il |
1. pron. he (third-person singular masculine subject pronoun for human subject) | |
Il est parti. - He left. | |
2. pron. it (third-person singular subject pronoun for grammatically masculine objects) | |
Je cherche mon livre. Où est-il ? - I'm looking for my book. Where is it? | |
3. pron. (impersonal pronoun) Impersonal subject; it | |
Il pleut. - It’s raining. | |
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. | |
poussait |
1. v. third-person singular imperfect indicative of pousser | |
pousser |
1. v. to push | |
2. v. to urge on, encourage | |
pousser quelqu'un à faire quelque chose | |
pousser à | |
3. v. to grow | |
L'arbre pousse vite. - The tree is growing quickly. | |
4. v. to spring up, to sprout | |
Les Starbucks poussent comme des champignons ici. - The Starbucks are springing up like mushrooms here. | |
5. v. to utter (a cry) | |
6. v. to move aside | |
rien |
1. pron. nothing | |
Je n'ai besoin de rien d'autre. - I need nothing else. | |
2. n-m. a nothing | |
petits riens – little things, little nothings | |
là |
1. adv. referring to physical place | |
2. adv. there | |
Je t'attendrai là. - I'll wait for you there. | |
3. adv. here; present (used with être) | |
Je suis (toujours) là. - I'm (still) here. | |
4. adv. (referring to an abstract destination or goal); there | |
Je suis presque là. - I'm almost there. | |
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 | |
autre |
1. adj. other | |
Donnez-moi un autre exemple. - Give me another example. | |
2. adj. another | |
d'autre |
1. adv. else (besides, other than) | |
Je vois quelqu'un d'autre. - I’m seeing someone else. | |
N'avez-vous rien d'autre à lui dire ? - Do you have anything else to say to him? | |
que |
1. conj. that (introduces a subordinate noun clause and connects it to its parent clause) | |
Je vois que tu parles bien français. - I see that you speak French well. | |
2. conj. Substitutes for another, previously stated conjunction. | |
Si le temps est beau et que tout le monde est d'accord, nous mangerons en plein air. - If the weather is nice and if everyone likes the idea, we'll eat outside. | |
3. conj. when, no sooner | |
Il était à peine parti qu’elle a téléphoné à la police. - No sooner had he left when she called the police. | |
4. conj. (Links two noun phrases in apposition forming a clause without a (finite) verb, such that the complement acts as predicate.) | |
5. conj. introduces a comparison | |
6. conj. (comparisons of superiority or inferiority) than | |
Il est plus grand que son père. - He is taller than his father. | |
7. conj. (comparisons of equality) as | |
Elle est aussi intelligente que toi. - She is as smart as you. | |
8. conj. (used with ne) only, just; but, nothing but | |
Je ne mange que des fruits. - I eat nothing but fruit. | |
9. conj. how (in rhetorical interjections) | |
Que c'est beau! - How beautiful it is! | |
Mais que t'es drôle, quoi. - Oh, how funny you are. | |
10. pron. (tlb, interrogative) | |
11. pron. (slightly formal, accusative) (The inanimate direct-object interrogative pronoun.) | |
Que pensez-vous de cette peinture ? - What do you think of that painting? | |
Qu'auriez-vous fait d'autre ? - What else would you have done? | |
12. pron. (slightly formal, nominative) (The inanimate subject or predicative interrogative pronoun.) | |
Qu'est-il arrivé ? - What happened? | |
Que me vaut cette visite ? - To what do I owe this visit? | |
Que sommes-nous ? - What are we? | |
13. pron. (accusative, relative) (The direct object relative pronoun.) | |
C'est un homme que je connais très bien. - He's a man whom I know very well. | |
Je viens de lire la lettre que vous m'avez envoyée. - I've just read the letter that you sent me. | |
d'autre que |
1. prep. else, besides, other than | |
Il pense à quelqu'un d'autre que moi. | |
Elle ne veut rien d'autre qu'un lit confortable. | |
Personne d'autre que lui n'a la connaissance nécessaire pour faire fonctionner l'appareil. | |
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 | |
que de |
1. adv. how (modifier) | |
la |
1. art. the (definite article) | |
2. pron. her, it (direct object) | |
Où est Judith ? Je ne la vois pas. - Where is Judith? I don't see her. | |
Prends cette boîte et mets-la dans le coin. - Take that box and put it in the corner. | |
3. n-m. (music) la, the note 'A' | |
de la |
1. art. of the | |
2. art. some; the feminine partitive article | |
Voudriez-vous de la confiture ? - Would you like some jam? | |
J'ai mangé de la tarte - I ate some pie. | |
lavande |
1. n-f. lavender (the plant) | |
sauvage |
1. adj. wild, untamed, not domesticated | |
2. adj. coarse, unrefined | |
3. adj. uncontained, anarchic | |
la publicité sauvage - unregulated/unrestrained/excessive advertising | |
4. adj. (of a person) living in an eccentric, isolated way, not interested in social contact or appealing to others | |
5. adj. (especially, Canada, obsolete, offensive) Louisiana French, offensive Amerindian | |
6. n-m. (especially, Canada, obsolete, offensive, Louisiana) Amerindian | |
7. n-m. (Louisiana) an Amerindian language | |