Finding the waiting room and checking in at a clinic | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Excusez-moi, où est la salle d'attente ?

   Excuse me, where is the waiting room?

   Excusez-moi

   Excuse me

   où

   where

   est

   is

   salle d'attente

   waiting room

   More detail

   Excusez-moi is a polite way to get someone’s attention before asking a question. Excusez is the vous imperative of excuser, and moi is the stressed form of the first-person singular pronoun after the verb: literally, “excuse me.” The same form can address one person formally or more than one person; it does not by itself identify which situation applies. où is the question word “where.” It asks about a location, unlike quand (“when”), which asks about time, or comment (“how”), which asks about manner. est is the third-person singular present form of être (“to be”). Its subject here is la salle d’attente, so the question uses “is,” not a plural form. Useful present-tense forms include je suis (“I am”), il/elle est (“he/she is”), and ils/elles sont (“they are”). salle d’attente means “waiting room.” salle is a feminine noun meaning “room” or “hall” in relevant uses. d’attente is a noun phrase with de shortened to d’ before the vowel at the start of attente; together, the phrase names a room intended for waiting. French noun phrases commonly place this kind of specifying phrase after the main noun. The utterance combines the polite attention-getter with the location question: Excusez-moi, où est la salle d’attente ? — “Excuse me, where is the waiting room?” The pattern où est + [singular place or thing] ? is reusable for asking where something is, for example: Où est la gare ? — “Where is the train station?”

2. Passez devant l'accueil.

   Go past the front desk.

   Passez

   go / pass

   devant

   past / in front of

   l'accueil

   the front desk

   More detail

   Passez is the imperative form of passer (“to pass” or “to go past”) addressed to vous. It can address one person formally or several people; the form itself does not identify which. Compare passe for an informal singular command and passons for “let’s pass/go past.” Example: Passez ici. — “Come/pass this way.” devant means “in front of” or, with movement, “past.” Here it introduces the place that the listener should pass: devant l'accueil. The meaning is therefore directional, not simply a statement of location. Example: Le taxi passe devant l'hôtel. — “The taxi goes past the hotel.” l'accueil means “the reception/front desk” here. accueil is a noun meaning reception or the place/person receiving visitors. l' is the elided form of the definite article le before a vowel sound: le accueil becomes l'accueil. This article form does not itself state a numerical count. Together, Passez gives the instruction, devant specifies the route, and l'accueil identifies the place to pass. The complete utterance means: “Go past the front desk.”

3. Elle sera à votre gauche.

   It will be on your left.

   Elle

   it

   sera

   will be

   à votre gauche

   on your left

   More detail

   Elle means “it” here. It is a third-person singular feminine subject pronoun, so its grammatical form is feminine singular; the English translation identifies the intended referent as “it,” but does not identify what object it is. French subject pronouns include il for masculine singular and elle for feminine singular. Example: Elle est ici. — “It is here” or “She is here,” depending on the established referent. sera is the future form of être (“to be”) for the third-person singular subject. The useful chain is être (present infinitive), elle est (she/it is), elle sera (she/it will be). The future form places the state or location after the current moment. Example: Elle sera prête demain. — “She/It will be ready tomorrow.” à votre gauche means “on your left.” à marks the location, votre is the formal or plural “your,” and gauche is “left.” In this sentence, the location phrase tells where the referent of elle will be. For comparison, à votre droite means “on your right.” Example: La sortie est à votre gauche. — “The exit is on your left.” Together, Elle sera expresses that the feminine singular referent will be in a certain location, and à votre gauche supplies that location. The complete meaning is “It will be on your left.”

4. Est-ce que je dois m'inscrire avant de m'asseoir ?

   Do I need to check in before I sit down?

   Est-ce que

   Do ...?

   je dois

   I have to / need to

   m'inscrire

   check in / register

   avant de

   before

   m'asseoir

   sit down

   More detail

   Est-ce que is a fixed way to turn a statement into a yes/no question. It does not itself mean “need”; the necessity comes from dois. For example, Est-ce que tu viens ? means “Are you coming?” je dois uses devoir in the present tense, first-person singular: je dois. Here it expresses necessity, so je dois means “I need to” or “I have to.” The same verb can also express a prediction or expectation in other contexts, but the fixed translation supports the necessity meaning here. For example, Je dois partir. means “I have to leave.” m'inscrire is the infinitive s'inscrire, “to register” or “to check in,” with the first-person reflexive pronoun me shortened to m' before a vowel. The reflexive form presents the speaker as carrying out the registration for themself. In the sentence, dois is the conjugated verb and m'inscrire remains an infinitive after it. For example, Je dois m'inscrire en ligne. means “I have to register online.” avant de introduces an action that happens earlier than another action. Before an infinitive, the reusable pattern is avant de + infinitive: avant de partir means “before leaving.” Here, avant de does not include the meaning of the following action; it establishes the time relationship between registering and sitting down. m'asseoir is the infinitive s'asseoir, “to sit down,” again with me shortened to m' before a vowel. This is a reflexive verb in French, and its infinitive is irregular rather than being formed by simply adding an ending to a regular stem. For example, Je vais m'asseoir. means “I am going to sit down.” Together, Est-ce que makes the utterance a yes/no question, je dois m'inscrire asks whether the speaker is required to check in, and avant de m'asseoir places that required action earlier than sitting down. The complete meaning is: “Do I need to check in before I sit down?”

