Describing cough symptoms before calling a clinic | Learn French in English

Sentence explanations

1. Je dois appeler la clinique parce que ma toux ne s'améliore pas.

   I need to call the clinic because my cough is not getting better.

   Je dois

   I need to / I must

   appeler

   to call

   la clinique

   the clinic

   parce que

   because

   ma toux

   my cough

   ne s'améliore pas

   is not getting better

   More detail

   Je dois expresses necessity or obligation for the speaker: “I need to” or “I must.” dois is the first-person singular present form of devoir; the infinitive after it names the required action. Useful pattern: je dois + infinitive. For example, Je dois partir. means “I need to leave.” appeler means “to call.” It is an infinitive, used here after dois. The same infinitive can follow other forms of devoir, such as Tu dois appeler (“You need to call”). la clinique means “the clinic.” clinique is a feminine singular noun here, shown by the definite article la. The article identifies a specific clinic in this sentence; it does not itself express a numerical count. parce que introduces the reason for the preceding action: “because.” It links Je dois appeler la clinique to the explanation that follows. A reusable pattern is ... parce que ..., as in Je reste à la maison parce que je suis malade. — “I am staying home because I am ill.” ma toux means “my cough.” toux is a feminine singular noun in French, and the possessive form ma agrees with that noun. ma means “my” with a feminine singular noun; with a masculine singular noun, the corresponding form is mon, as in mon livre (“my book”). ne s'améliore pas means “is not getting better.” The verb is the pronominal form s'améliorer, meaning “to improve” or “to get better”; here s'améliore is its third-person singular present form, matching ma toux. French commonly forms this present-tense negation with ne before the verb and pas after it: ne s'améliore pas. The infinitive améliorer is the base form, while s'améliorer is the pronominal form used for something improving. For example, La situation s'améliore. means “The situation is getting better.” Together, Je dois appeler la clinique says that the speaker needs to call the clinic, and parce que ma toux ne s'améliore pas gives the reason: the speaker’s cough is not getting better. The complete utterance therefore means, “I need to call the clinic because my cough is not getting better.”

2. Dis-leur ce qui a changé et ce qui t'inquiète le plus.

   Tell them what has changed and what worries you most.

   Dis-leur

   Tell them

   ce qui

   what; that which

   a changé

   has changed

   t'inquiète

   worries you

   le plus

   the most

   More detail

   Dis-leur is the imperative of dire (“to say/tell”) addressed to one person: dis is the irregular tu-form imperative. leur is an indirect-object pronoun meaning “to them,” so the command is “Tell them.” The hyphen is part of the written imperative-pronoun pattern: Dis-leur. Example: Dis-lui la vérité. — “Tell him/her the truth.” ce qui introduces an unspecified thing or matter that functions as the subject of the following verb. Here it means “what” in what has changed.” The form ce qui is used when the relative element is doing the action; compare ce que, used when the relative element receives the action. Example: Je comprends ce qui se passe.` — “I understand what is happening.” a changé is the passé composé of changer (“to change”): a is the third-person singular present form of avoir, and changé is the past participle. With ce qui, the verb is singular here because the clause means “what has changed.” Example: La situation a changé. — “The situation has changed.” After et, the sentence repeats the same ce qui pattern: ce qui t'inquiète le plus means “what worries you most.” The repeated ce qui is the subject of inquiète; it is not a new participant identified by the sentence. t'inquiète comes from inquiéter (“to worry”): t' is the elided form of te, the object pronoun “you,” and inquiète is the third-person singular present form. Thus, literally, the construction is “what worries you.” Example: Cette nouvelle m'inquiète. — “This news worries me.” le plus forms the superlative “the most.” In t'inquiète le plus, it specifies the greatest degree: “worries you most.” This is different from plus meaning “more” in a comparison such as Ça m'inquiète plus. — “That worries me more.” Together, Dis-leur gives the command “Tell them,” and the two coordinated matters to report are ce qui a changé (“what has changed”) and ce qui t'inquiète le plus (“what worries you most”). The complete utterance is therefore: “Tell them what has changed and what worries you most.”

3. Ça s'est aggravé, et je me sens fiévreux et fatigué.

