quelques |
1. adj. plural of quelque | |
Les rayons des céphéides classiques sont de quelques dizaines à quelques centaines fois celui du Soleil. - The radii of the classical Cepheids are from some tens to some hundred times that of t | |
mains |
1. n. plural of main | |
main |
1. n-f. hand | |
2. n-f. (soccer) handball | |
3. n-f. (poker) hand | |
en |
1. prep. in (used to indicate space, also see usage notes) | |
J'habite en Angleterre. - I live in England. | |
2. prep. to (indicates direction towards certain very large locations, see usage notes) | |
Il est allé en France. - He went to France. | |
3. prep. by (used to indicate means) | |
aller en bus - go by bus | |
partir en voiture - leave by car | |
4. prep. as | |
Il me traite en ami. - He treats me as a friend. | |
habillé en père Noël - dressed as Father Christmas | |
5. prep. at (used to describe an ability) | |
fort en histoire - good at history | |
6. prep. of, made of (used to describe composition) | |
une chaise en hêtre - a chair made of beech/a beech chair | |
une fourchette en métal - a fork made of metal/a metal fork | |
7. prep. in (during the following time (used for months and years)) | |
en 1993 - in 1993 | |
en janvier - in January | |
en septembre 2001 - in September 2001 | |
8. prep. (followed by a gerund) while | |
9. prep. (followed by a gerund) by, in describing a way of getting something | |
C'est en trichant qu'il est devenu champion. - It was by cheating that he became champion. | |
10. prep. in (used to describe color) | |
une photo en noir et blanc - a photo in black and white | |
11. prep. in (used to describe feelings) | |
en détresse - in distress | |
12. prep. in (as part of something) | |
en équipe - on a team | |
13. pron. (Used as the object of a verb to indicate an indefinite quantity; of it, of them. Replaces the partitive article (du, de la, etc.)) | |
Essaies-en ! - Try some (of it / them)! | |
Tu as combien de livres ? J'en ai trois. - How many books do you have? I have three (of them). | |
Y a-t-il beaucoup de pièces ? Oui. Il y en a beaucoup. - Are there many rooms? Yes, there are many (of them). | |
Martin a trois sandwichs, mais j'en ai seulement deux. - Martin has three sandwiches, but I have only two (of them). | |
Il y en a combien ? - How many of them are there? | |
Je bois de l'alcool parce que j'en ai besoin - I drink alcohol because I need (of) it. | |
14. pron. Adverbial preposition indicating movement away from a place already mentioned; from there, from it. Replaces the phrase de là or d’ici. | |
Est-ce qu'elle vient de Barcelone ? Oui, elle en vient. - Does she come from Barcelona? Yes, she comes (from there). | |
plus |
1. adv. more, -er (used to form comparatives of adjectives) | |
Ton voisin est plus moche que mon frère. - Your neighbour is uglier than my brother. | |
Le tien est beaucoup plus grand que le mien. - Yours is much bigger than mine. | |
Elle est plus belle que sa cousine. - She is more beautiful than her cousin. | |
Elles sont toutes plus entêtées les unes que les autres. - They are each more stubborn than the last. | |
2. adv. more, -er (used to form comparatives of adverbs) | |
Elle le fait plus rapidement que lui. - She does it more quickly than he does. | |
plus vite ! - faster! | |
3. adv. (after a verb) more, -er (indicating a higher degree or quantity) | |
Je travaille plus en ce moment. - I am working more at the moment. | |
Je veux faire plus. - I want to do more. | |
4. adv. more (indicating a greater quantity) (+preo, noun) | |
Elle a plus de chocolat. - She has more chocolate. | |
Plus de la moitié reste. - More than half is left. | |
5. adv. more (supplementary, preceded by de) | |
Une heure de plus et il serait mort. - One more hour and he would be dead. | |
Un kilo de plus, s'il vous plaît. - One more kilo, please. | |
6. adv. (preceded by a definite article) the most, -est (used to form superlatives of adjectives and adverbs) | |
la plus grande - the biggest | |
le plus difficile - the most difficult | |
7. adv. (usually with the negative particle ne, see usage notes below) no longer, not ... any more | |
Tu n'existes plus. - You no longer exist. / You don't exist any more. | |
Il n'y a plus de travail. - There is no more work. | |
8. adv. (elliptically, introducing each clause) the more ..., the more ... | |
Plus je vois, plus je veux. - The more I see, the more I want. | |
9. adv. (similarly, used with other comparatives) the more ..., the ... | |
Plus j'écoute, moins je comprends. - The more I listen, the less I understand. | |
10. n-m. plus, the symbol + | |
11. v. singular past historic of plaire | |
12. Participle. masculine plural of plu | |
ne |
1. part. (literary) not (used alone to negate a verb; now chiefly with only a few particular verbs: see usage notes) | |
2. part. not, no (used before a verb, with a coordinating negative element usually following; see Usage Notes, below) | |
3. part. (Used in a subordinate clause before a subjunctive verb (especially when the main verb expresses doubt or fear), to provide extra overtones of doubt or uncertainty (but not negating its verb); the so- | |
4. part. In comparative clauses usually translated with the positive sense of the subsequent negative | |
Apprendre le français est plus facile qu'on ne pense. - Learning French is easier than you (might) think. | |
feront |
1. v. third-person plural future of faire | |
faire |
1. v. to do | |
faire la vaisselle - to do the washing-up. | |
Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? - What are you doing? | |
Fais pas ça. - Don't do that. | |
