Getting Back to Work After a Long Pause | Learn French in English

About This Lesson

Use Getting Back to Work After a Long Pause to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Après le déjeuner, je me sens complètement déconnecté de la tâche.

ah-PRAY luh day-zhuh-NAY, zhuh muh sahn kohn-PLAYT-MAHN day-koh-nehk-TAY duh lah TAHSH. After lunch, I feel completely disconnected from the task.

Commence par une petite révision au lieu de te lancer dans la partie la plus difficile.

koh-MAHNSS pahr ewn puh-TEET ray-vee-ZYOHN oh LYUH duh tuh lahn-SAY dahn lah pahr-TEE lah plew dee-fee-SEEL. Start with a small review instead of jumping into the hardest part.

J'ai perdu mon élan parce que nous nous sommes arrêtés au milieu de l'analyse.

zhay pair-DEW mohn ay-LAHN pahrss kuh noo noo sohm ah-ray-TAY oh mee-LYUH duh lah-NAH-leez. I lost momentum because we paused in the middle of the analysis.

Regarde la dernière note et choisis la prochaine priorité.

ruh-GAHRD lah dair-NYAIR NOHT ay shwah-ZEE lah proh-SHEN pree-oh-ree-TAY. Look at the last note and pick the next priority.

L'étape suivante consiste à vérifier si les chiffres correspondent au fichier source.

lay-TAHP swee-VAHNT kohn-SEEST ah vay-ree-FYAY see lay SHEEFR koh-ress-POHND oh fee-SHYAY SOORSS. The next step is checking whether the numbers match the source file.

Cela te donne un point clair pour reprendre.

suh-LAH tuh DOHN uhn pwahn CLAIR poor ruh-PRANDR. That gives you a clear point to resume from.

Je dois aussi fermer les applications de messagerie parce que je me laisse toujours distraire.

zhuh DWAH oh-SEE fair-MAY lay zah-plee-kah-SYOHN duh meh-sah-ZHAIR-ee pahrss kuh zhuh muh less too-ZHOOR dee-STRAIR. I also need to close chat apps because I keep getting distracted.

Garde-les fermées pendant que tu travailles sans distraction, puis consulte tes messages.

GAHRD lay fair-MAY pahn-DAHN kuh tew trah-VY sahn dee-STRAK-SYOHN, pwee kohn-SULT tay meh-SAHZH. Keep them closed while you work without distractions, then check your messages.

Ça me paraît gérable. Je peux retrouver ma concentration petit à petit.

sah muh pah-RAY. Zhuh puh ruh-troo-VAY mah kohn-sahn-TRAH-SYOHN puh-TEE ah puh-TEE. That feels manageable. I can rebuild focus gradually.

Commence par là, et le reste devrait te sembler moins lourd.

koh-MAHNSS pahr LAH, ay luh REST duh-VRAY tuh sahm-BLAYN mwahn LOOR. Start there, and the rest should feel less heavy.

Word by Word

Après “Après” means “after” here, introducing the time that follows lunch. A common reuse pattern is “Après” followed by a noun, as in “Après le déjeuner” in this dialogue.

le “le” marks “déjeuner” as the lunch being referred to here. It is used before the noun in the common time expression “Après le déjeuner”.

déjeuner “déjeuner” means “lunch” in “Après le déjeuner.” You can reuse it after a time expression to say what happens after lunch, for example in the dialogue’s “Après le déjeuner”.

je “je” is the speaker’s “I” in “je me sens.” It is used as the subject before the verb and commonly appears in patterns such as “je me sens” to describe a feeling.

me “me” refers back to the speaker in “je me sens”: the speaker is the person experiencing the feeling. The reusable pattern is “je me sens” followed by an adjective.

sens “sens” means “feel” in “je me sens complètement déconnecté.” Together with “je me,” it describes the speaker’s current state; reuse “je me sens” before a feeling or description.

complètement “complètement” means “completely” and strengthens “déconnecté” in “complètement déconnecté de la tâche.” It can be placed before an adjective to show that a quality applies fully.

déconnecté “déconnecté” describes feeling disconnected from the task in “je me sens complètement déconnecté de la tâche.” The dialogue uses it after “je me sens,” a useful pattern for describing a current state.

de “de” links “déconnecté” to the thing from which the speaker feels disconnected: “déconnecté de la tâche.” Reuse “déconnecté de” before the related task, activity, or subject.

la “la” identifies “tâche” as the specific task being discussed. It appears directly before the noun in “de la tâche.”

tâche “tâche” means “task” in “déconnecté de la tâche.” It is useful when discussing a piece of work that someone needs to do or resume.

