Learn how to use the verb "to know"
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Jason: Are You Ready to Part with your Hard-earned Cash for French Fashion? C’est Jason. Jason here! |
| Ingrid: Bonjour à tous, Ingrid here! |
| Jason: In this lesson, we're going to learn how to use the verb “to know” in French. It will be very useful to talk about things you know, you can do, or things you don’t know. |
| Ingrid: We will have a closer look at the verb “savoir,” which is used in French not only to talk about your knowledge, but also to talk about the things you are able to do. |
| Jason: So we will see that in French “to know” has some interesting extended meanings. So, what’s our conversation about, Ingrid? Where does it take place? |
| Ingrid: The conversation is in a special Parisian store called “Grand magasin” and you will hear two new characters in this lesson. One of who is called Philippe and he is choosing a new pair of jeans with his friend Tristan. |
| Jason: And of course, as they are friends, they will speak informal French. |
| Ingrid: So, let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| 1st time: natural native speed: |
| (In a “Grand Magasin of Paris, clients and announcement sounds) |
| Philippe: Tristan, sais-tu combien coûte ce jean? Ce n'est pas marqué sur l'étiquette. |
| Tristan; Non, je ne sais pas, demande au vendeur il saura lui! |
| Philippe: Monsieur s'il vous plait, savez-vous combien coûte ce jean? Je ne sais pas où est le prix! |
| Vendeur: Oui il coûte 400€. |
| Philippe: 400€! Je sais que c’est une grande marque, mais quand même! |
| Vendeur: Mais vous savez, c’est la toute nouvelle collection, c’est pour ca! |
| (1 time slowly) |
| Philippe: Tristan, sais-tu combien coûte ce jean? Ce n'est pas marqué sur l'étiquette. |
| Tristan; Non, je ne sais pas, demande au vendeur il saura lui! |
| Philippe: Monsieur s'il vous plait, savez-vous combien coûte ce jean? Je ne sais pas où est le prix! |
| Vendeur: Oui il coûte 400€. |
| Philippe: 400€! Je sais que c’est une grande marque, mais quand même! |
| Vendeur: Mais vous savez, c’est la toute nouvelle collection, c’est pour ca! |
| (1 time natural native speed with the translation) |
| Philippe: Tristan, sais-tu combien coûte ce jean? Ce n'est pas marqué sur l'étiquette. |
| Tristan, Do you know how much these jeans are? It is not written on the tag. |
| Tristan; Non, je ne sais pas, demande au vendeur il saura lui! |
| No, I don’t know, ask the sales-assistant, he will know it! |
| Philippe: Monsieur s'il vous plait, savez-vous combien coûte ce jean? Je ne sais pas où est le prix! |
| Please sir, do you know how much these jeans are? I don’t know where the price is! |
| Vendeur: Oui il coûte 400€. |
| Yes it is 400 euros. |
| Philippe: 400€! Je sais que c’est une grande marque, mais quand même! |
| 400 euros! I know it is a famous brand, but still! |
| Vendeur: Mais vous savez, c’est la toute nouvelle collection, c’est pour ca! |
| But you know, it is the brand new collection, that’s why! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Jason: So Ingrid I’m eager to learn more about the store where Philippe and Tristan are shopping, what is it called? |
| Ingrid: They are in a “Grand Magasin” which is a real institution in Paris! Today, there are 3 main “grands magasins” in Paris that were all built in the 19th century. There were initially created to sell many kinds of products in a same place. The inside decoration is quite amazing so that’s why it is worth to go there, even if you don't like shopping! |
| Jason: And if you love shopping, what can you buy in these stores? |
| Ingrid: These big stores sell many diverse kinds of products such as clothes, household items, books and cosmetics. But they have one common point; they tend to be quite expensive because they mainly sell famous French luxury brands that only very rich tourists can afford! |
| Jason: So is it still possible to purchase something there? |
| Ingrid: Yes of course, you can go from time to times to buy an original designer item for example but the best moment to go there is during “les soldes”("sale" in English) in January or June. During this period, many Parisians are rushing there to get designer brands with 50 or even 70% discount. |
| Jason: And where can you find these stores in Paris? |
| Ingrid: The two most famous ones, called “les Galeries Lafayette” and “Le Printemps” are side by side on the same sidewalk of the Haussmann boulevard in The 9th arrondissement of Paris. The third one is in the 7th arrondissement in a very posh district. |
| Jason: So do you have any final advice for our listeners if they want to go there? |
| Ingrid: If you are a non-resident, don’t forget to ask for the “detaxe” that will give you a 12% discount! |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| The first word we shall see is: |
| Combien coute [natural native speed] |
| How much |
| Combien coute [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Combien coute [natural native speed] |
| Next: |
| Marqué [natural native speed] |
| Written |
| Marqué [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Marqué [natural native speed] |
| Etiquette [natural native speed] |
| A label/a tag |
| Etiquette [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Etiquette [natural native speed] |
| Il coute [natural native speed] |
| It costs |
| Il coute [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Il coute [natural native speed] |
| Acheter [natural native speed] |
| To buy |
| Acheter [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Acheter [natural native speed] |
| Grande marque [natural native speed] |
| Famous brand |
| Grande marque [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Grande marque [natural native speed] |
| Mais quand même! [natural native speed] |
