{"id":21505,"date":"2014-12-29T06:00:47","date_gmt":"2014-12-29T05:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=21505"},"modified":"2017-10-23T13:25:40","modified_gmt":"2017-10-23T11:25:40","slug":"reader-request-si-vs-tellement-vs-tant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/reader-request-si-vs-tellement-vs-tant\/","title":{"rendered":"Reader Request: Si vs. Tellement vs. Tant"},"content":{"rendered":"

In French, adverbs that express a certain quantity or intensity are called adverbes de degr\u00e9<\/em> or adverbes de quantit\u00e9<\/em>. In English, these are similarly called adverbs of quantity and are commonly used in every day speech. For example, you could say: \u201cMy friend is so <\/strong>generous\u201d or \u201cMy French is much<\/strong> better than my German\u201d. Adverbs of quantity often pair with adjectives and indicate the degree to which something is done or is.<\/p>\n

For non-French speakers, figuring out which adverbe de quantit\u00e9<\/em> to use to make your French phrase grammatically correct can be a confusing affair. Tellement<\/em>, tant (de)<\/em>, and si <\/em>are commonly confused French adverbs that have similar meanings in English (so<\/strong> or so much\/many<\/strong>, depending on the context), but should be used in distinct grammatical ways.<\/p>\n

The adverb si <\/em>intensifies an adjective or another adverb. Such as: Il faisait si<\/strong> beau hier!<\/em> (It was so beautiful yesterday!) It can also used in certain common expressions indicating hunger, thirst, and feelings such as fear or desire. For example, you could say: Elle avait si<\/strong> faim qu\u2019elle mangeait cette pomme pourrie. (<\/em>She was so <\/strong>hungry that she ate that rotten apple.) Or Il conduit si<\/strong> vite que personne ne veut monter dans sa voiture<\/em>. (He drives so<\/strong> quickly that no one wants to get in his car.) In the first scenario, the si <\/em>modifies an adjective (to be hungry), while in the second case the si <\/em>modifies an adverb (to drive quickly).<\/p>\n

Si <\/em>can also directly modify a verb while acting as an adverb. For example, you could say: Ne courez pas si vite! <\/em>(Don\u2019t run so fast!) or Elle n\u2019est pas si grande que toi. (<\/em>She is not as tall as you.)<\/p>\n

The word tellement <\/em>is used in a similar way to si. <\/em>It can intensify an adjective, or an adverb and is interchangeable with si <\/em>in the examples above. (You could easily say: Il faisait tellement beau hier! <\/em>or Il conduit tellement vite que personne ne veut monter dans sa voiture <\/em>or Elle avait tellement faim qu\u2019elle mangeait cette pomme pourrie<\/em>.) However, you could not use it to directly modify a verb as si <\/em>does above. Ne courez pas tellement vite!<\/em> is NOT grammatically correct. You also cannot use tellement <\/em>in a comparison, as you can with si:<\/em> Elle n\u2019est pas tellement grande que toi <\/em>is also NOT grammatically correct.<\/p>\n

Additionally, tellement <\/em>can be used to mean so much <\/strong>or so many. <\/em><\/strong>For example: J\u2019aime tellement ses romans <\/em>(I like her novels so much<\/strong>) or j\u2019ai mang\u00e9 tellement de<\/strong> fruits <\/em>(I ate so many<\/strong> fruits). Notice how, in the second example, there is an added de<\/strong>. Si <\/em>does not have this meaning. However, tant (de)<\/em> can also express the quantity of a noun. You could certainly say: J\u2019aime tant ses romans<\/em> or j\u2019ai tant mang\u00e9 de fruits. Tant <\/em>does not have the flexibility of use that tellement <\/em>otherwise does and cannot precede adjectives.<\/p>\n

When using tellement <\/em>or si <\/em>in speech, it is important to note that tellement <\/em>is less formal than si. <\/em>It would be more common to say or hear j\u2019ai tellement froid<\/em> in regular speech than j\u2019ai si froid, <\/em>although hearing this latter phrase is not necessarily uncommon. Tant <\/em>is even more formal and sounds somewhat old-fashioned in speech, although it is often used in song lyrics and other texts.<\/p>\n

In the following exercises, tellement <\/em>is used in sentences where it could easily be replaced by either si <\/em>or tant<\/em>. Replace tellement <\/em>with the appropriate word and add your responses in the comments!<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Il fait tellement <\/strong>froid qu\u2019on ne peut pas sortir de la maison.<\/em><\/li>\n
  2. Tu as tellemen<\/strong>t travaill\u00e9 que tu as l\u2019air \u00e9puis\u00e9!<\/em><\/li>\n
  3. J\u2019ai ecout\u00e9 cette chanson tellement<\/strong> de fois que je la connais par coeur.<\/em><\/li>\n
  4. Je voudrais tellement<\/strong> visiter Paris!<\/em><\/li>\n
  5. Le chien a tellement\u00a0<\/strong>d\u2019\u00e9nergie qu\u2019il bascule tout dans la maison.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

    In French, adverbs that express a certain quantity or intensity are called adverbes de degr\u00e9 or adverbes de quantit\u00e9. In English, these are similarly called adverbs of quantity and are commonly used in every day speech. For example, you could say: \u201cMy friend is so generous\u201d or \u201cMy French is much better than my German\u201d…<\/p>\n

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