Preparing for heavy rain | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. La météo annonce de fortes pluies bientôt.

   The forecast says heavy rain will start soon.

   météo

   forecast

   annonce

   says; announces

   fortes

   heavy

   pluies

   rain; rains

   bientôt

   soon

   More detail

   météo is a feminine noun meaning “weather” and, in this sentence, refers to the weather forecast. A useful expression is la météo: “the weather forecast” or “the weather report.” Example: Je regarde la météo. — “I’m checking the forecast.” annonce is the present-tense third-person singular form of annoncer, “to announce” or “to report.” The subject la météo is singular, so the verb is singular: la météo annonce. Here, annonce naturally means that the forecast reports or predicts something. Example: Le journal annonce du vent. — “The newspaper reports wind.” fortes is the feminine plural form of the adjective fort, “strong.” With weather, fort can describe high intensity, so de fortes pluies means “heavy rain.” The adjective agrees with the feminine plural noun pluies: fort (masculine singular), forte (feminine singular), forts (masculine plural), fortes (feminine plural). Example: Une forte pluie tombe. — “Heavy rain is falling.” pluies is the plural form of the feminine noun pluie, “rain.” In this expression, the plural form refers to heavy rainfall or rain events in the predicted weather; it does not by itself require a particular number of separate periods. The singular pluie is also commonly used for rain as a general phenomenon. Example: De fortes pluies sont prévues. — “Heavy rain is forecast.” bientôt is an adverb meaning “soon,” placing the predicted rain in the near future. It does not change form. Example: Il va bientôt pleuvoir. — “It will soon rain.” Together, La météo annonce means “The forecast says” or “The forecast predicts.” de fortes pluies identifies the predicted event as heavy rain, and bientôt places it soon. Thus the whole utterance means: “The forecast says heavy rain will start soon.”

2. Alors, porte des chaussures imperméables aujourd'hui.

   Then wear waterproof shoes today.

   Alors

   then

   porte

   wear

   chaussures

   shoes

   imperméables

   waterproof

   aujourd'hui

   today

   More detail

   Alors means “then” here and links this utterance to what has just been said. It can also introduce a conclusion or transition in other contexts, but here it marks the next practical step. porte is the informal singular imperative of porter, “to wear” in this sentence. The imperative addresses one person directly; the subject pronoun is normally omitted in this form. Compare porter (infinitive, “to wear”) with porte ! (“wear!”). Example: Porte un manteau. — “Wear a coat.” chaussures means “shoes.” It is the plural form of the feminine noun chaussure, “shoe.” The plural form does not by itself specify whether the intended footwear is a pair or several shoes. Example: Mes chaussures sont mouillées. — “My shoes are wet.” imperméables means “waterproof.” It is the plural form of the adjective imperméable, agreeing with plural chaussures. This adjective does not change for masculine versus feminine in the singular, and its plural form is imperméables for both genders. Example: une veste imperméable — “a waterproof jacket”; des bottes imperméables — “waterproof boots.” aujourd'hui means “today,” the current day relative to the utterance. It is an adverb, so it does not change for number or gender. Example: Je travaille aujourd'hui. — “I am working today.” Together, porte des chaussures imperméables gives the instruction “wear waterproof shoes,” and aujourd'hui specifies when to do it. With Alors at the beginning, the complete utterance means: “Then wear waterproof shoes today.”

3. Il y a toujours des flaques près de la gare.

   There are always puddles near the station.

   Il y a

   there is / there are

   toujours

   always

   flaques

   puddles

   près de

   near

   gare

   station

   More detail

   Il y a is the fixed French construction for saying that something exists or is present: “there is” or “there are.” The form does not change according to whether the thing mentioned afterward is singular or plural: Il y a une flaque means “There is a puddle,” while Il y a des flaques means “There are puddles.” Here, il is part of the construction, not a specific person or object. toujours means “always” here. It commonly comes before the thing or clause whose repeated or constant occurrence it describes. For example: Il pleut toujours. — “It is still raining” or “It always rains,” depending on context. In this sentence, it says that puddles are regularly or continually present, without specifying a number of occasions. flaques is the plural of the noun flaque, “puddle.” The final -s marks the plural in writing; it is not normally pronounced. The plural article des in des flaques shows that the noun is plural, but it does not state an exact number. Example: Je vois des flaques. — “I see puddles.” près de is a reusable preposition meaning “near” or “close to.” It is followed by the place or thing used as the reference point: près de la gare means “near the station.” Example: La voiture est près de la maison. — “The car is near the house.” gare is a feminine noun meaning “station,” especially a train station in this context. In la gare, the feminine singular definite article la identifies the station as a known or contextually relevant place; it does not mean “one station.” Example: La gare est loin. — “The station is far away.” Together, Il y a toujours des flaques says that puddles are always present, and près de la gare locates them near the station. The whole utterance therefore means: “There are always puddles near the station.”

4. Tu auras peut-être aussi besoin de plus de temps à cause des retards.

   You may also need extra time for delays.

