Choosing a Seat Near the Front | Learn French in English

About This Lesson

Use Choosing a Seat Near the Front to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Tu t'assois toujours ici ?

tü tah-SWAH too-ZHOOR ee-SEE Do you always sit here?

J'aime m'asseoir devant.

zhem mah-SWAHR duh-VAHN I like sitting at the front.

J'entends bien le professeur.

zhahn-TAHN byan luh proh-feh-SUR I can hear the teacher well.

C'est facile de poser des questions ici.

say fah-SEEL duh poh-ZAY day kes-TYOHN ee-SEE It is easy to ask questions here.

La prochaine fois, asseyons-nous ensemble.

lah proh-SHEN fwah, ah-say-YOHN noo ahn-SAHN-bluh Let's sit together next time.

J'aimerais bien.

zhem-RAY byan I would like that.

M'asseoir devant m'aide à me concentrer.

mah-SWAHR duh-VAHN med ah muh kohn-sahn-TRAY Sitting at the front helps me focus.

Word by Word

Tu Tu means “you” when speaking directly to one person in this dialogue. It is the subject of t'assois. A common pattern is Tu + verb, followed by information about the action or place.

t'assois t'assois means “sit” in Tu t'assois toujours ici ?, asking whether someone sits in this place. It is a form of s'asseoir used with Tu. A useful pattern is Tu t'assois + a place expression.

toujours toujours means “always” and shows that the action happens regularly. Here it comes after t'assois and before ici. Use toujours with an action to describe a repeated habit.

ici ici means “here” and points to the place where the speakers are now. In Tu t'assois toujours ici ?, it identifies the seat or location being discussed. Use ici to indicate the current place.

J'aime J'aime means “I like” and introduces the activity the speaker enjoys. It is followed here by m'asseoir. A useful pattern is J'aime + an infinitive to say that you like doing something.

m'asseoir m'asseoir means “to sit” as the activity the speaker likes in J'aime m'asseoir devant. It is the reflexive infinitive form of s'asseoir with me shortened to m' before a vowel. It can follow J'aime to name the activity someone likes.

devant devant means “at the front” or “in front” here, referring to the front part of the classroom. In J'aime m'asseoir devant, it tells where the speaker likes to sit. Use devant after an action of sitting or moving to specify a position.

J'entends J'entends means “I hear” in J'entends bien le professeur. It describes the speaker’s ability to hear the teacher. A useful pattern is J'entends + the person or sound that is heard.

bien bien means “well” here and shows that the speaker hears the teacher clearly. It modifies J'entends in J'entends bien le professeur. Use a verb + bien to describe an action being done well or successfully.

le le means “the” and appears before professeur in le professeur. It identifies a specific teacher known from the classroom situation. A common pattern is le + a singular noun.

professeur professeur means “teacher” in this classroom dialogue. It is the person the speaker hears in J'entends bien le professeur. Use le professeur when referring to the teacher in this situation.

C'est C'est means “it is” and introduces the evaluation facile in C'est facile de poser des questions ici. It presents the situation as easy. A useful pattern is C'est + an adjective.

facile facile means “easy” and describes asking questions here. In C'est facile de poser des questions ici, it is followed by de and an infinitive. Use C'est facile de + an infinitive to say that an action is easy.

de de links facile to the action poser in C'est facile de poser des questions ici. Together, C'est facile de poser describes something that is easy to do. A useful pattern is facile de + an infinitive.

poser poser means “ask” in poser des questions. It names the action that is easy in this classroom situation. Use poser + des questions to talk about asking questions.

des des is the plural article before questions in des questions. It introduces questions without identifying particular ones. A common pattern is des + a plural noun.

questions questions means “questions” and is the object of poser in poser des questions. In the dialogue, these are questions asked in class. Use poser des questions when talking about asking questions.

La La means “the” and begins the time expression la prochaine fois. It identifies a particular future occasion. A useful pattern is La + a noun in a time expression.

prochaine prochaine means “next” and describes fois in la prochaine fois. Together, la prochaine fois means “next time.” Use la prochaine fois to refer to the next occasion when something will happen.

fois fois means “time” in the sense of an occasion in la prochaine fois. The full expression means “next time,” referring to a future occasion to sit together. Use la prochaine fois when suggesting or discussing a later occasion.

asseyons-nous asseyons-nous means “let’s sit” and makes a suggestion that includes the speaker and the other person. In La prochaine fois, asseyons-nous ensemble, it suggests sitting together next time. Use asseyons-nous to suggest sitting down with someone.

ensemble ensemble means “together” and shows that the speakers will sit with each other. It describes the action in asseyons-nous ensemble. Use a verb + ensemble to say that people do something together.

J'aimerais J'aimerais expresses “I would like” in the positive response J'aimerais bien. It gives a softened way to accept the suggestion to sit together. It can be followed by bien to form this polite positive response.

m'aide m'aide means “helps me” in M'asseoir devant m'aide à me concentrer. The m' represents the person receiving the help, the speaker. A useful pattern is something m'aide à + an infinitive.

à à introduces the action that the help makes possible in m'aide à me concentrer. It links m'aide to me concentrer in the pattern “helps me to focus.” Use aider quelqu'un à + an infinitive for this kind of relationship.

me me shows that the speaker is the person carrying out the action in me concentrer. It appears before the infinitive and forms the reflexive expression “to focus myself.” Use me before an infinitive when the speaker is the person affected by the action.

concentrer concentrer means “focus” in me concentrer. In M'asseoir devant m'aide à me concentrer, it names the action that sitting at the front helps the speaker do. A useful pattern is m'aide à me concentrer when explaining what helps you focus.

Grammar Points

J'aimerais bien + infinitif

J'aimerais bien aider.

zhem-RAY byan ay-DAY

I would really like to help.

J'aimerais bien expresses a polite or softened desire, followed by the infinitive form of the verb.

French Vocabulary

aimer verb

ay-MAY to like J'aime

I like sitting at the front.

bien adv

byan well

I can hear the teacher well.

devant adv

duh-VAHN in front

I like sitting at the front.

entendre verb

ahn-TAHNDR to hear J'entends

I can hear the teacher well.

facile adj

fah-SEEL easy

It is easy to ask questions here.

ici adv

ee-SEE here

Do you always sit here?

poser verb

poh-ZAY to ask

It is easy to ask questions here.

prochain adj

proh-SHEN next prochaine

Let's sit together next time.

professeur noun

proh-feh-SUR teacher

I can hear the teacher well.

question noun

kes-TYOHN question questions

It is easy to ask questions here.

s'asseoir verb

sah-SWAHR to sit down t'assois

Do you always sit here?

toujours adv

too-ZHOOR always

Do you always sit here?

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Do you always sit here?

Show Answer

Tu t'assois toujours ici ?

I like sitting at the front.

Show Answer

J'aime m'asseoir devant.

I can hear the teacher well.

Show Answer

J'entends bien le professeur.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

teacher

Show Answer

professeur

always

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toujours

well

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bien

easy

Show Answer

facile