le [lə]

the definite art (article: definite article)

• Le chat dort sur le canapé. (The cat is sleeping on the sofa.)

it, them, him, her (pronoun: replaces a noun)

• Tu veux ce livre ? Je te le prête demain. (Do you want that book? I’ll lend it to you tomorrow.)

him, her, it, them (pronoun: direct object)

• Je le vois souvent au marché. (I often see him at the market.)

L (noun [m]: the letter “L”)

• Son nom de famille commence par un L. (His last name starts with an L.)

that (adjective: used before a person’s name)

• Le Julien dont je te parle travaille ici. (That Julien I’m talking about works here.)

– (article: used to address someone)

• Hé, le voisin, tu peux m’aider deux minutes ? (Hey, neighbour, can you help me for two minutes?)

C (noun [m]: musical note; note in scale)

• Dans le refrain, on passe en C majeur. (In the chorus, we move to C major.)

de [də]

[noun]’s, of (preposition: possession)

• C’est le vélo de mon frère. (It’s my brother’s bike.)

from (preposition: origin/source)

• Je viens de Lille. (I come from Lille.)

from (preposition: starting point in space)

• Le bus part de la gare à huit heures. (The bus leaves from the station at eight o’clock.)

from (preposition: starting point in time/sequence)

• Je travaille de lundi à jeudi. (I work from Monday to Thursday.)

of, [noun]’s (preposition: noun complement)

• J’ai bu une tasse de café très fort. (I drank a cup of very strong coffee.)

[noun]’s, by (preposition: authored/created by)

• On a vu une exposition de Monet. (We saw an exhibition by Monet.)

with (preposition: means/manner)

• Il a écrit la lettre de sa main. (He wrote the letter with his own hand.)

-, of, about (preposition: after an indirect-transitive verb)

• On a parlé de ce problème toute la réunion. (We talked about that problem for the whole meeting.)

of, with, to (preposition: after an adjective)

• Je suis fier de toi. (I’m proud of you.)

for, with (preposition: reason/cause)

• Il tremble de froid depuis une heure. (He’s been shivering with cold for an hour.)

of, out of (preposition: among/from a group)

• Trois de mes collègues parlent italien. (Three of my colleagues speak Italian.)

about, of (preposition: about; concerning)

• Je voudrais te parler de ton projet. (I’d like to talk to you about your project.)

-, some (article: partitive)

• Je veux de l’eau, s’il te plaît. (I want some water, please.)

de, of (preposition: nobiliary particle in names)

• Il s’appelle Jean de La Fontaine. (His name is Jean de La Fontaine.)

un [œ̃, yn]

a, an (article: indefinite article)

• J’ai un rendez-vous cet après-midi. (I have an appointment this afternoon.)

one, a, an (adjective: the number 1)

• Il ne me reste qu’un seul euro. (I only have one euro left.)

one (noun [m], invariable: the number 1)

• En maths, un plus un font deux. (In maths, one plus one equals two.)

one, one of them (pronoun: referring to a person)

• Un m’a appelé, mais je n’ai pas reconnu la voix. (Someone called me, but I didn’t recognize the voice.)

one of [sth] (pronoun + preposition: one from a set)

• C’est un des meilleurs films de l’année. (It’s one of the best films of the year.)

one, number one (adjective: first; top-ranked)

• Elle est numéro un dans son équipe. (She is number one in her team.)

one (adjective: indivisible; a single whole)

• Pour lui, la famille est un tout. (For him, family is a single whole.)

à [a]

At (preposition: before a fixed place)

• Le colis est à la réception. (The parcel is at reception.)

To (preposition: towards a place)

• Je vais au marché ce matin. (I’m going to the market this morning.)

In (preposition: before a city, location)

• Elle travaille à Lyon. (She works in Lyon.)

To (preposition: before a city, movement)

• On part à Marseille demain. (We’re leaving for Marseille tomorrow.)

At (preposition: indicating an hour)

• Rendez-vous à 18 h devant le cinéma. (Meet at 6 p.m. in front of the cinema.)

At, on (preposition: indicating a date/occasion)

• À Noël, toute la famille vient à la maison. (At Christmas, the whole family comes to the house.)

To, until, till, through, thru (preposition: from one time to another)

• Le musée est ouvert de mai à octobre. (The museum is open from May until October.)

See you, until, till (preposition/interjection, informal: future meeting)

• Bon, à demain ! (OK, see you tomorrow!)

Before, with [time] to go before, with [time] remaining, with [time] left, with [event + time] away (preposition: time before an event)

• À deux jours du départ, je n’ai toujours pas fait ma valise. (With two days to go before departure, I still haven’t packed my suitcase.)

Away (preposition: distance in space)

• La plage est à trois kilomètres d’ici. (The beach is three kilometres away from here.)

Away (preposition: distance in time)

• Le train est à dix minutes. (The train is ten minutes away.)

Belong to [sb], mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs, my, your, his, her, our, their, [name]’s, of (preposition: possession)

• Ces clés sont à moi, pas à toi. (These keys belong to me, not you.)

With, in (preposition: feature/clothing)

• La femme au manteau rouge attend dehors. (The woman in the red coat is waiting outside.)

With, [adjective] (preposition: indicating a characteristic)

• Un enfant aux yeux bleus m’a souri. (A blue-eyed child smiled at me.)

– (preposition: indicating flavour/ingredient used as a noun modifier)

• Je voudrais un yaourt à la fraise. (I’d like a strawberry yogurt.)

For, designed for, meant for, intended for (preposition: indicating purpose)

• J’ai acheté une boîte à outils. (I bought a box for tools.)

Powered by, [noun] powered (preposition: describing what powers something)

• C’est une voiture à essence. (It’s a petrol-powered car.)

On, by, in (preposition: indicating manner)

• Il a répondu à voix basse. (He answered in a low voice.)

To (preposition: intention/obligation to do something)

• J’ai un email à envoyer ce soir. (I’ve got an email to send tonight.)

To (preposition: introduces an indirect object)

• J’ai parlé à mon voisin hier. (I spoke to my neighbour yesterday.)

From (preposition: provenance/source)

• Elle achète son pain à cette boulangerie. (She buys her bread from that bakery.)

By, from (preposition: according to; from appearance)

• À son sourire, j’ai compris qu’il avait réussi. (From his smile, I understood he’d succeeded.)

On, on the count of (preposition: counting up to)

• À trois, on saute ensemble. (On three, we jump together.)

My turn, your turn, his turn, her turn, our turn, their turn, [sb]’s turn, mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs (noun/pronoun: whose turn it is)

• C’est à toi de choisir, puis ce sera à moi. (It’s your turn to choose, then it will be mine.)

If + [indicative] (preposition + infinitive: if/when)

• À te croire, tout est facile. (If you are to be believed, everything is easy.)

By + [gerund], through + [gerund] (preposition + infinitive: by doing; through doing)

• À trop parler, il a fini par se contredire. (By talking too much, he ended up contradicting himself.)

Priced at (preposition: price)

• Les billets sont à 25 €. (The tickets are priced at €25.)

At, at the age of (preposition: age)

• Il a obtenu son diplôme à 22 ans. (He got his degree at the age of 22.)

To (preposition: in a score)

• Ils ont gagné 3 à 0. (They won 3 to 0.)

In [number]s, in groups of [number], in pairs, with [number] of us, with [number] of you (preposition: grouping/joint endeavour)

• Travaillez à deux pour cet exercice. (Work in pairs for this exercise.)

être [ɛtʀ]

be (intransitive verb: nature of [sb/sth])

• Mon voisin est très patient avec ses enfants. (My neighbor is very patient with his children.)

be (intransitive verb: state of [sb/sth])

• Je suis épuisé après cette longue journée. (I am exhausted after this long day.)

be (intransitive verb: be in a situation)

• Ils sont en vacances jusqu’à lundi. (They are on holiday until Monday.)

be, belong (intransitive verb: belong to [sb])

• Cette décision n’est pas à moi : elle est au directeur. (This decision isn’t mine: it belongs to the director.)

be (auxiliary verb: used to form the passive voice)

• La réunion a été reportée à cause de la grève. (The meeting was postponed because of the strike.)

have, [verb in simple past] (auxiliary verb: used with reflexive verbs in compound tenses)

• Nous nous sommes trompés d’adresse, mais on a fini par trouver. (We got the address wrong, but we eventually found it.)

have, be, [verb in simple past] (auxiliary verb: used with certain verbs in compound tenses)

• Elle est partie tôt pour éviter les embouteillages. (She left early to avoid traffic jams.)

be (intransitive verb: tell the time)

• Il est dix heures et quart, on y va ? (It’s a quarter past ten; shall we go?)

be (intransitive verb: indicate a date or season)

• Nous sommes le 3 avril, et il neige encore. (It’s April 3rd, and it’s still snowing.)

being (noun [m]: a living being)

• Chaque être vivant a besoin d’eau pour survivre. (Every living being needs water to survive.)

being (noun [m]: inner being)

• Au plus profond de son être, elle savait que c’était la bonne décision. (Deep down, she knew it was the right decision.)

soul, person, individual, being (noun [m]: a person)

• À cette heure-là, il n’y avait pas un être dans la rue. (At that hour, there wasn’t a soul in the street.)

go (intransitive verb, informal: go somewhere; used with compound tenses)

• On a été au marché ce matin, et on a tout oublié. (We went to the market this morning, and we forgot everything.)

go (intransitive verb, literary: go somewhere; used with simple tenses)

• À l’aube, il fut au village, puis reprit la route sans un mot. (At dawn, he went to the village, then set off again without a word.)

et [e]

and (conjunction: including [sb/sth])

• J’ai invité Léa et son frère à dîner. (I invited Léa and her brother to dinner.)

and (conjunction: emphasis)

• Et dire que je doutais de lui il y a une semaine ! (And to think I doubted him a week ago!)

and (conjunction: consequently)

• J’ai raté le bus et je suis arrivé en retard. (I missed the bus and I arrived late.)

and, plus (conjunction: maths, added to)

• Dix et cinq font quinze. (Ten plus five makes fifteen.)

and (noun [m]: maths, boolean operator)

• En logique, « A et B » n’est vrai que si A et B sont vrais. (In logic, “A and B” is true only if A and B are true.)

en [ɑ̃]

about it (pronoun: de cela, fact)

• On parle d’une réforme, mais je n’en sais pas grand-chose. (People are talking about a reform, but I don’t know much about it.)

some, some of it (pronoun: de cela, physical object)

• Il reste du fromage au frigo ; tu en veux un morceau ? (There’s some cheese left in the fridge; do you want some?)

of them (pronoun: d’eux, d’entre eux)

• Plusieurs candidats se sont présentés, mais je n’en connais aucun. (Several candidates applied, but I don’t know any of them.)

some (pronoun: d’eux, d’entre eux)

• J’ai acheté des pommes ; j’en ai donné quelques-unes à ma voisine. (I bought apples; I gave some to my neighbor.)

there, from there, – (adverb: de là)

• Elle vit à Bordeaux et elle n’en repartira pas avant juillet. (She lives in Bordeaux and she won’t leave there before July.)

– (adverb: à ce point)

• J’en suis là dans le projet : le plan est validé, mais rien n’est signé. (That’s where I’m at in the project: the plan is approved, but nothing is signed.)

in, on, at (preposition: location)

• Il travaille en ville, mais il habite à la campagne. (He works in the city, but he lives in the countryside.)

to (preposition: direction)

• Nous irons en Espagne cet été. (We will go to Spain this summer.)

in (preposition: period)

• En mars, la météo change souvent d’un jour à l’autre. (In March, the weather often changes from one day to the next.)

in (preposition: duration)

• J’ai bouclé le dossier en quinze minutes. (I wrapped up the file in fifteen minutes.)

in, of, made of, made from (preposition: material)

• Elle porte une bague en argent. (She’s wearing a silver ring.)

in (preposition: state)

• Après le match, il est rentré en sueur. (After the match, he came home sweating.)

in (preposition: arrangement)

• Les chaises étaient disposées en cercle. (The chairs were arranged in a circle.)

by (preposition: by means of)

• On y va en métro, ce sera plus simple. (We’ll go by metro; it will be simpler.)

in (preposition: domain)

• En informatique, ce type d’erreur arrive vite. (In computing, this kind of error happens quickly.)

while + [present participle] (preposition: simultaneous action)

• Il écoute un podcast en faisant la vaisselle. (He listens to a podcast while doing the dishes.)

avoir [avwaʀ]

have, have got, own, possess (transitive verb: to possess [sth])

• Ils ont une petite maison près de la mer. (They have a small house near the sea.)

have, contain, have got (transitive verb: to contain [sth])

• Cette valise a une poche cachée. (This suitcase has a hidden pocket.)

get, have (transitive verb, informal: to obtain [sth])

• J’ai eu une place au premier rang, par chance. (I got a seat in the front row, by luck.)

have, have got (auxiliary verb: illness)

• Je ne viens pas ce soir : j’ai un mauvais rhume. (I’m not coming tonight: I’ve got a bad cold.)

have, have got (transitive verb: characteristic)

• Ce collègue a un humour très particulier. (This colleague has a very particular sense of humor.)

have, feel, have got (transitive verb: feeling)

• J’ai peur de me tromper, mais j’essaie quand même. (I’m afraid of making a mistake, but I’m trying anyway.)

be, turn (verb: age)

• Mon neveu a dix ans, et il a eu onze ans le mois dernier. (My nephew is ten, and he turned eleven last month.)

have, has (auxiliary verb: present perfect)

• Nous avons terminé plus tôt que prévu. (We have finished earlier than planned.)

possession, asset (noun [m]: possessions/assets)

• Ses avoirs sont répartis sur plusieurs comptes. (His assets are spread across several accounts.)

credit note, store credit (noun [m]: refund credit)

• Le magasin m’a fait un avoir au lieu de me rembourser. (The shop issued me a credit note instead of refunding me.)

measure, be, stand (verb: to measure a dimension)

• Cette armoire a deux mètres de haut. (This wardrobe measures two meters high.)

have (transitive verb, slang: to dupe [sb])

• Je me suis fait avoir par une fausse promo en ligne. (I got duped by a fake online promotion.)

que [kə]

what (pronoun: direct question)

• Que cherches-tu exactement dans ce dossier ? (What are you looking for exactly in this file?)

what (pronoun, formal: indirect question)

• Il ne sait pas que répondre quand on l’interroge. (He doesn’t know what to answer when he’s questioned.)

that, whom, who (relative pronoun: introduces a relative clause)

• La personne que j’ai appelée hier n’a jamais rappelé. (The person whom/who I called yesterday never called back.)

that (conjunction: introduces a subordinate clause)

• Je pense que tu as raison sur ce point. (I think (that) you’re right on that point.)

that (conjunction: introduces a result clause)

• Le trafic était tel que nous avons raté le train. (The traffic was such that we missed the train.)

than (conjunction: comparison)

• Ce trajet est plus court que je ne l’imaginais. (This trip is shorter than I imagined.)

let (auxiliary verb: introduces an imperative)

• Qu’il entre, et on commence tout de suite. (Let him come in, and we’ll start right away.)

so, so that (conjunction: so that)

• Parle plus lentement, que tout le monde comprenne. (Speak more slowly so that everyone understands.)

please; do + [pronoun] ever!; how (adverb/expression: emphasis)

• Un café ? Oh que oui ! (A coffee? Yes, please! / Do I ever!)

how; so (adverb, formal: intensifier)

• Que cette idée est brillante ! (How brilliant that idea is! / That idea is so brilliant!)

only; nothing but; all; but (adverb/expression: restriction; “but” literary)

• Au sommet, on ne voyait que des nuages. (At the top, you could see nothing but clouds.)
• Il ne sait que se plaindre depuis ce matin. (All he can do is complain since this morning.)

pour [puʀ]

to + [infinitive], in order to + [infinitive]; for + [gerund] (preposition: purpose)

• Je coupe les notifications pour rester concentré. (I turn off notifications to stay focused.)

for (preposition: recipient)

• J’ai gardé une part de gâteau pour toi. (I saved a slice of cake for you.)

for (preposition: destination)

• On part pour Lyon demain matin. (We’re leaving for Lyon tomorrow morning.)

for (preposition: suitability)

• Ces chaussures sont parfaites pour la marche. (These shoes are perfect for walking.)

for (preposition: reason)

• Il a été sanctionné pour tricherie. (He was penalized for cheating.)

for (preposition: duration)

• Je serai absent pour deux jours. (I’ll be away for two days.)

to (preposition: time needed)

• J’ai mis une heure pour terminer ce rapport. (It took me an hour to finish this report.)

for (preposition: occasion)

• Tu viens pour le déjeuner ? (Are you coming for lunch?)

for; instead of; per pro (preposition: in place of [sb/sth])

• Tu peux signer pour moi ? J’ai oublié ma pièce d’identité. (Can you sign for me? I forgot my ID.)

for; in [possessive adj] opinion/view; from [possessive adj] point of view/perspective; for [possessive adj] part (preposition: viewpoint)

• Pour moi, c’est la meilleure option. (For me, it’s the best option.)

for, pro; in favour of [sth]; in favor of [sth]; support (preposition/verb: preference/support)

• Je suis pour cette réforme, et toi ? (I’m in favour of this reform; what about you?)

so that + [indicative]; in order that + [indicative]; for + [infinitive] (conjunction: in order that)

• Répète le code pour que je le note correctement. (Repeat the code so that I can write it down correctly.)

dans [dɑ̃]

in; inside; into (preposition: inside a place)

• Il a laissé ses clés dans la voiture. (He left his keys in the car.)

in (preposition: content)

• Il y a trop de sel dans cette soupe. (There’s too much salt in this soup.)

in [X’s work]; with (preposition: in a work; informal “with”)

• Dans Hugo, on sent une vraie puissance d’image. (In Hugo’s work, you feel a real power of imagery.)

among (preposition: among)

• Dans ses amis, plusieurs travaillent à l’hôpital. (Among his friends, several work at the hospital.)

during (preposition: during)

• Je te rappelle dans la journée. (I’ll call you back during the day.)

in (preposition: in [time], from now)

• Le cours commence dans dix minutes. (The class starts in ten minutes.)

in (preposition: purpose)

• Il agit dans l’intérêt de l’équipe. (He acts in the team’s interest.)

around; about (preposition, informal: approximation)

• Ils étaient dans les cinquante à attendre dehors. (There were around/about fifty people waiting outside.)

ce [sə, sɛt]

this; that (adjective: demonstrative)

• Ce projet et cet exemple sont faciles à comprendre. (This project and that example are easy to understand.)

that; this; it (pronoun: “that/this/it”)

• C’est simple : on recommence depuis le début. (It’s simple: we start again from the beginning.)

works council (noun [m], abbreviation: France, dated)

• Grâce au CE, on a eu des places moins chères. (Through the works council, we got cheaper tickets.)

Year 3; second grade; fourth year of primary school; second year of elementary school (noun [m], abbreviation: CE1)

• En CE1, ils commencent à lire des textes plus longs. (In Year 3 / second grade, they start reading longer texts.)

Year 3 pupil; second grade student; third year primary school pupil; second year elementary school student (noun [m/f], abbreviation: CE1 student)

• Les CE1 sont sortis en récréation plus tôt aujourd’hui. (The Year 3 pupils went out for recess earlier today.)

Year 4; third grade; fourth year of primary school; third year of elementary school (noun [m], abbreviation: CE2)

• En CE2, ils travaillent davantage la grammaire. (In Year 4 / third grade, they work more on grammar.)

Year 4 pupil; third grade student; fourth year primary school pupil; third year elementary school student (noun [m/f], abbreviation: CE2 student)

• Les CE2 préparent une petite pièce de théâtre. (The Year 4 pupils are preparing a short play.)

tout [tu, tut]

all, the whole, the entire (adjective: the entirety of something)

• J’ai relu tout le rapport avant la réunion. (I reread the whole report before the meeting.)

on [date] every year, on the [date] every year, every (expression: recurring date)

• On se retrouve le 14 juillet tous les ans. (We meet on July 14th every year.)

every + day of week, on day of week s (expression: recurring weekday)

• Je vais à la piscine tous les mercredis. (I go to the pool every Wednesday.)

every + number (expression: recurring interval)

• Le bus passe toutes les dix minutes. (The bus comes every ten minutes.)

all + number, all + number of them (expression: total number of people/things)

• Ils ont tous les trois validé la proposition. (All three of them approved the proposal.)

full-on, quite, real (adjective: informal emphasis)

• Réorganiser le service, c’est tout un chantier. (Reorganizing the department is quite a job.)

everything, all (pronoun: all things)

• Tout va mieux depuis qu’on a clarifié le plan. (Everything is better since we clarified the plan.)

everyone, everybody, all of them, they all (pronoun: all people)

• Toutes ont applaudi à la fin de la présentation. (Everyone applauded at the end of the presentation.)

anything (pronoun: possibility)

• Choisis tout ce qui te plaît sur la carte. (Choose anything you like on the menu.)

all, entirely, completely, totally, fully (adverb: entirely)

• Le couloir est tout en béton, ça résonne beaucoup. (The corridor is entirely concrete, so it echoes a lot.)

very, so, all, entirely, wholly, completely (adverb: high degree)

• Il était tout heureux d’apprendre la nouvelle. (He was very happy to hear the news.)

as + [indicative], while + [present participle] (adverb: simultaneous action)

• Elle prenait des notes tout en écoutant le cours. (She took notes while listening to the class.)

only, all (adjective/noun: only item taken/available)

• Pour tout dîner, on a eu une soupe et un morceau de pain. (For dinner, we only had soup and a piece of bread.)

all, all of, every one of [[sb]’s works], the whole of (adjective: the entirety of an oeuvre)

• Cet été, j’ai regardé tout Kubrick en une semaine. (This summer, I watched all of Kubrick in one week.)

all, all of, the whole of (adjective: the entirety of a city/its people)

• Tout Londres semblait ralenti par la grève. (All of London seemed slowed down by the strike.)

completely, fully, all (adverb: fully attentive)

• Pendant l’entretien, il était tout ouïe. (During the interview, he was all ears.)

all (adjective: powered/operated only by)

• Ils lancent une gamme tout électrique l’an prochain. (They are launching an all-electric range next year.)

whole, all, lot, whole lot, everything, most important thing (noun [m]: complete set/overall)

• Le tout manque de cohérence, malgré de bonnes idées. (The whole lacks coherence, despite good ideas.)

faire [fɛʀ]

do (transitive verb: to act)

• Je ne sais pas quoi faire de ce dossier. (I don’t know what to do with this file.)

make (transitive verb: to produce or create)

• Je vais faire un gâteau pour demain. (I’m going to make a cake for tomorrow.)

make, cause, result in [sth] (transitive verb: to provoke an effect)

• Cette erreur a fait perdre du temps à toute l’équipe. (That mistake caused the whole team to lose time.)

play, do, go (verb phrase: to practice an activity)

• Elle fait du violon et du tennis après le travail. (She plays the violin and plays tennis after work.)

do, cover (transitive verb: to travel a distance)

• On a fait trente kilomètres en voiture ce matin. (We did thirty kilometers by car this morning.)

turn into (transitive verb: to transform into)

• Cette table fait lit d’appoint en un instant. (This table turns into a spare bed in an instant.)

do, study (transitive verb: to take a field of study)

• Il a fait droit avant de se reconvertir. (He studied law before retraining.)

work as [sth], work in [sth], do (transitive verb: to work in a job)

• Pendant l’été, je faisais serveur dans un petit café. (During the summer, I used to work as a waiter in a small café.)

be, play, act, come the [sth] (transitive verb: to adopt a behavior)

• Il fait le dur devant les autres, mais il est stressé. (He acts tough in front of the others, but he’s stressed.)

go, say (transitive verb: animal sound)

• Le canard fait « coin » quand il voit la nourriture. (The duck goes “quack” when it sees food.)

go, make, say (transitive verb: informal, to say)

• Je lui ai proposé de venir, il a fait « mouais » et n’a pas répondu. (I suggested he come; he went “yeah, whatever” and didn’t answer.)

measure, be + [measurement] tall, be (intransitive verb: to measure)

• Cette pièce fait trois mètres sur quatre. (This room measures three meters by four.)

cost (intransitive verb: informal, to have a price)

• La réparation fait quatre-vingts euros. (The repair costs eighty euros.)

do, sell (transitive verb: colloquial, to sell for a price)

• Allez, je te fais le lot à quinze euros. (Alright, I’ll do you the bundle for fifteen euros.)

wear [sth] in, break [sth] in (transitive verb + preposition: to break in)

• Il me faut une semaine pour faire ces chaussures à mon pied. (It takes me a week to break these shoes in.)

do, last (intransitive verb: colloquial, to last)

• Ces piles m’ont fait six mois. (These batteries lasted me six months.)

look (intransitive verb: to seem/appear)

• Avec ces lunettes, tu fais plus sérieux. (With those glasses, you look more serious.)

be (impersonal verb: weather/conditions)

• Aujourd’hui, il fait lourd et humide. (Today, it is muggy and humid.)

have [sth] done, get [sth] done (transitive verb phrase: to have something done)

• Je vais faire réparer mon vélo cette semaine. (I’m going to get my bike repaired this week.)

happen, come about (reflexive verb: to take place)

• Si ça se faisait avant vendredi, ce serait parfait. (If that happened before Friday, it would be perfect.)

son [sɔ̃]

sound (noun [m]: audible vibration)

• Le son de l’orage a fait trembler les vitres. (The sound of the storm made the windows shake.)

volume (noun [m]: audio level)

• Tu peux baisser le son, s’il te plaît ? (Can you turn the volume down, please?)

bran (noun [m]: cereal byproduct)

• J’ajoute du son d’avoine dans mon porridge. (I add oat bran to my porridge.)

his, her, its (possessive adjective: owner is male/female/inanimate)

• La voiture a perdu son rétroviseur gauche. (The car lost its left wing mirror.)

your, one’s (possessive adjective: generic/undefined person; formal “one’s”)

• Il vaut mieux relire son message avant de l’envoyer. (It’s better to reread your message before sending it.)

mettre [mɛtʀ]

put, place (transitive verb: position [sth])

• Mets le livre sur l’étagère, pas sur la table. (Put the book on the shelf, not on the table.)

put, place (transitive verb: put [sb] somewhere / in a situation)

• Le responsable nous a mis près de la sortie pour accueillir les invités. (The manager put us near the exit to welcome the guests.)

hang; put [sth] up (transitive verb: hang/display [sth] on a wall, etc.)

• On a mis une affiche dans le couloir. (We hung a poster in the hallway.)

give, award (transitive verb: give/award a mark or grade)

• Le prof a mis 18/20 à mon devoir. (The teacher gave my assignment 18/20.)

put; spread; get; put [sth] on, put on [sth] (transitive verb: apply a substance; deliberate/thin application; accidental; makeup)

• En tartinant, je me suis mis de la confiture sur la manche. (While spreading it, I got jam on my sleeve.)

take; spend (transitive verb: time needed; impersonal time construction)

• J’ai mis vingt minutes à retrouver l’adresse. (It took me twenty minutes to find the address.)

put [sth] on, slip [sth] on; slip into [sth] (transitive verb: put on clothing)

• Il a mis son manteau et il est sorti. (He put on his coat and went out.)

include; let [sb] in on [sth]; bring [sb] into [sth] (transitive verb: include/involve [sb])

• On a mis Clara dans la confidence. (We let Clara in on the secret.)

put [sth] on, switch [sth] on, turn [sth] on (transitive verb: turn on an appliance/device)

• Mets le chauffage, il fait froid. (Turn the heating on; it’s cold.)

put [sth] on, turn [sth] on, switch [sth] on (transitive verb: TV—select/turn on a channel)

• Mets la trois, les infos commencent. (Put Channel 3 on; the news is starting.)

spend [sth] on [sth]; lay [sth] out for [sth], lay out [sth] for [sth] (transitive verb: spend money)

• Je ne veux pas mettre autant pour un simple câble. (I don’t want to spend that much on a simple cable.)

suppose, suppose that, say, say that; allow, allow that (transitive verb: assume / “let’s say”)

• Mettons que tu aies raison : qu’est-ce qu’on fait ensuite ? (Let’s suppose you’re right: what do we do next?)

start, begin; get to [sth], set to [sth] (pronominal verb: begin an action/activity)

• À huit heures, on se met au travail. (At eight o’clock, we start work.)

start doing [sth], begin doing [sth]; start to do [sth], begin to do [sth] (pronominal verb: begin doing [sth])

• Dès qu’il a fini, il s’est mis à ranger la cuisine. (As soon as he finished, he started tidying the kitchen.)

start to do, begin to do; start doing, begin doing (pronominal verb: suddenly start doing [sth])

• Sans prévenir, elle s’est mise à rire. (Without warning, she started laughing.)

put [sth] on; apply; get (pronominal verb: put/apply/get [sth] on yourself)

• Je me suis mis de la crème solaire avant la randonnée. (I put on sunscreen before the hike.)

wear; dress (pronominal verb: dress in a certain way)

• Pour les entretiens, il se met toujours en costume. (For interviews, he always wears a suit.)

sit, stand; put yourself; site yourself, situate yourself (pronominal verb: position yourself somewhere)

• Mets-toi au fond, on verra mieux l’écran. (Sit at the back; we’ll see the screen better.)

take [sth] up; get into [sth]; start doing [sth] (pronominal verb: take up an activity/idea)

• Cette année, elle s’est mise au yoga. (This year, she took up yoga.)

autre [otʀ]

other; another (adjective: distinct/different; “another” for one specific other)

• Je prends l’autre route : elle est plus rapide. (I’m taking the other road; it’s faster.)

another; more (adjective: additional; “more” mainly with plural nouns)

• Il nous faut deux autres chaises. (We need two more chairs.)

different; another (adjective: indicates a different quality)

• Son travail est d’une autre qualité cette fois. (His work is of a different quality this time.)

someone else; another person; another (pronoun/noun phrase: another person)

• Vous me confondez avec un autre. (You’re mixing me up with someone else.)

another; another one (pronoun: a different thing)

• Ce stylo ne marche plus : j’en veux un autre. (This pen doesn’t work anymore; I want another one.)

another; another one (pronoun: an additional one)

• C’était bon — je peux en avoir un autre ? (That was good—can I have another?)

the other; the other one (pronoun: the other option/item)

• Je garde celle-ci et tu prends l’autre. (I’ll keep this one and you take the other one.)

others; the rest; the others (plural pronoun/noun plural: people in a group)

• Laisse les autres finir : on a déjà fait notre part. (Let the others finish; we’ve already done our part.)

on [ɔ̃]

somebody, someone (pronoun: somebody)

• On a frappé à la porte, puis plus rien. (Someone knocked on the door, then nothing.)

somebody, someone (pronoun: unknown person)

• On m’a volé mon vélo hier soir. (Someone stole my bike last night.)

you; one (pronoun: general “people” in sayings/proverbs; formal “one”)

• Quand on est fatigué, on fait plus d’erreurs. (When you’re tired, you make more mistakes.)

we (pronoun, informal: “on” used instead of “nous”)

• Ce soir, on va au cinéma. (We’re going to the cinema tonight.)

we (pronoun, informal: “on” used for “tu/vous” in a familiar/rhetorical way)

• Alors, on est prêt à partir ? (So, are we ready to leave?)

mais [mɛ]

but (conjunction: opposition/contrast)

• Il pleut, mais on sort quand même. (It’s raining, but we’re going out anyway.)

but (conjunction: objection)

• Mais tu avais promis ! (But you promised!)

now, so; oh (conjunction/interjection: transition)

• Mais, j’y pense, tu as les clés ? (Oh—come to think of it—do you have the keys?)

but; why (interjection: reinforces a yes/no answer; often omitted in English)

• — Tu viens ? — Mais bien sûr. (“Are you coming?” “Of course.”)

why; absolutely, of course (conjunction/adverb: insistence)

• Mais je t’en prie, assieds-toi. (Absolutely—please—sit down.)

what on earth?, what the hell?; on earth; the hell (interjection/expression: irritation/surprise/concern)

• Mais qu’est-ce que tu fais ?! (What on earth are you doing?!)

but (noun [m]: objection)

• Pas de mais : on y va tout de suite. (No buts: we’re going right now.)

nous [nu]

we (pronoun: subject “we”)

• Nous partons demain à l’aube. (We’re leaving tomorrow at dawn.)

us (pronoun: direct object)

• Ils nous ont vus de loin. (They saw us from far away.)

to us; us (pronoun: indirect object / direct object)

• Il nous a parlé toute la soirée. (He talked to us all evening.)

us (pronoun: after a preposition)

• Sans nous, le projet n’avance pas. (Without us, the project isn’t moving forward.)

