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1 Shops, trades and professions
In English you can say at the baker’s or at the baker’s shop ; in French the construction with chez (at the house or premises of…) is common but you can also use the name of the particular shop:at the baker’s= chez le boulanger or à la boulangerieI’m going to the grocer’s= je vais chez l’épicier or à l’épicerieI bought it at the fishmonger’s= je l’ai acheté chez le poissonnier or à la poissonneriego to the chemist’s= va à la pharmacie or chez le pharmacienat or to the hairdresser’s= chez le coiffeur/la coiffeuseto work in a butcher’s= travailler dans une boucherieChez is also used with the names of professions:at or to the doctor’s= chez le médecinat or to the lawyer’s= chez le notaireat or to the dentist’s= chez le dentisteNote that there are specific names for the place of work of some professions:the lawyer’s office= l’étude f du notairethe doctor’s surgery (GB) or office (US)= le cabinet du médecinCabinet is also used for architects and dentists. If in doubt, check in the dictionary.PeopleTalking of someone’s profession, we could say he is a dentist. In French this would be either il est dentiste or c’est un dentiste. Only when the sentence begins with c’est, can the indefinite article (un or une) be used.Paul is a dentist= Paul est dentisteshe is a dentist= elle est dentiste or c’est une dentisteshe’s a geography teacher= elle est professeur de géographie or c’est un professeur de géographieWith adjectives, only the c’est construction is possible:she is a good dentist= c’est une bonne dentisteIn the plural, if the construction begins with ce sont then you need to use des (or de before an adjective):they are mechanics= ils sont mécaniciens or ce sont des mécaniciensthey are good mechanics= ce sont de bons mécaniciensTrades and professionswhat does he do?= qu’est-ce qu’il fait?what’s your job?= qu’est-ce que vous faites dans la vie?I’m a teacher= je suis professeurto work as a dentist= travailler comme dentisteto work for an electrician= travailler pour un électriciento be paid as a mechanic= être payé comme mécanicienhe wants to be a baker= il veut devenir boulangerBig English-French dictionary > Shops, trades and professions
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2 ear nose and throat specialist
ear nose and throat specialist, ENT specialist ⇒ Shops, trades and professions n oto-rhino-laryngologiste mf.Big English-French dictionary > ear nose and throat specialist
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3 fish and chip shop
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4 Health and Safety Inspector
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5 time-and-motion expert
time-and-motion expert ⇒ Shops, trades and professions n spécialiste mf de l'organisation scientifique du travail. -
6 Usage note : be
I am tired= je suis fatiguéCaroline is French= Caroline est françaisethe children are in the garden= les enfants sont dans le jardinIt functions in very much the same way as to be does in English and it is safe to assume it will work as a translation in the great majority of cases.Note, however, that when you are specifying a person’s profession or trade, a/an is not translated:she’s a doctor= elle est médecinClaudie is still a student= Claudie est toujours étudianteThis is true of any noun used in apposition when the subject is a person:he’s a widower= il est veufButLyons is a beautiful city= Lyon est une belle villeFor more information or expressions involving professions and trades consult the usage note Shops, Trades and Professions.For the conjugation of the verb être see the French verb tables.Grammatical functionsThe passiveêtre is used to form the passive in French just as to be is used in English. Note, however, that the past participle agrees in gender and number with the subject:the rabbit was killed by a fox= le lapin a été tué par un renardthe window had been broken= la fenêtre avait été casséetheir books will be sold= leurs livres seront vendusour doors have been repainted red= nos portes ont été repeintes en rougeIn spoken language, French native speakers find the passive cumbersome and will avoid it where possible by using the impersonal on where a person or people are clearly involved : on a repeint nos portes en rouge.Progressive tensesIn French the idea of something happening over a period of time cannot be expressed using the verb être in the way that to be is used as an auxiliary verb in English.The presentFrench uses simply the present tense where English uses the progressive form with to be:I am working= je travailleBen is reading a book= Ben lit un livreIn order to accentuate duration être en train de is used: je suis en train de travailler ; Ben est en train de lire un livre.The futureFrench also uses the present tense where English uses the progressive form with to be:we are going to London tomorrow= nous allons à Londres demainI’m (just) coming!