Whether you're traveling to France or learning the French language, being able to tell time is important. From asking what time it is to the key vocabulary you need for speaking in French about hours, minutes, and days, this lesson will guide you through everything you need to know. To begin with, there are a few key French vocabulary words related to time that you should know. These are the basics and will help you throughout the rest of this lesson.
Telling time in French is just a matter of knowing the French numbers and a few formulas and rules. It's different than we use in English, so here are the basics:
When you ask what time it is, you will receive an answer similar to this. Keep in mind that there are a few different ways to express different times within the hour, so it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with all of these. You can even practice this throughout your day and speak the time in French whenever you look at a clock.
Conversations regarding what time it is will use questions and answers similar to these. If you're traveling in a French-speaking country, you'll find these very useful as you try to maintain your itinerary.
Now that we have the basics of telling time covered, expand your French vocabulary by studying the words for periods of time. From seconds to millennium, this shortlist of words covers the entire expanse of time.
Each day has various points in time that you might need to describe in French. For instance, you might want to talk about a beautiful sunset or let someone know what you're doing at night. Commit these words to memory and you'll have no problem doing just that.
As you begin to formulate sentences with your new French time vocabulary, you will find it useful to know these temporal prepositions. These short words are used to further define when something is taking place.
Time is relative to other points in time. For instance, there is always a yesterday which is followed by today and tomorrow, so you'll find this vocabulary a great addition to your ability to explain relationships in time.
As you become even more fluent in French, consider adding a few temporal adverbs to your vocabulary. Once again, they can be used to further define when something is taking place.
There will also be times when you need to speak about the frequency of an event. Whether it only happens once or reoccurs on a weekly or monthly basis, this short vocabulary list will help you achieve that.
Adverbs that relate to frequency are just as important and you'll find yourself using this quite often as your French studies progress.
Le temps refers broadly either to the weather or a duration of time, indeterminate or specific. Because it is such a basic concept that surrounds us every day, many French idiomatic expressions have evolved using temps. Here are a few common ones that you might need to know.
|