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Here is a key question. The subject came up at a meetup when our friend Jim, an accomplished guitarist as you know, asked about the French translation for the word “key” used in a musical context. The basic translation for … Continue reading →

 Salut, tout le monde! Quand j’ai vu le contenu de la vidéo suivante, j’ai pensé que je devrais vous le communiquer pour vous mettre en garde. Faites très attention!   Quoi que vous fassiez, ne parlez pas comme cette personne! Vous … Continue reading →

THAT &%$#@&*! LETTER “H”. The letter “h” – among other things — can drive some students of French crazy. Why can they not make the liaison every time a word starts with an “h”? The answer, indeed, is that in … Continue reading →

  A FEW PROVERBS QUELQUES PROVERBES   Pierre qui roule n’amasse pas mousse / A rolling stone gathers no moss. Mieux vaut prévenir que guérir / literally “It is better to prevent than to cure” / A stitch in time … Continue reading →

Possible confusions in French You have learned certain ways to recognize whether a noun is masculine or feminine, since this is so important in French. For example, usually, a general rule is that if the word ends with an “e” … Continue reading →

 Dancie Jiu-Jitsu À La Rescousse. Parue dans les média il n’y pas longtemps, une nouvelle réconfortante décrit une attitude plus courageuse et plus déterminée des victimes éventuelles face au “bullying”, ce mal qui a toujours hanté les écoles, probablement depuis … Continue reading →

They are everywhere and show up at every turn and when you expect them least. So, one is never too vigilant. Here are a few more. Affluent English: –The adjective “affluent” qualifies a well-off individual. French: —The word “affluent” is … Continue reading →

More faux-amis Actual, actually In French, “actuel” means “current, present”, and “actuellement” is “now”, “at this time” , “currently”. “Dans l’état actuel des choses”. “As things stand at this time”. The English adjective “actual” is, in French, “réel, exact, vrai,véritable”, … Continue reading →

SOME SLANG WORDS. QUELQUES MOTS D’ARGOT. Note: In the following, the French slang words  were forced into a text simply for the purpose of introducing them. So, do not look for a story or some profound philosophy. In France, one … Continue reading →

One could say that proverbs are a legacy of the Wise. Following are some with their origins, when possible, and their English equivalent. _ Vouloir, c’est pouvoir. Literally: “to want is to can”. In other words, if you want something … Continue reading →