Une demi-baguette ou une moitié d'une?Like many other commenters, I am confused by the the expected answer to this question: "Write 'He ate half a baguette'."
The phrasing is, at best, ambiguous in English. Either 1) he had a half baguette and he ate the whole thing, or 2) he had a whole baguette and ate half of it. Either one is a possible interpretation, and without more context and with this exact English phrase, I would assume case 2.
If indeed case 2 is intended (he ate one half of the whole baguette that he had), could one not say in French, "Il a mangé une moitié d'une baguette."? The lesson has these examples that seem like the same situation and use moitié : J'ai bu la moitié de la bouteille and Il ne mange qu'une moitié du biscuit.
The lesson also says: "Depending on context, Un/une demi-[nom] can either refer to half a full-sized item (i.e. bucket) or to one of these half-sized items . . . but you use demi- in both cases." That seems to say that demi-baguette would be correct even if he ate half of the full-sized one he had, but I don't understand why une moitié would not also work. What is the difference between the baguette and the bouteille ("J'ai bu la moitié de la bouteille ")?
Merci!
Why is this marked wrong?? Constant ends in ant:
Bernard travaille ________.Bernard works constantly.(HINT: French "constant" = English "constant")
This was the correct answer: constamment
My answer was marked incorrect: constammant, but WHY: constant ens in ant = should be constammant ThanksIt seems I'm not the only one struggling with the response option involving t-on, such as "Quand ouvre-t-on les cadeaux?"
Is it possible that this construct is a little too advanced for this lesson at the A1 level (especially because this structure isn't included in the lesson?
All the other questions seemed in line with principal focus of the lesson, but this one response option tied me in knots.
Or maybe that just what being a beginner is all about!
Many thanks again for this excellent platform -
J.
The phrasing is, at best, ambiguous in English. Either 1) he had a half baguette and he ate the whole thing, or 2) he had a whole baguette and ate half of it. Either one is a possible interpretation, and without more context and with this exact English phrase, I would assume case 2.
If indeed case 2 is intended (he ate one half of the whole baguette that he had), could one not say in French, "Il a mangé une moitié d'une baguette."? The lesson has these examples that seem like the same situation and use moitié : J'ai bu la moitié de la bouteille and Il ne mange qu'une moitié du biscuit.
The lesson also says: "Depending on context, Un/une demi-[nom] can either refer to half a full-sized item (i.e. bucket) or to one of these half-sized items . . . but you use demi- in both cases." That seems to say that demi-baguette would be correct even if he ate half of the full-sized one he had, but I don't understand why une moitié would not also work. What is the difference between the baguette and the bouteille ("J'ai bu la moitié de la bouteille ")?
Merci!
This Brussels-area store's yellow sign says "La cour toi sie". Is it even french? The clerk in the store didn't know.
I'm hoping to understand the correct response to the question below
I am confused about the marking system. As an exercise I didn't give myself any marks. I only made, I know a couple of mistakes but QizbIq still gave me five marks out of sixty! I have done the exercise several times and have nearly obtained 100% marking my own work. What is the definitive answer,? Do I mark myself or do you mark me?
Why is the definite article "le" used instead of the indefinite article "un" in the translation for "-It's a perfect symbol for this seaside town." which uses the English indefinite article "a"?
When i look up the translation of le tableau, the first word I find is painting.
Would it be better to say le tableau blanc when speaking about a whiteboard?
Bonjour,
I just want to point out that I wrote "confiture de fraises" which was marked wrong and corrected with "confiture de fraise" in the singular. I have always thought the plural form to be correct and both Larousse and Collins dictionaries list "confiture de fraises" as "strawberry jam".
Merci beaucoup,
Hilary
Can I also say " Je vais bien" instead of ca va bien?
Find your French level for FREE
And get your personalised Study Plan to improve it
Find your French level