Conference check-in and finding your room | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Je me suis inscrit en ligne à la conférence d'aujourd'hui.

   I registered online for today's conference.

   me suis inscrit

   registered

   en ligne

   online

   conférence

   conference

   d'aujourd'hui

   today's

   More detail

   me suis inscrit is the observed first-person singular form of the pronominal verb s'inscrire, “to register” or “to enroll,” in the passé composé. Here, me refers to the speaker, suis is the present-tense form of être used as the auxiliary with this pronominal verb, and inscrit is the past participle. The masculine singular spelling is inscrit; the corresponding feminine spelling is inscrite when agreement requires it. Example: Je me suis inscrit au cours. — “I enrolled in the course.” en ligne means “online.” It is a reusable adverbial expression describing how an action is carried out. Example: Elle travaille en ligne. — “She works online.” conférence is the noun “conference.” It is feminine: une conférence; its plural is des conférences. The noun names the event here. Example: La conférence commence à neuf heures. — “The conference starts at nine.” d'aujourd'hui means “today's” in this sentence. It is the contracted form of de aujourd'hui: de becomes d' before the vowel sound at the start of aujourd'hui. This expression identifies something associated with today. Example: les nouvelles d'aujourd'hui` — “today's news.” Together, Je me suis inscrit says “I registered,” en ligne specifies that the registration was done online, and à la conférence d'aujourd'hui identifies what the speaker registered for: today's conference. The complete meaning is “I registered online for today's conference.”

2. Je peux vous aider à vous enregistrer. Veuillez confirmer votre inscription sur cet écran.

   I can help you check in. Please confirm your registration on this screen.

   Je peux

   I can

   aider

   help

   vous enregistrer

   check in

   Veuillez confirmer

   please confirm

   inscription

   registration

   cet

   this

   écran

   screen

   More detail

   Je peux is the first-person singular present form of pouvoir (“to be able to”): je peux, tu peux, il/elle peut. It expresses present ability or possibility here. The reusable pattern is pouvoir + infinitive, as in Je peux aider (“I can help”). aider is the infinitive “to help.” A useful pattern is aider quelqu’un à + infinitive: the person helped is followed by the action they are helped to do. Example: Elle aide Paul à remplir le formulaire. — “She helps Paul fill out the form.” vous enregistrer means “check you in” or “help you register” in this context. Here the first vous in vous aider is the object of aider, identifying the person helped; the vous in vous enregistrer is a reflexive object pronoun, referring to that same person as the one who registers. The full pattern is aider quelqu’un à faire quelque chose; here, vous enregistrer names the action. Veuillez confirmer is a polite request meaning “Please confirm.” Veuillez is the imperative of vouloir used with a formal singular addressee or with several addressees; confirmer is the infinitive naming the requested action. Example: Veuillez patienter. — “Please wait.” inscription is the feminine noun “registration” here. Its related verb is inscrire; for registering oneself, French commonly uses the pronominal form s’inscrire, as in the context sentence Je me suis inscrit (“I registered”). The noun can be used with an article: une inscription (“a registration”). cet is the masculine singular demonstrative determiner “this.” It appears before the vowel sound in écran; compare ce before a consonant, cette with a singular feminine noun, and ces with a plural noun. The form agrees with the noun it determines, not with the person speaking. écran is the masculine noun “screen”: un écran, plural des écrans. In sur cet écran, it identifies the screen on which the addressee is asked to confirm the registration. Together, Je peux vous aider à vous enregistrer says “I can help you check in”: je peux expresses the speaker’s ability, vous aider identifies the addressee as the person helped, and à vous enregistrer names that person’s registration action. Veuillez confirmer votre inscription sur cet écran then makes a polite request to confirm the addressee’s registration on this screen.

