Checking an Email Before Sending | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Tu pourrais vérifier cet e-mail avant que je l'envoie ?

   Could you check this email before I send it?

   Tu pourrais

   could you

   vérifier

   check

   cet

   this

   e-mail

   email

   avant que

   before

   je

   I

   l'

   it

   envoie

   send

   More detail

   Tu pourrais uses pouvoir (“to be able to”) in the present conditional: je pourrais, tu pourrais, il/elle pourrait. Here, with tu, it makes a polite request: “Could you...?” This is a request, not a statement that the person actually can do it. vérifier is the infinitive “to check” or “to verify.” After the conditional form pourrais, French uses the infinitive: Tu pourrais vérifier... = “Could you check...?” cet is the masculine singular form of the demonstrative determiner meaning “this” before a vowel sound or silent h. The related forms are ce before most masculine consonant sounds, cette with a feminine singular noun, and ces with plural nouns. In this sentence, cet agrees with the masculine singular noun e-mail; its form is not determined by the speaker or listener. e-mail is the noun “email.” In cet e-mail, it is the thing being checked. The spelling with a hyphen is preserved in the source. avant que introduces an event that occurs later than the checking: “before.” French normally uses the subjunctive after avant que. In que je l'envoie, envoie is the first-person singular present subjunctive of envoyer (“to send”). For this verb, the first-person present indicative and subjunctive are both spelled j'envoie; the surrounding construction identifies the subjunctive use here. The useful form contrast is j'envoie (“I send / I am sending” in an indicative context) versus que j'envoie after a trigger such as avant que. je is the first-person singular subject pronoun, “I.” It is the subject of envoie, so the speaker says that the speaker will send the email, not that the listener will send it. l' is the elided singular direct-object pronoun le or la before a vowel sound. Here it means “it” and refers to the email identified in the sentence. French uses the same elided spelling l' for masculine and feminine singular direct objects; the form alone does not show the object's gender. It is attached in writing to the following vowel-initial verb: l'envoie. envoie comes from the verb envoyer, “to send.” In que je l'envoie, the object pronoun comes before the conjugated verb: literally, “that I send it.” The stem spelling includes -oi- in the present forms: j'envoie, tu envoies, il/elle envoie. Together, avant que je l'envoie means “before I send it”: je identifies the sender, l' identifies the email as the object, and envoie expresses the sending event under avant que. The whole utterance, Tu pourrais vérifier cet e-mail avant que je l'envoie ?, asks politely whether the listener could check this email before the speaker sends it.

2. Je peux le vérifier. Qu'est-ce que je dois vérifier en premier ?

   I can check it. What should I check first?

   Je peux

   I can

   le

   it

   vérifier

   check

   Qu'est-ce que

   what

   je dois

   I should

   en premier

   first

   More detail

   Je peux uses pouvoir in the present tense: je peux = “I can” or “I am able to.” The form is for first-person singular; other present forms include tu peux and il/elle peut. Here it expresses ability or availability, not a command. Example: Je peux venir. — “I can come.” le is a masculine singular direct-object pronoun, meaning “it” here. It stands before the infinitive it belongs to: le vérifier = “check it.” In this context, the intended object is the item being checked, understood from the surrounding exchange as the email. French uses la for a feminine singular object and les for plural objects; the choice depends on the object’s grammatical form, not on whether the object is a person. vérifier is the infinitive “to check” or “to verify.” After a conjugated modal such as peux, French keeps the second verb in the infinitive: Je peux vérifier — “I can check.” With the object pronoun, the order is Je peux le vérifier. Qu'est-ce que is a common question pattern for asking “what” as the direct object of the following clause. It is written with apostrophes because que becomes qu' before the vowel sound in est. Compare Qu'est-ce que tu lis ? — “What are you reading?” The fixed question asks what should be checked, rather than asking what something is. je dois uses devoir in the present tense, first-person singular. In this question, dois expresses what the speaker should or needs to do: Qu'est-ce que je dois vérifier ? — “What should I check?” It can also express stronger obligation in other contexts. The form chain is je dois, tu dois, il/elle doit. en premier means “first” or “first of all,” placing the checking action at the beginning of an ordered sequence. Example: Je lis le titre en premier. — “I read the title first.” It is different from premier used directly with a noun, as in le premier paragraphe — “the first paragraph.” Together, Qu'est-ce que je dois vérifier en premier ? asks which thing the speaker should check before the others. The two sentences are therefore: Je peux le vérifier. — “I can check it.” Then Qu'est-ce que je dois vérifier en premier ? — “What should I check first?”

3. Commence par la ligne d'objet, s'il te plaît.

   Please start with the subject line.

