Meet someone or talk to someone

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by stella on June 12, 2009 at 8:51pm

hello!
I can correct your sentences if you explain to me how you use "shall" because, I have a problem with it.
For the both first, I can correct (and you can correct me too!!)
so you say
1-On peut (or nous pouvons) en parler plus tard.
I think if you say "on peut parler de lui plus tard" you have to say in english "we can talk about him later".
2-same.
why do you say "on" at the end, is it compulsory ?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on June 12, 2009 at 9:15pm

Stella

If you meet a friend and suggest him/her to go to a restaurant, you could say the following:

Shall we go to a restaurant?

It is a way of suggesting something to someone.

You can say the following to someone:

Shall we go to a movie next week?
You politely suggest someone to go to a movie with you next week.
..................................................................................................................................

It is always 'later on'. We don't say only 'later'.

1. I met you at one o' clock in town.

2. I can ask you the following:

3. What are you doing later on today? OR What are you doing later on this evening?

4. It is not correct to use only 'later' in the above. It should be 'later on' .

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by stella on June 12, 2009 at 9:48pm

ok thank you for your explanation, but I don't see the difference with "could"
1-Shall we talk about it later on?
pourrions-nous en parler plus tard?
2-Shall we meet tomorrow?
pourrions-nous nous rencontrer demain?
3-Shall we meet some other time?
pourrions-nous nous rencontrer une autre fois?
4-Shall we discuss this matter some other time?
pourrions-nous en discuter une prochaine fois?

I hope this is the good translation.
If you say "parlerons", "rencontrerons", discuterons"...you use the future, it's not correct here.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on June 12, 2009 at 10:34pm

Thanks Stella

Generally speaking the word 'could' is the past tense of the word 'can'.

It has other meanings too.

1.Can you help me to correct my French sentences?

2.Could you help me to correct my French sentences? ( This one is more polite than the first sentence.)

3. Shall we go for a walk? ( Here is a polite suggestion.)

4. We could go for a walk. ( This has the same meaning as the third sentence.)

It is not possible to explain all the aspects of the verb 'could' here. A good dictionary will help you.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by stella on June 12, 2009 at 11:26pm

yes, I manage to use "could" without problem, "shall" is more difficult for me because I never use it, but I think I have understood (I have many problems with the past perfect too, so correct me if it's not ok) ;-)
Thanks for your help!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on June 13, 2009 at 12:04am

Yes, I manage to use "could" without any problem. The word "shall" is more difficult for me because I have never used it, but I think I have understood (I have many problems with the past perfect too, so correct me if it's not ok) ;-)
Thanks for your help!

Stella
The English past perfect is not so easy.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by stella on June 13, 2009 at 4:51pm

thank you for helping me. But I would want to say "je ne l'utilise jamais" and not "je ne l'ai jamais utilisé", it's the same?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on June 13, 2009 at 5:57pm

Thank you for helping me. I would want to say "je ne l'utilise jamais" and not "je ne l'ai jamais utilisé", it's the same?

I have difficulty in understanding your question here.

1. Je ne l'utilise jamais.
2. Je ne l'ai jamais utilisé.

You should say ' I have never used it'. Do you know why?

It is the present perfect tense. This means you did not use the word today or even in the past. In other words something has happened in a period of time up to now.

3. I have never been to Iceland.

4. I have seen elephants.

5. I have eaten French apples.

6. I have never eaten French apples.

I never used it means some past event.

I have never seen Mr Sarkozy. [ This is correct.]

I never saw Mr. Sarkozy. [This means some past event. For example, I lived in France last year. I didn't see him in Paris streets.]

Unfortunately I am not sure how to use the present perfect tense in French.
I know the French tense 'passé composé' is equal to 'simple past tense' in English.

J'ai vu la voiture. (I saw the car)
Je l'ai vue. (I saw it.)

The sentences 'I saw the car' and 'I saw it' are simple past tense. In other words a past event.

I have seen the car. [ This is the correct one and means today as well as in the past.]
I have seen it. [ This is the correct one and means today as well as in the past.]

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by stella on June 13, 2009 at 7:34pm

ok, I understand your difficulties to understand my question, I'm sorry. In fact, I would wanna say that I don't often use the word "shall" and not that I've never used it, do you understand, so I wonder why I have to say "I have never used it", is it because there is the past perfect after, or other thing ?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crack1 on June 13, 2009 at 8:17pm

No

Past perfect means an action taking place before a certain time in the past.

After I had eaten breakfast, I went to work.

[ I went to work is one action and the other action was eating breakfast. The eating of breakfast took place before leaving home.]

Before mum arrive home, Maria had already cooked dinner.

[ Mum's arrival is one action and Maria's cooking is another action. The cooking took place before mum's arrival.]

I had saved the document before the computer crashed.

[ Crashing of the computer is one action and saving the document is another action. It may be I saved the document at 17.00pm and the computer crashed at 17.45pm.]
.................................

'I have never used' means the present perfect tense and it has nothing to do with the past perfect tense.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by stella on June 13, 2009 at 9:22pm

merci!

Permalink Reply by Neil Coffey on June 14, 2009 at 5:24am

Stella --

The word "shall" essentially makes a suggestion. It's a bit like saying Si on ...ait?, Ça te dirait de...? etc in French.

Neil

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page