Patricia has a wealth of knowledge about French grammar, vocabulary, literature, culture, history, and more, which she shares with us in her series Le saviez-vous? (Did You Know?)
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In centuries past, when a person's honor was offended, he would challenge the culprit to a duel. The last duel in France took place as recently as 1967, between two respected politicians!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In part two of her lesson on numbers, Patricia counts from 41 to 100 in French. Be prepared to do some arithmetic!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia explains the basic principles of French numbers and their usage, and shares a few grammatical points.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explores the origin of the poisson d'avril (April Fools') tradition. There are numerous theories about this, some of them contradictory.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
The first of April is the day of hoaxes, pranks, and jokes. In France, the tradition is to hang paper fish on people's backs and shout, "Poisson d'avril!" (April Fish!).
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Why do we get "hen flesh" (chair de poule) when it's "duck cold" (froid de canard)? Learn more about these and other poultry-related expressions in this video.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
To conclude her series on musical expressions, Patricia will sing your praises for having learned and practiced everything she taught you.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia breaks down some more musical expressions, such as c'est la même musique, c'est du pipeau, violon d'Ingres, and si ça te chante.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
En avant la musique! (Let's get on with it!) Patricia continues her lesson on various musical expressions used in everyday language.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Tune in to Patricia's lesson on musical expressions and idioms in French. You'll hear plenty of interesting phrases that are worth noting.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Red alert! There are even more French expressions using the word rouge. Patricia explains several of them in this video.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
There are many expressions in French linked to the color red, several of which have direct equivalents in English. Discover a few of them with Patricia.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia lists a few more usages of encore (still, again) and gives an overview of toujours (still, always). To learn more about these words, check out our written lesson on them.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, you will learn the various meanings of encore, which Patricia will illustrate with several examples.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video you will learn how to use the adverbs encore and toujours and how their meanings overlap. Encore and toujours can both mean "still," and share a common negative form: ne plus (no longer).
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia will teach you how to say that you don't like something in tactful ways and in more direct ways. There are many interesting expressions to convey dislike, even disgust, but you might want to save some of them for private conversations.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Using her favorite fruits as examples, Patricia demonstrates some different ways of saying you "like" or "love" something in French.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Victor Hugo is best known for his novels The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and Les Misérables, but he also wrote numerous poems. In this video, Patricia reads an excerpt from his poem "À l'Arc de Triomphe," in which he pays tribute to the city of Paris.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the multiple benefits of dictation exercises. Having fallen out of favor in recent years, dictation is making a comeback after the French Ministry of Education realized that language skills were deteriorating. Why not take full advantage of Yabla's Scribe game to improve those skills?
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the importance of dictation exercises for learning French. Now an essential teaching tool in the classroom, dictation was originally a pastime for French nobility. The author Prosper Mérimée created a dictation exercise for Empress Eugénie that stumped even the brightest intellectuals. Think you can beat them? Try it yourself here.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
It took two hundred years to standardize French spelling before it could be taught in schools using a method called la dictée (dictation), in which a student writes out the words he or she hears. As a matter of fact, this is the exact same principle behind Yabla's Scribe game!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Knowing when to pronounce and when not to pronounce the letter E is key to speaking French like a native. Among other places, E usually isn't pronounced when it's between two consonants (and doesn't have an accent mark).
Difficulty: Newbie
France
E is a tricky vowel in French: sometimes it's pronounced, sometimes it's not. As Patricia explains, it's usually silent at the end of a word, and often silent in the middle of a word.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the difference between ne pas encore (not yet) and jamais (never), the two negative forms of déjà (already, ever). Ne pas encore applies to actions that are limited in time, while jamais applies to actions that aren't.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the use of déjà and ne pas encore in French. Déjà means "yet" or "already," depending on context. In the negative, déjà becomes ne pas encore (not yet).
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia concludes her series on vowels and vowel groups with a discussion of the vowels O and U. She also mentions a French word that contains all five vowels, but none of them are individually pronounced. Can you guess what it is?
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In this video, you will learn how to pronounce some vowel combinations with the letter E (ei, eu, eau) as well as the differences between é, è, and ê.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In this lesson, Patricia will show you how to pronounce the six French vowels and the vowel combinations ai, an, au, ain, and aim.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia concludes her lesson on negation with a discussion of phrases using sans (without), double negation, and negation in the imperative mood.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In part three of this series on negation, Patricia demonstrates the use of adverbs of frequency in the affirmative and in the negative form. Some changes are required with some adverbs.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In the second part of this series on negation, you will learn the negative forms rien ne... (nothing), ne... aucun(e) (not any), and ne... nulle part (nowhere). We hope you will be feeling more positive about these negatives!
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In the first part of this series on negation, you will learn how to use the formula ne... ni... ni (neither... nor... nor) to construct a negative sentence in French.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In part two of her lesson, Patricia will explain in-depth which words require a liaison. Some liaisons are compulsory while some are optional or omitted.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia will teach you how to form liaisons (not the dangerous kind!) in French. These occur when you connect the final consonant of one word with the beginning vowel or silent H of the next word and pronounce them as one. Listen closely to Patricia, who will demonstrate a range of examples.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In the second part of this lesson on ne plus and aussi, you will learn another meaning of aussi. In addition to "also," it can mean "therefore" or "so."
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In part two of her lesson on elisions, Patricia will help you navigate the rules of elisions with multiple examples. They're an essential part of French speech that will no longer be a mystery!
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the use of aussi (also) and non plus (neither). Non plus is the negative form of aussi.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia will show you how to create an "elision" in French, which is when you omit certain vowels and replace them with an apostrophe (similar to saying "it's" instead of "it is" in English).