–; us; as for us (pronoun/expression: emphatic form)

• Eux, ils restent ; mais nous, on part. (They’re staying; but as for us, we’re leaving.)

us (pronoun: in imperatives)

• Écoute-nous une minute ! (Listen to us for a minute!)

ourselves; to ourselves (pronoun: reflexive)

• Nous nous sommes promis de rester calmes. (We promised ourselves to stay calm.)

comme [kɔm]

like (conjunction: in the same way)

• Comme toi, je préfère travailler le matin. (Like you, I prefer working in the morning.)

just as (conjunction: in the same way as)

• Il a réagi juste comme on s’y attendait. (He reacted just as we expected.)

just like (conjunction: very similar to)

• Elle cuisine juste comme sa grand-mère. (She cooks just like her grandmother.)

as, like (conjunction: in the manner that)

• Explique-le comme tu l’as appris en cours. (Explain it as you learned it in class.)

as well as (conjunction: along with)

• Il gère l’équipe comme les budgets. (He manages the team as well as the budgets.)

and (conjunction: linking two items)

• J’ai invité Paul comme Marie. (I invited Paul and Marie.)

and … alike (expression: both groups equally)

• Les touristes comme les habitants étaient surpris. (Tourists and locals alike were surprised.)

like (conjunction: behaving as)

• Il se comporte comme un enfant. (He behaves like a child.)

as (conjunction: in the role of)

• Comme responsable, je dois rester neutre. (As the person in charge, I have to remain neutral.)

like (conjunction, slightly informal: “the way”)

• Fais-le comme je te l’ai montré. (Do it like I showed you.)

as (conjunction, slightly formal: “in the way that”)

• Veuillez répondre comme indiqué sur le formulaire. (Please respond as indicated on the form.)

in the way, in the way that (expression: manner)

• Je l’ai aidé comme je pouvais. (I helped him in the way I could.)

as (conjunction: because)

• Comme il pleuvait, on est restés dedans. (As it was raining, we stayed inside.)

because (conjunction: reason)

• Comme tu es fatigué, on peut reporter. (Because you’re tired, we can postpone.)

since (conjunction: given that)

• Comme tu connais déjà le dossier, commence par le résumé. (Since you already know the file, start with the summary.)

seeing as (conjunction, informal: since)

• Comme t’es là, tu peux signer tout de suite ? (Seeing as you’re here, can you sign right away?)

there seems to be (expression: appearance of something)

• Il y a comme une tension dans la salle. (There seems to be some tension in the room.)

some sort of, some kind of (expression: vague identification)

• J’entends comme un bruit de moteur au loin. (I can hear some sort of engine noise in the distance.)

how (conjunction: exclamation)

• Comme c’est beau, ce paysage ! (How beautiful this view is!)

do, does (auxiliary verb: emphatic “do/does”)

• Comme tu chantes bien ! (You do sing well!)

how (conjunction, informal: exaggeration)

• Comme tu exagères ! (How you exaggerate!)

do, does (auxiliary verb: emphatic “do/does”)

• Comme tu dramatises ! (You do dramatize!)

ou [u]

or (conjunction: alternative choice)

• Tu viens samedi ou dimanche ? (Are you coming Saturday or Sunday?)

or (conjunction: either/or alternative)

• On peut y aller à pied ou en bus. (We can go on foot or by bus.)

or (conjunction: equivalence)

• La ville ou la métropole, pour lui, c’est pareil. (The city or the metropolis means the same thing to him.)

or (conjunction: approximation)

• Prends deux ou trois stylos, au cas où. (Take two or three pens, just in case.)

or (conjunction: consequence / warning)

• Dépêche-toi, ou on part sans toi. (Hurry up, or we’ll leave without you.)

otherwise (conjunction: “or else”)

• Note tout, ou bien tu vas oublier. (Write everything down, otherwise you’ll forget.)

or (conjunction: threat)

• Excuse-toi, ou je coupe la discussion. (Apologize, or I’ll end the conversation.)

si [si]

if (conjunction: condition / hypothesis)

• Si tu as le temps, appelle-moi ce soir. (If you have time, call me tonight.)

should (auxiliary verb: formal conditional)

• Si vous deviez changer d’avis, prévenez-nous. (Should you change your mind, let us know.)

if (conjunction: formal conditional)

• Si vous deviez avoir besoin d’aide, je suis disponible. (If you should need help, I’m available.)

if not (conjunction: otherwise)

• Prends un parapluie, si non tu vas être trempé. (Take an umbrella; if not, you’ll get soaked.)

provided that, on condition that, if (conjunction: requirement)

• Tu peux emprunter ma voiture, à condition que tu fasses le plein. (You can borrow my car provided that you fill it up.)

if (conjunction: even if / even when)

• Je viendrai, même si je finis tard. (I’ll come, even if I finish late.)

if (conjunction: whenever / each time)

• Si je passe dans le quartier, je m’arrête pour te voir. (If I’m in the neighborhood, I’ll stop by to see you.)

whenever (conjunction: every time)

• Si tu entends ce bruit, baisse le volume. (Whenever you hear that noise, turn the volume down.)

so … that (conjunction: degree leading to result)

• Il était si fatigué qu’il s’est endormi dans le train. (He was so tired that he fell asleep on the train.)

so (conjunction: “so” in “so…that” structure)

• Elle parlait si vite que je n’ai rien compris. (She spoke so fast that I didn’t understand anything.)

however … + [indicative] (adverb: no matter how)

• Si compliqué que ça paraît, on va y arriver. (However complicated it seems, we’ll manage.)

as … as (conjunction: comparison)

• Si discret qu’il soit, tout le monde l’a remarqué. (As discreet as he may be, everyone noticed him.)

no matter how (conjunction: regardless of degree)

• Si tard qu’on parte, on arrivera avant la nuit. (No matter how late we leave, we’ll arrive before night.)

so (adverb: to that degree)

• Je ne pensais pas que ce serait si difficile. (I didn’t think it would be so difficult.)

yes (adverb: emphatic affirmation)

• — Tu viens demain ? — Si, bien sûr. (“Are you coming tomorrow?” “Yes, of course.”)

yes (adverb: answering a negative question / denial)

• — Tu n’as pas reçu mon message ? — Si, je l’ai reçu. (“You didn’t get my message?” “Yes, I did.”)

while (conjunction: although)

• Si je suis d’accord sur le principe, je doute du calendrier. (While I agree in principle, I doubt the timeline.)

leur [lœʀ]

their (possessive adjective: belonging to them)

• Ils ont oublié leurs billets sur la table. (They forgot their tickets on the table.)

to them (pronoun: indirect object)

• Je vais leur envoyer la confirmation par email. (I’m going to send the confirmation to them by email.)

them (pronoun: indirect object)

• Si tu les vois, donne-leur la clé. (If you see them, give them the key.)

theirs (pronoun: belonging to them)

• Cette idée n’est pas la mienne, c’est la leur. (That idea isn’t mine; it’s theirs.)

their one (pronoun, informal: “the one that is theirs”)

• On a choisi notre photo, et eux ont gardé la leur. (We chose our photo, and they kept their one.)

theirs (noun: something that belongs to them)

• Ce bureau est le leur. (This office is theirs.)

y [igʀɛk, i]

y, Y nm inv (25e lettre de l’alphabet) — (letter) y, Y (noun: letter name)

• Dans ce mot, il y a deux y, et ça surprend toujours les débutants. (In this word, there are two y’s, and that always surprises beginners.)

y adv (dans cet endroit-là) — (where you are) here; (elsewhere) there (adverb: in/at that place)

• On se retrouve devant la gare : j’y serai à 18 h pile. (Let’s meet in front of the station: I’ll be there at exactly 6 p.m.)

y pron (dans un domaine) — at + [noun]; (figurative) around + [noun] (pronoun: in a field/area)

• Je m’y connais assez bien en photographie, je peux te conseiller. (I’m pretty good at photography; I can advise you.)

y pron familier (à [qch]) — about it, on it; (controversial use in French) about him, about her (prep + pron: about/on)

• Un poste à l’étranger ? D’accord, j’y réfléchirai ce week-end. (A job abroad? OK, I’ll think about it this weekend.)

y pron COI populaire, incorrect (à [qqn], lui) — to him/her (prep + pron: nonstandard indirect object)

• Si tu croises Claire, pense à y rendre ses clés demain. (If you run into Claire, remember to give her keys back to her tomorrow.)

y pron populaire, incorrect ([qqn], il) — he (pronoun: nonstandard subject “he”)

• Le patron, y répond jamais aux messages avant midi. (The boss, he never answers messages before noon.)

y pron COD populaire, incorrect (le) — it (pronoun: nonstandard direct object “it”)

• Le dossier, faudrait y terminer avant ce soir. (The file, you’d need to finish it before this evening.)

dire [diʀ]

dire⇒ vtr (prononcer) — say; state (vtr: utter words aloud)

• Peux-tu dire ton nom plus lentement, s’il te plaît ? (Can you say your name more slowly, please?)

dire vtr (communiquer) — tell [sb] [sth]; say [sth] (vtr: communicate information)

• Elle m’a dit qu’elle arriverait après la réunion. (She told me she would arrive after the meeting.)

dire vtr (réciter) — recite; say; (joke, story) tell (vtr: recite from memory / tell a story)

• À l’école, il devait dire une poésie sans regarder ses notes. (At school, he had to recite a poem without looking at his notes.)

dire vtr (prétendre) — say; claim (vtr: assert/claim)

• Il dit avoir tout fini, mais je vois encore du travail. (He claims he’s finished everything, but I can still see work left to do.)

dire vtr (indiquer) — say; state (vtr: indicate/report)

• Le document dit que la livraison est prévue pour mardi. (The document says that delivery is scheduled for Tuesday.)

dire à [qqn] de faire [qch] vtr (demander, ordonner [qch] à [qqn]) — tell [sb] to do [sth] (v expr: instruct/request)

• Je lui ai dit de couper la musique et de venir m’aider. (I told him to turn the music off and come help me.)

se dire⇒ v pron (s’utiliser) — be said; (language) be (v aux + past participle / vi: used/said in a language)

• En anglais, « fromage » se dit « cheese ». (In English, “fromage” is “cheese.”)

se dire v pron (se prononcer) — be said; be pronounced (v aux + past participle: pronunciation)

• Ce mot se dit avec un « s » sonore, pas avec un « s » muet. (This word is pronounced with a voiced “s,” not a silent one.)

se dire [qch]⇒ v pron (communiquer [qch] à [qqn]) — tell each other [sth]; tell one another [sth] (v expr: exchange information)

• Après l’entretien, on s’est dit la vérité sans se fâcher. (After the interview, we told each other the truth without getting angry.)

se dire [qch] v pron (penser [qch]) — say to yourself; think to yourself; tell yourself; think (v expr: internal thought)

• En lisant le message, je me suis dit que c’était une mauvaise idée. (Reading the message, I told myself it was a bad idea.)

elle [ɛl]

elle pron (pronom sujet atone) — she; (inanimate object) it (pronoun: subject)

• La voiture est neuve ; elle consomme très peu. (The car is new; it uses very little fuel.)

elle pron (pronom après une préposition) — her (pronoun: object after a preposition)

• Je pense souvent à elle quand j’écoute cette chanson. (I often think about her when I listen to this song.)

elle pron (pronom emphatique, accentué) — she; her (pronoun: emphatic/stressed)

• Elle, elle a déjà fini, et moi je suis encore au début. (She has already finished, and I’m still at the start.)

devoir [d(ə)vwaʀ]

devoir faire [qch] vtr (avoir l’obligation de faire [qch]) — have to; must (v aux: obligation)

• Je dois envoyer ce dossier avant midi. (I have to send this file before noon.)

devoir faire [qch] vtr (avoir la nécessité de) — must; need to; have to (v aux / v expr: necessity)

• Pour progresser, tu dois pratiquer un peu chaque jour. (To improve, you need to practise a little every day.)

devoir faire [qch] vtr (exprime la probabilité) — must (v aux: strong probability)

• Il ne répond pas : il doit être en réunion. (He’s not replying; he must be in a meeting.)

devoir faire [qch] vtr (exprime le caractère inéluctable) — be bound to do [sth] (v expr: inevitable)

• À force de reporter la décision, ça devait finir par poser problème. (By constantly postponing the decision, it was bound to end up causing problems.)

devoir [qch] à [qqn] vtr (avoir de l’argent à donner à [qqn]) — owe (vtr: owe money)

• Je te dois vingt euros pour le restaurant. (I owe you twenty euros for the restaurant.)

devoir [qch] à [qqn] vtr (être l’obligé de [qqn], être redevable) — owe [sb] [sth]; owe [sth] to [sb] (vtr: owe thanks/apology)

• Je vous dois des excuses pour mon retard. (I owe you an apology for being late.)

devoir [qch] à [qqn] vtr (avoir obtenu grâce à [qqn]) — owe [sb] [sth]; owe [sb] to [sb]; be indebted to [sb] for [sth] (vtr / expr: owe something to someone)

• Je dois ma réussite à mes professeurs et à leur patience. (I owe my success to my teachers and their patience.)

devoir nm (obligation morale) — duty; obligation; moral duty, moral obligation (noun: moral responsibility)

• C’est notre devoir de protéger les plus fragiles. (It is our duty to protect the most vulnerable.)

devoir nm (exercice scolaire) — (uncountable) homework; assignment (noun: school work)

• J’ai un devoir à rendre lundi, et je n’ai pas commencé. (I have homework to hand in on Monday, and I haven’t started.)

devoirs nmpl (exercices scolaires chez soi) — (uncountable) homework (plural noun: school work at home)

• Les enfants ont fini leurs devoirs avant le dîner. (The children finished their homework before dinner.)

avant [avɑ̃]

avant prép (plus tôt que) — before; earlier than, sooner than (preposition: earlier in time)

• Je partirai avant toi pour éviter les embouteillages. (I’ll leave before you to avoid the traffic.)

avant prép (plus près que) — before (preposition: earlier in a sequence / located before)

• Le musée est avant le pont, sur la gauche. (The museum is before the bridge, on the left.)

avant prép (plus important) — before; (figurative) ahead of (preposition: higher priority)

• Ma santé passe avant mon travail. (My health comes before my work.)

avant adv (plus tôt) — before; (formal) formerly; in the past (adverb: earlier / previously)

• Avant, je vivais en centre-ville ; maintenant, je suis à la campagne. (Before, I lived in the city centre; now I’m in the countryside.)

avant adv (en contextes négatifs : plus tôt) — before now, until now; (informal) till now, ’til now; sooner (adverb: previously / earlier than expected)

• Je n’avais jamais remarqué ce détail avant, et maintenant je ne vois plus que ça. (I’d never noticed that detail until now, and now it’s all I can see.)

avant adv (plus près) — just before (adverb: immediately before)

• La librairie est au bout de la rue, et le café est juste avant. (The bookshop is at the end of the street, and the café is just before it.)

avant adv (plus important) — first (adverb: priority)

• Je veux réussir, mais ma famille passe avant. (I want to succeed, but my family comes first.)

avant nm (partie de devant) — front; (ship, boat) bow (noun: front part)

• L’avant du camion est complètement abîmé après le choc. (The front of the lorry is completely damaged after the impact.)

avant adj inv (situé à l’avant) — front n as adj (adjective: at the front)

• Les roues avant patinent sur la neige. (The front wheels are slipping on the snow.)

avant que + (ne) + [subjonctif] loc conj (plus tôt que) — before + [indicative] (conjunction: before)

• Ferme la fenêtre avant que le chat ne saute dehors. (Close the window before the cat jumps outside.)

deux [dø]

deux adj (nombre entre un et trois) — two; (letters) double (adjective: the number 2 / doubled letter)

• J’ai réservé deux places pour ce soir. (I booked two seats for tonight.)

deux adj (petit nombre, quelques) — two (adjective: a small number)

• Attends deux minutes, je finis juste un message. (Wait two minutes, I’m just finishing a message.)

deux nm (chiffre deux) — two, number two (noun: the digit/number)

• Sur ce formulaire, il faut cocher le deux, pas le trois. (On this form, you need to tick number two, not three.)

le deux nm (jour du mois) — the second of; (written: date) 2, 2nd (noun: day of the month)

• On se voit le deux janvier pour en parler tranquillement. (We’ll see each other on the second of January to talk about it calmly.)

même [mɛm]

même adj (identique) — same; (two or more things) identical, matching (adjective: identical)

• Ils ont choisi la même solution, sans se consulter. (They chose the same solution without consulting each other.)

le même, la même pron (chose identique) — the same one; the same thing; the same (pronoun: the identical one/thing)

• Tu prends un thé ? Alors je prends le même. (You’re having tea? Then I’ll have the same.)

même adv (y compris) — even (adverb: including)

• Même les spécialistes hésitent sur ce point. (Even the specialists hesitate on that point.)

même adv (pour renforcer) — very (adjective: emphatic “very” in fixed expressions)

• Je te répondrai ce soir même, promis. (I’ll reply this very evening, I promise.)

même adv (lieu : exactement) — itself; (postpositive) proper (pronoun/adjective: the place itself / proper)

• Ils vivent à Londres même, pas en banlieue. (They live in London proper, not in the suburbs.)

prendre [pʀɑ̃dʀ]

prendre vtr (saisir) — take; pick [sth] up; take hold of [sth]; grasp; seize (vtr: seize/hold)

• Prends le verre par le bas, il est fragile. (Pick the glass up from the bottom; it’s fragile.)

prendre vtr (emporter avec soi) — take; take with you (vtr: bring along)

• Prends ton chargeur avec toi, tu en auras besoin. (Take your charger with you; you’ll need it.)

prendre vtr (dérober, subtiliser) — take; steal; (informal) pinch; (UK, informal) nick (vtr: steal)

• On m’a pris mon vélo devant la maison. (Someone stole my bike in front of the house.)

prendre vtr (attraper) — catch; (informal) get (vtr: catch/contract)

• Il a pris la grippe pendant son voyage. (He caught the flu during his trip.)

prendre vtr (utiliser : un moyen de transport) — take (vtr: use transport)

• On prend le train à huit heures, alors sois prêt. (We’re taking the train at eight o’clock, so be ready.)

prendre vtr (suivre : une route) — take; (roundabout) go around [sth]; (UK: roundabout) go round [sth] (vtr/vi: take a route)

• Prends la prochaine sortie et continue tout droit. (Take the next exit and keep going straight.)

prendre vtr (choisir, sélectionner) — take; choose; select; (informal) go for (vtr: choose)

• Je vais prendre le menu végétarien, s’il vous plaît. (I’ll go for the vegetarian menu, please.)

prendre vtr (noter, relever) — take down, write down; take (vtr: write/record)

• Tu peux prendre mon numéro et me rappeler demain ? (Can you write down my number and call me back tomorrow?)

prendre vtr (mesurer : une constante) — take (vtr: measure)

• Le médecin prend ma température avant l’examen. (The doctor takes my temperature before the exam.)

prendre vtr (nécessiter : du temps) — take (vtr: take time)

• Ça prend dix minutes à pied pour aller jusqu’au centre. (It takes ten minutes on foot to get to the centre.)

prendre vtr (recevoir : un coup) — get; receive (vtr: receive a blow)

• Il a pris un coup au nez en jouant au foot. (He got a hit on the nose while playing football.)

prendre vtr (grossir) — put [sth] on, put on [sth]; gain (vtr: gain weight)

• J’ai pris trois kilos pendant les vacances. (I put on three kilos during the holidays.)

prendre vtr (recevoir [qqn]) — see; (formal) receive; (informal) fit in (vtr: receive/see someone)

• Le dentiste me prend à quatorze heures. (The dentist is seeing me at 2 p.m.)

prendre [qqn] pour [qqn] d’autre vtr + prép (confondre [qqn]) — mistake [sb] for [sb] (vtr + prep: confuse one person for another)

• Désolé, je t’ai pris pour ton frère de loin. (Sorry, I mistook you for your brother from a distance.)

prendre vi (se figer) — set; go solid, go hard (vi: set/solidify)

• La gelée n’a pas pris, elle est restée liquide. (The jelly didn’t set; it stayed liquid.)

aussi [osi]

too; also; as well; so (adverb: addition)

• Mon frère arrive demain, et moi aussi. (My brother is arriving tomorrow, and I am too.)

also; too; as well; (formal) in addition (adverb: adding an extra item)

• Elle a acheté du pain et aussi du fromage. (She bought bread and also some cheese.)

as … as; just as … as; equally (adverb: equality comparison)

• Il est aussi patient que sa sœur. (He is as patient as his sister.)

as … as; however (conjunction: concession)

• Aussi étrange que cela semble, tout s’est arrangé. (However strange it seems, everything worked out.)

so; as … as that; quite so; (informal) that (adverb: degree/intensity)

• Je ne pensais pas que ce film serait aussi long. (I didn’t think this film would be so long.)

celui [səlɥi, sɛl]

the one; [sb]’s (pronoun/adjective: referring back to a named person/thing; possessive with “de”)

• Ton stylo est cassé ? Prends celui de Julie. (Is your pen broken? Take Julie’s.)

people; those (plural noun/pronoun: an unspecified person/group)

• Ce manuel est fait pour celui qui veut apprendre à son rythme. (This book is for people who want to learn at their own pace.)

(formal) he; the one; whoever, whosoever; that (pronoun: an indeterminate person or thing)

• Celui qui ment une fois perd la confiance des autres. (Whoever lies once loses other people’s trust.)

donner [dɔne]

give; hand (transitive verb: pass/hand over)

• Peux-tu me donner ce document avant la réunion ? (Can you give me that document before the meeting?)

give (transitive verb: give as a gift)

• Je lui ai donné un livre pour le remercier. (I gave him a book to thank him.)

give; let [sb] have [sth] (transitive verb/verb expression: provide information)

• Donnez-moi votre numéro, je vous rappelle ce soir. (Give me your number and I’ll call you back tonight.)

give (with noun); make (with adjective) (transitive verb: provide/cause an effect)

• Un bon repas te donnera des forces pour l’après-midi. (A good meal will give you strength for the afternoon.)

give (transitive verb: allocate/attribute)

• On me donne une prime si le projet réussit. (They give me a bonus if the project succeeds.)

give; donate (transitive verb: contribute to a collection)

• Je donne chaque mois à une association. (I donate to a charity every month.)

give; (informal) throw; (US) organize; (UK) organise (transitive verb: host an event)

• Ils donnent un dîner vendredi pour fêter la fin du chantier. (They’re throwing a dinner on Friday to celebrate the end of the job.)

give; put on (transitive verb/phrasal verb: present a show)

• Le cinéma donne un festival de films cette semaine. (The cinema is putting on a film festival this week.)

give away; give up; (colloquial) rat on; (UK, informal) shop (verb: inform on someone)

• Ne nous donne pas à la police, on n’a rien fait. (Don’t give us up to the police; we haven’t done anything.)

produce; come to (transitive verb/phrasal verb: have as a result)

• On a discuté longtemps, mais ça n’a rien donné. (We talked for a long time, but it produced nothing.)

yield; produce; bear fruit (transitive verb: be productive)

• Cette année, le potager donne enfin beaucoup de tomates. (This year, the vegetable garden is finally yielding lots of tomatoes.)

blare; blare out (intransitive verb: be very loud)

• Avec la fenêtre ouverte, la musique blare à fond chez le voisin. (With the window open, the music is really blaring at the neighbour’s.)

give of yourself; put yourself out (reflexive verb: devote yourself)

• Elle se donne beaucoup pour ses enfants, même quand elle est fatiguée. (She really gives of herself for her children, even when she’s tired.)

bien [bjɛ̃]

well (adverb: in a satisfactory way)

• Tu as très bien expliqué la règle. (You explained the rule well.)

well; a lot (adverb/pronoun: to a great extent)

• On a bien marché aujourd’hui, je suis épuisé. (We walked a lot today; I’m exhausted.)

good; fine (adjective: good quality/satisfactory)

• Ton travail est vraiment bien. (Your work is really good.)

suitable; right (adjective: appropriate/correct)

• Je n’ai pas trouvé de bien pour cette occasion. (I didn’t find anything suitable for that occasion.)

nice; great (adjective: appreciated/desired)

• Ce serait bien si tu pouvais passer plus tôt. (It would be great if you could come by earlier.)

good (adjective: morally good)

• C’est quelqu’un de bien, tu peux lui faire confiance. (He’s a good person; you can trust him.)

be good; be a good thing (verb phrase: approval)

• Tu as prévenu tout le monde ? C’est bien. (You told everyone? That’s good.)

be good to do [sth]; be a good idea to do [sth]; be a good thing to do [sth] (verb phrase: recommending an action)

• Ce serait bien de vérifier les chiffres avant d’envoyer le mail. (It would be a good idea to check the figures before sending the email.)

be good for [sb] to do [sth]; be good if [sb] did [sth] (verb phrase: advising someone)

• Ce serait bien que tu te reposes un peu ce week-end. (It would be good if you got a bit of rest this weekend.)

the good (noun: moral good)

• Il faut distinguer le bien du mal. (You have to distinguish good from evil.)

feel good; be nice; be good; be lovely (verb phrase: be comfortable/pleasant)

• On était bien au bord de la mer, loin du bruit. (It was lovely by the sea, far from the noise.)

good; sake; welfare; interest (noun phrase: what benefits someone)

• Je fais ça pour le bien de mes enfants. (I’m doing this for the good of my children.)

goods; possession; property (noun: belongings)

• Il a laissé tous ses biens à sa nièce. (He left all his possessions to his niece.)

où [u]

where; whereabouts (adverb: asking about a location)

• Où est la boulangerie la plus proche ? (Where is the nearest bakery?)

where (adverb: asking about direction/destination)

• Où allez-vous après le travail ? (Where are you going after work?)

where; in; in which (conjunction/preposition: indicating place; “in which” is formal)

• La salle où nous nous retrouvons est au troisième étage. (The room where we meet is on the third floor.)

when; that (conjunction: indicating time in a relative clause)

• L’année où j’ai changé de travail a été très intense. (The year when I changed jobs was very intense.)

in; in which (preposition/conjunction: “in the situation/case where”; “in which” is formal)

• Dans le cas où vous auriez un problème, appelez-moi. (In the event that you have a problem, call me.)

fois [fwa]

time (noun: repetition/frequency)

• Je vérifie mes messages trois fois par jour. (I check my messages three times a day.)

time (noun: multiplication in arithmetic)

• Huit fois six font quarante-huit. (Eight times six is forty-eight.)

time (noun: intensity/comparison, e.g., “twice as much”)

• Cette voiture consomme deux fois plus que l’ancienne. (This car uses twice as much fuel as the old one.)

time (noun: an occasion/a particular time)

• On en reparlera une autre fois, quand tu auras le temps. (We’ll talk about it another time, when you have time.)

vous [vu]

you; you all; all of you; you guys; y’all (pronoun: informal plural subject)

• Vous voulez boire quelque chose avant de partir ? (Do you all want something to drink before we leave?)

you (pronoun: informal plural object)

• Je vous ai appelés hier, mais personne n’a répondu. (I called you yesterday, but nobody answered.)

to you; you (pronoun: informal indirect object; “to you” / “you”)

• Je vais vous envoyer le lien dès que je l’aurai. (I’ll send you the link as soon as I have it.)

you (pronoun: informal after a preposition)

• Je pense souvent à vous quand j’entends cette chanson. (I often think of you when I hear that song.)

you; as for you (pronoun: informal emphatic/tonic; often left untranslated)

• Vous, vous avez toujours une solution. (You always have a solution.)

you; you there! (pronoun/interjection: informal calling out to someone)

• Vous, là-bas, venez une seconde ! (You there, come here for a second!)

yourselves (pronoun: informal reflexive; often omitted in English)

• Vous vous préparez trop tard, et après vous stressez. (You get ready too late and then you stress.)

each other; one another (pronoun: informal reciprocal; often omitted in English)

• Si vous voulez avancer, vous devez vous écouter. (If you want to move forward, you have to listen to each other.)

you (pronoun: formal subject)

• Pouvez-vous répéter, s’il vous plaît ? (Could you repeat that, please?)

you (pronoun: formal object)

• Je vous ai vu tout à l’heure dans le hall. (I saw you earlier in the lobby.)

to you; you (pronoun: formal indirect object; “to you” / “you”)

• Je vais vous expliquer la procédure en deux minutes. (I’m going to explain the procedure to you in two minutes.)

you (pronoun: formal after a preposition)

• Je suis ravi de travailler avec vous. (I’m delighted to work with you.)

you; as for you (pronoun: formal emphatic/tonic; often left untranslated)

• Vous, Madame, vous avez parfaitement raison. (You are absolutely right, Madam.)

you there!; you! (interjection: formal calling out to someone)

• Vous, Monsieur, attendez un instant ! (You there, sir, wait a moment!)

yourself; yourselves; each other; one another (pronoun: formal reflexive; often omitted in English)

• Préparez-vous à répondre à quelques questions. (Prepare yourself to answer a few questions.)

each other; one another (pronoun: formal reciprocal)

• Messieurs, vous devez vous respecter. (Gentlemen, you must respect each other.)

encore [ɑ̃kɔʀ]

still; yet (adverb: continuity/persistence; “yet” is literary)

• Il est encore au bureau malgré l’heure. (He’s still at the office despite the time.)

again (adverb: repeated action)

• Tu as encore oublié ton code. (You forgot your code again.)

still; yet (adverb: intensity/comparison)

• J’ai accéléré, mais lui allait encore plus vite. (I sped up, but he was going faster still.)

only; just (adverb: as recently as)

• Il y a deux jours encore, tout semblait simple. (Just two days ago, everything seemed simple.)

not yet (adverb: temporary negation)

• Tu as fini ? Pas encore. (Are you done? Not yet.)

not … yet; still not (adverb: something has not happened yet; “still not” emphasizes time)

• Je n’ai pas encore reçu votre réponse. (I haven’t received your reply yet.)

