French language Q&A Forum

Hello, I am wondering why to use "c´est" instead of "elle est" to translate "she is an angel". Doesn't "c´est" mean "it is", used to describe an object? Can you use "c´est" about a person and why is it better than simply saying "elle est"?

Bonjour, 

We know that indefinite articles "un/une/des" become "de" in negative form with the exception of verb être and verbs of states. But, does this rule also apply to the negative of interrogative sentence? 

For example: 

Il mange une pomme. -> Il ne mange pas de pomme. 

Is the following also true? 

Est-ce qu'il mange une pomme ? -> Est-ce qu'il ne mange pas de pomme ? and 

Mange-t-il une pomme ? -> Ne mange-t-il pas de pomme ? 

I didn't find any reference about negative interrogative and indefinite articles so have to ask to clear my doubt. Also, please confirm the case with negative interrogative and partitive articles. 

merci beaucoup. 

Yes Paul. I agree with you. I never learned phrases like that in school. Would they be commonly used ie. Should I try to use them in conversation or would I get funny looks, haha?

I know there are lots of exceptions in French! Is there one hiding behind the breaking of the symmetry of taking off two letters and adding one when forming participles (-er > -é, -ir > -i, but -dre > -du, rather than the simpler -re > -u) ?

The title of the Samuel Beckett play "En Attendant Godot" is usually translated as "Waiting for Godot". Would it be closer to the French original if the title were to be translated as "While Waiting for Godot", or even "Whilst Waiting for Godot"?

(I note that in the examples, you never use the word "whilst", always using "while" instead. )

It cuts out mid-way through.

Correct answer given is with ‘nulle part’ at the end. No problem with that but what is wrong with ‘n’importe où’? I’ve looked at the discussions and can’t find a definitive explanation for appropriate use of one over the other. Doesn’t ‘nulle part’ mean nowhere rather than anywhere? Merci as ever for guidance.

Why is there a "DE" here? Is the expression "fait de qch"?