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In the last episode of this series on negation in a sentence, you will learn how to use the adverb of negation ne pas (not) when it's followed by an infinitive and by an indefinite article.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia continues her lesson on negation. In part three, you will learn where to place ne pas (not) in a sentence with a conjugated verb and a verb in the infinitive.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia demonstrates negation with compound tenses. Negation in French involves two words, ne and pas, which have to be placed in just the right order. Find out how it's done in this video!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia will teach you how to say "no" in French. It's not just a matter of saying non! Find out how to use ne pas (do not) in the right way.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia recites Louis Aragon's heartbreaking poem "Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux" (There Is No Happy Love), which has been set to music by a number of famous singers. You can listen to Françoise Hardy's version here.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this video, you will learn about the famous poet, novelist, and journalist Louis Aragon, who lived in the twentieth century. Many of his poems were set to music by famous French singers such as Georges Brassens, Léo Férré, and Jean Ferrat.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia takes a glimpse into the future by showing you how to conjugate verbs of the second group (ending in -ir) in the future tense.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia teaches us how to conjugate second-group (-ir) verbs in the passé simple, or historical past. Unlike the more common passé composé, this tense is mainly used in literary works and in historical accounts.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains how to conjugate second-group verbs in the present indicative. Regular verbs ending in -ir all follow the same conjugation rules.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, you will learn how to conjugate the verb finir (to finish) in the present tense. This verb is used as a reference for all second-group verbs, which end in -ir.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, you will learn to recognize the difference between first- and second-group verbs. First-group verbs end in -er in the infinitive and second-group verbs end in -ir. The verbs in each group have the same endings in each tense, which makes it a lot easier to learn how to conjugate them.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia takes us on a "white journey in the French language" by explaining some common French expressions using the word blanc/blanche (white).
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia tells us a fun story peppered with expressions involving the word blanc/blanche (white). You might recognize some of them from English, such as hisser le drapeau blanc (to raise the white flag), but others are a bit more difficult to decipher.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia is in a dark mood.... Learn some expressions using the word noir (dark, black) and express your dark feelings in French!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In the second installment on French expressions not to be taken literally, Patricia discusses the phrase se faire l'avocat du diable (to play devil's advocate).
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Some expressions are not be taken literally, as they would not make a lot of sense. For example, vider son sac—literally, "to empty one's bag"—actually means something entirely different. Find out the real meaning of vider son sac and its origin in this video!
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, you will learn when to use the subjunctive mood in all kinds of everyday situations. Whenever you express a doubt, an uncertainty, or a wish, the subjunctive mood is usually required.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia explains the conditional mood in the past and present tense.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Let's talk about the future with Patricia. She will show you how to conjugate verbs in the simple future of the indicative.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this lesson, Patricia discusses some exceptions to first-group verbs in the passé composé, those that require the auxiliary verb être (to be) instead of avoir (to have). Don't worry, Patricia will conjugate them for you and illustrate them with a few examples.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia demonstrates how to conjugate first-group verbs (ending in -er) in the passé composé of the indicative. She uses examples from daily life to illustrate her explanation.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, Patricia introduces the four compound tenses of the indicative with a few examples.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
If you are interested in learning the names of parts of the body in French, this lesson is for you! You will also learn some interesting expressions like prendre son pied, which translates as "to hold one's foot," but actually means "to have a good time."
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In this video, Patricia introduces the eight tenses of the indicative mood. She compares the four simple tenses of the indicative, which require only one verb, with the four compound tenses, which are made up of two verbs.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia focuses on the thinking, listening, and seeing part of the body, the head. She'll teach you a lot of useful vocabulary for various parts of the head, as well as some fun expressions.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia introduces the indicative mood, which includes the most common tenses: past, present, and future.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
In part two of this series, you will learn about the political climate during the 2017 French presidential elections. You will also learn the prerequisites for being able to vote in France.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patricia takes the opportunity to explain how the French presidential elections work. The vote happens in two stages. In the first round, voters choose from several candidates, and in the second round, they pick the president from the top two scoring candidates of the first round.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Learn how to recognize first-group verbs (ending in "er") and learn their ending patterns so you can conjugate them.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia introduces some more first-group verbs, which all end in -er, by creating little stories featuring them. Try creating some of your own!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia goes over some of the most commonly used verbs of the first group (ending in -er). Once you learn them, try creating a story out of them!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
What are first-group verbs? In this video, Patricia will introduce you to the nearly 3000 verbs belonging to this category. Don't be daunted by that number—these verbs are the simplest to use!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Make this final lesson on possessive pronouns yours! Listen and watch carefully to master all the nuances in sounds and spelling.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In this video, Patricia introduces possessive pronouns (mine, yours, his/hers, etc.). Be sure to check out her previous videos on possessive adjectives to gain a better understanding.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patricia demonstrates how to use possessive adjectives and pronouns... using bananas!
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In the second part of Patricia's video on possessive adjectives, you will learn the plural adjectives and what to do when a noun starts with a vowel.
Difficulty: Newbie
France
In her introduction to possessive adjectives, Patricia will teach you how to say "my," "your," and "his/her" in French using some simple props.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this lesson, you will learn the difference between homonyms, homophones, and homographs illustrated with amusing examples. Challenge yourself by repeating the words that sound the same and see if you can spell them correctly. Good luck!
Difficulty: Beginner
France
This video will give you an introduction to one of the most important aspects of French grammar: conjugating verbs in the present, past, and future tenses. It's full of fun and practical examples that will help you master conjugation!
Are you sure you want to delete this comment? You will not be able to recover it.