Not again! (interjection: exasperated reaction)

• Une autre panne ? Pas encore ! (Another breakdown? Not again!)

nouveau [nuvo, nuvɛl]

new (adjective: recent in time)

• J’ai acheté un nouveau téléphone la semaine dernière. (I bought a new phone last week.)

new (adjective: not previously existing)

• L’équipe a proposé une nouvelle méthode pour réduire les coûts. (The team proposed a new method to reduce costs.)

new, latest (adjective: newly released)

• Tu as écouté le nouvel épisode du podcast ? (Have you listened to the latest episode of the podcast?)

new (adjective: unfamiliar to someone)

• Cette procédure est nouvelle pour moi, je vais relire les consignes. (This procedure is new to me, so I’m going to reread the instructions.)

new (adjective: replacing someone or something)

• Le nouveau manager commence lundi. (The new manager starts on Monday.)

new (adjective: recently arrived or joined)

• On a un nouvel apprenti dans l’atelier depuis ce matin. (We’ve had a new apprentice in the workshop since this morning.)

new, fresh (adjective: renewed or revitalized)

• Après les vacances, il est revenu avec un nouvel enthousiasme. (After the holiday, he came back with fresh enthusiasm.)

new (adjective: modern equivalent of a well-known person)

• Dans ce genre, on le surnomme le nouveau Spielberg. (In that genre, people nickname him the new Spielberg.)

new person, newcomer, new guy, new girl, new bod, newbie (noun [m/f]: person who has just arrived or joined)

• Le nouveau s’est présenté et a demandé où ranger ses affaires. (The newcomer introduced himself and asked where to put his things.)

news; development (noun [m]: recent updates or new information)

• Il y a du nouveau sur le dossier : le rendez-vous est confirmé. (There’s news on the file: the appointment is confirmed.)

aller [ale]

go (intransitive verb: travel to another place)

• Je vais au supermarché après le travail. (I’m going to the supermarket after work.)

go; go to see [sb]; go and see [sb]; be off to (intransitive verb: visit someone or go to an appointment)

• Je vais voir ma grand-mère demain matin. (I’m going to see my grandmother tomorrow morning.)

go; lead (intransitive verb: lead to a destination)

• Ce sentier va directement au village. (This path goes straight to the village.)

be; be doing (intransitive verb: be in a certain state of health or well-being)

• Comment ça va aujourd’hui ? Ça va mieux, merci. (How are you today? Better, thanks.)

be; be going; be doing; work (intransitive verb: function or progress)

• Mon ordinateur ne va plus, il faut le réparer. (My computer isn’t working anymore; it needs fixing.)

go; be off (verb phrase: leave)

• Il se fait tard, je dois y aller. (It’s getting late; I have to go.)

one-way ticket; single ticket; single (noun [m]: ticket for travel in one direction)

• Je voudrais un aller pour Lille, s’il vous plaît. (I’d like a one-way ticket to Lille, please.)

outward journey; journey there; going; going there (noun [m]: trip in the outbound direction)

• À l’aller, la route était fluide, mais au retour c’était bouché. (On the way there the road was clear, but on the way back it was jammed.)

cela [s(ə)la]

that (pronoun: refers to something more distant)

• Prends ceci, pas cela. (Take this, not that.)

that; this (pronoun: refers back to something previously mentioned)

• Tu as dit que tu viendrais, mais tu n’as jamais confirmé cela. (You said you would come, but you never confirmed that.)

that; this (pronoun: refers to the thing being discussed)

• Écoute cela : on change le plan à la dernière minute. (Listen to this: we’re changing the plan at the last minute.)

entre [ɑ̃tʀ]

between (preposition: within a space)

• Le café est entre la banque et la boulangerie. (The café is between the bank and the bakery.)

between (preposition: within a time range)

• Je serai disponible entre 14 h et 16 h. (I’ll be available between 2 pm and 4 pm.)

between (preposition: intermediate state or shade)

• Sa décision est entre prudence et audace. (His decision sits somewhere between caution and boldness.)

between, among (preposition: shared by a group)

• Il y a beaucoup de solidarité entre les collègues. (There is a lot of solidarity among the colleagues.)

just the two of us; just us; just among (preposition: without outsiders present)

• On en parlera entre nous, sans témoins. (We’ll talk about it just between us, with no witnesses.)

of, amongst, among (preposition: out of a group)

• Entre nous, personne n’avait prévu ce résultat. (Among us, nobody had predicted this result.)

premier [pʀəmje, jɛʀ]

first; 1st (adjective: of rank one or earliest in a sequence)

• C’est la première réunion de l’année pour l’équipe. (It’s the team’s first meeting of the year.)

largest, biggest; number one; top (adjective: highest ranked or leading)

• Dans ce secteur, leur marque reste la première au niveau des ventes. (In that sector, their brand remains number one in sales.)

primary, main (adjective: principal or fundamental)

• Ma première priorité, c’est la sécurité du personnel. (My main priority is staff safety.)

original (adjective: initial or former)

• Après les travaux, le bâtiment a retrouvé sa fonction première. (After the work, the building returned to its original purpose.)

prime (adjective: relating to prime numbers)

• Onze est un nombre premier, donc il n’a pas de diviseurs autres que 1 et 11. (Eleven is a prime number, so it has no divisors other than 1 and 11.)

first, the first; the first person, the first one; first one (noun [m/f]: person who arrives or acts before others)

• Le premier à finir l’exercice pourra partir plus tôt. (The first to finish the exercise can leave earlier.)

top; first (noun [m/f]: best-ranked person in a class or competition)

• Elle est la première de sa promotion depuis deux semestres. (She has been top of her class for two semesters.)

the first; 1st, 1 (noun [m]: the first day of a month)

• On se revoit le premier du mois prochain. (We’ll see each other again on the first of next month.)

vouloir [vulwaʀ]

want; desire (transitive verb: wish to have something)

• Il veut une réponse claire avant de signer. (He wants a clear answer before signing.)

want [sb/sth] to do [sth] (verb phrase: demand that someone do something)

• Le coach veut que l’équipe s’entraîne tous les jours. (The coach wants the team to train every day.)

want; would like (transitive verb: request or express a preference)

• Je veux une table près de la fenêtre, si possible. (I’d like a table near the window, if possible.)

want to do [sth] (verb phrase: wish to do something)

• Je veux finir ce rapport avant ce soir. (I want to finish this report before tonight.)

hope [sb/sth] does [sth]; hope for [sth], wish for [sth]; want [sb/sth] to do [sth] (verb phrase: express a hope or wish)

• Je veux que tout se passe bien pour toi demain. (I hope everything goes well for you tomorrow.)

wish [sb] [sth]; wish [sth] on [sb], wish [sth] upon [sb] (transitive verb: wish something for someone)

• Je te veux beaucoup de succès dans ton nouveau poste. (I wish you a lot of success in your new role.)

dictate (transitive verb: be required by custom or tradition)

• Dans ce pays, la tradition veut qu’on enlève ses chaussures à l’entrée. (In this country, tradition dictates that you take your shoes off at the entrance.)

want; expect (transitive verb: used in set phrases to express expectation)

• Que veux-tu que je te dise, je n’ai pas d’autre solution. (What do you expect me to say? I don’t have another solution.)

ask [sth] for [sth]; want [sth] for [sth] (transitive verb: set an asking price)

• Ils veulent 300 000 euros de leur appartement. (They’re asking 300,000 euros for their flat.)

déjà [deʒa]

already; yet (adverb: by this time)

• Tu es déjà prêt ? On vient à peine de commencer. (You’re already ready? We’ve only just started.)

already; before; ever (adverb: at some previous time)

• J’ai déjà travaillé avec elle, il y a deux ans. (I’ve worked with her before, two years ago.)

even as (adverb: even when very young or early)

• Adolescent déjà, il écrivait des articles pour le journal local. (Even as a teenager, he was writing articles for the local paper.)

for a start; in itself (adverb: as a modest but positive result)

• On n’a pas tout réglé, mais on a déjà identifié le problème. (We haven’t fixed everything, but we’ve identified the problem for a start.)

again (adverb: used to ask for a reminder)

• On se retrouve à quelle heure, déjà ? (What time are we meeting again?)

for a start; for starters; for one thing (adverb: first point in a reproach or argument)

• Déjà, tu aurais pu prévenir au lieu d’arriver en retard. (For starters, you could have warned us instead of arriving late.)

grand [gʀɑ̃, gʀɑ̃d]

tall (adjective: of a person with great height)

• Il est grand, donc il touche facilement le haut de l’étagère. (He’s tall, so he can easily reach the top shelf.)

big, large (adjective: spacious or wide)

• Ils ont loué un grand appartement pour accueillir toute la famille. (They rented a big flat to host the whole family.)

big, large; long, wide, high; be the size of [sth], be the same size as [sth] (adjective: of a given size or dimension)

• La boîte est grande comme un livre de poche. (The box is the same size as a paperback.)

big; older, elder (adjective: older sibling)

• Ma grande sœur m’a accompagné à l’école le premier jour. (My older sister came with me to school on the first day.)

little man, little lady (noun phrase: affectionate term of address to a child)

• Alors mon grand, tu as passé une bonne journée ? (So, little man, did you have a good day?)

tall man, tall woman, tall person, tall + [noun] (noun [m/f]: a tall person)

• Dans cette équipe, les grands sont souvent choisis pour défendre. (On this team, the tall ones are often chosen to defend.)

older boy, older girl, older child; big boy, big girl, big child, big kid; older one; big one (noun [m/f]: older pupil or older child)

• Dans la cour, les grands jouent d’un côté et les petits de l’autre. (In the playground, the older kids play on one side and the little ones on the other.)

greats; major figure (noun [m]: leading figure in a field)

• On étudie les grands de la littérature au lycée. (In secondary school, we study the greats of literature.)

in a big way, on a grand scale (adverb: on a large scale)

• Pour l’anniversaire, ils ont vu grand et ont invité tout le quartier. (For the birthday, they did things on a grand scale and invited the whole neighbourhood.)

mon [mɔ̃, ma]

my (adjective: possessive determiner indicating ownership)

• Mon ordinateur est en réparation depuis lundi. (My computer has been in for repair since Monday.)

– (adjective: French military form of address before a rank; no direct English equivalent)

• Oui, mon capitaine ! (Yes, Captain!)

me [mə]

me (pronoun: direct object)

• Ne me dérange pas pendant l’appel, s’il te plaît. (Please don’t disturb me during the call.)

to me; me (pronoun: indirect object)

• Elle ne me répond jamais quand je lui pose une question simple. (She never answers me when I ask her a simple question.)

myself; my; – (pronoun: reflexive form that may translate as “myself,” a possessive, or be omitted)

• Je me suis vu sur la photo et j’ai éclaté de rire. (I saw myself in the photo and burst out laughing.)

Maitre; Mr, Mrs, Miss, Ms; Mr., Mrs., Miss, Ms. (noun: French legal title abbreviation used before a lawyer’s name)

• Me Dupont vous représentera devant le tribunal demain. (Ms Dupont will represent you in court tomorrow.)

moins [mwɛ̃]

less (adverb: to a smaller degree or extent)

• Depuis que je dors mieux, je stresse moins au travail. (Since I’ve been sleeping better, I’m less stressed at work.)

less … than; not as … as (adverb: comparative of inferiority)

• Cette solution est moins chère que l’autre. (This solution is less expensive than the other one.)

least, the least (adverbial phrase: to the smallest extent)

• C’est la partie que je comprends le moins. (It’s the part I understand the least.)

the least + [adjective] (adverbial phrase: the option with the smallest degree of a quality)

• Choisis le moins risqué, même si ça prend plus de temps. (Choose the least risky option, even if it takes longer.)

less; fewer; not as much; not as many (adverb: smaller quantity or number depending on the noun)

• Il y a moins de voitures sur la route le dimanche matin. (There are fewer cars on the road on Sunday morning.)

minus (adverb: below zero in temperature or measurement)

• Ce matin, il faisait moins deux dans le jardin. (This morning it was minus two in the garden.)

to; before (adverb: time remaining until the next hour)

• Il est huit heures moins dix, on devrait partir. (It’s ten to eight; we should leave.)

minus; take away; subtract; less (noun [m]: mathematical subtraction operator)

• Neuf moins quatre font cinq. (Nine minus four equals five.)

aucun [okœ̃, yn]

no; none; not one (pronoun: not a single one)

• Aucun n’a reconnu son erreur pendant la réunion. (None admitted their mistake during the meeting.)

no; not any (adjective: not a single)

• Je n’ai aucune patience pour ce genre d’excuses. (I have no patience for that kind of excuse.)

lui [lɥi]

[prep] + him, [prep] + her; him, her (pronoun: indirect object and direct object forms)

• Je lui ai envoyé le document ce matin, mais elle ne l’a pas encore ouvert. (I sent her the document this morning, but she hasn’t opened it yet.)

him (pronoun: masculine after a preposition)

• Je pense souvent à lui quand j’écoute cette chanson. (I often think about him when I listen to that song.)

him; as for him, as for [sb], he; – (pronoun: emphatic form used for contrast or emphasis)

• Lui, il veut tout décider tout seul, et moi je refuse. (As for him, he wants to decide everything on his own, and I refuse.)

temps [tɑ̃]

time (noun [m]: effect of time passing on people or things)

• Avec le temps, ses inquiétudes se sont calmées. (With time, his worries settled down.)

time (noun [m]: measurable duration needed for something)

• Il nous faut encore du temps pour terminer l’audit. (We still need time to finish the audit.)

time (noun [m]: an unspecified amount of time)

• Laisse-moi le temps de répondre correctement. (Give me time to answer properly.)

time (noun [m]: chronology or sequence of events)

• Il faut replacer cette décision dans son temps. (You have to place this decision in its historical context.)

time, period; time, -time suffix (noun [m]: a particular era or circumstances)

• En temps de crise, l’entreprise réduit les dépenses non essentielles. (In times of crisis, the company cuts non-essential spending.)

weather (noun [m]: atmospheric conditions)

• Avec ce temps, on ferait mieux d’annuler la sortie. (With this weather, we’d better cancel the outing.)

tense (noun [m]: grammatical verb form)

• Dans cette phrase, le verbe est au temps du passé composé. (In this sentence, the verb is in the perfect tense.)

très [tʀɛ]

very (adverb: to a high degree)

• Ce rapport est très clair, merci. (This report is very clear, thank you.)

savoir [savwaʀ]

know (transitive verb: have knowledge of a fact or answer)

• Je sais qui a envoyé ce message. (I know who sent that message.)

know; be familiar with (transitive verb: have learned something or be acquainted with it)

• Tu connais cette chanson, ou tu la découvres ? (Do you know this song, or is it new to you?)

know; be aware (transitive verb: be informed about something)

• Je sais qu’ils ont changé la date de la réunion. (I know they changed the meeting date.)

can do [sth]; be able to do [sth]; know how to do [sth] (verb phrase: have the skill or ability to do something)

• Elle sait parfaitement négocier un contrat. (She can negotiate a contract perfectly.)

be able to do [sth]; be capable of doing [sth]; can do [sth] (verb phrase: manage to achieve something)

• Son calme a su convaincre tout le monde. (His calmness was able to convince everyone.)

can; could; would; will (verb phrase: polite request or possibility)

• Saurais-tu fermer la fenêtre, s’il te plaît ? (Could you close the window, please?)

be known (reflexive verb: become known to others)

• Son départ commence à se savoir au bureau. (His departure is starting to become known at the office.)

knowledge (noun [m]: learning or intellectual mastery)

• Il a un grand savoir en histoire économique. (He has extensive knowledge of economic history.)

falloir [falwaʀ]

be needed; need (intransitive verb: indicate necessity)

• Il faut une personne qualifiée pour ce rôle. (An experienced person is needed for this role.)

need; could do with [sth] (intransitive verb: be necessary for someone to have something)

• Il me faut un câble plus long pour brancher l’écran. (I need a longer cable to connect the monitor.)

have to do [sth], need to do [sth], must do [sth]; have to be + [past participle], need to be + [past participle], must be + [past participle]; be necessary to do [sth] (intransitive verb: state an obligation or requirement)

• Il faut trier les documents avant l’archivage. (We have to sort the documents before archiving.)

have to do [sth], need to do [sth]; must do [sth]; be necessary for [sb] to do [sth]; be necessary that [sb] do [sth] (intransitive verb: require that someone do something)

• Il faudrait que tu révises ce dossier avant demain. (You would have to review this file before tomorrow.)

have to do [sth]; must do [sth] (intransitive verb: express something unavoidable)

• Il faut accepter la décision et avancer. (We have to accept the decision and move on.)

be bound to do [sth]; have to do [sth] (intransitive verb: indicate that something was bound to happen)

• Avec un planning pareil, il fallait bien qu’on prenne du retard. (With a schedule like that, we were bound to fall behind.)

have to; must (intransitive verb: express a supposition)

• Il faut être vraiment fatigué pour oublier un rendez-vous pareil. (You must be really tired to forget an appointment like that.)

ought to; should (intransitive verb: ironic emphasis)

• Il fallait l’entendre se vanter de ses “exploits”. (You should have heard him bragging about his “achievements”.)

have to; must (intransitive verb: express indignation)

• Faut-il être aussi imprudent pour ignorer toutes les consignes ! (You must be that careless to ignore all the instructions!)

should (intransitive verb: express admiration)

• Il faut voir comme elle gère la situation avec calme. (You should see how calmly she handles the situation.)

voir [vwaʀ]

see; be able to see, can see (intransitive verb: have sight or perceive visually)

• Sans mes lunettes, je ne vois pas bien de loin. (Without my glasses, I can’t see well at a distance.)

see; be able to see, can see (transitive verb: perceive with the eyes)

• Tu vois le panneau au bout de la rue ? (Can you see the sign at the end of the street?)

see; witness (transitive verb: observe an event happening)

• J’ai vu l’incident se produire devant la gare. (I saw the incident happen in front of the station.)

see, watch; go to see (transitive verb: attend a film, show, or performance)

• On a vu un documentaire hier soir. (We watched a documentary last night.)

see; visit (transitive verb: consult or meet someone, especially professionally)

• Tu devrais voir un médecin si la douleur continue. (You should see a doctor if the pain continues.)

see (transitive verb: understand)

• Je vois ce que tu veux dire, mais je ne suis pas d’accord. (I see what you mean, but I don’t agree.)

can see; can imagine (transitive verb: picture something mentally)

• Je le vois bien accepter l’offre sans hésiter. (I can easily imagine him accepting the offer without hesitation.)

see to it, see to it that; ensure; make sure, make sure that (transitive verb: ensure something happens)

• Nous verrons à ce que tout soit prêt avant midi. (We’ll make sure everything is ready before noon.)

see yourself (reflexive verb: see your own image)

• Je ne me vois pas sur cette photo, je suis hors cadre. (I can’t see myself in this photo; I’m out of frame.)

see yourself doing [sth]; envisage yourself doing [sth] (reflexive verb: imagine yourself doing something)

• Je ne me vois pas travailler ici dans dix ans. (I can’t see myself working here in ten years.)

see each other, see one another (reflexive verb: meet one another)

• On se voit demain matin pour finaliser le dossier. (We’ll see each other tomorrow morning to finalise the file.)

see each other, see one another (reflexive verb: date or spend time together)

• Ils se voient depuis un mois, mais ils restent discrets. (They’ve been seeing each other for a month, but they’re keeping it quiet.)

be visible; can be seen; show (reflexive verb: be noticeable or visible)

• Sur ce mur clair, les traces se voient tout de suite. (On this light wall, the marks show immediately.)

be obvious, be plain, be clearly visible (reflexive verb: be evident)

• Ça se voit qu’il est stressé avant l’entretien. (It’s obvious he’s stressed before the interview.)

be + [v past p] (reflexive verb: passive structure where someone is subjected to an action)

• Elle s’est vue refuser l’accès faute de badge. (She was refused entry because she didn’t have a badge.)

quelque [kɛlk]

some (adjective: an unspecified amount or number)

• J’ai besoin de quelque patience pour régler ce problème. (I need some patience to sort out this problem.)

a few; some (adjective: a small number, typically plural in French)

• Il reste quelques sièges au fond de la salle. (There are a few seats left at the back of the room.)

any (adjective: used to mean “any at all” in negatives or questions)

• As-tu quelque idée de ce qui s’est passé ? (Do you have any idea what happened?)

some; a few; several (pronoun: an unspecified subset of people or things)

• Plusieurs ont refusé, mais quelques-uns ont accepté. (Several refused, but some agreed.)

something (pronoun: an unspecified thing)

• J’ai quelque chose à te dire après la réunion. (I have something to tell you after the meeting.)

somewhat; rather (adverb: to a moderate degree)

• Je suis quelque peu inquiet à propos du délai. (I’m somewhat worried about the deadline.)

sans [sɑ̃]

without (preposition: lacking something)

• Je ne peux pas travailler sans connexion internet. (I can’t work without an internet connection.)

without; with no (preposition: indicating absence of a quality or feature)

• Il a répondu sans hésitation. (He answered without hesitation.)

minus; without (preposition: indicating subtraction or exclusion)

• Le prix est affiché sans la TVA. (The price is shown without VAT.)

raison [ʀɛzɔ̃]

reason (noun [f]: cause or explanation)

• Quelle est la raison de ce retard ? (What is the reason for this delay?)

grounds; justification (noun [f]: a valid basis for a decision)

• Il n’y a aucune raison de refuser cette demande. (There’s no justification for refusing this request.)

reason (noun [f]: the faculty of rational thinking)

• Sous la pression, il a perdu la raison. (Under pressure, he lost his reason.)

be right; be correct (verb phrase: be in the right)

• Tu as raison de vérifier les chiffres avant d’envoyer le rapport. (You’re right to check the figures before sending the report.)

notre [nɔtʀ]

our (adjective: possessive determiner for something belonging to “us”)

• Notre objectif est de terminer le projet avant la fin du mois. (Our goal is to finish the project before the end of the month.)

dont [dɔ̃]

whose; of which; of whom (pronoun: relative pronoun indicating possession)

• C’est un collègue dont j’admire beaucoup le sérieux. (He’s a colleague whose professionalism I really admire.)

including which; among whom; of which (pronoun: relative pronoun indicating inclusion in a set)

• Ils ont présenté trois options, dont une était trop coûteuse. (They presented three options, one of which was too expensive.)

some of whom; some of which (pronoun: relative pronoun indicating a subset)

• J’ai lu plusieurs articles, dont certains étaient contradictoires. (I read several articles, some of which contradicted each other.)

from which (pronoun: relative pronoun used with verbs requiring “de”)

• Voilà le sujet dont je voulais te parler. (That’s the topic I wanted to talk to you about.)

non [nɔ̃]

no (adverb: negative answer or refusal)

• — Tu viens avec nous ? — Non, je reste ici. (— Are you coming with us? — No, I’m staying here.)

not (adverb: used to negate a statement)

• Ce n’est pas non plus la meilleure solution. (That’s not the best solution either.)

non- (adjective: prefix forming a negated or opposite concept)

• C’est un sujet non prioritaire pour le moment. (It’s a non-priority topic for the time being.)

an [ɑ̃]

year (noun [m]: a period of twelve months)

• L’entreprise a doublé son chiffre d’affaires en un an. (The company doubled its revenue in a year.)

year (noun [m]: age expressed in years)

• Il a dix ans et il apprend déjà le piano. (He’s ten years old and he’s already learning piano.)

monde [mɔ̃d]

world (noun [m]: the earth or the globe)

• Ils veulent faire le tour du monde en deux ans. (They want to travel around the world in two years.)

world (noun [m]: a particular sphere or domain)

• Dans le monde du travail, la communication compte énormément. (In the world of work, communication matters enormously.)

people; crowd (noun [m]: a large number of people)

• Il y avait du monde devant l’entrée du stade. (There were lots of people in front of the stadium entrance.)

everyone (noun phrase: people in general)

• Tout le monde sait que la réunion a été déplacée. (Everyone knows the meeting has been moved.)

jour [ʒuʀ]

day (noun [m]: a 24-hour period)

• Je travaille huit heures par jour en semaine. (I work eight hours a day on weekdays.)

day; date (noun [m]: a particular day on the calendar)

• Le jour de l’entretien, il faudra arriver dix minutes en avance. (On the day of the interview, you’ll need to arrive ten minutes early.)

daytime; daylight (noun [m]: the time when it is light)

• On préfère voyager de jour pour éviter la fatigue. (We prefer travelling in the daytime to avoid fatigue.)

nowadays; these days (adverbial phrase: in the present time)

• De nos jours, on réserve souvent tout en ligne. (Nowadays, people often book everything online.)

monsieur [məsjø]

sir (noun [m]: polite form of address)

• Excusez-moi, monsieur, vous avez fait tomber ceci. (Excuse me, sir, you dropped this.)

Mr (noun [m]: title used before a surname)

• Monsieur Martin sera en retard à la réunion. (Mr Martin will be late to the meeting.)

gentleman (noun [m]: a man, often with a formal or respectful tone)

• Un monsieur m’a indiqué le chemin jusqu’au centre-ville. (A gentleman showed me the way to the city centre.)

demander [d(ə)mɑ̃de]

ask [sb] [sth] (transitive verb: ask a question)

• Je lui ai demandé pourquoi il était parti si tôt. (I asked him why he left so early.)

ask for [sth]; request; ask [sb] for [sth]; request [sth] from [sb] (transitive verb: seek to obtain something)

• J’ai demandé une copie du contrat au service juridique. (I requested a copy of the contract from the legal department.)

ask for [sth/sb] (transitive verb: call for someone or something)

• À l’accueil, on a demandé le responsable du dossier. (At reception, they asked for the person in charge of the file.)

ask for [sth] to be done; ask [sb] to do [sth] (verb phrase: express a wish or request)

• Ils demandent à parler au directeur avant de prendre une décision. (They’re asking to speak to the director before making a decision.)

ask [sb] to do [sth] (verb phrase: require someone to do something)

• On m’a demandé de remettre le rapport avant midi. (I was asked to submit the report before noon.)

require; demand; call for [sth] (transitive verb: be necessary)

• Ce type de travail demande beaucoup de concentration. (This kind of work requires a lot of concentration.)

(price) ask (transitive verb: state an asking price)

• Combien demandez-vous pour cette chaise ? (How much are you asking for this chair?)

wonder; ask yourself (reflexive verb: question yourself)

• Je me demande si on a choisi la bonne stratégie. (I’m wondering if we chose the right strategy.)

alors [alɔʀ]

then; in that case (adverb: consequence or conclusion)

• Tu n’as pas le temps, alors on reporte la réunion. (You don’t have time, so we’ll postpone the meeting.)

so; well; so then (adverb: used to start a question or conversation)

• Alors, tu me racontes comment ça s’est passé ? (So, are you going to tell me how it went?)

or, or else; if not (conjunction phrase: alternative)

• On part maintenant, ou alors on ratera le dernier train. (We leave now, or else we’ll miss the last train.)

so?; so what? (adverb: dismissive response)

• Tu n’aimes pas le plan ? Et alors ? (You don’t like the plan? So what?)

après [apʀɛ]

after (preposition: later than in time)

• On fera le point après la réunion. (We’ll review things after the meeting.)

after (preposition: following in order)

• Le chapitre deux vient après l’introduction. (Chapter two comes after the introduction.)

after; after [sb] (preposition: in pursuit of)

• Le chien court après la balle. (The dog runs after the ball.)

after; in the style of; based on (preposition: according to a model or person)

• Cette pièce est écrite d’après un roman célèbre. (This play is written after a famous novel.)

afterwards; after that (adverb: later)

• Je dois passer un appel, et après je te rejoins. (I have to make a call, and afterwards I’ll join you.)

trouver [tʀuve]

find (transitive verb: discover something)

• J’ai trouvé mes clés sous le canapé. (I found my keys under the sofa.)

find (transitive verb: locate someone)

• Tu peux trouver Paul dans son bureau jusqu’à 18 h. (You can find Paul in his office until 6 pm.)

find; come up with (transitive verb: discover a solution or idea)

• On a trouvé une manière simple de réduire les coûts. (We found a simple way to reduce costs.)

consider; find; think (transitive verb: have an opinion)

• Je trouve cette proposition trop risquée. (I find this proposal too risky.)

consider [sb] [sth]; find [sb] [sth] (transitive verb: judge someone or something to be a certain way)

• Tout le monde l’a trouvé très convaincant à l’oral. (Everyone found him very convincing in the presentation.)

think; feel; find (transitive verb: express a reaction)

• Qu’est-ce que tu en trouves, honnêtement ? (What do you think of it, honestly?)

be; find oneself (reflexive verb: be located or end up somewhere)

• Je me suis retrouvé seul dans la salle après la pause. (I found myself alone in the room after the break.)

meet; bump into; run into (reflexive verb: encounter by chance)

• On s’est trouvés par hasard dans le même train. (We ran into each other by chance on the same train.)

find oneself doing [sth]; end up doing [sth] (reflexive verb: end up in a situation)

• Il s’est retrouvé à gérer le projet sans soutien. (He ended up managing the project with no support.)

personne [pɛʀsɔn]

person (noun [f]: an individual human being)

• Cette personne a oublié son badge à l’entrée. (That person forgot their badge at the entrance.)

anybody; anyone; nobody; no one (pronoun: used with or without negation depending on structure)

• Je n’ai vu personne dans le couloir. (I didn’t see anyone in the corridor.)

rendre [ʀɑ̃dʀ]

return; give back (transitive verb: give something back to someone)

• Tu peux me rendre ce livre demain ? (Can you return this book to me tomorrow?)

deliver; submit; hand in (transitive verb: provide something officially)

• Il doit rendre son rapport avant la fin de la journée. (He has to submit his report before the end of the day.)

render; make; turn (transitive verb: cause something to become)

• Cette mise à jour rend l’application plus stable. (This update makes the app more stable.)

pay back; repay (transitive verb: reimburse)

• Je te rends l’argent dès que je peux. (I’ll pay you back as soon as I can.)

yield; produce (transitive verb: produce a result)

• Cet investissement a rendu de bons résultats sur deux ans. (This investment yielded good results over two years.)

make [sb] + [adj]; drive [sb] + [adj] (transitive verb: affect someone’s state)

• Le manque de sommeil le rend irritable. (Lack of sleep makes him irritable.)

vomit; throw up (transitive verb: bring up)

• Il a rendu après le trajet en voiture. (He threw up after the car journey.)

give in; surrender (reflexive verb: submit or stop resisting)

• Il a fini par se rendre après des heures de négociation. (He ended up surrendering after hours of negotiation.)

part [paʀ]

portion, piece; slice (noun [f]: a share or piece of a whole, especially food)

• Je te laisse une part de pizza, j’ai déjà mangé. (I’m leaving you a slice of pizza; I’ve already eaten.)

share (noun [f]: an amount owed or due to someone)

• Chacun a payé sa part de l’addition sans discuter. (Everyone paid their share of the bill without arguing.)

tax share (noun [f]: a unit used to calculate French income tax)

• Avec une demi-part supplémentaire, son impôt a nettement baissé. (With an extra half tax share, his tax bill dropped noticeably.)

dernier [dɛʀnje, jɛʀ]

last; final (adjective: after all others in a ranking)

• Il a terminé dernier au classement, mais il n’a pas abandonné. (He finished last in the standings, but he didn’t give up.)

last; -; last year (adjective: previous in time, especially in dates)

• L’an dernier, nous avons changé de fournisseur. (Last year, we changed supplier.)

top (adjective: highest in a building)

• Nos bureaux sont au dernier étage, juste sous le toit. (Our offices are on the top floor, just under the roof.)

furthest away; back (adjective: furthest back in a room or enclosed space)

• Ils se sont assis au dernier rang pour ne pas être remarqués. (They sat in the back row so they wouldn’t be noticed.)

latest; most recent; last (adjective: most recent in a series)

• J’ai lu son dernier article hier soir. (I read his latest article last night.)

final; last (adjective: ultimate, with nothing after it)

• C’est ma dernière offre, je ne peux pas descendre plus bas. (That’s my final offer; I can’t go any lower.)

ultimate; biggest (adjective: used for emphasis, often insulting)

• Il s’est comporté comme le dernier des égoïstes. (He behaved like the ultimate selfish person.)

last person, last person to do [sth]; loser; person in last place, person who comes last (noun [m/f]: the one who finishes last)

• Le dernier à quitter le bureau éteint les lumières. (The last person to leave the office turns off the lights.)

last one (noun [m/f]: the final remaining item)

• J’ai pris le dernier exemplaire, il n’en restait plus. (I took the last copy; there weren’t any left.)

latest; last; most recent (adjective: most recent, especially with days)

• Je l’ai vu mardi dernier, juste après le travail. (I saw him last Tuesday, right after work.)

venir [v(ə)niʀ]

come (intransitive verb: travel to the speaker’s or a specified place)

• Tu peux venir à mon bureau après le déjeuner ? (Can you come to my office after lunch?)

come from [sth], be from [sth] (intransitive verb: originate from a place)

• Ce fromage vient d’une petite ferme en Normandie. (This cheese comes from a small farm in Normandy.)

come from [sth], be from [sth]; originate from [sth] (intransitive verb: have roots or background in something)

• Elle vient d’un milieu modeste et elle en est fière. (She comes from a modest background and she’s proud of it.)

result from [sth], stem from [sth], arise from [sth]; be a result of [sth], be caused by [sth]; be down to [sth] (intransitive verb: be caused by something)

• Le retard vient d’une panne sur la ligne. (The delay is due to a fault on the line.)

have just done [sth] (verb phrase: indicate something happened very recently)

• Je viens de finir l’appel, je suis disponible maintenant. (I’ve just finished the call; I’m available now.)

end up doing [sth]; come to do [sth]; eventually do [sth], finally do [sth]; do [sth] in the end (verb phrase: happen to do something as a final outcome)

• Avec le temps, il est venu à accepter la décision. (Over time, he ended up accepting the decision.)

pendant [pɑ̃dɑ̃, ɑ̃t]

during; in (preposition: within a period of time)

• Pendant la pause, je vais répondre à deux messages. (During the break, I’m going to reply to two messages.)

for; through (preposition: throughout the whole duration)

• J’ai travaillé pendant toute la matinée sans m’arrêter. (I worked through the whole morning without stopping.)

while, whilst (conjunction phrase: simultaneous actions)

• Je prépare le dîner pendant que tu mets la table. (I’ll make dinner while you set the table.)

while (conjunction phrase: used to introduce a quick, related aside)

• Pendant que j’y pense, envoie-moi la dernière version du document. (While I’m thinking about it, send me the latest version of the document.)

passer [pɑse]

pass; go past, go by; go (intransitive verb: move past a point)

• Les cyclistes passent devant l’école vers huit heures. (The cyclists go past the school at around eight o’clock.)

come (intransitive verb: come by at a given time or place)

• Le facteur passe généralement en fin de matinée. (The postman usually comes late in the morning.)

go; nip, pop (intransitive verb: go somewhere quickly for a short moment)

• Je passe au bureau deux minutes et je reviens. (I’m popping into the office for two minutes and I’ll be back.)

drop by, drop in, stop by, pop in, pop by; call in; come over, come round; go round (intransitive verb: visit informally)

• Si tu as cinq minutes, passe ce soir prendre un café. (If you’ve got five minutes, drop by this evening for a coffee.)