| But still! |
| Mais quand même! [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Mais quand même! [natural native speed] |
| Vous savez [natural native speed] |
| You know |
| Vous savez [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Vous savez [natural native speed] |
| Tout nouvelle [natural native speed] |
| Brand new |
| Tout nouvelle [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Tout nouvelle [natural native speed] |
| C’est pour ca! [natural native speed] |
| That’s why! |
| C’est pour ca! [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| C’est pour ca! [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 on the interesting interrogative expression “combien coute” that is the French way to ask “how much.” |
| Ingrid: Yes, this is an indispensable expression if you travel to France. For example if you want to know the price of a bag, you just have to ask: “combien coute le sac?” so the pattern is very simple you just say “combien coute” + the thing you are interested in. |
| Jason: Can you please repeat it slowly? |
| Ingrid: {slowly} «Combien coute le sac? » |
| Jason: Now at natural speed? |
| Ingrid: {natural speed} “Combien coute le sac?” |
| Jason: So what is next? |
| Ingrid: The answer to our previous question, which is “Le sac coute 150 euros,” which means “it costs 150 euros”. |
| Jason: Can you explain the pattern? |
| Ingrid: The pattern is “Le sac coute” that means “the bag costs” + the price of it. If you don’t need to repeat the name of the bag you can just say “Il coute 150 euros”, replacing “sac” with “il” that is the pronoun for it. |
| Jason: I think that’s clear. So what if a sales assistant tells you “These shoes cost 100 euros?” |
| Ingrid: He will say “Ces chaussures coutent 100 euros” Here, be careful to conjugate the verb “to cost” according to the subject: if it is plural, for example, “shoes” you have to use the 3rd plural form of the verb too. |
| Jason: Okay, so a good job done here, these are certainly sentences that you will use a lot in France! |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Jason: In this lesson, you'll learn how to use the verb “to know” in French. Then, you will be able to say things like “I know that” or “Do you know that…?” or also “I don’t know” |
| Ingrid: Yes, in French “to know” is “savoir” and you will see this verb can both be used to talk about something you know, as in information, but also when you know how to do something, when you are able to do a thing. |
| Jason: Okay so let’s start with the expression “I know”, how can you say that in French? |
| Ingrid: You say “Je sais”. |
| Jason: Can you repeat it please? |
| Ingrid: {Slowly} “Je sais” |
| Jason: And now at natural speed |
| Ingrid: {natural speed} “Je sais” |
| Jason: And if you don’t know, what is it? |
| Ingrid: It will be « Je ne sais pas » |
| Jason: Great so now can you tell us a bit more about this expression? |
| Ingrid: The expression “Je sais” means of course “I know” but you can also use it to confirm something that you have been told, as in “yes I know”, for example someone tells you “La reunion commence a 6h” you can answer “Je sais”, meaning you know but also implying you will attend. |
| Jason: Very useful to know that. So, what is the next expression? |
| Ingrid: It is “to know that” followed by something. It is used when you want to say that you are aware of something. For example, Philippe said in our conversation “Je sais que c’est une grande marque” which is “I know it is a famous brand” |
| Jason: How does this pattern work? Is it different from English? |
| Ingrid: The sentence “Je sais que c’est une grande marque” works with the verb “savoir” conjugated in 1st person singular, and that is “Je sais” + the little junction word “que” that is used to link the verb and the rest of the sentence. And then of course you add the thing you are aware of, which here is “c’est une grande marque” |
| Jason: And what is the little word “que” it seems it is the equivalent of English word “that” no? As in ‘I know that it is a famous brand” |
| Ingrid: Exactly Jason, but as you know, in English the junction “that” is most often omitted. In French, this junction “que” is mandatory so you can't forget it! |
| Jason: We will try hard not to! So listeners, don’t forget the junction word here! |
| Ingrid: I give you another example “Je sais que je suis en retard” meaning “I know I am late.” Here too the que is used, |
| Jason: Great so now there are no excuses if you forget it! The last expression with the verb “to know” is? |
| Ingrid: It is “savoir” verb + an interrogative adjective as in “Je ne sais pas ou est le prix” which means “I don’t know where the price is”. In this case, you can directly add an interrogative adjective after “savoir” verb to ask or to wonder a question. In this case, you don’t have to use the word “que” |
| Jason: Okay so now, let’s see a specific meaning of verb “to know” in French… right? |
| Ingrid: Yes, this verb in French can also allow you to say that you are able to do something, that you know how to do it. In this case, the pattern is “savoir” verb + infinitive verb, as in “Je sais nager” which is “I can swim”. |
| Jason: Interesting, so here, “to know” is a synonym of “can” in English? |
| Ingrid: Yes you are right, it is used to tell someone you are able to do something “special”, like an activity or a sport. You can also use it to talk about something you have been taught and that you are able to do now, as in “Je sais bien danser” which means “I am good at dancing.” |
Outro |
| Jason: Great job! So listeners, have a look at the lesson notes to get many more examples and useful details about these expressions! |
| Ingrid: A bientot everybody! |
| Jason: See you soon, a bientot! |
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