Commence “Commence” tells the other person to start, as in “Commence par une petite révision.” It is a direct informal instruction and can be followed by “par” to name the first step.

par “par” means “with” or “by” in “Commence par une petite révision,” identifying the starting point. Reuse “commencer par” followed by a noun or an action.

une “une” means “a” before “petite révision,” introducing one review as the suggested first step. It is used directly before the noun phrase it introduces.

petite “petite” means “small” in “une petite révision,” making the suggested review seem limited in scope. It is placed before the noun “révision” here.

révision “révision” means “review” in “une petite révision.” In a work context, it names the act of looking over notes or material before continuing.

au lieu de “au lieu de” means “instead of” and contrasts the small review with jumping into the hardest part. “au” is the contracted form of “à le,” “lieu” means “place,” and “de” completes the expression before the alternative; together they form the fixed construction “au lieu de”.

te “te” refers to the person being advised in “te lancer”: that person is the one starting or throwing themselves into the task. It appears with the informal second-person construction “te lancer dans.”

lancer In “te lancer dans la partie la plus difficile,” “lancer” contributes the idea of starting or jumping into something. Reuse the construction “se lancer dans” followed by an activity, task, or subject.

dans “dans” means “into” in “te lancer dans la partie la plus difficile,” showing what the person would jump into. It commonly introduces the activity or area entered after “se lancer.”

partie “partie” means “part” or “section” in “la partie la plus difficile.” Here it refers to one section of the task, especially the section that is hardest.

plus “plus” helps form the superlative “la plus difficile,” meaning “the most difficult” or “hardest.” The reusable pattern is “le” or “la” plus “plus” and an adjective.

difficile “difficile” means “difficult” in “la partie la plus difficile,” where the section is identified as the hardest one. It appears after “plus” in this superlative expression.

J'ai “J'ai” means “I have” and begins “J'ai perdu mon élan,” which expresses that the speaker lost momentum. It combines the speaker pronoun with “ai” and commonly precedes a past participle in a completed-action expression.

perdu “perdu” means “lost” in “J'ai perdu mon élan.” Together, “J'ai perdu” describes a completed loss, and the same pattern can be used before the thing that was lost.

mon “mon” means “my” before “élan,” identifying the momentum as belonging to the speaker. It is placed directly before the noun it describes.

élan “élan” means “momentum” in “J'ai perdu mon élan.” In this work situation, it refers to the forward energy needed to continue an analysis.

parce que “parce que” means “because” and introduces the reason for losing momentum. “parce” forms the first part of the connector and “que” completes it before the reason clause; together they introduce “nous nous sommes arrêtés...”.

nous The first “nous” in “nous nous sommes arrêtés” means “we” and identifies the people who stopped. It is used as the subject before the verb phrase.

sommes “sommes” helps form “nous nous sommes arrêtés,” which says that we stopped. It appears with “nous” and the following form “arrêtés” in this completed-action expression.

arrêtés “arrêtés” means “stopped” in “nous nous sommes arrêtés au milieu de l'analyse.” It describes the interruption that caused the speaker to lose momentum.

au “au” means “at the” or “in the” in “au milieu de l'analyse.” It is the contracted form of “à le” and introduces the location expression that follows.

milieu “milieu” means “middle” in “au milieu de l'analyse.” The reusable expression “au milieu de” identifies the point at which something is interrupted.

l'analyse “l'analyse” means “the analysis” in “au milieu de l'analyse.” The form uses “l'” before “analyse,” and the phrase refers to the analysis that was paused.

Regarde “Regarde” tells the other person to look at something, here “la dernière note.” It is a direct informal instruction and can be followed by the thing to inspect.

dernière “dernière” means “last” in “la dernière note,” identifying the most recent note in the sequence. It is placed before the noun “note” here.

note “note” means “note” in “la dernière note.” In this context, it is a written reminder or piece of information to review before choosing the next priority.

et “et” means “and” and connects the two instructions “Regarde...” and “choisis...”. It is useful for joining related actions in one sentence.

choisis “choisis” tells the other person to pick or choose the next priority. It is used as an informal instruction and is followed here by the thing being chosen.

prochaine “prochaine” means “next” in “la prochaine priorité,” identifying the priority that should follow the current one. It is placed before the noun “priorité.”

priorité “priorité” means “priority” in “la prochaine priorité.” It refers to the task or item that should receive attention next.