go to [sb]’s house, come to [sb]’s house; go to [sb]’s place, come to [sb]’s place, go to [sb]’s, come to [sb]’s; go to [sth], come to [sth]; stop by [sth], call in at [sth] (intransitive verb: stop in at someone’s place or a business)

• Je passe chez toi après le travail, puis je passe chez le libraire. (I’ll come to your place after work, then I’ll stop by the bookshop.)

pass; flow past [sth] (intransitive verb: run past a place or follow a route)

• La route passe derrière le musée. (The road passes behind the museum.)

pass; pass through [sth], come through [sth], get through [sth] (intransitive verb: go through or let something through)

• Avec ces rideaux épais, la lumière ne passe presque pas. (With these thick curtains, hardly any light gets through.)

go, pass; go by (intransitive verb: time elapses)

• Les heures passent plus vite quand on est occupé. (The hours go by faster when you’re busy.)

move up; be accepted (intransitive verb: be promoted to the next level or accepted)

• Si ses résultats s’améliorent, il passera dans le groupe supérieur. (If his results improve, he’ll move up into the higher group.)

go into [sth]; move up into [sth] (intransitive verb: move up into a class or level)

• L’an prochain, elle passe en terminale. (Next year, she’s moving up into the final year.)

be passed; be voted in (intransitive verb: be adopted by a vote)

• Sans majorité, l’amendement ne passera pas. (Without a majority, the amendment won’t be passed.)

become (intransitive verb: change status or rank)

• Après la formation, il est passé chef d’équipe. (After the training, he became a team leader.)

go from [sth] to [sth] (intransitive verb: move from one state or situation to another)

• On est passé d’un simple test à un déploiement complet. (We went from a simple test to a full rollout.)

be acceptable, be admissible (intransitive verb: be tolerated or acceptable)

• Une faute d’inattention, ça passe, mais pas trois. (One careless mistake is acceptable, but not three.)

be played, be heard; appear; be on; be shown (intransitive verb: be broadcast or shown)

• Ce film passe ce soir à la télé, on le regarde ? (That film is on TV tonight; shall we watch it?)

fade (intransitive verb: lose colour)

• Au soleil, les affiches ont vite passé. (In the sun, the posters faded quickly.)

filter (intransitive verb: liquid drips through a filter)

• Laisse le café passer avant de servir. (Let the coffee finish filtering before serving.)

pass (intransitive verb: pain or a problem goes away)

• Ne t’inquiète pas, ça va passer avec un peu de repos. (Don’t worry, it’ll pass with a bit of rest.)

peu [pø]

not much; little (adverb: in too small a quantity)

• En semaine, je dors peu et je le sens le lendemain. (On weekdays, I sleep little and I feel it the next day.)

a little; a bit (adverb: to a small extent)

• Je comprends un peu, mais je dois relire les détails. (I understand a little, but I need to reread the details.)

a little; a little bit of (adverb: a small amount of something)

• Ajoute un peu de sel, puis goûte à nouveau. (Add a little salt, then taste again.)

little; few; not much; not many (adverb: small or insufficient quantity with “de”)

• Il y a peu de temps pour discuter et peu de personnes disponibles. (There’s little time to talk and few people available.)

few (adverb: the small amount that remains)

• Elle a protégé le peu de documents qui restaient dans le dossier. (She protected the few documents that remained in the file.)

lequel [ləkɛl, lakɛl]

which, which one (pronoun: interrogative choice between items)

• Voici trois versions : laquelle préfères-tu, et pour quelles raisons ? (Here are three versions: which one do you prefer, and why?)

which; who; whom (pronoun: relative pronoun, depending on whether it refers to a thing or a person)

• J’ai rencontré un consultant, lequel m’a expliqué la procédure en détail. (I met a consultant, who explained the procedure to me in detail.)

which (pronoun: relative pronoun used after a preposition)

• C’est un accord par lequel les deux parties s’engagent à coopérer. (It’s an agreement by which both parties commit to cooperate.)

suite [sɥit]

continuation; rest (noun [f]: what follows after something)

• La première partie est claire ; la suite est plus technique. (The first part is clear; the rest is more technical.)

sequel (noun [f]: a work that continues a story)

• Ils annoncent une suite au film pour l’an prochain. (They’re announcing a sequel to the film for next year.)

consequence; result (noun [f]: what happens as an outcome)

• Sa décision a eu pour suite un changement immédiat d’organisation. (His decision resulted in an immediate organisational change.)

follow-up (noun [m]: the actions taken after an initial step)

• Nous assurerons le suivi et la suite du dossier cette semaine. (We’ll handle the follow-up and the next steps on the file this week.)

suite (noun [f]: a set of linked pieces of music)

• L’orchestre a interprété une suite baroque en fin de concert. (The orchestra performed a baroque suite at the end of the concert.)

suite (noun [f]: a hotel room consisting of several rooms)

• Pour le déplacement, ils ont réservé une suite avec un salon. (For the trip, they booked a suite with a sitting room.)

bon [bɔ̃, bɔn]

good (adjective: of good quality)

• C’est un bon outil, solide et fiable. (It’s a good tool, sturdy and reliable.)

right; correct (adjective: accurate)

• Tu as la bonne réponse, le calcul est juste. (You’ve got the correct answer; the calculation is right.)

kind; nice (adjective: benevolent)

• Elle a été très bonne avec le nouvel arrivant. (She was very kind to the newcomer.)

tasty; delicious (adjective: pleasant to eat or drink)

• Cette soupe est vraiment bonne, surtout avec un peu de poivre. (This soup is really tasty, especially with a bit of pepper.)

skilled; good (adjective: competent at something)

• Il est bon en maths, mais il doute encore à l’oral. (He’s good at maths, but he still lacks confidence in presentations.)

good; fine; OK (adjective: satisfactory)

• Le plan est bon, on peut lancer la mise en œuvre. (The plan is fine; we can start implementing it.)

good thing (noun [f]: something beneficial)

• C’est une bonne chose que tout soit prêt avant midi. (It’s a good thing everything is ready before noon.)

good; right (noun [m]: the good side in a moral sense)

• Il essaie de distinguer le bon du mauvais dans cette affaire. (He’s trying to distinguish right from wrong in this matter.)

OK; right; good (interjection: agreement or transition)

• Bon, on s’y met : on commence par les priorités. (OK, let’s get to it: we’ll start with the priorities.)

comprendre [kɔ̃pʀɑ̃dʀ]

understand (transitive verb: grasp meaning)

• Je comprends l’idée, mais pas encore tous les détails. (I understand the idea, but not all the details yet.)

understand; realize (transitive verb: become aware of something)

• En lisant le mail, j’ai compris qu’on devait changer de plan. (Reading the email, I realised we had to change plans.)

include; consist of (transitive verb: contain as a part)

• Le prix comprend la livraison et l’installation. (The price includes delivery and installation.)

be understanding (reflexive verb: show empathy and tolerance)

• Il faut se comprendre : chacun est sous pression en ce moment. (We need to be understanding: everyone is under pressure right now.)

get along; understand each other (reflexive verb: have mutual understanding)

• Malgré leurs différences, ils se comprennent très bien. (Despite their differences, they understand each other very well.)

depuis [dəpɥi]

since (preposition: from a point in time)

• Je travaille ici depuis 2021. (I’ve worked here since 2021.)

for (preposition: over a duration up to now)

• On attend depuis deux heures sans nouvelle. (We’ve been waiting for two hours with no news.)

from (preposition: from a point in space)

• Depuis la fenêtre, on voit toute la place. (From the window, you can see the whole square.)

since then (adverb: from that moment onward)

• Il a démissionné l’an dernier et, depuis, il a changé de secteur. (He resigned last year and since then he’s changed fields.)

point [pwɛ̃]

point; dot (noun [m]: a small mark)

• Mets un point sur la carte pour indiquer l’entrée. (Put a dot on the map to indicate the entrance.)

point (noun [m]: a specific item or aspect)

• Sur ce point, je pense qu’on peut trouver un compromis. (On this point, I think we can find a compromise.)

point (noun [m]: a score unit)

• Ils ont gagné d’un point à la dernière minute. (They won by one point at the last minute.)

period; full stop (noun [m]: punctuation mark ending a sentence)

• N’oublie pas le point à la fin de la phrase. (Don’t forget the full stop at the end of the sentence.)

stitch (noun [m]: a sewn loop of thread)

• Elle a refait quelques points pour réparer la couture. (She redid a few stitches to repair the seam.)

tip; point (noun [m]: the sharp end of something)

• Fais attention à la pointe de ce couteau, elle est très fine. (Watch the tip of that knife; it’s very sharp.)

not at all; not (adverb: negative emphasis, formal or literary)

• Je ne suis point d’accord avec cette conclusion. (I do not agree with that conclusion at all.)

ainsi

thus; so (adverb: as a result or consequence)

• Il n’a pas répondu, ainsi j’ai pris la décision seul. (He didn’t reply, so I made the decision on my own.)

this way; like this (adverb: in this manner)

• Fais-le ainsi, et tu gagneras du temps. (Do it this way, and you’ll save time.)

as follows (adverb: introducing what comes next)

• La procédure est ainsi : d’abord on vérifie, ensuite on valide. (The procedure is as follows: first we check, then we validate.)

heure

hour (noun [f]: a unit of time)

• La réunion dure une heure, pas plus. (The meeting lasts an hour, no more.)

time; o’clock (noun [f]: a specific time of day)

• Il est quelle heure ? J’ai un train à prendre. (What time is it? I have a train to catch.)

time (noun [f]: a moment considered suitable)

• Ce n’est pas l’heure de plaisanter, on doit conclure. (This isn’t the time to joke; we need to wrap up.)

rester

stay (intransitive verb: remain in the same place)

• Je reste au bureau jusqu’à la fin de l’appel. (I’m staying at the office until the end of the call.)

remain (intransitive verb: continue to be in the same state)

• Malgré la pression, il est resté calme. (Despite the pressure, he remained calm.)

be left (intransitive verb: continue to exist or be available)

• Il reste deux places pour la session de demain. (There are two places left for tomorrow’s session.)

stay behind (intransitive verb: not leave with others)

• Les autres sont partis, mais elle est restée pour finir le dossier. (The others left, but she stayed behind to finish the file.)

seul

alone (adjective: without other people)

• Je préfère travailler seul pour me concentrer. (I prefer working alone to concentrate.)

only (adjective: the single one or the only thing)

• C’est la seule solution réaliste à ce stade. (It’s the only realistic solution at this stage.)

lonely (adjective: feeling isolated)

• Depuis son déménagement, il se sent souvent seul. (Since moving, he often feels lonely.)

année

year (noun [f]: a period of twelve months)

• Cette année, on vise une croissance plus stable. (This year, we’re aiming for steadier growth.)

year (noun [f]: a particular year in a sequence)

• L’année 2020 a bouleversé beaucoup d’organisations. (The year 2020 disrupted many organisations.)

school year; academic year (noun [f]: yearly cycle of study)

• L’année scolaire commence début septembre. (The school year starts in early September.)

toujours [tuʒuʀ]

always (adverb: at all times, throughout history)

• La curiosité a toujours guidé son travail. (Curiosity has always guided his work.)

always (adverb: regularly, every time)

• Il m’appelle toujours le dimanche soir, sans exception. (He always calls me on Sunday evening, without exception.)

always; still (adverb: continuing up to now)

• Je suis toujours sur le même dossier, je te rappelle dès que je finis. (I’m still on the same file; I’ll call you back as soon as I’m done.)

anyway, anyhow; anyways; still (adverb: despite that, in any case)

• On n’a pas toutes les infos, mais on peut toujours avancer sur le plan. (We don’t have all the information, but we can move forward on the plan anyway.)

always (adverb: as a fallback option, if needed)

• Si tu n’as pas de voiture, tu peux toujours prendre le train. (If you don’t have a car, you can always take the train.)

already; at least (adverb: used to mean “it’s something, even if limited”)

• On n’a pas tout réglé, mais on a sécurisé les données : c’est toujours ça. (We haven’t fixed everything, but we secured the data; at least that’s something.)

tenir [t(ə)niʀ]

hold (transitive verb: keep in your hand or hold something for someone)

• Tiens mon sac une seconde, je cherche mes clés. (Hold my bag for a second; I’m looking for my keys.)

take, grip, grasp; take hold of [sth]; hold on to [sth], hold onto [sth] (transitive verb: seize firmly to avoid falling or losing balance)

• Tiens la rampe, le train va démarrer. (Hold on to the rail; the train is about to pull out.)

hold, restrain; keep (transitive verb: keep under control or prevent from moving freely)

• Dans ce quartier, il faut tenir son chien en laisse. (In this neighbourhood, you have to keep your dog on a lead.)

hold (transitive verb: hold close in your arms)

• Elle tenait son enfant contre elle pour le rassurer. (She was holding her child close to reassure him.)

manage, run (transitive verb: operate a business or venue)

• Ils tiennent un petit café près de la gare. (They run a small café near the station.)

control; keep [sb/sth] in check (transitive verb: maintain discipline or order)

• Il a du mal à tenir son équipe pendant les réunions. (He struggles to keep his team under control during meetings.)

maintain, keep (transitive verb: keep something in good condition)

• Elle tient la maison impeccablement, tout est toujours rangé. (She keeps the house impeccably; everything is always tidy.)

stand; hold yourself; stay, remain (intransitive verb: remain upright or keep a position)

• Dans cet exercice, tu dois tenir sur une jambe trente secondes. (In this exercise, you have to stand on one leg for thirty seconds.)

resist; hold out (intransitive verb: withstand pressure or an attack)

• L’équipe a tenu jusqu’à la fin malgré la pression. (The team held out until the end despite the pressure.)

be solid, be stable; take weight (intransitive verb: be sturdy enough to support weight)

• Cette étagère tient le poids, tu peux y mettre les cartons. (That shelf can take the weight; you can put the boxes on it.)

continue, last; hold; settle, pitch, stick, lay (intransitive verb: last without changing or disappearing)

• La batterie tiendra encore deux heures si tu baisses la luminosité. (The battery will last another two hours if you lower the brightness.)

fit (intransitive verb: be contained within a limited space)

• Tout ne tiendra pas dans ce sac, il en faut un deuxième. (Everything won’t fit in this bag; we need a second one.)

stick to [sth], cling to [sth] (transitive verb: adhere to a surface)

• Sans colle, ce papier ne tient pas au mur. (Without glue, this paper won’t stick to the wall.)

mean a lot to [sb], be important to [sb]; matter to [sb]; care about [sb/sth] (transitive verb: value someone or something emotionally)

• Je tiens beaucoup à lui, je ne veux pas le décevoir. (He means a lot to me; I don’t want to disappoint him.)

be attached to [sth], be fond of [sth]; be important to [sb], mean a lot to [sb]; hold [sth] dear; value (transitive verb: be emotionally attached to an object or idea)

• Je tiens à ce carnet, c’est un souvenir de mon père. (I’m attached to this notebook; it’s a keepsake from my father.)

want to do [sth]; be keen to do [sth], be anxious to do [sth] (verb phrase: insist on doing something, often for formality or principle)

• Je tiens à te remercier pour ton aide, ça compte pour moi. (I want to thank you for your help; it matters to me.)

get [sth] from [sb]; take after [sb] (transitive verb: inherit a trait from someone)

• Il tient de sa mère : il reste calme en toutes circonstances. (He takes after his mother; he stays calm in all circumstances.)

stand; take up position, be in position (reflexive verb: be positioned somewhere, often on duty)

• Deux bénévoles se tiennent à l’entrée pour orienter les visiteurs. (Two volunteers are stationed at the entrance to direct visitors.)

porter [pɔʀte]

carry (transitive verb: lift and transport)

• Je peux porter ton sac jusqu’à la voiture. (I can carry your bag to the car.)

take [sth] to [sb/sth]; bring [sth] to [sb/sth]; carry [sth] to [sb/sth]; take [sb] [sth], bring [sb] [sth] (transitive verb: transport and deliver)

• Peux-tu porter ces dossiers au bureau de Claire ? (Can you take these files to Claire’s office?)

support; bear (transitive verb: hold up a load)

• Ces poutres portent tout le plafond. (These beams support the entire ceiling.)

carry; support; can take [sth], be able to take [sth] (transitive verb: withstand weight or pressure)

• Cette étagère ne porte pas plus de dix kilos. (This shelf can’t take more than ten kilos.)

wear; have [sth] on (transitive verb: have on your body)

• Il porte toujours une casquette, même en hiver. (He always wears a cap, even in winter.)

have; bear (transitive verb: have a name or title)

• Ce rapport porte un titre provisoire. (This report has a provisional title.)

bring [sth] to [sth]; put [sth] to [sth] (transitive verb: move something by hand to a position)

• Elle portait la tasse à ses lèvres sans un mot. (She brought the cup to her lips without a word.)

bring [sth] to [sth] (transitive verb: raise to a level or degree)

• Porte l’eau à ébullition, puis baisse le feu. (Bring the water to the boil, then turn down the heat.)

adapt [sth] for [sth] (transitive verb: turn into a new format or medium)

• Ils ont porté cette histoire à la télévision. (They adapted that story for television.)

be about [sth], be on [sth]; focus on [sth] (transitive verb: have as a topic)

• La réunion porte sur le budget de l’an prochain. (The meeting is about next year’s budget.)

be, feel (reflexive verb: be doing well or poorly)

• Comment te portes-tu depuis l’opération ? (How are you feeling since the operation?)

be worn (reflexive verb: be suitable to wear)

• Cette veste peut se porter avec un jean. (This jacket can be worn with jeans.)

incline toward, incline towards (reflexive verb: choose or lean toward an option)

• Mon choix s’est porté sur une solution plus simple. (My choice inclined towards a simpler solution.)

put yourself forward as [sth], put yourself forward to do [sth] (reflexive verb: volunteer or present yourself)

• Elle s’est portée candidate pour représenter l’équipe. (She put herself forward as a candidate to represent the team.)

parler [paʀle]

speak; talk (intransitive verb: produce spoken sounds)

• À un an, il commence enfin à parler. (At one year old, he’s finally starting to speak.)

talk, speak (intransitive verb: express your thoughts)

• Il parle trop vite quand il est stressé. (He talks too fast when he’s stressed.)

talk (intransitive verb: reveal information under pressure)

• Après plusieurs questions, il a fini par parler. (After several questions, he finally talked.)

speak (transitive verb: use a language)

• Elle parle portugais sans accent. (She speaks Portuguese without an accent.)

talk about [sb]; speak about [sb] (transitive verb: discuss a person)

• On parlait de toi pendant le dîner. (We were talking about you during dinner.)

talk about [sth]; be about [sth] (transitive verb: discuss a topic or have as a subject)

• Ce livre parle de voyages et de solitude. (This book is about travel and solitude.)

talk (to [sb]) about [sth], speak (to [sb]) about [sth]; discuss [sth] (with [sb]); tell [sb] (about) [sth] (transitive verb: bring up a topic with someone)

• Je dois te parler de quelque chose d’important. (I need to talk to you about something important.)

talk to; talk with (transitive verb: have a conversation)

• J’aimerais parler avec toi en privé. (I’d like to talk with you in private.)

talk about [sth]; talk about doing [sth]; speak of [sth]; speak of doing [sth] (transitive verb: mention an intention)

• Il parle de changer de travail au printemps. (He’s talking about changing jobs in the spring.)

talk to [sb] about [sb] (transitive verb: speak on someone’s behalf)

• Je vais parler de toi au responsable pour appuyer ta demande. (I’m going to talk to the manager about you to support your request.)

speak to [sb]; mean [sth] to [sb]; be [sb]’s thing (transitive verb: resonate or appeal)

• Ce style de musique ne me parle pas du tout. (That style of music doesn’t speak to me at all.)

ring a bell, ring a bell for [sb] (transitive verb: be familiar)

• Son visage me parle, mais je ne sais plus d’où. (His face rings a bell, but I can’t remember from where.)

speak to each other; talk to each other (reflexive verb: communicate with one another)

• Depuis leur dispute, ils ne se parlent plus. (Since their argument, they don’t talk to each other anymore.)

be spoken (reflexive verb: be used as a language)

• L’occitan se parle encore dans certains villages. (Occitan is still spoken in some villages.)

fort [fɔʀ, fɔʀt]

strong (adjective: physically robust)

• Il est assez fort pour soulever cette caisse. (He’s strong enough to lift this crate.)

large (adjective: significant in amount)

• Ils ont payé une forte amende. (They paid a large fine.)

strong (adjective: intense and established)

• Leur amitié est restée forte malgré les années. (Their friendship has stayed strong despite the years.)

good; smart; clever (adjective: knowledgeable or quick-minded)

• Pour son âge, il est vraiment fort. (For his age, he’s really smart.)

good at [sth]; strong in [sth] (adjective: skilled in a subject)

• Elle est fort en anglais, mais faible en maths. (She’s good at English but weak in maths.)

hard (adverb: with force)

• Appuie fort sur le bouton. (Press hard on the button.)

loudly; loud (adverb: at a high volume)

• Ils mettent la musique fort le soir. (They play the music loud in the evening.)

fort (noun [m]: military stronghold)

• Le fort protège l’entrée du port. (The fort protects the entrance to the harbour.)

[sb]’s forte, [sb]’s strong point; one of [sb]’s strengths (noun [m]: what someone does best)

• La patience n’est pas mon fort. (Patience isn’t my forte.)

montrer [mɔ̃tʀe]

show [sb] [sth], show [sth] to [sb] (transitive verb: let someone see something)

• Je vais te montrer les photos du chantier. (I’m going to show you the photos of the job site.)

point out; indicate, identify (transitive verb: draw attention to something specific)

• Elle a montré l’erreur dans le contrat. (She pointed out the error in the contract.)

show, present (transitive verb: depict or describe)

• Le documentaire montre la vie en montagne. (The documentary shows life in the mountains.)

point out; indicate, identify (transitive verb: explain by showing)

• Il m’a montré la marche à suivre pour installer l’application. (He pointed out the steps to install the app.)

show, reveal; bring to light (transitive verb: demonstrate or uncover)

• Les résultats montrent une baisse nette des ventes. (The results reveal a sharp drop in sales.)

show, reveal; bring to light (transitive verb: reveal a trait through behaviour)

• Sa réaction montre qu’il est inquiet. (His reaction shows that he is worried.)

show, display, demonstrate (transitive verb: express a feeling or attitude)

• Elle a montré beaucoup de calme pendant la crise. (She showed a lot of calm during the crisis.)

be seen; appear (reflexive verb: be seen in public)

• Il évite de se montrer en public. (He avoids being seen in public.)

appear (reflexive verb: come into view)

• Le soleil s’est montré après trois jours de pluie. (The sun appeared after three days of rain.)

be + [adjective]; show + [noun], demonstrate + [noun]; show yourself to be + [adjective] (reflexive verb: appear in a particular way)

• Il s’est montré très compréhensif face au problème. (He showed himself to be very understanding about the problem.)

là [la]

there (adverb: in a place farther away than “here”)

• Pose la boîte là, pas ici. (Put the box there, not here.)

there (adverb: in a specified place)

• On se retrouve là, devant la gare. (We’ll meet there, in front of the station.)

here; there (adverb: at a known reference place, present or absent)

• Je suis là demain matin, mais pas l’après-midi. (I’m here tomorrow morning, but not in the afternoon.)

that; in that; there (adverb: in an abstract or key place in an argument)

• C’est là que tout se complique. (That’s where everything gets complicated.)

then (adverb: at a future time)

• D’ici là, tout sera réglé. (By then, everything will be sorted out.)

that point; in that state; there (adverb: having reached a particular situation)

• Après tant d’efforts, en arriver là me décourage. (After so much effort, getting to that point discourages me.)

right now; at the moment; now (adverb: at the present time)

• Là, je n’ai vraiment pas le temps. (Right now, I really don’t have time.)

there (adverb: used to emphasize the preceding word)

• Ce type-là ne m’inspire pas confiance. (I don’t trust that guy.)

certain [sɛʀtɛ̃, ɛn]

certain; sure; assured; positive (adjective: definite and unquestionable)

• Je suis certain que c’est la bonne adresse. (I’m sure it’s the right address.)

certain, sure (adjective: guaranteed to happen)

• Avec cette avance, la victoire est certaine. (With this lead, victory is certain.)

some; certain (adjective: an unspecified amount)

• Il faut un certain temps pour s’habituer. (It takes some time to get used to it.)

someone named, someone called; a man named, a woman named, a man called, a woman called; certain (adjective: an unspecified person identified only by name)

• Une certaine Mme Laurent a laissé un message. (A woman named Mrs Laurent left a message.)

fin [fɛ̃, fin]

end (noun [f]: the point where something stops)

• La fin du concert approche. (The end of the concert is approaching.)

end; ending (noun [f]: the final part of something)

• Je n’ai pas aimé la fin du film. (I didn’t like the ending of the film.)

thin; fine; light, flimsy (adjective: not thick or heavy)

• Prends une veste, ce pull est trop fin. (Take a jacket; that jumper is too thin.)

finely; fine (adverb: in a very thin or fine way)

• Coupe l’oignon très fin pour la sauce. (Slice the onion very finely for the sauce.)

tu [ty]

you; thou; tha (pronoun: second-person singular subject form)

• Tu viens avec nous ce soir ? (Are you coming with us tonight?)

continuer [kɔ̃tinɥe]

continue; go on; carry on (intransitive verb: not stop)

• Malgré la fatigue, il continue sans se plaindre. (Despite the fatigue, he keeps going without complaining.)

go on; carry on; continue (intransitive verb: extend or keep going)

• Le débat continue jusqu’à ce qu’on trouve un accord. (The debate goes on until we reach an agreement.)

keep [sth] up; keep going with [sth]; continue; still do [sth] (transitive verb: maintain a habit or routine)

• Elle continue ses exercices chaque matin, même en voyage. (She keeps up her exercises every morning, even when travelling.)

carry on; keep going (transitive verb: proceed along a route)

• Continue tout droit, puis tourne à gauche au feu. (Carry on straight ahead, then turn left at the lights.)

carry on doing [sth], carry on with [sth]; continue (transitive verb: resume something already started)

• Après la pause, nous continuons la lecture du rapport. (After the break, we continue reading the report.)

keep; keep on; be still + [present participle or adjective]; carry on (transitive verb: keep doing something without stopping)

• Il continue à pleuvoir depuis ce matin. (It keeps raining since this morning.)

continue to do [sth], continue doing [sth]; keep doing [sth]; carry on doing [sth]; still do [sth] (transitive verb: keep producing the same effect)

• Ce traitement continue à soulager la douleur. (This treatment is still relieving the pain.)

continue (reflexive verb: extend or carry on)

• La séance se continuera par une série de questions. (The session will continue with a series of questions.)

pays [pei]

country (noun [m]: nation)

• Le Japon est un pays insulaire très montagneux. (Japan is a mountainous island country.)

region, land (noun [m]: geographical region)

• Le Sahel est un pays très sec une grande partie de l’année. (The Sahel is a very dry region for much of the year.)

region, area, land (noun [m]: a particular area or country-side)

• La Camargue est un pays de marais et de grands espaces. (The Camargue is a region of marshes and wide open spaces.)

province, region, area; Pays (noun [m]: named local area, used in place names)

• Le Pays de Bray est connu pour ses fromages. (The Bray region is known for its cheeses.)

country; people, population (noun [m]: the nation’s people as a whole)

• Cette annonce a surpris tout le pays. (That announcement surprised the whole country.)

trois [tʀwɑ]

three (adjective: the number 3)

• J’ai trois rendez-vous aujourd’hui. (I have three appointments today.)

three (noun [m]: the number 3)

• Sur la feuille, écris un trois bien lisible. (On the sheet, write a clearly legible three.)

penser [pɑ̃se]

think (intransitive verb: use your judgment)

• Avant de répondre, pense un instant. (Before answering, think for a moment.)

think; think that; believe; believe that; consider; consider that (transitive verb: believe something to be true)

• Je pense que ce rapport est fiable. (I believe this report is reliable.)

mean (transitive verb: intend what you say)

• Il a dit ça sans le penser. (He said that without meaning it.)

think; think that (verb phrase: estimate or expect)

• Je pense pouvoir finir avant ce soir. (I think I can finish before this evening.)

think [sth] about [sth], think [sth] of [sth] (transitive verb: have an opinion)

• Qu’est-ce que tu penses de ce plan ? (What do you think of this plan?)

think (transitive verb: say to yourself internally)

• Elle pensa qu’il valait mieux attendre. (She thought it would be better to wait.)

think of [sb], think about [sb] (transitive verb: have someone in mind)

• Je pense à toi quand j’entends cette chanson. (I think of you when I hear this song.)

think about [sb], think of [sb]; spare a thought for [sb] (transitive verb: be considerate of others)

• Pense aux voisins avant de monter le son. (Spare a thought for the neighbours before turning the volume up.)

consider [sth]; think [sth] through (transitive verb: plan or work something out in advance)

• Avant d’imprimer, pense à la mise en page. (Before printing, think the layout through.)

remember (to do) [sth]; think to do [sth] (transitive verb: not forget to do something)

• Pense à fermer la fenêtre en partant. (Remember to close the window when you leave.)

think of doing [sth], think about doing [sth]; consider doing [sth] (transitive verb: intend or contemplate doing something)

• Elle pense à déménager l’année prochaine. (She’s thinking of moving next year.)

lieu [ljø]

place; spot (noun [m]: location)

• C’est un lieu calme pour travailler. (It’s a quiet place to work.)

premises (noun [m] pl: a property or building)

• Les visiteurs doivent quitter les lieux à dix-huit heures. (Visitors must leave the premises at six o’clock.)

scene (noun [m] pl: crime or accident scene)

• Les secours sont arrivés sur les lieux en quelques minutes. (The emergency services arrived on the scene within minutes.)

pollock; lythe (noun [m]: fish)

• Au marché, j’ai acheté du lieu pour le dîner. (At the market, I bought pollock for dinner.)

privy; loo; john; dunny (noun [m] pl: toilets, slang)

• Il a demandé discrètement où étaient les lieux. (He discreetly asked where the loo was.)

partie [paʀti]

part, section (noun [f]: component of a whole)

• Cette partie du moteur est fragile. (This part of the engine is fragile.)

part; section (noun [f]: physical section of something)

• Nous nous sommes assis dans la partie arrière de la salle. (We sat in the rear section of the hall.)

part; number (noun [f]: a portion or a number belonging to a whole)

• Une partie des participants est déjà arrivée. (A number of the participants have already arrived.)

game; match (noun [f]: a game or sporting contest)

• On fait une partie de cartes après le dîner ? (Shall we play a game of cards after dinner?)

quand [kɑ̃]

when; what time, at what time (adverb: at what moment)

• Quand est-ce que tu rentres ce soir ? (When are you coming home tonight?)

when (conjunction: at the time that)

• Quand il fait froid, je mets toujours un bonnet. (When it’s cold, I always wear a beanie.)

when (conjunction: whenever this condition is met)

• Quand je m’engage, je vais jusqu’au bout. (When I commit, I follow through to the end.)

well, so (conjunction: marking a confirmation)

• Quand je te disais que ce dossier finirait par revenir ! (Well, I told you this file would come back eventually!)

when (conjunction: expressing strong surprise or disbelief)

• Quand on pense qu’il a refusé une promotion ! (When you think he turned down a promotion!)

suivre [sɥivʀ]

follow; keep behind, go behind, be behind (transitive verb: go behind someone or something)

• Les enfants ont suivi la maîtresse en silence jusqu’à la sortie. (The children followed the teacher quietly to the exit.)

follow, track; watch; follow the progress of [sth]; track (transitive verb: pursue or monitor)

• Un détective suivait le suspect depuis la gare. (A detective was tracking the suspect from the station.)

accompany (transitive verb: go with someone)

• Je vais te suivre chez le médecin si tu veux. (I’ll accompany you to the doctor if you want.)

deal with [sth]; treat (transitive verb: manage a case or provide ongoing care)

• C’est elle qui suit ce dossier depuis le début. (She’s the one dealing with this case from the start.)

follow, obey; adhere to [sth]; be on [sth] (transitive verb: comply with instructions, rules, or a diet)

• Pour réussir, il faut suivre les consignes à la lettre. (To succeed, you have to follow the instructions to the letter.)

follow; go with [sth]; take [sth] up (transitive verb: conform to a trend or adopt an idea)

• Il n’aime pas suivre la mode; il préfère rester simple. (He doesn’t like following fashion; he prefers to keep things simple.)

follow; come after [sth] (transitive verb: happen afterwards)

• Un apéritif suivra la réunion. (A drink will follow the meeting.)

follow; run alongside [sth] (transitive verb: extend along a route)

• Le sentier suit la rivière sur plusieurs kilomètres. (The path follows the river for several kilometres.)

follow (transitive verb: change in the same way)

• Le prix de l’électricité suit celui du gaz. (The price of electricity follows that of gas.)

take; pursue (transitive verb: attend a course of study)

• Elle a suivi un cours du soir pour se reconvertir. (She took an evening class to change careers.)

understand, follow; comprehend (transitive verb: grasp what someone means)

• Je ne vous suis pas : pouvez-vous reformuler ? (I’m not following you—could you rephrase?)

follow one after the other, follow one after another (reflexive verb: proceed in a line)

• Dans le cortège, les voitures se suivaient lentement. (In the procession, the cars followed one after the other slowly.)

be consecutive; come one after the other, come one after another; come thick and fast, follow on each other’s heels (reflexive verb: occur repeatedly in sequence)

• Depuis une semaine, les rendez-vous se suivent sans pause. (For a week now, the appointments have been coming one after another with no break.)

be in order, make sense, be coherent (reflexive verb: be logically consistent)

• Dans son explication, tout se suit parfaitement. (In his explanation, everything makes perfect sense.)

contre [kɔ̃tʀ]

against (preposition: in opposition to)

• Je suis contre cette proposition, même si elle semble populaire. (I’m against this proposal, even if it seems popular.)

against (preposition: protection or prevention)

• Ce filtre protège contre la poussière fine. (This filter protects against fine dust.)

to; against (preposition: indicating a ratio or comparison)

• Le vote s’est terminé à 60 contre 40. (The vote ended 60 to 40.)

for; in exchange for (preposition: exchanged for something)

• Il a échangé son billet contre un avoir. (He exchanged his ticket for a credit note.)

against; on (preposition: indicating contact or proximity)

• Elle a posé son sac contre la porte. (She set her bag against the door.)

against (adverb: not in favour)

• Le comité est contre, malgré les explications. (The committee is against it, despite the explanations.)

con; against (noun [m]: a disadvantage in a comparison)

• Avant de décider, note les pour et les contre. (Before deciding, write down the pros and cons.)

counterattack (noun [m]: fast attack after defending)

• Ils ont marqué sur un contre très rapide. (They scored on a very quick counterattack.)

opposition, defence (noun [m]: defensive action stopping an opponent)

• Son contre a dévié le tir hors du cadre. (His defensive block deflected the shot wide.)

counter (prefix: indicating the opposite or a contrary action)

• Après l’offre initiale, l’entreprise a fait une contre-proposition. (After the initial offer, the company made a counterproposal.)

sous [su]

under, underneath, below, beneath (preposition: lower than)

• Le chat dort sous la table. (The cat sleeps under the table.)

under; during the time of, in the time of; in the reign of (preposition: during an era or ruler’s time)

• Sous Louis XIV, la ville a beaucoup grandi. (During the reign of Louis XIV, the city grew a lot.)

under; as per (preposition: indicating subordination or orders)

• Toute l’équipe travaille sous l’autorité du directeur. (The whole team works under the director’s authority.)

on; taking (preposition: being on medication)

• Il est sous antibiotiques depuis trois jours. (He’s been on antibiotics for three days.)

under; using (preposition: under a name or system)

• Ce logiciel tourne sous Linux. (This software runs on Linux.)

in, inside (preposition: inside something)

• Merci d’envoyer le dossier sous enveloppe scellée. (Please send the file in a sealed envelope.)

under; through (preposition: under pressure or constraint)

• Il a parlé sous la pression des médias. (He spoke under pressure from the media.)

côté [kote]

side (noun [m]: lateral part)

• Le côté gauche de l’écran est rayé. (The left side of the screen is scratched.)

side (noun [m]: edge of a geometric shape)

• Trace un triangle avec trois côtés égaux. (Draw a triangle with three equal sides.)

side (noun [m]: side of the body)

• J’ai une douleur sur le côté droit. (I have a pain on my right side.)

side (noun [m]: side of a region or border)

• Du côté italien, les villages sont plus proches. (On the Italian side, the villages are closer.)

direction; way (noun [m]: which way something is located)

• De quel côté dois-je sortir de la station ? (Which way should I exit the station?)

side (noun [m]: family line)

• Elle a hérité ça du côté maternel. (She inherited that from her mother’s side.)

side (noun [m]: aspect of someone’s personality)

• Il a un côté perfectionniste qui agace parfois. (He has a perfectionist side that can be annoying sometimes.)

ensemble [ɑ̃sɑ̃bl]

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: in each other’s company)

• On a préparé ce projet ensemble pendant tout le week-end. (We worked on this project together all weekend.)

