By taking the time to understand how the French language works, you'll be able to speak French naturally, and read and write in French. We know this can be one of the more challenging parts of your course, and we’re here to help! You can browse the topics, do a search in the top right corner of this page, or start a new conversation. Don’t be shy!
Lesson on getting a parking fine
Hi Why is 'giving me a parking fine' translated as 'me mettre une contravention' rather than 'me donner une contravention'
3 replies - Last post by Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor - May 13, 2019
Question regarding Module 9 Certification Quiz - response could be two of the listed items
Module 9 Certification Quiz - "Nous étions jeune" could be translated to either "We were young" or "we used to be young". I selected "We used to be young" but was marked incorrectly because test was looking for "We were young". How can we determine which ...
1 reply - Last post by Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor - April 8, 2019
Unusual use of "ne" in a phrase
I recently started 15.5 and there is a phrase "Dites-lui au revoir avant qu’il ne parte." which translates to "Tell him goodbye before he leaves." I assume the "il parte" is subjunctive, but why is the "ne" present - is it just a common type of phrase?
3 replies - Last post by Peter--252 - March 30, 2019
This is really a suggestion and not a question but I think it would be helpful. In Lesson 3.6 - Talking about the Past: Passé Composé, it would help general understanding if the lesson somewhere stated that to form the past participle of regular verbs, y...
1 reply - Last post by Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor - March 14, 2019
from Lesson 13.8: Mon responsable essayera de faire de son mieux. We have been taught that the irregular future root of to try is "essaie." In Lesson 13.8 I see "essayera" (above). Is it a choice, or a mistake?
1 reply - Last post by Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor - March 14, 2019
Why is is it' l'on' in the question below
Hi In the question Avez vous un numero de telefon ou l'on peut vous joindre - is the l in front of on a prounoun? Why is it there? Why is it not ou on peut joindre? Thank you for any help! Karen
1 reply - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - March 5, 2019
Can someone explain to me why it's: Y a-t-il DES fleurs dans votre jardin? but Il n'y a pas DE fleurs dans mon jardin Thanks! :)
2 replies - Last post by CynthiaP11 - February 12, 2019
Unable to find lessons on conditional present/past and plus-que-parfait
I have looked through all the lessons (level 1/2/3) and am unable to find the lessons where conditional is covered for present and past and there doesn't seem to be any lessons on plus-que-parfait (pluparfait). The only lesson I found was 19.6, which actu...
2 replies - Last post by Jefluz - January 2, 2019
Why is there (e) at the end of the words désolé and fatigué in the early lessons? For example 'désolé(e)'and 'fatigué'. Any help gratefully recieved, merci et à bientôt.
2 replies - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - October 26, 2018
Hi , So i am wondering if anybody can explain this for me - a complete beginner. I am in Level 1 Module 3 . So translating from English to French the answers I have been given are 1) Which wine do you prefer? = Quel vin est-ce que vous preferez? 2)...
1 reply - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - October 26, 2018
Isn't this a mistake in Lesson 13.8? Mon responsable essayera de faire de son mieux. Shouldn't it be "essaiera"?
3 replies - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - October 26, 2018
There are discrepancies in this lesson, in particular the spelling of poliment (shown both with and without an e after the i), and enormement and precisement (shown both with and without second e accented). This is sloppy and although i have raised it w...
1 reply - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - October 26, 2018
Imperfect vs passe compose lesson 17,1
The lesson includes the following lines: "Vous avez vu comme Isabelle etait surprise en arrivant. Elle n'etait vraiment au courant de rien. Oui, c'etait une bonne idee de lui reserver la surprise." "le grand jour est arrive et la surprise etait totale...
1 reply - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - October 26, 2018
What's the difference between Parle and Parlez?
I know parle is pronounced (parl) and Parlez (parle). I heard parle is used for one person and parlez is used for multiple. When you're saying "est-ce que vous parlez francais?" what if you're only talking to one person?
1 reply - Last post by alexmoreno - September 17, 2018
Is "moi" (me) pronounced the same as "moins" (less) or is there a subtle difference in the way these two words are pronounced? Thanks! Jordana
2 replies - Last post by Jordana16 - August 11, 2018
I am 60 years old and have tried to learn French several times over the past few years. I had high hopes for Rocket French until I hit a roadblock near the middle/end of lesson one with definite, plural, indefinite articles, etc. I find the explanations ...
