Confirming the right bus | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Le bus est là.

   The bus is here.

   bus

   bus

   est là

   is here

   More detail

   bus is a masculine singular French noun meaning “bus.” Its plural is bus as well; the article shows the number here: le bus means “the bus,” not a bus-counting expression. est là combines the present-tense form est of être (“to be”) with là, an adverb meaning “there” or “here” according to the established location. In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies the intended meaning as “here.” Est is the third-person singular present form: il/elle est. Together, le bus (“the bus”) and est là (“is here”) form Le bus est là.: “The bus is here.” The pattern Le/La + noun + est + place adverb can be reused to say where a known singular thing is.

2. Tu penses que c'est le bon bus ?

   Do you think this is the right bus?

   Tu

   you

   penses

   think

   que

   that

   c'est

   this is

   bon

   right

   bus

   bus

   More detail

   Tu is the informal singular subject pronoun “you.” It is used for one person; the more formal or plural counterpart is vous. penses is the present-tense form of penser (“to think”) for tu: je pense, tu penses, il/elle pense. The final -s marks this tu form, although it is not pronounced here. Example: Tu penses à moi. — “You are thinking about me.” que introduces the content of the thought, much like “that” in English. The pattern penser que + clause means “to think that …”; in this question, the clause is c'est le bon bus. c'est combines ce and est, the third-person singular form of être. In this sentence, it presents the bus being identified: “this is” or, more literally in the larger phrase, “it is.” The form est comes from être; it is different from the unrelated verb form es in tu es (“you are”). bon is the masculine singular form of bon (“good”). With bus, it has the context-specific meaning “right” or “correct,” as in the bus that should be taken. The feminine singular form is bonne; for example, la bonne réponse means “the right answer.” Here, bon agrees with the masculine noun bus, not with the speaker or listener. bus is the noun “bus.” In French, un bus is singular and des bus is plural; the written noun commonly keeps the same form in both numbers, while the article shows the number. Together, c'est le bon bus means “this is the right bus.” The structure Tu penses que ... ? asks whether the listener holds that belief, so the complete utterance means “Do you think this is the right bus?” The rising question intonation makes the sentence an informal yes-or-no question.

3. Demandons au conducteur avant de monter.

   Let's ask the driver before we get on.

   Demandons

   Let's ask

   conducteur

   driver

   avant de

   before doing something

   monter

   get on

   More detail

   Demandons is the first-person plural imperative of demander (“to ask”). In this form, the speaker includes themself and the listener: Demandons... means “Let’s ask...”. The same spelling can also be the present-tense “we ask,” but here the intended suggestion is clear from the whole utterance. conducteur is a masculine singular noun meaning “driver” here. In a bus context, it refers to the person driving the bus. The phrase au conducteur combines à (“to”) with le (“the”): à + le becomes au, so it means “to the driver.” avant de introduces an action that happens earlier: “before doing something.” French uses avant de followed by an infinitive when the understood subject of that action is the same as the subject of the main action. Pattern: avant de + infinitive. monter is the infinitive of “to get on” in this context. It can also mean “to go up” in other contexts; with a bus, it means boarding it. The infinitive is required after avant de: avant de monter = “before getting on.” Together, Demandons au conducteur means “Let’s ask the driver,” and avant de monter specifies that this should happen before boarding. The complete utterance is: “Let’s ask the driver before we get on.”

4. Excusez-moi, ce bus va à la gare ?

   Excuse me, does this bus go to the station?

   Excusez-moi

   Excuse me

   ce

   this

   bus

   bus

   va

   goes

   gare

   station

   More detail

   Excusez-moi is a polite way to get someone's attention: literally, it uses excuser in the imperative with the vous form, followed by the stressed pronoun moi. The same form can address one person politely or several people. For a more informal singular address, French uses Excuse-moi. ce means “this” here and is the masculine singular demonstrative determiner agreeing with bus, not a marker of quantity. Before a vowel sound, its form is cet, as in cet arrêt (“this stop”); the feminine singular form is cette, as in cette gare (“this station”). bus is the noun “bus.” It is used here as a masculine singular noun, which is why the determiner is ce. Example: un bus arrive means “a bus is arriving.” va is the third-person singular present form of aller (“to go”): je vais, tu vas, il/elle va. With a destination, aller à means “to go to”: Le bus va à Paris means “The bus goes to Paris.” The form va agrees with the singular subject ce bus; it is not an infinitive. gare means “station” here. It is feminine, so the destination phrase is à la gare: à (“to/at”) plus the feminine singular article la. For a masculine destination, the same preposition and article combine as au, as in aller au marché (“to go to the market”). Together, ce bus va à la gare asks whether this particular bus goes to the station. In French, the question is formed here with rising intonation while keeping the ordinary statement word order. The complete utterance is therefore a polite attention-getter followed by “Does this bus go to the station?”