3. On y voit mon inscription et l'atelier de l'après-midi que j'ai choisi.

   It shows my registration and the afternoon workshop I chose.

   voit

   sees

   inscription

   registration

   atelier

   workshop

   l'après-midi

   afternoon

   j'ai choisi

   I chose

   More detail

   voit is the present-tense form of voir for on/il/elle. By itself here it means “sees”; in the larger pattern on y voit, the fixed translation gives the natural meaning “it shows” or “one can see there/on it,” with y referring to the place or display being viewed. The useful pattern is on y voit + thing: “there/on it, one can see …” or, naturally, “it shows …”. inscription means “registration” here. It is a feminine noun: une inscription. Before a vowel sound, the feminine definite article la elides to l', so the form is l'inscription, not la inscription. In the sentence, mon inscription means “my registration”; mon is used before this vowel-initial noun for pronunciation, although the noun remains feminine. Example: Je confirme mon inscription. — “I confirm my registration.” atelier is a masculine noun meaning “workshop”: un atelier, l'atelier. The phrase l'atelier de l'après-midi identifies a workshop associated with the afternoon. Example: L'atelier commence à deux heures. — “The workshop starts at two o’clock.” l'après-midi means “the afternoon.” It is formed with the definite article l' before a vowel sound. In de l'après-midi, de links this time expression to atelier; the phrase means “afternoon” in the compound description “afternoon workshop.” j'ai choisi means “I chose.” choisi is the past participle of choisir, and j'ai is the first-person singular present form of avoir used as the auxiliary: j'ai choisi, literally built as “I have chosen,” but commonly translated as “I chose” in this completed-event context. The relative word que before it makes the workshop the direct object: l'atelier que j'ai choisi — “the workshop that I chose.” Because that object is masculine singular, the past participle appears as choisi; with a feminine singular preceding object, the written form would be choisie, as in la séance que j'ai choisie — “the session that I chose.” Together, On y voit presents what is visible on the relevant display, followed by mon inscription and l'atelier de l'après-midi que j'ai choisi, the two things shown. The whole utterance therefore means: “It shows my registration and the afternoon workshop I chose.”

4. Je vois cet atelier indiqué avec les informations de votre badge.

   I see that workshop listed with your badge details.

   Je

   I

   vois

   see

   cet

   that

   atelier

   workshop

   indiqué

   listed

   avec

   with

   les

   the

   informations

   details

   de

   of/from

   votre

   your

   badge

   badge

   More detail

   Je is the first-person singular subject pronoun: “I.” It is used for the speaker, regardless of the speaker’s gender. Example: Je lis. — “I am reading.” vois is the first-person singular present form of voir, “to see.” The ending belongs to the verb, not to Je; other present forms include tu vois (“you see”) and il/elle voit (“he/she sees”). Example: Je vois le programme. — “I see the agenda.” cet is the masculine singular demonstrative determiner, meaning “this” or “that” before a masculine singular noun beginning with a vowel sound. Here it agrees with atelier, which is masculine singular. Compare cette salle (“this/that room,” feminine singular) and ces ateliers (“these/those workshops,” plural). atelier is a masculine noun meaning “workshop” here. Its plural is ateliers. In cet atelier, the noun is the thing being seen and described as listed. indiqué means “indicated” or “listed” here. It is the masculine singular form of indiquer used as a past participle/adjectival description, agreeing with masculine singular atelier. The feminine singular form is indiquée, and the plural forms are indiqués and indiquées. Example: La salle est indiquée. — “The room is listed.” avec is a preposition meaning “with.” It links the workshop listing to the information accompanying or associated with it. Example: Je viens avec mon badge. — “I am coming with my badge.” les is the definite article for plural nouns, meaning “the.” It does not itself indicate whether the noun is masculine or feminine: les informations is feminine plural, while les ateliers is masculine plural. informations is the plural of the feminine noun information, meaning “information” or, in this context, “details.” The plural is used because the sentence refers to multiple pieces of information. Example: Les informations sont utiles. — “The information is useful.” de is a preposition that commonly expresses “of” or a relationship such as “from.” In les informations de votre badge, it connects the details with the badge: “the details of your badge.” votre is the possessive determiner for one possessor, meaning “your.” It is used here before singular badge; it does not change according to the possessor’s gender. With plural possessed nouns, French uses vos, as in vos informations (“your details”). badge is a masculine noun meaning “badge” or “identification badge.” Its plural is badges. In this sentence it is singular and is the noun associated with votre. Together, Je vois means “I see.” cet atelier indiqué identifies what is seen as “that workshop listed,” and avec les informations de votre badge adds the associated material: “with your badge details.” The whole utterance therefore means: “I see that workshop listed with your badge details.”

