Checking meeting room equipment | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Nous devrions vérifier le matériel de la salle de réunion.

   We should check the meeting room equipment.

   Nous devrions

   we should

   vérifier

   to check

   matériel

   equipment

   salle

   room

   réunion

   meeting

   More detail

   Nous devrions means “we should.” devrions is the first-person plural conditional form of devoir (“must / have to” in other contexts). Here, with nous, the conditional expresses a recommendation or advisable action rather than a firm present obligation. The reusable pattern is Nous devrions + infinitive: “We should …” vérifier is the infinitive “to check” or “to verify.” After devrions, the next verb stays in the infinitive: Nous devrions vérifier (“We should check”). The same verb can be used in other forms, such as je vérifie (“I check”) and nous vérifions (“we check”). matériel means “equipment” here. It is a masculine singular noun, although it refers collectively to equipment rather than necessarily to one item. The article le before it marks this noun phrase as masculine singular: le matériel. Example: Nous vérifions le matériel. — “We check the equipment.” salle means “room.” It is a feminine singular noun, as shown by la salle in the sentence. In la salle de réunion, de réunion specifies what kind of room it is: a meeting room. réunion means “meeting.” It is a feminine singular noun: une réunion (“a meeting”) or la réunion (“the meeting”). In the fixed sentence, it appears after de in the noun phrase de réunion, where it identifies the room’s purpose. The remaining words connect these pieces. le matériel de la salle de réunion means “the equipment of the meeting room,” naturally “the meeting room equipment.” Here, de la is the combination of de (“of”) and the feminine singular article la before salle. Together, Nous devrions vérifier le matériel de la salle de réunion. means “We should check the meeting room equipment.” The sentence recommends that the speaker and at least one other person check that equipment.

2. La réunion commence bientôt.

   The meeting starts soon.

   réunion

   meeting

   commence

   starts; begins

   bientôt

   soon

   More detail

   réunion means “meeting” here. It is a feminine noun; the article La marks that grammatical gender and singular number. The same noun can be reused in phrases such as une réunion importante (“an important meeting”). commence means “starts” or “begins” here. It is the third-person singular present form of commencer: je commence, tu commences, il/elle commence, nous commençons. The form agrees with the singular subject La réunion. Example: Le cours commence à neuf heures. — “The class starts at nine o’clock.” bientôt is an adverb meaning “soon”; it places the start in the near future. It does not change form for number or gender. Example: Le train arrive bientôt. — “The train arrives soon.” Together, La réunion commence bientôt. means “The meeting starts soon.” The noun phrase La réunion is the subject, commence says what this singular subject does, and bientôt adds the near-future time. The present tense can describe a scheduled or expected event in this context.

3. Faisons-le maintenant.

   Let's do it now.

   Faisons-le

   Let's do it

   maintenant

   now

   More detail

   Faisons-le means “let’s do it” here. faisons is the first-person plural imperative of faire (“to do”); it includes the speaker and at least one other person. The useful pattern is Faisons + [object pronoun], meaning “Let’s do [it/them].” In le, the object pronoun refers to the unspecified “it” identified by the fixed translation; the sentence does not identify what that object is. The hyphen is the written link between the imperative and its following pronoun. The base verb is faire. Its present forms include je fais, nous faisons, and vous faites; faisons is the form used for a “let’s …” suggestion or instruction. Example: Faisons une pause. — “Let’s take a break.” maintenant is an adverb meaning “now.” It places the proposed action at the present time. Example: Commençons maintenant. — “Let’s start now.” Together, Faisons-le maintenant. combines the inclusive imperative “let’s do it” with the time adverb “now,” giving “Let’s do it now.”

