01_ ffirs_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:25 PM Page i. French. FOR DUMmIES. Audio Set. by Zoe Erotopoulos

Transcription

1 01_ ffirs_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:25 PM Page i French FOR DUMmIES Audio Set by Zoe Erotopoulos

2 01_ ffirs_4.qxp 10/20/10 11:50 AM Page ii French For Dummies Audio Set Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ Copyright 2007 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, , fax Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, , fax , or online at permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HERE- FROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAP- PEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at , outside the U.S. at , or fax For technical support, please visit Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: ISBN: Manufactured in the United States of America

3 01_ ffirs_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:25 PM Page iii About the Author Zoe Erotopoulos holds an M.A., M.Phil, and Ph.D. in French and Romance Philology from Columbia University in New York City. She has also studied in Aix-en-Provence, at the Sorbonne, and at the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris. Her teaching experience in French ranges from elementary to advanced-level courses including literature and theater. Dr. Erotopoulos s area of expertise is 17th-century French Theater. She has taught at a number of institutions including Columbia University, Reid Hall in Paris, and Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. For the past 15 years, she has been teaching in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut. Dr. Erotopoulos lives in Connecticut with her husband and three children.

4 01_ ffirs_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:25 PM Page iv Publisher s Acknowledgments We re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development Senior Project Editor: Tim Gallan Acquisitions Editor: Lindsay Lefevere Senior Copy Editor: Elizabeth Rea Technical Editor: Language Training Center Audio Produced by: Her Voice Unlimited, LLC (hervoice@iquest.net) Media Project Supervisor: Laura Moss-Hollister Media Development Specialist: Kit Malone Editorial Manager: Christine Meloy Beck Media Development Manager: Laura VanWinkle Editorial Assistants: Erin Calligan, Joe Niesen, David Lutton Cartoons: Rich Tennant ( Composition Services Project Coordinator: Kristie Rees Layout and Graphics: Stephanie D. Jumper, Erin Zeltner Proofreaders: Susan Moritz, Mildred Rosenzweig Wiley Bicentennial Logo: Richard J. Pacifico Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies Kristin A. Cocks, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Michael Spring, Vice President and Publisher, Travel Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

5 02_ ftoc.qxp 3/15/07 5:40 PM Page v Table of Contents Introduction About This Audio Set...1 Conventions Used in This Audio Set...1 Foolish Assumptions...2 How This Audio Set Is Organized...3 Where to Go from Here...3 Lesson 1:1: Introduction and Overview of CD1: The Basics Lesson 1:2: Personal Pronouns and Formalities Personal pronouns...6 Formalities...6 Lesson 1:3: Saying Hello and Goodbye Greetings...7 Goodbyes...7 Lesson 1:4: Saying and Replying to How Are You? Lesson 1:5: Introducing Yourself and Talking about Where You re From Lesson 1:6: Indispensable Words and Phrases Pleasantries...12 Asking for help...12 Places...13 People...13 Lesson 1:7: Useful Expressions and Phrases Lesson 1:8: Introducing Question Words Lesson 1:9: Useful Questions and Answers

6 02_ ftoc.qxp 3/15/07 5:40 PM Page vi vi French For Dummies Audio Set Lesson 1:10: You Can Count on Me: An Overview of Numbers Lesson 1:11: Talking about Time Time-related terms...22 Time questions and answers...22 Lesson 1:12: Going through the Calendar and Forming Dates Days of the week...24 Months of the year...25 Common questions and answers...25 Lesson 1:13: Directions Lesson 2:1: Welcome and Overview of CD2: The Nitty-Gritty: Language Structure Lesson 2:2: Singular Nouns School...30 Downtown...30 Occupations...31 Lesson 2:3: Plural Nouns Lesson 2:4: Articles A/An...33 The...33 Lesson 2:5: Demonstrative Pronouns This/That...34 These/Those...34 Lesson 2:6: Adjectives Colors...36 Common adjectives...36 Lesson 2:7: Degrees of Adjectives

