About This Lesson
Use Improving Sleep Habits to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.
Dialogue
A
Je ne dors pas bien ces derniers temps.
zhuh nuh DOR pah byeh(n) say dehr-NYAY tah(n) I have not been sleeping well recently.
B
Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir.
too dwah puh-TETR shahn-ZHAY tah roo-TEEN dyoo SWAHR Maybe your evening routine needs changing.
A
J'utilise mon téléphone juste avant de me coucher.
zhyoo-tee-LEEZ mohn tay-lay-FON zhüst ah-VAHN duh muh koo-SHAY I use my phone right before bed.
B
Passer moins de temps devant un écran peut t'aider à te détendre.
pah-SAY mwan duh-VAHN uhn ay-KRAHN puh tay-DAY ah tuh day-TAHNDR Less screen time may help you relax.
A
Est-ce que je devrais plutôt lire un livre ?
ess-kuh zhuh duh-VRAY plew-TOH LEER uhn LEEVR Should I read a book instead?
B
Choisis quelque chose de calme et de simple.
shwah-ZEE kel-kuh SHOHZ duh KAHLM ay duh SAHNPL Choose something calm and easy.
B
Comme ça, ton esprit peut ralentir.
kom sah, tohn-ness-PREE puh rah-lahn-TEER So your mind can slow down.
A
Je vais essayer ça pendant quelques nuits.
zhuh vay ess-say-YAY sah pahn-DAHN kel-kuh nwee I will try that for a few nights.
B
Une routine régulière peut améliorer ton sommeil.
ewn roo-TEEN ray-gyoo-lee-YAIR puh ah-may-lee-OR-AY tohn soh-MAY A steady routine can improve sleep.Word by Word
Je
In Je ne dors pas bien, Je means “I” and identifies the speaker. It is commonly used before a verb to state what the speaker does or experiences.
ne
In Je ne dors pas bien, ne is the first part of the French negation around dors. It works with pas to make the meaning “do not”; a reusable pattern is ne + verb + pas.
dors
In Je ne dors pas bien, dors means “sleep” and describes the speaker’s sleep. It is used with Je in statements such as Je dors bien or Je dors mal.
pas
In Je ne dors pas bien, pas completes the negation with ne, giving the meaning “not.” The reusable pattern is ne + verb + pas, as in Je ne comprends pas.
bien
In Je ne dors pas bien, bien means “well” and describes the quality of sleeping. It can be placed after a verb to say that an action is done well, as in travailler bien.
ces
In ces derniers temps, ces points to the period being discussed and means “these.” It is used directly before the plural expression derniers temps.
derniers
In ces derniers temps, derniers means “recent” or “last” and describes the period temps. Together, ces derniers temps refers to the recent period; it is a useful expression for talking about what has happened recently.
temps
In ces derniers temps, temps refers to a period of time rather than separate clock times. The whole expression ces derniers temps is commonly used to mean “recently.”
Tu
In Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir, Tu means “you” and addresses the other adult informally. It is commonly placed before the verb in direct advice or statements.
dois
In Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir, dois expresses that the person needs to or must do something. It is followed here by the action changer; a reusable pattern is Tu dois + infinitive.
peut-être
In Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir, peut-être softens the advice and means “maybe” or “perhaps.” It can be placed in a sentence to present an idea as possible rather than certain.
changer
In Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir, changer means “change” and names the action that is needed. It follows dois in the reusable pattern Tu dois + infinitive.
ta
In ta routine, ta means “your” and shows that the routine belongs to the person being addressed. It is placed before the noun it describes, as in ta maison or ta journée.
routine
In ta routine du soir, routine means “routine,” the repeated way someone organizes an activity or period. It is followed by du soir to specify that this is the evening routine.
du
In routine du soir, du links the routine with the evening and means “of the.” It is the form used in the reusable pattern noun + du + noun, as in la fin du jour.
soir
In routine du soir, soir means “evening.” After du, it specifies the time connected with the routine; routine du soir is a useful phrase for an evening routine.
