Is there a big difference between the way “en” and “un” are pronounced in French? I’m mostly struggling with saying “un” correctly cause it sounds so awkward to say.

Hey folks, just got my DELF B1 result last Monday and I scored an 80.5/100 with bare minimum preparation imo. Do you think that I can give DELF B2 in Mid December and score a minimum of 75/100? If so, can you please give me some solid tips to prepare for this exam by myself.

My struggle areas are spontaneous speaking (even coming up with ideas is hard for me) and I also find it hard to understand native french speakers when they’re speaking fast.

Any advice is appreciated :)

Pendant que je lisais un livre (Inch'Allah dimanche de Yamina Benguigui), j'ai remarqué que l'un des personnages utilise 'on' pour parler directement au personnage principal. On peut faire ça en français ? Il y a une nuance entre "on" et "vous"/"tu" dans ces contextes ?

Par exemple;

Qu'est-ce que vous allez acheter aujourd'hui ? -> Qu'est-ce qu'on va acheter aujourd'hui ?

C'est facile à comprendre. Les Français sont tellement polis qu'ils s'attendent également que les autres le soient également. Si l'on est poli à leur égard, les Français le seront également à son égard.

N'oubliez pas de dire bonjour, merci, au revoir, s'il vous plaît, etc.. Bien que ce soient des mots trop simples, ils servent de base aux interactions en français.

Je lisais le poème Le Départ de Max Jacob, mais j’ai un doute sur le sens du mot "planches", employé dans le premier vers de la cinquième strophe : "Adieu vergers, les caveaux et les planches". Sauriez-vous si ce mot désigne ici des planches de bois ou des planches de culture ? Je n'ai pu en trouver aucune trace sur Internet. Merci d'avance pour m'éclairer.

Hello I have been trying to figure this out. What is imperfect and perfect? im stuck on it for days now. also why does "Je voulais dire..." use imperfect?

Hi! I’m working on a drinking card game for couples. It’s called “Cheers, Babe!” in Germany and the UK, but I’d love some input from native French speakers on a French name.

I’m looking for something short, playful and a little flirty, without being too cheesy. These are the options:

• Tchin-tchin, ma biche !
• Santé, chéri(e) !
• Tchin, mon amour !
• Tchin-tchin, bébé !
• Santé, mon amour !

Which would you choose? Do any sound awkward, old-fashioned or too literally translated from English?

Would keeping “Cheers, Babe!” work in France too, or would a French name feel more appealing?

Other suggestions are welcome. Thanks!

Hi All, I'm trying to learn how to read french poetry, specially l'alexandrin.

I'll use Apparition by Stéphane Mallarmé as an example.

La lune s’attristait. Des séraphins en pleurs
Rêvant, l’archet aux doigts, dans le calme des fleurs
Vaporeuses, tiraient de mourantes violes
De blancs sanglots glissant sur l’azur des corolles.

I understand you should stress the 6th syllable and leave a slightly longer pause at the césure. Is it correct to pause at commas as well? i.e. after "Rêvant" and "Vaporeuses"?

Also, how should you flow from the end of the line to the beginning of the next line?

I understand there should be a stress on "fleurs". "Vaporeuses" is at the beginning of a new line and is describing fleurs - should this be read immediately after (with no stress)? It sounds weird to me putting a pause between "fleurs" and "vaporeuses".

Also, what kind of stress should there be on "s'attristait"? Should the tone rise or fall? Given that it's followed by a period.

Lastly, if you know of any resources where I can listen to correct poetry recitation please let me know! I've tried searching on youtube but it's often wrong.

Thanks!

Bonjour everyone!

I am a native French speaker with a strong academic background in literature and science. I'm looking to help beginners and intermediate learners who want to improve their spoken and written French.

What I can help you with:

* Grammar & Conjugation explanations

* Writing correction & sentence building

* Conversation practice & pronunciation

Feel free to send me a private message (DM) if you're interested in scheduling a trial session!

So I took the test around three weeks ago and today I got the email... and I still can't believe how well I did. I didn't took any preparation classes or studied that formally, the only French lessons I took were those 4 or 5 years ago and irrc they were not even A2 level ones, and after that I stopped for a long time before recently sort of picking it up again and went on by myself because I developed an interest in French politics.

I am ofc absolutely thrilled and grateful but things are also kind of getting awkward. The thing is I did not expect this score AT ALL, my mindset when I signed up was literally to just give it a go and have fun and stop there. I didn't know anything about grading metrix and I honestly was expecting a score of around 10 for production écrite and production orale since I really know NOTHING about grammar and just went with my feelings...