   Tu auras

   you will have

   peut-être

   perhaps

   aussi

   also

   besoin de

   need

   plus

   more

   temps

   time

   à cause de

   because of

   retards

   delays

   More detail

   Tu auras is the second-person singular future of avoir (“to have”): tu as is present, while tu auras places the having in the future. Here it belongs to the reusable pattern avoir besoin de, meaning “to need,” rather than describing possession. Peut-être means “perhaps” or “maybe.” It presents the need as possible, not certain. Example: Peut-être qu'il viendra. — “Maybe he will come.” Aussi means “also” or “too.” Here it adds this possible need to the situation already under discussion. Besoin de occurs with avoir in avoir besoin de + noun or avoir besoin de + infinitive: J'ai besoin d'aide. — “I need help.” Before a vowel sound, de becomes d’, as in J'ai besoin d'eau. — “I need water.” Plus means “more” here. The pattern plus de + noun indicates a greater amount: Nous avons besoin de plus d'espace. — “We need more space.” This differs from ne ... plus, which commonly means “no longer” or “not anymore.” Temps means “time” here. It is a masculine noun; in plus de temps, de follows the quantity expression, and temps has the same written form for singular and plural. Example: J'ai besoin de temps. — “I need time.” À cause de means “because of” and introduces a cause, often an unfavorable one. It is followed by a noun phrase: Le train est en retard à cause de la pluie. — “The train is late because of the rain.” Retards is the plural of retard, meaning “delays” here. The singular is un retard; the plural is des retards. In the sentence, des is the contraction of de and the plural definite article les: à cause de + les retards becomes à cause des retards. Together, Tu auras peut-être aussi besoin de plus de temps means “You may also need more time”: future auras combines with besoin de, while peut-être expresses possibility and aussi adds “also.” À cause des retards gives the reason. The complete meaning is: “You may also need extra time for delays.”

5. Est-ce que je devrais mettre mon ordinateur portable dans une housse imperméable ?

   Should I put my laptop in a waterproof sleeve?

   Est-ce que

   question marker

   je devrais

   should I

   mettre

   put

   mon

   my

   ordinateur

   computer

   portable

   portable

   dans

   in

   housse

   sleeve

   imperméable

   waterproof

   More detail

   Est-ce que is a standard French question marker placed at the beginning of a yes/no question. It does not add a separate English word such as “whether”; it turns the following statement order into a question. For example, Est-ce que tu viens ? means “Are you coming?” je devrais means “I should” here. devrais is the first-person singular conditional form of devoir; its infinitive is devoir. In this sentence, the conditional presents the action as advice to consider or a question about what would be advisable, not as a firm statement that the action will happen. Compare je dois (“I must / I have to”) with je devrais (“I should”). mettre is the infinitive “to put” or “to place.” After devrais, French uses the infinitive: je devrais mettre = “I should put.” Example: Tu devrais fermer la porte. — “You should close the door.” mon means “my” before a masculine singular noun. It agrees with the possessed noun, not with the possessor: mon ordinateur is masculine singular. Before a feminine singular noun beginning with a vowel sound, French also uses mon for pronunciation, as in mon amie (“my friend,” feminine). This form therefore does not itself identify the possessor's gender. ordinateur means “computer.” It is a masculine noun, so the phrase uses mon, not ma. ordinateur portable is the usual French expression for “laptop”: literally, a portable computer. Example: J'utilise mon ordinateur. — “I use my computer.” portable describes ordinateur and means “portable” here. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective; the feminine singular is portable, and the plural is portables. In this noun phrase, the adjective follows the noun: un ordinateur portable. The adjective is not the base of ordinateur; they are separate words with separate functions. dans means “in” or “inside” and introduces the container or location. Here it connects the putting action with the sleeve: putting the laptop dans the sleeve means placing it inside it. Example: Le livre est dans le sac. — “The book is in the bag.” housse means “sleeve” or “protective case,” and is feminine: une housse. In this utterance, it is the container receiving the laptop. The indefinite article in une housse marks a feminine singular noun phrase; it does not by itself assert a numerical count in the English sense. imperméable means “waterproof” here and describes housse. The adjective has the same singular form for masculine and feminine nouns: un tissu imperméable and une housse imperméable; its plural form is imperméables. Example: Cette veste est imperméable. — “This jacket is waterproof.” Together, je devrais mettre expresses “I should put,” mon ordinateur portable identifies the object as “my laptop,” and dans une housse imperméable gives the destination as “in a waterproof sleeve.” With the opening Est-ce que, the complete utterance asks: “Should I put my laptop in a waterproof sleeve?”

6. Garde-le dans ton sac, où il restera au sec.

   Keep it inside your bag where it stays dry.

