Checking a message before sending | Learn French in English

French lesson set in a contemporary Paris everyday setting: In a daily life setting, two adults check a message for clarity and a small spelling mistake before sending it..

EN → FR / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Checking a message before sending to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Peux-tu vérifier ce message ?

puh-TYOO vay-ree-fee-AY suh meh-SAHZH Can you check this message?
B

Je peux le lire maintenant.

zhuh puh luh LEER man-tuh-NAHN I can read it now.
A

Est-ce que c'est clair ?

ess-kuh say KLAIR Does it look clear?
B

Le point principal est facile à comprendre.

luh PWAHN pran-see-PAL ay fah-SEEL ah kohm-PRAN-druh The main point is easy to understand.
A

Tu vois des erreurs ?

tyoo VWAH day zair-RUHR Do you see any mistakes?
B

Je vois une petite faute d'orthographe vers la fin.

zhuh VWAH yoon puh-TEET FOHT dor-toh-GRAF vair lah FAN I see one small spelling mistake near the end.
A

Je vais corriger ça maintenant.

zhuh VAY koh-ree-ZHAY sah man-tuh-NAHN I will fix that now.
B

Après ça, le message devrait être prêt à être envoyé.

ah-PRAY sah luh meh-SAHZH duh-VRAY EH-tr PREH ah EH-tr ahn-vwah-YAY After that, it should be ready to send.