   Commence par

   start with

   ligne d'objet

   subject line

   s'il te plaît

   please

   More detail

   Commence par is a reusable way to give an informal singular command meaning “start with …”. Commence is the singular informal imperative of commencer (“to start”). For regular -er verbs, this imperative form has no final -s: commencer → commence, commençons, commencez. Par marks the point or item where the action begins. Example: Commence par le titre. — “Start with the title.” ligne d'objet means “subject line” here. Ligne means “line”, and d'objet specifies the relevant kind of line: the subject line of an email or message. In this sentence, it is the item chosen as the starting point. s'il te plaît is the familiar singular form of “please”. Te is the familiar singular indirect object pronoun associated with tu; the expression is addressed to one person informally. The corresponding formal or plural form is s'il vous plaît. Together, Commence par la ligne d'objet says “Start with the subject line”: the listener is instructed to begin with that item. s'il te plaît adds “please”, producing the complete meaning “Please start with the subject line.”

4. La ligne d'objet est claire, mais ajouter le sujet de la réunion aiderait.

   The subject line is clear, but the meeting topic would help.

   ligne d'objet

   subject line

   claire

   clear

   ajouter

   to add

   sujet

   topic

   réunion

   meeting

   aiderait

   would help

   More detail

   ligne d'objet means “subject line.” In French, ligne is feminine, and d'objet specifies what kind of line it is: literally, a line of subject. The full expression is reusable in contexts such as la ligne d'objet du message (“the message subject line”). claire means “clear” here. It is the feminine singular form of clair, agreeing with ligne. The adjective changes with the noun it describes: un message clair (“a clear message”) but une ligne claire (“a clear line”). ajouter means “to add.” This is the infinitive, the form used after constructions that leave the action unspecified or present it as an idea. For example, Ajouter une date serait utile means “Adding a date would be useful.” sujet means “topic” here. In le sujet de la réunion, de la réunion identifies which topic is meant: the topic of the meeting. Sujet can also mean “subject” in other contexts, but “topic” is the intended meaning in this sentence. réunion means “meeting.” It is a feminine noun, as shown by la in la réunion. The phrase le sujet de la réunion uses de la to express “of the meeting.” aiderait means “would help.” It is the third-person singular conditional form of aider (“to help”): aider → il/elle aiderait. The conditional presents the help as a potential or hypothetical result. For example, Un exemple aiderait means “An example would help.” Together, La ligne d'objet est claire says “The subject line is clear”: est is the present form of être, linking the feminine singular subject la ligne d'objet with the agreeing adjective claire. mais means “but” and contrasts this statement with the next one. ajouter le sujet de la réunion means “adding the meeting topic,” and aiderait says that this addition would help. Thus the complete utterance is: “The subject line is clear, but the meeting topic would help.”

5. Le bon fichier est-il joint ?

   Is the correct file attached?

   bon

   correct

   fichier

   file

   est-il

   is it?

   joint

   attached

   More detail

   bon describes fichier and means “correct” here, not simply “good.” It is the masculine singular form of bon; the feminine singular form is bonne, as in une bonne réponse (“a correct answer”). fichier is a masculine singular noun meaning “file.” Its plural is fichiers: les fichiers importants means “the important files.” est-il uses the present form est of être (“is”) with inverted subject pronoun il (“it/he” in the relevant grammatical form). After a noun phrase, French can form a formal or neutral yes/no question by repeating the subject with inversion: Le document est-il prêt ? means “Is the document ready?” Here il refers back to the file named by Le bon fichier. joint means “attached” here. It is the masculine singular form of joindre (“to attach”): jointe is the feminine singular form, and joints is masculine plural. The form agrees with fichier, so the sentence has Le bon fichier ... joint; the following context confirms the same attached-file reading with la version finale est jointe. Together, Le bon fichier means “the correct file,” and est-il joint ? asks whether that file is attached. The complete utterance therefore means “Is the correct file attached?” This is a reusable yes/no question pattern: [noun phrase] est-il/elle [description] ?

6. Oui, la version finale est jointe.

   Yes, the final version is attached.

   Oui

   Yes

   version

   version

   finale

   final

   est jointe

   is attached

   More detail

   Oui means “yes” and confirms the preceding question. It is a useful short answer for agreement or confirmation. version means “version.” It is a feminine French noun, as shown by la and by the feminine form finale that describes it. For example: une version courte means “a short version.” finale means “final” here. It is the feminine singular form of final; the ending agrees with the feminine singular noun version. For example: le document final means “the final document,” while la version finale means “the final version.” est jointe means “is attached.” est is the third-person singular present form of être (“to be”), and jointe is the feminine singular past participle of joindre (“to attach/join”). In this passive construction, jointe agrees with version, the feminine singular thing that is attached. Compare: Le fichier est joint means “The file is attached,” with masculine singular joint. Together, la version finale identifies the thing, and est jointe states its attached status. With Oui, the whole utterance means: “Yes, the final version is attached.”

7. Est-ce que j'ai inclus tout le monde qui a besoin de cet e-mail ?

   Did I include everyone who needs this email?

