French Your Way Podcast Archives - Page 3 of 22

FYW 190 : About “puis-je” in French

September 26, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

Podcast listener Megan wanted to know more about the origin of "puis-je", a French form related to the verb "pouvoir". I always love it when students are curious about what they learn, question, investigate the meaning and origin of words. So I'm more than happy to share these random facts about "puis-je" and hope that it will help you see the French language with a fresh perspective! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Je peux m'asseoir ici ? Est-ce que je peux m'asseoir ici ? Peux-je -> puis-je m'asseoir ici ? Pouvoir -> power Devoir … Read More →

FYW 189 : French pronunciation: What’s the difference between a “mute H” and an “aspirate H”?

September 19, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

This episode is an exclusive peep into one of the lessons from my online French pronunciation and intonation course “How to sound like a native French speaker”. If you yet need to find out the influence of the latter “H” in the French liaison, or simply if you need a French phonetics brush-up, this episode is for you! I’ll also read and comment on a testimonial for my French pronunciation course...and have a bit of a rant against some language “teaching” methods! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Testimonial for my online course “How to sound like a … Read More →

FYW 188 : The position of adverbs in French

September 12, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

Where are adverbs positioned in a French sentence? Before or after the verb? What about in compound tenses? In negative sentences? Listen to this episode to find out! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Le bébé dort bien / dort paisiblement Vous étudiez régulièrement, vous travaillez beaucoup Le bébé a bien dormi Le bébé a dormi paisiblement Vous avez étudié régulièrement (vous avez régulièrement étudié) Le bébé dort bien -> le bébé dort très bien / vraiment bien. Vous avez étudié régulièrement -> Vous avez étudié très/assez … Read More →

FYW 187 : PART 5 – 5 common false friends (= faux amis) in French and English

September 5, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

Many words in French and English are similar or look similar. That’s lucky because it helps with learning vocabulary faster. However, these words sometimes means something very different in the two languages! In this case, they are called “faux amis”, false friends, or false cognates. Here’s a list of 5 common false friends so you don’t make the mistake! False friends, part 1: Episode 85- www.frenchyourway.com.au/podcast85 False friends, part 2: Episode 103- www.frenchyourway.com.au/podcast103 False friends, part 3: Episode 118 - www.frenchyourway.com.au/podcast118 False friends, … Read More →

FYW 186 : “savoir” or “pouvoir”? How to translate “can” into French

August 29, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

The English modal "can" has a couple of different translations in French depending on its meaning. Let's clarify how to translate "can" into French. You’ll see, it's easy! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode "I don't have time to do it" = "Je n'ai pas le temps de le faire" Can I open the window? = (Est-ce que) je peux ouvrir la fenêtre ? Can you take a photo of me please? = Est-ce que vous pouvez (tu peux) me prendre en photo ? I can swim: I learnt when I was 6. = Je sais nager I can swim 2km in one hour. = Je peux nager 2km en une heure. Je … Read More →

FYW 185 : French dictation: Comments on the previous episode

August 22, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

In episode 184 you had the opportunity to challenge yourself with a very French and very academic type of exercise: la dictée! (= dictation). In this episode, I’ll come back on the few grammar and spelling rules that you needed to pay attention to in order to spell the words properly. Listen to episode 184 to do the dictation: www.frenchyourway.com.au/podcast184 Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode “Il vous cherche, il a fouillé, posé des questions, on n'a rien dit, bien sûr. Un homme seul. Oui, en taxi. Edouard avait caressé la joue de Louise et suivi de … Read More →

FYW 184 : A French exercise: dictation!

August 15, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

I've been wanting to offer you this type of exercise for a while...today is the day! The "dictée" (dictation) is the French exercise by excellence. It is very academic and has been the nightmare of generations of students. (I did like them, though!). Put yourself to the test! The text of the dictation is in the show notes - don't cheat and read it before you've tried to do it! 😉 Why this is an interesting exercise: Check that you hear sounds properly Check that you're trying to make sense of what you're hearing (homonyms, cutting the words/the flow, type of words, etc.) Check … Read More →

FYW 183 : Ceci, cela, ça, celui, etc: a guide about using the demonstrative pronouns and adjectives.

August 8, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

In this episode I'll explain the difference between the demonstrative adjectives and demonstrative pronouns and will help you choose wisely among all these little words! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Ce soir, cet homme Cette fille Ces enfants C'est un chien. C'est qui? Qui est-ce? Ce (Ça, ceci, cela) doit être difficile! Ça va bien? Ça (ceci / cela) me fait plaisir. Je ne veux pas entendre ça (cela) J'ai vu l'homme; celui que la police recherche depuis 3 mois! Ma femme, c'est celle avec la robe bleue. Le contrôleur sanctionne tous ceux qui … Read More →

FYW 182 : How long does it take to learn French?

August 1, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

I'm sometimes asked the million dollar question: "How long does it take to learn French ?" (or any other language, for that matter.) Another variation to this question is: "How long does it take to become fluent in French?" Before I go any further, what would YOU answer? In this episode, I'll talk about the 6 levels of proficiency defined by the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages). I'll try to define the notion of fluency and what comes into play regarding how fast you can learn a foreign language. I'll also give you my opinion about quick-learning methods which … Read More →

FYW 181 : Listen to a real French lesson! (French session #2)

July 25, 2018 by Jessica Leave a Comment

Listen to a real French lesson that I recorded This is a new concept to give you the opportunity to have a casual French session on Skype with me, since I can’t commit to recurring lessons anymore. For you, it is a great opportunity to get my personal feedback on your French and ask me anything that you need help with. Students taking the lesson agree to be recorded (I make sure any personal detail is then edited out) and the result may become a podcast episode…like today! This way, my feedback is both personal and still helping as many of you as possible 😉 When you participate, you … Read More →