5. Y a-t-il un programme imprimé ou dois-je utiliser la version en ligne ?

   Is there a printed agenda, or should I use the online one?

   Y a-t-il

   is there…?

   programme

   agenda; program

   imprimé

   printed

   dois-je

   should I…?

   utiliser

   to use

   version

   version

   en ligne

   online

   More detail

   Y a-t-il is the formal written question pattern for asking whether something exists: il y a means “there is/are,” and inversion places il after the verb. The -t- is a linking sound in this spelling; it is not an independent word. Example: Y a-t-il une entrée ? — “Is there an entrance?” programme is a masculine noun meaning a program or agenda. Here, the translation and surrounding context support the event-agenda sense. Its plural is programmes. The indefinite article un presents one unspecified programme; it does not by itself emphasize a numerical count. imprimé describes programme: it means “printed” here. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective related to imprimer, “to print.” Agreement changes with the noun: une brochure imprimée means “a printed brochure,” while des programmes imprimés means “printed programs.” dois-je is the inverted first-person singular form of devoir: je dois becomes dois-je in a question. In this sentence, the intended meaning is “should I,” asking which option is appropriate. Je dois partir can instead mean “I must leave,” so the surrounding choice and context determine the softer recommendation meaning here. utiliser is an infinitive meaning “to use.” After dois-je, the infinitive names the action under consideration: Dois-je utiliser cette carte ? — “Should I use this map?” version is a feminine noun meaning “version.” Its plural is versions. In la version en ligne, the definite article identifies the online version as the relevant alternative to the printed programme; English naturally renders this as “the online one.” en ligne is the fixed adjective phrase “online,” literally describing something available through a network. It follows the noun here: la version en ligne. It is also usable with other nouns, such as un formulaire en ligne, “an online form.” The sentence is organized as two alternatives joined by ou, “or.” First, Y a-t-il un programme imprimé asks whether a printed agenda exists. Then dois-je utiliser la version en ligne asks whether the speaker should use the online version instead. Together: “Is there a printed agenda, or should I use the online one?”

6. Les programmes imprimés sont ici, mais la version en ligne contient les dernières indications concernant les salles.

   Printed agendas are here, but the online version has the latest room assignments.

   programmes

   agendas

   imprimés

   printed

   sont ici

   are here

   version

   version

   en ligne

   online

   contient

   contains

   dernières

   latest

   indications

   assignments

   concernant

   concerning

   salles

   rooms

   More detail

   programmes is the plural of programme, “agenda” or “program” depending on context. Here the fixed translation identifies agendas. French plural nouns commonly take -s, although the pronunciation may not change. Example: Les programmes sont prêts. — “The agendas are ready.” imprimés means “printed” here and describes programmes. It is the masculine plural form of imprimé; the adjective agrees with the masculine plural noun. The related feminine plural form is imprimées, as in the example Les feuilles imprimées sont utiles. — “The printed sheets are useful.” sont ici combines the plural form sont of être (“are”) with ici (“here”). sont agrees with the plural subject Les programmes. Example: Les documents sont ici. — “The documents are here.” version is a feminine noun meaning “version.” Its gender is relevant to agreement with forms that describe it, such as la in la version. Example: Cette version est claire. — “This version is clear.” en ligne is a reusable expression meaning “online.” It describes the type or status of la version; it does not change for masculine or feminine nouns. Example: Le formulaire est en ligne. — “The form is online.” contient is the third-person singular present form of contenir, “to contain” or “to have inside.” The subject here is singular la version, so French uses contient; the plural form is contiennent, as in Les pages contiennent des détails. — “The pages contain details.” dernières means “latest” here. It is the feminine plural form of dernier, agreeing with indications, which is feminine plural. dernier/dernière can mean “last” or “latest” according to context; the fixed translation supports “latest” here. Example: Voici les dernières nouvelles. — “Here is the latest news.” indications is the plural of the feminine noun indication. In this sentence, the translation specifies the intended sense “room assignments.” In other contexts, indication can mean an indication, instruction, or piece of guidance, so the surrounding words determine the sense. Example: Les indications sont claires. — “The instructions are clear.” concernant means “concerning” or “regarding.” It introduces the topic of the indications: they concern the rooms. It comes from the verb concerner, “to concern,” and is used here in a preposition-like way. Example: J’ai une question concernant le billet. — “I have a question concerning the ticket.” salles is the plural of the feminine noun salle, “room” or “hall.” Here, the fixed translation narrows the context to rooms connected with the assignments. Example: Les salles sont ouvertes. — “The rooms are open.” The sentence first states Les programmes imprimés sont ici: “The printed agendas are here.” mais then introduces a contrast, and la version en ligne contient les dernières indications concernant les salles says that the online version contains the latest room assignments. Together: “Printed agendas are here, but the online version has the latest room assignments.”