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

   Is the projector connected to the laptop?

   projecteur

   projector

   est-il

   is it?

   connecté

   connected

   l'ordinateur

   the computer

   portable

   portable

   More detail

   projecteur means “projector” here. It is a masculine singular noun, which is why the sentence begins with Le projecteur (“the projector”). A useful plural form is les projecteurs (“the projectors”). est-il contains the third-person singular present form est of être (“is”) followed by the subject pronoun il (“it/he”). In this sentence, il refers to the projector identified in the fixed translation. This verb–subject inversion is a standard way to form a relatively formal yes/no question: Est-il prêt ? means “Is it ready?” connecté describes the projector’s state: it is connected. It is the masculine singular form of connecté, agreeing with projecteur; with a feminine singular noun, the form is connectée. The useful pattern is être connecté(e) à + a thing: La caméra est connectée à l’ordinateur. means “The camera is connected to the computer.” l’ordinateur means “the computer.” The definite article le becomes l’ before the vowel at the beginning of ordinateur; this is elision, not a different meaning. The preposition à links the connection to what the projector is connected to. portable modifies ordinateur. Together, l’ordinateur portable means “the laptop” or, literally, “the portable computer.” In this phrase, portable is masculine singular; its spelling is the same in the feminine singular, as in une imprimante portable (“a portable printer”). Together, Le projecteur est-il connecté à l’ordinateur portable ? asks whether the projector is connected to the laptop. The structure is Le projecteur + inverted est-il + connecté à + l’ordinateur portable: “Is the projector connected to the laptop?”

5. Oui, mais ce câble semble un peu lâche.

   It is, but this cable feels a little loose.

   Oui, mais

   Yes, but

   ce

   this

   câble

   cable

   semble

   seems

   un peu

   a little

   lâche

   loose

   More detail

   Oui, mais confirms the preceding statement with “yes” and then introduces a contrast with mais (“but”). In this context, Oui answers the preceding yes/no question; it is separate from the later description of the cable. ce is the masculine singular demonstrative determiner meaning “this” before a consonant. It agrees with the masculine singular noun câble; before a vowel sound, French commonly uses cet, as in cet appareil (“this device”). câble is a masculine singular noun meaning “cable.” Its plural is câbles. Here it is the subject of the clause, the thing being described. semble is the third-person singular present form of sembler, “to seem.” The pattern sembler + adjective presents an impression rather than a definite assertion: Le câble semble solide. — “The cable seems sturdy.” un peu means “a little” or “slightly.” It reduces the strength of the following description: un peu lâche means “a little loose,” not simply “loose.” lâche is the masculine singular form of the adjective lâche, “loose” in this context. It agrees with masculine singular câble; the feminine singular is also lâche, while the plural is lâches. This adjective can have other meanings in other contexts, but here it describes the cable as not tight or firmly secured. Together, ce câble semble un peu lâche means “this cable feels/seems a little loose.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Yes, but this cable feels a little loose.” The mais contrasts the confirmation with the speaker’s cautious observation, and semble keeps the observation tentative rather than stating the cable’s looseness as absolute fact.

6. Testons le microphone avant l'arrivée des gens.

   Let's test the microphone before people arrive.

   Testons

   let’s test

   microphone

   microphone

   avant

   before

   l'arrivée

   arrival

   gens

   people

   More detail

   Testons is the first-person plural imperative of tester (“to test”). It means “let’s test” here and includes the speaker with at least one other person. Compare Testez (“test” addressed to several people or politely to one person) and Teste (“test” addressed informally to one person). Example: Testons le son. — “Let’s test the sound.” microphone is the noun “microphone.” In this sentence it is the direct object of testons: it is what the group will test. Example: Le microphone fonctionne. — “The microphone works.” avant means “before” and places one event earlier than another. It can directly precede a noun phrase, as in avant l'arrivée. With an infinitive, French commonly uses avant de, as in Partons avant de commencer. — “Let’s leave before starting.” Before a finite clause, French commonly uses avant que with the subjunctive: Partons avant qu'il arrive. — “Let’s leave before he arrives.” l'arrivée means “the arrival.” It is the feminine noun arrivée, related to the verb arriver (“to arrive”); l' is the elided form of the definite article before a vowel sound. Example: L'arrivée du train est prévue. — “The train’s arrival is scheduled.” gens means “people.” It is a plural noun referring to people as a group. In des gens, des is the plural indefinite article, not the contraction of de and les; the phrase means “people” in this context and does not assert a particular number. Example: Des gens attendent dehors. — “People are waiting outside.” The chunks combine as Testons le microphone (“Let’s test the microphone”) + avant l'arrivée des gens (“before people arrive”). Thus the complete utterance means “Let’s test the microphone before people arrive.” The phrasing is neutral and practical.