7 02_ ftoc.qxp 3/15/07 5:40 PM Page vii Table of Contents vii Lesson 2:8: To Be or Not to Be: A Very Important Verb Lesson 2:9: Verbs er Verbs ir Verbs re Verbs...41 Common irregular verbs...41 Lesson 2:10: Verbs and Tenses The past tense...43 The future tense using aller...44 Present, past, and future examples...44 Lesson 2:11: Negatives Lesson 2:12: Prepositions Common prepositions...46 Example phrases...47 Lesson 2:13: Conjunctions Example sentences...48 Lesson 2:14: Forming Simple Sentences Lesson 2:15: Introducing More Complete Sentences Lesson 2:16: Forming Questions Lesson 3:1: Welcome and Overview of CD3: Real-World Situations Lesson 3:2: At the Office Office equipment and supplies...54 Meetings...54 Business departments...55 Colleagues...55 Verbs...55 Example sentences...56

8 02_ ftoc.qxp 3/15/07 5:40 PM Page viii viii French For Dummies Audio Set Lesson 3:3: On the Job Professions...57 Verbs...58 Lesson 3:4: Making Small Talk Lesson 3:5: Making Appointments Lesson 3:6: Making Travel Arrangements Vocabulary...61 Verbs...61 Example phrases...62 Lesson 3:7: Asking for Directions Vocabulary...63 Example phrases...64 Lesson 3:8: Asking for and Getting Help Vocabulary...65 Example phrases...65 Lesson 3:9: At the Restaurant Lesson 3:10: At the Hotel Lesson 3:11: At the Bank Lesson 3:12: At the Store Verbs...70 Example phrases...70 Shopping for groceries...71 Mini-Dictionaries French-English Mini-Dictionary...73 English-French Mini-Dictionary...81

9 03_ intro_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:26 PM Page 1 Introduction Throughout the world, people regard the culture of France not only with high esteem but also with a sense of romance. The French language has a certain... je ne sais quoi, right? And doesn t just about everything sound better when you say it in French. With global travel easier than ever for business road warriors, students studying abroad, and vacationers understanding and speaking a little French doesn t have to be a chore when you have French For Dummies Audio Set. About This Audio Set French For Dummies Audio Set enables you to quickly familiarize yourself with the French language and begin communicating on a basic level with other French speakers. By listening to the hour-long CDs and following along in this booklet, you can set your own pace and introduce yourself to the topics that interest you. CD1 gives you the very basics of French; CD2 covers the structure of the language; and CD3 presents the language in real-world situations. By the way, you can play the CDs in this audio set on any CD player, so you can listen in your car, on your home stereo, or on your computer. Conventions Used in This Audio Set So that you can easily follow along with the CDs and this booklet, I stuck to a few conventions:

10 03_ intro_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:26 PM Page 2 2 French For Dummies Audio Set The lessons numbers in this booklet correspond to the track numbers on the CDs. So Lesson 1:3 corresponds to the third track of CD1, and Lesson 3:10 corresponds to the tenth track of CD3. Track 1 of each CD is an introduction, which you can skip if you want. On the CDs, the narrator presents words and phrases in English. Then a native French speaker says the words and phrases in French. A pause gives you time to say the word or phrase yourself. Then the French speaker repeats the word or phrase a second time and pauses to give you another chance to repeat the word or phrase. French terms are set in italics in the booklet to make them stand out. The Tip icon indicates helpful information that aids in your understanding of pronunciation, grammar, and other elements of the language. Foolish Assumptions In producing this audio sest, I had to make some assumptions about who you are and what you know: You know no French or if you took French in school, you don t remember very much of it. You re not looking for a product that will make you fluent in French; you just want to know some words, phrases, and sentence constructions so that you can communicate basic information in French. You don t want to memorize a bunch of boring grammar rules. You want to have fun and learn a little bit of French at the same time.