Word by Word

Peux In “Peux-tu vérifier”, “Peux” means “can” and expresses ability. It is the form of “pouvoir” used with “tu”; “Peux-tu + infinitive” is a common way to ask whether someone can do something, such as checking a message.
tu In “Peux-tu vérifier”, “tu” means “you” when speaking to one person informally. It is the subject of the question and appears after “Peux” because the words are inverted; “tu + verb” is a common pattern for addressing a friend or familiar person.
vérifier In “Peux-tu vérifier”, “vérifier” means “to check” the message. It stays in the infinitive after “Peux-tu”; “vérifier + object” is useful when asking someone to check text, information, or a detail.
ce In “ce message”, “ce” points to a particular message and means “this” here. It comes directly before the noun it identifies, a common way to refer to a specific item while discussing it.
message In “ce message”, “message” means a written message. The phrase refers to the text that the speakers are reviewing; “ce message” is useful when discussing one specific message.
Je In “Je peux le lire” and “Je vois”, “Je” means “I” and identifies the speaker as the person doing the action. “Je + verb” is the usual pattern for describing your own action, such as reading or noticing something.
le This form has two roles in the dialogue: in “le lire”, “le” means “it” and refers to the message, while in “Le point principal”, it means “the”. Before an infinitive, an object pronoun such as “le” comes before the infinitive; before a noun, it introduces a specific masculine singular noun.
lire In “Je peux le lire”, “lire” means “to read” the message. It is an infinitive after “peux”, and “le lire” is a reusable pattern for reading a specific thing.
maintenant In “Je peux le lire maintenant”, “maintenant” means “now” and places the reading in the present time. It commonly appears at the end of a sentence when someone says an action can happen at this moment.
Est In “Est-ce que c’est clair ?”, “Est” is the first part of the fixed question frame “Est-ce que”. Together, the frame turns a statement into a question; “Est-ce que + clause” is a common way to ask for information.
que In “Est-ce que c’est clair ?”, “que” is the second part of the fixed question frame “Est-ce que”. It helps introduce the clause being questioned, and the whole frame—not “que” alone—forms the question.
c'est In “Est-ce que c’est clair ?”, “c’est” means “it is” and refers to the message being checked. “C’est + adjective” is a common pattern for describing something, such as whether it is clear.
clair In “c’est clair”, “clair” means “clear” and describes whether the message is easy to understand. The pattern “c’est clair” is useful when checking the clarity of information or an explanation.
point In “Le point principal”, “point” means the central idea or item being discussed. It is part of the phrase “le point principal”, which is useful when identifying the main idea of a message or explanation.
principal In “Le point principal”, “principal” means “main” and identifies the point as the most important one. It follows the noun here, and the noun-plus-adjective pattern can describe a key part of a message.
facile In “facile à comprendre”, “facile” means “easy” and describes the main point as not difficult to understand. The pattern “facile à + infinitive” is useful for describing an action that is easy to perform.
à In “facile à comprendre”, “à” introduces the action connected with the adjective “facile”. The construction “adjective + à + infinitive” describes how easy an action is, here understanding the main point.
comprendre In “facile à comprendre”, “comprendre” means “to understand” the main point. It is the infinitive after “à”; “facile à comprendre” is useful when describing clear information or an explanation.
vois In “Tu vois des erreurs ?”, “vois” means “see” or “notice” and asks whether the listener notices any mistakes. It is the form of “voir” used with “tu”; “Tu vois + object” is a common pattern when reviewing text or details with someone.
des In “des erreurs”, “des” introduces an unspecified plural noun and means “any” in this question. The pattern “des + plural noun” is used when asking about or referring to several possible items.
erreurs In “Tu vois des erreurs ?”, “erreurs” means “mistakes” or “errors”. The word refers to problems in the message, and “des erreurs” is useful when checking whether text contains mistakes.
une In “une petite faute”, “une” means “one” or “a” and introduces one item. It comes before the feminine singular noun phrase “petite faute”, a common pattern for identifying a single thing.
petite In “une petite faute”, “petite” means “small” or “minor” and describes the mistake as limited in size or importance. It modifies “faute” in the phrase “une petite faute”, useful when pointing out a minor problem.
faute In “une faute d’orthographe”, “faute” means “mistake”, specifically the mistake that is then identified as spelling-related. The phrase “faute d’orthographe” is useful when discussing an error in written spelling.
d'orthographe In “faute d'orthographe”, “d'orthographe” specifies that the mistake concerns spelling. It narrows the meaning of “faute” to a spelling mistake, and the full phrase is useful when reviewing written text.
vers In “vers la fin”, “vers” indicates an approximate location and means “near” here. The pattern “vers + place or time expression” is useful for locating something approximately, such as a detail near the end of a text.
la In “la fin”, “la” means “the” and introduces the specific end being discussed. “La + noun” is used when referring to a known feminine singular thing, here the end of the message.
fin In “vers la fin”, “fin” means “end”. Together, the phrase locates the spelling mistake near the end of the message, a useful expression when describing where something appears in a text.
vais In “Je vais corriger”, “vais” expresses “am going to” and signals a planned action. It is the form of “aller” used with “je”; “je vais + infinitive” is a common way to announce what you are about to do.
corriger In “Je vais corriger ça”, “corriger” means “to correct” or “to fix” the mistake. It is an infinitive after “vais”; “corriger + object” is useful when repairing an error in a message or document.
ça In “Je vais corriger ça”, “ça” means “that” or “it” and refers to the mistake just mentioned. The pattern “corriger ça” is useful when fixing a specific problem that is already clear from the conversation.
Après In “Après ça”, “Après” means “after” and places the next result after the correction. “Après + reference to a previous action or thing” is a common way to sequence events in a conversation.
devrait In “le message devrait être prêt”, “devrait” expresses an expected result: the message should be ready after the correction. “Devrait + infinitive” is useful when describing what is expected without stating it as an absolute certainty.
être In “devrait être prêt” and “être envoyé”, “être” means “to be”. It links the message to the state of being ready and also helps form “être envoyé”, meaning “to be sent”; “être + adjective” is a common way to describe a state.
prêt In “prêt à être envoyé”, “prêt” means “ready” and describes the message as ready for the next action. The pattern “être prêt à + infinitive” is useful when something can proceed or be sent.
envoyé In “être envoyé”, “envoyé” means “sent” and describes the message as receiving the action of sending. Together, “être envoyé” means “to be sent”, and “prêt à être envoyé” is useful when a message is ready for delivery.

Grammar Points

pouvoir + infinitif

Je peux vérifier le message maintenant.

zhuh puh vay-ree-fee-AY luh meh-SAHZH man-tuh-NAHN

I can check the message now.

In French, pouvoir is followed directly by an infinitive: peux vérifier, not a form equivalent to “can to check.”

aller + infinitif

Je vais corriger ça après.

zhuh vay koh-ree-ZHAY sah ah-PRAY

I am going to correct that afterward.

The near future uses a form of aller followed by an infinitive: vais corriger.

French Vocabulary

clair adj
KLAIR clear
comprendre verb
kohm-PRAN-druh to understand
facile adj
fah-SEEL easy
je pron
zhuh I
lire verb
LEER to read
maintenant adv
man-tuh-NAHN now
message noun
meh-SAHZH message
peux verb
puh can
point noun
PWAHN point
principal adj
pran-see-PAL main
tu pron
TYOO you
vérifier verb
vay-ree-fee-AY to check

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Can you check this message?

Show AnswerPeux-tu vérifier ce message ?

I can read it now.

Show AnswerJe peux le lire maintenant.

Does it look clear?

Show AnswerEst-ce que c'est clair ?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

to read

Show Answerlire

to check

Show Answervérifier

now

Show Answermaintenant

can

Show Answerpeux