoing. We use the present tense in French and the present perfect continuous in English. 

Voilà deux semaines que Julie et Mathieu sortent ensemble et qu'ils filent le parfait amour.

Julie and Mathieu have been going out for two weeks and been living the perfect love.

Captions 37-38, Le Jour où tout a basculé Je me suis fait voler ma musique - Part 3

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In this case, voilà deux semaines is equivalent to “for two weeks." But there are variations to the translation depending on context. In this example, voilà...que is equivalent to “it's been going on for X amount of time":

Voilà un petit moment que ça dure.

It's been going on for a little while.

An equivalent to this is cela fait + period of time + que, which translates in the same way in English. Both phrases are interchangeable:

Cela fait un petit moment que ça dure.

It's been going on for a little while.

Caption 3, Lionel & Lahlou La grève

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Here is another example with cela fait...que, which translates here as "for + period of time":

Cela fait quinze ans que Rudy s'attelle chaque année à métamorphoser son logis

For fifteen years, Rudy has been buckling down each year to transform his house

Caption 5, Alsace 20 Alsace: les plus belles déco de Noël!

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You can even combine cela fait...que with depuis to mean “it’s been X since Y point in time”:

Enfin, pour montrer que ce matériau est résistant, cela fait depuis quatre-vingt-cinq qu'il est dehors.

So to show how durable this material is, it's been outside since [nineteen] eighty-five.

Captions 24-25, Voyage dans Paris Mireille Bailly-Coulange

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Depuis and its informal equivalents, cela fait...que and voilà...que, are used with the present tense to describe an action that started in the past but is still ongoing. But these expressions can also be used to describe an action completed in the past. For this, you just need to switch to the past tense. Here is an example of depuis with the past tense:

Ce qu'elle a toujours voulu depuis la disparition de sa mère, c'est de réussir ce qu'elle entreprenait

What she always wanted since the passing of her mother was to succeed at what she undertook

Captions 64-65, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mon père s'oppose à ma passion - Part 7

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And here's an example with voilà...que and cela fait...que:

Voilà plus de vingt ans qu’il a disparu.

It’s been over twenty years since he passed away.

Cela fait plus de vingt ans qu’il a disparu.

It’s been over twenty years since he passed away.

Otherwise, for actions that are firmly set in the past, you can use the expression il y a to describe an action that occurred a while “ago." In his video on the town of Marsal, Lionel marvels at what happened many, many million years ago:

Incroyable, hein, donc il y a des millions et des millions d'années.

Incredible, right, so millions and millions of years ago.

Caption 19, Lionel Marsal - Part 10

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Of course, you can also use it to describe something that happened "a short time ago":

Savez-vous qu'il y a peu de temps que l'homme sait utiliser la vapeur ?

Do you know that it was just a short time ago that humankind learned how to use steam?

Caption 3, Il était une fois: Les découvreurs 13. Stephenson - Part 1

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To indicate the duration of a past action, use pendant (literally “during," but equivalent to “for” in this case). Here is an example with a specific duration:

J’ai étudié le français pendant dix ans.

I studied French for ten years.

The use of the past tense + pendant tells us that the person studied French in the past but is no longer doing so. 

Whether you started studying French il y a peu de temps (a short time ago) or whether you've been studying it depuis longtemps (for a long time), we hope you've learned something from this lesson. Thank you for reading!

In English, we like to mark the passage of time with words such as “for" or "since.” Depuis is the general equivalent of these words in French, but often the translation isn't as straightforward as it might seem. As always, grammar and context come into play. So without further ado, let's explore how to use the preposition depuis (since, for).

Depuis + a period of time or a point in time is equivalent to “since” or “for” when talking about an action that started in the past but is still ongoing. In English, we have a specific tense for this situation: the present perfect continuous ("I have been doing X for/since Y"). French just uses the simple present with depuis:

Je crée et produis des boutons de manchette à Paris depuis sept ans.

I've been creating and producing cufflinks in Paris for seven years.

Caption 3, Samuel Gassmann Créateur de boutons de manchette

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Il habite à Paris depuis deux mille douze.

He has been living in Paris since two thousand twelve.

Here is a more complex example where the present tense is used in the main clause followed by a dependent clause in the passé composé (compound past tense):

C'est un sculpteur polonais qui a vécu en France depuis mille neuf cent soixante-dix-neuf.

It's a Polish sculptor who has lived in France since nineteen seventy-nine.

Caption 5, Lionel Le Musée du Calendrier de la Paix - Part 4

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Indeed, while depuis usually goes with the present tense, there are instances where the past tense is required. For example, in the construction depuis que (since) + a subordinate clause, the main clause (the sentence that comes before depuis que) remains in the present tense, but the subordinate clause (what comes after depuis que) is in the past tense. In the example below, the main clause comes last, but the order could be reversed:

Depuis que leur fille a intégré une grande agence de marketing... Gilles et Anna ne la voient qu'en coup de vent.

Since their daughter joined a large marketing agency... Gilles and Anna only see her in a whirlwind [briefly].

Captions 16-18, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mes parents se préparent à la fin du monde - Part 3

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When talking about two concurring events in the past, the ongoing or background action will be in the imperfect tense, while the more recent action or interrupting action will be in the passé composé:

Il jouait au foot depuis des années quand il s’est cassé la jambe et a dû abandonner. 

He had been playing soccer for years when he broke his leg and had to give up.

If the subordinate clause (after depuis que) is in the pluperfect tense, the verb in the main clause will have to be in the imperfect tense:

Depuis qu'Hugo et Gaël avaient monté leur groupe, j'étais leur première fan.

