Taking a break at work when you feel tired | Learn French in English

French lesson set in a contemporary Paris everyday setting: At work, one adult feels tired under a close deadline while another suggests resting and reviewing the draft..

EN → FR / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Taking a break at work when you feel tired to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui.

zhay boh-KOO duh trah-VY oh-zhoor-DWEE I have a lot of work today.
B

Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause.

tew ah LAIR fah-tee-GAY, ah-LOR fay ewn POHZ You look tired, so take a break.
A

Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche.

zhuh man-kee-ET pairss kuh lah daht lee-MEET ah-PROHSH I'm worried because the deadline is approaching.
B

T'éloigner un peu peut t'aider à mieux travailler après.

tay-lwah-NYAY ewn PUH puh tay-DAY ah MYUH trah-vah-YAY ah-PRAY Stepping away can help you work better afterward.
A

Peut-être que je devrais reposer mes yeux pendant une minute.

puh-TET kuh zhuh duh-VRAY ruh-poh-ZAY may ZYUH pahn-DAHN ewn mee-NEWT Maybe I should rest my eyes for a minute.
B

Bois de l'eau et respire lentement pendant une minute.

bwah duh LOH ay ruh-SPEER lahn-tuh-MAHN pahn-DAHN ewn mee-NEWT Drink water and breathe slowly for a minute.
A

Alors, je pourrai finir la dernière section.

ah-LOR zhuh poo-RAY fee-NEER lah dair-NYAIR sek-SYON Then I can finish the last section.
B

Je vais relire le brouillon pendant que tu te reposes.

zhuh vay ruh-LEER luh broo-YON pahn-DAHN kuh tew tuh ruh-POHZ I will review the draft while you rest.

