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1 Illnesses, aches and pains
Where does it hurt?where does it hurt?= où est-ce que ça vous fait mal? or (more formally) où avez-vous mal?his leg hurts= sa jambe lui fait malhe has a pain in his leg= il a mal à la jambeNote that with avoir mal à French uses the definite article (la) with the part of the body, where English has a possessive (his), hence:his head was aching= il avait mal à la têteEnglish has other ways of expressing this idea, but avoir mal à fits them too:he had toothache= il avait mal aux dentshis ears hurt= il avait mal aux oreillesAccidentsshe broke her leg= elle s’est cassé la jambeElle s’est cassé la jambe means literally she broke to herself the leg ; because the se is an indirect object, the past participle cassé does not agree. This is true of all such constructions:she sprained her ankle= elle s’est foulé la chevillethey burned their hands= ils se sont brûlé les mainsChronic conditionsNote that the French often use fragile (weak) to express a chronic condition:he has a weak heart= il a le cœur fragilehe has kidney trouble= il a les reins fragileshe has a bad back= il a le dos fragileBeing illMostly French uses the definite article with the name of an illness:to have flu= avoir la grippeto have measles= avoir la rougeoleto have malaria= avoir la malariaThis applies to most infectious diseases, including childhood illnesses. However, note the exceptions ending in -ite (e.g. une hépatite, une méningite) below.When the illness affects a specific part of the body, French uses the indefinite article:to have cancer= avoir un cancerto have cancer of the liver= avoir un cancer du foieto have pneumonia= avoir une pneumonieto have cirrhosis= avoir une cirrhoseto have a stomach ulcer= avoir un ulcère à l’estomacMost words in -ite ( English -itis) work like this:to have bronchitis= avoir une bronchiteto have hepatitis= avoir une hépatiteWhen the illness is a generalized condition, French tends to use du, de l’, de la or des:to have rheumatism= avoir des rhumatismesto have emphysema= avoir de l’emphysèmeto have asthma= avoir de l’asthmeto have arthritis= avoir de l’arthriteOne exception here is:to have hay fever= avoir le rhume des foinsWhen there is an adjective for such conditions, this is often preferred in French:to have asthma= être asthmatiqueto have epilepsy= être épileptiqueSuch adjectives can be used as nouns to denote the person with the illness, e.g. un/une asthmatique and un/une épileptique etc.French has other specific words for people with certain illnesses:someone with cancer= un cancéreux/une cancéreuseIf in doubt check in the dictionary.English with is translated by qui a or qui ont, and this is always safe:someone with malaria= quelqu’un qui a la malariapeople with Aids= les gens qui ont le SidaFalling illThe above guidelines about the use of the definite and indefinite articles in French hold good for talking about the onset of illnesses.French has no general equivalent of to get. However, where English can use catch, French can use attraper:to catch mumps= attraper les oreillonsto catch malaria= attraper la malariato catch bronchitis= attraper une bronchiteto catch a cold= attraper un rhumeSimilarly where English uses contract, French uses contracter:to contract Aids= contracter le Sidato contract pneumonia= contracter une pneumonieto contract hepatitis= contracter une hépatiteFor attacks of chronic illnesses, French uses faire une crise de:to have a bout of malaria= faire une crise de malariato have an asthma attack= faire une crise d’asthmeto have an epileptic fit= faire une crise d’épilepsieTreatmentto be treated for polio= se faire soigner contre la polioto take something for hay fever= prendre quelque chose contre le rhume des foinshe’s taking something for his cough= il prend quelque chose contre la touxto prescribe something for a cough= prescrire un médicament contre la touxmalaria tablets= des cachets contre la malariato have a cholera vaccination= se faire vacciner contre le cholérato be vaccinated against smallpox= se faire vacciner contre la varioleto be immunized against smallpox= se faire immuniser contre la varioleto have a tetanus injection= se faire vacciner contre le tétanosto give sb a tetanus injection= vacciner qn contre le tétanosto be operated on for cancer= être opéré d’un cancerto operate on sb for appendicitis= opérer qn de l’appendicite
См. также в других словарях:
take exception to something — phrase to dislike something because you feel annoyed or offended by it Eileen took exception to Pat’s manner and said as much. Thesaurus: to hate or dislike someone or somethingsynonym Main entry: exception * * * take exˈception to sth idiom … Useful english dictionary
take exception to something — to dislike something because you feel annoyed or offended by it Eileen took exception to Pat s manner and said as much … English dictionary
take exception — verb raise a formal objection in a court of law (Freq. 1) • Syn: ↑challenge • Derivationally related forms: ↑challenge (for: ↑challenge) • Topics: ↑law … Useful english dictionary
exception — [[t]ɪkse̱pʃ(ə)n[/t]] ♦♦♦ exceptions 1) N COUNT: oft with the N of n, with N An exception is a particular thing, person, or situation that is not included in a general statement, judgement, or rule. Few guitarists can sing as well as they can… … English dictionary
exception — ex|cep|tion [ ık sepʃən ] noun count or uncount *** someone or something that is different in some way from other people or things and so cannot be included in a general statement: New technology stocks have done badly in recent months, but… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
exception */*/*/ — UK [ɪkˈsepʃ(ə)n] / US noun [countable/uncountable] Word forms exception : singular exception plural exceptions someone or something that is different in some way from other people or things and so cannot be included in a general statement New… … English dictionary
exception — ex·cep·tion n 1: something that is excepted or excluded; esp: a situation to which a rule does not apply the supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exception s, and under such regulations as the… … Law dictionary
take something personally — TAKE OFFENCE, take something amiss, be offended, be upset, be affronted, take umbrage, take exception, feel insulted, feel hurt. → personally * * * take something personally phrase to feel that a failure or unpleasant situation is your fault and… … Useful english dictionary
exception — [ek sep′shən, iksep′shən] n. [ME excepcioun < OFr exception < L exceptio] 1. an excepting or being excepted; omission; exclusion 2. anything that is excepted; specif., a) a case to which a rule, general principle, etc. does not apply b) a… … English World dictionary
exception — late 14c., from Anglo Fr. excepcioun, O.Fr. excepcion, from L. exceptionem (nom. exceptio), noun of action from pp. stem of excipere (see EXCEPT (Cf. except)). The exception that proves the rule is from law: exceptio probat regulam in casibus non … Etymology dictionary
exception — /Ik sepSFn/ noun (C, U) 1 something or someone that is not included in a rule, does not follow the expected pattern etc: With one or two notable exceptions, there are few women conductors. | no exception (=used to emphasize that a law or rule… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English