Dealing with a Cracked Phone Screen | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. J'ai fait tomber mon téléphone, et l'écran est fissuré, mais il fonctionne encore.

   I dropped my phone, and the screen is cracked but still works.

   J'ai fait tomber

   I dropped

   téléphone

   phone

   écran

   screen

   fissuré

   cracked

   fonctionne

   works

   encore

   still

   More detail

   J'ai fait tomber means “I dropped” here. It is the passé composé of faire (j'ai fait) followed by the infinitive tomber (“to fall”): faire tomber means to cause something to fall, so j'ai fait tomber presents the speaker as causing the phone to fall. This construction does not by itself say whether the action was deliberate. Example: Elle a fait tomber son verre. — “She dropped her glass.” téléphone is a masculine singular noun meaning “phone.” In the sentence, mon means “my” and agrees with this masculine singular noun. A useful pattern is mon téléphone — “my phone.” écran is a masculine singular noun meaning “screen.” The phrase l'écran uses l', the singular definite article before a vowel sound; it means “the screen.” fissuré means “cracked” here. It is the masculine singular form agreeing with écran; the related verb is fissurer (“to crack”). The feminine singular form is fissurée, as in une vitre fissurée — “a cracked window.” fonctionne is the third-person singular present form of fonctionner (“to work” or “to function”). In this sentence, il refers to the phone identified in the fixed translation, and il fonctionne means “it works.” Example: Mon ordinateur fonctionne. — “My computer works.” encore means “still” in fonctionne encore. It shows that the phone continues to work despite the cracked screen. In other contexts, encore can have other meanings, but “still” is the intended meaning here. The sentence first says J'ai fait tomber mon téléphone — “I dropped my phone.” Et links this event to the result: l'écran est fissuré — “the screen is cracked.” Mais introduces the contrast: il fonctionne encore — “it still works.” Together: “I dropped my phone, and the screen is cracked but still works.”

2. Sauvegarde tes données avant que les dégâts ne s'aggravent.

   Back up your data before the damage gets worse.

   Sauvegarde

   Back up

   données

   data

   avant que

   before

   dégâts

   damage

   s'aggravent

   get worse

   More detail

   Sauvegarde is the second-person singular imperative of sauvegarder, “to back up” or “to save.” The imperative directly gives a command to one person, with tu understood rather than stated. Compare the infinitive sauvegarder with the present form tu sauvegardes in an ordinary statement. Example: Sauvegarde ce fichier. — “Back up this file.” données means “data” here. It is the plural of the feminine noun donnée; the plural possessive determiner appears in the surrounding text as tes données, “your data.” French commonly uses données for stored or collected data, while une donnée can mean one piece of data or one item of information. Example: Mes données sont protégées. — “My data is protected.” avant que introduces an event that occurs later than the action being requested: “before.” It is followed here by a subjunctive clause. The pattern is avant que + subject + subjunctive verb. Example: Pars avant qu'il n'arrive. — “Leave before he arrives.” dégâts means “damage” or “damages” in this context. It is the plural of the masculine noun dégât; the plural form is required by the definite article les in les dégâts. This noun refers to harmful effects or physical damage, rather than to the damaged object itself. Example: Les dégâts sont importants. — “The damage is extensive.” s'aggravent means “get worse” here. It is the third-person plural present subjunctive form of the reflexive verb s'aggraver, “to get worse” or “to worsen.” The subject is les dégâts, so the verb is plural. The s' belongs to the reflexive verb and is not a separate pronoun meaning a particular person. In avant que les dégâts ne s'aggravent, the ne is an explétif: after expressions such as avant que, it does not make this clause negative. Example: Il faut agir avant que la situation ne s'aggrave. — “We must act before the situation gets worse.” Together, Sauvegarde tes données gives the command “Back up your data.” avant que les dégâts ne s'aggravent adds the deadline “before the damage gets worse.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Back up your data before the damage gets worse.”

3. Je vais le faire maintenant. Le verre cassé m'inquiète.

   I will do that now. The broken glass is making me nervous.