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: all mixed as a group)

• Les nouveaux et les anciens déjeunent ensemble à la cantine. (The new staff and the old staff have lunch together in the canteen.)

together (adverb: at the same time)

• Les deux notifications sont arrivées ensemble, à la seconde près. (Both notifications arrived together, almost to the second.)

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: jointly, in collaboration)

• On travaille ensemble sur la même version du document. (We’re working together on the same version of the document.)

all; the whole of [sth], the whole [sth] (noun [m]: totality of something)

• L’ensemble des participants a validé la proposition. (All the participants approved the proposal.)

outfit; ensemble (noun [m]: matching set of clothes)

• Elle a acheté un ensemble sobre pour l’entretien. (She bought a simple outfit for the interview.)

set (noun [m]: collection of elements in mathematics)

• On définit un ensemble par ses éléments et ses propriétés. (A set is defined by its elements and its properties.)

group; ensemble; assembly (noun [m]: a group considered as a whole)

• Cet ensemble manque de cohérence malgré de bons profils. (This group lacks coherence despite strong profiles.)

ensemble (noun [m]: coordinated set of items)

• Ces couleurs forment un ensemble très harmonieux. (These colours make a very harmonious ensemble.)

plant (noun [m]: industrial facility)

• Un ensemble pétrochimique a été modernisé près du port. (A petrochemical plant was modernised near the port.)

ensemble (noun [m]: harmony and synchronisation)

• L’équipe a progressé en ensemble depuis le début de la saison. (The team has improved in synchronisation since the start of the season.)

chose [ʃoz]

thing; object, item (noun [f]: a physical object)

• J’ai rangé mes choses dans une boîte étiquetée. (I put my things away in a labelled box.)

matter; affair; thing (noun [f]: an issue or concept)

• C’est une chose sérieuse, on doit en parler calmement. (It’s a serious matter; we need to talk about it calmly.)

thing (noun [f]: events or situations in general)

• Les choses ont changé rapidement après l’annonce. (Things changed quickly after the announcement.)

plaything; creature (noun [f]: someone under another person’s control)

• Il refuse d’être sa chose et de tout accepter. (He refuses to be her plaything and accept everything.)

enfant [ɑ̃fɑ̃]

child; kid; infant (noun [m/f]: a young person)

• Un enfant a besoin de sommeil pour bien grandir. (A child needs sleep to grow properly.)

child; kid (noun [m/f]: someone’s son or daughter)

• Son enfant vit à l’étranger depuis deux ans. (Her child has lived abroad for two years.)

child; baby (noun [m/f]: someone treated as immature)

• Arrête de faire l’enfant et assume ta décision. (Stop acting like a child and own your decision.)

native, child (noun [m/f]: person originally from a place)

• C’est un enfant du pays, il connaît chaque rue. (He’s a local; he knows every street.)

cause [koz]

cause; reason (noun [f]: origin or explanation)

• La cause de la panne était un câble endommagé. (The cause of the breakdown was a damaged cable.)

grounds; reason (noun [f]: justification)

• Il a été absent pour cause de rendez-vous médical. (He was absent on medical grounds.)

case; cause (noun [f]: legal matter)

• Son avocat a présenté sa cause devant le juge. (His lawyer presented his case before the judge.)

cause (noun [f]: campaign or collective interest)

• Elle consacre du temps à une cause qui lui tient à cœur. (She devotes time to a cause that matters to her.)

politique [pɔlitik]

political (adjective: related to public affairs)

• Le débat politique a pris une tournure très tendue. (The political debate took a very tense turn.)

politics (noun [f]: public governance and public life)

• Il s’intéresse à la politique mais il ne vote jamais. (He’s interested in politics but he never votes.)

policy (noun [f]: a way of managing or organising)

• La politique de l’entreprise vise à réduire les coûts. (The company policy aims to reduce costs.)

policy; approach; practice (noun [f]: guiding principles and standard methods)

• Notre politique interne interdit le partage de mots de passe. (Our internal policy forbids sharing passwords.)

politician (noun [m/f]: a person active in public affairs)

• Ce politique défend un programme très ambitieux. (That politician is backing a very ambitious platform.)

policy; approach (noun [f]: personal doctrine or guiding line)

• Sa politique, c’est de résoudre les conflits par le dialogue. (His approach is to resolve conflicts through dialogue.)

ensemble [ɑ̃sɑ̃bl]

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: in each other’s company)

• On est rentrés ensemble après le cours. (We went home together after class.)

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: as a group)

• Les collègues ont résolu le problème ensemble. (The colleagues solved the problem together.)

together (adverb: at the same time)

• Les deux annonces sont tombées ensemble, à une minute d’intervalle. (The two announcements came out together, a minute apart.)

together; with each other, with one another (adverb: jointly, in cooperation)

• Ils ont rédigé le rapport ensemble. (They wrote the report together.)

all; the whole of [sth], the whole [sth] (noun [m]: the totality of something)

• L’ensemble du service a validé la nouvelle procédure. (The entire department approved the new procedure.)

outfit; ensemble (noun [m]: matching set of clothes)

• Elle a choisi un ensemble sobre pour l’entretien. (She chose a understated outfit for the interview.)

set (noun [m]: mathematics—collection of elements)

• Cet ensemble contient uniquement des nombres pairs. (This set contains only even numbers.)

group; ensemble; assembly (noun [m]: a group considered as a unit)

• Cet ensemble de chercheurs travaille sur le même projet. (This group of researchers is working on the same project.)

ensemble (noun [m]: items that go well together)

• Ces couleurs font un ensemble harmonieux. (These colors make a harmonious ensemble.)

plant (noun [m]: industrial installation)

• Un ensemble industriel a été construit près du port. (An industrial plant was built near the port.)

ensemble (noun [m]: harmony or synchronization)

• Le chœur manque d’ensemble sur les entrées. (The choir lacks cohesion on the entrances.)

enfant [ɑ̃fɑ̃]

child; kid; infant (noun [m/f]: person who is not yet a teenager)

• Un enfant a besoin de sommeil et de repères. (A child needs sleep and structure.)

child; kid (noun [m/f]: someone’s son or daughter)

• Ses enfants habitent maintenant à l’étranger. (Her children now live abroad.)

child; baby (noun [m/f]: someone treated as immature)

• Ne me parle pas comme à un enfant. (Don’t talk to me like I’m a child.)

native; child (noun [m/f]: someone from a particular place)

• Il est enfant du pays et connaît chaque rue. (He’s a local and knows every street.)

place [plas]

space, room (noun [f]: amount of space available)

• Cette armoire prend trop de place dans le couloir. (This wardrobe takes up too much space in the hallway.)

place (noun [f]: designated location where something belongs)

• Remets les clés à leur place après usage. (Put the keys back in their place after use.)

place; (informal) spot (noun [f]: a position reserved for someone)

• Tu peux me garder une place près de la fenêtre ? (Can you save me a spot near the window?)

seat (noun [f]: a place to sit)

• Il n’y avait plus de place libre dans le train. (There were no free seats left on the train.)

ticket; seat, place (noun [f]: admission to an event)

• J’ai acheté deux places pour le spectacle de vendredi. (I bought two tickets for Friday’s show.)

(UK) space, parking space; (US) parking spot (noun [f]: space for a car)

• On a enfin trouvé une place juste devant l’immeuble. (We finally found a parking space right in front of the building.)

place, rank (noun [f]: position in a competition or ranking)

• Elle a terminé à la troisième place sur cinquante candidats. (She finished in third place out of fifty candidates.)

(figurative) space; (figurative) place (noun [f]: importance or role)

• Ce projet occupe une grande place dans sa vie. (This project holds an important place in his life.)

place (noun [f]: social position or standing)

• Il ne se sentait pas à sa place dans ce milieu. (He didn’t feel he belonged in that environment.)

post, position, job (noun [f]: employment position)

• Elle cherche une place stable depuis des mois. (She’s been looking for a stable job for months.)

square (noun [f]: public square in a town)

• On se retrouve sur la place après le marché. (We’ll meet in the square after the market.)

seulement [sœlmɑ̃]

only (adverb: exclusively)

• Je veux seulement vérifier un détail avant de signer. (I only want to check one detail before signing.)

only, not before (adverb: not until a certain time)

• On pourra décider seulement demain, pas avant. (We’ll be able to decide only tomorrow, not before.)

only, but, except that (conjunction: introduces an objection or limitation)

• Je suis d’accord, seulement je n’ai pas le budget pour ça. (I agree, but I don’t have the budget for that.)

moi [mwa]

personally; as for me; me; myself (pronoun: stressed form used for emphasis or contrast)

• Moi, je préfère partir tôt et éviter la foule. (Personally, I’d rather leave early and avoid the crowd.)

me (pronoun: used after a preposition)

• Ils ont réservé une table sans moi. (They booked a table without me.)

me (pronoun: object in an imperative)

• Dis-moi la vérité, s’il te plaît. (Tell me the truth, please.)

mine (pronoun: belonging to me)

• Ce dossier est à toi ou à moi ? (Is this file yours or mine?)

vie [vi]

life; existence; (duration) lifetime (noun [f]: being alive and the span of it)

• Il a eu une vie pleine de changements et de voyages. (He had a life full of changes and travel.)

life (noun [f]: the way someone lives or what they devote themselves to)

• Elle a consacré sa vie à aider les autres. (She devoted her life to helping others.)

life, lifespan; useful life (noun [f]: duration something remains usable)

• La vie de cette batterie dépend de la température. (This battery’s lifespan depends on the temperature.)

(figurative) life, activity, liveliness (noun [f]: energy and animation in a place)

• Sans musique, la soirée manquait de vie. (Without music, the evening lacked liveliness.)

connaître [kɔnɛtʀ]

know (transitive verb: be familiar with through experience)

• Il connaît parfaitement ce quartier, il y a grandi. (He knows this neighbourhood perfectly; he grew up there.)

know; (formal) be acquainted with [sb/sth]; (mainly UK) know of [sb/sth] (transitive verb: be aware of or have heard of)

• Je connais un bon réparateur, je peux te donner son numéro. (I know a good repair person; I can give you his number.)

(US) recognize; (UK) recognise; know (transitive verb: identify from prior exposure)

• Je connais cette chanson dès les premières notes. (I recognize that song from the first notes.)

know; (formal) be conversant with; be familiar with; have knowledge of (transitive verb: have learned a subject or skill)

• Elle connaît bien les règles de sécurité au travail. (She is familiar with workplace safety rules.)

meet; get to know; (formal) become acquainted with (transitive verb: make someone’s acquaintance)

• J’ai connu mon associé lors d’une conférence à Lyon. (I met my business partner at a conference in Lyon.)

meet with [sth]; know; enjoy; experience (transitive verb: encounter or experience something)

• L’entreprise a connu une période difficile avant de se relever. (The company went through a difficult period before recovering.)

(changes) undergo; (impersonal) be (transitive verb: go through changes or developments)

• Le service a connu plusieurs réorganisations cette année. (The department underwent several reorganisations this year.)

know each other, know one another; (formal) be acquainted (reflexive verb: have a relationship already)

• Ils se connaissent depuis l’université. (They’ve known each other since university.)

know all about; be an expert in; be well acquainted with; be knowledgeable about (reflexive verb: be skilled or expert in a topic)

• Il s’y connaît en informatique, demande-lui de l’aide. (He knows all about IT; ask him for help.)

jusque [ʒysk]

until, till; to (adverb: indicating a limit or endpoint)

• Je reste au bureau jusque demain matin. (I’m staying at the office until tomorrow morning.)

up to, until, to; (informal) till, ’til (adverb: up to a given point in time)

• On peut repousser la décision jusque vendredi si nécessaire. (We can postpone the decision until Friday if needed.)

to the point of (adverb: to an extreme degree)

• Il est prudent jusque dans les moindres détails. (He is cautious to the point of obsessing over the smallest details.)

croire [kʀwaʀ]

believe (transitive verb: accept as true)

• Je n’arrive pas à croire cette rumeur sans preuve. (I can’t believe that rumour without evidence.)

believe, believe that; think, think that (transitive verb: be convinced)

• Je croyais qu’il avait déjà envoyé le dossier. (I believed he had already sent the file.)

believe + [indicative], believe that + [indicative]; think + [indicative], think that + [indicative] (transitive verb: expect or assume)

• Je crois que ça va fonctionner du premier coup. (I believe it’s going to work on the first try.)

think, think that (transitive verb: be of the opinion)

• Je crois qu’on devrait simplifier la procédure. (I think we should simplify the process.)

think you can do [sth], think that you can do [sth]; imagine you can do [sth], imagine that you can do [sth]; believe you can do [sth], believe that you can do [sth] (verb phrase: suppose you are capable)

• Il croit pouvoir tout résoudre en une heure. (He thinks he can solve everything in an hour.)

think + [indicative], think that + [indicative]; believe + [indicative], believe that + [indicative] (verb phrase: think you remember or have seen)

• Je croyais l’avoir déjà rencontré, mais je me trompais. (I thought I had met him before, but I was mistaken.)

believe (transitive verb: trust someone’s words)

• Je te crois, et je vais vérifier tout de suite. (I believe you, and I’m going to check right away.)

believe in [sth], believe in [sb] (transitive verb: believe something exists)

• Quand il était petit, il croyait encore aux monstres sous le lit. (When he was little, he still believed in monsters under the bed.)

believe in [sb]; have faith in [sb] (transitive verb: trust someone’s abilities)

• J’ai toujours cru en elle, même quand c’était compliqué. (I have always believed in her, even when it was difficult.)

think (reflexive verb: have the impression)

• Avec ce décor, on se croirait dans un film. (With this set, you’d think you were in a movie.)

think you are [sth]; (literary) think yourself [sth] (reflexive verb: imagine you are something)

• Il se croit indispensable, alors que l’équipe tourne très bien sans lui. (He thinks he’s indispensable, even though the team runs fine without him.)

homme [ɔm]

man (noun [m]: adult male)

• C’est un homme calme qui évite les conflits. (He’s a calm man who avoids conflict.)

man, male (noun [m]: unidentified male person)

• Un homme a laissé un message à l’accueil pour toi. (A man left a message at reception for you.)

man; male (noun [m]: male human being)

• Le rapport compare la santé des hommes et des femmes. (The report compares men’s and women’s health.)

man (noun [m]: mature individual)

• Cette responsabilité l’a obligé à devenir un homme. (That responsibility forced him to become a man.)

humans, human beings; people; (dated, sometimes capital) man, mankind; humanity (noun [m]: human beings in general)

• L’Homme cherche toujours à comprendre ce qui l’entoure. (Humans always try to understand what surrounds them.)

humanity; (dated, sometimes capital) man, mankind; humans, human beings (noun [m]: the human species)

• Les origines de l’Homme fascinent encore les chercheurs. (The origins of humanity still fascinate researchers.)

(informal) fella; (informal) man; (UK, AU, informal) bloke (noun [m]: husband or boyfriend)

• Je pars en week-end avec mon homme. (I’m going away for the weekend with my bloke.)

cas [kɑ]

scenario; case; event (noun [m]: possible circumstance)

• On doit prévoir plusieurs cas avant de lancer le projet. (We need to plan for several scenarios before launching the project.)

case; circumstances; position; situation (noun [m]: particular situation)

• Dans son cas, un report serait plus raisonnable. (In his situation, a postponement would be more reasonable.)

case; instance (noun [m]: occurrence)

• On a identifié deux cas similaires dans la même semaine. (We identified two similar cases in the same week.)

one of a kind; (informal) a real character; (dated, informal) a case (noun [m]: unusual person)

• Mon collègue, c’est un cas : il imprime tout en triple. (My colleague is a real character: he prints everything three times.)

(grammar) case (noun [m]: grammatical form)

• En latin, on distingue plusieurs cas selon la fonction du mot. (In Latin, several cases are distinguished depending on a word’s role.)

petit [p(ə)ti, it]

small, little (adjective: small in size)

• Ils vivent dans un petit appartement au centre-ville. (They live in a small flat in the city centre.)

short (adjective: not tall)

• Il est petit, mais il court très vite. (He’s short, but he runs very fast.)

small; limited (adjective: not much, not significant)

• On a un petit budget, donc on fait simple. (We have a limited budget, so we’ll keep it simple.)

quick (adjective: short in duration)

• On fait un petit arrêt, puis on repart. (We’ll make a quick stop, then set off again.)

young; (informal) little (adjective: not old enough)

• Il est encore trop petit pour aller seul à l’école. (He’s still too young to go to school on his own.)

low-ranking (adjective: minor in status)

• C’était un petit poste, mais il a beaucoup appris. (It was a low-ranking position, but he learned a lot.)

drained, tired-looking (adjective: looking worn out)

• Tu as une petite mine aujourd’hui, tu as mal dormi ? (You look drained today; did you sleep badly?)

little, nice little, great little; (affectionate) dear, darling; (Scot, Ire) wee (adjective: positive or affectionate emphasis)

• J’ai trouvé un petit resto sympa près de la gare. (I found a great little restaurant near the station.)

little (adjective: gentle, positive emphasis)

• Il a eu de petites attentions pendant toute la semaine. (He did little thoughtful things all week.)

little (adjective: negative emphasis)

• Il a fait son petit numéro pour attirer l’attention. (He did his little routine to get attention.)

short person, short man, short woman (noun [m/f]: person of short height)

• Elle dit qu’elle préfère les petits aux grands. (She says she prefers short men to tall men.)

(informal) little one; child; (informal) kid (noun [m/f]: child)

• Tes petits vont bien depuis la rentrée ? (Are your little ones doing well since the start of term?)

(my) dear (noun [m]: affectionate or patronizing form of address)

• Mon petit, prends cinq minutes et respire avant de répondre. (My dear, take five minutes and breathe before replying.)

(animal, uncountable) young; (informal, slightly infantile) baby + [name of animal]; [name of young animal]; (informal) little one (noun [m]: animal offspring)

• La chatte protège ses petits dès qu’elle entend un bruit. (The cat protects her young as soon as she hears a noise.)

commencer [kɔmɑ̃se]

begin, start; (formal) commence (intransitive verb: be at its beginning)

• Le concert va commencer dans cinq minutes. (The concert is about to begin in five minutes.)

start, begin; (figurative, informal) kick off (intransitive verb: begin at a set time)

• La réunion commence à huit heures pile. (The meeting starts at exactly eight o’clock.)

start to do [sth], begin to do [sth] (verb phrase: begin doing an action)

• Je commence à comprendre pourquoi il était inquiet. (I’m starting to understand why he was worried.)

begin with, start with; lead with (transitive verb: do something first)

• On va commencer par les questions les plus simples. (We’ll start with the simplest questions.)

first do [sth], firstly do [sth]; start by doing [sth] (verb phrase: take an initial step)

• Commencez par vérifier l’adresse avant d’envoyer le colis. (First, check the address before sending the parcel.)

(informal) get; start to get [sth]; develop; (informal) come down with [sth] (transitive verb: start to develop an illness)

• Je commence un rhume, alors je vais me coucher tôt. (I’m coming down with a cold, so I’m going to bed early.)

compter [kɔ̃te]

count (intransitive verb: recite numbers in order)

• L’enfant sait déjà compter jusqu’à cinquante. (The child can already count up to fifty.)

add up; do sums (intransitive verb: do arithmetic calculations)

• Je suis nul en maths, je n’ai jamais su compter de tête. (I’m hopeless at maths; I’ve never been able to add up in my head.)

count (transitive verb: count a number of items)

• On va compter les dossiers avant de les envoyer. (We’re going to count the files before sending them.)

count [sth] up; tally [sth] up (transitive verb: total a number)

• J’ai compté mes heures supplémentaires pour ce mois-ci. (I tallied up my overtime hours for this month.)

have; include; (figurative) boast (transitive verb: contain or consist of)

• Notre équipe compte dix personnes, dont deux stagiaires. (Our team has ten people, including two interns.)

allow; (informal) count on [sth] (transitive verb: estimate a duration or amount)

• Il faut compter au moins une heure pour y arriver. (You should allow at least an hour to get there.)

charge (transitive verb: ask a price)

• Le garagiste m’a compté 80 euros pour la réparation. (The mechanic charged me 80 euros for the repair.)

(final payment) pay up [sth] (transitive verb: pay an amount that is due)

• Le client a finalement compté le solde avant de partir. (The client finally paid up the balance before leaving.)

intend to do [sth]; intend doing [sth]; mean to do [sth], expect to do [sth] (verb phrase: plan to do something)

• Je compte terminer ce rapport avant midi. (I intend to finish this report before noon.)

count on [sth/sb], rely on [sth/sb]; expect (transitive verb: depend on someone or something)

• Je compte sur toi pour être à l’heure demain. (I’m counting on you to be on time tomorrow.)

fait [fɛ, fɛt]

done (adjective: completed successfully)

• Le dossier est fait, tu peux l’envoyer au client. (The file is done; you can send it to the client.)

shapely (adjective: well-shaped figure)

• Dans cette robe, elle est vraiment bien faite. (In that dress, she really has a shapely figure.)

ripe, mature (adjective: fully matured)

• Ce fromage est enfin fait, on peut le servir. (This cheese is finally mature; we can serve it.)

fact (noun [m]: a stated or acknowledged reality)

• Le fait qu’il ait démissionné a surpris toute l’équipe. (The fact that he resigned surprised the whole team.)

event, occurrence; happening (noun [m]: something that occurs)

• On a relevé plusieurs faits étranges pendant l’enquête. (We noted several strange occurrences during the investigation.)

tel

(singular countable noun) such a; (plural or uncountable noun) such; similar; like this, like that, like these, like those (adjective: of that kind)

• Je n’ai jamais entendu un tel mensonge. (I’ve never heard such a lie.)

(intensifier) such (adjective: so great in degree)

• Il a fait une telle erreur que tout le planning a été retardé. (He made such a mistake that the entire schedule was delayed.)

(undefined) some; such-and-such; one (adjective: unspecified or variable)

• Tel jour on travaille à distance, tel autre on vient au bureau. (One day we work remotely, the next we come into the office.)

droit [dʀwa]

right (adjective: opposite of left)

• Tourne à droite au prochain carrefour. (Turn right at the next junction.)

straight (adjective: without deviation)

• Trace une ligne droite au milieu de la page. (Draw a straight line down the middle of the page.)

upright, straight, erect (adjective: vertical posture)

• Tiens-toi bien droit pendant la photo. (Stand up straight for the photo.)

straight; (continuous) in a straight line (adverb: directly, without veering)

• Va tout droit jusqu’au rond-point, puis continue. (Go straight on to the roundabout, then carry on.)

right (noun [m]: legitimate right or claim)

• Il veut défendre ses droits au tribunal. (He wants to defend his rights in court.)

law (noun [m]: what is legal as a system)

• Elle étudie le droit et vise le barreau. (She’s studying law and aiming for the bar.)

right (noun [m]: moral permission to act)

• Tu n’as pas le droit de parler comme ça à ton collègue. (You have no right to speak to your colleague like that.)

right; entitlement (noun [m]: legally recognised entitlement)

• Ils réclament le droit de vote pour tous les résidents. (They are demanding the right to vote for all residents.)

(course of study) law (noun [m]: university course in law)

• Il a fait son droit à Bordeaux avant de devenir avocat. (He did law in Bordeaux before becoming a lawyer.)

question [kɛstjɔ̃]

question (noun [f]: direct inquiry)

• J’ai une question sur la procédure de remboursement. (I have a question about the refund procedure.)

question, topic, subject (noun [f]: matter being discussed)

• La question de la sécurité revient à chaque réunion. (The topic of security comes up at every meeting.)

question, issue (noun [f]: problem to be resolved)

• La question du budget reste ouverte pour l’an prochain. (The budget issue is still unresolved for next year.)

question; matter (noun [f]: point of disagreement)

• Ils se sont disputés pour une simple question de méthode. (They argued over a simple matter of method.)

donc [dɔ̃k]

therefore, so; hence, consequently, thus (conjunction: indicating consequence)

• Il n’avait pas de pièce d’identité, donc on a refusé l’entrée. (He didn’t have ID, so we refused entry.)

so then (conjunction: resuming or redirecting the discussion)

• Donc, vous confirmez que la livraison est prévue demain ? (So then, you confirm that delivery is scheduled for tomorrow?)

so; but; then (adverb: adding emphasis, often in questions)

• Pourquoi donc as-tu annulé au dernier moment ? (So why did you cancel at the last minute?)

quel [kɛl]

which; what (adjective: asking about a choice or identification)

• Quel dossier dois-je envoyer en premier ? (Which file should I send first?)

what a + [countable]; what + [uncountable or plural] (adjective: expressing admiration)

• Quelle chance d’avoir une équipe aussi efficace ! (What luck to have such an efficient team!)

what a + [countable]; what + [uncountable or plural] (adjective: expressing indignation)

• Quel désastre de découvrir ça après la mise en production ! (What a disaster to find that out after going live!)

général [ʒeneʀal, o]

general (adjective: widespread or affecting everyone)

• Après l’annonce, la confusion est devenue générale. (After the announcement, the confusion became general.)

general (noun [m/f]: senior military officer)

• Le général a inspecté les troupes avant l’exercice. (The general inspected the troops before the drill.)

moment [mɔmɑ̃]

time; moment; while; period (noun [m]: span of time)

• On a passé un moment calme à discuter après le dîner. (We spent a quiet time talking after dinner.)

time; moment (noun [m]: difficult or significant phase)

• C’est un mauvais moment à traverser, mais tu n’es pas seul. (It’s a bad time to get through, but you’re not alone.)

point; moment; time (noun [m]: precise point in time)

• À quel moment as-tu envoyé le document au client ? (At what point did you send the document to the client?)

time, right time, moment, right moment (noun [m]: opportunity to act)

• C’est le moment de partir si on veut éviter les embouteillages. (This is the time to leave if we want to avoid traffic jams.)

entendre [ɑ̃tɑ̃dʀ]

hear; not be deaf (intransitive verb: have the faculty of hearing)

• Tu peux parler normalement, j’entends très bien. (You can speak normally; I can hear just fine.)

hear (transitive verb: perceive a sound)

• J’entends un bruit étrange dans le couloir. (I can hear a strange noise in the corridor.)

hear (transitive verb: make out sounds)

• J’entends quelqu’un frapper à la porte. (I hear someone knocking at the door.)

hear; listen to [sth] (transitive verb: pay attention or be willing to hear)

• Je ne veux pas entendre tes excuses si rien ne change. (I don’t want to hear your excuses if nothing changes.)

be heard, be used (reflexive verb: be said or used in speech)

• Cette expression s’entend encore dans certaines régions. (That expression is still heard in some regions.)

hear each other, hear each other speak; hear one another, hear one another speak; make yourself heard (reflexive verb: be able to hear one another)

• Avec tout ce bruit, on ne s’entend plus. (With all this noise, we can’t hear each other anymore.)

get on, get along; get on with each other, get on with one another; get along with each other, get along with one another (reflexive verb: have a good relationship)

• Ils s’entendent bien malgré des avis très différents. (They get along well despite very different opinions.)

get on with [sb], get along with [sb] (reflexive verb: have a good relationship with someone)

• Je ne m’entends pas avec mon voisin depuis l’incident. (I haven’t gotten along with my neighbour since the incident.)

know all about [sth]; be an expert in [sth]; be well acquainted with [sth]; be knowledgeable about [sth] (reflexive verb: be skilled in a domain)

• Il s’entend à négocier des contrats complexes. (He really knows how to negotiate complex contracts.)

beaucoup [boku]

a lot; a great deal (adverb: in large quantities)

• Il a beaucoup neigé cette nuit. (It snowed a lot last night.)

a lot; very much; (informal) lots; (informal) loads (adverb: to a great extent)

• Je t’apprécie beaucoup, même si je ne le dis pas souvent. (I appreciate you a lot, even if I don’t say it often.)

many; much; a lot of; (informal) lots of (adverbial phrase: used before a noun to indicate a large quantity)

• Il y a beaucoup de dossiers à traiter aujourd’hui. (There are a lot of files to deal with today.)

many; many people (pronoun: a large number of people)

• Beaucoup pensent que cette réforme ira trop vite. (Many people think this reform will move too fast.)