   It has gotten worse, and I feel feverish and tired.

   Ça

   it

   s'est aggravé

   has gotten worse

   je me sens

   I feel

   fiévreux

   feverish

   fatigué

   tired

   More detail

   Ça is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “it” here. It points to a previously understood matter or situation, but the supplied texts do not identify a more specific referent. Unlike il or elle, ça does not itself mark a particular person or noun. s'est aggravé is the compound past form of the reflexive verb s'aggraver, “to get worse.” The verb uses être as its auxiliary: s'aggrave means “gets worse,” while s'est aggravé means “has gotten worse.” In this sentence, aggravé is the masculine singular past-participle form used with the singular subject ça. Example: La situation s'est aggravée. — “The situation has gotten worse.” With the feminine noun situation, the form is aggravée. je me sens is the first-person singular present form of se sentir, “to feel.” Je is the subject, and me is the reflexive pronoun required by this verb: je me sens = “I feel.” Example: Je me sens mieux. — “I feel better.” This differs from je suis, which means “I am” and is not the same feeling construction. fiévreux means “feverish” here. It is the masculine singular form of the adjective; the feminine singular form is fiévreuse. In this sentence, the adjective describes the speaker through je me sens. The masculine form gives the grammatical agreement shown in the utterance, but the supplied texts do not independently establish the speaker’s gender. Example: Il est fiévreux. — “He is feverish.” fatigué means “tired.” It is the masculine singular form of the adjective; the feminine singular form is fatiguée. Here it is coordinated with fiévreux, and both adjectives describe the speaker after je me sens. Example: Je me sens fatigué. — “I feel tired.” The complete structure is Ça s'est aggravé (“It has gotten worse”), followed by et (“and”), then je me sens fiévreux et fatigué (“I feel feverish and tired”). Together, the utterance reports that the previously understood matter has worsened and describes the speaker as feverish and tired.

4. Dis quand ça a commencé et si quelque chose a aidé.

   Mention when it started and whether anything has helped.

   Dis

   mention

   quand

   when

   ça

   it

   a commencé

   started

   si

   whether

   quelque chose

   anything

   a aidé

   has helped

   More detail

   Dis is the imperative of dire (“to say/tell”) for tu: dire → dis. Here it introduces information the listener is being asked to provide. For a polite or formal request to one person, French uses dites, while dis is the informal singular form. quand means “when” and introduces the time information being requested. In quand ça a commencé, it asks for the point in time at which the event began. Compare où (“where”) and pourquoi (“why”): these ask for different kinds of information. ça is a general, informal demonstrative pronoun meaning “it” or “that.” Here it refers to the condition or event whose beginning is being discussed; the form itself does not name that referent. A more formal alternative in some contexts is cela, but ça is very common in speech. a commencé is the third-person singular passé composé of commencer (“to begin/start”): commencer → a commencé. The auxiliary a is the form of avoir used here, and commencé is the past participle. In this utterance, the phrase means “started” and presents the beginning as a completed past event. The English translation uses the simple past because the question asks when that beginning occurred. si means “whether” here because it introduces the second piece of information requested after Dis. It is not the conditional “if” meaning found in a sentence such as Si ça s'aggrave, appelle un médecin (“If it gets worse, call a doctor”). quelque chose is an indefinite pronoun meaning “something.” In this request, the intended English meaning is “anything.” It refers to an unspecified thing without identifying a particular object. Its opposite is rien (“nothing”): Rien n'a aidé means “Nothing helped.” a aidé is the third-person singular passé composé of aider (“to help”): aider → a aidé. As with a commencé, a is the auxiliary avoir and aidé is the past participle. The subject of a aidé is quelque chose, so the verb is singular; French does not change this form to mark the gender of the unspecified thing. In the fixed translation, this is rendered as “has helped.” Together, Dis quand ça a commencé means “Mention when it started,” and si quelque chose a aidé adds “and whether anything has helped.” The whole utterance is therefore a direct informal request for two related details: the time the condition or event began and whether any unspecified thing produced help.

5. Je dois aussi savoir quoi faire si ça s'aggrave ce soir.

   I also need to know what to do if it gets worse tonight.