   Je vais

   I’m going to

   faire

   do; make

   maintenant

   now

   verre

   glass

   cassé

   broken

   m'inquiète

   makes me nervous

   More detail

   Je vais is the first-person singular present form of aller, “to go.” With an infinitive, the pattern je vais + infinitive expresses the near future: “I am going to …” Here, the following infinitive is faire, so Je vais faire means “I am going to do.” The pronoun Je identifies the speaker; vais agrees with this singular first-person subject. faire is the infinitive “to do” or “to make.” Its meaning depends on what follows: faire quelque chose means “to do something,” while faire un gâteau means “to make a cake.” In this sentence, le faire means “to do it/that.” The object pronoun le refers to the intended task or thing without naming it explicitly here. maintenant means “now” and places the action at the present moment. It can be reused with many tenses, for example: Je commence maintenant. — “I’m starting now.” verre is a masculine singular noun. In this sentence it means “glass,” referring to the broken glass identified by the translation. The article le marks it as a specific noun phrase: le verre — “the glass.” Verre can also mean the material “glass,” depending on context. cassé is the masculine singular form of the adjective (or adjectival past participle) from casser, “to break.” It agrees with masculine singular verre: le verre cassé — “the broken glass.” With a feminine singular noun, the corresponding form is cassée, as in une bouteille cassée — “a broken bottle.” m'inquiète combines me (“me”) with inquiète, the third-person singular present form of inquiéter, “to worry” or “to make someone anxious.” The apostrophe in m' is the shortened form of me before a vowel. The subject is le verre cassé, so the meaning is literally that the broken glass causes worry to the speaker. This differs from je m'inquiète, “I am worried,” where the speaker is the grammatical subject of s'inquiéter. Together, Je vais le faire maintenant means “I will do that now” or “I’m going to do that now.” Le verre cassé m'inquiète means “The broken glass is making me nervous.” The two sentences therefore state the speaker’s immediate intention and then identify the broken glass as the thing causing the speaker’s concern.

4. Mets une protection d'écran provisoire et évite d'appuyer fort dessus.

   Put on a temporary screen protector and avoid pressing hard on it.

   Mets

   put on

   protection

   protection; protector

   écran

   screen

   provisoire

   temporary

   évite

   avoid

   appuyer

   press

   fort

   hard

   dessus

   on it

   More detail

   Mets is the imperative of mettre (“to put”), addressed to one person with tu understood. The imperative gives the instruction directly. For example: Mets le téléphone ici. — “Put the phone here.” protection is a feminine noun meaning “protection” or, in this context, a protective covering. Its useful compound pattern is protection de/d'écran: protection for a screen. The article une marks the noun as indefinite; it introduces a protection without by itself stating a numerical count. écran means “screen.” In protection d'écran, de becomes d' before the vowel sound in écran; the phrase means “screen protector” or literally “protection of a screen.” provisoire means “temporary” here. It is an adjective modifying the feminine singular noun protection, so it has the feminine singular form provisoire. The same written form is used for masculine and feminine singular in this adjective; plural forms are provisoires. Example: une solution provisoire — “a temporary solution.” évite is the imperative of éviter (“to avoid”), again addressed to one person with tu understood. With the following infinitive construction, évite d'appuyer means “avoid pressing.” The de before the vowel-initial infinitive appuyer is written d'. appuyer is an infinitive meaning “to press” or “to apply pressure.” After éviter, the infinitive names the action to avoid: éviter de + infinitive. Example: Évite de toucher l'écran. — “Avoid touching the screen.” fort modifies the pressing action here and means “hard” or “with much force.” In appuyer fort, it is used adverbially; it is not an adjective agreeing with a noun. A more formal alternative for “forcefully” is fortement, but the observed expression is appuyer fort. dessus is a form meaning “on it” or “on top of it.” Here it refers back to the relevant thing already mentioned, giving the pattern appuyer ... dessus: “press on it.” It is distinct from sur, which is commonly used before an explicit noun, as in appuyer sur le bouton — “press the button.” Together, Mets une protection d'écran provisoire instructs the listener to put on a temporary screen protector. The coordinated instruction évite d'appuyer fort dessus then tells the listener not to press hard on that mentioned item. The complete meaning is: “Put on a temporary screen protector and avoid pressing hard on it.”

5. Est-ce que je dois continuer à l'utiliser jusqu'à ce qu'un service de réparation le vérifie ?

   Should I keep using it until a repair service checks it?