Since Hugo and Gaël had formed their band, I was their number-one fan.

Captions 1-2, Mère & Fille L'arme absolue

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However, sometimes the passé composé is required instead, for example when depuis is preceded by a negative clause. Going back to our soccer example, we can assume that the action was completed in the past, as the player n’a pas rejoué (hasn’t played again) for a number of years: 

Mon frère n’a pas rejoué au foot depuis son accident.

My brother hasn’t played soccer again since his accident.

 

En fait, il n’a pas joué au foot depuis au moins cinq ans. 

In fact, he hasn’t played soccer for at least five years.

Here is a different example with a negative sentence with depuis that, this time, requires the imperfect to indicate that something has always been that way, from the beginning (depuis le début):

C'était absolument pas du tout ma tasse de thé depuis le début.

It was absolutely not my cup of tea at all from the beginning.

Caption 17, Micro-Trottoirs Sacrée France Gall

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Finally, here is a tricky example involving the expression depuis le temps que, which one might be tempted to take literally to mean “since the time that.” However, this is not the case. The French use this idiomatic expression to say that they’ve been meaning to do something for a long time but never got around to it and wished they had:

Depuis le temps que j'ai envie de parler de littérature sur cette chaîne YouTube, je crois que depuis le début j'ai envie de faire cette vidéo.

I've been wanting to talk about literature for a long time on this YouTube channel, I believe that from the beginning I've wanted to make this video.

Captions 1-4, Français avec Nelly 10 livres faciles à lire en français - Part 1

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In fact, Nelly even wonders out loud why she did not do it plus tôt (sooner):

Pourquoi je ne l'ai pas fait plus tôt ?

Why didn't I do it sooner?

Caption 5, Français avec Nelly 10 livres faciles à lire en français - Part 1

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Speaking of questions, depuis usually goes with the present tense in the interrogative form, as in depuis quand (since/from when):

Depuis quand date la première écluse ?

When does the first lock date from?

Caption 21, Lionel L'écluse de Réchicourt-le-Château - Part 1

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As in English, depuis quand (since when) sometimes comes with a good dose of sarcasm to question a sudden and sometimes unwelcome change of behavior. In this video, when Barbara decides to go out on a weekday, her mother challenges her decision:

Ah ouais, et depuis quand on sort en semaine ?

Oh yeah, and since when do we go out on weekdays?

Caption 62, Mère & Fille L'arme absolue

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Whether you’ve been learning French depuis des années (for years) or whether you're a beginner, it's never too late to start exploring our videos. And stay tuned for our next lesson on equivalents of depuis. Thank you for reading!

Pouvoir (to be able to) and vouloir (to want) are two very useful verbs that share common features but also differ in many ways. Let’s explore what the similarities and differences are in this lesson.

Pouvoir and vouloir are the only two irregular verbs ending in -eux in the first-person singular of the indicative. We have je veux (I want) and je peux (I can). Let’s look at the verb vouloir first. Vouloir can be followed by a noun, as shown in Zaz's song simply titled "Je veux":

Je veux de l'amour, de la joie, de la bonne humeur.

I want love, joy, good humor.

Caption 63, Français avec Nelly 12 Songs to Improve Your French - Part 1

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Vouloir can also be followed by a verb in the infinitive. In her song, Zaz uses the colloquial expression je veux crever (I want to croak):

Moi, je veux crever

Me, I want to croak

Caption 65, Français avec Nelly 12 Songs to Improve Your French - Part 1

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So far so good. However, when vouloir is followed by a subordinate clause, je veux que + verb (I want + verb), you will need to use the subjunctive mood. It pays to become familiar with this tricky grammatical structure, as it is very common in French: 

Je veux que mon ami comprenne.

I want my friend to understand.

Caption 39, Français avec Nelly 25 Phrases for Mastering Everyday Conversation - Part 2

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Speaking of the subjunctive mood, do you recognize this form of the verb vouloir, veuillez? 

This is vouloir in the second-person plural (vous) subjunctive, but it's also a very formal way of saying “please." (For other ways of saying "please," check out this lesson.) The expression veuillez + verb (please + verb) is often used in court settings, for example:

Veuillez vous présenter à la barre s'il vous plaît.

Please take the stand.

Caption 23, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience: Détournement d'argent dans le couple ? - Part 3

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Now let's move on to pouvoir, "to be able to." Just as in English, it can only be followed by a verb, and often comes in the form of a question: Est-ce que je peux + verb (can I + verb)?

Est-ce que je peux au moins le rencontrer ?

Can I at least meet him?

Caption 26, Extr@ Ep. 9 - Du boulot pour Sam et Nico! - Part 4

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Now, there is a more formal and less common alternative to est-ce que je peux, which is puis-je. This comes from an antiquated version of je peux, je puis. You may form your question starting with puis-je + verb, equivalent to “may I...?” (Interestingly, you can NEVER say peux-je, only puis-je.) You can use puis-je (may I) when approaching a stranger, for example:

Puis-je vous demander à quelle heure est votre rendez-vous?

May I ask you what time your appointment is?

Caption 8, Le saviez-vous? Conversation entre étrangers

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Incidentally, the subjunctive form of je peux/je puis is que je puisse (that I might/could). Once again, this construction is very common so it would pay to become familiar with it:

Il t'est pas venu à l'esprit que je puisse être dans ma chambre

It didn't occur to you that I could be in my room

Caption 75, Mère & Fille "Distraite", "La fille idéale", "Inquiète", "Zenitude"

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There you have it! Now vous pouvez utiliser pouvoir et vouloir si vous voulez (you can use pouvoir and vouloir if you want). Thank you for reading!