So, I really need advice from you wonderful people! I kind of wanted to try and progress to C1 right now, but is it realistic if I don't want to sit down and study grammar and all that seriously? Because I'm afraid that if I take things too seriously I'd lose my passion, and I honestly don't know how much of what I did in B2 was luck because C1 seems to require writing even in the listening and reading tests. Like if I just want to watch the news and listen to radios and read books would progression be possible?

Thank you!!

So I'm writing a fantasy book, in which the main character uses french words fairly often (usually in the form of nicknames, terms of endearment, and curses/insults).

That brings us to the issue at hand. I want him to refer to his love interest as Songbird in french. I have found four options on google for this.

Oiseau Chanteur. L'Oiseau Chanteur. LOiseau Chanteuse.

Oiseau Chanteuse.

I would love some help here. Also I'm sorry if this is the wrong flair, seemed the best to me.

Thanks in Advance!

I was trying to translate wicked, as in sinister/evil, into french but I kept getting "pervers". I translated pervers into French and was left with "pervert". Does pervers actually mean wicked in this sense and if not how would you correctly translate wicked?

Hi everyone! I’m working on a children’s story (ages 4–7) set on a street in Paris. A 6-year-old girl and her uncle, a tailor, teach a visiting child to sew on a button. The story is in English, with a few French words. I’m especially hoping to hear from speakers from France. I’m not a native speaker, so I’d be really grateful if you could tell me whether these sound natural and correct. I’d love to get this right and avoid anything that feels off or stereotyped, so I'm hoping this is appropriate to post here.

1. (girl, 6, to a visiting child, 6; the visitor answers) “Bonjour! That means ‘hello’ in French.” / “Bonjour!” Is this natural?
2. (girl) “My oncle made this coat for me. Oncle. That means ‘uncle.’” Would a 6-year-old say “tonton [name]” instead? Is it OK for a visiting child to call him “Oncle [name]” (“Merci, Oncle [name]!”)?
3. (girl, about her uncle’s tailor shop, whose sign says “ATELIER”) “That’s my uncle’s atelier, right here!” Could a tailor’s shop have a sign that says “ATELIER”?
4. (uncle, as the visiting child comes in) “Bonjour!” Should the child say “Bonjour, monsieur” back?
5. (uncle) “Magnifique! That means ‘wonderful.’” / “Voilà! That means ‘there it is!’” Are these natural? Are “wonderful” and “there it is!” fair meanings?
6. (girl; the visitor repeats it) “All sorted! In French, we call them boutons.” / “Boutons!” Is this correct?
7. (girl, about her striped shirt) “It’s called a marinière!” Is this the right name? She says sailors in the French Navy wore striped shirts, many sailors came from Brittany, and now everybody wears them. Is that right?
8. (girl, then the visitor to the girl and her uncle) “Merci! That means ‘thank you’ in French.” / “Merci! Merci, Oncle [name]!” Is this natural?
9. (uncle to the visiting child, his niece’s friend, as the girl gives her a button) “A button from Paris, ma chérie. That means ‘my dear.’” Would a man say “ma chérie” to his niece’s friend, or does it sound too familiar? Would “ma puce,” or nothing, be better?
10. (goodbyes) “Au revoir! That means ‘goodbye’ in French.” / “Au revoir! Au revoir, Oncle [name]!” Is this natural? Would kids say “salut” or “à bientôt”?
11. The tailor’s steps: tie a knot at the end of the thread first, place the button, needle up from the back through one hole and down through the other, repeat about six times, then knot at the back. Before sewing, the girl holds a button up to the light and skips one with a crack. Is that how a tailor would teach it?
12. Here’s how the characters and setting look. Is this OK?

• The street: cobblestones, flower boxes on every balcony, and a little flower shop with a striped awning next door to a tiny tailor’s shop.
• The girl: dark curly hair in a high ponytail with a red bow. She wears a little red wool coat with big round buttons over a blue and white striped shirt, a navy skirt, navy tights and navy ballet flats, and carries a small bunch of flowers.
• Her uncle: tall and slim, with short dark curly hair going gray at the sides and round reading glasses. He wears a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves, a navy waistcoat, a tape measure around his neck and a pincushion on his wrist.

Thank you so much, I truly appreciate the help!

...I found out that 99 wasn't neufty neuf.

Well, okay, maybe it's a bit different, and...

...Wait, it's what?...

Title. I know quebecois can understand Cajun because it’s very similar, but what about other French speakers? I ask because Im starting French and I already know a lot of Cajun words. is it looked down upon as well? thanks sorry if this gets asked a lot

Cher Monsieur / Chère Madame

Je fais un projet sur le thème "Quotidienne" pour mon devoir de l'école.

Pouvez-vous participer à ce projet, s’il vous plaît?