   Est-ce que je dois

   Should I

   continuer

   continue

   utiliser

   use

   jusqu'à ce qu'

   until

   service

   service

   réparation

   repair

   vérifie

   checks

   More detail

   Est-ce que je dois forms a yes/no question. Est-ce que is a common question marker, and dois is the first-person singular present form of devoir: je dois, tu dois, il/elle doit. Here devoir expresses what the speaker should do, rather than owing something. Example: Est-ce que je dois attendre ? — “Should I wait?” continuer is the infinitive “to continue.” French commonly uses continuer à + infinitive to express continuing an action: continuer à travailler means “to continue working.” In this sentence, continuer follows dois, so the modal verb is followed by an infinitive. utiliser is the infinitive “to use.” In continuer à l'utiliser, l' is an object pronoun meaning “it”; the apostrophe is the elision of le or la before a vowel sound. The fixed translation supports the object reading “it,” without identifying a more specific referent. Example: Je peux l'utiliser. — “I can use it.” jusqu'à ce qu' introduces the endpoint “until.” It is a conjunction, and the clause after jusqu'à ce que normally uses the subjunctive. The elision in qu'un occurs before un, and un service is an indefinite noun phrase; un does not by itself assert a numerical count in this sentence. service is a masculine noun meaning “service.” In un service de réparation, service is the main noun, while de réparation specifies the type of service. Example: Le service est ouvert. — “The service is open.” réparation is a feminine noun meaning “repair.” It is related in meaning to the verb réparer, “to repair,” but it is a noun naming the activity or service, not an action performed by the noun itself. un service de réparation therefore means “a repair service.” vérifie is the third-person singular present subjunctive form of vérifier, “to check” or “to inspect.” The subject is un service de réparation, which is grammatically singular, so the verb is singular: qu'un service ... vérifie. The subjunctive is required here by the conjunction jusqu'à ce que, not by the meaning of “repair service” alone. Example: J'attends jusqu'à ce qu'il vérifie le problème. — “I am waiting until he checks the problem.” Together, Est-ce que je dois continuer à l'utiliser asks whether the speaker should keep using it. jusqu'à ce qu'un service de réparation le vérifie sets the endpoint: this continued use would last until a repair service checks it. The complete meaning is: “Should I keep using it until a repair service checks it?”

6. Utilise-le seulement pour des tâches simples, car le verre qui se détache peut te couper le doigt.

   Use it only for simple tasks, because loose glass can cut your finger.

   Utilise-le

   use it

   seulement

   only

   tâches

   tasks

   simples

   simple

   car

   because

   verre

   glass

   se détache

   comes loose

   peut

   can

   couper

   cut

   doigt

   finger

   More detail

   Utilise-le is the singular informal imperative of utiliser (“to use”), with the object pronoun le attached by a hyphen. Here le refers to the item being discussed. In a reusable pattern, Utilise-le ! means “Use it!”; with a plural or formal addressee, French uses a different imperative form. seulement limits the instruction: “only.” Its position here makes the restriction apply to the kinds of tasks that follow. For example, Utilise-le seulement dehors. means “Use it only outdoors.” tâches is the plural of the feminine noun tâche, “task.” The plural is marked by final -s, which is normally not pronounced. des tâches means “tasks” without specifying a particular set. The word can also mean “stain” in another context, so the surrounding meaning matters. simples is the plural form of the adjective simple, “simple.” It agrees with feminine plural tâches; the adjective itself has the same written form for masculine and feminine plural here. Compare une tâche simple (“a simple task”) and des tâches simples (“simple tasks”). car introduces the reason for the instruction and means “because,” in a fairly neutral written or careful style. It connects the first clause to the explanation that follows. verre is the noun “glass,” here referring to glass as a material or a piece of it. It is masculine: le verre. In another context, un verre can mean “a glass” as a drinking container, but the warning here concerns loose glass. se détache is the third-person singular present form of the pronominal verb se détacher, “to come loose” or “to detach.” The subject is le verre, so the singular form is used. The pronoun se is part of this verb construction, not a separate English-style object meaning. For example, La poignée se détache. means “The handle is coming loose.” peut is the third-person singular present form of pouvoir, “can” or “may” in the sense of possibility or ability. In le verre ... peut couper, it expresses a possible consequence. pouvoir is followed by an infinitive: peut couper = “can cut.” couper is the infinitive “to cut.” After peut, it remains in the infinitive rather than taking a person-marked form. For example, Cela peut couper. means “That can cut.” doigt is the masculine noun “finger,” as in le doigt. In this warning, le doigt is understood as the addressee’s finger, matching the fixed translation “your finger.” French often uses a definite article with a body part when the affected person is clear from the situation; an explicit possessive is also possible when needed. Together, Utilise-le seulement pour des tâches simples means “Use it only for simple tasks.” car le verre qui se détache peut te couper le doigt gives the reason: “because loose glass can cut your finger.” The relative clause qui se détache describes le verre, and te—present in the full sentence between peut and couper—marks the person who may be cut. The complete utterance is therefore a direct informal safety instruction: use the item only for simple tasks because glass that comes loose may cut the addressee’s finger.

