Archive for 'Vocabulary'
Confusing French Pair: La Langue vs. Le Langage Posted by Jennie on Apr 7, 2010
It’s hard to grasp as a débutant (beginner), but great French writing is elegantly structured without losing its clarté. More than croissants or fashion, I think la culture française se défine (French culture defines itself) by its language—both la langue and le langage. These two words fascinated me when I first learned them. They have…
The French Language: L’Éloquence, Par Excellence! Posted by Hichem on Apr 6, 2010
If the Italians are notoriously known for their obssession with l’Opéra, the English for their penchant towards the performing arts, the Germans for their grand amour of la musique classique, then what about the French? Eh bien the French are tout simplement fond of their own language! What they cherish par-dessus tout (above all) is…
Un petit déjeuner parisien Posted by Jennie on Apr 5, 2010
One of the things I miss most about Paris is the breakfasts—les petits déjeuners. (Before we go any further, did you know that « jeuner » means to fast, so « déjeuner » is literally to break the fast ?) Un petit déjeuner parisien, for me, c’est tout simple. It depends if you’re eating chez…
Un apéro à la française Posted by Jennie on Apr 1, 2010
My favorite French custom, sans exception, is l’apéro, or l’apéritif: the late-afternoon, pre-dinner cocktail hour. Whether you’re in France or having friends over chez vous, here are the bons mots de vocabulaire (right vocabulary words)! An apéro is a goûter (snack) for grown-ups. You’ll need des boissons et de quoi grignoter—drinks and something to snack…
How To Write A Résumé in French Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 25, 2010
Are you thinking about trying to get a job in a French-speaking country? It would be a great language learning-experience, that’s for sure! If you are, then you will need to know a few important things about writing a résumé for your prospective employer(s). 1. The first order of business? Résumé literally means “summary”, so…
Animal Answers Posted by Transparent Language on Dec 6, 2009
Here are the correct groups for the different animals I mentioned in the article a few days ago: animaux de la ferme le cheval (horse) le mouton (sheep) la vache (cow) le canard (duck) l’ane (donkey) la poule (hen) le cochon (pig) animaux de compagnie le chien (dog) le perroquet (parrot) le poisson rouge (goldfish)…
French Vocabulary – The Senses Posted by Transparent Language on Nov 30, 2009
I’m a big fan of trying to learn groups of words (nouns with the corresponding adjective, adverb, etc.) all at once to improve foreign language vocabulary rather than learning a single word here and there. The association involved really works for me when trying to recall vocabulary. So, I’m going to provide you with…