Borrowing a screwdriver and returning it clean | Learn French in English

French lesson set in a contemporary Paris everyday setting: In a shared space, one person borrows a screwdriver for a shelf repair and agrees to return it clean before dinner..

EN → FR / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Borrowing a screwdriver and returning it clean to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Est-ce que je peux emprunter ton tournevis pour une petite réparation ?

ess-kuh zhuh puh ahn-prahn-TEH tohn toor-nuh-VEE poor ewn puh-TEET ray-pah-rah-SYOHN Could I borrow your screwdriver for a small repair?
B

Il est dans la boîte à outils bleue.

eel ay DAHN lah BWAHT ah oo-TEE BLUH It is in the blue toolbox.
A

Je dois serrer les supports de l'étagère.

zhuh DWAH seh-RAY lay soo-POHR duh lay-tah-ZHEHR I need to tighten the shelf brackets.
B

Utilise le tournevis de taille moyenne.

ew-tee-LEEZ luh toor-nuh-VEE duh TYE mwah-YEN Use the medium screwdriver.
B

Il s'adapte mieux à ces supports.

eel sah-DAHPT MYUH ah say soo-POHR It fits those brackets better.
A

Quand est-ce que je dois le rapporter ?

kahn ess-kuh zhuh DWAH luh rah-pohr-TAY When should I return it?
B

Rapporte-le avant le dîner, s'il te plaît.

rah-POHRT-luh ah-VAHN luh dee-NAY, seel tuh PLAY Please bring it back before dinner.
A

S'il prend de la poussière, je l'essuierai d'abord.

seel prahn duh lah poo-SYEHR, zhuh less-wee-RAY dah-BOHR If it gets dusty, I'll wipe it off first.
B

Cela aide à garder les outils en bon état.

suh-LAH ed ah gahr-DAY lay-ZOO-TEE ahn bohn ay-TAH That helps keep the tools in good shape.

