French for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide to Learn the Basics of the French Language, Build your Vocabulary, Improve Your Reading and Conversation skills

By Fabien Arnaud

Ready To Learn The French Language quickly and in a practical way?


There's just something about French that is just utterly sexy. Even if you are just discussing how bad the weather is or just describing the peculiarities of a wooden spoon, saying it in French somehow transforms the mundane into the ethereal. Maybe it's the passage of air through the nose when pronouncing "Champs Elysées" or the sophisticated accent when ordering "un croissant, s'il vous plaît", but saying things in French can be a rather magical experience.
Why learn French? You may have your own personal reasons for learning this lovely but also complicated language, maybe you're going for an exchange student program, for a trip to Paris, or to bea able to understand a French movie. There will be a lot of other reasons for you to learn French. This book will help you to your journey in French. Don't rush through the book. You can start with a lesson a day and then use and practice what you learned immediately. Don't wait until you get to France to actually start speaking French. Once you get through each lesson, get a friend or just about anybody you can practice French with and start gabbing away. The point of language is that it should be used, not just learned.


Here's some topics covered in this book:
▪ French pronunciation
▪ Verbs
▪ Useful Everyday expressions
▪ Conversations
▪ And much more

Get your copy now

• Language: English
• Publisher: WhiteFlowerPublsihing
• Release date: Sep 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201093174

Book preview

Introduction

"Donc, si vous me croyez, mignonne,

Tandis que votre âge fleuronne

En sa plus verte nouveauté,

Cueillez, cueillez votre jeunesse :

Comme à ceste fleur la vieillesse

Fera ternir votre beauté."

"So, if you believe me, darling,

While your age is blossoming

In its most green freshness,

Gather, gather your youth:

For old age will fade your beauty

As it has the rose."

From Mignonne, allons voir si la rose, — by Pierre de Ronsard

There’s just something about French that is just utterly sexy. Even if you are just discussing how bad the weather is or just describing the peculiarities of a wooden spoon, saying it in French somehow transforms the mundane into the ethereal. Maybe it’s the passage of air through the nose when pronouncing Champs Elysées or the sophisticated accent when ordering un croissant, s’il vous plaît, but saying things in French can be a rather magical experience. Listening to a French person spewing curses out loud might be mistaken by English speakers as simple declarations of passion given the flair in the words uttered. The lure of French is certainly undeniable, as somehow, we are all exposed to the French culture in some way.

What is your experience of French? You wouldn’t be reading this book if you haven’t encountered anything French in your life. Whether it was tasting your first brioche or ratatouille, watching Les Miserables the musical or Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles (A Very Long Engagement), listening to Ediath Piaf, cheering for the French National Football Team or owning an Eiffel Tower keychain, we cannot escape the French influence. Even the English you are using now is also rooted in French. Words such as ‘apostrophe’, ‘bachelor’, ‘detour’. ‘elite’, ‘machine’ and ‘utensils’ are all borrowed from the French language. We all have our own first encounters with French, and it is good to recall those at this point. A love for French is not just about a love for French words, but a love for anything beautiful.

So, why learn French? You may have your own personal reasons for learning this lovely but also complicated language. Here are some common reasons why people learn French:

●  You may be going for an exchange student program in Lyon, and you want to impress your French classmates with your ability to adapt to their language.

●  You may be wooing a pretty Mademoiselle and you thought reciting Rimbaud in the original French might just be the key to getting that Oui.

●  Your family is going on a weeklong trip to Paris and to neighboring European cities. You don’t want to get lost, so you want to brush up on the basics of asking questions in French.

●  You are watching Dix Pour Cent and Osmosis, but you want to drop the subtitles and watch the movies in their original, un-subtitled versions.

●  You are going for an apprenticeship in Arpege to master the art of French cooking. You don’t want to get lost or shortchanged in a French market when you do your shopping rounds.

