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1 here
here [hɪər]1. adverba. ici━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► French speakers very often use là instead of the more correct ici.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• Mr Moore is not here just now M. Moore n'est pas là en ce moment• are you there? -- yes I'm here vous êtes là ? -- oui je suis là• I'm here to help! à votre service !b.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► When here is used to make an announcement or an introduction, it is usually translated voilà; voici is slightly more formal.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• here we are at last! nous voilà enfin arrivés !• here you are! (giving sth) voilà !• here goes! (inf) allons-y !• here we go again! c'est reparti ! (inf)► preposition + here• in here please par ici, s'il vous plaît• here, there and everywhere un peu partout► neither here nor there• I must warn you here and now that... il faut que je vous prévienne tout de suite que...► here's to...• here's to you! à la tienne ! à la vôtre !• here's to your success! à votre succès !2. exclamation• here, I didn't promise that at all! dites donc, je n'ai jamais promis cela !• here, you try to open it! (inf) tiens, essaie de l'ouvrir !* * *Note: When here is used to indicate the location of an object/point etc close to the speaker, it is generally translated by ici: come and sit here = viens t'asseoir iciWhen the location is not so clearly defined, là is the usual translation: he's not here at the moment = il n'est pas là pour l'instantRemember that voici is used to translate here is and here are when the speaker is drawing attention to an object/a place/a person etc physically close to him or herFor examples and particular usages, see entry below[hɪə(r)] 1.1) icifar from/near here — loin/près d'ici
up to here —
here lies — ( on tombstone) ci-gît
here they are/she comes! — les/la voici!
here is my key/are my keys — voici ma clé/mes clés
here you are — ( offering something) tiens, tenez
my colleague here — mon/ma collègue
2) (indicating presence, arrival)‘John?’ - ‘here sir’ — ( telling whereabouts) ‘John?’ - ‘ici Monsieur’; ( during roll call) ‘John?’ - ‘présent Monsieur’
3) (colloq) ( emphatic)this here contraption — ce truc (colloq)
2.look ou see here, you! — écoute-moi bien toi!
(colloq) exclamation hé!••here's to our success/to you! — à notre succès/la tienne!
here there and everywhere — partout, par-ci par-là
it's neither here nor there — ( unimportant) c'est sans importance; ( irrelevant) ça n'a aucun rapport
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2 here
❢ When here is used to indicate the location of an object/point etc close to the speaker, it is generally translated by ici: come and sit here = viens t'asseoir ici.When the location is not so clearly defined, là is the usual translation: he's not here at the moment = il n'est pas là pour l'instant. Remember that voici is used to translate here is when the speaker is drawing attention to an object/a place/a person etc physically close to him or her. For examples and particular usages, see entry below.A adv1 ( indicating place) ici ; let's stop here arrêtons-nous ici ; sign here please veuillez signer ici s'il vous plaît ; stand here mettez-vous ici ; far from/near here loin/près d'ici ; two kilometres from here à deux kilomètres d'ici ; come over here venez par ici ; up to here, down to here jusqu'ici ; put it in here mettez-le ici ; I'm up here je suis là-haut ; here below ( in text) ci-dessous ; those persons here present Jur les personnes ici présentes ; here lies ( on tombstone) ci-gît ; since you were last here depuis ta dernière visite ici ; following a visit here by members suite à la venue des membres ; here and there ( in places) par endroits ;2 ( to draw attention) I have here… j'ai ici… ; here they are/she comes! les/la voici! ; here comes the bus voilà le bus ; here you are ( offering sth) tiens, tenez ; here's a screwdriver tiens voilà un tournevis ; this thing here is ceci est ; this paragraph/sales assistant here ce paragraphe/vendeur ; my colleague here will show you mon collègue va vous montrer ; which one? this one here or that one? lequel? celui-ci ou celui-là? ; it says here that c'est marqué ici que ; here's what you do voilà ce qu'il faut faire ; here's why je vais vous expliquer pourquoi ;3 (indicating presence, arrival) she's not here right now elle n'est pas là pour le moment ; ‘Matthew?’-‘here sir’ ( revealing whereabouts) ‘Matthew?’-‘ici Monsieur’ ; ( during roll call) ‘Matthew?’-‘présent Monsieur’ ; here we are at last nous voilà enfin, nous voici arrivés ; when will he be getting here? quand est-ce qu'il arrivera? ; the train will be here any minute le train va arriver d'un moment à l'autre ; we get off here c'est là qu'on descend ;4 ( indicating juncture) now that summer's here maintenant que c'est l'été ; here' s our chance voilà notre chance ; I may be wrong here je me trompe peut-être ; so here you are, a bachelor of 25 te voilà donc, célibataire à vingt-cinq ans ; ⇒ here and now ;here goes! c'est parti! ; here's hoping j'espère ; here's to our success/to you! à notre succès/la tienne! ; here there and everywhere partout, par-ci par-là ; to be here there and everywhere fig [person] être au four et au moulin ; it's neither here nor there ce n'est pas le problème ; here we go ○ ! ( sneeringly) c'est parti!, nous y voilà! -
3 here
here [hɪə(r)]1 adverb(a) (at, in this place)∎ come here! (venez) ici!;∎ she left here yesterday elle est partie d'ici hier;∎ I've lived here for two years ça fait deux ans que j'habite ici, j'habite ici depuis deux ans;∎ is Susan here? est-ce que Susan est là?;∎ he won't be here next week il ne sera pas là la semaine prochaine;∎ winter is here c'est l'hiver, l'hiver est arrivé;∎ the miniskirt is here to stay la minijupe n'est pas près de disparaître;∎ where do I switch on the light? - here où est l'interrupteur? - ici;∎ sign here signez ici;∎ it is a question here of finances il s'agit ici d'argent∎ around here par ici;∎ it's 2 km from here c'est à 2 km d'ici;∎ from here to here d'ici jusqu'ici;∎ bring them in here apportez-les (par) ici;∎ I'm in here je suis là ou ici;∎ they're over here ils sont ici;∎ where are you? - over here! où êtes-vous? - (par) ici!;∎ the water came up to here l'eau est montée jusqu'ici;∎ familiar I've had it up to here j'en ai jusque là;∎ here today, gone tomorrow tout passe;∎ any money he gets is here today and gone tomorrow tout l'argent qu'il gagne lui file entre les doigts(c) (drawing attention to something) voici, voilà;∎ here's the key! voilà ou voici la clef!;∎ here they come! les voilà! ou voici!;∎ here's a man who knows what he wants voilà un homme qui sait ce qu'il veut;∎ here I am! me voici!, me voilà!;∎ here we are! (I've found it) voilà! j'ai trouvé!; (we've arrived) nous y sommes!, nous voilà arrivés! ou rendus!;∎ here we are in San Francisco nous voici à San Francisco;∎ have you got the paper? - here you are vous avez le journal? - le voilà ou voici;∎ here we go again! ça y est, c'est reparti pour un tour!