2. v. to make | |
faire une erreur - to make a mistake. | |
faire un voyage - to take a trip | |
3. v. to say (of a person), to go (of an animal) | |
"Je t'aime," fit-il. - "I love you," he said. | |
Le chat fait "miaou". - The cat goes "meow". | |
4. v. to make (cause someone or something to do something) | |
Tu me fais rire. - You make me laugh. | |
La chanson me fait pleurer. - The song makes me cry. | |
5. v. to act like (something) | |
Fais pas ton innocent avec moi. - Don't act like you're so innocent around me./Don't give me that innocent act. | |
6. v. (impersonal) to be (of the weather or various situations) | |
Il fait chaud/froid/noir/beau dehors. - It is hot/cold/dark/nice outside. | |
Ça fait dix ans que nous nous connaissons. - We have known each other for ten years. | |
Ça fait bizarre. - That seems/looks bizarre; that gives a bizarre effect/appearance/result. | |
Ça fait très monsieur, ta cravate. - Your tie makes you look like a real gentleman. | |
7. v. to do, to make (oneself) | |
Elle se fait les ongles. - She is doing her nails. | |
8. v. to be, to get (used for a passive action) | |
se faire piquer - to be stung | |
Je me suis fait avoir. - I got screwed. | |
Est-ce que tu t'es fait couper les cheveux ? - Did you get your hair cut? | |
9. v. to ripen (of fruit), to mature | |
10. v. to become used to, to get used to | |
Je ne m'y suis toujours pas fait. - I still haven't got used to it. | |
11. v. (slang) to do (to have sex with) | |
12. v. (informal, intransitive) to defecate; (metaphorically) to shit oneself (to be terrified) | |
L'enfant a fait dans son pantalon. - The child soiled his trousers. | |
Ils viennent d'entendre les nouvelles et ils font dans leur culotte. - They've just heard the news and they're shitting themselves. | |
13. v. to become, to get | |
pas |
1. n-m. step, pace, footstep | |
2. n-m. (geography) strait, pass | |
Pas de Calais - Strait of Dover | |
3. n-m. thread, pitch (of a screw or nut) | |
4. adv. The most common adverb of negation in French, typically translating into English as not, don't, doesn't, etc. | |
Je ne sais pas. - I don't know | |
Ma grande sœur n'habite pas avec nous. - My big sister doesn't live with us. | |
J’veux pas travailler. - I don't wanna work. | |
de |
1. prep. of (expresses belonging) | |
Paris est la capitale de la France. - Paris is the capital of France. | |
2. prep. of (used to express property or association) | |
Œuvres de Fermat - Fermat’s Works | |
Elle est la femme de mon ami. - She is my friend’s wife. | |
le voisin de Gabriel - Gabriel's neighbor | |
3. prep. from (used to indicate origin) | |
Elle vient de France. - She comes from France. | |
Êtes-vous de Suisse ? - Are you from Switzerland? | |
Ce fromage vient d’Espagne. - This cheese is from Spain. | |
C’est de l’ouest de la France. - It’s from the west of France. | |
Le train va de Paris à Bordeaux. - The train goes from Paris to Bordeaux. | |
4. prep. of (indicates an amount) | |
5 kilos de pommes. - 5 kilograms of apples. | |
Un verre de vin - A glass of wine | |
Une portion de frites - A portion of fries | |
5. prep. used attributively, often translated into English as a compound word | |
Un jus de pomme - Apple juice | |
Un verre de vin - A glass of wine | |
Une boîte de nuit - A nightclub | |
Un chien de garde - A guarddog | |
Une voiture de sport - A sportscar | |
Un stade de football - A football stadium | |
6. prep. from (used to indicate the start of a time or range) | |
De 9:00 à 11:00 je ne serai pas libre. - From 9 to 11 I won’t be free. | |
Je travaille de huit heures à midi. - I work from 8 o'clock to noon. | |
un groupe de cinq à huit personnes - a group of from five to eight people | |
7. prep. used after certain verbs before an infinitive, often translated into English as a gerund or an infinitive | |
J’ai arrêté de fumer. - I stopped smoking. | |
Il continue de m’embêter. - He keeps annoying me. | |
Elle m’a dit de venir. - She told me to come. | |
Nous vous exhortons de venir. - We urge you to come. | |
8. prep. by (indicates the amount of change) | |
Boire trois tasses par jour réduirait de 20 % les risques de contracter une maladie. - Drinking three cups a day would reduce the risks of catching an illness by 20%. | |
9. art. Used in the plural with prepositioned adjectives. | |
Ce sont de bons enfants. - They are good children. | |
Il y a d’autres exemples. - There are other examples. | |
10. art. Used in negated sentences with the grammatical object. | |
Elle n’a pas de mère. - She doesn’t have a mother. | |
Il ne mange pas de viande. - He doesn’t eat meat. | |
Il n’y a pas de problèmes. - There are no problems. | |
11. n-f. abbreviation of dame | |
pas de |
1. prep. (Quebec, informal) without | |
Tu shakais comme une poule pas de tête. - You were shaking like a headless chicken. | |
Mal |
1. Proper noun. Section of Tongres in Belgium | |
2. n-m. (as in the phrase: avoir du mal) trouble, difficulty | |
J'ai du mal à m'imaginer ça. - I have trouble imagining that. | |
3. n-m. pain | |
J'ai mal à la tête. - I have pain at the head. | |
4. n-m. evil | |
Le philosophe abordait de grandes questions du bon et du mal. - The philosopher discussed broad questions of good and evil. | |
5. n-m. damage, harm | |
Le mal est fait. - The damage is done. | |
6. adv. badly | |
C'est mal fait. - It's done badly. | |
7. adj. (in set phrases and limited constructions) bad | |
bon an, mal an - good year, bad year | |
bon gré, mal gré - willy-nilly | |
Il est mal de infinitive - It’s wrong to infinitive | |
C'est mal de infinitive - It’s wrong to infinitive | |