L'étape “L'étape” means “the step” in “L'étape suivante.” The form uses “l'” before “étape,” and the phrase names the next action in the process.

suivante “suivante” means “following” or “next” in “L'étape suivante.” It describes the step that comes after the current point in the work.

consiste “consiste” means “consists” in “L'étape suivante consiste à vérifier,” explaining what the next step involves. A useful pattern is “consister à” followed by an infinitive.

à “à” introduces the action that defines the step in “consiste à vérifier.” Reuse the pattern “consiste à” before an infinitive when explaining what an activity involves.

vérifier “vérifier” means “to check” or “to verify” in “consiste à vérifier si les chiffres correspondent...” It names the action of checking whether the figures match the source file.

si “si” means “whether” in “vérifier si les chiffres correspondent au fichier source.” It introduces the point that must be checked and is commonly placed before a question-like clause.

les “les” identifies “chiffres” as the specific numbers under discussion. It appears before the plural noun in “les chiffres correspondent...”.

chiffres “chiffres” means “numbers” or “figures” in “les chiffres correspondent au fichier source.” Here it refers to the numerical information being compared with the source file.

correspondent “correspondent” means “match” or “correspond” in “les chiffres correspondent au fichier source.” It describes the relationship being checked between the figures and the source file.

fichier “fichier” means “file” in “au fichier source.” It refers to the source document or data file used for comparison.

source “source” means “source” in “le fichier source,” identifying the file from which the original information comes. It is placed after “fichier” to specify the file’s role.

Cela “Cela” means “that” or “this” and refers to the checking step just described in “Cela te donne un point clair.” It can be used as the subject when commenting on the result of a previous action.

donne “donne” means “gives” in “Cela te donne un point clair.” The construction shows that the checking step provides the other person with a clear point for resuming.

un “un” means “a” in “un point clair,” introducing one clear point. It appears directly before the noun phrase it introduces.

point “point” means “point” in “un point clair pour reprendre.” Here it is a clear place or stage from which the work can be resumed.

clair “clair” means “clear” in “un point clair,” describing a point that is easy to identify. It helps express that the next starting place is definite and understandable.

pour “pour” introduces the purpose of the point in “un point clair pour reprendre”: it is a point for resuming. It commonly appears before an infinitive to express purpose.

reprendre “reprendre” means “to resume” or “to take up again” in “pour reprendre.” It describes continuing the work after the pause, and it can follow “pour” when naming that purpose.

dois “dois” expresses “need to” or “must” in “Je dois aussi fermer...” It is followed by an infinitive to state an action the speaker considers necessary.

aussi “aussi” means “also” in “Je dois aussi fermer,” adding another necessary action to the discussion. It is placed between the verb phrase and the infinitive here.

fermer “fermer” means “to close” in “Je dois aussi fermer les applications de messagerie.” It follows “dois” and names the action needed to reduce distractions.

applications “applications” means “applications” or “apps” in “les applications de messagerie.” It refers to the software that should be closed while the speaker works.

messagerie “messagerie” refers to messaging in “les applications de messagerie,” identifying what kind of applications these are. The reusable pattern is “application(s) de” followed by the service or function.

toujours “toujours” means “always” or “continually” in “je me laisse toujours distraire.” Here it emphasizes that the distraction keeps happening repeatedly.

laisse “laisse” contributes the idea of allowing something to happen in “je me laisse toujours distraire.” With “me” and the infinitive “distraire,” the whole expression says that the speaker lets themselves become distracted.

distraire “distraire” means “to distract” in “je me laisse toujours distraire.” It follows “laisser” in the construction “se laisser distraire,” describing an unwanted loss of attention.

Garde-les “Garde-les” means “keep them,” referring to the messaging applications. “Garde” gives the informal instruction to keep something in a state, and “-les” means “them”; together they form the direct command “Garde-les fermées.”

fermées “fermées” means “closed” in “Garde-les fermées,” describing the state the applications should remain in. It completes the pattern “garder quelque chose” followed by a description of its state.

pendant “pendant” means “during” or “while” in “pendant que tu travailles.” It introduces the period during which the applications should stay closed.

que In “pendant que tu travailles,” “que” completes the connector “pendant que,” meaning “while.” It introduces the clause that describes the simultaneous activity.

tu “tu” means “you” in “tu travailles,” referring to the person who is working. It is the subject placed before the verb in this informal conversation.

