LC French flashcards

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

Liaison

Pronunciation of a normally silent final consonant before a word beginning with a vowel or mute h, as in les amis [lezami] and vous avez [vuzave].

Enchaînement

Linking a pronounced final consonant to the following vowel without any change in spelling, as in elle est [ɛlɛ] and une amie [ynami].

Nasal vowel denasalization

A nasal vowel loses its nasality when followed by a vowel or a nasal consonant: bon [bɔ̃] but bonne [bɔn], un [œ̃] but une [yn].

Passé composé vs imparfait

The passé composé (auxiliary + past participle) presents a completed event; the imparfait describes background, habit, or ongoing state in the past.

Discourse markers

Words signalling the speaker's stance or the argument's direction: en fait, par contre, donc, quand même, however, on the other hand, therefore, nevertheless.

Faux amis

Words that look alike in French and English but differ in meaning: actuellement = currently, éventuellement = possibly, librairie = bookshop, sensible = sensitive.

Passé simple

A literary past tense marking written narrative: il parla, elle finit, ils vendirent; recognize it in reading even if you do not produce it.

Plus-que-parfait

A past tense formed with avait/avait + past participle that places an event before another past event: il avait déjà mangé quand je suis arrivé.

Impersonal expressions

Fixed phrases carrying the argument: il convient de (it is appropriate to), il s'agit de (it is about), force est de constater (one must admit).

Restrictive ne…que

A construction meaning 'only', which changes the apparent sense of a sentence: je n'ai que deux euros = I have only two euros.

Present endings -er verbs

Regular -er verbs take parle, parles, parle, parlons, parlez, parlent; the endings are silent except in the nous and vous forms.

Être verbs in passé composé

A closed list uses être as auxiliary: aller, venir, arriver, partir, entrer, sortir, naître, mourir, monter, descendre, rester, tomber, retourner, devenir, revenir; the participle agrees with the subject.

Subjunctive triggers

The subjunctive follows necessity, doubt, emotion, and conjunctions such as bien que, pour que, avant que, à moins que: il faut que tu viennes.

Participle agreement with avoir

The past participle agrees with a preceding direct object: les lettres que j'ai écrites; there is no agreement when the object follows: j'ai écrit les lettres.

Adjectives before the noun

A short list precedes the noun: beau, joli, jeune, vieux, grand, petit, bon, mauvais, nouveau, gros, haut, long, premier, dernier, autre, même.

Depuis vs pendant

Depuis + present expresses an ongoing action (J'habite ici depuis trois ans); pendant + past expresses a completed duration (J'ai vécu là pendant trois ans).

Formal letter frame

Sender's details, recipient's details, place and date, objet, salutation, body, and a closing formula such as Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, l'expression de mes salutations distinguées.

Argumentative connectors

Structure an argument with d'une part… d'autre part, en premier lieu, ensuite, enfin, en conclusion; each paragraph carries one idea with an example.

Fait divers structure

A news item answers who, what, when, where, how, and why in the opening paragraph, then adds detail; past tenses dominate, with the passé simple in narrative prose.

Compte rendu language

A report summarizes without personal opinion: l'auteur affirme que, le document souligne, il ressort de ces textes que.

French punctuation spacing

A space precedes ; : ! ? and sits inside guillemets « … »; the decimal comma is used, as in 3,5.

Exposé structure

An oral presentation follows introduction, two or three developed points, and a conclusion with an ouverture (opening to a wider question).

Buying time orally

Natural fillers replace silence: en fait, disons que, ce que je veux dire, c'est que, alors voilà.

Reformulation phrases

When stuck, say comment dire…, autrement dit…, je m'explique…; asking for clarification is allowed: vous voulez dire que… ?

Opinion frames

Express a view with à mon avis, personnellement, je trouve que, j'ai l'impression que, il me semble que; soften disagreement with certes, cependant…

Conditional for politeness

The conditional softens requests and opinions: je dirais que, j'aimerais ajouter, pourriez-vous préciser ?

Laïcité

The French principle of state secularism, grounded in the 1905 law separating church and state; it shapes public policy on religion in schools and institutions.

Organisation internationale de la Francophonie

The OIF, headquartered in Paris, groups over 80 states and governments; French is an official language of the UN, EU, and African Union.

Belgian and Swiss numbers

Septante (70) and nonante (90) are used in Belgium and Switzerland; huitante (80) is used in parts of Switzerland instead of quatre-vingts.

Québec French

The variety spoken in Québec, with distinctive vocabulary such as fin de semaine for week-end and a different accent from metropolitan French.

French media landscape

Press: Le Monde, Le Figaro, Libération, Les Échos. Radio: France Inter, RTL, Europe 1. Television: TF1, France 2, Arte.

EU institutions

The European Parliament sits in Strasbourg, the European Commission in Brussels, and the Court of Justice in Luxembourg; all matter to French current affairs.