5. Remplissez d'abord ce formulaire.

   Fill out this form first.

   Remplissez

   Fill out

   d'abord

   first

   ce

   this

   formulaire

   form

   More detail

   Remplissez is the imperative form of remplir for vous. Here it means “fill out,” referring to completing a form. The vous imperative can address one person politely or several people. For example: Remplissez ce document. — “Fill out this document.” d'abord means “first” or “to begin with.” It places this action before the later action in the surrounding instructions. It is written as one word and contains an apostrophe. For example: Lisez d'abord la question. — “Read the question first.” ce is a demonstrative determiner meaning “this” before a masculine singular noun. It agrees with formulaire, not with the person being addressed. French uses cette before a feminine singular noun and ces before plural nouns; for example, cette fiche means “this sheet.” formulaire is a masculine singular noun meaning “form.” Its plural is formulaires. The masculine gender is shown here by the determiner ce: ce formulaire means “this form.” Together, Remplissez ce formulaire means “Fill out this form.” Adding d'abord gives Remplissez d'abord ce formulaire: “Fill out this form first.” The imperative addresses the listener directly, and d'abord places completing the form before the next instruction.

6. Puis donnez-le à l'accueil.

   Then hand it to the desk.

   Puis

   then

   donnez-le

   hand it over

   accueil

   reception desk

   More detail

   Puis means “then” and places this instruction after the preceding action. It is a useful sequencing word: Puis + clause introduces what happens next. donnez-le contains the imperative form donnez of donner (“to give”) plus the object pronoun le (“it/him,” depending on context). Here, the fixed translation establishes the object as “it,” the item being handed over; in the supplied sequence, that item is understood from the preceding reference to the form. Donnez is the imperative for vous, used for a plural audience or for formal address to one person. The hyphen joins the pronoun to the affirmative imperative: Donnez-le. In ordinary non-imperative word order, the pronoun comes before the verb, as in Vous le donnez (“You give it”). accueil is a noun meaning “reception” or “reception desk” in this setting. The phrase à l'accueil uses à to mark the destination or recipient: “to reception/the desk.” The noun accueil can also refer more generally to the act or quality of welcoming, but the fixed translation selects the reception-desk meaning here. Together, Puis + donnez-le + à l'accueil means “Then hand it to the desk.” It is a polite or plural imperative telling the listener to pass the item to reception after filling out the form.

7. Est-ce que quelqu'un m'appellera quand ce sera mon tour ?

   Will someone call me when it's my turn?

   Est-ce que

   question marker

   quelqu'un

   someone

   m'appellera

   will call me

   quand

   when

   ce sera

   it will be

   mon tour

   my turn

   More detail

   Est-ce que introduces a yes/no question in a neutral, widely reusable way. It does not itself mean “will”; the tense and meaning come from the rest of the sentence. For example, Est-ce que vous venez ? means “Are you coming?” quelqu'un means “someone” here. It is an indefinite pronoun referring to an unspecified person, and it is grammatically singular, so a following verb takes a third-person singular form. For example, Quelqu'un attend. means “Someone is waiting.” m'appellera means “will call me.” The form is built from me (“me”) before the vowel of appellera, giving the elided form m', plus appellera, the third-person singular future of appeler (“to call”). The subject is quelqu'un, which is why the verb is singular. In On m'appellera demain, the meaning is “They will call me tomorrow,” with m' still marking the person called. quand means “when” and introduces the time clause. In this sentence it connects the calling with the time at which it will be the speaker’s turn. For example, Je partirai quand vous arriverez. means “I will leave when you arrive.” ce sera means “it will be.” sera is the third-person singular future form of être (“to be”); ce is the neutral subject used here for the relevant situation or state, without naming a specific noun. Together, ce sera forms a useful future pattern: Ce sera facile means “It will be easy.” mon tour means “my turn.” tour is a masculine singular noun in this meaning, and mon is the masculine singular possessive form agreeing with tour; it does not indicate the possessor’s gender. The related forms are ton tour (“your turn,” singular informal) and son tour (“his/her turn”). For example, C'est mon tour. means “It's my turn.” The sentence combines the yes/no question marker with quelqu'un m'appellera (“someone will call me”) and the time clause quand ce sera mon tour (“when it will be my turn”). The complete meaning is: “Will someone call me when it's my turn?”