chaque [ʃak]

each; every (adjective: referring to every individual item or person)

• Chaque client reçoit une confirmation par e-mail. (Each customer receives a confirmation by email.)

each; apiece (adjective: informal, per item)

• Les billets coûtent dix euros chaque. (The tickets cost ten euros each.)

every (adjective: on each occasion)

• Je fais du sport chaque matin avant le travail. (I exercise every morning before work.)

jeune [ʒœn]

young (adjective: not old, especially of a person)

• Il est trop jeune pour sortir seul le soir. (He’s too young to go out alone in the evening.)

new (adjective: recent, of an object or thing)

• Le béton est encore jeune, n’y touche pas. (The concrete is still new; don’t touch it.)

new; (figurative) raw, green (adjective: new to a role, inexperienced)

• C’est un jeune responsable, mais il apprend très vite. (He’s new in the role, but he learns very quickly.)

newly-; newly (adjective: used to form expressions like “newly married”)

• Ils sont jeunes mariés et profitent encore de leur lune de miel. (They’re newlyweds and are still enjoying their honeymoon.)

young person; young man; young woman; youth; (informal) youngster (noun [m/f]: a young person)

• Les jeunes du quartier organisent une collecte pour l’association. (The youngsters in the neighbourhood are organising a fundraiser for the charity.)

travail [tʀavaj, o]

job; task; work (noun [m]: task or activity)

• Ce travail de vérification prend plus de temps que prévu. (This checking task takes longer than expected.)

job; profession; trade (noun [m]: a trade or profession)

• Le travail de menuisier exige beaucoup de précision. (The trade of carpenter requires a lot of precision.)

job; work; post; position (noun [m]: paid employment)

• Elle a trouvé du travail dans une grande entreprise. (She found a job at a large company.)

work; effort (noun [m]: effort put into making something)

• La rénovation a demandé plusieurs jours de travail. (The renovation took several days of work.)

work; workplace; (formal) place of work (noun [m]: place where you work)

• Je vais au travail en vélo quand il fait beau. (I go to work by bike when the weather is nice.)

femme [fam]

woman; women (noun [f]: female human being in general)

• Dans ce pays, les femmes occupent de plus en plus de postes à responsabilité. (In this country, women are holding more and more positions of responsibility.)

woman; lady (noun [f]: adult female)

• Une femme m’a aidé à retrouver mon sac dans le métro. (A woman helped me find my bag in the metro.)

wife; partner; (formal) spouse (noun [f]: female partner in a couple)

• Il vient au dîner avec sa femme. (He’s coming to dinner with his wife.)

womanly; woman (adjective: having feminine traits)

• Avec sa nouvelle coiffure, elle fait très femme. (With her new hairstyle, she looks very womanly.)

attendre [atɑ̃dʀ]

wait; waiting (intransitive verb: remain patient and not act immediately)

• On peut attendre ici pendant que je vérifie les détails. (We can wait here while I check the details.)

wait (intransitive verb: leave something for later because it is not urgent)

• Le rangement peut attendre, on est déjà en retard. (Tidying up can wait; we’re already late.)

wait for [sb/sth]; await [sb/sth] (transitive verb: stay somewhere until someone or something arrives)

• J’attends le bus devant l’hôtel. (I’m waiting for the bus outside the hotel.)

wait for [sth]; await (verb phrase: wait until something happens before acting)

• Attends que je finisse cet appel, et je m’en occupe. (Wait for me to finish this call, and I’ll take care of it.)

expect; hope for [sth]; count on [sth] (transitive verb: anticipate or rely on something happening)

• On attend une réponse avant la fin de la semaine. (We’re expecting a reply before the end of the week.)

expect [sth] from [sb]; want [sth] from [sb] (transitive verb: anticipate a particular action or result from someone)

• J’attends de toi un minimum de clarté sur le planning. (I expect a minimum of clarity from you about the schedule.)

expect (reflexive verb: anticipate something as likely)

• Je m’attends à des retards avec cette météo. (I’m expecting delays with this weather.)

expect [sb/sth] to do [sth] (verb phrase: anticipate a specific reaction or action)

• Je ne m’attendais pas à ce qu’il refuse aussi vite. (I didn’t expect him to refuse so quickly.)

remettre [ʀ(ə)mɛtʀ]

put [sb/sth] back (transitive verb: return someone or something to its previous place)

• Remets la boîte sur l’étagère après usage. (Put the box back on the shelf after use.)

put [sth] in again, put [sth] on again, put some more [sth] in; fill [sth] up again; refill (transitive verb: add again or replenish)

• Je vais remettre du savon dans le distributeur. (I’m going to put some more soap in the dispenser.)

add; top up; add more; refill (transitive verb: add extra quantity)

• Tu peux remettre un peu d’eau dans la casserole ? (Can you top up the pan with a little water?)

switch [sth] back on, turn [sth] back on (transitive verb: restore an energy supply or service)

• Après la coupure, ils ont remis le chauffage. (After the outage, they switched the heating back on.)

return, restore; put [sb] back on [sth]; release (transitive verb: return to a previous state or status)

• Le tribunal a remis le prévenu en liberté. (The court released the defendant.)

put [sth] back on; put [sth] on again (transitive verb: put on clothing again)

• Il a remis sa veste en sortant. (He put his jacket back on as he went out.)

hand [sth] over to [sb]; give [sth] to [sb] (transitive verb: deliver or entrust something to someone)

• Je vous remets les documents à l’accueil. (I’m handing the documents over to you at reception.)

put [sth] back (transitive verb: entrust a decision or responsibility back to someone)

• Je remets cette décision entre vos mains. (I’m putting that decision back in your hands.)

postpone, defer; put [sth] off, push [sth] back (transitive verb: delay to a later time)

• On doit remettre la réunion à la semaine prochaine. (We have to postpone the meeting until next week.)

give [sth] back (transitive verb: give back change or return money)

• Je vous remets cinquante centimes. (I’m giving you fifty pence back.)

start (doing) [sth] again; get back to (doing) [sth]; set to work again (reflexive verb: resume an activity after stopping)

• Après la pause, on s’est remis au travail. (After the break, we started working again.)

start [sth] again, begin [sth] again; turn to [sth] again (reflexive verb: begin again, or of weather return to something)

• Le ciel s’est remis à la pluie en fin d’après-midi. (It turned to rain again late in the afternoon.)

get back into [sth]; take [sth] up again; resume (reflexive verb: resume a pastime or routine)

• Je me remets doucement à la lecture le soir. (I’m slowly getting back into reading in the evenings.)

recover (from [sth]) (reflexive verb: regain health after an illness or accident)

• Il s’est remis de son opération plus vite que prévu. (He recovered from his surgery faster than expected.)

recover (from [sth]); get over [sth] (reflexive verb: regain composure after a shock or emotion)

• Je ne me remets pas encore de cette mauvaise nouvelle. (I’m still not over that bad news.)

get back together with [sb] (reflexive verb: resume a romantic relationship)

• Ils se sont remis ensemble après plusieurs mois. (They got back together after several months.)

appeler [ap(ə)le]

call; name (transitive verb: give someone a name)

• On va appeler notre chat Pixel. (We’re going to call our cat Pixel.)

call; call to [sb]; call out to [sb] (transitive verb: call to get someone’s attention)

• J’ai appelé mon voisin depuis le balcon, mais il ne m’a pas entendu. (I called to my neighbour from the balcony, but he didn’t hear me.)

call; call for [sth], call for [sb]; send for [sth], send for [sb]; summon (transitive verb: request someone or something to come)

• On a appelé un médecin en urgence. (We sent for a doctor urgently.)

call; phone; telephone; ring (transitive verb: contact by telephone)

• Je t’appelle dès que j’arrive à la maison. (I’ll call you as soon as I get home.)

appeal against [sth]; (US) appeal (transitive verb: challenge a legal decision)

• L’avocat a appelé de la décision dès le lendemain. (The lawyer appealed against the decision the very next day.)

be called; your name is (reflexive verb: have as a name)

• Comment s’appelle votre entreprise ? (What is your company called?)

talk; speak; call each other, call one another, phone each other, phone one another (reflexive verb: speak to each other by phone)

• On s’appelle ce soir pour faire le point. (We’ll speak tonight to catch up.)

permettre [pɛʀmɛtʀ]

allow, permit; authorize; (UK) authorise (transitive verb: give official permission)

• Le règlement permet l’accès au site uniquement aux membres. (The rules permit access to the site only for members.)

enable; allow for [sth]; [sth] can be done (transitive verb: make something possible)

• Cette organisation permet un échange d’informations plus rapide. (This setup enables faster information sharing.)

allow [sb] to do [sth]; let [sb] do [sth]; (informal) have [sb] doing [sth] (verb phrase: grant someone the right to do something)

• Je ne te permets pas de modifier ce document sans accord. (I won’t allow you to edit this document without approval.)

enable [sb] to do [sth], allow [sb] to do [sth]; make it possible to do [sth], make it possible for [sb] to do [sth]; can (verb phrase: give someone the possibility to do something)

• Ce raccourci me permet d’aller plus vite, donc je peux finir à l’heure. (This shortcut enables me to go faster, so I can finish on time.)

make it possible to do [sth]; allow you to do [sth], enable you to do [sth]; let you do [sth] (verb phrase: make an action feasible)

• Ce logiciel permet de générer un rapport en deux clics. (This software makes it possible to generate a report in two clicks.)

allow yourself [sth], permit yourself [sth] (reflexive verb: allow yourself something)

• Après cette semaine, je me permets une soirée sans écran. (After this week, I’m allowing myself an evening without screens.)

occuper [ɔkype]

take up; fill, occupy (transitive verb: take up time)

• Les e-mails occupent toute ma matinée. (Emails take up my whole morning.)

(time) fill; busy yourself with [sth] (transitive verb: spend your time doing something)

• J’occupe mon temps libre à apprendre de nouveaux accords. (I fill my free time learning new chords.)

keep [sb] busy; occupy (transitive verb: give someone something to do)

• Pour l’attente, on occupe les enfants avec un jeu simple. (While waiting, we keep the children busy with a simple game.)

provide an occupation for [sb]; keep [sb] busy; be the principal industry, be the main industry (transitive verb: provide work or be a main economic activity)

• Pendant des années, le tourisme a occupé une grande partie de la région. (For years, tourism was the main industry in the region.)

take up; occupy (transitive verb: take up space)

• Ces cartons occupent trop de place dans l’entrée. (These boxes take up too much space in the hallway.)

(job post) hold, fill, occupy, have (transitive verb: hold a position)

• Elle occupe un poste de responsable depuis janvier. (She has held a manager’s post since January.)

occupy; take over (transitive verb: occupy a place to block its operation)

• Les manifestants ont occupé le bâtiment pour empêcher l’activité. (The protesters occupied the building to prevent operations.)

occupy (transitive verb: occupy militarily)

• L’armée a occupé la zone pendant plusieurs semaines. (The army occupied the area for several weeks.)

see to [sth]; take care of [sth]; deal with [sth] (reflexive verb: handle a task)

• Ne t’inquiète pas, je m’occupe du dossier cet après-midi. (Don’t worry, I’ll take care of the file this afternoon.)

take responsibility for [sth], take charge of [sth]; take care of [sth]; deal with [sth] (reflexive verb: commit to doing something)

• Je m’occupe de faire le suivi avec le client. (I’ll take responsibility for following up with the client.)

take care of [sth/sb]; look after [sth/sb]; care for [sb] (reflexive verb: look after someone or something)

• Elle s’occupe de son grand-père tous les week-ends. (She looks after her grandfather every weekend.)

work with [sth/sb] (reflexive verb: have as a professional activity)

• Il veut s’occuper d’adolescents en difficulté. (He wants to work with teenagers in difficulty.)

(shop) serve; take care of [sb]; look after [sb] (reflexive verb: serve a customer)

• Bonjour Madame, on s’occupe de vous tout de suite. (Hello, ma’am, we’ll serve you right away.)

gouvernement [guvɛʀnəmɑ̃]

government; administration (noun [m]: executive body currently in power)

• Le gouvernement a annoncé de nouvelles mesures pour soutenir les petites entreprises. (The government announced new measures to support small businesses.)

government; rule (noun [m]: the act or system of governing a country)

• Sous ce gouvernement, la liberté de la presse a été fortement réduite. (Under this government, press freedom was significantly reduced.)

eux [ø]

them (pronoun: object form used after a preposition)

• Je vais au cinéma avec eux ce soir. (I’m going to the cinema with them tonight.)

them (pronoun: emphatic form meaning “they”, for contrast or emphasis)

• Eux, ils veulent partir tôt, mais nous, on reste jusqu’à la fin. (Them, they want to leave early, but we’re staying until the end.)

devenir [dəv(ə)niʀ]

become; go (intransitive verb: change state or turn into something)

• Avec le stress, il est devenu très irritable. (With the stress, he became very irritable.)

become of [sth/sb]; happen to [sth/sb] (intransitive verb: what happened to someone or something)

• Qu’est devenu ton ancien collègue après son départ ? (What became of your former colleague after he left?)

become (intransitive verb: take on a new role or position)

• Après dix ans dans la finance, elle est devenue professeure. (After ten years in finance, she became a teacher.)

partir [paʀtiʀ]

leave; go; be on your way; get going; depart (intransitive verb: leave or go away)

• Il se fait tard, je dois partir maintenant. (It’s getting late, I have to leave now.)

leave; depart; go (intransitive verb: set off from a place, for buses or trains)

• Le train part à 6 h 12, alors ne traîne pas. (The train leaves at 6:12, so don’t hang around.)

start (intransitive verb: begin from a point or originate)

• Le sentier part de la place du village et monte jusqu’au sommet. (The trail starts from the village square and goes up to the summit.)

go (intransitive verb: go in a particular direction)

• Au moment du tir, le ballon est parti trop à gauche. (At the moment of the shot, the ball went too far left.)

disappear; come off; come out (intransitive verb: vanish, especially a stain)

• Ne t’inquiète pas, la tache devrait partir au prochain lavage. (Don’t worry, the stain should come out in the next wash.)

go; give way; come off; fall off; come undone (intransitive verb: come loose or detach)

• Le bouton de mon manteau est parti et je l’ai perdu. (The button on my coat came off and I lost it.)

go; get going; start up (intransitive verb: start working or start running)

• J’appuie sur le bouton, mais l’ordinateur ne veut pas partir. (I press the button, but the computer won’t start up.)

go to do [sth]; go off to do [sth]; leave to do [sth] (transitive verb: leave somewhere in order to do something)

• Je pars faire des courses et je reviens dans une heure. (I’m going to do some shopping and I’ll be back in an hour.)

plan [plɑ̃, plan]

plan; drawing (noun [m]: architectural diagram or technical drawing)

• L’ingénieur a modifié le plan avant de lancer les travaux. (The engineer revised the plan before starting the work.)

plan; map (noun [m]: map used for navigation)

• Sans plan, on risque de se perdre dans ce quartier. (Without a map, we might get lost in this neighbourhood.)

plan; design (noun [m]: organised scheme or procedure)

• On a un plan simple : on réduit les coûts et on améliore le service. (We have a simple plan: we cut costs and improve the service.)

plan; framework; outline (noun [m]: structured outline of an essay or presentation)

• Avant d’écrire, fais un plan clair avec deux grandes parties. (Before you write, make a clear outline with two main sections.)

flat; planar (adjective: having a flat surface)

• Pour coller correctement la pièce, il faut une surface parfaitement plane. (To glue the piece properly, you need a perfectly flat surface.)

décider [deside]

decide (transitive verb: make a decision or determine an outcome)

• C’est la direction qui décide le budget final. (It’s management that decides the final budget.)

decide on [sth]; make your mind up about [sth] (transitive verb: choose between options)

• Je n’arrive pas à décider la date du départ. (I can’t manage to decide on the departure date.)

decide to do [sth] (transitive verb: resolve to do something)

• Elle a décidé de changer de travail après l’été. (She decided to change jobs after the summer.)

decide; decide on [sth] (transitive verb: settle or determine something)

• On doit encore décider de l’ordre du jour de la réunion. (We still need to decide the agenda for the meeting.)

soit [swa]

either… or … (conjunction: marks an alternative choice)

• Soit tu acceptes l’offre, soit tu refuses, mais réponds aujourd’hui. (Either you accept the offer or you refuse, but answer today.)

agreed; so be it; that being so (adverb: formal acceptance or agreement)

• Soit, on fait comme tu veux, mais on ne change plus après. (Agreed, we’ll do it your way, but we won’t change again afterwards.)

that is to say; namely; being; so, so that’s (adverb: introduces a clarification or a computed equivalence)

• Il reste deux semaines, soit quatorze jours exactement. (There are two weeks left, that is to say exactly fourteen days.)

let (adverb: mathematics, used to set an assumption)

• Soit x égal à 10, calcule ensuite le résultat. (Let x equal 10, then calculate the result.)

ici [isi]

here (adverb: to this place, movement toward the speaker)

• Viens ici tout de suite, j’ai quelque chose à te montrer. (Come here right now, I have something to show you.)

here; hereabouts (adverb: in this place or in this area)

• On ne voit plus beaucoup de touristes ici en hiver. (You don’t see many tourists around here in winter.)

here (adverb: on this exact spot)

• Mets ton nom ici, juste à côté de la date. (Put your name here, right next to the date.)

there (adverb: at this point in a discussion or process)

• On va s’arrêter ici, sinon ça va tourner en dispute. (We’re going to stop there, otherwise it’ll turn into an argument.)

this is; speaking; here (adverb: phone or radio introduction)

• Ici le service client, comment puis-je vous aider ? (This is customer service, how can I help you?)

rien [ʀjɛ̃]

nothing (pronoun: absence of anything, “nothing at all”)

• Je n’ai rien acheté, je regardais seulement. (I bought nothing; I was just looking.)

not … anything; nothing (pronoun: negation with “ne … rien”)

• Je ne comprends rien quand il parle trop vite. (I don’t understand anything when he speaks too fast.)

nothing (pronoun: “nothing” as the subject)

• Rien ne me fait changer d’avis sur ce point. (Nothing will make me change my mind on this point.)

slightest thing; mere nothing (noun [m]: something insignificant)

• En ce moment, un rien le contrarie. (Right now, the slightest thing upsets him.)

a tad; a tiny bit (adverb: informal, “slightly”)

• Je suis un rien fatigué, mais ça ira. (I’m a tiny bit tired, but I’ll be fine.)

cours [kuʀ]

lesson; class (noun [m]: a taught session)

• J’ai un cours à 9 heures, donc je dois partir tôt. (I have a lesson at 9 o’clock, so I need to leave early.)

lessons; classes; course (noun [m]: a series of lessons or a course of study)

• Elle suit des cours de cuisine le samedi matin. (She takes cooking classes on Saturday mornings.)

exchange rate; price (noun [m]: market rate or quoted value)

• Le cours du pétrole a fortement baissé cette semaine. (The price of oil fell sharply this week.)

course; flow (noun [m]: the route followed by a liquid, especially a river)

• Le cours de la rivière change après de fortes pluies. (The river’s course changes after heavy rain.)

avenue; promenade (noun [m]: a named boulevard or avenue)

• Ils habitent cours Victor-Hugo, près du centre. (They live on Victor-Hugo Avenue, near the centre.)

course; path (noun [m]: the movement or trajectory of celestial bodies)

• Les anciens observaient le cours des étoiles pour se repérer. (People in the past observed the course of the stars to find their bearings.)

course (noun [m]: the course of a river or stream)

• Le cours du ruisseau devient plus lent à l’approche du lac. (The stream’s course becomes slower as it nears the lake.)

affaire [afɛʀ]

matter; affair; (uncountable) business; piece of business (noun [f]: issue or business matter to handle)

• On a une affaire urgente à régler avant la fin de la journée. (We have an urgent matter to deal with before the end of the day.)

business; lookout; concern (noun [f]: something that is someone’s business)

• S’il veut changer de voiture, c’est son affaire, pas la nôtre. (If he wants to change cars, that’s his business, not ours.)

area, field, sector; area of expertise; (informal) thing (noun [f]: someone’s field of competence)

• La cybersécurité, c’est son affaire, alors on lui a confié le dossier. (Cybersecurity is his field, so we entrusted him with the case.)

fuss; big issue, big deal (noun [f]: excessive importance made of something minor)

• Ce n’est pas grave, ne va pas en faire toute une affaire. (It’s not serious; don’t make a big deal out of it.)

case; matter, affair (noun [f]: legal dispute handled by the courts)

• Ils ont confié l’affaire à un avocat spécialisé. (They handed the case over to a specialist lawyer.)

belongings; possessions; things; (informal, uncountable) stuff (noun [f] pl: personal items)

• J’ai laissé mes affaires dans le vestiaire, sous clé. (I left my belongings in the locker room, locked up.)

business; trade (noun [f] pl: commercial activity)

• Depuis l’ouverture du nouveau magasin, les affaires marchent mieux. (Since the new shop opened, business has been better.)

business; concerns; problems, worries (noun [f] pl: personal affairs someone doesn’t want others meddling in)

• Occupe-toi de tes affaires et laisse-moi gérer les miennes. (Mind your own business and let me handle mine.)

nom [nɔ̃]

name (noun [m]: the word used to designate something)

• Quel est le nom de cet outil ? (What is the name of this tool?)

surname, last name, family name (noun [m]: inherited family name)

• Mon nom de famille est rare, alors on me reconnaît facilement. (My surname is rare, so people recognise me easily.)

name (noun [m]: given name)

• Ils ont choisi un nom court pour leur bébé. (They chose a short name for their baby.)

name (noun [m]: identifying label for a place or thing)

• Je cherche le nom de cette rue sur la carte. (I’m looking for the name of that street on the map.)

noun (noun [m]: grammar category)

• Dans cette phrase, “chien” est un nom. (“Dog” is a noun in this sentence.)

name; personality (noun [m]: famous person or renowned figure)

• C’est un grand nom du journalisme, connu dans tout le pays. (He’s a big name in journalism, known across the country.)

famille [famij]

family (noun [f]: parents and children as a unit)

• Toute la famille s’est réunie pour fêter l’anniversaire. (The whole family got together to celebrate the birthday.)

family, household (noun [f]: people living together as a household)

• Dans cette famille, tout le monde participe aux tâches. (In this household, everyone helps with chores.)

family, kith and kin; relatives, relations (noun [f]: extended relatives)

• Pour la cérémonie, toute la famille viendra, même les cousins éloignés. (For the ceremony, all the relatives will come, even distant cousins.)

family (noun [f]: group of people linked by shared traits or interests)

• Ils se considèrent comme une grande famille politique malgré leurs désaccords. (They see themselves as one big political family despite disagreements.)

family (noun [f]: category of related things with shared characteristics)

• Le pin et le sapin appartiennent à la même famille d’arbres. (Pine and fir belong to the same family of trees.)

effet [efɛ]

effect; impact (noun [m]: impression produced on someone)

• Son discours a fait un grand effet sur le public. (His speech had a big impact on the audience.)

effect; result (noun [m]: outcome produced by something)

• Ce traitement fait de l’effet en quelques heures. (This treatment has an effect within a few hours.)

effect (noun [m]: consequence of a phenomenon)

• L’effet de la chaleur sur la peinture est visible au bout d’un mois. (The effect of heat on the paint is visible after a month.)

gesture; effect (noun [m]: deliberate showy movement intended to impress)

• Il parlait avec des effets de manche pour convaincre la salle. (He spoke with theatrical gestures to win the room over.)

spin (noun [m]: rotation put on a ball in sport)

• Au tennis, il met beaucoup d’effet sur son service. (In tennis, he puts a lot of spin on his serve.)

arriver [aʀive]

(place) arrive at [sth]; (town, country) arrive in [sth]; (place, town, country: informal) get to [sth]; (place, town, country) reach (intransitive verb: get to a destination)

• On va arriver à la gare vers 18 h, si tout se passe bien. (We’ll arrive at the station around 6 pm, if all goes well.)

come; (after journey) arrive (intransitive verb: come, show up)

• Attends une seconde, j’arrive ! (Wait a second, I’m coming!)

approach; come towards [sb]; come over to [sb] (intransitive verb: move toward someone)

• Il est arrivé vers moi en souriant, comme s’il me connaissait. (He came over to me smiling, as if he knew me.)

come; reach (intransitive verb: reach someone, typically sounds or smells)

• Une odeur de café arrivait depuis la cuisine. (A coffee smell was coming from the kitchen.)

happen to [sb] (impersonal verb: occur to someone)

• Il m’est arrivé un incident étrange en rentrant hier soir. (Something strange happened to me on my way home last night.)

happen; occur; come about (intransitive verb: take place)

• Ce genre d’erreur arrive quand on travaille trop vite. (That kind of mistake happens when you work too fast.)

get closer; come, approach; draw near; be nearly here (intransitive verb: be imminent)

• Les vacances arrivent, et tout le monde est plus détendu. (The holidays are nearly here, and everyone is more relaxed.)

reach; get to [sth]; attain (intransitive verb: reach a level or stage)

• Avec de l’entraînement, elle est arrivée à un excellent niveau. (With practice, she reached an excellent level.)

manage to do; be able to do; can do (verb phrase: succeed in doing something)

• J’arrive enfin à terminer ce rapport sans interruption. (I’m finally managing to finish this report without interruptions.)

possible [pɔsibl]

possible, feasible; (informal) doable (adjective: able to be done)

• Est-ce que c’est possible de déplacer le rendez-vous à demain ? (Is it possible to move the appointment to tomorrow?)

possible (adjective: able to happen or occur)

• Il est possible qu’on ait oublié une étape dans le plan. (It’s possible that we missed a step in the plan.)

possible; likely (adjective: plausible or foreseeable)

• Avec les grèves, un retard est possible, voire probable. (With the strikes, a delay is possible, even likely.)

possible (noun [m]: what is achievable)

• Dans ce projet, on doit distinguer le souhaitable du possible. (In this project, we have to distinguish what’s desirable from what’s possible.)

car [kaʀ]

because; (formal, literary) for; as (conjunction: introduces a reason or explanation)

• Je rentre tôt, car je me lève à l’aube demain. (I’m going home early because I’m getting up at dawn tomorrow.)

coach; bus (noun [m]: long-distance passenger bus)

• On a pris le car pour aller à l’aéroport, c’était moins cher que le train. (We took the coach to get to the airport; it was cheaper than the train.)

servir [sɛʀviʀ]

serve [sb] [sth]; pour [sb] [sth]; (informal) help [sb] to [sth] (transitive verb: offer food or drink to someone)

• Je peux te servir un verre d’eau, ou je te sers un café ? (I can pour you a glass of water, or shall I serve you a coffee?)

serve (transitive verb: wait on customers with food or drink)

• Ce soir, elle sert en terrasse et elle n’a pas une minute. (Tonight, she’s serving on the terrace and she doesn’t have a minute.)

serve (transitive verb: attend to customers in a shop or service setting)

• Au comptoir, on vous sert dans l’ordre d’arrivée. (At the counter, you’re served in order of arrival.)

serve (transitive verb: serve a cause, an institution, or a country)

• Il a servi son pays pendant vingt ans avant de changer de carrière. (He served his country for twenty years before changing careers.)

(UK) favour; (US) favor; be on your side (transitive verb: be favourable to someone or help them succeed)

• Si le temps nous sert, on terminera les travaux avant la nuit. (If the weather favours us, we’ll finish the work before nightfall.)

help; assist; be of help to [sb], be of assistance to [sb] (transitive verb: help someone or be useful to them)

• Il est toujours prêt à servir les autres quand ils ont un problème. (He’s always ready to help others when they have a problem.)

serve (intransitive verb: serve the ball in a sport)

• Au tennis, je préfère servir en premier pour prendre confiance. (In tennis, I prefer to serve first to build confidence.)

be for [sth]; be used for [sth] (transitive verb: have a use or purpose)

• Cette pièce sert à la fixation du support mural. (This part is for fixing the wall mount in place.)

be used for doing [sth], be used to do [sth]; be for doing [sth]; (formal) serve to do [sth] (verb phrase: be intended to do something)

• Ce bouton sert à ouvrir la fenêtre des réglages avancés. (This button is used to open the advanced settings window.)

serve as [sth] (transitive verb: function as something else)

• Une caisse solide peut servir de table d’appoint. (A sturdy crate can serve as a side table.)

help yourself to [sth], serve yourself [sth]; take; have (reflexive verb: take some for yourself)

• Servez-vous une part, il y en a largement pour tout le monde. (Help yourself to a portion; there’s plenty for everyone.)

use (reflexive verb: use something)

• Je ne me sers presque jamais de cette option, elle complique tout. (I almost never use that option; it complicates everything.)

use; take advantage of [sb] (reflexive verb: exploit someone)

• Il se sert de ses collègues pour obtenir des infos, puis il les ignore. (He uses his colleagues to get information, then he ignores them.)

mois [mwa]

month (noun [m]: calendar division; with named months, English often omits “month”)

• On se revoit au mois de juin, juste après ton retour. (We’ll see each other again in June, right after you get back.)

month (noun [m]: a period of about four weeks)

• J’ai passé un mois à Lyon pour une formation intensive. (I spent a month in Lyon for an intensive course.)

jamais [ʒamɛ]

never (adverb: at no time)

• Tu as déjà conduit une moto ? Jamais. (Have you ever ridden a motorbike? Never.)

never (adverb: not ever, in the present)

• Il ne répond jamais aux messages après 22 heures. (He never replies to messages after 10 pm.)

never; never again (adverb: категорical refusal about the future)

• Jamais je ne referai ce trajet en pleine nuit. (I will never do that journey again in the middle of the night.)

never (adverb: not at any time in the past)

• Jamais auparavant elle n’avait parlé aussi franchement. (She’d never spoken so frankly before.)

ever (adverb: in a positive sense, “more than ever”)

• Depuis qu’il s’entraîne, il est plus rapide que jamais. (Since he started training, he’s faster than ever.)

sembler [sɑ̃ble]

seem + [adjective]; look + [adjective]; appear + [adjective]; seem to be + [adjective], appear to be + [adjective] (intransitive verb: give an impression)

• Après la mise à jour, le système semble plus stable. (After the update, the system seems more stable.)

seem + [adjective] to [sb], look + [adjective] to [sb]; (slightly formal) appear + [adjective] to [sb] (intransitive verb: seem in someone’s eyes)

• Cette décision me semble injuste, même si elle est légale. (That decision seems unfair to me, even if it’s legal.)

seem to do [sth]; (slightly formal) appear to do [sth] (verb phrase: give the impression of doing something)

• Il semble comprendre le problème, mais il n’ose pas poser de questions. (He seems to understand the problem, but he doesn’t dare ask questions.)

seem to [sb] to do [sth]; (subject/object inversion) think [sth] does [sth] (verb phrase: appear to someone to do something)

• Ce pull me semble te convenir parfaitement. (That jumper seems to suit you perfectly.)

tant [tɑ̃]

so much + [uncountable]; so many + [countable] (adverb: expressing a large quantity)

• Il a tant de travail qu’il ne dort presque pas. (He has so much work that he barely sleeps.)

so (much); so (very); very (adverb: to a high degree)

• Elle a tant ri qu’elle en a pleuré. (She laughed so much that she cried.)

since (conjunction: introducing a justification, formal/literary)

• Tant il faisait froid, personne ne voulait sortir. (Since it was so cold, nobody wanted to go out.)

while (conjunction phrase: during the time that)

• Tant qu’il faisait jour, ils continuaient à marcher. (While it was still daylight, they kept walking.)

so much (adjective: an unspecified amount, often in comparisons/negatives)

• Il n’a pas tant d’argent qu’il le prétend. (He doesn’t have as much money as he claims.)

vers [vɛʀ]

toward, towards, at, to; in the direction of [sb/sth], in [sb/sth]’s direction (preposition: indicating direction toward a target)

• Elle a couru vers la sortie dès qu’elle a entendu l’alarme. (She ran toward the exit as soon as she heard the alarm.)

around; about (preposition: indicating an approximate time or quantity)

• On se voit vers huit heures, d’accord ? (We’ll meet around eight o’clock, OK?)

verse (noun [m]: a line of poetry)

• Ce vers est resté dans ma tête toute la journée. (That line of verse stayed in my head all day.)

besoin [bəzwɛ̃]

need; requirement; necessity (noun [m]: something required)

• Le besoin de repos augmente après une longue semaine. (The need for rest increases after a long week.)

need; urge (noun [m]: a strong desire or compulsion)

• Elle a un besoin irrépressible de rire quand elle est stressée. (She has an irresistible urge to laugh when she’s stressed.)

need; extremity (noun [m]: a state of poverty or lack)