= j’arrive!I’m (just) going!= j’y vais!The pastTo express the distinction between she read a newspaper and she was reading a newspaper French uses the perfect and the imperfect tenses: elle a lu un journal/elle lisait un journal:he wrote to his mother= il a écrit à sa mèrehe was writing to his mother= il écrivait à sa mèreHowever, in order to accentuate the notion of describing an activity which went on over a period of time, the phrase être en train de (= to be in the process of) is often used:‘what was he doing when you arrived?’‘he was cooking the dinner’= ‘qu’est-ce qu’il faisait quand tu es arrivé?’ ‘il était en train de préparer le dîner’she was just finishing her essay when …= elle était juste en train de finir sa dissertation quand …The compound pastCompound past tenses in the progressive form in English are generally translated by the imperfect in French:I’ve been looking for you= je te cherchaisFor progressive forms + for and since (I’ve been waiting for an hour, I had been waiting for an hour, I’ve been waiting since Monday etc.) see the entries for and since.ObligationWhen to be is used as an auxiliary verb with another verb in the infinitive ( to be to do) expressing obligation, a fixed arrangement or destiny, devoir is used:she’s to do it at once= elle doit le faire tout de suitewhat am I to do?= qu’est-ce que je dois faire?he was to arrive last Monday= il devait arriver lundi derniershe was never to see him again= elle ne devait plus le revoir.In tag questionsFrench has no direct equivalent of tag questions like isn’t he? or wasn’t it? There is a general tag question n’est-ce pas? (literally isn’t it so?) which will work in many cases:their house is lovely, isn’t it?= leur maison est très belle, n’est-ce pas?he’s a doctor, isn’t he?= il est médecin, n’est-ce pas?it was a very good meal, wasn’t it?= c’était un très bon repas, n’est-ce pas?However, n’est-ce pas can very rarely be used for positive tag questions and some other way will be found to express the extra meaning contained in the tag: par hasard ( by any chance) can be very useful as a translation:‘I can’t find my glasses’ ‘they’re not in the kitchen, are they?’= ‘je ne trouve pas mes lunettes’ ‘elles ne sont pas dans la cuisine, par hasard?’you haven’t seen Gaby, have you?= tu n’as pas vu Gaby, par hasard?In cases where an opinion is being sought, si? meaning more or less or is it? or was it? etc. can be useful:it’s not broken, is it?= ce n’est pas cassé, si?he wasn’t serious, was he?= il n’était pas sérieux, si?In many other cases the tag question is simply not translated at all and the speaker’s intonation will convey the implied question.In short answersAgain, there is no direct equivalent for short answers like yes I am, no he’s not etc. Where the answer yes is given to contradict a negative question or statement, the most useful translation is si:‘you’re not going out tonight’ ‘yes I am’= ‘tu ne sors pas ce soir’ ‘si’In reply to a standard enquiry the tag will not be translated:‘are you a doctor?’ ‘yes I am’= ‘êtes-vous médecin?’ ‘oui’‘was it raining?’ ‘yes it was’= ‘est-ce qu’il pleuvait?’ ‘oui’ProbabilityFor expressions of probability and supposition ( if I were you etc.) see the entry be.Other functionsExpressing sensations and feelingsIn expressing physical and mental sensations, the verb used in French is avoir:to be cold= avoir froidto be hot= avoir chaudI’m cold= j’ai froidto be thirsty= avoir soifto be hungry= avoir faimto be ashamed= avoir hontemy hands are cold= j’ai froid aux mainsIf, however, you are in doubt as to which verb to use in such expressions, you should consult the entry for the appropriate adjective.Discussing health and how people areIn expressions of health and polite enquiries about how people are, aller is used:how are you?= comment allez-vous?( more informally) comment vas-tu?( very informally as a greeting) ça va?are you well?= vous allez bien?how is your daughter?