(d) (emphasizing specified object, person)∎ ask the lady here demandez à cette dame ici;∎ it's this one here that I want c'est celui-ci que je veux;∎ my friend here saw it mon ami (que voici) l'a vu;∎ familiar this here book (that I am pointing to) ce livre-ci□ ;∎ familiar this here book you've all been talking about ce bouquin dont vous n'arrêtez pas de parler tous∎ here I should like to remind you... maintenant je voudrais vous rappeler...;∎ here I am referring to taxation c'est aux impôts que je fais allusion;∎ here she paused à ce moment-là, elle s'est arrêtée∎ here's to (in toasts) à;∎ here's to the newly-weds! aux nouveaux mariés!;∎ here's to your exams! à tes examens!;∎ here's to us! à nous!, à nos amours!∎ Alex Pilard? - here! Alex Pilard? - présent!;∎ Emma Lindsay? - here! Emma Lindsay? - présente!(b) (giving, taking)∎ here! tiens!, tenez!;∎ here, give me that! tiens, donne-moi ça!∎ here! what do you think you're doing? hé! qu'est-ce que tu fais?;∎ here, I never said that! mais dis donc, je n'ai jamais dit ça!;∎ here, stop that! écoute, tu arrêtes un peu!1 adverbsur-le-champ2 noun∎ the here and now le présentça et là;∎ the paintwork needs retouching here and there la peinture a besoin d'être refaite par endroitsfamiliar un peu partout;∎ her things were scattered here, there and everywhere ses affaires étaient éparpillées un peu partout -
4 here you are
(here is what you want etc: Here you are. This is the book you were looking for.) vous voici! tenez! -
5 here
[hiə] 1. adverb1) ((at, in or to) this place: He's here; Come here; He lives not far from here; Here they come; Here is / Here's your lost book.) ici; voici2) (at this time; at this point in an argument: Here she stopped speaking to wipe her eyes; Here is where I disagree with you.) là3) (beside one: My colleague here will deal with the matter.) que voici2. interjection1) (a shout of surprise, disapproval etc: Here! what do you think you're doing?) hé là!2) (a shout used to show that one is present: Shout `Here!' when I call your name.) présent•- hereabouts- hereabout - hereafter - the hereafter - hereby - herein - herewith - here and there - here goes - here's to - here - there and everywhere - here you are - neither here nor there -
6 here goes
(I'm going to do something no matter what the consequences are: I've never tried diving before, but here goes!) allons-y! -
7 be
be [bi:]━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━1. link verb3. modal verb6. compounds━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━1. link verba. être• who is that? -- it's me! qui est-ce ? -- c'est moi !• if I were you I would refuse si j'étais vous, je refuserais━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The following translations use ce + être because they contain an article or possessive in French.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► No article is used in French, unless the noun is qualified by an adjective.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• how are you? comment allez-vous ?d. ( = cost) coûter• how much is it? combien ça coûte ?e. ( = equal) fairef.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• to be cold/hot/hungry/thirsty/ashamed/right/wrong avoir froid/chaud/faim/soif/honte/raison/tort━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► Note how French makes the person, not the part of the body, the subject of the sentence in the following.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━g. (with age) avoir• how old is he? quel âge a-t-il ?► to be + -ing━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► French does not distinguish between simple and continuous actions as much as English does.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I'm coming! j'arrive !• what have you been doing this week? qu'est-ce que tu as fait cette semaine ?• will you be seeing her tomorrow? est-ce que vous allez la voir demain ?━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► être en train de + infinitive emphasizes that one is in the middle of the action.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I haven't got time, I'm cooking the dinner je n'ai pas le temps, je suis en train de préparer le repas━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The imperfect tense is used for continuous action in the past.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► have/had been +... for/since━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► French uses the present and imperfect where English uses the perfect and past perfect.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I'd been at university for six weeks when my father got ill j'étais à l'université depuis six semaines quand mon père est tombé malade• he's a friend of yours, isn't he? c'est un ami à toi, n'est-ce pas ?• she wasn't happy, was she? elle n'était pas heureuse, n'est-ce pas ?• so it's all done, is it? tout est fait, alors ?• you're not ill, are you? tu n'es pas malade j'espère ?c. (in tag responses) they're getting married -- oh are they? ils vont se marier -- ah bon ?• he's going to complain about you -- oh is he? il va porter plainte contre toi -- ah vraiment ?━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• he's always late, isn't he? -- yes, he is il est toujours en retard, n'est-ce pas ? -- oui• is it what you expected? -- no it isn't est-ce que tu t'attendais à ça ? -- non━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The past participle in French passive constructions agrees with the subject.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The passive is used less in French than in English. It is often expressed by on + active verb.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• it is said that... on dit que...━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The reflexive can be used to describe how something is usually done.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━3. modal verb► am/are/is to + infinitivea. ( = will)• now the old lady has died, her house is to be sold maintenant que la vieille dame est décédée, sa maison va être mise en venteb. ( = must) you are to follow these instructions exactly tu dois suivre ces instructions scrupuleusementc. ( = should) he is to be pitied il est à plaindre• not to be confused with... à ne pas confondre avec...d. ( = be destined to) this was to have serious repercussions cela devait avoir de graves répercussionse. ( = can) these birds are to be found all over the world on trouve ces oiseaux dans le monde entiera. être ; ( = take place) avoir lieu• he is there at the moment, but he won't be there much longer il est là en ce moment mais il ne va pas rester très longtemps► there is/are ( = there exist(s)) il y a• here you are at last! te voilà enfin !• here you are! ( = take this) tiens (or tenez) !b. ► to have been (to a place)• where have you been? où étais-tu passé ?a. (weather, temperature) faire• it's fine/cold/dark il fait beau/froid/nuit• it's windy/foggy il y a du vent/du brouillard• it was then we realized that... c'est alors que nous nous sommes rendu compte que...• it was they who suggested that... ce sont eux qui ont suggéré que...• why is it that she is so popular? pourquoi a-t-elle tant de succès ?6. compounds* * *[biː, bɪ]1) gen êtreit's me —
2) ( in probability)were it not that... — si ce n'était que...