• L’association aide les familles dans le besoin. (The charity helps families in need.)

need (noun [m]: a strange or unwarranted urge)

• Il ressent parfois le besoin de contredire tout le monde, même sans raison. (He sometimes feels the need to contradict everyone, even for no reason.)

business (noun [m] pl: euphemism for needing the toilet)

• Avant de partir, l’enfant a dit qu’il avait des besoins. (Before leaving, the child said he needed the toilet.)

revenir [ʀ(ə)v(ə)niʀ]

come back; return (intransitive verb: to go/come back again to a place)

• Je reviendrai demain pour récupérer mon colis. (I’ll come back tomorrow to pick up my parcel.)

come back; return; be back (intransitive verb: to return or reappear)

• Chaque hiver, ce rhume revient et me fatigue. (Every winter, this cold comes back and wears me out.)

be back from [sth]; have come back from [sth]; have returned from [sth] (intransitive verb: to have returned from somewhere)

• Je reviens d’Édimbourg et je suis encore décalé. (I’m back from Edinburgh and I’m still jet-lagged.)

be returned to [sb]; be sent back to [sb] (intransitive verb: for something to be returned to someone)

• Le colis est revenu au magasin faute d’adresse complète. (The parcel was sent back to the shop because the address was incomplete.)

catch up; draw level at [sth]; draw level (intransitive verb: to catch up in score or position)

• À la pause, l’équipe est revenue à égalité. (At half-time, the team caught up to equalize.)

be handed down to [sb], be passed down to [sb]; come down to [sb]; go to [sb] (transitive verb: to fall to someone by inheritance or allocation)

• À la fin, la maison reviendra à sa fille aînée. (In the end, the house will be passed down to his eldest daughter.)

go to [sb] (transitive verb: to be awarded to someone, said of a prize)

• Le prix reviendra à l’équipe la plus innovante. (The prize will go to the most innovative team.)

come to [sb/sth] (intransitive verb: to come to mind repeatedly)

• Après l’accident, la scène lui revient sans cesse. (After the accident, the scene keeps coming to him.)

come back to [sb]; come back (intransitive verb: to remember suddenly)

• Ça me revient, on s’est déjà rencontrés l’an dernier. (It’s coming back to me; we met last year.)

come back to [sth]; revisit (intransitive verb: figurative, to return to a topic)

• On pourra revenir sur ce point en réunion. (We can come back to this point in the meeting.)

go back on [sth] (intransitive verb: to retract or reverse a decision/promise)

• Il est revenu sur sa promesse au dernier moment. (He went back on his promise at the last moment.)

be [sb]’s job to do [sth]; be down to [sb] to do [sth] (transitive verb: to be someone’s responsibility)

• Il vous revient de vérifier les chiffres avant l’envoi. (It’s your job to check the figures before sending.)

dès [dɛ]

as soon as; from; the minute (that), the second (that) (preposition: starting from a time, with immediate effect)

• Dès l’ouverture des portes, la file a commencé à avancer. (As soon as the doors opened, the line started moving.)

from; starting from (preposition: starting from a place/origin)

• Dès la gare, tu verras des panneaux pour le musée. (From the station, you’ll see signs for the museum.)

as of; from (preposition: Swiss usage, from a threshold onward)

• En Suisse, dès 18 ans, tu peux t’inscrire au club. (In Switzerland, from age 18, you can sign up for the club.)

as soon as (conjunction phrase: introducing a clause meaning “as soon as”)

• Dès que j’aurai fini, je te rappelle. (As soon as I’m finished, I’ll call you back.)

moyen [mwajɛ̃, jɛn]

way; means (noun [m]: a method for achieving something)

• On doit trouver un moyen simple de réduire les coûts. (We need to find a simple way to reduce costs.)

tool (noun [m]: a means used to do something)

• La menace n’est pas un bon moyen de convaincre. (Threats are not a good tool for persuading.)

average, medium (adjective: in the middle range)

• Cette année, les résultats sont moyens. (This year, the results are average.)

medium (adjective: intermediate size or level)

• Je vais prendre un café moyen, s’il vous plaît. (I’ll have a medium coffee, please.)

average, standard, regular (adjective: representative of what is typical)

• Le consommateur moyen compare les prix avant d’acheter. (The average consumer compares prices before buying.)

average; not bad (adjective: neither good nor bad)

• Son dernier film est moyen, sans plus. (His latest film is average, nothing special.)

groupe [gʀup]

group (noun [m]: a collection of people)

• Un groupe de touristes attend devant le bus. (A group of tourists is waiting in front of the bus.)

group; grouping (noun [m]: a set of things arranged together)

• J’ai fait un groupe de fichiers par date. (I made a grouping of files by date.)

band (noun [m]: a music group)

• Ce groupe joue ce soir dans un petit bar. (That band is playing tonight in a small bar.)

group (noun [m]: a biological grouping/category)

• Ce groupe d’espèces partage des caractéristiques communes. (This group of species shares common characteristics.)

problème [pʀɔblɛm]

problem, difficulty; matter (noun [m]: a difficulty; also the matter at hand in a question)

• J’ai un problème avec mon ordinateur : il ne démarre plus. (I have a problem with my computer: it won’t start anymore.)

problem, issue (noun [m]: an obstacle or issue to resolve)

• Le problème principal, c’est la logistique. (The main issue is logistics.)

problem, trouble (noun [m]: a physical or health-related difficulty)

• Il a des problèmes de dos depuis des années. (He’s had back trouble for years.)

problem (noun [m]: a worry or personal difficulty)

• Si tu as un problème, appelle-moi. (If you have a problem, call me.)

problem (noun [m]: a mathematics exercise or question to solve)

• On a trois problèmes de maths à faire pour demain. (We have three maths problems to do for tomorrow.)

rapport [ʀapɔʀ]

report, account (noun [m]: a written or spoken report)

• J’ai terminé le rapport et je l’envoie au directeur. (I’ve finished the report and I’m sending it to the director.)

link, connection; relation, relationship (noun [m]: a connection or relationship between things)

• Je ne vois aucun rapport entre ces deux sujets. (I don’t see any connection between these two topics.)

relation; ratio (noun [m]: a mathematical ratio)

• Le rapport entre 10 et 2 est de cinq. (The ratio between 10 and 2 is five.)

peut-être [pøtɛtʀ]

maybe; perhaps; possibly (adverb: expressing uncertainty)

• Je viendrai peut-être après le travail. (I might come after work.)

maybe, perhaps; might; may; could; possibly (adverb: indicating possibility or probability)

• Peut-être que le train est en retard, alors on pourrait attendre cinq minutes. (Maybe the train is late, so we could wait five minutes.)

perchance?; is that it?; perhaps, maybe (adverb: challenging tone, often at the end of a sentence)

• Tu crois que je vais payer, peut-être ? (You think I’m going to pay, do you?)

maybe; about (adverb: approximately)

• Il y avait peut-être cent personnes dans la salle. (There were maybe a hundred people in the room.)

laisser [lese]

leave (transitive verb: not to eat or finish food)

• Si tu es rassasié, laisse un peu de gratin. (If you’re full, leave a bit of the gratin.)

leave (transitive verb: not to remove something; to let it remain)

• J’ai relu le texte, mais j’ai laissé quelques coquilles. (I reread the text, but I left a few typos.)

leave; leave [sth] behind (transitive verb: to forget something somewhere)

• J’ai laissé mon chargeur au bureau, je dois y retourner. (I left my charger at the office; I have to go back.)

leave, stop; (informal, figurative) drop (transitive verb: to stop doing an activity)

• Laisse ce projet pour ce soir et viens te reposer. (Leave that project for tonight and come get some rest.)

leave it; let it alone (transitive verb: not to deal with something; to leave it alone)

• Laisse ça, on s’en occupera demain. (Leave it; we’ll take care of it tomorrow.)

give; (to be collected) leave (transitive verb: to give something like a tip)

• Je laisse toujours un pourboire quand le service est bon. (I always leave a tip when the service is good.)

leave; drop off (transitive verb: to leave something somewhere for later)

• Je vais laisser le colis à l’accueil avant de monter. (I’m going to drop off the parcel at reception before going up.)

leave [sth] to [sb], leave [sth] for [sb]; leave it to [sb] to do [sth], leave it up to [sb] to do [sth] (transitive verb: to assign or leave something for someone to handle)

• Je laisse à Nadia le soin de vérifier les chiffres. (I’ll leave it to Nadia to check the figures.)

leave (transitive verb: to leave people alone; to go away from someone)

• Pouvez-vous nous laisser un instant, s’il vous plaît ? (Could you leave us for a moment, please?)

must go; (informal) will be off; (informal) will be on your way; (informal) will love [sb] and leave [sb], will leave [sb] to it (transitive verb: to end a conversation and go)

• Bon, je te laisse, j’ai un rendez-vous dans cinq minutes. (Right, I must go; I’ve got an appointment in five minutes.)

let [sb] do [sth]; allow [sb] to do [sth] (verb phrase: not to prevent someone from doing something)

• Ils ont laissé les enfants jouer dehors malgré le froid. (They let the children play outside despite the cold.)

ordre [ɔʀdʀ]

order (noun [m]: classification or sorting sequence)

• Range ces factures par ordre chronologique. (File these invoices in chronological order.)

order, position, arrangement (noun [m]: the placement of elements)

• L’ordre des étapes a été modifié pour gagner du temps. (The order of the steps was changed to save time.)

order; organization; (UK) organisation (noun [m]: organization and tidiness)

• Après le déménagement, on a remis de l’ordre dans le garage. (After the move, we put the garage back in order.)

order (noun [m]: discipline in a group)

• Le surveillant a exigé l’ordre pendant l’examen. (The invigilator demanded order during the exam.)

order (noun [m]: public calm and social order)

• La police a rapidement rétabli l’ordre après la bagarre. (The police quickly restored order after the fight.)

(military) order, command (noun [m]: an instruction to be obeyed)

• Ils ont reçu l’ordre d’évacuer la zone immédiatement. (They were given the order to evacuate the area immediately.)

(reward) order (noun [m]: an order of merit or honor)

• Elle a été décorée d’un ordre national pour ses services. (She was awarded a national order for her service.)

order; type, kind, sort (noun [m]: category or nature)

• Ce genre de remarque est d’un autre ordre. (That kind of remark is of a different sort.)

methodology, order (noun [m]: method and organization in work)

• Avec un peu plus d’ordre, on finirait ce dossier plus vite. (With a bit more method, we’d finish this file faster.)

(biology) order (noun [m]: a taxonomic rank)

• Ce mammifère appartient à un ordre différent de celui-ci. (That mammal belongs to a different order than this one.)

devant [d(ə)vɑ̃]

in front of; (formal) before; (building) outside (preposition: located at the front of something)

• On se retrouve devant l’entrée principale à 18 h. (Let’s meet outside the main entrance at 6 p.m.)

in front of; ahead of; (formal) before (preposition: ahead, at the head of a group)

• Marche devant moi, je ne connais pas le chemin. (Walk ahead of me; I don’t know the way.)

in front of; (formal) before; (slightly formal) in the presence of (preposition: in someone’s presence)

• Ne parle pas de ça devant les enfants. (Don’t talk about that in front of the children.)

before; in the face of (preposition: in relation to something, especially a challenge or rule)

• Devant une telle pression, il a préféré démissionner. (In the face of such pressure, he preferred to resign.)

in front; at the front (adverb: in the space in front)

• Le salon est au fond, et devant il y a un petit jardin. (The living room is at the back, and in front there’s a small garden.)

in front; ahead (adverb: ahead of others)

• Va devant, je te rejoins dans une minute. (Go ahead; I’ll join you in a minute.)

front (noun [m]: the front part of something)

• Le devant de la veste est complètement mouillé. (The front of the jacket is completely wet.)

recevoir [ʀ(ə)səvwaʀ]

receive, get (transitive verb: to come into possession of something)

• J’ai reçu les documents ce matin par e-mail. (I received the documents this morning by email.)

collect, gather (transitive verb: to collect something that comes in)

• Cette cuve reçoit l’eau de pluie du toit. (This tank collects rainwater from the roof.)

receive, get (transitive verb: to suffer or sustain something)

• Il a reçu un coup au bras en tombant. (He got a blow to the arm when he fell.)

receive, entertain; welcome, host (transitive verb: to have guests at home)

• Ils reçoivent des amis tous les samedis soir. (They host friends every Saturday evening.)

see (transitive verb: to see someone in your office, professionally)

• Le médecin vous recevra dans dix minutes. (The doctor will see you in ten minutes.)

be admitted; get a place (transitive verb: to be accepted into an institution)

• Elle a été reçue à l’université de son choix. (She was admitted to the university of her choice.)

receive; obtain, get (transitive verb: to receive something such as congratulations)

• Nous avons reçu les félicitations du jury après la présentation. (We received congratulations from the jury after the presentation.)

receive, get (transitive verb: to pick up a radio/TV signal)

• Ici, on reçoit mal la radio quand il pleut. (Here, we get poor radio reception when it rains.)

(radio) copy (transitive verb: to hear someone over the radio; “do you copy?”)

• Ici la tour, vous me recevez ? (This is the tower; do you copy me?)

répondre [ʀepɔ̃dʀ]

answer; reply; respond (intransitive verb: give an answer)

• Si quelqu’un te pose une question, réponds clairement. (If someone asks you a question, answer clearly.)

answer (transitive verb: answer a question)

• J’ai répondu à la dernière question en deux lignes. (I answered the last question in two lines.)

reply, respond; reply to [sth], respond to [sth]; answer (transitive verb: write back in response)

• J’ai reçu ton message hier, et je te réponds ce matin. (I got your message yesterday, and I’m replying this morning.)

answer; reply; respond; reply to [sb], respond to [sb] (transitive verb: answer someone; respond to someone)

• Je lui ai parlé, mais il ne m’a pas répondu. (I spoke to him, but he didn’t answer me.)

answer [sb] back (transitive verb: talk back rudely)

• Ne réponds pas à ton père sur ce ton. (Don’t answer your father back in that tone.)

answer (transitive verb: answer the phone or a call)

• Tu peux répondre au téléphone ? Je suis occupé. (Can you answer the phone? I’m busy.)

respond to [sth]; meet; answer (transitive verb: react to something)

• L’entreprise a répondu à la crise par un plan d’économies. (The company responded to the crisis with a cost-cutting plan.)

respond (transitive verb: function normally; react to controls)

• Le bouton ne répond plus depuis la dernière mise à jour. (The button hasn’t been responding since the last update.)

meet; respond to [sth]; answer (transitive verb: satisfy a need or expectation)

• Ce nouveau logiciel répond enfin aux besoins de l’équipe. (This new software finally meets the team’s needs.)

vivre [vivʀ]

live, exist (intransitive verb: be alive; exist)

• Certaines bactéries vivent dans des conditions extrêmes. (Some bacteria live in extreme conditions.)

live; be alive; be living (intransitive verb: still be alive, formal or dated)

• Malgré son grand âge, elle vit encore seule. (Despite her old age, she is still alive and living alone.)

live, reside (intransitive verb: live somewhere)

• Ils vivent à Lyon depuis trois ans. (They’ve been living in Lyon for three years.)

live; live through, go through; experience (transitive verb: go through an experience)

• Il a vécu une période difficile au travail. (He went through a difficult period at work.)

live in (transitive verb: live through an era or period)

• Nous vivons une époque où tout va très vite. (We are living in a time when everything moves very fast.)

supplies, provisions (noun [m] pl: food provisions)

• Les vivres ont été distribués aux familles isolées. (Supplies were distributed to the isolated families.)

long [lɔ̃, lɔ̃g]

long; in length (adjective: having a measured length)

• Ce câble est long de deux mètres environ. (This cable is about two metres long.)

long (adjective: of great length)

• Son manteau est si long qu’il traîne par terre. (Her coat is so long that it drags on the floor.)

long, lengthy; extended, uncut (adjective: lasting a long time)

• La réunion a été longue, mais on a tout réglé. (The meeting was long, but we sorted everything out.)

thin (adjective: too runny, said of a sauce)

• La sauce est trop longue, ajoute un peu de farine. (The sauce is too thin; add a little flour.)

a lot; too much (adverb: know too much, formal)

• Il en sait trop long sur cette histoire pour rester tranquille. (He knows too much about this story to stay calm.)

service [sɛʀvis]

service (noun [m]: services provided to the public)

• Le service de bus est réduit le dimanche. (The bus service is reduced on Sundays.)

service, use (noun [m]: uncountable usefulness or utility)

• Ce guide m’a rendu un grand service pendant le voyage. (That guide was a great help to me during the trip.)

help, assistance; service (noun [m]: help, or customer service)

• Sans son service, je n’aurais jamais fini à temps. (Without his help, I would never have finished on time.)

department, team, unit (noun [m]: an organisational department)

• Le service informatique a corrigé la panne en dix minutes. (The IT department fixed the outage in ten minutes.)

service, set (noun [m]: a matching set of tableware)

• Ils ont offert un service à thé en porcelaine. (They gave a porcelain tea set.)

service (noun [m]: restaurant service and staff attention)

• Le service était impeccable malgré la salle pleine. (The service was flawless despite the restaurant being full.)

service (noun [m]: a seating or meal service)

• Le samedi soir, le restaurant fait deux services. (On Saturday night, the restaurant has two sittings.)

national service, military service (noun [m]: compulsory military service)

• Mon oncle a fait son service national à vingt ans. (My uncle did his national service at twenty.)

ministre [ministʀ]

minister; secretary, secretary of state (for); secretary (of) (noun [m/f]: government official in charge of a department)

• Le ministre a annoncé un nouveau plan pour réduire la pollution. (The minister announced a new plan to reduce pollution.)

minister, clergyman, clergywoman; (collectively) the clergy (noun [m/f]: religious official)

• Dans ce village, le ministre du culte connaît tout le monde. (In this village, the minister of religion knows everyone.)

face [fas]

face (noun [f]: human face)

• Le vent froid lui a frappé la face en sortant. (The cold wind hit her face as she went out.)

face (noun [f]: animal’s face)

• La face du cheval était couverte de boue après l’orage. (The horse’s face was covered in mud after the storm.)

side; face (noun [f]: one of the surfaces of an object)

• Le cube a six faces, toutes parfaitement carrées. (A cube has six sides, all perfectly square.)

face (noun [f]: steep side of a mountain or cliff)

• Ils ont commencé l’ascension par la face ouest de la falaise. (They started the climb on the west face of the cliff.)

heads (noun [f]: “heads” side of a coin)

• On a tiré à pile ou face, et c’est face. (We tossed a coin, and it came up heads.)

face, aspect, side (noun [f]: aspect or side of a situation)

• Je veux te montrer une autre face de ce dossier. (I want to show you another side of this case.)

chez [ʃe]

home, at home; at [sb]’s house; at [sb]’s, at + [possessive pronoun] (preposition: at someone’s home)

• Je dîne chez mes parents ce soir. (I’m having dinner at my parents’ house tonight.)

at (preposition: at a shop or business)

• J’ai acheté du pain chez le boulanger. (I bought bread at the baker’s.)

home; to [sb]’s house, to [sb]’s home, to [sb]’s apartment; to [sb]’s; to + [possessive pronoun] (preposition: to someone’s home)

• Après le travail, je passe chez toi. (After work, I’m stopping by your place.)

to (preposition: to a shop or professional’s place)

• Je vais chez le dentiste demain matin. (I’m going to the dentist tomorrow morning.)

around here, around these parts; where [sb] lives, in [sb]’s area (preposition: in a region or community)

• Chez nous, l’hiver est long et humide. (Where we live, winter is long and damp.)

with; about; in (preposition: in someone’s character or behaviour)

• Chez Paul, la ponctualité est une obsession. (With Paul, punctuality is an obsession.)

in [sb]’s work (preposition: in someone’s writings or work)

• Chez Camus, le thème de l’absurde revient souvent. (In Camus’s work, the theme of the absurd comes up often.)

among (preposition: among a group)

• Chez les enfants, la curiosité est naturelle. (Among children, curiosity is natural.)

te [tə]

you; to you (pronoun: direct-object “you”)

• Je te comprends mieux maintenant. (I understand you better now.)

to you; you (pronoun: indirect-object “to you”)

• Je te parle après le repas. (I’ll talk to you after the meal.)

yourself (pronoun: reflexive “yourself”)

• Tu te reposes un peu avant de repartir ? (Are you resting a bit before leaving again?)

rappeler [ʀap(ə)le]

call [sb] back, phone [sb] back; ring [sb] back; return [sb]’s call; call back, phone back (transitive verb: phone someone again)

• Je te rappelle dès que je sors de réunion. (I’ll call you back as soon as I’m out of the meeting.)

call [sb] back (transitive verb: return a call from someone)

• Il a laissé un message, alors je le rappelle tout de suite. (He left a message, so I’m calling him back right away.)

call; call [sth] back (transitive verb: call someone or something back to a place)

• Rappelle les enfants dans la maison, le dîner est prêt. (Call the kids back into the house; dinner is ready.)

(product) recall; call [sth] back (transitive verb: recall a product for safety or defects)

• Le fabricant rappelle ce lot de jouets par mesure de sécurité. (The manufacturer is recalling this batch of toys as a safety measure.)

bring [sb] back, call [sb] back (transitive verb: bring a performer back on stage)

• Les applaudissements ont rappelé l’actrice deux fois. (The applause brought the actress back twice.)

remind [sb] to do [sth], remind [sb] about [sth], remind [sb] about doing [sth]; not let [sb] forget to do [sth], not let [sb] forget about doing [sth]; not let [sb] forget about [sth], not let [sb] forget [sth] (verb phrase: prompt someone so they don’t forget)

• Rappelle-moi de payer la facture demain. (Remind me to pay the bill tomorrow.)

remind [sb] of [sth]; bring [sth] back to [sb]; call [sth] to mind, call [sth] to [sb]’s mind; put [sb] in mind of [sth] (transitive verb: evoke a memory)

• Cette odeur me rappelle mon enfance. (This smell reminds me of my childhood.)

remind [sb] of [sb]; resemble; look like [sb]; put [sb] in mind of [sb] (transitive verb: resemble someone)

• Tu me rappelles vraiment ma sœur quand tu ris. (You really remind me of my sister when you laugh.)

call [sth] to mind, call to mind [sth]; recall; remind you of [sth]; be a reminder of [sth], serve as a reminder of [sth] (transitive verb: bring something to mind)

• Cette photo rappelle un moment heureux à toute la famille. (This photo brings a happy moment to mind for the whole family.)

remember; recall (reflexive verb: remember something or someone)

• Je me rappelle son nom, mais pas son visage. (I remember his name, but not his face.)

remember (reflexive verb: remember him/her/them)

• Je me rappelle bien de lui, on a travaillé ensemble. (I remember him well; we worked together.)

présenter [pʀezɑ̃te]

introduce [sb] to [sb]; present [sb] to [sb] (transitive verb: introduce one person to another, often formally)

• Je te présente mon voisin, il vient d’emménager. (Let me introduce you to my neighbour; he just moved in.)

present, show, display; show [sth] off (transitive verb: reveal or showcase something to an audience)

• La start-up présente son prototype au salon cette semaine. (The start-up is presenting its prototype at the trade show this week.)

display, present (transitive verb: arrange items so they are visible or appealing)

• La librairie présente les nouveautés près de l’entrée. (The bookshop displays the new releases near the entrance.)

show, present (transitive verb: produce something for inspection or checking)

• Veuillez présenter votre billet au contrôle, s’il vous plaît. (Please show your ticket at the check.)

give, submit, present (transitive verb: hand in or submit a document or bill)

• Il a présenté sa facture dès la fin de l’intervention. (He submitted his invoice as soon as the job was finished.)

have; offer; present; present with [sth] (transitive verb: have or display a characteristic; in medical contexts, arrive with a symptom)

• Le patient présente une forte fièvre depuis deux jours. (The patient is presenting with a high fever for two days.)

put [sth] on, put on [sth]; put [sth] on for [sb], put on [sth] for [sb] (transitive verb: stage or perform a show or event)

• La troupe présente une pièce courte pour les élèves. (The troupe is putting on a short play for the students.)

present, host (transitive verb: host a TV or radio programme)

• Elle présente l’émission du matin sur une radio locale. (She hosts the morning show on a local radio station.)

introduce yourself (reflexive verb: introduce yourself, especially at the start of a conversation or meeting)

• Avant de commencer, je vais me présenter rapidement. (Before we start, I’m going to introduce myself briefly.)

present yourself as [sth], introduce yourself as [sth]; claim you are [sth], claim that you are [sth] (reflexive verb: state or claim a particular identity or role)

• Il s’est présenté comme consultant, mais personne ne l’avait mandaté. (He presented himself as a consultant, but no one had hired him.)

introduce yourself (reflexive verb: introduce yourself when speaking on the phone)

• Allô, je me présente : je vous appelle du service comptable. (Hello, let me introduce myself: I’m calling from the accounts department.)

present yourself; appear; report to [sth] (reflexive verb: go to a place officially, as required)

• Les candidats doivent se présenter à l’accueil à 8 h 30. (Candidates must report to reception at 8:30.)

be seen; appear; show yourself; show your face, go out in public, be seen in public (reflexive verb: allow yourself to be seen, especially in public)

• Après l’incident, il n’osait plus se présenter en public. (After the incident, he didn’t dare show his face in public.)

look, seem (reflexive verb: appear in a particular way or seem to be going a certain way)

• Pour l’instant, la situation se présente plutôt bien. (For now, the situation looks fairly good.)

occur, happen, appear (reflexive verb: occur or arise)

• Ce type de panne se présente rarement sur ce modèle. (This kind of breakdown occurs rarely on this model.)

take; sit (reflexive verb: take an exam or test)

• Je me présente à l’examen de conduite vendredi. (I’m sitting my driving test on Friday.)

stand; run (reflexive verb: stand as a candidate in an election)

• Elle se présente aux élections municipales l’an prochain. (She will stand in the local elections next year.)

stand against [sb]; run against [sb] (reflexive verb: be a candidate opposing someone)

• Il se présente contre la maire sortante. (He is running against the incumbent mayor.)

accepter [aksɛpte]

accept; say yes to [sth] (transitive verb: agree to receive or agree to an offer or invitation)

• J’ai accepté la proposition sans négocier. (I accepted the offer without negotiating.)

agree to do [sth]; consent to do [sth] (transitive verb: agree to carry out an action)

• Elle a accepté de modifier le planning au dernier moment. (She agreed to change the schedule at the last minute.)

take [sth] on; accept (transitive verb: take on a responsibility or challenge)

• Il a accepté un dossier supplémentaire pour dépanner l’équipe. (He took on an extra case to help the team out.)

take; accept (transitive verb: accept money or something received, often implying impropriety)

• Il a accepté de l’argent pour accélérer la procédure. (He took money to speed up the procedure.)

accept (transitive verb: accept an apology or explanation)

• J’accepte tes excuses, mais ne recommence pas. (I accept your apology, but don’t do it again.)

accept, abide (transitive verb: tolerate something you consider unacceptable)

• Je ne peux pas accepter ce manque de respect. (I can’t abide this lack of respect.)

admit; let [sb] in; allow [sb] in (transitive verb: allow someone to enter a place)

• Le vigile n’a pas accepté les retardataires dans la salle. (The security guard didn’t let the latecomers in.)

allow, permit (transitive verb: allow an animal into a place)

• Ce restaurant n’accepte pas les chiens. (This restaurant doesn’t allow dogs.)

accept; say yes (intransitive verb: agree, without stating the object)

• On m’a proposé un poste, et j’ai accepté. (I was offered a position, and I accepted.)

accept yourself (reflexive verb: come to terms with yourself)

• Avec le temps, il a appris à s’accepter tel qu’il est. (Over time, he learned to accept himself as he is.)

agir [aʒiʀ]

act; take action; do something (intransitive verb: take action rather than remain passive)

• Si tu veux que ça change, il faut agir maintenant. (If you want it to change, you have to act now.)

behave; act (intransitive verb: conduct yourself in a certain way)

• Il a très bien agi avec les nouveaux arrivants. (He behaved very well with the newcomers.)

have an effect on [sth]; affect; be effective for [sth], be effective against [sth]; work on [sth], work against [sth] (transitive verb: have an effect on something or work against a problem)

• Ce traitement agit sur la douleur en moins d’une heure. (This treatment works against the pain in under an hour.)

be a question of [sth]; be a matter of [sth]; concerning; be (reflexive verb: impersonal expression about what something concerns)

• Il s’agit d’un retard technique, pas d’une annulation. (It’s a matter of a technical delay, not a cancellation.)

be; be about [sth/sb] (reflexive verb: indicate what something is, or what it is about)

• Je ne comprends pas de quoi il s’agit. (I don’t understand what it’s about.)

come to doing [sth]; be a case of doing [sth]; where doing [sth] is concerned (reflexive verb: “when it comes to” doing something)

• Quand il s’agit de négocier, elle reste très calme. (When it comes to negotiating, she stays very calm.)

must; be a question of [sth] (reflexive verb: impersonal expression meaning something must not happen)

• Il ne s’agit pas que tu oublies les documents. (You mustn’t forget the documents.)

be necessary to do [sth]; must do; be about doing [sth], be all about doing [sth]; be a question of doing [sth] (reflexive verb: impersonal expression meaning what needs to be done)

• Il s’agit de terminer le rapport avant midi. (It’s a matter of finishing the report before noon.)

simple [sɛ̃pl]

simple, easy, straightforward (adjective: not difficult)

• La procédure est simple et ne prend que cinq minutes. (The process is straightforward and takes only five minutes.)

down-to-earth (adjective: natural and unpretentious as a person)

• Elle est connue, mais elle reste simple avec tout le monde. (She’s well-known, but she remains down-to-earth with everyone.)

simple; plain; unadorned (adjective: without ornament or show)

• Il préfère un style simple, sans décoration inutile. (He prefers a plain style, without unnecessary decoration.)

humble, modest (adjective: modest in status or background)

• Il vient d’un milieu simple et a dû travailler très tôt. (He comes from a humble background and had to start working very early.)

simple, single (adjective: not compound)

• C’est un mot simple, pas un mot composé. (It’s a simple word, not a compound word.)

single (adjective: for one person, not shared)

• Je voudrais une chambre simple pour deux nuits. (I’d like a single room for two nights.)

mere; merely; just (adjective: used as an intensifier meaning “only” or “nothing more than”)

• Le simple fait d’attendre me rend nerveux. (The mere act of waiting makes me nervous.)

singles (noun [m]: tennis singles event or match)

• Elle joue le simple aujourd’hui et le double demain. (She’s playing singles today and doubles tomorrow.)

plusieurs [plyzjœʀ]

several; a number of; a lot of; many (adjective: more than one, an unspecified quantity)

• Plusieurs clients ont rappelé dans l’après-midi. (Several customers called back in the afternoon.)

several, many; a number of them; a lot of them; several of them, many of them (pronoun: an unspecified number of things)

• J’ai testé ces options, et plusieurs d’entre elles fonctionnent très bien. (I tested these options, and several of them work very well.)

some, some people; many, many people; a lot of people; several, several people (pronoun: an unspecified number of people)

• Plusieurs pensent que la décision est injuste. (Some people think the decision is unfair.)

votre [vɔtʀ, vo]

your (adjective: second-person singular possessive in familiar address)

• Range ta veste dans votre placard, s’il te plaît. (Put your jacket in your wardrobe, please.)

your (adjective: second-person possessive in formal or plural address)

• Votre avis nous intéresse, madame. (Your opinion matters to us, madam.)

yours; your one (pronoun: possessive pronoun referring to something belonging to you, plural context)

• Vos clés sont sur la table, et la vôtre est dans le tiroir. (Your keys are on the table, and yours is in the drawer.)

yours; your one (pronoun: possessive pronoun referring to something belonging to you, singular context)

• Je n’ai pas de stylo, je peux prendre la vôtre ? (I don’t have a pen; can I take yours?)

your family; your loved ones, your nearest and dearest; your family and friends; your folks (noun [m] pl: your relatives and close people)

• Tu passes les fêtes avec les vôtres cette année ? (Are you spending the holidays with your family this year?)

commitment; effort, work (noun [m]: personal effort you contribute)

• Il faudra y mettre du vôtre si vous voulez que ça marche. (You’ll need to put some effort in if you want it to work.)

important [ɛ̃pɔʀtɑ̃, ɑ̃t]

important, essential (adjective: necessary)

• Il est important de sauvegarder tes fichiers avant la mise à jour. (It is important to back up your files before the update.)

significant, sizable, large, considerable, substantial; high (adjective: of great size or intensity)

