Archive for 'Vocabulary'
L’heure de la sortie / Quitting Time Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 17, 2016
Listening to one of my old favorites in the car the other day, I got to thinking about French expressions for time and in particular the difference between some very common expressions that, while not exactly confusing, can trip up the novice and experienced language learner alike. You see, the French have two words for…
Follow The Footprints – Origin Of Pied-Noir Posted by John Bauer on May 11, 2016
Last week I interviewed Arnaud Fièvre as a part of the Real French Series. One of the things he talked about was le mot (the word) pied-noir. Litterally translated pied-noir is black-foot, but it has a different meaning in French. According to le Larousse, pied-noir is a noun and an adjective and has the following…
‘Zapping’ for beginners Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 3, 2016
« Le zapping est, dans le langage familier, une manière de regarder la télévision consistant à changer régulièrement de chaîne, et le plus souvent à une fréquence élevée, dans le but de trouver un programme que le spectateur jugera satisfaisant à regarder. Une pratique courante est de zapper durant les coupures de publicité. »* https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zapping, May 1…
10 Items You Can Buy in France But Not in the USA Posted by Josh Dougherty on Apr 28, 2016
Going for a long stay abroad is both exciting and scary. When you get there, you quickly learn that the language skills you’ve mastered in the classroom aren’t exactly used that way in real life. You’ll run into accents you have hard time understanding and new expressions you don’t know. But it isn’t just a…
Thumbs Up! Counting with Your Fingers in France Posted by Josh Dougherty on Apr 21, 2016
It’s no secret that counting in French for beginners comes with some difficulty. Even after years of practice, your natural reaction may be to think of the numbers in your native language. That’s how it’s been for me, anyway, and it’s been over 14 years. If a number comes up while I’m speaking in…
Finding My Proof Of Memorization In French Posted by John Bauer on Apr 20, 2016
L’autre jour (the other day) I needed an important insurance document. One of my professeurs sent an email telling me what I needed, and as with many important documents it had a long and complicated name. Une attestation personnelle d’assurance de responsabilité civile A personal proof of civil liability insurance Before I left mon appartement…
Living in a Box Posted by Tim Hildreth on Apr 19, 2016
Ok, I’ve never actually lived in a box, but I have spent my fair share of time in one. You see, the French term for a night club or disco is “boîte de nuit” … and “boîte” is the French word for “box”! And even though I was only 16 when I first went to…