In our previous lesson, we learned that rester is a false cognate meaning "to stay/to remain." In this lesson, we will continue to explore the various uses of rester and focus on the impersonal verb il reste (there remains). We will also look at the meaning of le reste (the rest) as a noun.
The phrase il reste is a bit tricky as it does not necessarily mean "he/it stays." Indeed, the construction il reste is what we call an impersonal verb, as the subject of the sentence (il) doesn’t stand for anything or anyone in particular. Hence the translation of il reste is open to interpretation and will vary. The impersonal pronoun il can be equivalent to "there" in English. In the example below, the construction il reste + noun means "there’s also" in the context of the video:
Et ensuite il reste un dessert en supplément à deux euros soixante
And afterward there's also a dessert for an additional two euros sixty
Caption 10, Alsace 20 - Grain de Sel: Au Caveau de l'étable à Niederbronn-les-Bains
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In another example, we have the expression ce qu’il en reste, which simply means "what’s left of it." Il is omitted in the translation as it only has a grammatical function in French and is therefore not needed in English:
Ce qu'il en reste.
What remains of it.
Caption 14, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles
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Il reste (there remains) often comes in a negative form, such as il ne reste que... This is a very useful expression to convey that "only x remains":
Maintenant il ne reste que le cadre.
Now only the frame remains.
Another variation of il ne reste que is il ne reste plus que, which means "there remains only":
Du fait de nombreuses fusions,
Because of many mergers,
il ne reste plus qu'une société anonyme de cartes de crédit
there remains only one limited liability credit card company
Caption 15, Patricia - Pas de crédit dans le monde des clones
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Il ne reste plus que can also translate as "all that’s left":
Aujourd'hui, derrière, malheureusement,
Today, behind it, unfortunately,
il ne reste plus qu'un parking.
all that's left is a parking lot.
Caption 25, Voyage en France - Fontainebleau
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And there is yet another way to interpret il ne reste plus que. It can also mean "there is only x left":
Il ne reste plus que cette porte
There is only this door left
Caption 22, Voyage en France - Fontainebleau
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We also have the negative expression il ne reste plus rien, which means "there’s nothing left":
Donne-moi tout, même quand il [ne] reste plus rien
Give it all to me, even when there's nothing left
Caption 1, Corneille - Comme un fils
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What’s more, you can even throw a personal pronoun such as me in the mix. In the example below, we have il ne me reste plus qu’à, which is a complex turn of phrase best translated as "all that remains for me":
Il [ne] me reste plus qu'à vous souhaiter un très bon appétit
All that remains for me to do is wish you a very good appetite
Caption 114, 4 Mains pour 1 Piano - Médaillon de Homard - Part 3
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Indeed, French speakers often insert a personal pronoun in between il reste, as in il nous reste (we still have). The personal pronoun nous becomes the subject pronoun "we":
Il nous reste encore quelques minutes de cuisson pour le homard.
We still have a few minutes of cooking time left for the lobster.
Caption 15, 4 Mains pour 1 Piano - Médaillon de Homard - Part 2
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In another video, il ne nous reste plus que translates as "we only have x remaining":
Et là, il [ne] nous reste plus que deux colonnes de marbre
And here we only have two marble columns remaining
Caption 16, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles
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The expression il ne vous reste plus grand-chose (you don’t have much left) works in a similar way. Once again, the personal pronoun (vous) becomes the subject in English:
Et ça a bien marché puisqu'il [ne] vous reste plus grand-chose.
And business has been good since you don't have that much left.
Caption 52, Arles - Le marché d'Arles
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There are many other ways of using il reste, which you can explore here. All this may seem a bit complicated, but fortunately, when reste is used as a noun, it's much simpler! Le reste is a direct cognate that simply means "the rest":
Tout le reste du temps, je dors là où je suis assise
The rest of the time, I sleep right where I'm sitting
Caption 15, Le Journal - Les navigateurs du Vendée Globe
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However, the plural les restes takes on a new meaning. Now we're talking about "leftovers" or "leftover food":
Bon, souvent parce qu'il y a des restes,
Well, often because there are leftovers,
donc il faut éliminer les restes.
so it's necessary to eliminate the leftovers.
Caption 9, TV Vendée - Fêtes de fin d’année : manger léger et équilibré
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Finally, to be clear, "to rest" in English is NOT rester but se reposer or reposer:
Tu peux admirer le paysage et te reposer.
You can admire the scenery and rest.
Caption 45, Le saviez-vous? - Comment voyager?
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Maintenant, on va la laisser reposer
Now we are going to let it rest
Caption 32, Alsace 20 - Grain de Sel: le Lycée hôtelier Alexandre Dumas
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Now that you have worked so hard, il ne vous reste plus qu’à vous reposer (there is nothing left for you to do but rest)!