   Garde-le

   keep it

   dans

   in; inside

   ton

   your

   sac

   bag

   où

   where

   il

   it

   restera

   will remain; will stay

   au sec

   dry; protected from moisture

   More detail

   Garde-le is the informal singular imperative of garder (“to keep”), with le attached after the verb by a hyphen. In a positive French imperative, an object pronoun follows the verb: Garde-le ! means “Keep it!” The -er verb’s tu imperative is commonly formed without the usual final s: tu gardes, but garde !. dans introduces an interior location and is reusable before a noun: dans le sac means “in the bag.” ton is the informal singular possessive determiner meaning “your.” It refers to the person addressed and agrees with the possessed noun, not with that person: ton sac uses ton because sac is masculine singular. Compare ta veste (“your jacket”), where the feminine singular noun selects ta. sac means “bag.” Its plural is sacs: des sacs means “bags.” où is the accented form meaning “where” and can introduce a clause connected to a place: la boîte où il reste means “the box where it stays.” Do not confuse it with ou (“or”); the accent distinguishes the two forms. il is a masculine singular subject pronoun. Here it is the subject of restera and corresponds to “it” in the fixed translation; the sentence does not need to repeat the object noun. restera is the third-person singular future form of rester (“to remain; to stay”): je resterai, il restera. The future form presents staying dry as what will happen after the instruction, rather than as a current state. au sec is the expression à + le, contracted to au, plus sec (“dry”). rester au sec means “to stay dry” or “to remain protected from moisture.” In this expression, au sec describes the condition in which the item remains; it is not simply a separate adjective placed next to sac. Together, Garde-le gives the instruction “Keep it,” dans ton sac specifies the interior location, and où il restera au sec adds that, there, it will remain dry. The complete meaning is: “Keep it in your bag where it will stay dry.”

7. Alors, je devrais partir plus tôt que d'habitude.

   Then I should leave earlier than usual.

   Alors

   then

   je devrais

   I should

   partir

   leave

   plus tôt

   earlier

   que d'habitude

   than usual

   More detail

   Alors is a discourse adverb meaning “then” here: it links this conclusion or next step to what was just said. It can also mean “so” in other contexts, but “then” fits this utterance. je devrais combines je (“I”) with devrais, the first-person singular present conditional of devoir. In this sentence, devoir expresses what the speaker ought to do or considers advisable, rather than stating a firm obligation. The conditional form makes the suggestion less direct than je dois (“I must” or “I have to”). With another subject, the form changes: tu devrais means “you should,” while ils devraient means “they should.” partir is the infinitive “to leave.” After a form of devoir, the following verb normally remains in the infinitive: je devrais partir means “I should leave.” Example: Vous devez attendre. — “You must wait.” plus tôt is the comparative form “earlier.” It compares the time of leaving with a reference time. The base adverb is tôt (“early”); plus tôt means “earlier,” while le plus tôt means “the earliest” or “as early as possible,” depending on context. Do not confuse this with plutôt, a single word that commonly means “rather” or “instead.” que d'habitude introduces the comparison standard: “than usual.” d'habitude is the fixed expression “usually” or “as usual,” with the elision of de before habitude. Here it does not mean a specific named time; it refers generally to the speaker’s customary timing. Together, je devrais partir gives “I should leave,” and plus tôt que d'habitude specifies that the departure should happen earlier than the speaker’s customary time. With Alors at the beginning, the complete utterance means: “Then I should leave earlier than usual.”

8. Cela devrait rendre le trajet moins stressant.

   That should make the trip less stressful.

   Cela

   That

   devrait

   should

   rendre

   make

   trajet

   trip

   moins stressant

   less stressful

   More detail

   Cela is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” here. It is the subject, but the supplied sentence does not identify exactly what “that” refers to. French demonstrative pronouns can stand alone: cela is neutral in grammatical gender and number, so it does not change to agree with a particular noun. devrait is the third-person singular conditional form of devoir. The useful chain is devoir → devrait (“should” for a third-person singular subject). In this sentence, the conditional presents the result as expected or likely rather than as a certain fact. Compare the reusable pattern Cela devrait aider. — “That should help.” The earlier context has devrais, the first-person singular conditional form: je devrais means “I should.” rendre is the infinitive meaning “to make” or “to render.” After a conjugated form of devoir, the following verb stays in the infinitive: devrait rendre, “should make.” A useful pattern is rendre + adjective, as in Cette nouvelle rend Marie heureuse. — “This news makes Marie happy.” trajet is a noun meaning “trip” in the sense of a journey from one place to another, often a particular route or commute. Its full noun phrase here is le trajet, with le marking it as masculine singular. The article is grammatical marking, not a claim that there is a numerical count of one. For a different kind of travel event, French may use voyage, but trajet focuses more on the journey or route itself. moins stressant combines moins, “less,” with stressant, the adjective “stressful.” Moins forms a comparative of lower degree; it modifies the adjective, not the noun. The comparison pattern is moins + adjective: moins cher means “less expensive.” Stressant describes something that causes stress; its base form is the same adjective stressant, and its spelling can agree with a noun in gender and number in contexts where that agreement is expressed. Here, it describes masculine singular trajet, so the form is stressant. Together, Cela devrait rendre le trajet moins stressant follows the pattern subject + devoir in the conditional + infinitive + object + moins + adjective: “That should make the trip less stressful.” The subject is cela; devrait rendre expresses an expected effect; le trajet is what is affected; and moins stressant describes the resulting quality of that trip.