11 03_ intro_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:26 PM Page 3 Introduction 3 How This Audio Set Is Organized The booklet is divided into four parts, and the first three parts each correspond to one of the CDs. CD1: The Basics: This CD presents greetings, indispensable words and phrases, useful questions, an overview of numbers and dates, and other basic French information. CD2: The Nitty-Gritty Language Structure: This CD introduces nouns, verbs, adjectives, articles, and other parts of speech so that you can develop an understanding of how French sentences are put together. CD3: Real-World Situations: On this CD, you re introduced to vocabulary, phrases, and sentences that you will find useful while working, traveling, eating out, shopping, banking, and more. Mini-Dictionaries: The fourth part of this booklet contains a handy French/English dictionary and English/French dictionary for quick reference on the go. Where to Go from Here Pop any of the CDs into your player and start listening and repeating. CD1 is the place to begin if you know nothing about French. If you know a little bit (or just feel adventurous), check out the Table of Contents and jump to any lessons that catch your eye, even if they happen to be on CDs 2 or 3. Listen to the tracks that interest you, and discover French at your own pace. Enjoy.

12 03_ intro_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:26 PM Page 4

13 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 5 Lesson 1:1 Introduction and Overview of CD1: The Basics On Disc One, you start off with the pronouns, followed by introductions and greetings, common words and phrases, and finally words and phrases that you just can t live without.

14 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 6 Lesson 1:2 Personal Pronouns and Formalities Personal pronouns I you (S) he she we you (S/Formal or Plural) they je tu il elle nous vous ils (M or mixed group); elles (F) Use j instead of je if the verb begins with a vowel or a mute h. Use tu with people you know well, like members of your family, friends, children, and peers. Use vous with people you don t know well and with your superiors, like your boss, your teacher, or elders. Although vous can also mean plural you, it can also refer to one person when used formally. Formalities Mr./Sir Mrs. Miss Monsieur Madame Mademoiselle

15 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 7 Lesson 1:3 Saying Hello and Goodbye Greetings hello; hi (Informal) hello; good morning good afternoon good evening good night How s it going? salut bonjour bon après-midi bon soir bonne nuit Comment ça va? Use bonne nuit only if you or someone else is going to sleep. Goodbyes goodbye goodbye (Informal) see you soon see you in a minute see you later until next time see you tomorrow see you next week au revoir salut à bientôt à tout de suite à plus tard à la prochaine à demain à la semaine prochaine

16 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 8 8 CD1: The Basics see you on Monday Have a good day! Good luck! à lundi Bonne journée! Bonne chance! Aside from a few exceptions, final consonants aren t pronounced in French. You pronounce a consonant only if it s followed by a vowel.

17 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 9 Lesson 1:4 Saying and Replying to How Are You? How are you? (Informal) How are you? (Formal) How s it going? (Informal) It s going well. Everything is going well. I m fine, thank you. I m very well. I m not doing very well. I m so-so. And you? (Informal) And you? (Formal) Comment vas-tu? Comment allez-vous? Ça va? Ça va bien. Tout va bien. Je vais bien, merci. Je vais très bien. Je ne vais pas très bien. Je vais comme-ci, comme-ça. Et toi? Et vous?

18 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 10 Lesson 1:5 Introducing Yourself and Talking about Where You re From If you re meeting someone for the first time, it s always more polite to use the vous, or formal, form. Of course, you can use the tu form when speaking to children even if you re meeting them for the first time. The following questions are posed in both the tu and vous forms so that you can practice both forms. What s your name? (Informal) What s your name? (Formal) My name is Olivier. I m Caroline. What s your first name? (Informal) What s your first name? (Formal) What s your last name? (Informal) What s your last name? (Formal) My last name is Nadal. Delighted. Comment t appelles-tu? Comment vous appelezvous? Je m appelle Olivier. Je suis Caroline. Quel est ton prénom? Quel est votre prénom? Quel est ton nom (de famille)? Quel est votre nom (de famille?) Mon nom de famille est Nadal. Enchanté.