Word by Word

J'ai In J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui, this means “I have.” J'ai is the exact form of avoir used with je, and you can reuse Je/J' + ai + something you have.
beaucoup In J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui, beaucoup means “a lot” and indicates a large quantity. With a noun, reuse the pattern beaucoup de + noun to describe having or doing a lot of something.
de In beaucoup de travail, de links the quantity beaucoup to the thing being counted or described. Reuse beaucoup de + noun when expressing a large quantity.
travail In beaucoup de travail, travail means “work,” the activity or tasks the speaker has today. You can reuse travail when talking about the amount or subject of work.
aujourd'hui In J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui, aujourd'hui means “today” and places the work in the current day. It can be used as a time expression with a statement about what is happening today.
Tu Tu means “you” when speaking to one person informally; it is the subject in Tu as l'air fatigué. At the start of a sentence it is capitalized, while the same form appears as tu later in pendant que tu te reposes.
as In Tu as l'air fatigué, as is the form used with tu in the expression for looking a certain way. The whole pattern Tu as l'air + adjective means that someone looks a certain way and is useful when describing another person's appearance or condition.
l'air In Tu as l'air fatigué, l'air refers to someone's look or appearance. Together with as and the adjective fatigué, it forms the expression for “you look tired”; reuse as + l'air + adjective to describe how someone appears.
fatigué In Tu as l'air fatigué, fatigué describes the person as tired. It is used here after l'air to describe someone's condition, for example when advising a tired colleague to rest.
alors In Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause, alors means “so” and introduces the suggestion that follows. In Alors, je pourrai finir..., the same word means “then”; it can connect a situation with its consequence or next step.
fais In fais une pause, fais tells one informal person to take or make a break. The whole expression fais une pause is a direct suggestion to stop working briefly; reuse fais + noun for a direct instruction to do something.
une In une pause, une means “a” and introduces one pause. It comes before pause in this noun phrase; reuse une + singular noun when referring to one item or activity.
pause In fais une pause, pause means “break,” a short period away from work. This expression is useful when suggesting that someone stop working briefly to recover.
Je Je means “I” and identifies the speaker in Je m'inquiète and Je vais relire. It is used before a verb when the speaker describes their own state, action, or plan.
m'inquiète In Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche, m'inquiète expresses that the speaker is worried. Reuse Je m'inquiète parce que + reason when explaining what is causing concern.
parce In parce que la date limite approche, parce forms the beginning of the expression meaning “because.” It works with que to introduce the reason for the speaker's worry; reuse parce que + clause to give a reason.
que In parce que, que completes the expression that introduces a reason. In pendant que tu te reposes, it helps introduce the situation happening at the same time; use it as part of these complete linking expressions rather than assigning the whole meaning to que alone.
la In la date limite, la means “the” before date. It introduces the specific deadline being discussed; reuse la + noun when referring to a particular feminine noun.
date In la date limite, date means “date.” Together with limite, it identifies the deadline that is getting closer; it is useful when discussing a scheduled day or deadline.
limite In la date limite, limite adds the idea of a limit to date, making the phrase mean “deadline.” Reuse date limite when talking about the final time for submitting or completing work.
approche In la date limite approche, approche means “is approaching” or “is getting nearer.” The pattern something + approche is useful for saying that a date, event, or deadline is coming closer.
T'éloigner In T'éloigner un peu peut t'aider à mieux travailler après, T'éloigner un peu means “stepping away a little.” The phrase is an infinitive action presented as something that can help; reuse an infinitive phrase before peut when naming a possible helpful action.
un In un peu, un combines with peu to express a small amount: “a little.” Reuse un peu with an activity or quantity when referring to a small amount or short extent.
peu In T'éloigner un peu, peu means “little” and limits the extent of stepping away. Together, un peu is useful for softening an action or indicating a small amount.
peut In peut t'aider, peut expresses that something can or may help. Reuse the pattern subject + peut + infinitive when describing a possible or helpful action.
t'aider In peut t'aider à mieux travailler, t'aider means “help you,” with t' identifying the person who receives the help. Reuse peut t'aider à + infinitive when saying that something can help someone do an action.
à In t'aider à mieux travailler, à links aider to the action that the person will do. The reliable pattern is aider quelqu'un à + infinitive, as in helping someone work better.
mieux In mieux travailler, mieux means “better” and describes the improved way of working. Reuse mieux before a verb when saying that an action is done more effectively.
travailler In à mieux travailler, travailler means “to work” and names the action that can improve after stepping away. It can follow à when describing an activity someone is helped to do.
après In mieux travailler après, après means “afterward,” referring to the time following the break or stepping away. It can be placed after an action to indicate what happens later.
Peut-être Peut-être means “maybe” as a whole and shows that the speaker is making a tentative suggestion. The expression contains Peut, which contributes the idea of possibility, and être, “to be”; use Peut-être que + clause to introduce an uncertain idea.
devrais In je devrais reposer mes yeux, devrais means “should” and presents the speaker's possible recommendation for their own action. Reuse je devrais + infinitive when saying what you think you ought to do.
reposer In reposer mes yeux, reposer means “give rest to” or “rest” the eyes. The pattern reposer + body part is useful when describing a short recovery period for a tired part of the body.
mes In mes yeux, mes means “my” and shows that the eyes belong to the speaker. Reuse mes + plural noun when referring to several things belonging to yourself.
yeux In reposer mes yeux, yeux means “eyes,” the body part that the speaker wants to rest. It is useful in everyday advice about tiredness, screens, or visual work.
pendant In pendant une minute, pendant means “for” a stated period of time. In pendant que tu te reposes, it forms the expression “while”; reuse pendant + duration or pendant que + clause according to whether you name a length of time or a simultaneous action.
minute In pendant une minute, minute means “minute” and gives the length of the suggested rest or breathing period. Reuse une minute after pendant when describing an activity lasting one minute.
Bois In Bois de l'eau, Bois tells one informal person to drink. It is a direct instruction suitable for advising a colleague; reuse Bois + drink or liquid to say what the person should drink.
l'eau In Bois de l'eau, l'eau means “water” and names what should be drunk. It functions as the object of Bois, so the phrase identifies the drink being recommended during the break.
et In Bois de l'eau et respire lentement, et means “and” and joins the two instructions. Reuse X et Y to give two connected actions or recommendations.
respire In respire lentement, respire tells one informal person to breathe. It is useful as a direct instruction during a pause or calming exercise; it can be followed by a word describing how to breathe.
lentement In respire lentement, lentement means “slowly” and describes the manner of breathing. Reuse a verb + lentement when telling someone to perform an action at a slow pace.
pourrai In je pourrai finir la dernière section, pourrai means “will be able to” and expresses the speaker's expected ability to finish. Reuse je pourrai + infinitive when describing a future action that you expect to be able to do.
finir In pourrai finir la dernière section, finir means “finish” and names the action the speaker expects to complete. Reuse finir + object when saying that a task, document, or section will be completed.
dernière In la dernière section, dernière means “last” or “final” and identifies the final section. Reuse la dernière + noun when referring to the final item in an ordered document or series.
section In finir la dernière section, section means “section,” a distinct part of the work or document. It is useful when referring to one part of a larger text or task.
vais In Je vais relire le brouillon, vais helps express a planned action: “I am going to review the draft.” Reuse je vais + infinitive when announcing what you plan or intend to do next.
relire In relire le brouillon, relire means “read again” or “review” the draft. Reuse relire + document when checking written work a second time for clarity or mistakes.
le In le brouillon, le means “the” before brouillon and identifies the specific draft being discussed. Reuse le + noun when referring to a particular masculine noun.
brouillon In relire le brouillon, brouillon means “draft,” a preliminary version of written work. This word is useful when someone is checking or improving a document before it is final.
te In tu te reposes, te refers back to tu as part of the expression meaning “you rest.” It marks the person performing the action in this reflexive construction; reuse tu te + verb when the relevant French verb is used reflexively with an informal singular subject.
reposes In tu te reposes, reposes means “rest.” Together with te, it describes the informal singular person taking a rest while the other speaker reviews the draft.

Grammar Points

avoir l'air + adjectif

Tu as l'air fatigué.

tew ah LAIR fah-tee-GAY

You look tired.

French uses avoir l'air followed by an adjective to describe how someone appears.

Impératif affirmatif

Fais une pause.

fay ewn POHZ

Take a break.

The imperative gives a direct instruction; the subject pronoun is omitted.

French Vocabulary

alors adv
ah-LOR so, then

Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause.

approcher verb
ah-proh-SHAY to approach approche

Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche.

aujourd'hui adv
oh-zhoor-DWEE today

J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui.

avoir l'air phrase
ah-VWAR LAIR to look, to seem as l'air

Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause.

beaucoup adv
boh-KOO a lot

J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui.

date limite phrase
daht lee-MEET deadline

Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche.

faire une pause phrase
fayr ewn POHZ to take a break fais une pause

Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause.

fatigué adj
fah-tee-GAY tired

Tu as l'air fatigué, alors fais une pause.

parce que conj
pairss kuh because

Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche.

s'éloigner verb
say-lwah-NYAY to step away t'éloigner

T'éloigner un peu peut t'aider à mieux travailler après.

s'inquiéter verb
san-kee-ay-TAY to worry m'inquiète

Je m'inquiète parce que la date limite approche.

travail noun
trah-VY work

J'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

I have a lot of work today.

Show AnswerJ'ai beaucoup de travail aujourd'hui.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

so, then

Show Answeralors

work

Show Answertravail

tired

Show Answerfatigué

a lot

Show Answerbeaucoup