J'utilise
In J'utilise mon téléphone, J'utilise means “I use” and describes what the speaker does with the phone. It is commonly followed by the object being used, as in J'utilise + object.
mon
In mon téléphone, mon means “my” and shows that the phone belongs to or is associated with the speaker. It comes directly before the noun, as in mon livre or mon sac.
téléphone
In J'utilise mon téléphone, téléphone means “phone.” It is the object of J'utilise; a reusable pattern is utiliser + an object, such as utiliser un ordinateur.
juste
In juste avant de me coucher, juste means “right” or “just” and emphasizes that the action happens immediately before going to bed. The reusable expression juste avant de + infinitive means “right before doing something.”
avant
In juste avant de me coucher, avant means “before” and places one action earlier than another. Here it is used in avant de + infinitive to talk about an action that happens before another action.
de
In avant de me coucher, de connects avant with the action that follows and helps form the pattern avant de + infinitive. This pattern means “before doing something.”
me
In me coucher, me refers back to the speaker and forms the expression for going to bed. It is used before the verb in this reflexive expression; a reusable pattern is se coucher, with the pronoun changing according to the person.
coucher
In me coucher, coucher contributes the meaning “go to bed” because it is used with me. The expression me coucher can follow avant de to say “before going to bed.”
Passer
In Passer moins de temps devant un écran, Passer means “spend” when the object is an amount of time. A reusable pattern is passer + amount of time + place or activity, as in passer deux heures au travail.
moins
In Passer moins de temps devant un écran, moins means “less” and reduces the amount of time spent in front of a screen. It is used before de temps in the pattern moins de + noun.
devant
In devant un écran, devant means “in front of” or “facing” and identifies the position relative to the screen. It is commonly followed by a noun, as in devant la porte.
un
In un écran, un means “a” or “an” and introduces one nonspecific screen. It is placed directly before the noun, as in un livre or un téléphone.
écran
In devant un écran, écran means “screen.” The phrase devant un écran describes spending time facing a screen, such as while using a phone or computer.
peut
In peut t'aider à te détendre, peut means “can” or “may” and presents the suggested action as a possible help. It is followed here by t'aider; a reusable pattern is subject + peut + infinitive.
t'aider
In peut t'aider à te détendre, t'aider means “help you.” The t' represents the person being helped and is joined to aider before a vowel; the reusable pattern is aider quelqu'un à + infinitive.
à
In t'aider à te détendre, à links aider with the action that the person is helped to do. The reusable pattern is aider quelqu'un à + infinitive, meaning “help someone to do something.”
te
In te détendre, te refers to the person being addressed and forms the reflexive expression meaning “relax.” It comes before the verb in this expression, as in te préparer or te reposer.
détendre
In te détendre, détendre contributes the meaning “relax” because it is used with te. The expression te détendre names the action that less screen time may help the listener do.
Est-ce que
Est-ce que introduces the direct question Est-ce que je devrais plutôt lire un livre ? Est-ce opens the question expression, and que links it to the following clause; together they provide a common way to ask a question without changing the normal statement word order.
devrais
In Est-ce que je devrais plutôt lire un livre ?, devrais expresses “should” and asks for advice about an action. It is followed by the infinitive lire; a reusable pattern is Je devrais + infinitive for asking or discussing what would be advisable.
plutôt
In devrais plutôt lire un livre, plutôt means “instead” or “rather” and presents reading as the alternative to using the phone. It can be placed with a verb to suggest doing one action rather than another.
lire
In devrais plutôt lire un livre, lire means “read” and names the suggested action. It follows devrais in the pattern devoir or devrais + infinitive.
livre
In lire un livre, livre means “book,” the object being read. It is used after the article un in the reusable pattern lire un livre.
Choisis
In Choisis quelque chose de calme et de simple, Choisis tells the person addressed to choose something. It is followed by the thing being chosen, as in Choisis + object, when giving direct advice or an instruction.
quelque chose
In Choisis quelque chose de calme et de simple, quelque chose means “something” and refers to an unspecified thing. Quelque makes the reference indefinite, while chose supplies the meaning “thing”; the construction quelque chose de + adjective is useful for describing an unspecified thing.
calme
In quelque chose de calme, calme describes the chosen activity or object as calm. The pattern quelque chose de + adjective is used to describe something without naming it specifically.
et
In calme et de simple, et links the two descriptions calme and simple. It is used to join words or phrases that belong together, meaning “and.”
simple
In quelque chose de simple, simple means “simple” or “easy” and describes the choice as not demanding. It appears in the pattern quelque chose de + adjective, which is used to describe an unspecified thing.