   Je dois

   I need to / I must

   aussi

   also

   savoir

   know

   quoi faire

   what to do

   si

   if

   ça

   it

   s'aggrave

   gets worse

   ce soir

   tonight

   More detail

   Je dois is the first-person singular present form of devoir, followed by an infinitive. Here it expresses personal necessity: “I need to” or “I must.” The subject is je, and dois is the form used with that subject. Example: Je dois partir. — “I need to leave.” aussi means “also” and adds this need to something already relevant in the conversation. Its position here is after Je dois; it modifies the whole need expressed by the clause rather than naming an additional object. savoir is an infinitive meaning “to know.” After dois, the infinitive names the action that is necessary: Je dois savoir means “I need to know.” Example: Elle doit savoir la vérité. — “She must know the truth.” quoi faire is an infinitive question construction meaning “what to do.” quoi asks about an unspecified thing or action, while faire is the infinitive “to do” or “to make.” In this sentence, the construction is the content of savoir: the speaker needs to know which action to take. Example: Je ne sais pas quoi faire. — “I do not know what to do.” si introduces the condition “if.” It connects the possible situation to the action or knowledge described in the rest of the sentence. In this utterance, si begins the condition that follows quoi faire. ça is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” or, in this fixed translation, “it.” It refers to the condition or thing being discussed, but the supplied sentence does not identify a more specific noun for it. Unlike a noun modifier, it stands on its own as the subject of the following verb. s'aggrave is the third-person singular present form of the pronominal verb s'aggraver, “to get worse” or “to become more serious.” The form agrees with the singular subject ça; s' is part of the verb form, not a separate pronoun meaning “it.” Compare the base infinitive s'aggraver with the present forms ça s'aggrave and ils s'aggravent. Example: La situation s'aggrave. — “The situation is getting worse.” ce soir is the time expression “tonight,” literally referring to this evening. ce is the demonstrative determiner used with the masculine singular noun soir; together they form a fixed, common time expression. Example: Je travaille ce soir. — “I am working tonight.” The sentence builds from the speaker’s necessity (Je dois), adds “also” (aussi), and specifies its content (savoir quoi faire). The condition introduced by si is that ça s'aggrave, and ce soir places that possible worsening tonight. Together, the utterance means: “I also need to know what to do if it gets worse tonight.”

6. Demande où tu dois aller si tu as besoin d'aide rapidement.

   Ask where you should go if you need help quickly.

   Demande

   ask

   où

   where

   tu dois

   you should / must

   aller

   go

   si

   if

   as besoin

   need

   aide

   help

   rapidement

   quickly

   More detail

   Demande is the imperative of demander (“to ask”) for tu: it gives a direct instruction, “Ask…”. The present imperative is formed here with the same basic stem as the present form tu demandes, but the imperative form itself has no written subject. Example: Demande à Paul. — “Ask Paul.” où asks about a place: “where”. It introduces the embedded question où tu dois aller (“where you should go”). Compare quand (“when”) for time and comment (“how”) for manner. tu dois is the second-person singular present form of devoir, whose infinitive is devoir. In this sentence, dois expresses what the addressed person should or must do, and tu is the subject. Devoir is followed by an infinitive: tu dois partir means “you must/should leave.” aller is the infinitive “to go”. After devoir, it names the action that is required or advised. Its present forms include je vais, tu vas, and il/elle va; these are forms of aller, not of devoir. si introduces a condition: “if”. The conditional part is si tu as besoin d'aide rapidement (“if you need help quickly”). In ordinary factual conditions, French commonly uses si with the present tense, as here. as besoin comes from the reusable expression avoir besoin de (“to need”). as is the second-person singular present form of avoir (“to have”); the full expression is tu as besoin de.... Before aide, de becomes d' because the next word begins with a vowel sound: d'aide. aide is the noun “help”. In d'aide, it is the thing needed in the expression avoir besoin de. The noun can also mean assistance in other contexts, for example une aide utile — “useful help.” rapidement is an adverb meaning “quickly”; it describes the manner or speed of needing help in this sentence. The related adjective is rapide (“quick”): une réponse rapide means “a quick answer,” while répondre rapidement means “to answer quickly.” Together, Demande où tu dois aller means “Ask where you should go.” The conditional si tu as besoin d'aide rapidement adds the condition “if you need help quickly.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Ask where you should go if you need help quickly.”