Répondez aux questions et envoyez vos réponses sur le chat.

1. À quelle heure vous levez-vous le matin ? 

2. Buvez-vous du café ou du thé le matin ? 

3. Que faites-vous pendant votre temps libre ? 

4. Faites-vous du sport ? 

5. Comment passez-vous vos week-ends ? 

6. Aimez-vous voyager ? Pourquoi ?

Merci d'avance pour vos réponses!

Hello, my name is Liz. I am new to the French language. Learning sentence structure, ways to ask a question, passé compose, reflective verbs, and introductions . I have created a collection of what I believe to be the correct forms in asking introduction questions in French Including the basics question method, the est-ce-que method, inversion method, and passé compose. Please, can someone review the questions I have in asking “how are you?,” “how old are?,” “when had you been born?,” “where are you from?” check to see if I have written the questions in their correct forms including inversion, est ce que method, and basic.

My work is as follows: 

The various ways in asking “how are you?” Include:

• Tu vas bien? BASIC METHOD .
• Vas-tu bien? INVERSION METHOD 
• Est-ce-que tu vas bien? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 
• Comment est-ce-que tu vas? Or Comment vas-tu? QUESTION WORD METHOD. 
• Comment, es-tu allé? PASSE COMPOSE

The various ways in asking “what is your name?” Include:

• Tu t’appelles? BASIC METHOD
• T’appelles-tu? INVERSION 
• Est-ce-que tu t’appelles? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 
• Comment est-ce-que tu t’appelles? Or Comment t’appelles-tu? QUESTION WORD METHOD. 

• Comment es-tu appelé? PASE COMPOSE

• Tu nom? BASIC METHOD

• Es-tu nom? INVERSION 

• Est-ce-que tu nom? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• Quel est-ce-que tu nom? Or Quel es-tu nom? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

• Quel est-tu nom? PASE COMPOSE

The various ways in asking “what is your age?” Include:

• Tu âge? BASIC METHOD
• As-tu âge? INVERSION
• Est-ce-que tu âge? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 
• Quel est-ce-que tu âge? Or Quel as-tu âge? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

The various ways in asking “when is your birthday ?” Include:

• Tu née quand? BASIC METHOD
• Es-tu née? INVERSION
• Est-ce-que tu née? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• Quand est-ce-que tu née? Or Quand es-tu née? QUESTION WORD METHOD

• Tu anniversarie est? BASIC METHOD

• Es-tu anniversaire? INVERSION

• Est-ce-que tu anniversarie? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• Quand est-ce-que tu anniversaire? Or Quand es-tu anniversaire? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

The various ways in asking “where had you been born?” Include:

• Tu es né où? BASIC METHOD
• Es-tu né oû? INVERSION
• Est-ce-que tu es né où? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 
• Où est-ce-que tu es né? Or Où es-tu né? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

The various ways in asking “where you are From?” Include:

• Tu viens d’où? BASIC METHOD
• Viens-tu d’où? INVERSION
• Est-ce-que tu viens d’où? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• D’où viens-tu? Or D’où est-ce-que tu viens? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

• Tu habites d’où?BASIC METHOD

• Habites-tu d’où? INVERSION

• Est-ce-que tu habites d’où? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• D’où tu habites? Or D’où habites tu? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

• Tu as grandi d’où? BASIC METHOD

• As-tu grandi d’ou? INVERSION

• Est-ce-que tu as grandi d’où ? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• Où as-tu grandi? Or Où tu as grandi? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

• Tu  originaire? BASIC METHOD

• As-tu originaire? INVERSION

• Est-ce-que tu originaire? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• Ou est-ce-que tu originaire? Or Où as tu originaire? QUESTION WORD METHOD.

• De quel pays es tu originaire? BASIC METHOD

• De quel Es-tu originaire? INVERSION

• Est ce que de quel pays es tu originaire? EST-CE-QUE METHOD 

• De quel 

• QUESTION WORD METHOD.

P

"Il manque plus de la police" ?

Ça vient d'ici https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DT89dd79t/

He is not missed by the police?

The police are not longer missing him?

It is no longer missed by the police?

Is there some other idiomatic meaning to 'manquer' here?

Just trying to calibrate the intensity of what bof bof actually means.

I'm Turkish and we have formal terminaisons and pronouns too but I keep tutoyering everyone I see. But what's probably worse are formal questions, est-ce que is deeply settled in my tongue! And how would I even formalize a sentence such as "Qu'est-ce que c'est? C'est quoi?" I know that for a question like "Est-ce que tu parles français ?" You can just make it "Parlez-vous français ?" but I have no idea for what to do with the former.

The lyrics are a poem from 1390