3 replies - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - August 10, 2018
Hello, I was wondering that the versatile word before le jeu de l'invité , should be d'. because the word invité if I am correct in French is masculine. Can you explain me the fact that in general invité-guest, which generally in my first point of view ...
0 replies - Last post by Andi111 - July 14, 2018
Hi, How can I download all the pdf of all the 3 levels? Thanks, Shreyans
3 replies - Last post by shreyans-- - June 1, 2018
French: help with adjectives ending in "ible" & "able"
Please can you point me in the direction of any rules that will help me to know which endings to use. Thanks
0 replies - Last post by shawcath00 - November 21, 2017
A quiz question asked, 'What are the two conjugations of "you buy" (using vous singular and vous plural). Answer choices include: 1)Tu achetes (with an accent grave over the first e), vous achetez and 2)tu achettes, vous achetez. The correct answer is 1 b...
0 replies - Last post by synchro16 - November 13, 2017
Why deosn't the word "Internet" (in French) have an article?
I'm just up to lesson 9.1 in which one sentence is: "Regarde sur Internet". Why not "Regarde sur l'Internet"? I had assumed all French nouns need an article. Is it because it's a 'borrowed' word, or a proper noun perhaps (I noticed it's capitalised)? Bu...
4 replies - Last post by agwarner - October 29, 2017
I haven't been able to distinguish when to say "pour" or "de" for the English "for." I am only at level 1, however. Thank you.
1 reply - Last post by toru e - September 24, 2017
Lesson 5.1 Nous ne vendons pas de bouteilles .... Why isn't it DES bouteilles (to match the plural)?
2 replies - Last post by JanG - September 21, 2017
Is there an less informal way of asking this question? Q'uest ce que tu aimes manger? Aimes-tu manger?
8 replies - Last post by Pascal-B - July 20, 2017
The last line in the conversation in lesson 2.3 is Malheureusement vous arrivez trop tard ! (Unfortunately, you've arrived too late!) That's present tense. Why? I would expect it to be in passé composé or in some form of preterite.
3 replies - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - July 16, 2017
Having trouble with "r" in words
I have been having trouble pronouncing the "r" in words. It could be because I live in an area which is known for dropping the "r", but it is making me frustrated. Do you have any advice to help me?
3 replies - Last post by lesieur200 - March 22, 2017
"nous avons de..." or "nous avons des..."
I'm working on unit 5.2 and came across these two sentences: (1) Nous avons de charmants tableaux par ici. (We have some charming pictures over here.) (2) Est-ce que vous avez des pantoufles ? (Do you have any slippers?) Both refer to something in the pl...
2 replies - Last post by Peter--252 - March 17, 2017
Help with toujours, encore, déjà and jamais
Hi -- I understand the regular sense of these adverbs well enough, but there are so many exceptions to the regular sense, exceptions that don't make sense in English. Also, when the concepts of time continuing or interrupted or never occurring or never ...
1 reply - Last post by toru e - February 26, 2017
Tests not working (no feedback)
Tests in lessons 4.1 and 4.6 of Japanese Level 1 are not working. The audio files play normally and I can record my answers, but there is no feedback. If I click on the "Reveal" button to move forward, the page disappears (does not reload the same page) a...
4 replies - Last post by jason-oxenham-founder - February 9, 2017
This is just a minor point which I'd appreciate a clarificiation: Just going through unit 2.6 which gives two examples of "c'est l'heure...": C'est l'heure du déjeuner ! = It's lunch time! C'est l'heure de dormir. = It's time t...
2 replies - Last post by Meages - December 31, 2016
How do I get from French level 1 to french level 2 or level 3? (level 1 is too easy)
5 replies - Last post by jason-oxenham-founder - December 4, 2016
20.2 French Etiquette, questions for the usage of le/en/on
Bonjour tout le monde, j'ai queleques questions. I'm extremely confused in lesson 20.2 with "le / en" and the usage of "on". I've tried to put all the pronouns back. Please check it for me. Et voici-moi quelques conseils. à ce qu'on dit? (so they say?) ...
6 replies - Last post by Sue--114 - October 26, 2016
The lesson didn't mention when to use the auxilliary verb ete or avoir for passe compose
1 reply - Last post by Diana-S1 - September 30, 2016
The lesson didn't mention when to use the auxilliary verb ete or avoir for passe compose
0 replies - Last post by lawchewing - September 30, 2016
Looking for lessons to distinguish plain verbs from verb with prepositions
I need more practice in learning the difference between plain verbs and the same verb that changes meanings when a preposition plus infinitive or only infinitive is added. Some examples: parvenir vs. parvenir à compter vs. compter plus infinitive (i.e. ...