The adverb surtout is actually two words combined: sur (over, above) and tout (all). Once you know that, its meaning is self-explanatory:
Et surtout n'oubliez rien.
And above all, don't forget anything.
Caption 9, Bande-annonce - La Belle et la Bête
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There are a couple different ways of saying "above all" in English, all of which are encompassed by surtout. There's "most of all":
Mais surtout c'est toi
But most of all, it's you
Caption 30, Aldebert - La vie c'est quoi ?
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"Especially":
J'ai du mal à mentir, surtout quand c'est pas vrai
I find it hard to lie, especially when it's not true
Caption 29, Babylon Circus - J'aurais bien voulu
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And "particularly" or "in particular":
J'aime surtout la cuisine japonais.
I particularly like Japanese cuisine. / I like Japanese cuisine in particular.
Note, though, that "especially," "particularly," and "in particular" have more direct equivalents in French as well:
C'est le sujet qui nous intéresse tous spécialement aujourd'hui.
It's the subject that's especially of interest to all of us today.
Caption 62, Uderzo et Goscinny - 1968
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Mais quand on est sensible à la peinture,
But for one who appreciates painting,
ici, la lumière est particulièrement belle.
the light here is particularly beautiful.
Caption 8, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles
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Les plages de la côte atlantique et en particulier
The beaches on the Atlantic coast and in particular
de la côte basque sont des plages très étendues.
on the Basque coast are very vast beaches.
Caption 31, Voyage en France - Saint-Jean-de-Luz
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Surtout can also mean "mainly" or "mostly," which isn't quite the same as "above all":
En fait c'est ça surtout.
In fact that's it, mostly.
Caption 37, Alsace 20 - La chronique Mode de Caroline: mode éthique
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Aujourd'hui j'ai surtout travaillé au bureau.
Today I mainly worked in the office.
In informal speech, surtout is also the equivalent of "whatever you do" or "be sure to":
Surtout, ne rate pas le prochain épisode de "Extra"!
Whatever you do, don't miss the next episode of "Extra"!
Caption 10, Extr@ - Ep. 5 - Une étoile est née
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Surtout, regardez les vidéos les plus récentes sur Yabla French!
Be sure to check out the most recent Yabla French videos!
In the latest segment of Le Jour où tout a basculé - J'ai piégé mon fan, Alex uses a phrase whose meaning may surprise you:
Mais bon, c'était pour la bonne cause. Tu m'étonnes. Regarde.
But OK, it was for a good cause. You're not kidding. Look.
Captions 7-8, Le Jour où tout a basculé - J'ai piégé mon fan - Part 7
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The literal translation of tu m'étonnes is "you surprise me," but it's often used as a set phrase meaning "you're not kidding," "no kidding," or "tell me something I don't know." Used in this way, it has the opposite meaning of its literal translation—the person is not surprised by what they just heard. Tu m'étonnes is very similar to the English expression "surprise, surprise," which is also used ironically to convey a lack of surprise.
Sans blague is another phrase meaning "no kidding" or, more literally, "no joke." This one, however, can express surprise:
Je suis né le 3 novembre. -Sans blague! Moi aussi!
I was born on November 3. -No kidding! So was I!
The verb étonner has the same root as the English verb "to stun." It means "to surprise," "astonish," or "amaze":
Sur l'eau, il vit son reflet, totalement étonné
In the water, he saw his reflection, totally surprised
Caption 29, Contes de fées - Le vilain petit canard - Part 2
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Les héritiers de Jules Verne n'ont pas fini de nous étonner.
Jules Verne's heirs have never ceased to amaze us.
Caption 26, Le Journal - Le record du Tour de Monde!
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And the English "surprise" comes directly from the French surpris(e):
Je suis un peu surpris.
I'm a little surprised.
Caption 38, Lea & Lionel L - Le parc de Bercy - Part 1
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Unsurprisingly, the verb surprendre means "to surprise":
Tu vas mener l'attaque pour les surprendre.
You're going to lead the attack to surprise them.
Caption 28, Il était une fois - les Explorateurs - 15. Bruce et les sources du Nil - Part 2
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But it can also have the related meaning "to catch," "come upon," or "discover":
Louise surprend René et Edna en pleine conversation.
Louise catches René and Edna deep in conversation.
Caption 2, Le Jour où tout a basculé - Mes grands-parents sont infidèles - Part 8
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Just as there are two words for "to surprise" (étonner and surprendre) and two words for "surprised" (étonné[e] and surpris[e]), there are two words for "surprising":
C'est pas étonnant que beaucoup de peintres soient venus s'installer ici sur Arles.
It's not surprising that many painters came to settle here in Arles.
Caption 12, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles - Part 3
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C'est un endroit vraiment surprenant en plein cœur de Paris.
It's a really surprising place right in the heart of Paris.
Caption 14, Voyage dans Paris - Les Secrets de Belleville
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Can you guess what la surprise and l'étonnement mean? Surprise, surprise!