●  You have a book report on Le Fantôme de l’Opéra, and you thought it would be interesting to read some parts in the original French because somehow, English doesn’t quite seem to capture the emotion of the characters.

●  You’ve been assigned to work in the French part of Canada, and you want to understand some rudimentary business French to get you started with your clients.

There will be a lot of other reasons for you to learn French. Add to these very personal lists is the objective fact that French is one of the official languages of the United Nations. This is a recognition that French is a global language, spoken by more than 235 million fluent speakers all over the world. French is spoken, not just in France, but in many European countries, in Canada, Sub-Saharan and North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Oceania, and the Americas. French is also the second most taught language in school. It also holds esteem as the language of business, literature and the sciences. Hence, when you learn French, an entire world opens up to you. Just learning how to greet people with a friendly Bonjour gives you access to 235 million new friends.

In spite of this allure of French, many people stop short of learning French once they arrive at the rules for grammar and conjugation. When you begin conjugating words in the present, past, future, present participle, subjunctive, etc., the eagerness in learning the language dissipates, and people move on to other interests. People may just be attracted to learning French for a few sentences or expressions, but never as a serious language they can actually use in day-to-day living. This is a sad reality, and it happens to the best of us. And so, my goal is to help the beginner get through the rudiments of the French language in an enjoyable and engaging manner. There will be grammar rules, no doubt about that. There is no shortcut to learning any language if you don’t know the rules of the game. But, these conventions need not be overwhelming to the beginner.

Use this book as a companion to your journey in French. Don’t rush through the book. There are a lot of French language books out there that advocate learning the language in 24 hours or less. When you force yourself to learn an entire world language in a day or two, the mind can take only so much information in, and you will soon grow to hate the process. Learning should be fun, and this takes some time. You can start with a lesson a day and then use and practice what you learned immediately. Don’t wait until you get to France to actually start speaking French. Once you get through each lesson, get a friend or just about anybody you can practice French with and start gabbing away. The point of language is that it should be used, not just learned.

And, so back to your original French experience. Savor that moment when you first felt that French was easy to fall in love with. Whether it was listening to Carla Bruni or the moment Kylian Mbappe’s right foot guided France to its second World Cup in 2018, relish the experience of falling in love with everything French. Relishing this sweet, safe memory will help you get through the hard rudiments of grammar, the boredom with rules of conjugation, the sheer number of new words you will encounter and even the sense of being lost listening to fast-paced French. We need those dreamy, inspirational French moments to help us sustain the initial drive to learn and get us through the long road to mastery. Once you begin this journey to French, you will build more exquisite and beautiful memories with French, giving you all the more reasons to fully immerse yourself in this wonderful language.

Commençons ce beau voyage! Let us begin this beautiful voyage!

Chapter One: Preparing to Learn French

FRENCH IS PART OF THE romance language family, which includes Latin, Spanish, Portugese, Italian and Romanian. These are the languages spoken in many parts of Europe. But, due to colonization and globalization, these romance languages have spread throughout the world and have become the official languages of many countries outside of Europe. French then will have a lot of similar words and sentence structures as the other romance languages.

English, on the other hand, is not, strictly speaking, a romance language. English is closer to the Germanic language family. But, English is also largely influenced by French, with a lot of English words having roots in French. Words such as ‘ballet’, ‘cadet’, ‘energy’, ‘façade’, ‘heritage’, ‘navy’ and ‘zest’ come from the French language. And, even if you are a purely English-speaking person, you will still be able to catch some words when you listen to a conversation in French. This is a great advantage for us English speakers. The phrase, It sounds French to me, is not totally true since French is very much part of the English language. Learning French, then, for English speakers is not impossible; it can even be advantageous.

Many language books will advocate their own way of learning a language. There are straightforward books, which present the grammar rules and use a few examples to illustrate the usage. There are those that are more imaginative, integrating songs and movies to learn. Again, each person will have their own learning styles. Some people learn better when they are reading a text. Some people absorb language faster when they are out in the streets. You have to find your own way of learning that will work