had it not been for Frank, I'd have missed the train — sans Frank j'aurais raté le train
3) ( phrases)let ou leave him be — laisse-le tranquille
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8 BE
be [bi:]━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━1. link verb3. modal verb6. compounds━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━1. link verba. être• who is that? -- it's me! qui est-ce ? -- c'est moi !• if I were you I would refuse si j'étais vous, je refuserais━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The following translations use ce + être because they contain an article or possessive in French.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► No article is used in French, unless the noun is qualified by an adjective.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• how are you? comment allez-vous ?d. ( = cost) coûter• how much is it? combien ça coûte ?e. ( = equal) fairef.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• to be cold/hot/hungry/thirsty/ashamed/right/wrong avoir froid/chaud/faim/soif/honte/raison/tort━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► Note how French makes the person, not the part of the body, the subject of the sentence in the following.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━g. (with age) avoir• how old is he? quel âge a-t-il ?► to be + -ing━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► French does not distinguish between simple and continuous actions as much as English does.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I'm coming! j'arrive !• what have you been doing this week? qu'est-ce que tu as fait cette semaine ?• will you be seeing her tomorrow? est-ce que vous allez la voir demain ?━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► être en train de + infinitive emphasizes that one is in the middle of the action.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I haven't got time, I'm cooking the dinner je n'ai pas le temps, je suis en train de préparer le repas━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The imperfect tense is used for continuous action in the past.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► have/had been +... for/since━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► French uses the present and imperfect where English uses the perfect and past perfect.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• I'd been at university for six weeks when my father got ill j'étais à l'université depuis six semaines quand mon père est tombé malade• he's a friend of yours, isn't he? c'est un ami à toi, n'est-ce pas ?• she wasn't happy, was she? elle n'était pas heureuse, n'est-ce pas ?• so it's all done, is it? tout est fait, alors ?• you're not ill, are you? tu n'es pas malade j'espère ?c. (in tag responses) they're getting married -- oh are they? ils vont se marier -- ah bon ?• he's going to complain about you -- oh is he? il va porter plainte contre toi -- ah vraiment ?━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• he's always late, isn't he? -- yes, he is il est toujours en retard, n'est-ce pas ? -- oui• is it what you expected? -- no it isn't est-ce que tu t'attendais à ça ? -- non━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The past participle in French passive constructions agrees with the subject.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The passive is used less in French than in English. It is often expressed by on + active verb.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━• it is said that... on dit que...━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━► The reflexive can be used to describe how something is usually done.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━3. modal verb► am/are/is to + infinitivea. ( = will)• now the old lady has died, her house is to be sold maintenant que la vieille dame est décédée, sa maison va être mise en venteb. ( = must) you are to follow these instructions exactly tu dois suivre ces instructions scrupuleusementc. ( = should) he is to be pitied il est à plaindre• not to be confused with... à ne pas confondre avec...d. ( = be destined to) this was to have serious repercussions cela devait avoir de graves répercussionse. ( = can) these birds are to be found all over the world on trouve ces oiseaux dans le monde entiera. être ; ( = take place) avoir lieu• he is there at the moment, but he won't be there much longer il est là en ce moment mais il ne va pas rester très longtemps► there is/are ( = there exist(s)) il y a• here you are at last! te voilà enfin !• here you are! ( = take this) tiens (or tenez) !b. ► to have been (to a place)• where have you been? où étais-tu passé ?a. (weather, temperature) faire• it's fine/cold/dark il fait beau/froid/nuit• it's windy/foggy il y a du vent/du brouillard• it was then we realized that... c'est alors que nous nous sommes rendu compte que...• it was they who suggested that... ce sont eux qui ont suggéré que...• why is it that she is so popular? pourquoi a-t-elle tant de succès ?6. compounds* * *noun: abrév bill of exchange -
9 be
be [bi:]être ⇒ 1 (a)-(c), 1 (f), 1 (h), 1 (i), 1 (m), 1 (o), 1 (p), 2 aller ⇒ 1 (d) avoir ⇒ 1 (e) mesurer ⇒ 1 (g) coûter ⇒ 1 (j) il y a ⇒ 1 (k) voici, voilà ⇒ 1 (l) faire ⇒ 1 (n), 1 (q) aller, venir ⇒ 1 (o) Dans les question tags ⇒ 2 (j)(pres 1st sing am [əm, stressed æm], pres 2nd sing are [ə, stressed ɑ:(r)], pres 3rd sing is [ɪz], pres plare [ə, stressed ɑ:(r)], pt 1st sing was [wəz, stressed wɒz], pt 2nd sing were [wə, stressed wɜ:(r)], pt 3rd sing was [wəz, stressed wɒz], pt pl were [wə, stressed wɜ:(r)], pp been [bi:n], cont being ['bi:ɪŋ])ⓘ GRAM À l'oral et dans un style familier à l'écrit, le verbe be peut être contracté: I am devient I'm, he/she/it is deviennent he's/she's/it's et you/we/they are deviennent you're/we're/they're. Les formes négatives is not/are not/was not et were not se contractent respectivement en isn't/aren't/wasn't et weren't.(a) (exist, live) être, exister;∎ I think, therefore I am je pense, donc je suis;∎ to be or not to be être ou ne pas être;∎ God is Dieu existe;∎ the greatest scientist that ever was le plus grand savant qui ait jamais existé ou de tous les temps;∎ there are no such things as ghosts les fantômes n'existent pas;∎ she's a genius if ever there was one c'est ou voilà un génie si jamais il en fut;∎ as happy as can be heureux comme un roi;∎ that may be, but… cela se peut, mais…, peut-être, mais…(b) (used to identify, describe) être;∎ she is my sister c'est ma sœur;∎ I'm Elaine je suis ou je m'appelle Elaine;∎ she's a doctor/engineer elle est médecin/ingénieur;∎ the glasses were crystal les verres étaient en cristal;∎ he is American il est américain, c'est un Américain;∎ be careful! soyez prudent!;∎ to be frank… pour être franc…, franchement…;∎ being the boy's mother, I have a right to know étant la mère de l'enfant, j'ai le droit de savoir;∎ the situation being what or as it is… la situation étant ce qu'elle est…;∎ the problem is knowing or is to know when to stop le problème, c'est de savoir quand s'arrêter;∎ the rule is: when in doubt, don't do it la règle c'est: dans le doute