Word by Word

Est-ce que Est-ce que opens the yes-or-no question Est-ce que je peux emprunter ton tournevis. Est-ce and que work together as one question opener; a reusable pattern is Est-ce que + subject + verb when asking whether something is possible.
je je means I and is the subject in je peux emprunter and je dois serrer. It is placed before a verb to say what the speaker does, can do, or needs to do.
peux peux expresses can or am able to in je peux emprunter. It is followed by the infinitive emprunter here, and je peux + infinitive is useful for asking permission or stating ability.
emprunter emprunter means borrow in emprunter ton tournevis, describing taking someone else's item with the intention of returning it. Use emprunter + an object when asking to borrow a practical item.
ton ton means your in ton tournevis and refers to an item belonging to the person being addressed. It comes before the noun; ton + a singular noun is a reusable way to show possession when speaking to one person.
tournevis tournevis means screwdriver, the tool being borrowed and later returned in the dialogue. In ton tournevis it is the object of emprunter, so it is useful when naming the specific tool someone wants to borrow.
pour pour marks purpose in pour une petite réparation: the screwdriver is borrowed for the repair. Use pour + a noun to say what an action or item is intended for, especially when explaining the reason for a request.
une une introduces one unspecified repair in une petite réparation. It comes before the feminine singular noun réparation; une + a feminine singular noun is a reusable way to introduce one non-specific thing.
petite petite means small in une petite réparation and describes the size of the repair. Its form matches réparation, and it can be used before a noun to describe a minor practical task.
réparation réparation means repair in pour une petite réparation and names the task for which the screwdriver is needed. It can follow une petite when describing a small repair need.
Il Il means it in Il est dans la boîte à outils bleue and refers to the screwdriver. It is the subject used to locate this item; il est + a location phrase is reusable for saying where an item is.
est est means is in Il est dans la boîte à outils bleue and links the screwdriver to its location. Il est + a place or location phrase is a common pattern for locating an item.
dans dans means in and places the screwdriver inside the toolbox in dans la boîte à outils bleue. Use dans + a place or container to say where something is located.
la la means the before boîte in la boîte à outils bleue and points to a specific toolbox. It is placed before a feminine singular noun; la + noun is reusable when referring to a specific item.
boîte boîte means box and contributes the container meaning in la boîte à outils bleue. In boîte à outils it names a box intended for tools, a useful expression when identifying where tools are stored.
à à links boîte with outils in boîte à outils and shows the box's purpose, giving the meaning toolbox rather than a simple location meaning. boîte à + noun is a reusable naming pattern for a container associated with something.
outils outils means tools in boîte à outils and identifies what the box is for. It also appears in les outils when the tools are discussed as a group; use outils after boîte à to name the stored tools.
bleue bleue means blue in la boîte à outils bleue and describes the toolbox. Its form matches the feminine noun boîte, and it is useful for identifying the correct box by color.
dois dois expresses must or need to in Je dois serrer les supports de l'étagère and marks the action as necessary. It is followed by the infinitive serrer; je dois + infinitive is reusable for saying what you need to do.
serrer serrer means tighten in serrer les supports de l'étagère and names the action to perform on the brackets. Use serrer + an object when making something tighter, such as a support or fastening.
les les means the before supports in les supports de l'étagère and refers to specific plural brackets. It comes before a plural noun; les + plural noun is reusable when referring to known items as a group.
supports supports means brackets or supports in les supports de l'étagère and refers to the parts holding the shelf. supports de + a noun can identify the thing the supports belong to or are associated with.
de de links supports with l'étagère in supports de l'étagère and shows the relationship between the brackets and the shelf. de + a noun is reusable for connecting an item with a related thing.
l'étagère l'étagère means the shelf in de l'étagère and identifies the specific shelf whose brackets need tightening. l' is used before étagère because the noun begins with a vowel; de l'étagère refers back to that shelf.
Utilise Utilise means use as a direct instruction in Utilise le tournevis de taille moyenne. Use Utilise + an item when telling one person which tool or object to use.
le le means the before tournevis in le tournevis de taille moyenne and identifies the specific screwdriver being recommended. It is placed before a masculine singular noun; le + noun is reusable when referring to a particular item.
taille taille means size in de taille moyenne and specifies the screwdriver's size. de taille + an adjective is a reusable pattern for describing an item's size.
moyenne moyenne means medium in de taille moyenne and describes the size. Its form matches the feminine noun taille, and de taille moyenne is useful when choosing an item by size.
s'adapte s'adapte means fits or adapts in Il s'adapte mieux à ces supports and describes how the screwdriver works with the brackets. s'adapter à + a thing is a reusable pattern for saying what something fits or adapts to.
mieux mieux means better in s'adapte mieux à ces supports and compares how well this screwdriver fits with other possible choices. It modifies the verb, and verb + mieux is useful when one option works more effectively.
ces ces means these in ces supports and points to particular brackets known in the conversation. It comes before a plural noun; ces + plural noun is useful when indicating specific items.
Quand Quand means when in Quand est-ce que je dois le rapporter ? and asks for a time. Quand est-ce que + subject + verb is a reusable pattern for asking when an action should happen.
rapporter rapporter means bring back or return in je dois le rapporter, where le refers to the screwdriver. It follows dois as an infinitive; devoir + object pronoun + rapporter is useful when saying that an item must be returned.
Rapporte-le Rapporte-le means bring it back and directly asks the other person to return the screwdriver. The pronoun le is attached to the imperative verb here; Rapporte-le + a time phrase is a reusable way to request an item's return.
avant avant means before in avant le dîner and sets the deadline for returning the screwdriver. Use avant + a time noun to say that something must happen earlier than a specified time or event.
dîner dîner means dinner in avant le dîner and names the meal used as the return deadline. With le in avant le dîner, it is a noun; this expression is useful for setting a time before the evening meal.
s'il te plaît s'il te plaît means please in Rapporte-le avant le dîner, s'il te plaît and makes the request polite. s'il contributes if it, te refers to you, and plaît expresses pleases; together they form a fixed polite formula used with a request to one person.
S'il S'il means if it in S'il prend de la poussière and refers to the screwdriver. It introduces a possible condition; S'il + a verb is reusable when explaining what will happen if something occurs.
prend prend is part of prend de la poussière, which here means gets dusty. It supplies the verb in that expression, and prendre de la poussière is a reusable pattern for an item that becomes dusty.
poussière poussière means dust in prend de la poussière and names what may collect on the screwdriver. de la poussière can be used with an expression describing an item becoming dusty or having dust on it.
l'essuierai l'essuierai means I will wipe it in je l'essuierai d'abord. l' refers to the screwdriver and essuierai expresses the planned wiping action; je l'essuierai d'abord is useful when promising to clean an item before doing something else.
d'abord d'abord means first in je l'essuierai d'abord and places the wiping before any later action. Verb + d'abord is a reusable pattern for stating the first step in a practical task.
Cela Cela means that or this and refers to the wiping just mentioned in Cela aide à garder les outils en bon état. Cela + a verb is useful for commenting on an action or fact already mentioned.
aide aide means helps in Cela aide à garder les outils en bon état and introduces the useful result of wiping the screwdriver. It is followed by à + an infinitive here; aider à + infinitive is reusable when explaining what an action supports.
garder garder means keep or maintain in garder les outils en bon état. The whole expression describes maintaining the tools in good condition; garder + object + en bon état is a reusable pattern for talking about care and maintenance.
en en means in as part of en bon état and describes a condition rather than a physical location. en bon état is a reusable expression for saying that an item is in good condition.
bon bon means good in en bon état and describes the desired condition of the tools. Its form matches the noun état, and en bon état is useful for saying that an item remains in good condition.
état état means condition or state in en bon état. The full expression describes the tools as being well maintained; en bon état is a reusable way to say that an item is in good working condition.

