French language Q&A Forum

To say around (something) o'clock you would use vers rather than autour? Why?

Statement:  Alain a paye l'hotel

Why is the question:  Alain paye-t-il l'hotel and not Alain a-t-il paye l'hotel?

Sorry - I can't find the accents!!!

Punctuation isn't mentioned in the dictation so should not be counted in the score (feedback from my year 11 students).

In the first sentence of the text - Did you know that the town council [US: city hall] has decided.... etc., the Hint advises ...- "has decided" = Use Le Plus-que-Parfait here.

In the related lesson, the examples show 'had' and not 'has' as being translated using the plus-que-parfait?

Hello, 

Comment écrit-on la fraction-> 1 5/16, 5 1/2, 3 2/3, etc.  Je sais écrire la fraction de base, mais quand on ajoute un nombre entier, je suis déconcerté

Hi, I just came across this on a test and I wrote that it could mean Jack descended on the giant (as opposed to the stairs ) and this was marked incorrect but in the explanation it states that they descended the stairs requires avoir as the auxillary verb so I cannot see why descending on the giant is any different? They both have a direct object.

I am a bit confused about this. Thanks

What would "some teacher" be in french if not -"un professeur"?

If it was "some teachers", It would have been ... something else?

My dictionary gives 3 translations for cookie : biscuit, petite gâteau,  and gâteau.   I chose to use petit gâteau, which was marked incorrect.  Since I can't see the cookie and don't really understand if there is a difference, perhaps according to shape or size, could someone elaborate on the nuances?  I have gotten into trouble with this with my friend, who is a native French person, when I used biscuit for cookies that she prepared. Apparently,  there is some disfunction unknown to me.

To all those who are confused about why 10 mins etc. is correct and 10 minutes is wrong, please ignore the given explanations as they make no sense whatsoever. They are both correct!

It is my observation that a Frenchman will do almost anything to avoid double objective pronouns - for fear of making mistakes and because they sound fussy, awkward, and a bit snobbish. As they are used less and less frequently, the "correct" order is being lost even to the French. I have been encouraged by my teachers to reformulate to avoid this mare's nest. So

Je lui ai donné cela plutôt que je le lui ai donné.