In a recent lesson, we talked about the words bon/bonne and mauvais/mauvaise, which respectively mean "good" and "bad," but can also mean "right" and "wrong" depending on context. It's easy to confuse these with the words bien and mal, which have similar meanings ("well" and "badly/poorly") but different functions.
Bon/bonne and mauvais/mauvaise are adjectives, which means they change according to the number and gender of the noun they modify:
Alors justement je crois que c'est vraiment une très bonne chose...
So, exactly, I think that it's really a very good thing...
Caption 56, Alsace 20 - 100 recettes pour 100 vins
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Il y a eu la destruction de la partie de maison existante
There was the destruction of the existing part of the house
qui était en très mauvais état.
that was in very bad shape.
Caption 22, Thomas - Thomas et sa maison
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On the other hand, bien and mal are adverbs, which can modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. Unlike adjectives, these never change in French:
...un grand orfèvre parisien que Balzac connaissait bien.
who was a great Parisian goldsmith whom Balzac knew well.
Caption 28, Exposition - Balzac, architecte d'intérieurs
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Il paraît que les voyages en train finissent mal en général
It seems that train rides generally end badly
Caption 54, Grand Corps Malade - Les Voyages en train
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Just as it's ungrammatical to say "whom Balzac knew good" and "train rides generally end bad" in English, in French you can't say que Balzac connaissait bon or les voyages en train finissent mauvais. You have to use bien/mal.
Bien and mal can also function as nouns. In philosophical terms, they refer to "good" and "evil":
Quelle est la différence entre le bien et le mal?
What is the difference between good and evil?
But they have more down-to-earth meanings as well. For instance, the plural les biens means "goods," as in commodities or possessions. And mal can also refer to illness or harm, as in the expressions avoir mal and faire mal:
J'ai mal à l'oreille.
I have an earache.
Ne me fais pas mal!
Don't hurt me!
In everyday speech, bon and bien are also used as interjections, in which case they're more or less interchangeable. They both correspond to the English interjection "well" in this context:
Eh bien, j'espère que vous avez passé un bon moment, ici, sur Arles.
Well, I hope you had a good time here, in Arles.
Caption 21, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles
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Bon, il y a des raisons personnelles évidemment qui jouent.
Well, obviously there are personal reasons that come into play.
Caption 17, Alphabétisation - des filles au Sénégal
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It's sometimes hard to tell the difference between good and bad, but at least now you know the difference between bon, mauvais, bien, and mal!
Stay tuned for our next lesson and tweet us @yabla or send your topic suggestions to newsletter@yabla.com.
Did you know that, in French, "good" can also mean "right," and "bad" can also mean "wrong"? This might sound sort of philosophical, but it's really just an issue of translation. Bon/bonne and mauvais/mauvaise are two of the most basic adjectives in French. They usually mean "good" and "bad" respectively, but depending on context, they can also mean "right" and "wrong":
C'est la mauvaise réponse à la question.
That's the wrong answer to the question.
Vous pouvez aussi me donner deux numéros de compte.
You can also give me two account numbers.
Je vous dirai lequel est le bon.
I will tell you which is the right one.
Captions 20-21, Patricia - Pas de crédit dans le monde des clones
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When bon/bonne and mauvais/mauvaise mean "right" and "wrong," they're often preceded by a definite article (le, la, les). For example, take a look at the difference between the phrases un bon moment and au (à + le) bon moment:
Eh bien, j'espère que vous
Well, I hope you
avez passé un bon moment, ici, sur Arles...
had a good time here, in Arles...
Caption 21, Arles - Un Petit Tour d'Arles
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Tout cet art, c'est de faire en sorte de mettre dans l'eau
All this is an art to ensure that you put in the water
au bon moment, hein...
at the right time, you see...
Caption 8, Ostréiculture - Rencontre avec Gildas Mourier (Morbihan)
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Using these adjectives isn't the only way to describe correctness and incorrectness. You can also use the verbal phrases avoir raison (to be right, literally "to have reason") and avoir tort (to be wrong, literally "to have fault"):
Oui, tu as raison.
Yes, you're right.
Je ne suis pas trop dans mon assiette.
I'm not too much in my plate [I feel under the weather].
Caption 26, Manon et Clémentine - Expressions toutes faites
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J'ai peut-être eu tort de me fier à lui pour ce projet.
Maybe I was wrong to trust him with this project.
Caption 53, Il était une fois: Les Amériques - 9. Cortés et les Aztèques
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In a previous lesson, we mentioned one other way to say "to be wrong"—se tromper:
Donc, tu crois que Colomb se trompe!
So you think that Columbus is wrong!
Caption 6, Il était une fois: les Explorateurs - 10. Amerigo Vespucci
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Thanks for reading! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to write to us at newsletter@yabla.com or tweet us @yabla.
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