19 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 11 Lesson 1:5 11 Delighted to make your acquaintance. It s a pleasure to meet you. Likewise. What country are you from? (Informal) What country are you from? (Formal) I m from the United States. Enchanté de faire votre connaissance. C est un plaisir de vous rencontrer. De même. De quel pays es-tu? De quel pays êtes-vous? Je suis des États-Unis.

20 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 12 Lesson 1:6 Indispensable Words and Phrases Pleasantries yes no please (Informal) please (Formal) Thank you. Thank you very much. You re welcome. (Informal) You re welcome. (Formal) It s nothing. Excuse me. Please repeat. Asking for help Help! information police emergency doctor accident oui non s il te plaît s il vous plaît Merci. Merci beaucoup. Je t en prie. Je vous en prie. Il n y a pas de quoi. Excusez-moi. Répétez, s il vous plaît. Au secours! renseignements la police urgence médecin accident

21 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 13 Lesson 1:6 13 The definite articles (the) in French are le for masculine singular nouns la for feminine singular nouns l for either masculine or feminine singular nouns that begin with a vowel or a mute h les for either masculine or feminine plural nouns Places the city the country the train station the airport the hospital the hotels the church the restaurants the bathroom la ville le pays la gare l aéroport l hôpital les hôtels l église les restaurants la salle de bains The indefinite articles (a and an) in French are un (masculine) and une (feminine). People a man a woman a boy a girl un homme une femme un garçon une fille

22 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page CD1: The Basics a child a father a mother a son a daughter a brother a sister a husband a spouse (M) a wife a spouse (F) a friend (M) a friend (F) un enfant (M); une enfant (F) un père une mère un fils une fille un frère une sœur un mari un époux une femme une épouse un ami une amie

23 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 15 Lesson 1:7 Useful Expressions and Phrases Excuse me. I don t understand. Can you repeat that? Could you speak slower? I don t speak French very well. Can you translate for me? Do you speak English? Yes, I speak English. May I help you? Yes, thank you. What do you need? I need some information. I m lost. Where is the hotel? Where are you going? I don t know. I would like some coffee. With pleasure. Excusez-moi. Je ne comprends pas. Pouvez-vous répéter? Pouvez-vous parler plus lentement? Je ne parle pas bien français. Pouvez-vous traduire pour moi? Parlez-vous anglais? Oui, je parle anglais. Est-ce que je peux vous aider? Oui, merci. De quoi avez-vous besoin? J ai besoin de renseignements. Je suis perdu. Où est l hôtel? Où allez-vous? Je ne sais pas. Je voudrais du café. Avec plaisir.

24 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 16 Lesson 1:8 Introducing Question Words Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? How much?; How many? Is there?; Are there? Qui? Qu est-ce que? Où? Quand? Pourquoi? Comment? Combien? Y a-t-il?

25 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 17 Lesson 1:9 Useful Questions and Answers Who is that man? He s the manager. Who are these people? They re students. What are you doing? (Informal) I m cooking. What do you want? (Formal) I want to eat. Where are you going? (Informal) I m going to the museum. Where are the tickets? They re in the drawer. Where is the Louvre located? In the first district. Where is the ATM? When do we leave? Qui est cet homme? C est le gérant. Qui sont ces gens? Ce sont des étudiants. Qu est-ce que tu fais? Je fais la cuisine. Qu est-ce que vous voulez? Je veux manger. Où vas-tu? Je vais au musée. Où sont les billets? Ils sont dans le tiroir. Où se trouve le Louvre? Dans le premier arrondissement. Où est le distributeur automatique? Quand partons-nous?

26 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page CD1: The Basics We leave tomorrow morning. When is checkout time? How much does this bottle of wine cost? It costs 30 euros. How many suitcases do you have? I have two suitcases. Nous partons demain matin. Quand faut-il régler la note? Combien coûte cette bouteille de vin? Elle coûte trente euros. Combien de valises avez-vous? J ai deux valises.