abstiens-toi;∎ seeing is believing voir, c'est croire;∎ just be yourself soyez vous-même, soyez naturel;∎ you be Batman and I'll be Robin (children playing) on dirait que tu es Batman et moi je suis Robin∎ he was angry/tired il était fâché/fatigué;∎ I am hungry/thirsty/afraid j'ai faim/soif/peur;∎ my feet/hands are frozen j'ai les pieds gelés/mains gelées(d) (indicating health) aller, se porter;∎ how are you? comment allez-vous?, comment ça va?;∎ I am fine ça va;∎ he is not well il est malade, il ne va pas bien(e) (indicating age) avoir;∎ how old are you? quel âge avez-vous?;∎ I'm twelve (years old) j'ai douze ans;∎ it's different when you're fifty ce n'est pas pareil quand on a cinquante ans;∎ you'll see when you're fifty tu verras quand tu auras cinquante ans(f) (indicating location) être;∎ the cake was on the table le gâteau était sur la table;∎ the hotel is next to the river l'hôtel se trouve ou est près de la rivière;∎ be there at nine o'clock soyez-y à neuf heures;∎ the table is one metre long la table fait un mètre de long;∎ how tall is he? combien mesure-t-il?;∎ he is two metres tall il mesure ou fait deux mètres;∎ the school is two kilometres from here l'école est à deux kilomètres d'ici(h) (indicating time, date) être;∎ it's five o'clock il est cinq heures;∎ yesterday was Monday hier on était ou c'était lundi;∎ today is Tuesday nous sommes ou c'est mardi aujourd'hui;∎ what date is it today? le combien sommes-nous aujourd'hui?;∎ it's the 16th of December nous sommes ou c'est le 16 décembre(i) (happen, occur) être, avoir lieu;∎ the concert is on Saturday night le concert est ou a lieu samedi soir;∎ when is your birthday? quand est ou c'est quand ton anniversaire?;∎ the spring holidays are in March this year les vacances de printemps tombent en mars cette année;∎ how is it that you arrived so quickly? comment se fait-il que vous soyez arrivé si vite?(j) (indicating cost) coûter;∎ how much is this table? combien coûte ou vaut cette table?;∎ it is expensive ça coûte ou c'est cher;∎ the phone bill is £75 la facture de téléphone est de 75 livres(k) (with "there")∎ there is, there are il y a, literary il est;∎ there is or has been no snow il n'y a pas de neige;∎ there are six of them ils sont ou il y en a six;∎ what is there to do? qu'est-ce qu'il y a à faire?;∎ there will be swimming on nagera;∎ there is nothing funny about it il n'y a rien d'amusant là-dedans, ce n'est pas drôle;∎ there's no telling what she'll do il est impossible de prévoir ce qu'elle va faire∎ this is my friend John voici mon ami John;∎ here are the reports you wanted voici les rapports que vous vouliez;∎ there is our car voilà notre voiture;∎ there are the others voilà les autres;∎ here I am me voici;∎ now there's an idea! voilà une bonne idée!∎ who is it? - it's us! qui est-ce? - c'est nous!;∎ it was your mother who decided c'est ta mère qui a décidé;∎ formal it is I who am to blame c'est moi le responsable(n) (indicating weather) faire;∎ it is cold/hot/grey il fait froid/chaud/gris;∎ it is windy il y a du vent∎ she's been to visit her mother elle a été ou est allée rendre visite à sa mère;∎ I have never been to China je ne suis jamais allé ou je n'ai jamais été en Chine;∎ have you been home since Christmas? est-ce que tu es rentré (chez toi) depuis Noël?;∎ has the plumber been? le plombier est-il (déjà) passé?;∎ wait for us, we'll be there in ten minutes attends-nous, nous serons là dans dix minutes;∎ there's no need to rush, we'll be there in ten minutes inutile de se presser, nous y serons dans dix minutes;∎ he was into/out of the house in a flash il est entré dans/sorti de la maison en coup de vent;∎ I know, I've been there je sais, j'y suis allé; figurative je sais, j'ai connu ça;∎ she is from Egypt elle vient d'Égypte;∎ your brother has been and gone votre frère est venu et reparti;∎ someone had been there in her absence quelqu'un est venu pendant son absence;∎ British familiar now you've been (and gone) and done it! (caused trouble, broken something) et voilà, c'est réussi!(p) (indicating hypothesis, supposition)∎ if I were you si j'étais vous ou à votre place;∎ if we were younger si nous étions plus jeunes;∎ formal were it not for my sister sans ma sœur;∎ formal were it not for their contribution, the school would close sans leur assistance, l'école serait obligée de fermer(q) (in calculations) faire;∎ 1 and 1 are 2 1 et 1 font 2;∎ what is 5 less 3? combien fait 5 moins 3?∎ he is having breakfast il prend ou il est en train de prendre son petit déjeuner;∎ they are always giggling ils sont toujours en train de glousser;∎ where are you going? où allez-vous?;∎ a problem which is getting worse and worse un problème qui s'aggrave;∎ I have just been thinking about you je pensais justement à toi;∎ we've been waiting hours for you ça fait des heures que nous t'attendons;∎ when will she be leaving? quand est-ce qu'elle part ou va-t-elle partir?;∎ what are you going to do about it? qu'est-ce que vous allez ou comptez faire?;∎ why aren't you working? - but I AM working! pourquoi ne travaillez-vous pas? - mais je travaille!∎ she is known as a good negotiator elle est connue pour ses talents de négociatrice;∎ the car was found la voiture a été retrouvée;∎ plans are being made on fait des projets;∎ what is left to do? qu'est-ce qui reste à faire?;∎ smoking is not permitted il est interdit ou défendu de fumer;∎ socks are sold by the pair les chaussettes se vendent par deux;∎ it is said/thought/assumed that... on dit/pense/suppose que...;∎ to be continued (TV programme, serialized story) à suivre;∎ not to be confused with à ne pas confondre avec(c) (with infinitive → indicating future event)∎ the next meeting is to take place on Wednesday la prochaine réunion aura lieu mercredi;∎ he's to be the new headmaster c'est lui qui sera le nouveau directeur;∎ she was to become a famous pianist elle allait devenir une pianiste renommée;∎ we were never to see him again nous ne devions jamais le revoir(d) (with infinitive → indicating expected event)∎ they were to have been married in June ils devaient se marier en juin(e) (with infinitive → indicating obligation)∎ I'm to be home by ten o'clock il faut que je rentre avant dix heures;∎ you are not to speak to strangers il ne faut pas parler aux inconnus(f) (with infinitive → expressing opinion)∎ you are to be congratulated on doit vous féliciter;∎ they are to be pitied ils sont à plaindre(g) (with infinitive → requesting information)∎ are we then to assume that taxes will decrease? faut-il ou doit-on en conclure que les impôts vont diminuer?;∎ what am I to say to them? qu'est-ce que je vais leur dire?(h) (with passive infinitive → indicating possibility)∎ bargains are to be found even in the West End on peut faire de bonnes affaires même dans le West End;∎ she was not to be dissuaded rien ne devait ou il fut impossible de lui faire changer d'avis∎ if he were or were he to die s'il venait à mourir, à supposer qu'il meure∎ he's always causing trouble, isn't he? - yes, he is il est toujours en train de créer des problèmes, n'est-ce pas? - oui, toujours;∎ you're back, are you? vous êtes revenu alors?;∎ you're not leaving already, are you? vous ne partez pas déjà, j'espère?∎ is she satisfied? - she is est-elle satisfaite? - oui(, elle l'est);∎ you're angry - no I'm not - oh yes you are! tu es fâché - non - mais si!;∎ it's a touching scene - not for me, it isn't c'est une scène émouvante - je ne trouve pas ou pas pour moi;∎ I was pleased to see him but the children weren't (moi,) j'étais content de le voir mais pas les enfants∎ we're finished nous avons terminé;∎ Religion Christ is risen (le) Christ est ressucité;∎ when I looked again, they were gone quand j'ai regardé de nouveau, ils étaient partis∎ the husband-to-be le futur mari;∎ the father-to-be le futur pèrequoi qu'il en soit -
