Checking meeting room equipment | Learn French in English

French lesson set in a contemporary Paris everyday setting: Before a meeting, two adults check the projector, cable, microphone, and volume in a meeting room..

EN → FR / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Checking meeting room equipment to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Nous devrions vérifier le matériel de la salle de réunion.

noo duh-vree-YOHN vay-ree-FYAY luh mah-tay-ree-EL duh la SAHL duh ray-oo-NYON We should check the meeting room equipment.
B

La réunion commence bientôt.

la ray-oo-NYON koh-MAHNSS byan-TOH The meeting starts soon.
B

Faisons-le maintenant.

fuh-ZOHN-luh man-tuh-NAHN Let's do it now.
A

Le projecteur est-il connecté à l'ordinateur portable ?

luh proh-zhek-TER ay-TEEL koh-nek-TAY ah lor-dee-nah-TER por-TAHBL Is the projector connected to the laptop?
B

Oui, mais ce câble semble un peu lâche.

wee may suh KAHBL sahm-BLAY uhn puh LASH It is, but this cable feels a little loose.
A

Testons le microphone avant l'arrivée des gens.

tes-OHN luh mee-kroh-FON ah-VAHN la-ree-VAY day ZHAN Let's test the microphone before people arrive.
B

Il fonctionne, mais le volume est faible.

eel fohnk-SYOHN may luh voh-LOOM ay FEHBL It works, but the volume is low.
A

Je vais augmenter un peu le volume.

zhuh vay ohg-mahn-TAY uhn puh luh voh-LOOM I'll turn it up a little.
B

Le son est meilleur. La salle est prête.

luh SOHN ay may-YUR la SAHL ay PREHT That sounds better. The room is ready.