27 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 19 Lesson 1:10 You Can Count on Me: An Overview of Numbers 1 un 2 deux 3 trois 4 quatre 5 cinq 6 six 7 sept 8 huit 9 neuf 10 dix 11 onze 12 douze 13 treize 14 quatorze 15 quinze 16 seize 17 dix-sept 18 dix-huit 19 dix-neuf 20 vingt

28 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page CD1: The Basics With numbers 21 to 69, you combine the tens with the words for numbers 1 to vingt et un 22 vingt-deux 30 trente 31 trente et un 32 trente-deux 40 quarante 41 quarante et un 42 quarante-deux 50 cinquante 51 cinquante et un 52 cinquante-deux 60 soixante 61 soixante et un 62 soixante-deux With the numbers 70 to 79, combine the tens with the tens. 70 soixante-dix 71 soixante et onze 72 soixante-douze With the numbers 80 to 89, combine the number 4, the number 20, and the ones. For example, in French 80 is four 20s, 81 is four 20s plus 1, and so forth. 80 quatre-vingts 81 quatre-vingt-un 82 quatre-vingt-deux

29 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 21 Lesson 1:10 21 For numbers 90 to 99, combine the number 4, the number 20, and the tens. For example, 90 is four 20s plus 10, 91 is four 20s plus 11, and so forth. (The plus isn t included in the expression.) 90 quatre-vingt-dix 91 quatre-vingt-onze 92 quatre-vingt-douze 100 cent 101 cent un 102 cent deux 150 cent cinquante 200 deux cents 500 cinq cents 1,000 mille

30 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 22 Lesson 1:11 Talking about Time Time-related terms time l heure hour l heure minute minute second seconde morning le matin afternoon l après-midi evening le soir night la nuit day le jour today aujourd hui yesterday hier tomorrow demain Time questions and answers Do you have a minute? Avez-vous une minute? Do you have the time? Avez-vous l heure? What time is it? Quelle heure est-il? It s late. Il est tard. It s early. Il est tôt. It s 8 in the morning. Il est huit heures du matin. It s noon. Il est midi.

31 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 23 Lesson 1:11 23 It s 5 in the afternoon. It s 7 in the evening. It s a quarter past 7. It s 7:30. It s a quarter to 8. Il est cinq heures de l après-midi. Il est sept heures du soir. Il est sept heures et quart. Il est sept heures et demie. Il est huit heures moins le quart.

32 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 24 Lesson 1:12 Going through the Calendar and Forming Dates The days of the week and the months of the year aren t capitalized in French. Days of the week Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday lundi mardi mercredi jeudi vendredi samedi dimanche When you re writing a date in French, you put the numbers in a different order than you would if you were writing it in English. You start with the day, then you write the month, and then the year. For example, to express September 27, 2006, you would write 27/9/06 instead of 9/27/06.

33 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 25 Months of the year January February March April May June July August September October November December janvier février mars avril mai juin juillet août septembre octobre novembre décembre Common questions and answers What day is it? It s Friday. What s the date? It s the first of May. It s December 3. It s August 20. Quel jour sommes-nous? C est vendredi. Quelle est la date? C est le premier mai. C est le trois décembre. C est le vingt août. Lesson 1:12 25 Only cardinal numbers are used for dates, except for the first of the month, which uses the ordinal number premier (first). For example, you say c est le premier janvier, but you say c est le deux janvier.

34 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 26 Lesson 1:13 Directions east west north south to the right to the left turn right turn left straight ahead across in front of in back of next to between near; close far street the next street at the corner of downtown Can you tell me where that is? est ouest nord sud à droite à gauche tournez à droite tournez à gauche tout droit en face de devant derrière à côté de entre près de loin de rue la prochaine rue au coin de au centre-ville Pouvez-vous me dire où ça se trouve?

35 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page 27 Lesson 1:13 27 Can you show me Pouvez-vous me montrer où ça where that is? se trouve? Are we near the Est-ce que nous sommes près du theater? théâtre? Here/there it is. Le/la voilà. You re far from the mall. Vous êtes loin du centre commercial.