10 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. -
11 sign
sign [saɪn]signe ⇒ 1 (a), 1 (b), 1 (e)-(g) symbole ⇒ 1 (a) geste ⇒ 1 (b) signal ⇒ 1 (c) panneau ⇒ 1 (d) écriteau ⇒ 1 (d) enseigne ⇒ 1 (d) signer ⇒ 2 (a), 3 (a) engager ⇒ 2 (b) signer un contrat ⇒ 3 (b)1 noun∎ this sign means "real leather" ce symbole signifie "cuir véritable";∎ plus/minus sign signe m plus/moins(b) (gesture, motion) signe m;∎ to make a sign to sb faire signe à qn;∎ to make a rude sign faire un geste grossier;∎ she made a sign for me to enter elle m'a fait signe d'entrer;∎ the chief made signs for me to follow him le chef m'a fait signe de le suivre;∎ to make the sign of the cross faire le signe de croix;∎ wait until the policeman gives the sign to cross attendez que le policier vous fasse signe de traverser;∎ the victory sign le signe de la victoire(c) (arranged signal) signal m;∎ a lighted lamp in the window is the sign that it's safe une lampe allumée à la fenêtre signifie qu'il n'y a pas de danger;∎ when I give the sign, run à mon signal, courez(d) (written notice → gen) panneau m; (→ smaller) écriteau m; (→ on shop, bar, cinema etc) enseigne f;∎ the signs are all in Arabic tous les panneaux sont en arabe;∎ follow the signs for Manchester suivre les panneaux indiquant Manchester;∎ I didn't see the stop sign je n'ai pas vu le stop;∎ traffic signs panneaux mpl de signalisation;∎ a 'for sale' sign un écriteau 'à vendre'∎ his speech was interpreted as a sign of goodwill on a interprété son discours comme un signe de bonne volonté;∎ as a sign of respect en témoignage ou en signe de respect;∎ they wear red as a sign of mourning ils portent le rouge en signe de deuil;∎ a distended belly is a sign of malnutrition un ventre dilaté est un signe de sous-alimentation;∎ a red sunset is a sign of fair weather un coucher de soleil rouge est signe qu'il fera beau;∎ it's a sign of the times c'est un signe des temps;∎ it's a good sign if he's making jokes c'est bon signe s'il fait des plaisanteries;∎ at the first sign of trouble, he goes to pieces au premier petit problème, il craque;∎ it's a sure sign that… à n'en pas douter, c'est le signe que…+ indicative;∎ were there any signs of a struggle? y avait-il des traces de lutte?;∎ all the signs are that the economy is improving tout laisse à penser que l'économie s'améliore;∎ the room showed signs of having been recently occupied il était clair que la pièce avait récemment été occupée;∎ there's no sign of her changing her mind rien n'indique qu'elle va changer d'avis;∎ there's no sign of the file anywhere on ne trouve trace du dossier nulle part;∎ he gave no sign of having heard me il n'a pas eu l'air de m'avoir entendu;∎ is there any sign of Amy yet? - not a sign est-ce qu'on a eu des nouvelles de Amy? - pas la moindre nouvelle;∎ is there any sign of the missing child? est-ce qu'il y a une trace de l'enfant disparu?;∎ since then, he's given no sign of life depuis lors, il n'a pas donné signe de vie;∎ there is little sign of progress in the negotiations les négociations ne semblent pas avancer∎ what sign are you? de quel signe êtes-vous?∎ a sign from God un signe de Dieu(a) (document, book) signer;∎ sign your name here signez ici;∎ here are the letters to be signed voici les lettres à signer;∎ a signed Picasso lithograph une lithographie signée par Picasso;∎ he gave me a signed photo of himself il m'a donné une photo dédicacée;∎ American do you want to sign this to your room? je le mets sur votre note?;∎ she signs herself A.M. Hall elle signe A.M. Hall;∎ to sign a deal passer un marché;∎ the deal will be signed and sealed tomorrow l'affaire sera définitivement conclue demain;∎ Law signed, sealed and delivered in the presence of… fait et signé en présence de…;∎ figurative you're signing your own death warrant vous signez votre arrêt de mort(b) (footballer, musician, band) engager;∎ he's been signed for next season il a été engagé pour la saison prochaine(c) (provide with signs) signaliser;∎ the museum is not very well signed la signalisation du musée n'est pas très bonne∎ to sign assent faire signe que oui;∎ to sign sb to do sth faire signe à qn de faire qch(a) (write name) signer;∎ he signed with an X il a signé d'une croix;∎ to sign on the dotted line signer à l'endroit indiqué; figurative s'engager(b) (footballer, musician, band) signer un contrat;∎ he signed for United il a signé avec United∎ to sign to sb to do sth faire signe à qn de faire qch(d) (know sign language) connaître la langue des signes; (use sign language) communiquer en langue des signes ou par signes;∎ they were signing to each other ils se parlaient par signes►► sign language (UNCOUNT) langue f des signes;∎ to speak in sign language parler par signes;∎ using sign language, he managed to ask for food (en s'exprimant) par signes, il s'est débrouillé pour demander à manger;∎ I felt I was signing away my freedom j'avais l'impression qu'en signant je renonçais à ma liberté;∎ you're signing your life away c'est comme si tu signais ton arrêt de mort∎ to sign for a delivery/a registered letter signer un bon de livraison/le récépissé d'une lettre recommandée;∎ the files have to be signed for il faut signer pour retirer les dossiers∎ she's signed for another series elle s'est engagée à faire un autre feuilleton➲ sign in∎ I'm a member, so I can sign you in je suis membre, donc je peux vous faire entrer;∎ guests must be signed in les visiteurs doivent se faire inscrire dès leur arrivée(b) (file, book) rendre, retourner∎ it's time to sign off for today il est l'heure de nous quitter pour aujourd'hui∎ I'll sign off now je vais conclure ici➲ sign on(a) (register as unemployed) s'inscrire au chômage;∎ you have to sign on every two weeks il faut pointer (au chômage) toutes les deux semaines∎ she signed on for an evening class elle s'est inscrite à des cours du soir➲ sign out∎ the keys are signed out to Mr Hill c'est M. Hill qui a signé pour retirer les clés(b) (hospital patient) autoriser le départ de;∎ he signed himself out il est parti sous sa propre responsabilitétransférer;∎ she signed the property over to her son elle a transféré la propriété au nom de son fils;∎ the house is being signed over to its new owners tomorrow les nouveaux propriétaires entrent en possession de la maison demain➲ sign up(b) (student, participant) inscrire∎ he signed up as a crew member il s'est fait embaucher comme membre d'équipage∎ to sign up for the Marines s'engager dans les marines∎ she signed up for an evening class elle s'est inscrite à des cours du soir -
12 Usage note : do
