Learn how to talk in French about things that are currently under way
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Jason: A Handywoman in France! C’est Jason. Jason here! |
| Ingrid: Bonjour à tous, Ingrid here! |
| Jason: In this lesson, we're going to learn how to use the present progressive form in French, to talk about things that are currently under way. |
| Ingrid: Yes. It is like with the English form with the “Verb to be + ing” as in “I am eating” |
| Jason: This is very useful! And what will be the topic of our conversation today? |
| Ingrid: The conversation will be between Karine and Sophie, our two famous roommates. Karine decided to redecorate her room so this will be a big challenge, I guess! |
| Jason: And of course, as they live together and are friends, they will speak informal French. Let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| 1st time: natural native speed: |
| Karine(entering in Sophie’s bedroom): Bonjour Sophie, je ne te dérange pas j'espère, qu'est-ce que tu es en train de faire? |
| Sophie: Je suis en train de monter un meuble mais j'ai besoin de prendre une pause! |
| Karine: Tu es en train de monter un meuble toute seule? |
| Sophie: Oui, je suis en train de refaire ma chambre et j'ai acheté une nouvelle étagère. |
| Karine: Et bien, il est vraiment temps que tu te trouves un copain toi! |
| (1 time slowly) |
| Karine(entering in Sophie’s bedroom): Bonjour Sophie, je ne te dérange pas j'espère, qu'est-ce que tu es en train de faire? |
| Sophie: Je suis en train de monter un meuble mais j'ai besoin de prendre une pause! |
| Karine: Tu es en train de monter un meuble toute seule? |
| Sophie: Oui, je suis en train de refaire ma chambre et j'ai acheté une nouvelle étagère. |
| Karine: Et bien, il est vraiment temps que tu te trouves un copain toi! |
| (1 time natural native speed with the translation) |
| Karine (entering in Sophie’s bedroom): Bonjour Sophie, je ne te dérange pas j'espère, qu'est-ce que tu es en train de faire? |
| Hi Sophie, I hope I don’t disturb you, what are you doing? |
| Sophie: Je suis en train de monter un meuble mais j'ai besoin de prendre une pause! |
| I am assembling a piece of furniture but I need to have a break now! |
| Karine: Tu es en train de monter un meuble toute seule? |
| You are assembling a piece of furniture all alone? |
| Sophie: Oui, je suis en train de refaire ma chambre et j'ai acheté une nouvelle étagère. |
| Yes, I am redecorating my bedroom so I bought a new shelf. |
| Karine: Et bien, il est vraiment temps que tu te trouves un copain toi! |
| Well, it is really time for you to find a boyfriend! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Jason: So Ingrid, do you love do-it-yourself activities? |
| Ingrid: Hum… How could I say… I’m just clumsy so I break more things than I fix! |
| Jason: But is it true that French now consider do-it-yourself activities as a hobby? |
| Ingrid: Yes it is true, more and more French people are starting to do DIY on Sundays as it is the new fashionable hobby in France. |
| Jason: And what is the translation for “doing DIY" in French? |
| Ingrid: We say “faire du bricolage” and the funny thing is that now it is not considered a chore anymore to fix or to decorate your house. On the contrary, it is a way to relax yourself! |
| Jason: And what about women? Are they also enthusiastic to try DIY? |
| Ingrid: Of course! And this is even the most surprising because French women are those who are the most eager to do manual work. This phenomenon is so important that now, even TV shows on weekends are dedicated to decoration and DIY tuitions. You can learn how to fix a door or to redecorate their living room easily. |
| Jason: Really? But why do you think it is so popular? |
| Ingrid: I think there are two main reasons, First, because it is obviously less expensive than to ask to a professional. Secondly, because it matches with the new tendency to make things alone and to have customized objects. |
| Jason: I see! So if you are coming to France, you know where you have to go on weekends to meet people… go to a DIY store! |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| The first word we shall see is: |
| Déranger [natural native speed] |
| To disturb, to bother |
| Déranger [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Déranger [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Monter un meuble [natural native speed] |
| To assemble a piece of furniture |
| Monter un meuble [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Monter un meuble [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Toute seule [natural native speed] |
| All alone/on your own |
| Toute seule [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Toute seule [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Refaire sa chambre [natural native speed] |
| To redecorate one’s bedroom |
| Refaire sa chambre [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Refaire sa chambre [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Acheter [natural native speed] |
| To buy |
| Acheter [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Acheter [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Nouvelle [natural native speed] |
| New |
