Understanding a Lesson Question | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Je ne comprends pas cette partie de la leçon.

   I don't understand this part of the lesson.

   Je

   I

   ne … pas

   not

   comprends

   understand

   cette

   this

   partie

   part

   leçon

   lesson

   More detail

   Je is the first-person singular subject pronoun: it means “I” and identifies the speaker. Its form does not change for the speaker’s gender. Before a vowel sound, it commonly shortens to j’, as in j’aime (“I like/love”). ne … pas work together here to negate the verb. In standard written French, ne comes before the conjugated verb and pas after it: Je ne comprends pas means “I do not understand.” In informal speech, ne is often omitted, but pas remains. comprends is the first-person singular present form of comprendre, “to understand.” The ending in Je comprends matches the subject Je; the same verb has tu comprends for “you understand.” The spelling -s is part of this present-tense form and is not pronounced as a separate final consonant in ordinary speech. For example, Je comprends la question means “I understand the question.” cette is the singular feminine form of the demonstrative determiner meaning “this” or “that,” depending on context. It agrees with the noun it modifies, here partie, which is feminine singular. The related masculine singular form is ce, as in ce livre (“this/that book”); before a vowel sound, masculine singular uses cet, as in cet exercice (“this/that exercise”). partie is a feminine noun meaning “part” or “section” here. Its base form is also partie; the final -e is not an indication that every noun ending in -e has the same gender, so its gender is learned with the noun: une partie. In cette partie, the noun refers to the particular part identified as “this part” in the fixed translation. leçon is a feminine noun meaning “lesson.” It is used with the feminine article la in la leçon (“the lesson”). The sequence de la leçon means “of the lesson” or, in this sentence, “of the lesson” as the source or whole to which the part belongs. French uses de plus a definite article to express this relation: la partie de la leçon means “the part of the lesson.” Together, Je + ne comprends pas gives “I do not understand.” cette partie specifies what is not understood, and de la leçon identifies that part as belonging to the lesson. The complete utterance therefore means: “I don’t understand this part of the lesson.”

2. Quelle question est difficile pour toi ?

   Which question is giving you trouble?

   Quelle

   which

   question

   question

   est

   is

   difficile

   difficult

   pour toi

   for you

   More detail

   Quelle introduces a choice or request for identification before a noun. It is the feminine singular form of the interrogative determiner: quel (masculine singular), quelle (feminine singular), quels (masculine plural), and quelles (feminine plural). Here it agrees with question, which is feminine singular. Example: Quelle réponse est correcte ? — “Which answer is correct?” question means “question.” It is a feminine noun, so the determiner and adjective associated with it use feminine singular forms here. Example: J’ai une question. — “I have a question.” est is the third-person singular present form of être, “to be.” It links the question being identified with the description difficile. The present tense presents the difficulty as current in this utterance. Example: Cette question est claire. — “This question is clear.” difficile means “difficult” here. It describes question and has the same form for masculine and feminine singular nouns; its plural form is difficiles. The masculine and feminine singular contrast is therefore not visible in this adjective: un exercice difficile — “a difficult exercise”; une question difficile — “a difficult question.” pour toi means “for you.” pour marks the person for whom something is relevant or difficult, and toi is the stressed pronoun used after a preposition. The phrase identifies the learner’s perspective rather than changing who or what the difficult item is. Together, Quelle question est difficile pour toi ? asks the listener to identify which question is difficult from their perspective. In the fixed translation, this is naturally expressed as “Which question is giving you trouble?” The surrounding context supports a current difficulty with material and an answer, but it does not identify a particular question.

3. Je ne comprends pas cette réponse.

   The answer here doesn't make sense to me.