36 04_ ch01_2.qxp 8/27/07 2:31 PM Page CD1: The Basics

37 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 29 Lesson 2:1 Welcome and Overview of CD2: The Nitty-Gritty: Language Structure In the lessons on this CD, you discover how to use all the important parts of speech, including nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and more. Then you hear and practice simple sentences and questions.

38 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 30 Lesson 2:2 Singular Nouns School college student teacher (elementary) (M/F) teacher; professor computer desk chair book notebook Downtown store grocery store supermarket bakery post office movie theater restaurant École université étudiant instituteur/institutrice professeur ordinateur bureau chaise livre cahier Centre-ville magasin épicerie supermarché boulangerie poste cinéma restaurant

39 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 31 Lesson 2:2 31 hospital drugstore hotel church hôpital pharmacie hôtel église Occupations doctor nurse (M/F) lawyer (M/F) police officer firefighter accountant banker architect engineer Métiers médecin infirmier/infirmière avocat/avocate agent de police pompier comptable banquier architecte ingénieur

40 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 32 Lesson 2:3 Plural Nouns In order to make a noun plural, most often you add an -s to the end. However, you don t add anything if the noun already ends in an -s, -x, or -z. Add an -x to nouns that end in -eau, -eu, or -ou to make them plural. Final consonants aren t pronounced in French, so you don t have to worry about a difference in pronunciation between the singular and plural forms of nouns. Only in some cases can you hear the difference, such as with nouns that have a completely different form in the plural, like l oeil (the eye) and les yeux (the eyes), and nouns that end in -al and change to -aux in the plural, like animal (animal) and animaux (animals). professors books classmates computers stores doctors policemen shopkeepers offices hospitals professeurs livres camarades de classe ordinateurs magasins médecins agents de police commerçants bureaux hôpitaux Hôpitaux (hospitals) is the only noun from the list of nouns in Lesson 2:2 in which the pronunciation of the plural is different from the singular.

41 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 33 Lesson 2:4 Articles The indefinite articles in French are un and une. You use un in front of masculine singular nouns and une in front of feminine singular nouns. The indefinite article for plural nouns is des. The definite articles in French are le for masculine nouns and la for feminine nouns. The definite article for plural nouns is les. A/An a building an airplane a question a sentence a house The the office the train the passport the family the bill the play the map un bâtiment un avion une question une phrase une maison le bureau le train le passeport la famille la facture la pièce la carte

42 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 34 Lesson 2:5 Demonstrative Pronouns Depending on the context of the sentence, the same demonstrative adjectives can mean this or that in the singular and these and those in the plural. However, in order to emphasize the difference, you can add the suffix -ci (this; these) and -là (that; those) to the noun. For example, consider ce livre-ci (this book), ce livre-là (that book), ces livres-ci (these books), and ces livres-là (those books). You use ce to indicate masculine singular nouns, cette with feminine singular nouns, cet with masculine singular nouns that begin with a vowel or a mute h, and ces with both masculine and feminine plural nouns. This/That this morning this water this woman this man this hotel These/Those these people these students these children Ce/Cet(-te) ce matin cette eau cette femme cet homme cet hôtel Ces ces gens ces étudiants ces enfants

43 05_ ch02.qxp 3/15/07 5:41 PM Page 35 Lesson 2:6 Adjectives In French, an adjective agrees in gender (masculine or feminine) and in number (singular or plural) with the noun it modifies. Aside from some minor exceptions, set rules apply to the transformation of the adjective from the masculine to the feminine: If the adjective already ends in an unaccentuated -e, it doesn t change in the feminine. If the adjective ends in an accentuated -e (or é), you add -e to make it feminine. If an adjective ends in a consonant, you add -e to make it feminine. If an adjective ends in -x, you replace the -x with -se. If an adjective ends in -f, you replace the -f with -ve. Just like with nouns, you add -s to make adjectives plural. If the adjective already ends in -s, -z, or -x, leave it alone. Making the adjectives plural, however, doesn t change their pronunciations. Note: In the following list, the French terms are presented in the following format: Masculine (plural)/feminine (plural).