7. Je peux le garder dans une coque et le transporter avec précaution.

   I can keep it in a case and carry it carefully.

   Je peux

   I can

   garder

   keep

   coque

   case

   transporter

   carry

   avec précaution

   carefully

   More detail

   Je peux expresses the speaker’s ability or possibility: je is the first-person singular subject, and peux is the present form of pouvoir used with that subject. French commonly uses pouvoir + infinitive, so the next verb remains in the infinitive. Example: Je peux attendre. — “I can wait.” garder means “to keep” here. It is an infinitive because it follows peux. The pronoun le refers to the understood object; the supplied sentence does not identify that object more specifically. Example: Je peux le garder ici. — “I can keep it here.” coque is a feminine noun meaning a protective case or shell. The article une marks it as an unspecified case, without asserting a numerical count. In dans une coque, dans places the object inside the case. Example: Le téléphone est dans une coque. — “The phone is in a case.” transporter means “to carry” or “to transport” from one place to another. It is another infinitive coordinated with garder by et; both actions depend on peux. Example: Je peux transporter le carton. — “I can carry the box.” avec précaution is an adverbial phrase meaning “carefully,” describing action performed with caution. précaution is a feminine noun; the phrase uses avec to express the manner of carrying. Example: Il déplace le verre avec précaution. — “He moves the glass carefully.” Together, Je peux le garder dans une coque says that the speaker can keep the understood object inside a protective case. et le transporter avec précaution adds that the speaker can carry that same object carefully. The whole utterance therefore expresses the speaker’s ability to keep it in a case and transport it carefully.

8. Cela devrait réduire le risque pendant que tu organises la réparation.

   That should lower the risk while you arrange the repair.

   Cela

   That

   devrait

   should

   réduire

   reduce; lower

   risque

   risk

   pendant que

   while

   organises

   arrange; organize

   réparation

   repair

   More detail

   Cela means “that” here as a demonstrative pronoun. It points to something already understood, but the supplied sentence does not identify exactly what it is. Unlike a demonstrative adjective, it stands on its own rather than directly modifying a noun. devrait is the third-person singular conditional present of devoir (“must / have to” in other uses). In this sentence, with Cela as its singular subject, it expresses an expected or likely result: “should.” The useful pattern is subject + devrait + infinitive, as in Le traitement devrait aider — “The treatment should help.” réduire is the infinitive of réduire, “to reduce” or “to lower.” It follows devrait; the modal form carries the conditional meaning, while réduire remains an infinitive. The pattern devrait réduire therefore means “should reduce,” not simply “reduces.” risque is the noun “risk.” In the utterance it appears with the masculine definite article le: le risque, “the risk.” French noun gender is a grammatical property of the noun, so the article must agree with risque; the sentence does not state a quantity of risk. pendant que is a conjunction meaning “while.” It introduces a clause whose action occurs during the relevant period. It is followed here by a subject and a conjugated verb, rather than by an infinitive: pendant que tu travailles means “while you work.” organises is the second-person singular present form of organiser, “to arrange” or “to organize.” The ending -es identifies the tu form for this verb in the present tense; the subject is explicitly tu, “you.” In this sentence, the intended object is la réparation, so tu organises la réparation means “you arrange the repair.” réparation is the feminine noun “repair.” With the definite article la, la réparation refers to the repair as an understood activity or arrangement, consistent with the fixed translation. The noun comes from the verb réparer, “to repair,” but réparation itself is the noun form used here. Together, Cela devrait réduire le risque means “That should lower the risk.” pendant que tu organises la réparation adds the time relation “while you arrange the repair.” The complete utterance is therefore: “That should lower the risk while you arrange the repair.”