| Nouvelle [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Nouvelle [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Étagère [natural native speed] |
| Shelf |
| Étagère[slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Étagère [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Copain [natural native speed] |
| Boyfriend/friend |
| Copain [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Copain [natural native speed |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Let's have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases |
| from this lesson. |
| Jason: So first let’s have a look at an interesting verb that can both mean “to disturb” and “to bother”. |
| Ingrid: Yes, this verb is “déranger” in French. The first meaning is “to disturb” as we heard in our dialog when Karine is asking to Sophie “J’espère que je ne te derange pas?” meaning “I hope I don’t disturb you?” |
| Jason: So here, Karine is saying that because she is entering in Karine’s bedroom. But in which other situations can you use this expression? |
| Ingrid: You can say “J’espère que je ne te derange pas” when you want to apologize for your coming or for your call., You can often hear this when someone you don’t know very well is calling you on the phone, he will say it as an introduction. In this case he will the formal form “J’espère que je ne vous derange pas”. |
| Jason: Also, I guess you will encounter this verb if you are going to a hotel, when it is written “do not disturb”. What will be the translation? |
| Ingrid: The translation will be « ne pas déranger » |
| Jason: Can you repeat it slowly please? |
| Ingrid: {slowly} Ne pas deranger |
| Jason: Now in natural speed? |
| Ingrid: {natural speed} Ne pas deranger |
| Jason: Great, so this a very useful expression when you want to be polite. What is next? |
| Ingrid: Next is the word “copain” that is the familiar word for “friend” when talking about a male. |
| Jason: How is it for a female friend? |
| Ingrid: It is “copine” as in “ c’est ma meilleure copine” that is “she is my best friend” |
| Jason: Great and you said it initially meant “friend” what did you mean about “initially”? |
| Ingrid: Yes because now, “copain” or “copine” can also mean “boyfriend” and “girlfriend”, as it is a abbreviation for “petit-copain” or “petite-copine” which also means “boyfriend/girlfriend” |
| Jason: But how do you know when people are talking about their friends or their fiancé? It must be difficult! |
| Ingrid: Yes it is a bit confusing indeed. But here is a tip to recognize the topic: if the person says “mon copain” or “ma copine” she or he is likely to be talking about her fiancé as the possessive pronoun implies it is not a friend in general. On the contrary, if someone says “C’est un copain” here the indefinite pronoun implies it is a friend in general so it is just a friend! |
| Jason: This is not very easy for foreigners, but it is not always very clear for French people either, so if you have a doubt, do not hesitate to ask the question directly—it could avoid some misunderstandings! |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Jason: In this lesson, you'll learn how to express that an action is under way, that it is currently happening. |
| Ingrid: Yes this form is called the gerundive, we could say it is the equivalent of “Verb to be + ing” in English. In French we use the pattern “être en train de” which literally means “to be in progress of” |
| Jason: And how does this pattern works? |
| Ingrid: So for example, in our dialog we had “Qu’est-ce que tu es en train de faire?” that means ”What are you doing?” here you have to conjugate the verb "to be” and to add “en train de” + infinitive verb you want. |
| Jason: Can you repeat it please? |
| Ingrid: {Slowly} “Qu’est-ce que tu es en train de faire?” |
| Jason: And now at natural speed |
| Ingrid: {natural speed} “Qu’est-ce que tu es en train de faire?” |
| Jason: Okay so, I guess Sophie answers this question following the same pattern, no? |
| Ingrid: Yes, she says “Je suis en train de monter un meuble” which is « I am assembling a piece of furniture » |
| Jason: Could you also repeat this sentence slowly please? |
| Ingrid: {slowly} “Je suis en train de monter un meuble” |
| Jason: And now at natural speed |
| Ingrid: {natural speed} “Je suis en train de monter un meuble” So here the pattern is: first the verb « to be » that is conjugated at the 1st person singular « Je suis » + « en train d’ » + the infinitive verb « assembler » |
| Jason: Great, can you give us some other examples? |
| Ingrid: You can say « Je suis en train de manger » to say « I am eating » here also you have verb « to be » conjugated + « en train de » + infinitive verb that defines the action, here it is « manger » |
| Jason: And what is the result in the negative form? |
| Ingrid: For example you can say “Il n’est pas en train de mentir” that means “ He is not lying” here you just have the negative form of verb “être” at 3rd person singular “Il n’est pas”+ the pattern “en train de” + infinitive verb “mentir” that is “to lie” |
| Jason: So now you can talk about many things that you are or are not currently doing, that’s very nice! |
Outro |
| Jason: Okay, everyone. I think that's going to do it for this lesson. |
| Ingrid: See you next time! A bientôt! |
| Jason: A bientôt! |
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