1001 Easy French Phrases

Heather McCoy

• Editore: Dover Publications
• Anno: 2012
• ISBN:
  9780486114026
• Argomento: Languages & Linguistics
• Categoria: French Language

The perfect companion for tourists and business travelers in France and other places where the French language is spoken, this book offers fast, effective communication. More than 1,000 basic words, phrases, and sentences cover everything from asking directions and renting a car to ordering dinner and finding a bank.
Designed as a quick reference tool and an easy study guide, this inexpensive and easy-to-use book offers completely up-to-date terms for modern telecommunications, idioms, and slang. The contents are arranged for quick access to phrases related to greetings, transportation, shopping, services, medical and emergency situations, and other essential items. A handy phonetic pronunciation guide accompanies each phrase.

Chapter 1

Greetings and Everyday Expressions

GREETINGS, INTRODUCTIONS, AND SOCIAL CONVERSATION

One of the ways in which French differs from English is that French uses formal and informal registers of language. These are expressed in the choice of the subject pronoun (vous is formal; tu is informal); the form of the verb; and, sometimes, in the way a question is formed. Always address adults whom you don’t know well using the formal form of the verb, and reserve the informal for friends and children. It is interesting to note that Americans have a tendency to be informal in many situations in which the French prefer to interact formally. We’ve indicated below whenever a given sentence is formal or informal.

You will discover that although the subject pronoun for “we” is nous, the pronoun on frequently is used instead. You can usually tell by the context whether the speaker using on is referring to someone in general, or to the first-personal plural form “we.”

As far as greetings are concerned, keep in mind that these are quite important, and are another way that the formal and informal registers of language are expressed. To show politeness, greet a shopkeeper or hotel employee with “Bonjour Madame” or “Bonjour Monsieur.” And a smile is universal!

You also will note that another difference between French and English is that nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. This has nothing to do with actual gender—say, the inherent masculine nature of le stylo (the pen), so it’s better to memorize the gender of a noun rather than try to figure out this system of classification! Another important aspect to remember about the gender of nouns in French is that articles, adjectives, pronouns, and some verbs mus...