2 replies - Last post by dalemcmillen - September 19, 2016
French level2 lesson 9.1 -- why " Je n'ai pas encore acheté de billet " instead of " le billet " ?
In French Level 2 lesson 9.1 Au concert『Non, en fait je voudrais mais je n'ai pas encore acheté de billet.』 In this sentence, why not le billet but de billet. ?
1 reply - Last post by toru e - September 14, 2016
Pouvoir is translated to can, or to be able to in English. In Lesson 10.6, is the example Tu peux me tutoyer ! in which the translation is given as You can say « tu » to me! The English translation is grammatically incorrect; it should read You may say ...
2 replies - Last post by Marie-Claire-Riviere - August 23, 2016
The this and that , these and those with gender are hard to pronounce and remember. I wonder is there any tips to familiarise them Gary
0 replies - Last post by lawchewing - August 13, 2016
The this and that, cellui are hard to pronounce and remember
0 replies - Last post by lawchewing - August 13, 2016
Paul ask: Oui, mais pouvez-vous parler un peu plus lentement ?
In this sentence: Oui, mais pouvez-vous parler un peu plus lentement ? Why is "parler" written in Infinitive and not in 1. person plural
1 reply - Last post by toru e - July 10, 2016
Bonjour, My name is Tricia, as I went through Lesson 1.4 Are you thirsty, I got it that " Je t'apporte ça" means " I bring it to you" ; and from Lesson 1.3 Learning French, " Est-ce que vous le/la comprenez" mean " do you understand him/her ". I asked m...
2 replies - Last post by tricquynh - July 7, 2016
Hi everyone, I don't understand why "de" is used instead of "des" in this phrase although "livres" is plural: "Il n'y a pas de livres dans le sac" Does this means that only "pas de" is valid for whatever types of noun comes after it and "pas des" is al...
2 replies - Last post by thachphamvu - June 5, 2016
Idiomatic and Non-idiomatic Pronominal Verbs
Lesson 10.5 presents pronominal verbs, and at the end of the lesson are idiomatic and non-idiomatic pronominal verbs. Two examples are included. First example: Idiomatic: Je demande à Céline son adresse . . . . . Non-idiomatic: Nous nous demandons o...
3 replies - Last post by toru e - June 1, 2016
Is the usage of a capital letter after a comma standard in French? As in: 'Oui, Je parle français'. I've had a quick search online but couldn't find any reference to it. Is it specific to being after oui or non?
4 replies - Last post by jason-oxenham-founder - May 10, 2016
Can someone help me understand the grammar behind this sentence? "Et pour ce qui est du dîner ?" In the lesson, the English translation is "and with regards to dinner?" - -but I can't get my head around this. It looks like, "and for what is some din...
3 replies - Last post by Jake1 - May 3, 2016
My example in the lesson today is: "Nous sommes desoles que la soiree ne se soit pas bien passe" I can see that the subjunctive turns etre into SOIT here.... but why the "se" before the soit? I understand when people are doing things together, "se" can ...
3 replies - Last post by Jake1 - May 3, 2016
The example I have today is: "Je suis triste que nous n'ayons pas pu venir" and I'm wondering how or why "avoir" comes into it. The translation is: " I'm sad that we couldn't come" - but the subjunctive for "pouvoir" is "nous puissions" so can it b...
3 replies - Last post by Jake1 - May 3, 2016
One of the examples in my lesson today is focusing on the subjonctif. The example is: "Il est important que l'on se connaisse mieux" So why is the L in front of the "on"? Usually le or la represents another subject or another person, something being r...
2 replies - Last post by booksoutloudhfx - April 10, 2016
how do you know to use or to translate "la sienne or le sien"? His or Her and for that matter the same question about "son"? For example "Ce n'est pas son jouet. C'est le sien" a boy and a girl fighting over a toy - how do you know if "son" is her or hi...
5 replies - Last post by Bud-C1 - March 18, 2016
Ce n'est pas ce que je pensais
Please explain the 2 "ce"s. The 1st one was self explanatory but what was the purpose or meaning of the 2nd ce, i.e. what was it's place grammatically speaking to make the proper sentence to mean what it meant. My instinct was to skip the 2nd one but I'm...
18 replies - Last post by Robert-C7 - February 11, 2016