7. Il fonctionne, mais le volume est faible.

   It works, but the volume is low.

   fonctionne

   works

   volume

   volume

   faible

   low

   More detail

   fonctionne is the third-person singular present form of fonctionner, “to work” or “to function.” Here it describes the microphone’s operation: it is working. The same verb can describe how a device operates: Le téléphone fonctionne. — “The phone works.” volume is a masculine noun meaning “volume,” especially the loudness level of sound. Its plural is volumes. In this sentence, le volume is the definite noun phrase “the volume”; the article le marks this noun as masculine singular. Example: Le volume est élevé. — “The volume is high.” faible means “low” here, describing the volume’s level. It is an adjective whose form is the same for masculine and feminine singular; its plural form is faibles. Its opposite in this sense is élevé for a masculine singular noun, as in un volume élevé — “a high volume.” The sentence has the reusable pattern subject + present-tense verb, mais + subject + être + adjective: Il fonctionne, mais le volume est faible. Il means “it” and refers here to the device under discussion, while fonctionne says that it works. mais introduces the contrast “but”; then le volume est faible says that the volume is low. Together: “It works, but the volume is low.”

8. Je vais augmenter un peu le volume.

   I'll turn it up a little.

   Je vais

   I’m going to

   augmenter

   increase; turn up

   un peu

   a little

   volume

   volume

   More detail

   Je vais means “I’m going to” here. vais is the first-person singular present form of aller (“to go”), and with an infinitive it forms the near-future construction aller + infinitive: Je vais augmenter = “I’m going to increase/turn up.” This construction presents the action as planned or about to happen; it does not mean that the speaker is physically going somewhere. augmenter means “to increase.” It is the infinitive used after vais. With sound controls, French can use augmenter le volume for “turn up the volume.” The same verb also applies to other quantities: Le prix augmente. — “The price is increasing.” un peu means “a little” or “slightly.” It limits the amount of the increase. This expression is reusable with verbs and adjectives, for example: Baisse un peu le son. — “Turn the sound down a little.” volume means “volume” in the sense of sound level here. The noun is masculine, as shown by le volume; le is the definite article, not part of the noun itself. In this sentence, le volume is the sound level already understood from the situation. Le volume est faible. — “The volume is low.” Together, Je vais augmenter expresses the speaker’s intended near-future action, le volume identifies the sound level being changed, and un peu specifies a small increase. The whole utterance means: “I’m going to turn it up a little.”

9. Le son est meilleur. La salle est prête.

   That sounds better. The room is ready.

   son

   sound

   meilleur

   better

   salle

   room

   prête

   ready

   More detail

   son means “sound” here, specifically the sound being evaluated after the volume adjustment. It is a masculine noun: le son. A useful related expression is le son est bon (“the sound is good”), while the sentence uses a comparison instead. meilleur means “better” and is the comparative form of bon (“good”): bon → meilleur. It agrees with the masculine singular noun son, so the form is meilleur; with a feminine singular noun, the form is meilleure. Example: Cette solution est meilleure. — “This solution is better.” salle means “room” or “hall” here. It is a feminine noun, as shown by la salle. The noun’s gender matters for the adjective that follows it. prête means “ready” here. It is the feminine singular form of prêt, agreeing with the feminine singular noun salle: la salle est prête. With a masculine singular noun, use prêt, as in Le matériel est prêt. — “The equipment is ready.” Together, Le son est meilleur says “The sound is better,” corresponding naturally to “That sounds better” in the fixed translation. La salle est prête says “The room is ready.” The copula est links each subject to its description: the sound is better, and the room is ready.