she’s doing her homework= elle fait ses devoirswhat are you doing?= qu’est-ce que tu fais?what has he done with the newspaper?= qu’est-ce qu’il a fait du journal?faire functions in very much the same way as to do does in English and it is safe to assume it will work in the great majority of cases. For the conjugation of the verb faire, see the French verb tables.Grammatical functionsIn questionsIn French there is no use of an auxiliary verb in questions equivalent to the use of do in English.When the subject is a pronoun, the question is formed in French either by inverting the subject and verb and putting a hyphen between the two ( veux-tu?) or by prefacing the subject + verb by est-ce que (literally is it that):do you like Mozart?= aimes-tu Mozart? or est-ce que tu aimes Mozart?did you put the glasses in the cupboard?= as-tu mis les verres dans le placard? or est-ce que tu as mis les verres dans le placard?When the subject is a noun there are again two possibilities:did your sister ring?= est-ce que ta sœur a téléphoné? or ta sœur a-t-elle téléphoné?did Max find his keys?= est-ce que Max a trouvé ses clés? or Max a-t-il trouvé ses clés?In negativesEqually, auxiliaries are not used in negatives in French:I don’t like Mozart= je n’aime pas Mozartyou didn’t feed the cat= tu n’as pas donné à manger au chatdon’t do that!= ne fais pas ça!In emphatic usesThere is no verbal equivalent for the use of do in such expressions as I DO like your dress. A French speaker will find another way, according to the context, of expressing the force of the English do. Here are a few useful examples:I DO like your dress= j’aime beaucoup ta robeI DO hope she remembers= j’espère qu’elle n’oubliera pasI DO think you should see a doctor= je crois vraiment que tu devrais voir un médecinWhen referring back to another verbIn this case the verb to do is not translated at all:I don’t like him any more than you do= je ne l’aime pas plus que toiI live in Oxford and so does Lily= j’habite à Oxford et Lily aussishe gets paid more than I do= elle est payée plus que moiI haven’t written as much as I ought to have done= je n’ai pas écrit autant que j’aurais dû‘I love strawberries’ ‘so do I’= ‘j’adore les fraises’ ‘moi aussi’In polite requestsIn polite requests the phrase je vous en prie can often be used to render the meaning of do:do sit down= asseyez-vous, je vous en priedo have a piece of cake= prenez un morceau de gâteau, je vous en prie‘may I take a peach?’ ‘yes, do’= ‘puis-je prendre une pêche?’ ‘je vous en prie’In imperativesIn French there is no use of an auxiliary verb in imperatives:don’t shut the door= ne ferme pas la portedon’t tell her anything= ne lui dis riendo be quiet!= tais-toi!In tag questionsFrench has no direct equivalent of tag questions like doesn’t he? or didn’t it? There is a general tag question n’est-ce pas? (literally isn’t it so?) which will work in many cases:you like fish, don’t you?= tu aimes le poisson, n’est-ce pas?he lives in London, doesn’t he?= il habite à Londres, 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 meaning contained in the tag: par hasard can often be useful as a translation:Lola didn’t phone, did she?= Lola n’a pas téléphoné par hasard?Paul doesn’t work here, does he?= Paul ne travaille pas ici par hasard?In many cases the tag is not translated at all and the speaker’s intonation will convey what is implied:you didn’t tidy your room, did you? (i.e. you ought to have done)= tu n’as pas rangé ta chambre?In short answersAgain, there is no direct French equivalent for short answers like yes I do, no he doesn’t etc. Where the answer yes is given to contradict a negative question or statement, the most useful translation is si:‘Marion didn’t say that’ ‘yes she did’= ‘Marion n’a pas dit ça’ ‘si’‘they don’t sell vegetables at the baker’s’ ‘yes they do’= ‘ils ne vendent pas les légumes à la boulangerie’ ‘si’In response to a standard enquiry the tag will not be translated:‘do you like strawberries?’ ‘yes I do’= ‘aimez-vous les fraises?’ ‘oui ’For more examples and particular usages, see the entry do. -
13 The human body
When it is clear who owns the part of the body mentioned, French tends to use the definite article where English uses a possessive adjective:he raised his hand= il a levé la mainshe closed her eyes= elle a fermé les yeuxshe ran her hand over my forehead= elle a passé la main sur mon frontFor expressions such as he hurt his foot or she hit her head on the beam, where the owner of the body part is the subject of the verb, i.e. the person doing the action, use a reflexive verb in French:she has broken her leg= elle s’est cassé la jambe( literally she has broken to herself the leg - there is no past participle agreement because the preceding reflexive pronoun se is the indirect object).he was rubbing his hands= il se frottait les mainsshe was holding her head= elle se tenait la têteNote also the following:she broke his leg= elle lui a cassé la jambe( literally she broke to him the leg)the stone split his lip= le caillou lui a fendu la lèvre( literally the stone split to him the lip)Describing peopleFor ways of saying how tall someone is ⇒ Length measurement ; of stating someone’s weight ⇒ Weight measurement ; and of talking about the colour of hair and eyes ⇒ Colours.Here are some ways of describing people in French:his hair is long= il a les cheveux longshe has long hair= il a les cheveux longsa boy with long hair= un garçon aux cheveux longsa long-haired boy= un garçon aux cheveux longsthe boy with long hair= le garçon aux cheveux longsher eyes are blue= elle a les yeux bleusshe has blue eyes= elle a les yeux bleusshe is blue-eyed= elle a les yeux bleusthe girl with blue eyes= la fille aux yeux bleusa blue-eyed girl= une fille aux yeux bleushis nose is red= il a le nez rougehe has a red nose= il a le nez rougea man with a red nose= un homme au nez rougea red-nosed man= un homme au nez rougeWhen referring to a temporary state, the following phrases are useful:his leg is broken= il a la jambe casséethe man with the broken leg= l’homme à la jambe casséebut notea man with a broken leg= un homme avec une jambe cassée -
14 lot
lot [lɒt]1. noun• I'd give a lot to know... je donnerais cher pour savoir...• quite a lot of [+ people, cars, money] pas mal de• such a lot of... tellement de...• what a lot of people! que de monde !b. ( = destiny) sort mc. ( = random selection) by lot par tirage au sortd. ( = batch) lot m• lot no. 69 is an antique table le lot no 69 est une table ancienne• you rotten lot! (inf) vous êtes vaches ! (inf !)• here are the apples, take the lot voici les pommes, prends-les toutes• here's some money, just take the lot voici de l'argent, prends tout• the whole lot cost me $1 ça m'a coûté un dollar en tout2. plural noun• lots better/bigger bien mieux/plus grand* * *I 1. [lɒt]1) ( great deal)he spent a lot — il a beaucoup dépensé, il a dépensé beaucoup d'argent
to get a lot out of — tirer beaucoup de [book]
I'd give a lot to... — je donnerais cher pour...
quite a lot — beaucoup, pas mal (colloq)
2) (colloq) ( entire amount or selection)heartburn, cramps, the lot! — des brûlures d'estomac, des crampes, bref tout!