8. Une infirmière devrait bientôt vous appeler.

   A nurse should call your name shortly.

   infirmière

   nurse

   devrait

   should

   bientôt

   soon

   vous

   you

   appeler

   call

   More detail

   infirmière means “nurse” here. It is the feminine form of infirmier; the feminine ending identifies this noun as feminine grammatical gender. Example: L'infirmière arrive. — “The nurse is arriving.” devrait is a form of devoir meaning “should” in this sentence. It is the conditional form for il/elle/on, and it expresses an expectation or recommendation rather than a firm promise. The infinitive after it is appeler: Elle devrait venir. — “She should come.” bientôt means “soon” or “shortly.” It places the expected calling in the near future. Example: Je reviendrai bientôt. — “I will come back soon.” vous is the direct-object pronoun “you.” It can refer to one person addressed politely or to more than one person; this form itself does not distinguish those possibilities. With appeler, it marks the person who will be called. Example: Je vais vous appeler. — “I am going to call you.” appeler is the infinitive “to call.” After a conjugated form of devoir, French uses the infinitive: Vous devez attendre. — “You must wait.” In the fixed sentence, devrait appeler means “should call.” The opening Une is an indefinite article before the feminine singular noun infirmière, so Une infirmière means “a nurse.” The subject is therefore a nurse, devrait adds the expectation “should,” vous identifies the person being called, and bientôt adds “shortly.” Together, Une infirmière devrait bientôt vous appeler. means “A nurse should call your name shortly.”

9. Est-ce que je dois garder ma carte d'assurance à portée de main ?

   Should I keep my insurance card ready?

   Est-ce que

   question opener

   je dois

   I should / must

   garder

   keep

   carte

   card

   d'assurance

   insurance

   à portée de main

   within reach

   More detail

   Est-ce que turns the following statement into a yes/no question. It is a reusable, neutral question opener and does not itself add the meaning “should.” Example: Est-ce que vous avez votre carte ? — “Do you have your card?” je dois is the first-person singular present form of devoir, used here for an obligation or practical necessity: “must I” or “do I need to.” The subject is je, and dois is the inflected form of devoir. With an infinitive, devoir expresses what the subject needs to do: Je dois partir. — “I have to leave.” This is stronger and more necessity-focused than simply asking whether the action is advisable. garder is the infinitive “to keep” or “to retain.” After a conjugated form of devoir, the next verb stays in the infinitive: Je dois garder... — “I must keep...” In this sentence, it means maintaining possession of the card in a ready location, not merely preserving it permanently. carte means “card.” It is a feminine noun, as shown by the possessive form ma in the full sentence. Ma agrees with the noun it modifies in grammatical gender and number; it does not indicate the speaker’s gender. Example: ma carte — “my card,” while mes cartes means “my cards.” d'assurance specifies what kind of card it is: an insurance card. The d' is the form of de used before a vowel sound, and here it links carte with assurance. Assurance means “insurance” in this context. Together, carte d'assurance is a noun phrase meaning “insurance card”; d'assurance alone is not the complete card reference. à portée de main is a reusable expression meaning “within reach” or “handy.” It describes something placed close enough to be obtained easily. Example: Gardez votre téléphone à portée de main. — “Keep your phone within reach.” The whole question is assembled as Est-ce que + je dois + garder + ma carte d'assurance + à portée de main: “Should I keep my insurance card ready?” More literally, it asks whether the speaker needs to keep their insurance card within reach. The question uses devoir to ask about the practical necessity of keeping it handy.

10. Gardez-la à portée de main si l'accueil en a encore besoin.

    Keep it handy in case the desk needs it again.

    Gardez-la

    keep it

    à portée de main

    within reach; handy

    l'accueil

    the reception desk

    en a encore besoin

    needs it again

    More detail

    Gardez-la means “keep it.” Gardez is the vous imperative of garder (“to keep”); it can address one person politely or several people. The attached -la is a feminine singular direct-object pronoun, referring here to the item translated as “it.” Compare Garde-la for informal singular tu and Gardez-le when the object is masculine singular. à portée de main is a reusable expression meaning “within reach” or “handy.” Portée is related to porter (“to carry”), but the complete expression describes convenient physical availability. Example: Gardez votre téléphone à portée de main. — “Keep your phone within reach.” l'accueil means “the reception desk” or “reception.” The article l' is the shortened form of le or la before a vowel sound; the noun’s specific gender is not shown by this elision. In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies the desk as the party that may need the item. en a encore besoin expresses “needs it again” in the fixed sentence’s intended reading. a is the third-person singular present form of avoir (“to have”), and avoir besoin de is the construction “to need.” Here en replaces de plus the already-mentioned thing, so it avoids repeating the object. Encore means “again” here; in other contexts it can mean “still.” Example: Le service en a besoin. — “The department needs it.” The conditional clause begins with si (“if”): si l'accueil en a encore besoin means “if the desk needs it again.” The main clause is the polite or plural command Gardez-la à portée de main, and the complete utterance therefore means “Keep it handy in case the desk needs it again.”