Word by Word

Nous “Nous” means “we” here and refers to the speaker together with the other person. It is used as the subject in “Nous devrions vérifier”; a new example is “Nous travaillons ensemble.”
devrions “devrions” expresses that checking the equipment is advisable or a good idea. It is used before the infinitive “vérifier”; a new example is “Nous devrions partir maintenant.”
vérifier “vérifier” means to check or inspect the equipment. It follows “devrions” in “Nous devrions vérifier” and can be reused before an object, as in the new example “vérifier le câble.”
le “le” means “the” before the masculine singular noun “matériel” in “le matériel”. It identifies specific equipment, and the same form appears in “Le projecteur” at the beginning of another sentence.
matériel “matériel” means equipment here, specifically the equipment in the meeting room. It is used in “le matériel de la salle de réunion”; a new example is “le matériel informatique.”
de “de” links “matériel” to the place it belongs to in “le matériel de la salle de réunion”. This “de + noun” pattern can show a relationship or belonging; a new example is “la porte de la salle.”
la “la” means “the” before the feminine singular noun “salle” in “la salle de réunion”. It identifies the particular room, and the same form appears in “La réunion” at the start of another sentence.
salle “salle” means room here, specifically the meeting room. It is used in “la salle de réunion”; a new example is “une salle de classe.”
réunion “réunion” means meeting and specifies what kind of room it is in “la salle de réunion”. It can be reused after “de” to identify a meeting-related place or object; a new example is “une réunion importante.”
commence “commence” says that the meeting starts. It is used with “La réunion” and can be reused with an event or activity as the subject; a new example is “Le cours commence bientôt.”
bientôt “bientôt” means soon and places the start of the meeting in the near future. It commonly appears with an event or action, as in the new example “Nous arrivons bientôt.”
Faisons “Faisons” invites the speakers to do something together in “Faisons-le maintenant”. It is followed here by “-le” for the thing to be done; a new example is “Faisons une pause.”
maintenant “maintenant” means now and says that the action should happen at this moment. It can be placed with an instruction or proposal, as in the new example “Commencez maintenant.”
projecteur “projecteur” means projector, the device being checked. It is used with “Le” in “Le projecteur est-il connecté”; a new example is “allumer le projecteur.”
est “est” means is and connects the projector with its state of being connected. It appears in the question “est-il connecté” and can be reused with a noun and description, as in the new example “Le câble est long.”
il “il” is the subject pronoun referring to the projector in “est-il connecté”, and the capitalized form “Il” refers to it in “Il fonctionne”. It can be used before a verb when referring to a masculine noun or thing already identified.
connecté “connecté” means connected here, describing the projector’s connection to the laptop. It is used after “est” and before “à” in “est-il connecté à l’ordinateur portable”; a new example is “Le téléphone est connecté au réseau.”
à “à” links the projector to the device it is connected to in “connecté à l’ordinateur portable”. This preposition commonly follows “connecté” before the connected device; a new example is “connecté à une imprimante.”
l'ordinateur “l’ordinateur” means the computer in “l’ordinateur portable”. The form begins with “l’” before this vowel-initial noun, and it is completed by “portable” to mean laptop; a new example is “utiliser l’ordinateur.”
portable “portable” contributes the idea of a portable computer in “l’ordinateur portable”. It follows the noun here to form the expression for laptop; a new example is “un téléphone portable.”
Oui “Oui” means yes and confirms that the projector is connected. It is useful as a direct answer to a yes-or-no question; a new example is “Oui, c’est prêt.”
mais “mais” means but and introduces a problem or limitation after the confirmation. It connects the positive statement with the loose cable in “Oui, mais ce câble semble un peu lâche”; a new example is “Oui, mais ce n’est pas nécessaire.”
ce “ce” means this and points to the particular cable being discussed in “ce câble”. It is placed before the masculine singular noun; a new example is “ce téléphone.”
câble “câble” means cable, the item that seems loose. It is used as the subject of “ce câble semble un peu lâche”; a new example is “brancher le câble.”
semble “semble” means seems or appears and presents the cable as appearing loose rather than making a stronger claim. It is followed here by “un peu lâche”; a new example is “La connexion semble stable.”
un “un” contributes the small quantity in “un peu”, meaning a bit or a small amount. This expression can modify an adjective or other description; a new example is “un peu difficile.”
peu “peu” means a small amount in “un peu lâche”, so the cable is only slightly loose. It commonly appears with “un” in this expression; a new example is “attendre un peu.”
lâche “lâche” means loose here and describes the cable’s condition. It follows “un peu” in “un peu lâche”; a new example is “un bouton lâche.”
Testons “Testons” invites the speakers to test something together in “Testons le microphone”. It is followed directly by the object being tested; a new example is “Testons la connexion.”
microphone “microphone” means microphone, the device they test before people arrive. It follows “Testons” as the object of the action; a new example is “allumer le microphone.”
avant “avant” means before and places the microphone test earlier than the arrival of the people. It is followed here by “l’arrivée des gens”; a new example is “avant la réunion.”
l'arrivée “l’arrivée” means the arrival in “avant l’arrivée des gens”. The form begins with “l’” before this vowel-initial noun, and it names the event that has not happened yet; a new example is “après l’arrivée.”
des “des” introduces the plural noun “gens” in “des gens” and refers to people in a general plural way. It can be used before a plural noun; a new example is “des collègues.”
gens “gens” means people in “l’arrivée des gens”. It refers to the people expected to arrive, and a new example is “beaucoup de gens.”
fonctionne “fonctionne” says that the microphone works or operates correctly. It is used with “Il” as the subject in “Il fonctionne”; a new example is “La machine fonctionne.”
volume “volume” means volume, referring to the loudness of the microphone’s sound. It is used in “le volume est faible”; a new example is “régler le volume.”
faible “faible” means low here and describes the volume as insufficiently loud. It follows “est” in “le volume est faible”; a new example is “un signal faible.”
Je “Je” means I and identifies the person who will increase the volume. It is the subject of “Je vais augmenter”; a new example is “Je vérifie le câble.”
vais “vais” contributes the speaker’s intention to increase the volume in “Je vais augmenter”. It is followed by the infinitive “augmenter” to express a planned or imminent action; a new example is “Je vais commencer.”
augmenter “augmenter” means to increase, and here it means to turn up the volume. It follows “Je vais” and takes “le volume” as the object; a new example is “augmenter la lumière.”
son “son” means sound in “Le son est meilleur”; it does not mean a possessive word in this sentence. It is the subject described by “est meilleur”, and a new example is “écouter le son.”
meilleur “meilleur” means better and says that the sound has improved after the volume change. It follows “est” in “Le son est meilleur”; a new example is “un résultat meilleur.”
prête “prête” means ready and describes the meeting room as prepared for the meeting in “La salle est prête”. It follows “est” after the room is checked; a new example is “La salle est prête pour le cours.”

Grammar Points

Impératif à la 1re personne du pluriel : faisons / testons

Testons le microphone maintenant.

tes-OHN luh mee-kroh-FON man-tuh-NAHN

Let's test the microphone now.

French uses the nous form for suggestions meaning “let’s”; the verb ending changes according to the subject.

Accord de l’adjectif au féminin : prêt → prête

La salle est prête.

la SAHL ay PREHT

The room is ready.

The adjective prête takes an extra -e because salle is a feminine noun.

French Vocabulary

bientôt adv
byan-TOH soon
câble noun
KAHBL cable
commencer verb
koh-mahn-SAY to start commence
connecté adj
koh-nek-TAY connected
faire verb
FEHR to do Faisons
maintenant adv
man-tuh-NAHN now
matériel noun
mah-tay-ree-EL equipment
ordinateur portable noun
or-dee-nah-TER por-TAHBL laptop
projecteur noun
proh-zhek-TER projector
réunion noun
ray-oo-NYON meeting
salle noun
SAHL room
vérifier verb
vay-ree-FYAY to check

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

The meeting starts soon.

Show AnswerLa réunion commence bientôt.

Let's do it now.

Show AnswerFaisons-le maintenant.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

meeting

Show Answerréunion

to start

Show Answercommence

to check

Show Answervérifier

to do

Show AnswerFaisons