Laura's French Language Blog

The French words an and année both mean year, but they indicate different ways of looking at the year. There are three other French pairs that work the same way: jour/journée ... Read More

If you are interested in learning French or just finding out a little more about this beautiful language, my Learn French course will teach you the basics in seven days.

The impersonal French verb means to be necessary or to need and is used in some idiomatic French expressions. Learn how to say it takes all kinds, you shouldn't have, ... Read More

French negative adjectives, sometimes called indefinite negative adjectives, are made up of two parts which surround the verb. Negative adjectives negate, refuse, or cast doubt on a quality of the ... Read More

Saying no is pretty simple, but there are quite a few synonyms and precisions to be aware of. Check out this lesson to learn how to say no, not a ... Read More

Read an introduction to French names and a list of more than 200 common names (complete with sound files and English equivalents) and find out about their popularity as well ... Read More

The publisher of the online audio magazine La Guinguette also offers a series of intermediate/advanced French audiobooks about contemporary France called Sur le vif (Real Life) - read my review.

A selection of listening comprehension exercises based on discussion about French politics, news, and current events. Sunday, 22 April will be the first round of the 2007 French presidential elections. Learn ... Read More

The word order with French imperatives is a typical pitfall: the order changes depending on whether the command is affirmative or negative. Get your commands in order by studying this ... Read More

Building sentences is an interesting French class filler or warm-up activity. Students practice verb conjugations or word order by putting together words or sentences on individual index cards. More: French class ... Read More

If you speak French at an advanced level, congratulations! You may not be fluent yet, but you're definitely on your way. Nonetheless, there are probably a few concepts you can ... Read More

If you spend a lot of time reading/writing French, especially on the computer, having a good French dictionary program (or two) can make life a lot easier. Within days of ... Read More

The French verb savoir means "to know," and is used in many idiomatic French expressions. Learn how to say knowledge is power, to be at a loss, to not have ... Read More

In French, each syllable of a word and each word is pronounced with the same emphasis, except for the final syllable of each rhythmic group. In order to emphasize a ... Read More

VTT, TGV, DEUG... Feel like you're lost in alphabet soup? Acronyms abound in the French language, especially in newspapers, on the news, and in political discussions. You might not be ... Read More

Learn how to say each of the US states and Canadian provinces in French, then see how well you do on the gender quiz. More: French geography

French, like English, can be very difficult in terms of pronunciation, due to intricacies like silent letters, multiple sounds for a single letter, and endless exceptions to whatever rules you ... Read More

Saying oui is pretty simple, but there are quite a few synonyms and precisions to be aware of. Check out this lesson to learn how to say yes, yeah, sure, ... Read More

There are all kinds of reasons to learn a foreign language in general, and French in particular. Read this article to learn about the many benefits to learning a language, ... Read More