The Language Nook – Le coin langues
Happy New Year and how to say 2018
I hope you had a fantastic New Year's Eve and I wish you all a very happy New Year! May 2018 bring you health,...
“A language is not just words…” Noam Chomsky
“We still live here - âs nutayuneân” is a 2010 film that tells the amazing story of the return of a language:...
Understanding and using the French phrase “pourvu que”
Pourvu que is a phrase that is commonly used in French. Warning: there is the adjective “pourvu” in...
Christmas & New Year celebrations: the words you need in English and in French
When comes December and the end of the year, the tradition in most French and English-speaking countries sees...
Spices
Spices are used everywhere in the world. Spices bring out the flavour of vegetables of course, but not only....
Il faut, il vaut… falloir or valoir?
Falloir and valoir are two distinct French verbs that are sometimes confused. At this point, I would like to...
“All the work of translation consists of weighing words…”
Valery Larbaud was a French writer and translator from the early 20th Century who was a great traveller and...
Censé & Sensé: one pronunciation, two meanings
Last week, I was writing a sentence on a whiteboard during a French language class. It was an example that...
“Where were you?” v. “Where have you been?”
What is the difference between “Where were you?” and “Where have you been?” Although both questions may seem to...