7. Je vais utiliser le programme en ligne pour ne manquer aucune mise à jour.

   I'll use the online agenda so I don't miss any updates.

   Je vais

   I’m going to

   utiliser

   use

   programme

   agenda

   en ligne

   online

   manquer

   miss

   mise à jour

   update

   More detail

   Je vais is the first-person singular of aller plus an infinitive. Together, this is the common near-future pattern je vais + infinitive, meaning that I am going to do something. The form vais agrees with je; the following verb remains in the infinitive. Example: Je vais lire le document. — “I’m going to read the document.” utiliser means “to use.” It is an infinitive here because it follows vais. The same verb can be used with an object: J’utilise ce badge. — “I use this badge.” programme means “agenda” in this context, as supported by the fixed translation and the surrounding reference to an online version and room information. It can also mean “program” in other contexts, so the intended meaning depends on what is being discussed. Programme is a masculine noun: le programme, plural les programmes. en ligne means “online” and commonly follows a noun to describe something available or operating on the internet. It is a fixed prepositional expression; ligne is feminine, as in une ligne, but the expression as a whole does not change to agree with programme. manquer means “to miss” here: the intended meaning is failing to see or receive an update. In the pattern ne pas manquer or ne ... aucun(e), the verb is negated. This verb is different from rater, another possible verb for missing something in some contexts, but manquer is the form used in the utterance. Example: Je ne veux pas manquer le début. — “I don’t want to miss the beginning.” mise à jour means “update.” It is a feminine noun phrase: une mise à jour; its plural is des mises à jour, with mises carrying the plural marking. The noun mise comes from mettre, but mise à jour is used as the established expression for an update. The full structure is Je vais utiliser le programme en ligne (“I’m going to use the online agenda”) followed by pour ne manquer aucune mise à jour (“so as not to miss any updates”). pour introduces the purpose, and ne ... aucune expresses that the speaker intends to miss no updates. The complete meaning is: “I’ll use the online agenda so I don’t miss any updates.”

8. Voici vos documents et votre badge.

   Here are your materials and badge.

   Voici

   Here is/are

   vos

   your

   documents

   documents

   votre

   your

   badge

   badge

   More detail

   Voici is an invariable presentative meaning “here is” or “here are.” It can introduce either one item or several, so the plural meaning here comes from the items that follow, not from a change in voici. Example: Voici mon billet. — “Here is my ticket.” vos is the possessive determiner used before a plural noun. It means “your” for one or more people being addressed, while votre is used before a singular noun. The form of vos does not show the gender of the possessed items. Example: Voici vos clés. — “Here are your keys.” documents is the plural of document, meaning “documents” here. The final -s marks the plural in writing; it is generally not pronounced in this form. Example: J’ai les documents. — “I have the documents.” votre is the possessive determiner used before a singular noun. It means “your” here and agrees with the possessed noun in number: votre before singular, vos before plural. The possessor’s gender does not change these two forms. Example: Voici votre billet. — “Here is your ticket.” badge is a singular noun meaning “badge.” In French, it is normally masculine, but the possessive form here is votre because the noun is singular; votre does not reveal the noun’s gender. Example: J’ai un badge. — “I have a badge.” The whole utterance combines the presentative Voici with two coordinated noun phrases: vos documents (“your documents”) and votre badge (“your badge”). Et joins them, so the sentence presents the listener’s documents and badge together: “Here are your materials and badge.”