   Je

   I

   ne … pas

   not

   comprends

   understand

   cette

   this

   réponse

   answer

   More detail

   Je is the first-person singular subject pronoun, meaning “I.” It is used for the speaker, regardless of the speaker’s gender. Example: Je lis. — “I am reading.” ne ... pas is the standard two-part negation pattern around a conjugated verb. Here, ne comes before the verb and pas after it; together they make the statement negative. In informal spoken French, ne is often omitted, but it is retained in this sentence’s standard form. comprends is the present-tense first-person singular form of comprendre, “to understand.” The same verb has forms such as je comprends — “I understand,” and tu comprends — “you understand.” The final -s is part of this conjugated form; it is not a separate word. cette means “this” before a feminine singular noun. It agrees with the noun it modifies, not with the speaker. The corresponding masculine singular form is ce, as in ce livre — “this book.” réponse means “answer” or “response.” It is a feminine noun, which is why the sentence uses cette réponse. Example: La réponse est claire. — “The answer is clear.” Together, Je + ne comprends pas gives “I do not understand,” and cette réponse identifies what is not understood: “this answer.” The complete utterance is therefore “I don’t understand this answer.” In the supplied translation, “doesn’t make sense to me” expresses the same intended difficulty with the answer. The pattern Je ne comprends pas cette/ce ... can be reused with another noun, changing the demonstrative to match that noun’s grammatical form.

4. Lisons d'abord la phrase.

   Let's read the sentence first.

   Lisons

   let’s read

   d'abord

   first

   phrase

   sentence

   More detail

   Lisons means “let’s read” here. It is the first-person plural imperative of lire (“to read”), used to propose or direct an action that the speaker and others will do together. Compare lis (“read” to one person) and lisez (“read” to multiple people or formally to one person). Example: Lisons le texte. — “Let’s read the text.” d'abord is an adverb meaning “first” or “at first” in this sentence. It places the reading before another step; it does not itself express a numerical count. Example: Écoutez d'abord. — “Listen first.” phrase means “sentence.” Its base form is the feminine noun phrase; with the definite article, la phrase means “the sentence.” The article identifies a specific sentence in the situation rather than asserting that there is one sentence numerically. Example: La phrase est courte. — “The sentence is short.” Together, Lisons d'abord la phrase. means “Let’s read the sentence first.” The imperative Lisons proposes joint reading, d'abord makes that the initial step, and la phrase is what is to be read.

5. Ensuite, vérifions la réponse.

   Then check the answer.

   Ensuite

   then

   vérifions

   let’s check

   réponse

   answer

   More detail

   Ensuite is an adverb meaning “then” or “next.” It is useful for ordering steps: D'abord..., ensuite... means “First..., then...” in a sequence. vérifions is the first-person plural imperative of vérifier, “to check” or “to verify.” The imperative form vérifions presents the action as a suggestion involving the speaker and at least one other person: Vérifions la phrase. — “Let’s check the sentence.” The ending -ons is the nous imperative form; the subject pronoun is normally omitted here. réponse is the noun “answer.” Its base form is also réponse; in this sentence it appears with the feminine singular definite article la: la réponse, “the answer.” The article belongs to the noun phrase, while the quoted word itself is only réponse. Together, Ensuite marks the next step, vérifions proposes that the speaker and others perform the check, and la réponse identifies what they should check. The complete utterance means “Then let’s check the answer.”

6. Peux-tu lire la phrase à voix haute ?

   Can you read the sentence aloud?

   Peux-tu

   Can you

   lire

   read

   phrase

   sentence

   à voix haute

   aloud

   More detail

   Peux-tu is an inverted yes/no question pattern: peux is the second-person singular present form of pouvoir (“can, be able to”), and tu is the subject pronoun placed after the verb. The hyphen marks this inversion in writing. Here it asks whether the listener is able and willing to perform the action that follows; it does not itself assert that the action will happen. Compare the ordinary word order Tu peux lire… ? (“Can you read…?”). lire is the infinitive “to read.” After pouvoir, French uses an infinitive: Je peux lire means “I can read,” while Tu peux écrire means “You can write.” The infinitive stays lire here because peux carries the person and tense information. phrase is the feminine noun “sentence” in this context. The article la before it is the feminine singular definite article, so la phrase means “the sentence.” The noun’s gender is grammatical; it is not a count asserted by the article. A useful contrast is le mot (“the word”), where mot is masculine and therefore takes le. à voix haute is an adverbial expression meaning “aloud” or “out loud.” Literally, it refers to using a high/audible voice: voix is the feminine noun “voice,” and haute is the feminine singular form of haut (“high”) agreeing with it. The expression modifies lire, specifying how the reading should be done. Example: Elle lit à voix haute. — “She reads aloud.” Together, Peux-tu asks about the listener’s ability or willingness, lire names the requested action, la phrase identifies what is to be read, and à voix haute specifies the manner. The complete meaning is: “Can you read the sentence aloud?”