7. Je vais noter les points principaux avant d'appeler.

   I will write the main points down before I call.

   Je vais

   I will / I am going to

   noter

   write down; note

   points

   points

   principaux

   main

   avant

   before

   appeler

   call

   More detail

   Je vais expresses “I am going to” or, in this sentence, “I will.” vais is the first-person singular present form of aller (“to go”). With a following infinitive, aller + infinitive is the French near-future construction: Je vais noter means “I am going to write down.” It refers here to the speaker’s planned action, not physical movement. noter is an infinitive meaning “to write down” or “to note.” The infinitive is used after vais. It is distinct from écrire, the more general verb “to write”; noter focuses on recording information. Example: Je vais noter son adresse. — “I am going to write down their address.” points means “points” here, as in items or pieces of information. It is the plural of point. The plural form is signaled by the final -s, which is normally not pronounced in this noun. Example: Je note les points importants. — “I write down the important points.” principaux means “main” or “principal” and describes points. Its base form is the adjective principal; principaux is the masculine plural form, selected because it agrees with plural masculine points. The feminine plural form is principales, as in les idées principales (“the main ideas”). avant means “before.” In avant d'appeler, it introduces an action that occurs earlier than calling. Before an infinitive beginning with a vowel sound, de contracts to d': avant de + appeler becomes avant d'appeler. Example: Réfléchis avant de répondre. — “Think before answering.” appeler is the infinitive “to call.” Here it is the action placed after avant de; it does not itself mark a person or tense. The subject of this infinitive is understood from the sentence as the speaker: “before I call.” The form appeler has a doubled l in this infinitive; related conjugated forms can show different spelling patterns, for example j'appelle (“I call”). Together, Je vais noter les points principaux means “I will write down the main points.” avant d'appeler adds the time relation “before I call.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I will write the main points down before I call.”

8. Cela devrait rendre l'appel plus clair pour vous deux.

   That should make the call clearer for both of you.

   Cela

   That

   devrait

   should

   rendre

   make

   l'appel

   the call

   plus clair

   clearer

   pour vous deux

   for both of you

   More detail

   Cela is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” or “this,” depending on context. Here it refers generally to the relevant situation or action already understood; the sentence does not identify a more specific referent. Unlike a demonstrative adjective, it stands on its own. devrait is the third-person singular present conditional of devoir (“must,” “have to,” or, in this use, “should”). With cela, the third-person singular form is required. Here the conditional presents the result as expected or likely: “should,” not a direct command. Compare doit (“must” / “has to”) with devrait (“should”). Example: Cela devrait aider. — “That should help.” rendre is the infinitive “to make” in the sense of causing something to become a certain way. A reusable French pattern is rendre + object + adjective: Cette explication rend le texte plus simple. — “This explanation makes the text simpler.” The infinitive follows devrait, so devrait rendre means “should make.” l'appel means “the call.” It is le (“the,” masculine singular) before appel; French elides le to l' before a vowel sound. The noun’s base form is appel, and the apostrophe belongs to the article-plus-noun spelling in this phrase. plus clair means “clearer.” clair is the adjective “clear,” and plus clair is its comparative form, literally “more clear.” The adjective describes l'appel, so it is masculine singular in this phrase, matching that noun. A feminine singular noun would use plus claire, as in une explication plus claire — “a clearer explanation.” pour vous deux means “for both of you.” pour introduces the people who benefit from the result. vous is the second-person form used here for the addressees, and deux makes the reference explicitly two people; together, vous deux means “you two.” Example: Je prépare cela pour vous deux. — “I am preparing that for both of you.” The sentence combines Cela devrait (“That should”), rendre l'appel plus clair (“make the call clearer”), and pour vous deux (“for both of you”). Thus, Cela devrait rendre l'appel plus clair pour vous deux. means “That should make the call clearer for both of you.”