3) (colloq) ( specific group of people)she's the nicest of the lot — c'est la plus gentille (de tous/toutes)
that lot — péj ces gens-là pej
you lot — vous, vous autres
2.the best of a bad lot — (colloq) le moins pire (colloq)
1) ( great deal)a lot of money/time — beaucoup d'argent/de temps
not a lot of people know that — il n'y a pas beaucoup de personnes or gens qui savent ça
an awful (colloq) lot of — énormément de
quite a lot of — beaucoup or pas mal (colloq) de
quite a lot of our support... — une bonne part de notre soutien...
2) (colloq) ( entire group) tous3.lots (colloq) quantifier, pronounlots (and lots) of — des tas (colloq) de (+ pl nouns only); beaucoup de (+ any nouns)
lots of things — des tas (colloq) de choses
4....and lots more —...et beaucoup d'autres choses
lots (colloq) adverb5.lots better — beaucoup or vachement (colloq) mieux
a lot adverbial phrase beaucoupII [lɒt]it would help an awful (colloq) lot — ça aiderait beaucoup
1) ( destiny) sort m; ( quality of life) condition f2) US parcelle f (de terrain)vacant lot — terrain m vague
used car lot — garage m vendant des voitures d'occasion
3) ( at auction) lot m4) ( decision-making process) tirage m au sortto draw ou cast lots — tirer au sort
5) Cinema studio m6) ( batch) (of students, tourists) fournée f -
15 Countries and continents
Most countries and all continents are used with the definite article in French:France is a beautiful country= la France est un beau paysI like Canada= j’aime le Canadato visit the United States= visiter les États-Unisto know Iran= connaître l’IranA very few countries do not:to visit Israel= visiter IsraëlWhen in doubt, check in the dictionary.All the continent names are feminine in French. Most names of countries are feminine e.g. la France, but some are masculine e.g. le Canada.Most names of countries are singular in French, but some are plural (usually, but not always, those that are plural in English) e.g. les États-Unis mpl (the United States), and les Philippines fpl (the Philippines). Note, however, the plural verb sont:the Philippines is a lovely country= les Philippines sont un beau paysIn, to and from somewhereWith continent names, feminine singular names of countries and masculine singular names of countries beginning with a vowel, for in and to, use en, and for from, use de:to live in Europe= vivre en Europeto go to Europe= aller en Europeto come from Europe= venir d’Europeto live in France= vivre en Franceto go to France= aller en Franceto come from France= venir de Franceto live in Afghanistan= vivre en Afghanistanto go to Afghanistan= aller en Afghanistanto come from Afghanistan= venir d’AfghanistanNote that names of countries and continents that include North, South, East, or West work in the same way:to live in North Korea= vivre en Corée du Nordto go to North Korea= aller en Corée du Nordto come from North Korea= venir de Corée du NordWith masculine countries beginning with a consonant, and with plurals, use au or aux for in and to, and du or des for from:to live in Canada= vivre au Canadato go to Canada= aller au Canadato come from Canada= venir du Canadato live in the United States= vivre aux États-Unisto go to the United States= aller aux États-Unisto come from the United States= venir des États-Unisto live in the Philippines= vivre aux Philippinesto go to the Philippines= aller aux Philippinesto come from the Philippines= venir des PhilippinesAdjective uses: français or de France or de la France?For French, the translation français is usually safe ; here are some typical examples:the French army= l’armée françaisethe French coast= la côte françaiseFrench cooking= la cuisine françaiseFrench currency= la monnaie françaisethe French Customs= la douane françaisethe French government= le gouvernement françaisthe French language= la langue françaiseFrench literature= la littérature françaiseFrench money= l’argent françaisthe French nation= le peuple françaisFrench politics= la politique françaisea French town= une ville françaiseFrench traditions= les traditions françaisesSome nouns, however, occur more commonly with de France (usually, but not always, their English equivalents can have of France as well as French):the Ambassador of France or the French Ambassador= l’ambassadeur de Francethe French Embassy= l’ambassade de Francethe history of France or French history= l’histoire de Francethe King of France or the French king= le roi de Francethe rivers of France= les fleuves et rivières de Francethe French team= l’équipe de Francebut note:the capital of France or the French capital= la capitale de la FranceNote that many geopolitical adjectives like French can also refer to nationality, e.g. a French tourist ⇒ Nationalities, or to the language, e.g. a French word ⇒ Languages. -
16 Towns and cities
Occasionally the gender of a town is clear because the name includes the definite article, e.g. Le Havre or La Rochelle. In most other cases, there is some hesitation, and it is always safer to avoid the problem by using la ville de:Toulouse is beautiful= la ville de Toulouse est belleIn, to and from somewhereFor in and to with the name of a town, use à in French ; if the French name includes the definite article, à will become au, à la, à l’ or aux:to live in Toulouse= vivre à Toulouseto go to Toulouse= aller à Toulouseto live in Le Havre= vivre au Havreto go to Le Havre= aller au Havreto live in La Rochelle= vivre à La Rochelleto go to La Rochelle= aller à La Rochelleto live in Les Arcs= vivre aux Arcsto go to Les Arcs= aller aux ArcsSimilarly, from is de, becoming du, de la, de l’ or des when it combines with the definite article in town names:to come from Toulouse= venir de Toulouseto come from Le Havre= venir du Havreto come from La Rochelle= venir de La Rochelleto come from Les Arcs= venir des ArcsBelonging to a town or cityEnglish sometimes has specific words for people of a certain city or town, such as Londoners, New Yorkers or Parisians, but mostly we talk of the people of Leeds or the inhabitants of San Francisco. On the other hand, most towns in French-speaking countries have a corresponding adjective and noun, and a list of the best-known of these is given at the end of this note.The noun forms, spelt with a capital letter, mean a person from X:the inhabitants of Bordeaux= les Bordelais mplthe people of Strasbourg= les Strasbourgeois mplThe adjective forms, spelt with a small letter, are often used where in English the town name is used as an adjective:Paris shops= les magasins parisiensHowever, some of these French words are fairly rare, and it is always safe to say les habitants de X, or, for the adjective, simply de X. Here are examples of this, using some of the nouns that commonly combine with the names of towns:a Bordeaux accent= un accent de BordeauxToulouse airport= l’aéroport de Toulousethe La Rochelle area= la région de La RochelleLimoges buses= les