Help!

Hello,

Can anyone help on how to say "I used to" in French. Example, "I used to" love her.

Merci =)

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Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 16, 2009 at 2:44am

Hello,

There's no exact translation of "I used to". Usually, "I used to + verb" becomes in French this same verb "à l'imparfait" (one of the past tense).

I used to love her = je l'aimais
I used to live in London = j'habitais à Londres autrefois
etc.

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Permalink Reply by Edgar Colín on July 16, 2009 at 4:36am

Thanks a lot for your reply.

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Permalink Reply by Crack1 on July 16, 2009 at 3:22pm

Marc

I used to drink wine.
J'ai bu du vin.
Is the French sentence correct?

[ I used to drink wine means a past event. It maybe 10 years ago I drank wine very often.]

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Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 16, 2009 at 4:42pm

J'ai bu du vin is grammatically correct but means that you did it only once. It was not a habit. For instance: Hier, j'ai bu du vin.
The correct translation would rather be: Autrefois, je buvais du vin.

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Permalink Reply by Crack1 on July 16, 2009 at 9:16pm

Thanks Marc

I used to eat spicy food.
The above means it was some years ago. I am not eating spicy food nowadays.

J'ai mangé de la nourriture épicée.
Is the above correct?
...........................................................................................

Autrefois, je buvais du vin.

When you write 'je buvais' means imperfect tense. The literal translation is ' I drank'.
The word 'autrefois' means 'in the past' in English.

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Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 17, 2009 at 12:17am

The word "autrefois" is often used to insist on the fact that the event you're talking about was in a distant past (not just yesterday, for example).

I used to eat spicy food.
Autrefois, je mangeais de la nourriture épicée.
Quand j'étais petit, je mangeais de la nourriture épicée. Plus maintenant (not anymore).

"J'ai mangé de la nourriture épicée" doesn't give any information on when you did it and, even more important, it sounds like you only did it once.
Hier, j'ai mangé de la nourriture épicée.
J'ai mangé de la nourriture épicée il y a 3 minutes à peine.
Le 23 janvier 1982 à 8 heures du matin, j'ai mangé de la nourriture épicée.

Beware: a verb in imperfect tense (like "je buvais") can be literaly translated by "I drank" only if, in the context, the action you're doing (here, you were drinking) is something that you were doing at the moment, but only once (not as a habit).

1. Hier soir, je buvais une bière sur la terrasse. ---> I drank
BUT
2. Tous les soirs, je buvais une bière sur la terrasse. ----> I used to drink
AND ALSO
3. Tous les soirs, je bois une bière sur la terrasse. ----> I drink (I think that the correct form?)

The difference between 2 and 3: in 2, nowadays, you don't drink anymore (it was a habit). In 3, you still drink a beer every evening and you will keep it like this (it is a habit).

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Permalink Reply by Crack1 on July 17, 2009 at 9:30pm

Thanks Marc

You have beautifully translated and explained the French way of saying ' I used to drink beer' and ' I drink beer'.

There is another form in English. That is 'used +ing form of the verb.

1.I am used to looking at beautiful girls when I go to ...
2. I look at beautiful girls when I go to ...
3. I am used to negotiating the crowded and narrow streets by bicycle.

The first and the second sentences are synonymous.
How do you write the first sentence in French?
I have a hunch that this doesn't exist in French.

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Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 17, 2009 at 10:18pm

I think we could translate those two sentences like this:
1. J'ai pour habitude de regarder les jolies filles quand je vais à...
2. Je regarde les jolies filles quand je vais à...

I am used to verb+ing = J'ai pour habitude de +verb

(1. and 2. are synonymous)

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Permalink Reply by Crack1 on July 17, 2009 at 11:48pm

Thanks Marc

In English it is common to say that you negotiate by bike/car.
This means roads are narrow and crowded. There are lot of cars. So it is a struggle to reach your destination.

Faire du velo is the French way of saying 'go cycling'.

To go by bike is 'en velo'.

I always say it is difficult to negotiate by bike. In summer there are a lot of bikes and the specific track is flooded with cyclists.
I don't know whether you have a specific track for cyclists in Switzerland.

It is difficult to negotiate by bicycle.
How do you say the above in French?

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Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 18, 2009 at 2:11am

It's interesting. In French, we also use the verb "negociate", but only for turns on the road. --> "négocier un virage". This has nothing to do with narrow or crowded roads in French, but only with "well or bad driven" turns.
Je roulais trop vite. J'ai mal négocié le virage et j'ai traversé la ligne médiane.

About your sentence: "It is difficult to negotiate by bicycle."
Unfortunately, I don't think there is any exact translation of this, but we're used to saying (oooh, I just used "used to +verb-ing hahaha. I hope I got it right) :
C'est difficile de s'imposer en vélo/voiture.

French expression: "s'imposer dans la circulation" :
- -> s'imposer = to impose oneself
So, s'imposer dans la circulation means to be able to "get your way" in the middle of the crowd, of the traffic.

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on July 18, 2009 at 6:54pm

Marc
I didn't find the meaning you mentioned in my dictionary.
I found only the following meanings for the word s'imposer.

s'imposer [ to win]

s'imposer à l'attention [ to command attention]

Il s'est imposé sans difficulté [ He found it easy to assert himself.]

Prendre les mesures qui s'imposent [ To take necessary steps.]

Une visite au Louvre s'impose. [ Visit to the Louvre is a must.]

Je ne voulais pas m'impose. [ I didn't want to impose.]

S'imposer un labeur. [ To undertake a task.]

Permalink Reply by Marc Vonhalmen on July 18, 2009 at 7:14pm

Hi,

I think it would be the meaning of:
Je ne voulais pas m'imposer. [ I didn't want to impose.]

For instance, you're on a secondary road and you want to join the main road, but there's a lot of traffic on it. So, you hope somebody will give you the priority (does that make sense in English?) and let you join the main road. But for that, maybe you will have to "impose yourself". It means that you will enter slowly on the main road, almost forcing the other cars to stop and let you join the main road. You're imposing yourself in the traffic.

If you're in the car (and you're not the driver) and you don't want to wait for somebody to let you pass, you would say to the driver "Vas-y, impose-toi !".

I hope this helps ....?