Grammar Points

Le futur simple à la première personne : -erai

J'essuierai la poussière avant dîner.

zhess-wee-RAY lah poo-SYEHR ah-VAHN dee-NAY

I will wipe the dust before dinner.

La terminaison -erai indique une action future faite par « je ».

L'accord de l'adjectif : bleu / bleue

La boîte à outils bleue.

lah BWAHT ah oo-TEE BLUH

The blue toolbox.

« Bleue » prend un -e au féminin pour s'accorder avec un nom féminin.

French Vocabulary

bleu adj
BLUH blue bleue

Il est dans la boîte à outils bleue.

boîte à outils noun
BWAHT ah oo-TEE toolbox

Il est dans la boîte à outils bleue.

emprunter verb
ahn-prahn-TEH to borrow

Est-ce que je peux emprunter ton tournevis pour une petite réparation ?

étagère noun
ay-tah-ZHEHR shelf

Je dois serrer les supports de l'étagère.

mieux adv
MYUH better

Il s'adapte mieux à ces supports.

réparation noun
ray-pah-rah-SYOHN repair

Est-ce que je peux emprunter ton tournevis pour une petite réparation ?

s'adapter verb
sah-dahp-TAY to fit; to adapt s'adapte

Il s'adapte mieux à ces supports.

serrer verb
seh-RAY to tighten

Je dois serrer les supports de l'étagère.

support noun
suh-POHR bracket; support supports

Je dois serrer les supports de l'étagère.

taille moyenne phrase
TYE mwah-YEN medium size

Utilise le tournevis de taille moyenne.

tournevis noun
toor-nuh-VEE screwdriver

Est-ce que je peux emprunter ton tournevis pour une petite réparation ?

utiliser verb
ew-tee-lee-ZAY to use utilise

Utilise le tournevis de taille moyenne.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Use the medium screwdriver.

Show AnswerUtilise le tournevis de taille moyenne.

It fits those brackets better.

Show AnswerIl s'adapte mieux à ces supports.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

shelf

Show Answerétagère

to borrow

Show Answeremprunter

bracket; support

Show Answersupports

blue

Show Answerbleue