CLEP French Language flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Moi non plus

French rejoinder agreeing with a negative statement, meaning "me neither." It follows a negative sentence; to disagree with a negative statement, use "moi si" instead.

Moi si

Rejoinder that contradicts a negative statement, meaning "I do" or "I am." After "Je n'aime pas le café," answering "Moi si" means the speaker does like it.

Je vous en prie

Formal rejoinder to "merci" meaning "you're welcome," and to "excusez-moi" meaning "please go ahead." The informal equivalent used with tu is "je t'en prie."

Tant pis

Expression meaning "too bad" or "never mind," used when a situation cannot be changed. It contrasts with "tant mieux," which expresses relief or satisfaction at good news.

Ça vaut le coup

Idiom meaning "it is worth it," used to recommend an effort, a purchase, or a trip. The negative "ça ne vaut pas la peine" means it is not worthwhile.

Pas de souci

Informal expression meaning "no problem," used to accept an apology or agree to a request. More formal equivalents include "ce n'est pas grave" and "il n'y a pas de problème."

Imparfait vs. passé composé

In narration, the imparfait sets background, description, and repeated actions, while the passé composé reports single completed events that move the story forward.

Venir de + infinitif

Construction expressing the recent past, "to have just done something," as in "Il vient d'arriver." Venir stays in the present tense and the infinitive follows directly.

Être en train de

Periphrasis meaning "to be in the middle of doing something," stressing that the action happens right now, as in "Elle est en train de téléphoner."

Si + imparfait

Pattern for an unreal condition: si plus imparfait in the dependent clause pairs with the conditional in the main clause, as in "Si j'avais le temps, je viendrais."

Aller + infinitif

Near-future construction meaning "to be going to do something," as in "Je vais partir." Spoken French prefers it to the simple future for planned events.

D'abord, ensuite, enfin

Sequencing adverbs that organize a spoken narrative: d'abord = first, ensuite or puis = then, enfin or finalement = finally. They mark the order of events.

Depuis + present tense

French uses the present, not a past tense, with depuis for an action still going on: "J'apprends le français depuis deux ans" means I have been learning French for two years.

Il y a vs dans

Il y a plus a duration means "ago" and points to the past; dans plus a duration means "in" and points to the future: "il y a deux jours" versus "dans deux jours."

Y vs en

The pronoun y replaces à plus a thing or place; en replaces de plus a noun or a partitive, including quantities: "J'y vais" and "J'en ai trois."

Meilleur vs mieux

Meilleur is the irregular comparative of the adjective bon and modifies a noun; mieux is the comparative of the adverb bien and modifies a verb: "un meilleur film," "il travaille mieux."

Ne...que

Restrictive negation meaning "only." The que is not translated as "that": "Je n'ai que dix euros" means I have only ten euros. Ne is dropped in casual speech.

Jouer à vs jouer de

Jouer à takes a sport or game (jouer au tennis, jouer aux cartes); jouer de takes a musical instrument with a definite article (jouer du piano, de la guitare).

Faux ami: actuellement

Actuellement means "currently" or "at present," not "actually." The English word "actually" is normally rendered by "en fait" or "en réalité."

Pour que + subjunctive

Conjunction of purpose meaning "so that," always followed by the subjunctive: "Je parle lentement pour que tu comprennes." By contrast, parce que takes the indicative and means "because."

Past participle with avoir

With the auxiliary avoir, the past participle agrees only when a direct object precedes it: "Les lettres que j'ai écrites" but "J'ai écrit les lettres."

Dont

Relative pronoun replacing de plus a noun, meaning "of which," "whose," or "about which": "Le livre dont je parle" means the book I am talking about.

Partitive after negation

The partitive and indefinite articles du, de la, des, un, une usually become de or d' after a negation: "Je n'ai pas de pain," "Il n'y a plus d'eau."

Pronoun order

Object pronouns line up as me/te/se/nous/vous, then le/la/les, then lui/leur, then y, then en: "Il me le donne," "Elle y en a mis."

Bien que + subjunctive

Concessive conjunction meaning "although" and requiring the subjunctive: "Bien que je sois fatigué, je travaille." Quoique behaves the same way, while pendant que takes the indicative.

On = nous

In everyday French, on replaces nous as the subject meaning "we," but the verb stays third-person singular: "On part demain" means we are leaving tomorrow.

Pourtant / cependant

Adverbs signalling contrast, meaning "however" or "yet." They mark an opposition to what was just stated, like "en revanche" and "toutefois"; "donc" instead marks a consequence.

Donc / par conséquent

Connectors expressing result, meaning "therefore" and "as a result." They introduce a conclusion drawn from the preceding statement in an article or argument.

En effet

Connective meaning "indeed" or "in fact," used to confirm or explain a preceding statement. It differs from "en fait," which corrects or contradicts what came before.

Il s'agit de

Impersonal expression meaning "it is about," "it concerns," or "it is a matter of." It is followed by a noun or an infinitive and is frequent in articles and instructions.

Passé simple: il fut

Third-person singular passé simple of être, used in formal and literary narration for completed past events. Parallel forms include il eut (avoir) and il fit (faire).

Sauf / à part

Prepositions meaning "except," introducing an exclusion in ads, schedules, and rules: "Ouvert tous les jours sauf le lundi" means open every day except Monday.