Shitty Rambo Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 http://lifehacker.com/lamp-teaches-you-a-foreign-language-via-movie-and-youtu-511654625 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 So "du" can be translated into "some" but also implies that a noun has no article. Are those two scenarios mutually exclusive, so it will never be used to mean "some" if the noun has an article? In other words, do you understanding the meaning by knowing a noun doesn't have an article, or do you just understanding the meaning in the context of the sentence or speech? Does that make sense? So far my vocabulary is growing, but I'm really struggling with the grammar and conjugation. That book should help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avery Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 So "du" can be translated into "some" but also implies that a noun has no article. Are those two scenarios mutually exclusive, so it will never be used to mean "some" if the noun has an article? In other words, do you understanding the meaning by knowing a noun doesn't have an article, or do you just understanding the meaning in the context of the sentence or speech? Does that make sense? So far my vocabulary is growing, but I'm really struggling with the grammar and conjugation. That book should help. "du" as in "de + le" where "le" is the article. is this what you're talking about? that is the masculine form. feminine is "de la", plural is "de + les = des". the times where there is no article, you will see/hear it as simply "de". examples of usage are: je voudrais du pain. = i would like some bread. elle a cueilli des fleurs. = she picked some flowers. so i would think it does mean "some" when there is an article. i've never really thought about it in the other case where it might mean "some" without one though. so i'm not sure if they are mutually exclusive. these are the cases in which you would use "de" without the article: -when "de" means "of". "c'est la fille de madame bovary" = "that is madame bovary's daughter" (or more specifically, "that is the daughter of madame bovary"). -the closest thing i can think of to what you are asking is when "de" precedes an unmodified noun or an unspecific noun. there are examples of that here: http://french.about.com/od/grammar/a/de-vs-du-de-la-des_5.htm -then there are also cases in which you use "de" by itself to refer to unspecific quantities "beaucoup (ou peu) de pommes" = a lot of (or a few) apples" -and lastly, you don't use the article in a negation. so in the case where you would say "je vais acheter du savon". = "i will buy some soap". if you use it in a negation, you drop the article. "il n'y a pas de savon". = "there isn't any soap". hope that helps. i'm not really sure if i understood what you were asking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted June 8, 2013 Author Share Posted June 8, 2013 I'm not sure I know what I'm asking either! The response was helpful anyway. I'll see what the app was saying tomorrow when I'm home and clarify maybe. Either way, thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted June 8, 2013 Author Share Posted June 8, 2013 I'm not sure I know what I'm asking either! The response was helpful anyway. I'll see what the app was saying tomorrow when I'm home and clarify maybe. Either way, thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted December 5, 2013 Author Share Posted December 5, 2013 I'm back on the french! Pretty much forgot everything, but I might be asking some questions agains soon. Any one else interested in learning a language, the Duolingo app is free. You should doooooo it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted January 9, 2014 Author Share Posted January 9, 2014 Quick question for you helpful people. I'm trying to figure out the pronunciation stuff and I feel like the app is pronouncing c'est differently at times. Sometimes I hear it as "say" but other times I hear is more like "set". Is there some sort of vowel based pronunciation rule? When it sounds more like "set" it is usually followed by a un or une but could just be how I hear them when together. In general, C'est is sort of confusing at first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 French sucks, speak American. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzersonKillwell Posted January 9, 2014 Author Share Posted January 9, 2014 Your faux-xenophobism is usually pretty good but honestly, I prefer your all caps non-sequiters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avery Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 yes, if it's "c'est" and the next word that follows starts with a vowel like "un" or "une", you pronounce it "set". the vowel causes you to pronounce the T in "c'est" to form a liaison between the words so that speech flows better. otherwise, it is pronounced "say". good for you for getting back into learning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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