travailles “travailles” means “work” in “pendant que tu travailles.” It describes the activity taking place while the applications remain closed.

sans “sans” means “without” in “sans distraction.” It introduces what is absent while the person works.

distraction “distraction” means “distraction” in “travailles sans distraction.” It refers to anything that interrupts attention during the work.

puis “puis” means “then” and marks the next action in “puis consulte tes messages.” It is useful for ordering actions that happen one after another.

consulte “consulte” tells the other person to check or consult the messages in “consulte tes messages.” It is an informal instruction followed directly by the object being checked.

tes “tes” means “your” before “messages,” identifying the messages as belonging to the person being addressed. It is placed directly before the plural noun.

messages “messages” means “messages” in “consulte tes messages.” Here it refers to the messages that can be checked after the focused work period.

Ça “Ça” means “that” or “it” in “Ça me paraît gérable,” referring to the suggested plan. It is commonly used as the subject when giving an informal reaction to a situation.

paraît “paraît” means “seems” or “appears” in “Ça me paraît gérable.” The pattern “ça me paraît” expresses how something seems to the speaker.

gérable “gérable” means “manageable” in “Ça me paraît gérable,” saying that the plan seems possible to handle. It follows “paraît” as the description of the situation.

peux “peux” means “can” in “Je peux retrouver ma concentration.” It is followed by an infinitive to express an ability or possibility.

retrouver “retrouver” means “to regain” or “to find again” in “retrouver ma concentration.” It describes recovering focus after losing it, and it can be followed by the thing being regained.

ma “ma” means “my” before “concentration,” identifying the focus as the speaker’s. It is placed directly before the noun it describes.

concentration “concentration” means “focus” or “concentration” in “retrouver ma concentration.” It refers to the mental attention the speaker wants to recover.

petit à petit “petit à petit” means “gradually” or “little by little” in “retrouver ma concentration petit à petit.” The first “petit” means “small,” “à” links the repeated parts, and the second “petit” repeats the idea; together they form a fixed expression for gradual progress.

là “là” means “there” in “Commence par là,” referring to the suggested starting point, the small review. It can point back to a place, step, or idea already mentioned.

reste “reste” means “the rest” or “remainder” in “le reste,” referring to the remaining work after the first step. It is used here as a noun after “le”.

devrait “devrait” expresses “should” in “le reste devrait te sembler moins lourd,” presenting an expected result rather than a certainty. It is followed by “sembler” to say how the remaining work is expected to feel.

sembler “sembler” means “to seem” or “to feel” in “te sembler moins lourd.” The pattern “sembler + adjective” describes how something appears or feels to someone.

moins “moins” means “less” in “moins lourd,” reducing the intensity of the feeling described by “lourd.” The reusable pattern is “moins” followed by an adjective.

lourd “lourd” means “heavy” in “te sembler moins lourd,” referring figuratively to the remaining work feeling less burdensome. It follows “moins” to express a reduced difficulty or weight.

Grammar Points

au lieu de + infinitif

Au lieu de te lancer dans la partie difficile, reprends la dernière étape.

oh LYUH duh tuh lahn-SAY dahn lah pahr-TEE dee-fee-SEEL, ruh-PRAN lah dair-NYAIR AY-TAHP.

Instead of jumping into the difficult part, resume the last step.

« Au lieu de » est suivi de l’infinitif quand le sujet reste le même.

se laisser + infinitif

Il consulte les applications de messagerie et se laisse distraire.

eel kohn-SULT lay zah-plee-kah-SYOHN duh meh-sah-ZHAIR-ee ay suh LESS dee-STRAIR.

He checks messaging apps and gets distracted.

« Se laisser » + infinitif exprime le fait de permettre qu’une action se produise.

French Vocabulary

analyse noun

ah-nah-LEEZ analysis

au lieu de prep

oh LYUH duh instead of

au milieu de prep

oh mee-LYUH duh in the middle of

déconnecté adj

day-koh-nehk-TAY disconnected

dernière adj

dair-NYAIR last

difficile adj

dee-fee-SEEL difficult; hard

élan noun

ay-LAHN momentum

partie noun

pahr-TEE part; section

priorité noun

pree-oh-ree-TAY priority

révision noun

ray-vee-ZYOHN review

tâche noun

TAHSH task

te lancer verb

tuh lahn-SAY to jump into; to start tackling

Quiz

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

part; section

Show Answer

partie

disconnected

Show Answer

déconnecté

task

Show Answer

tâche

review

Show Answer

révision