7. Je vais la lire lentement.

   I'll read it slowly.

   Je vais

   I'm going to

   la

   it

   lire

   read

   lentement

   slowly

   More detail

   Je vais combines the present-tense first-person form vais of aller with an infinitive. This is the common French near-future pattern aller + infinitive: it expresses what the speaker is going to do. Example: Je vais écrire. — “I’m going to write.” Here, vais agrees with je; other forms include tu vas and il/elle va. la is a feminine singular direct-object pronoun. It stands for the thing being read, while its exact identity is not specified by this sentence itself. Before a vowel sound, la becomes l’, as in Je vais l’écouter. — “I’m going to listen to it.” The masculine singular counterpart is le, and the plural form is les. lire is an infinitive meaning “to read.” It remains in the infinitive after vais; vais carries the person and tense of the construction. Example: Nous allons lire. — “We’re going to read.” lentement is an adverb meaning “slowly.” It describes how the reading is done and commonly comes after the verb or its object. Example: Elle parle lentement. — “She speaks slowly.” Together, Je vais marks the near future, la identifies the direct object, lire names the action, and lentement describes its manner. The complete meaning is: “I’m going to read it slowly.”

8. Je vais écrire les mots importants dans mon cahier.

   I'll write the key words in my notebook.

   Je vais

   I am going to

   écrire

   write

   mots

   words

   importants

   important

   cahier

   notebook

   More detail

   Je vais introduces the near future: aller is conjugated as vais for je, followed by an infinitive. The reusable pattern is je vais + infinitive, meaning “I am going to …” or “I will …” for an intended or imminent action. In the earlier sentence, Je vais la lire uses the same pattern with lire (“to read”). écrire means “to write.” It is the infinitive after vais, so it does not carry the subject ending here; vais shows that the subject is je. Example: Je vais écrire une phrase. — “I am going to write a sentence.” mots means “words.” Its base form is mot; mots is the plural form, marked in writing by -s. The definite article les shows that the phrase refers to particular words in this context, while mots names the things being written. importants means “important” here. Its base form is the adjective important; importants is its masculine plural form, agreeing with mots. The adjective follows the noun in this phrase. Compare un mot important (“an important word”) with des mots importants (“important words”). cahier means “notebook,” specifically the notebook named as the place where the writing will go. It is a masculine singular noun. In mon cahier, mon is the masculine singular possessive form meaning “my”; it agrees with cahier, not with the speaker’s gender. Example: Mon cahier est sur la table. — “My notebook is on the table.” The remaining small words connect these parts: les marks the specific plural noun phrase les mots importants; dans means “in,” introducing the location; and mon cahier means “my notebook.” Together, Je vais écrire les mots importants dans mon cahier means “I’ll write the key words in my notebook.”

9. Alors, essayons encore de répondre.

   Then let's try the answer again.

   Alors

   then

   essayons

   let’s try

   encore

   again

   répondre

   to answer

   More detail

   Alors means “then” here and can introduce the next step in a conversation. It is a flexible discourse adverb; in this sentence it links the utterance to what has just been said, rather than naming a time in a detailed way. essayons is the first-person plural form of essayer (“to try”). In this sentence, the same-looking form functions as a first-person plural imperative: “let’s try.” French uses this form to propose an action carried out by the speaker and others included with the speaker. The useful pattern is essayons de + infinitive, meaning “let’s try to …”. encore means “again” here: it indicates that the trying or answering is being repeated. Its position after essayons and before de répondre makes it part of the sentence’s repeated-action meaning; it does not mean “still” in this context. répondre is the infinitive “to answer” or “to respond.” The construction essayer de répondre means “try to answer.” The preposition de is required before the infinitive after essayer; it is not part of the infinitive itself. For example: J’essaie de comprendre. — “I’m trying to understand.” Together, Alors + essayons introduces a proposal, de répondre names the action being attempted, and encore marks that the attempt is being made again. The whole utterance therefore means: “Then let’s try to answer again.”