• Cette année, l’entreprise a réalisé des bénéfices importants. (This year, the company made substantial profits.)

important, high ranking, influential, major (adjective: holding power or influence)

• Elle occupe un rôle important dans l’équipe de direction. (She holds an important role on the leadership team.)

main thing, important thing; what matters, what’s important (noun [m]: the essential point)

• L’important, c’est de rester concentré jusqu’à la fin. (The main thing is to stay focused until the end.)

présent [pʀezɑ̃, ɑ̃t]

present; there; here (adjective: located in a specific place)

• J’étais présent quand le directeur a expliqué la nouvelle procédure. (I was there when the director explained the new procedure.)

present; there; here; in attendance (adjective: attending an event)

• Tous les participants sont présents à la séance d’information. (All participants are present at the briefing session.)

present; here (interjection: roll-call response)

• À l’appel, il a répondu : « Présent ! » (At roll call, he replied, “Present!”)

present (adjective: current)

• Au moment présent, je ne peux pas confirmer la date. (At the present moment, I can’t confirm the date.)

present; real, actual (adjective: existing)

• La fatigue est présente chez beaucoup de salariés en fin d’année. (Fatigue is present among many employees at year-end.)

this; present (adjective: the one being referred to)

• Les conditions sont précisées dans le présent document. (The terms are set out in this document.)

present, now, present time (noun [m]: the current period)

• Il essaie de vivre dans le présent au lieu de ressasser le passé. (He tries to live in the present instead of dwelling on the past.)

present, present tense (noun [m]: grammar tense)

• En cours de français, on utilise le présent pour décrire une habitude. (In French class, we use the present tense to describe a habit.)

person present, person there; attendee (noun [m/f]: someone who is there)

• Aujourd’hui, il n’y avait que quatre présents dans la salle. (Today, there were only four people present in the room.)

mieux [mjø]

better (adverb: in a better way)

• Avec un exemple, tu comprends mieux. (With an example, you understand better.)

better off, more comfortable; better; feel better (adverb: more comfortable or in better condition)

• Je me sens mieux depuis que je dors davantage. (I feel better since I’ve been sleeping more.)

best (adverb: with the greatest degree of quality)

• C’est le dossier le mieux préparé de toute l’équipe. (It’s the best-prepared file in the whole team.)

look better (adjective: more attractive in appearance)

• Tu es mieux avec cette veste plus sombre. (You look better in that darker jacket.)

better (adjective: more pleasant or preferable)

• Cette option est mieux que l’autre pour notre budget. (This option is better than the other for our budget.)

improvement (noun [m]: a positive change)

• Depuis hier, il y a du mieux, mais ce n’est pas encore stable. (Since yesterday, there’s been some improvement, but it’s not stable yet.)

the best; best (noun [m]: the best choice)

• Le mieux, c’est de prévenir tout le monde avant de changer le plan. (The best is to warn everyone before changing the plan.)

best, the best (adverbial phrase: in the best way)

• De tous les candidats, c’est elle qui répond le mieux. (Of all the candidates, she answers best.)

poser [poze]

put, place; set down; put down (transitive verb: put something onto a surface)

• Je pose mon téléphone sur le bureau avant de commencer. (I put my phone on the desk before I start.)

put down (transitive verb: set down something you are carrying or wearing)

• Pose ton sac à dos et viens t’asseoir. (Put your backpack down and come sit.)

install, fit; put [sth] up, put [sth] in; (curtains) hang; (flooring) lay (transitive verb: install or put in place)

• On va poser une nouvelle sonnette demain matin. (We’re going to install a new doorbell tomorrow morning.)

lay; fix (transitive verb: fix or set something, especially your eyes, on something)

• Dès qu’il a posé les yeux sur le contrat, il a compris le piège. (As soon as he laid eyes on the contract, he understood the trap.)

land; set down; put down (transitive verb: bring an aircraft down onto the ground)

• Le pilote a posé l’hélicoptère près de la route. (The pilot landed the helicopter near the road.)

pose (intransitive verb: pose for a photo or artwork)

• Elle pose pour un portrait en studio. (She’s posing for a studio portrait.)

land; touch down (reflexive verb: come down from flying and land somewhere)

• Un papillon s’est posé sur ma main. (A butterfly landed on my hand.)

come up; arise (reflexive verb: be raised as a question or issue)

• La question se pose de savoir si on doit annuler la réunion. (The question arises as to whether we should cancel the meeting.)

fix upon/on (reflexive verb: settle one’s gaze on something)

• Mon regard s’est posé sur une affiche au fond du couloir. (My eyes fixed on a poster at the end of the corridor.)

sit down (reflexive verb: take a moment to sit and rest)

• Je rentre, je me pose cinq minutes, et je m’y remets. (I’ll get home, sit down for five minutes, and then get back to it.)

settle down (reflexive verb: become settled, stop moving around)

• Après des années à voyager, il s’est posé en ville. (After years of travelling, he finally settled down in the city.)

act like you are [sth], act as if you are [sth]; behave as if you are [sth]; think you are [sth] (reflexive verb: present yourself as something)

• Il se pose en expert alors qu’il débute à peine. (He acts like he’s an expert even though he’s barely starting out.)

jouer [ʒwe]

play (intransitive verb: play for fun)

• Les enfants aiment jouer dehors après l’école. (The children like to play outside after school.)

play; compete (intransitive verb: take part in a sports competition)

• Notre équipe joue ce soir et veut absolument gagner. (Our team is playing tonight and really wants to win.)

act; play your role (intransitive verb: act in a role)

• Je trouve qu’il joue très juste dans ce rôle. (I think he acts very convincingly in that role.)

gamble; play (intransitive verb: gamble in the hope of winning)

• Il jouait pour gagner vite, mais il a tout perdu. (He gambled to win quickly, but he lost everything.)

(game) play; (toy) play with [sth] (transitive verb: play a game or play with something)

• On joue aux cartes après le dîner. (We play cards after dinner.)

play; play at [sth] (intransitive verb: pretend to be someone in a game)

• Ils jouent aux détectives dans le salon. (They’re playing detectives in the living room.)

(sport) play (transitive verb: play a sport)

• Je joue au foot le mercredi soir. (I play football on Wednesday evenings.)

(musical instrument) play; play the [sth] (transitive verb: play a musical instrument)

• Elle joue du violon depuis dix ans. (She’s been playing the violin for ten years.)

(role, piece of music) play; (play, piece of music) perform (transitive verb: perform a role or a piece)

• Ce soir, il joue Hamlet sur scène. (Tonight, he’s playing Hamlet on stage.)

(figurative) gamble; risk (transitive verb: risk something important)

• En mentant, tu joues ton poste. (By lying, you’re risking your job.)

(figurative) play with [sth]; (figurative) gamble with [sth]; take risks with, take chances with (transitive verb: take dangerous risks)

• En conduisant si vite, tu joues avec ta vie. (Driving that fast, you’re playing with your life.)

(with fingers) play with [sth], fiddle with [sth] (transitive verb: absent-mindedly handle something)

• Pendant l’entretien, elle jouait avec son bracelet. (During the interview, she fiddled with her bracelet.)

be played (reflexive verb: be played, said of a game or sport)

• Ce jeu se joue à deux en moins de quinze minutes. (This game is played by two people in under fifteen minutes.)

be performed (reflexive verb: be performed, said of a play)

• La comédie se joue tous les soirs cette semaine. (The comedy is performed every evening this week.)

play out; take place (reflexive verb: unfold or take place)

• Une scène inattendue se joue devant la gare. (An unexpected scene is playing out in front of the station.)

be decided (reflexive verb: be decided, come down to)

• Tout se joue sur la dernière question. (Everything will be decided by the last question.)

make light of [sth]; defy (reflexive verb: disregard or flout something)

• Il se joue des règles et fait exactement ce qu’il veut. (He defies the rules and does exactly what he wants.)

(figurative) pull [sb]’s strings; (informal) play (reflexive verb: manipulate someone)

• Elle s’est jouée de lui pour obtenir des informations. (She played him to get information.)

mot [mo]

word (noun [m]: a single vocabulary item)

• Je ne trouve pas le mot exact pour décrire cette couleur. (I can’t find the exact word to describe this colour.)

a few words; remark (noun [m]: a brief comment)

• Je vais dire un mot sur le plan, puis on passera au vote. (I’ll say a few words about the plan, then we’ll move to the vote.)

message, note; a few words (noun [m]: a short written message)

• Je t’ai laissé un petit mot sur la table. (I left you a little note on the table.)

saying, expression; words (noun [m]: a well-known phrase or quotation)

• « L’union fait la force » est un mot célèbre. (“Unity is strength” is a famous saying.)

reconnaître [ʀ(ə)kɔnɛtʀ]

recognize; (UK) recognise (transitive verb: identify someone or something)

• Je reconnais sa voix même au téléphone. (I recognise his voice even on the phone.)

recognize; (UK) recognise (transitive verb: recognize someone as already known or famous)

• Depuis la série, on la reconnaît partout. (Since the series, people recognise her everywhere.)

admit, accept (transitive verb: acknowledge something as true)

• Il a reconnu son erreur devant toute l’équipe. (He admitted his mistake in front of the whole team.)

admit; recognize; (UK) recognise; accept (transitive verb: admit, confess, or acknowledge faults)

• Elle reconnaît ses torts et s’excuse immédiatement. (She admits she was wrong and apologises immediately.)

acknowledge; recognize; (UK) recognise (transitive verb: acknowledge responsibility or acknowledge a child)

• Il a reconnu l’enfant et a commencé à aider la mère. (He acknowledged the child and began helping the mother.)

see yourself in [sth], recognize yourself in [sth]; (UK) recognise yourself in [sth]; identify with [sth]; see yourself reflected in [sth] (reflexive verb: see a similarity with yourself)

• Je me reconnais dans ce personnage, surtout dans sa façon de réagir. (I see myself in that character, especially in the way they react.)

force [fɔʀs]

strength (noun [f]: physical energy or power)

• Après sa maladie, il a retrouvé sa force petit à petit. (After his illness, he regained his strength little by little.)

force, strength (noun [f]: intensity, especially of a natural phenomenon)

• La force de l’orage a cassé plusieurs branches. (The force of the storm broke several branches.)

force (noun [f]: violent means used to obtain a result)

• Ils ont essayé d’entrer par la force. (They tried to get in by force.)

strength, power (noun [f]: influence or power)

• La force de ce mouvement a surpris tout le monde. (The power of this movement surprised everyone.)

force (noun [f]: level on a scale, especially wind strength)

• La météo annonce un vent de force 6 sur la côte. (The forecast is calling for a force 6 wind on the coast.)

situation [sitɥasjɔ̃]

location, position; situation (noun [f]: physical location or placement)

• Le restaurant a une excellente situation, juste à côté du métro. (The restaurant has an excellent location, right next to the metro.)

position, situation, post (noun [f]: stable job or secure employment)

• Après plusieurs contrats, il a enfin trouvé une bonne situation. (After several contracts, he finally found a good job.)

situation (noun [f]: someone’s role or office)

• La situation de directeur demande beaucoup de diplomatie. (The director’s position requires a lot of diplomacy.)

situation; circumstances (noun [f]: surrounding circumstances affecting what you can do)

• Dans cette situation, il vaut mieux reporter la réunion. (In these circumstances, it’s better to postpone the meeting.)

situation (noun [f]: state or condition of something)

• La situation financière s’est améliorée depuis l’été. (The financial situation has improved since the summer.)

offrir [ɔfʀiʀ]

give [sb] [sth]; give [sth] to [sb]; make [sb] a gift of [sth], make a gift of [sth] to [sb] (transitive verb: give something as a present)

• Je lui ai offert un livre rare pour ses trente ans. (I gave him a rare book for his thirtieth birthday.)

offer [sb] [sth]; offer [sth] to [sb] (transitive verb: propose something to someone)

• Je t’offre cinquante euros pour ton vieux vélo. (I’ll offer you fifty euros for your old bike.)

present (transitive verb: present features, drawbacks, or risks)

• Ce plan offre plusieurs risques qu’on ne peut pas ignorer. (This plan presents several risks that we can’t ignore.)

buy; buy yourself [sth]; treat yourself to [sth] (reflexive verb: buy something for yourself as a treat)

• Pour fêter la promotion, je me suis offert un bon casque audio. (To celebrate the promotion, I treated myself to a good set of headphones.)

present itself to [sb], open itself to [sb], open up to [sb]; lie before [sb] (reflexive verb: become available or open up to someone)

• Une opportunité inattendue s’est offerte à elle après l’entretien. (An unexpected opportunity opened up to her after the interview.)

près [pʀɛ]

nearby; near [sth], close to [sth]; close by; not far away (adverb: nearby in space)

• Ne t’inquiète pas, j’habite près. (Don’t worry, I live nearby.)

not far off; be some time off, be some time away (adverb: not far away in time)

• Les vacances ne sont pas très près, mais on peut déjà réserver. (The holidays aren’t very close yet, but we can already book.)

close to, near; not far from [sth] (preposition: near a place)

• Il y a une pharmacie près de la mairie. (There’s a pharmacy near the town hall.)

close to; approaching, nearing; not far off [sth] (preposition: close to a time or event)

• On est près de la fin du trimestre. (We’re close to the end of the term.)

almost, nearly; near doing [sth]; about to do [sth] (adverbial phrase: almost about to do something)

• J’étais près de tomber dans les escaliers. (I almost fell on the stairs.)

close to (preposition: very close together)

• Les sièges sont près les uns des autres, on manque de place. (The seats are close together; we’re short on space.)

close to [sb] (preposition: emotionally close to someone)

• Elle est très près de sa grand-mère. (She’s very close to her grandmother.)

almost, nearly; about, around (preposition: approximately an amount)

• Le repas coûte près de trente livres. (The meal costs almost thirty pounds.)

almost, nearly; about, around (preposition: approximately a time)

• Il est près de midi, on peut partir. (It’s almost noon; we can leave.)

choisir [ʃwaziʀ]

choose; select; opt for; go for (transitive verb: pick one option from several)

• J’ai choisi la version la plus simple pour commencer. (I chose the simplest version to start with.)

choose; decide; elect; opt (transitive verb: decide to do something)

• Il a choisi de partir tôt pour éviter le trafic. (He chose to leave early to avoid traffic.)

choose; select; appoint (transitive verb: designate someone for a role)

national [nasjɔnal, o]

national (adjective: relating to a nation)

• Les élections nationales auront lieu au printemps. (The national elections will take place in the spring.)

national, nationwide; (US only) federal (adjective: at the national level rather than local)

• C’est une association nationale qui coordonne les antennes locales. (It’s a national association that coordinates local branches.)

projet [pʀɔʒɛ]

plan, project, intention (noun [m]: goal you intend to achieve)

• Mon projet est de changer de métier l’an prochain. (My plan is to change careers next year.)

proposal (noun [m]: plan submitted for approval)

• Le comité a validé le projet après une dernière discussion. (The committee approved the proposal after one last discussion.)

project drawing (noun [m]: architectural or technical design drawing)

• Le client a demandé une modification sur le projet avant de signer. (The client asked for a change to the project drawing before signing.)

ni [ni]

(with affirmative verb) neither… nor…; (with negative verb) either… or… (conjunction: linking a further negative statement)

• Je n’ai pas réservé, ni appelé l’hôtel. (I didn’t book, nor did I call the hotel.)

(2 things: with affirmative verb) neither… nor; (2 things: with negative verb) either … or; (2 things) neither of [sb/sth], neither one of [sb/sth]; or … or, or … or … or (adverb: pairing alternatives in a negative choice)

• Elle n’a ni le temps ni l’énergie pour recommencer. (She has neither the time nor the energy to start again.)

Ni (noun: abbreviation for the chemical symbol of nickel)

• Sur le tableau périodique, Ni correspond au nickel. (On the periodic table, Ni stands for nickel.)

puis [pɥi]

then (adverb: after that; next in sequence)

• On a dîné, puis on est rentrés à pied. (We had dinner, then we walked home.)

and finally (adverb: last item in a sequence)

• J’ai pris un café, un croissant, et puis je suis parti. (I had a coffee, a croissant, and finally I left.)

and what’s more; and also; moreover (adverb: adding an extra point or reason)

• Je ne peux pas accepter, et puis je n’ai pas l’autorisation. (I can’t accept, and what’s more I don’t have permission.)

toucher [tuʃe]

touch; feel (transitive verb: perceive by contact with the hands)

• Ne touche pas le verre, il est brûlant. (Don’t touch the glass; it’s scorching hot.)

reach; get to [sth]; (impact) hit (transitive verb: reach a point or make contact by impact)

• Après dix minutes, nous avons enfin touché le sommet. (After ten minutes, we finally reached the summit.)

adjoin; be adjacent to [sth], be next to [sth] (transitive verb: be directly next to something)

• Le parc touche l’école, donc c’est pratique. (The park is next to the school, so it’s convenient.)

(emotionally) touch; (stronger) move; affect deeply (transitive verb: cause an emotional reaction)

• Son discours m’a profondément touché. (His speech deeply moved me.)

(condition) affect; (matter) concern (transitive verb: have an effect on; relate to)

• Cette décision touche tous les salariés. (This decision affects all employees.)

(money) receive; (money: informal) get; (cheque) cash (transitive verb: be paid or collect money)

• Elle touche son salaire le dernier jour du mois. (She receives her salary on the last day of the month.)

touch (transitive verb: put your hands on something)

• Ne touchez pas aux boutons pendant le vol. (Do not touch the buttons during the flight.)

(food) touch (transitive verb: start eating; take any of a dish)

• Il n’a presque pas touché à son dessert. (He hardly touched his dessert.)

touch; meddle with [sth], fiddle with [sth]; make changes to [sth]; do something to [sth], do something more to [sth], not do anything to [sth], not do anything more to [sth] (transitive verb: interfere with or alter something)

• Ne touche pas à ce réglage, c’est déjà parfait. (Don’t mess with that setting; it’s already perfect.)

touch; harm, hurt; do harm to [sb] (transitive verb: injure or abuse someone)

• Il a juré qu’il ne toucherait jamais à un enfant. (He swore he would never harm a child.)

touch, sense of touch (noun [m]: the tactile sense)

• Le toucher est essentiel pour apprendre le braille. (Touch is essential for learning braille.)

train [tʀɛ̃]

train (noun [m]: railway transport vehicle or service)

• Le train part à 7 h 12 et arrive à midi. (The train leaves at 7:12 and arrives at noon.)

aujourd’hui [oʒuʀdɥi]

today; (formal) on this day (adverb: on the current day)

• Aujourd’hui, je travaille à la maison. (Today, I’m working from home.)

today; these days; nowadays (adverb: in modern times)

• Aujourd’hui, on paie souvent sans espèces. (Nowadays, people often pay without cash.)

comment [kɔmɑ̃]

how; in what way (adverb: manner or method)

• Comment as-tu appris ça ? (How did you learn that?)

sorry; excuse me; pardon; (impolite) what (interjection: asking for repetition)

• Comment ? Je n’ai pas entendu. (Sorry? I didn’t hear.)

what (interjection: expressing disbelief)

• Comment ! Tu pars déjà ? (What! You’re leaving already?)

the how; the hows (noun [m]: the explanatory details of how something happens)

• Il comprend le pourquoi, mais pas le comment. (He understands the why, but not the how.)

surtout [syʀtu]

especially; particularly, in particular (adverb: more than anything else)

• Je veux surtout terminer ce dossier avant midi. (I especially want to finish this file before noon.)

mainly, mostly (adverb: for the most part)

• Dans ce quartier, il y a surtout des petits commerces. (In this neighbourhood, there are mostly small shops.)

above all, most importantly, in particular; first and foremost; (informal) whatever you do (adverb: before anything else)

• Surtout, ne signe rien sans le relire attentivement. (Above all, don’t sign anything without rereading it carefully.)

gens [ʒã, ʒɛ̃s]

people; (informal) folk, folks (noun [m] pl: a crowd or the general public)

• Il y avait beaucoup de gens devant la salle de concert. (There were a lot of people in front of the concert hall.)

people (noun [m] pl: people in general)

• Les gens passent de plus en plus de temps en ligne. (People are spending more and more time online.)

people; (informal) folk, folks (noun [m] pl: people from a particular place)

• Les gens du coin connaissent tous les raccourcis. (Local people know all the shortcuts.)

people; folk, folks (noun [m] pl: individuals, often described as “good” or “kind”)

• Ce sont des gens fiables, on peut compter sur eux. (They’re reliable people; you can count on them.)

propre [pʀɔpʀ]

clean (adjective: washed; not dirty)

• Je veux une tasse propre pour le café. (I want a clean cup for the coffee.)

well-groomed; neat, tidy (adjective: careful about personal hygiene and appearance)

• Même en voyage, il reste toujours très propre. (Even when travelling, he always stays very well-groomed.)

toilet trained; potty trained (adjective: able to control bodily needs)

• À trois ans, elle est déjà propre la nuit. (At three, she’s already toilet trained at night.)

own (adjective: belonging to someone)

• Ils ont chacun leur propre bureau. (They each have their own office.)

own; (stronger) very own (adjective: coming from the person themself)

• C’était sa propre idée, personne ne l’a influencé. (It was his own idea; nobody influenced him.)

clean (adjective: environmentally friendly)

• La ville investit dans des transports plus propres. (The city is investing in cleaner transport.)

tidy; order (noun [m]: a neat version or fair copy)

• Avant de l’imprimer, j’ai mis le rapport au propre. (Before printing it, I put the report into a neat final version.)

grâce [gʀɑs]

(of person) grace; charm (noun [f]: an indefinable elegance or appeal)

• Elle se déplace avec une grâce naturelle. (She moves with a natural grace.)

gracefulness, grace (noun [f]: attractive quality in something)

• La grâce de ce dessin tient à sa simplicité. (The gracefulness of this drawing lies in its simplicity.)

pardon, mercy; grace (noun [f]: indulgence or absolution)

• Le tribunal a refusé toute grâce après le verdict. (The court refused any pardon after the verdict.)

through; by means of [sb/sth], thanks to [sb/sth]; because of [sb/sth] (adverbial phrase: indicating cause or means)

• Grâce à ton aide, on a terminé avant l’heure. (Thanks to your help, we finished ahead of time.)

idée [ide]

idea; thought; reflection (noun [f]: a thought or idea, figurative use can be “reflection”)

• En relisant les notes, j’ai eu une idée pour simplifier le plan. (While rereading the notes, I had an idea to simplify the plan.)

idea; thoughts (noun [f]: opinion or personal view)

• Son idée de la réussite ne correspond pas à la mienne. (His idea of success doesn’t match mine.)

idea, concept, conception, view (noun [f]: a concept or way of seeing something)

• L’idée d’un travail entièrement à distance semblait irréaliste il y a dix ans. (The idea of working entirely remotely seemed unrealistic ten years ago.)

idea, notion (noun [f]: a rough sense or approximate knowledge)

• J’ai une idée du budget nécessaire, même si ce n’est pas exact. (I have an idea of the budget needed, even if it isn’t exact.)

selon [s(ə)lɔ̃]

according to (preposition: based on a source or authority)

• Selon le rapport, les délais ont été réduits. (According to the report, the lead times were reduced.)

according to (preposition: depending on; as a function of)

• On adaptera l’horaire selon la météo. (We’ll adjust the schedule depending on the weather.)

according to (preposition: in line with what was observed or stated)

• Je déciderai selon ce que tu me diras demain. (I’ll decide based on what you tell me tomorrow.)

in accordance with, according to (preposition: in conformity with rules or principles)

• Il faut agir selon les règles internes. (We must act in accordance with the internal rules.)

according to whether; depending on whether (conjunction phrase: depending on a condition)

• Selon que tu préfères partir tôt ou tard, on prendra un autre train. (Depending on whether you prefer to leave early or late, we’ll take a different train.)

région [ʀeʒjɔ̃]

region (noun [f]: a defined geographical area)

• Cette plante se développe mieux dans les régions humides. (This plant grows better in humid regions.)

region, area, surrounding area (noun [f]: the area around a city or town)

• Je cherche un logement dans la région de Toulouse. (I’m looking for accommodation in the Toulouse area.)

region (noun [f]: an administrative subdivision)

• La Région a lancé un programme d’aide pour les transports. (The region launched an assistance programme for transport.)

Region (noun [f]: a federal entity in Belgium)

• La Région wallonne gère certaines compétences spécifiques. (The Walloon Region manages certain specific powers.)

region, area (noun [f]: a part of the body)

• J’ai une douleur dans la région du genou. (I have pain in the knee area.)

aimer [eme]

love; be in love with [sb] (transitive verb: romantic love)

• Il l’aime depuis des mois, mais il n’ose pas le lui dire. (He’s been in love with her for months, but he doesn’t dare tell her.)

love (transitive verb: feel deep affection or attachment)

• J’aime mes parents et je leur rends visite dès que je peux. (I love my parents and I visit them whenever I can.)

like; enjoy; love (transitive verb: like or enjoy something, with “love” as a stronger option)

• J’aime ce film et j’en parle souvent autour de moi. (I like this film and I talk about it often.)

like to do [sth], like doing [sth]; enjoy doing [sth] (verb phrase: enjoy doing an activity)

• Elle aime travailler tôt le matin, quand tout est calme. (She likes working early in the morning, when everything is quiet.)

like [sb] to do [sth], like [sb] doing [sth]; like it when [sb] does [sth]; like when [sb] does [sth] (transitive verb: prefer that someone does something)

• J’aime que tu me préviennes quand tu as du retard. (I like it when you let me know when you’re running late.)

love each other, love one another (reflexive verb: have mutual romantic feelings)

• Ils s’aiment et ça se voit dans leur façon de se regarder. (They love each other, and you can see it in the way they look at each other.)

love yourself; like yourself (reflexive verb: have self-acceptance or self-appreciation)

• Après des années de doutes, elle commence à s’aimer. (After years of doubt, she’s starting to love herself.)

sens [sɑ̃s]

direction (noun [m]: axis or directional orientation)

• Le panneau indique le sens est-ouest. (The sign indicates the east–west direction.)

way (noun [m]: orientation, especially for traffic flow)

• Dans ce quartier, plusieurs rues sont à sens unique. (In this neighbourhood, several streets are one-way.)

sense (noun [m]: a perceptive faculty)

• Le sens du toucher est essentiel dans ce métier. (The sense of touch is essential in this job.)

meaning; sense (noun [m]: the meaning of a word or expression)

• Je ne comprends pas le sens de cette phrase. (I don’t understand the meaning of this sentence.)

direction, way (noun [m]: the right direction in terms of actions or decisions)

• Ta proposition va dans le bon sens pour résoudre le problème. (Your proposal is a move in the right direction to solve the problem.)

sense, feeling (noun [m]: intuitive appreciation or aptitude)

• Elle a le sens du rythme et apprend vite. (She has a feeling for rhythm and learns quickly.)

meaning (noun [m]: purpose or reason for being)

• Pour lui, aider les autres donne un sens à sa vie. (For him, helping others gives meaning to his life.)

retrouver [ʀ(ə)tʀuve]

find (transitive verb: locate something that was lost)

• J’ai enfin retrouvé mes clés sous le canapé. (I finally found my keys under the sofa.)

find [sth/sb] again (transitive verb: locate something that was lost)

• On a retrouvé le même serveur qu’en vacances l’an dernier. (We found the same waiter again as last year on holiday.)

turn up (intransitive verb: lost object)

• On a retrouvé le dossier par hasard, il avait fini dans une autre chemise. (The file turned up by chance; it had ended up in another folder.)

track [sth/sb] down (transitive verb: person or thing)

• Les journalistes ont retrouvé l’auteur de la vidéo en quelques heures. (The journalists tracked the author of the video down in a few hours.)

encounter [sb/sth] again (transitive verb: come across again)

• Je l’ai retrouvé dans un petit café, des années plus tard. (I encountered him again in a small café years later.)

meet [sth/sb] again (transitive verb: face again)

• Cette équipe retrouvera son rival en finale. (That team will meet its rival again in the final.)

find new [sth] (transitive verb: find again after losing)

• Après la fermeture de l’usine, il a dû retrouver un travail rapidement. (After the factory closed, he had to find a new job quickly.)

find another [sth], find a new [sth] (transitive verb: replace what was lost)

• Si ce billet est invalide, on retrouvera une autre solution. (If that ticket is invalid, we’ll find another solution.)

find [sth] again (transitive verb: find once more)

• J’ai retrouvé le document sur le site officiel. (I found the document again on the official website.)

get [sth/sb] back (transitive verb: regain a state or feeling)

• Avec du repos, elle a retrouvé toute son énergie. (With some rest, she got all her energy back.)

rediscover (transitive verb: regain a feeling or desire)

• En voyage, il a retrouvé le goût de lire. (While travelling, he rediscovered his desire to read.)

remember (transitive verb: recall)

• Je n’arrive pas à retrouver son prénom. (I can’t remember his first name.)

find (transitive verb: words)

• Sous le stress, elle ne retrouvait plus ses mots. (Under stress, she couldn’t find her words anymore.)

get back to [sb/sth] (transitive verb: return to someone or something)

• Après les fêtes, j’étais content de retrouver mon bureau. (After the holidays, I was happy to get back to my desk.)

see [sb/sth] again (transitive verb: meet again)

• Ça m’a fait plaisir de retrouver mes anciens collègues. (It was nice to see my former colleagues again.)

meet (transitive verb: arrange to meet someone)

• Je te retrouve à l’entrée du musée à 14 h. (I’ll meet you at the museum entrance at 2 pm.)

meet up with [sb] (transitive verb: arrange to meet someone)

• On se retrouve où, avant le concert ? (Where are we meeting up before the concert?)

meet again, meet [sb] again, find [sb] again (reflexive verb: be together again)

• Après dix ans, ils se sont enfin retrouvés. (After ten years, they finally met again.)

come together again (reflexive verb: be together again)

• Toute la famille s’est retrouvée pour les fêtes. (The whole family came together again for the holidays.)

meet (reflexive verb: meet up with someone)

• On se retrouve devant la gare dans cinq minutes. (Let’s meet in front of the station in five minutes.)

meet each other, meet one another (reflexive verb: meet up with someone)

• Ils se sont retrouvés par hasard dans la même salle d’attente. (They met each other by chance in the same waiting room.)

find yourself (reflexive verb: suddenly become something)

• Je me suis retrouvé responsable du projet du jour au lendemain. (I found myself responsible for the project overnight.)

end up (reflexive verb: suddenly become something)

• Sans plan, on s’est retrouvés à travailler tout le week-end. (Without a plan, we ended up working all weekend.)

find yourself [somewhere] (reflexive verb: end up in a place)

• En suivant la mauvaise sortie, je me suis retrouvé dans un village inconnu. (By taking the wrong exit, I found myself in an unfamiliar village.)

end up [somewhere] (reflexive verb: end up in a place)

• On a pris un raccourci et on s’est retrouvés au bord d’un champ. (We took a shortcut and ended up at the edge of a field.)

get your bearings (reflexive verb: orient yourself in a place)

• Dans cette ville, je ne me retrouve pas sans GPS. (In this city, I can’t get my bearings without GPS.)

find your way around (reflexive verb: orient yourself in a place)

• Il m’a fallu deux jours pour me retrouver dans le nouveau quartier. (It took me two days to find my way around the new neighbourhood.)

get your bearings (reflexive verb: find your bearings)

• Avec toutes ces options, j’ai du mal à m’y retrouver. (With all these options, I’m having trouble getting my bearings.)

be found (reflexive verb: appear again; recur)

• On retrouve ce thème dans plusieurs chapitres du livre. (This theme is also found in several chapters of the book.)

semaine [s(ə)mɛn]

week (noun [f]: seven-day period)

• Une semaine compte sept jours. (A week has seven days.)

weekdays; during the week (noun [f]: working days as opposed to the weekend)

• Le magasin est fermé le dimanche, mais il est ouvert en semaine. (The shop is closed on Sundays, but it is open on weekdays.)

week (noun [f]: working week measured in hours)

• Dans cette entreprise, la semaine est de 35 heures. (In this company, the working week is 35 hours.)

également [egalmɑ̃]

also; too; as well (adverb: in addition)

• Je prendrai un café, et elle viendra également. (I’ll have a coffee, and she’ll come too.)

equally (adverb: to the same degree)

• Ces deux solutions sont également efficaces. (These two solutions are equally effective.)

ci

this; here (adverb: used to indicate proximity)

• Je préfère cette option-ci plutôt que l’autre. (I prefer this option here rather than the other one.)

here (adverb: used in compounds meaning “here”)

• Veuillez consulter ci-dessous la liste des documents nécessaires. (Please see below for the list of required documents.)