9. Je vais prendre rendez-vous pour une réparation au lieu d'attendre.

   I will book a repair instead of waiting.

   Je vais

   I will / I am going to

   prendre

   book; take

   rendez-vous

   appointment

   réparation

   repair

   au lieu d'attendre

   instead of waiting

   More detail

   Je vais introduces the near-future construction: present-tense vais, the first-person singular form of aller, followed by an infinitive. The pattern je vais + infinitive means “I am going to …” and commonly expresses a planned or imminent action. Here, vais does not mean that aller itself is the main action of going somewhere. prendre is the infinitive of prendre. In prendre rendez-vous, French uses prendre in a fixed expression meaning to book or make an appointment; the literal sense “take” is not the best meaning here. The infinitive follows vais because it names the planned action. For example: Je vais appeler. — “I am going to call.” rendez-vous is a noun meaning an appointment. In this expression, prendre rendez-vous is the reusable pattern for booking an appointment. The hyphenated spelling is part of this noun; it is not two separate words to translate independently in this context. réparation means “repair” here. It is a feminine noun, which is why it appears with une in une réparation. The indefinite article marks the repair as non-specific; it does not by itself state a numerical count. The preposition pour connects the appointment with its purpose: prendre rendez-vous pour une réparation means to book an appointment for a repair. au lieu d'attendre means “instead of waiting.” au lieu de is a contrast pattern that is followed here by the infinitive attendre, “to wait.” The de becomes d' before the vowel at the start of attendre; this is elision. For example: Il marche au lieu de conduire. — “He walks instead of driving.” Together, Je vais prendre rendez-vous pour une réparation says that the speaker plans to book an appointment for a repair. au lieu d'attendre contrasts that planned action with waiting. The complete meaning is: “I will book a repair instead of waiting.”

10. Les petites fissures peuvent s'agrandir si tu continues à utiliser le téléphone.

    Small cracks can spread if you keep using the phone.

    petites

    small

    fissures

    cracks

    peuvent

    can

    s'agrandir

    spread

    si

    if

    tu

    you

    continues

    keep going

    utiliser

    use

    téléphone

    phone

    More detail

    petites means “small” here. It is the feminine plural form of petit, agreeing with fissures: petit (masculine singular), petite (feminine singular), petits (masculine plural), petites (feminine plural). Example: de petites erreurs means “small mistakes.” fissures means “cracks.” Its singular is fissure; the final -s marks the plural here. The noun is feminine, which helps explain the form petites. Example: La fissure s'agrandit means “The crack is getting larger.” peuvent is the present-tense third-person plural form of pouvoir, “can” or “to be able to.” It agrees with the plural subject Les petites fissures. The useful pattern is pouvoir + infinitive: Ils peuvent venir means “They can come.” s'agrandir means “to get larger” or “to widen.” It is the pronominal infinitive of agrandir, “to make larger”; the s' shows that the cracks themselves undergo the change. In this sentence, peuvent s'agrandir means that the cracks can grow larger, rendered as “can spread” in the fixed translation. Example: La zone peut s'agrandir means “The area can get larger.” si introduces a condition and means “if.” It connects the possible result to the condition that follows: si + a clause. Example: Si tu attends, je viens means “If you wait, I’ll come.” tu is the subject pronoun for one person addressed informally. It is singular; the corresponding formal or plural subject pronoun is vous. The following verb also reflects this subject: tu continues. continues is the present-tense second-person singular form of continuer, “to continue.” With à and an infinitive, continuer à means “to keep doing” or “to continue doing something”: tu continues à lire means “you keep reading.” Here, the form agrees with tu; continuer is the base form. utiliser is the infinitive “to use.” It follows continuer à, so continues à utiliser means “keep using.” Example: Elle continue à travailler means “She keeps working.” téléphone means “phone.” It is a masculine singular noun; with the definite article, le téléphone means “the phone.” Example: J'utilise le téléphone means “I use the phone.” Together, Les petites fissures is the plural subject, peuvent s'agrandir says that the cracks can get larger, and si tu continues à utiliser le téléphone gives the condition: “if you keep using the phone.” The complete utterance therefore means “Small cracks can spread if you keep using the phone.”