   Est-ce que

   question opener

   inclus

   included

   tout le monde

   everyone

   a besoin de

   needs

   cet

   this

   e-mail

   email

   More detail

   Est-ce que introduces a direct yes-or-no question. It does not itself identify the tense or the person; those come from the clause that follows. A reusable pattern is Est-ce que + clause ?. The subject form j' in j'ai inclus is the first-person singular pronoun je, shortened before the vowel of ai. ai is the first-person singular present form of avoir. Together, j'ai inclus forms the French passé composé of inclure, meaning “I included.” The past participle is inclus; its base form is inclure. Example: J'ai inclus le document. — “I included the document.” inclus is the past participle used with avoir here. The meaning is an already completed inclusion viewed from the questioner's perspective. Do not confuse it with inclus used as an adjective or with the present-tense verb form in another construction; the surrounding j'ai identifies the past-tense construction here. Tout le monde means “everyone,” literally treating the group as one grammatical unit. It is grammatically singular, so a verb referring back to it is normally third-person singular. Example: Tout le monde est prêt. — “Everyone is ready.” The phrase does not by itself state how many people there are. qui begins a relative clause and refers back to the people included as a group. In this clause, qui is the subject of a besoin, so French uses the third-person singular form because its antecedent is tout le monde as a grammatical unit. The specific individuals are not separately identified by the sentence. a besoin de is the reusable expression avoir besoin de, “to need.” Here a is the third-person singular present form of avoir, and besoin is the noun in the fixed expression; de introduces what is needed. Example: Elle a besoin de temps. — “She needs time.” The preposition remains part of the pattern: avoir besoin de + noun or avoir besoin de + infinitive. cet is the masculine singular form of the demonstrative meaning “this” before a following word beginning with a vowel sound. It agrees with the noun it modifies, not with the person who needs the item. French also has ce before many masculine singular consonant-initial nouns and cette with feminine singular nouns. In this sentence, cet modifies e-mail. e-mail is the noun meaning “email.” In this expression it is treated as a masculine singular noun, which is why the demonstrative is cet before its vowel sound. Example: J'ai envoyé cet e-mail. — “I sent this email.” Assembled from left to right, Est-ce que opens the yes-or-no question; j'ai inclus asks about the speaker's completed action; tout le monde identifies the people included; and qui a besoin de cet e-mail restricts that group to the people who need this email. The complete meaning is: “Did I include everyone who needs this email?”

8. La liste semble complète.

   The list looks complete.

   liste

   list

   semble

   seems

   complète

   complete

   More detail

   liste means a list: an organized set of items, names, or other entries. It is a feminine noun in French, so this sentence uses the feminine singular article la. Example: Une liste means “a list.” semble is the third-person singular present form of sembler, “to seem” or “to appear.” A useful pattern is sembler + adjective: Le plan semble simple. — “The plan seems simple.” The form semble matches the singular subject; with a plural subject, French uses semblent, as in Les plans semblent simples. complète means “complete” here. It is the feminine singular form of the adjective complet, agreeing with the feminine singular noun liste. The forms are complet (masculine singular), complète (feminine singular), complets (masculine plural), and complètes (feminine plural). Example: Les informations sont complètes. — “The information is complete.” Together, La liste identifies the subject, semble expresses an appearance or assessment, and complète describes the list. The complete utterance means “The list looks complete.” It presents completeness as an impression rather than as a direct assertion of certainty.

9. Alors, je pense qu'il est prêt à être envoyé.

   Then I think it is ready to send.

   Alors

   Then

   pense

   think

   prêt

   ready

   être envoyé

   to be sent

   More detail

   Alors introduces the sentence here with the meaning “then,” linking it to what has just been said. It can also have other discourse uses, such as “so” or “well,” but “then” is the intended meaning in this utterance. pense is the present-tense form of penser (“to think”) for je: je pense. The ending belongs to the verb, not to the following subject. A useful pattern is je pense que ... (“I think that ...”), which introduces a clause containing the thought. Here que begins the clause qu'il est prêt à être envoyé. prêt means “ready” here. It is a masculine singular adjective agreeing with il: masculine singular prêt, feminine singular prête, masculine plural prêts, and feminine plural prêtes. The construction être prêt à is followed by an infinitive and means “to be ready to”: for example, Elle est prête à partir. means “She is ready to leave.” être envoyé means “to be sent.” être is the infinitive of “to be,” and envoyé is the past participle of envoyer (“to send”). Together they form a passive infinitive: the subject is understood as receiving the sending rather than performing it. In this sentence, envoyé is masculine singular, matching il; with a feminine singular subject, the form would be envoyée. The chunks combine as Alors + je pense que + il est prêt à être envoyé: “Then, I think that it is ready to be sent.” In natural English, the fixed translation expresses this as “Then I think it is ready to send.”