Comme
In Comme ça, ton esprit peut ralentir, Comme contributes to the meaning “so” or “that way,” introducing the intended result of the suggestion. The reusable expression Comme ça, + clause explains what will happen as a result.
ça
In Comme ça, ça refers to the calm and easy activity just suggested and means “that” or “it.” Together, Comme ça means “that way” or “so,” referring back to the preceding idea.
ton
In ton esprit, ton means “your” and shows that the mind belongs to the person being addressed. It comes before the noun it describes, as in ton téléphone or ton livre.
esprit
In ton esprit peut ralentir, esprit means “mind” and refers to the person’s mental activity. It is the subject of peut ralentir in this explanation of becoming calmer.
ralentir
In ton esprit peut ralentir, ralentir means “slow down” and describes the mind becoming less active. It follows peut in the reusable pattern subject + peut + infinitive.
vais
In Je vais essayer ça, vais expresses an intention to do something and contributes the meaning “am going to” or “will.” It is followed by the infinitive essayer in the pattern Je vais + infinitive.
essayer
In Je vais essayer ça, essayer means “try” and names the action the speaker intends to perform. It follows vais in the pattern aller + infinitive for an intended future action.
pendant
In pendant quelques nuits, pendant indicates the duration and means “for” or “during.” It is followed here by a period of time; a reusable pattern is pendant + duration.
quelques
In quelques nuits, quelques means “a few” and indicates a small, unspecified number of nights. It is placed before the plural noun it describes, as in quelques jours.
nuits
In pendant quelques nuits, nuits means “nights” and names the period during which the speaker will try the new routine. It follows quelques in the pattern quelques + plural time noun.
Une
In Une routine régulière, Une means “a” and introduces one nonspecific routine. It comes directly before the noun, as in une idée or une activité.
régulière
In Une routine régulière, régulière describes the routine as regular or steady. It is used after routine to characterize a routine that follows a consistent pattern.
améliorer
In peut améliorer ton sommeil, améliorer means “improve” and names the action that can make sleep better. It follows peut in the reusable pattern subject + peut + infinitive.
sommeil
In améliorer ton sommeil, sommeil means “sleep” and is the thing that can be improved. It is used with the possessive ton in the pattern améliorer + someone’s sleep.
Grammar Points
Choisis + quelque chose de + adjectif
Choisis quelque chose de calme et simple.
shwah-ZEE kel-kuh SHOHZ duh KAHLM ay SAHNPLChoose something calm and simple.
After quelque chose, de links the noun-like pronoun to an adjective: quelque chose de calme.
juste avant de + infinitif
juste avant de me coucher
zhüst ah-VAHN duh muh koo-SHAYright before going to bed
Use avant de followed by an infinitive when the subject is the same in both actions.
French Vocabulary
ces derniers temps
phrase
say dehr-NYAY tah(n)
recently
Je ne dors pas bien ces derniers temps.
changer
verb
shahn-ZHAY
to change
Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir.
dormir
verb
dor-MEER
to sleep
dors
Je ne dors pas bien ces derniers temps.
du soir
phrase
dyoo SWAHR
evening
ta routine du soir
juste avant
phrase
zhüst ah-VAHN
right before
juste avant de me coucher
moins
adv
mwan
less
Passer moins de temps devant un écran
passer du temps
phrase
pah-SAY dyoo tah(n)
to spend time
Passer moins de temps
Passer moins de temps devant un écran
peut-être
adv
puh-TETR
maybe
Tu dois peut-être changer ta routine du soir.
routine
noun
roo-TEEN
routine
ta routine du soir
se coucher
phrase
suh koo-SHAY
to go to bed
me coucher
avant de me coucher
téléphone
noun
tay-lay-FON
phone
mon téléphone
utiliser
verb
yoo-tee-lee-ZAY
to use
utilise
J'utilise mon téléphone juste avant de me coucher.
Quiz
Word Order
Arrange the words in the correct order.
So your mind can slow down.
Show Answer
Comme ça, ton esprit peut ralentir.Spelling
Tap the letters to spell the word.
to sleep
Show Answer
dorsphone
Show Answer
téléphoneroutine
Show Answer
routineto change