autobus de Limogesthe Le Havre City Council= le conseil municipal du HavreLille representatives= les représentants de LilleLes Arcs restaurants= les restaurants des Arcsthe Geneva road= la route de GenèveBrussels streets= les rues de Bruxellesthe Angers team= l’équipe d’Angersthe Avignon train= le train d’Avignonbut noteOrleans traffic= la circulation à OrléansNames of cities and towns in French-speaking countries and their adjectivesRemember that when these adjectives are used as nouns, meaning a person from X or the people of X, they are spelt with capital letters.Aix-en-Provence = aixois(e)Alger = algérois(e)Angers = angevin(e)Arles = arlésien(ne)Auxerre = auxerrois(e)Avignon = avignonnais(e)Bastia = bastiais(e)Bayonne = bayonnais(e)Belfort = belfortain(e)Berne = bernois(e)Besançon = bisontin(e)Béziers = biterrois(e)Biarritz = biarrot(e)Bordeaux = bordelais(e)Boulogne-sur-Mer = boulonnais(e)Bourges = berruyer(-ère)Brest = brestois(e)Bruges = brugeois(e)Bruxelles = bruxellois(e)Calais = calaisien(ne)Cannes = cannais(e)Carcassonne = carcassonnais(e)Chambéry = chambérien(ne)Chamonix = chamoniard(e)Clermont-Ferrand = clermontois(e)Die = diois(e)Dieppe = dieppois(e)Dijon = dijonnais(e)Dunkerque = dunkerquois(e)Fontainebleau = bellifontain(e)Gap = gapençais(e)Genève = genevois(e)Grenoble = grenoblois(e)Havre, Le = havrais(e)Lens = lensois(e)Liège = liégeois(e)Lille = lillois(e)Lourdes = lourdais(e)Luxembourg = luxembourgeois(e)Lyon = lyonnais(e)Mâcon = mâconnais(e)Marseille = marseillais(e) or phocéen(ne)Metz = messin(e)Modane = modanais(e)Montpellier = montpelliérain(e)Montréal = montréalais(e)Moulins = moulinois(e)Mulhouse = mulhousien(ne)Nancy = nancéien(ne)Nantes = nantais(e)Narbonne = narbonnais(e)Nevers = nivernais(e)Nice = niçois(e)Nîmes = nîmois(e)Orléans = orléanais(e)Paris = parisien(ne)Pau = palois(e)Périgueux = périgourdin(e)Perpignan = perpignanais(e)Poitiers = poitevin(e)Pont-à-Mousson = mussipontain(e)Québec = québécois(e)Reims = rémois(e)Rennes = rennais(e)Roanne = roannais(e)Rouen = rouennais(e)Saint-Étienne = stéphanois(e)Saint-Malo = malouin(e)Saint-Tropez = tropézien(ne)Sancerre = sancerrois(e)Sète = sétois(e)Sochaux = sochalien(ne)Strasbourg = strasbourgeois(e)Tarascon = tarasconnais(e)Tarbes = tarbais(e)Toulon = toulonnais(e)Toulouse = toulousain(e)Tours = tourangeau(-elle)Tunis = tunisois(e)Valence = valentinois(e)Valenciennes = valenciennois(e)Versailles = versaillais(e)Vichy = vichyssois(e) -
17 Rivers
The English word river can be either fleuve or rivière in French. Major rivers, all of which flow into the sea, are fleuves: the rest are rivières. Here are some examples of fleuves in France: la Garonne, la Loire, la Seine, le Rhin, le Rhône and la Somme: other fleuves include: le Nil, le Danube, le Gange, le Tage, l’Indus, l’Amazone, le Congo, le Mississippi, le Niger and le Saint-Laurent.The following French rivers are rivières: la Marne, l’Oise, l’Allier, la Dordogne, la Saône.As in English, French uses the definite article with names of rivers:the Thames= la Tamiseto go down the Rhine= descendre le Rhinto live near the Seine= habiter près de la Seinethe course of the Danube= le cours du DanubeIn English you can say the X, the X river or the river X. In French it is always le X (or la X):the river Thames= la Tamisethe Potomac river= le PotomacWhen the name of the river is used as an adjective, French has de + definite article:Seine barges= les péniches de la Seinea Rhine castle= un château des bords du Rhinthe Rhine estuary= l’estuaire du Rhin -
18 item
item ['aɪtəm]1 noun∎ the items in the shop window les articles en vitrine;∎ the only item he bought was a lighter la seule chose qu'il ait achetée, c'est un briquet;∎ an item of clothing un vêtement(b) (point, issue) point m, question f;∎ there are two important items on the agenda il y a deux points importants à l'ordre du jour;∎ I've several items of business to attend to j'ai plusieurs affaires à régler(c) (in newspaper) article m; (very brief) entrefilet m; (on TV or radio) point m ou sujet m d'actualité;∎ an item in the 'Times' un article dans le 'Times';∎ there was an item on the news about it yesterday ils en ont parlé aux informations hier;∎ and here are today's main news items et voici les principaux points de l'actualité(d) (performance in show) numéro m(f) Linguistics item m;∎ lexical item item m lexical(g) Accountancy écriture f, article m;∎ item of expenditure article m de dépense∎ are they an item? est-ce qu'ils sortent ensemble?□ ;∎ they're no longer an item ils ne sortent plus ensemble□2 adverb -
19 come
1. past tense - came; verb1) (to move etc towards the person speaking or writing, or towards the place being referred to by him: Come here!; Are you coming to the dance?; John has come to see me; Have any letters come for me?) venir, arriver2) (to become near or close to something in time or space: Christmas is coming soon.) approcher3) (to happen or be situated: The letter `d' comes between `c' and è' in the alphabet.) venir4) ((often with to) to happen (by accident): How did you come to break your leg?) se faire que5) (to arrive at (a certain state etc): What are things coming to? We have come to an agreement.) aboutir6) ((with to) (of numbers, prices etc) to amount (to): The total comes to 51.) se monter à2. interjection(expressing disapproval, drawing attention etc: Come, come! That was very rude of you!) allons!- comer- coming - comeback - comedown - come about - come across - come along - come by - come down - come into one's own - come off - come on - come out - come round - come to - come to light - come upon - come up with - come what may - to come -
20 friendly
friendly [ˈfrendlɪ][person, animal] gentil ( to sb avec qn ) ; [gesture, atmosphere] amical ; [face] avenant ; [welcome] chaleureux ; [advice] d'ami ; [place] accueillant• it's nice to see a friendly face! ça fait plaisir de voir un visage sympathique !* * *['frendlɪ] 1.noun Sport match m amical2.adjective [person] amical, sympathique; [animal] affectueux/-euse; [attitude, argument, match] amical; [smile] ( polite) aimable; ( warm) amical; [government, nation] ami inv (after n); [shop] accueillant; [agreement] à l'amiableto be friendly with somebody — être ami/-e m/f avec quelqu'un
to get ou become friendly with somebody — se lier d'amitié avec quelqu'un
to be friendly to — être réceptif/-ive à [new ideas]; être bien disposé envers [small firms, local groups]
3.he's very friendly with the boss — il est très copain (colloq) avec le patron
- friendly combining formuser-friendly — d'utilisation facile, convivial
См. также в других словарях:
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and here are the main points — and here are today s top stories/headlines (said at the opening of the telecast before the actual news is broadcast) … English contemporary dictionary
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