= comment va votre fille?my father is better today= mon père va mieux aujourd’huiDiscussing weather and temperatureIn expressions of weather and temperature faire is generally used:it’s cold= il fait froidit’s windy= il fait du ventIf in doubt, consult the appropriate adjective entry.Visiting somewhereWhen to be is used in the present perfect tense to mean go, visit etc., French will generally use the verbs venir, aller etc. rather than être:I’ve never been to Sweden= je ne suis jamais allé en Suèdehave you been to the Louvre?= est-ce que tu es déjà allé au Louvre?or est-ce que tu as déjà visité le Louvre?Paul has been to see us three times= Paul est venu nous voir trois foisNote too:has the postman been?= est-ce que le facteur est passé?The translation for an expression or idiom containing the verb to be will be found in the dictionary at the entry for another word in the expression: for to be in danger see danger, for it would be best to … see best etc.This dictionary contains usage notes on topics such as the clock, time units, age, weight measurement, days of the week, and shops, trades and professions, many of which include translations of particular uses of to be. -
7 shop
A n1 ( where goods are sold) magasin m ; (small, fashionable) boutique f ; to work in/open a shop travailler dans/ouvrir un magasin ; to go to the shops aller faire les courses ; he's out at the shops il est sorti faire les courses ; to set up shop lit, fig s'installer ; he set up shop as a photographer fig il s'est installé comme photographe ; to shut up shop ○ lit, fig fermer boutique ;5 ○ GB ( shopping) to do the weekly shop faire les courses pour la semaine ; to do a big shop faire le plein ○.C vi ( p prés etc - pp-) faire ses courses ; to be shopping for sth vouloir acheter qch ; to go shopping gen aller faire des courses ; ( as browser) aller faire les magasins ; to go shopping for sth aller acheter qch.all over the shop ○ GB fig partout ; to talk shop parler boutique ; you've come to the wrong shop GB vous vous trompez d'adresse.■ shop around ( compare prices) faire le tour des magasins (for pour trouver) ; fig (compare courses, services etc) bien chercher ; if you shop around, you'll find the best course en cherchant bien vous trouverez le meilleur cours. -
8 attendant
A n1 ⇒ Shops, trades and professions (in cloakroom, museum, car park) gardien/-ienne m/f ; ( in cinema) ouvreuse f ; ( at petrol station) pompiste mf ; ( at swimming pool) surveillant/-e m/f ; medical attendant membre m du personnel médical ;3 †( servant) domestique mf. -
9 baker
1 ( who makes bread) boulanger/-ère m/f ; ( who makes bread and cakes) boulanger-pâtissier/boulangère-pâtissière m/f ;a baker's dozen treize à la douzaine. -
10 checker
A n1 ( employee) vérificateur/-trice m/f ;4 US ( attendant) ( in left-luggage) préposé/-e m/f à la consigne ; ( in cloakroom) préposé/-e m/f au vestiaire ; -
11 cowboy
A n1 ⇒ Shops, trades and professions US cowboy m ; to play cowboys and indians jouer aux cowboys et aux indiens ;B modif1 [boots, hat, film] de cowboy ;2 péj [workman] fumiste ; [practices] non-professionnel/-elle ; [company, outfit] pas sérieux/-ieuse. -
12 doctor
A n1 Med médecin m, docteur m ; thank you, doctor merci, docteur ; to go to the doctor('s) aller chez le médecin ; she's a doctor elle est médecin ; who is your doctor? qui est votre médecin (traitant)? ; he trained as a doctor il a fait des études de médecine ; to be under a doctor GB être suivi par un médecin ; Doctor Armstrong le docteur Armstrong ; to play doctors and nurses jouer au docteur ;2 Univ docteur m.B vtrthat's just what the doctor ordered! c'est exactement ce qu'il me/te etc fallait! -
13 painter
2 Naut amarre f. -
14 solicitor
1 GB Jur (for documents, oaths) ≈ notaire m ; ( for court and police work) ≈ avocat/-e m/f ; the family solicitor le notaire de famille ; the company solicitor l'avocat de la société ; a firm of solicitors ≈ un cabinet d'avocats ; you'll be hearing from my solicitor ( menacingly) vous aurez affaire à mon avocat ;2 US Jur ( chief law officer) chargé des affaires juridiques auprès de la municipalité (or du département d'État) ; -
15 stockman
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16 accommodation officer
accommodation officer GB, accommodations officer US ⇒ Shops, trades and professions n responsable mf de l'hébergement. -
17 accordionist
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18 accountant
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19 acrobat
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20 actuary
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