9. Dans quelle salle dois-je aller en premier ?

   Which room should I go to first?

   Dans quelle salle

   which room

   dois-je

   should I

   aller

   go

   en premier

   first

   More detail

   Dans quelle salle asks for a destination selected from rooms: literally, “in which room,” with dans meaning “in/to” for the relevant location. quelle is the feminine singular form of the interrogative adjective because it agrees with the feminine singular noun salle. Compare quel with a masculine singular noun, as in Quel train ? (“Which train?”). The phrase is reusable for asking which room or location is intended: Dans quelle salle est le cours ? means “Which room is the class in?” dois-je is the present-tense first-person singular form of devoir, je dois, with subject–verb inversion for a direct question. Here devoir expresses what the speaker should or is expected to do, rather than simple possession or obligation in isolation. The hyphenated -je is the inverted subject pronoun; in an ordinary statement, the order is je dois. For example, Dois-je attendre ? means “Should I wait?” aller is the infinitive “to go.” It follows the conjugated modal verb dois in the pattern je dois aller / inverted dois-je aller, so only devoir carries the person and tense marking here. The infinitive remains aller, not a form agreeing with the speaker. For example, Je dois partir. means “I have to leave.” en premier is a short adverbial expression meaning “first,” specifying the position of going in a sequence. It modifies the action aller: the question is about which room to go to before the others, not about a first room as a noun phrase. For another reusable example, Lisez ce chapitre en premier. means “Read this chapter first.” Together, Dans quelle salle identifies the requested destination, dois-je aller asks what the speaker should do, and en premier adds the order. The complete utterance therefore means: “Which room should I go to first?”

10. La séance d'ouverture est dans la salle principale, tout droit dans ce couloir.

    The opening session is in the main hall, straight down this corridor.

    La séance

    the session

    d'ouverture

    opening

    est dans

    is in

    la salle

    the room / hall

    principale

    main

    tout droit

    straight ahead

    ce couloir

    this corridor

    More detail

    La séance means “the session.” séance is a feminine singular noun; the article la marks that grammatical gender and number. The plural is les séances. Example: La séance commence. — “The session begins.” d'ouverture identifies the type of session: it means “of opening” or, naturally here, “opening.” This is de before ouverture, with elision to d' because ouverture begins with a vowel. The pattern un nom de + nom commonly specifies a kind or purpose: la porte d'entrée — “the entrance door.” est dans says that something is located inside or within a place. est is the third-person singular present form of être (“to be”); dans introduces the location. The reusable pattern is X est dans Y — “X is in Y.” la salle means “the room” or, in this location context, “the hall.” salle is a feminine singular noun, so it takes la; its plural is les salles. Example: La salle est ouverte. — “The room is open.” principale means “main” here and describes salle. It is the feminine singular form of the adjective principal; the masculine singular is principal, the feminine singular principale, and the plural forms are principaux (masculine) and principales (feminine). The adjective agrees with the noun it describes, not with a neighboring word. tout droit is an adverbial expression meaning “straight ahead” or “straight down” when giving directions. It is used as a direction, rather than describing the hall itself. Example: Allez tout droit. — “Go straight ahead.” ce couloir means “this corridor.” couloir is a masculine singular noun, and the demonstrative ce is the masculine singular form used before a consonant sound. Compare cette salle — “this room,” where the feminine singular form is cette; the demonstrative agrees with the noun's grammatical gender and number. Together, La séance d'ouverture identifies the subject as “the opening session.” est dans la salle principale locates it in “the main hall,” and tout droit dans ce couloir gives the route or position as “straight down this corridor.” The complete meaning is: “The opening session is in the main hall, straight down this corridor.”