5. La gare est le dernier arrêt.

   The station is the last stop.

   gare

   station

   est

   is

   dernier

   last

   arrêt

   stop

   More detail

   gare means “station” here, specifically a station as a destination. It is a feminine noun: la gare means “the station.” The related plural is les gares, “the stations.” est is the third-person singular present form of être, “to be.” The useful pattern is X est Y, meaning “X is Y.” For example, Le bus est ici. means “The bus is here.” dernier means “last” here and describes arrêt. It is the masculine singular form, matching the masculine singular noun arrêt. The feminine singular form is dernière, as in la dernière gare, “the last station.” arrêt means “stop,” as in a bus or other transport stop. Its plural is arrêts; the circumflex remains, and the final s is pronounced only in certain linking contexts, not normally at the end by itself. For example, C'est un arrêt important. means “It is an important stop.” Together, La gare identifies the subject, est links it to a description, and le dernier arrêt means “the last stop.” The complete utterance is therefore “The station is the last stop.”

6. Alors, c'est le bon bus.

   Then this is the right bus.

   Alors

   Then

   c'est

   this is

   bon

   right

   bus

   bus

   More detail

   Alors means “then” here. It links this statement to what has just been established and can also introduce a conclusion: Alors, on part. — “Then, we’re leaving.” c'est is the fixed form of ce + est: literally “this/it is.” In this sentence, the translation identifies ce as “this,” referring to the bus being considered. The form est is the third-person singular present of être (“to be”); in everyday French, ce est contracts to c'est. bon means “right” here, in the sense of suitable or correct for the intended journey. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective bon; its feminine singular form is bonne, as in une bonne idée — “a good idea.” The adjective agrees with the noun it describes, and bus is masculine singular here. bus means “bus.” It is a masculine noun in French: un bus. Its written form is the same in the plural: des bus — “buses.” Together, c'est le bon bus means “this is the right bus”: le marks the specific masculine singular bus, and bon describes it as the suitable one. With Alors at the beginning, the whole utterance means “Then this is the right bus.”

7. Montons et avançons vers le fond.

   Let's get on and move farther inside.

   Montons

   let’s get on

   avançons

   let’s move forward

   vers

   toward

   le fond

   the back / inside

   More detail

   Montons is the first-person plural imperative of monter (“to get on” here). It addresses a group including the speaker and proposes a joint action: “let’s get on.” The same form can relate to going up in other contexts, but the bus context and fixed translation support “get on” here. Compare Montez ! for a command to “you” plural or a formal singular person. Avançons is the first-person plural imperative of avancer, “to move forward” or “to advance.” It also includes the speaker and proposes a joint action: “let’s move forward.” The ending -ons is used for this nous imperative; it is not an inflection of the nearby noun. Vers is a preposition meaning “toward.” It introduces a destination or direction, rather than asserting that the movement has already reached it. For example, Nous marchons vers la sortie. means “We are walking toward the exit.” Le fond means “the back” or “the far inside,” depending on the setting. Fond is a masculine noun, so it appears with the masculine singular definite article le. In this bus-related context, “the back/farther inside” matches the fixed translation. The noun is distinct from milieu, “middle,” which appears in the following context. Together, Montons et avançons vers le fond. coordinates two first-person plural imperatives: “Let’s get on and move toward the back/farther inside.” The subject is understood as nous (“we”), including the speaker, and vers le fond gives the direction of the movement.

8. Je vais rester près du milieu.

   I'll stand near the middle.

   Je vais

   I am going to / I'll

   rester

   stay; remain

   près du

   near the

   milieu

   middle

   More detail

   Je vais + infinitive is the French near-future pattern: the present-tense form vais of aller agrees with the subject je, while the following infinitive supplies the action. Here, Je vais rester presents staying as what I am about to do, naturally translated as “I’ll stay” or, in this context, “I’ll stand.” This is not the simple present je reste (“I stay / I am staying”). Example: Je vais attendre. — “I’m going to wait.” rester means “to stay” or “to remain.” In this utterance, the fixed translation presents the speaker’s intended position as standing near the middle; the verb itself focuses on remaining in that position rather than naming the posture. Its infinitive form follows vais in the near-future construction. Example: Nous allons rester ici. — “We’re going to stay here.” près du means “near the.” près de is the reusable prepositional pattern for expressing proximity. Before the masculine singular definite article le, de contracts to du: près de le is not used in standard French; it becomes près du. Example: près du centre — “near the center.” milieu is a masculine noun meaning “middle” or “center.” With the definite article, it is le milieu; after près de, the combination is près du milieu. The noun identifies the central area, without specifying an exact point. Example: au milieu — “in the middle.” Together, Je vais rester près du milieu uses the near-future pattern je vais + rester and adds the location phrase près du milieu: “I’ll stand near the middle.”