When a crime can't always be translated in French by "un crime"

Quelles sont les différences entre une contravention, un délit et un crime ?

Photo by Gorka Samos Ez Dakizue

Les contraventions, les délits et les crimes correspondent aux 3 grands genres d'infractions sanctionnées pénalement, qui sont ainsi distinguées entre elles selon leur gravité respective, les types de sanctions encourus, les juridictions compétentes, les délais de prescription.

La contravention est l'infraction la moins grave : stationnement irrégulier, outrage au drapeau, coups et blessures légers, etc.

Vient ensuite le délit : vol, abandon de famille, agression sexuelle sans viol, homicide involontaire, etc.

Le crime est l'infraction la plus grave : meurtre, assassinat, terrorisme, viol, etc.

À noter : les contraventions sont elles-mêmes réparties en 5 catégories, de la moins grave (catégorie 1) à la plus grave (catégorie 5)

Sanctions encourues

Infraction	Montant de l’amende	Emprisonnement	Juridiction
Contravention	1.500 € maximum ( 3.000 € en cas de récidive)	Aucune	Contravention de 1ère à 4ème classe : juge de proximité  Contravention de 5ème classe :Tribunal de police
Délit	au moins 3.750 €	De 2 mois à 10 ans	Tribunal correctionnel
Crime	au moins 3.750 €	De 15 à 30 ans ou perpétuité	Cour d’Assise

mes sources: http://vosdroits.service-public.fr/particuliers/F1157.xhtm

DELF/DALF in June in London? Don't miss the deadline

Don't miss the deadline!

June session            

Deadline for enrolment : 11th May 2012

The DELF/DALF exams are the only official qualifications which prove your level of proficiency in French and which are awarded by the French  national ministry of Education.
They correspond to the 6 levels of the Common European Framework of References for languages
Descriptors align with the National Qualifications Framework, National Curriculum levels, national examinations (Entry Level, GCSE, A Level) and the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
Mapping of qualification levels

CEF	General Qualifications	Language Ladder Stages	FRENCH	SPANISH	ITALIAN
A1	Entry 1, 2, 3	Breakthrough: 1-3	DELF A1	DELE A1	CILS A1
A2	Foundation GCSE	Preliminary: 4-6	DELF A2	DELE A2	CILS A2
B1	Higher GCSE	Intermediate: 7-9	DELF B1	DELE B1	CILS B1
B2	AS/A/AEA	Advanced: 10-12	DELF B2	DELE B2	CILS B2
C1	BA Hons	Proficiency: 13-15	DALF C1	DELE C1	CILS C1
C2	Masters & Doctorate	Mastery: 16&17	DALF C2	DELE C2	CILS C2

The DELF ("Diplôme d'Etudes en Langue Française") and DALF ("Diplôme Approfondi de Langue Française consist of 6 diplomas independent from each other.

The A1 and A2 for the elementary user validate a basic knowledge of the language and a "survival" level for daily life.

The B1 and B2 for the independent user confirm a good knowledge of the language and the ability to communicate verbally and in writing covering a wide range of topics within the modern French language.

The C1 and C2 for the proficient user validate fluent and spontaneous communication skills at highest level and include specialized topics, chosen by the candidate himself. Candidates who have been awarded the C1 or C2 are exempted from language entrance examinations in national Universities and can give you access to jobs to the civil service in Spain and other European countries.

There are 3 sessions for exams in the London French Institute, South Kensington

January session Deadline for enrolment : 14th Dec 2011

March session Deadline for enrolment : 15th Feb 2012

June sesssion Deadline for enrolment : 11th May 2012

Fees in 2011-2012 are:

DELF A1 £69

DELF A2 £69

DELF B1 £85

DELF B2 £85

DALF C1 £127

DALF C2 £159

Download the entry form DELF - DALF

Syllabuses for DELF - DALF

What is your level ? Download the appropriate syllabus.

• DELF A1
• DELF A2
• DELF B1
• DELF B2
• DALF C1
• DALF C2

Tips for Learning French

A FEW TIPS TO HELP YOU LEARNING FRENCH

• Make it personal
• Make your own flash cards
• Take risks
• Make the most of your time in class:
• Do your homework:
• Break your study time in small chunks:
• Add a bit of fun
• Immerge yourself in the language
• Speak it
• Try it
• Get a linguistic toolbox

And never forget to…..

ACCEPT THE DIFFERENT PACES OF THE LEARNING PROCESS

Studying a language will be highly rewarding. In this instance, learning French means breaking communication barriers, enriching your world with a new culture, learning about others but also learning about yourself and your own mother-tongue. You will be able to better understand your French speaking friends not only because now you can speak their language but because you will also be in touch with their culture and ultimately get a true and fulfilling experience. Learning languages will also mean having fun and being able to travel independently and in the process getting to know more about these countries than you would have by only meeting the English speaking natives.

Even if mastering a language requires time and efforts, you will be highly rewarded with an immense sense of achievement once you will reach a certain level of competence.

Here are some suggestions on how to make your journey easier and more enjoyable while applying methods and techniques to learning effectively without wasting time and loosing focus.

A FEW LEARNING TIPS TO HELP YOU TO BECOME FLUENT

Make it personal

.While you work on the handouts and material that I am supplying, write up all the new words and phrases in your personal pocket notebook and try to make them relevant to you. If you have just learnt the professions, associate every member of your whole family tree with their profession in French with the correct syntax (Paul is an architect = Paul est architecte –no un or une with profession in French). If you are an only child, make a list your friends and their trade. Repeat them in your dull moments during your busy day. Stick words around the house, make shopping lists in French.

Make your own flash cards

Write the French word on one side and the English translation on the other. Try to memorize the words and then shuffle the cards and look for the right translation. Keep on average 20 cards. Once you have retained the word, take it out and add another card. At the end of the week, test yourself with the whole packet of cards or get your partner or kids to do it. This might have extraordinary results on your relationship or their school report.

Take risks

Remember that the important thing is to get your message across. If you don’t remember particular words, try to think about alternatives: words that have the same meaning or give descriptions ( sailboat could be describe as a boat with sheet of fabric, no engine).

In desperate cases, give a French twist to an English word and pronounce it according to the language you are learning. It might work and the only thing you’ll risk, is to be understood!

Make the most of your time in class

Participate actively to the class’ tasks and coral activities.

Since our life is generally very hectic, it can be difficult to find time or even little time to study a language outside the class, participating to the lesson is a great opportunity (along with other steps) in our way to learn. Let’s say that participating to a class is like being in France for an hour or so a week. It gives you the opportunity to live for a while outside your everyday environment allowing you to travel there while you are effectively 2 minutes from your desk. Cool isn’t it?

Do your homework

Homework offers such a great opportunity to really focus on structures and grammar as well as functions. While during conversations we don’t have much time to think about genders and verb congregations’ rules, during our homework we have the time to think about those rules and to correct our mistakes as well as reinforcing our knowledge. When doing homework think carefully about the purpose of the exercise, which structures and functions they want you to use in that particular instance. Try to get increasingly familiar with your lesson’s material till you will be able to master it without any effort. This will result in increasing your speed and fluency in the language and your ability to learn will be much greater.

Well this is my ideal world…. But I know that’s sometimes impossible for you to find the time. Never use the lack of completed homework for not attending a class. Coming to the class will always be beneficial.

Break your study time in small chunks

It is counterproductive to dedicate long time in one go to study the language. Instead of study 3 hours in one day ( generally on the eve of your class), try to study no more than 30 minutes per day and break the time in twice or even 3 slots during the day. Furthermore, if your day is full of dull moments that can be transformed into mini lessons: try for instance to repeat vocabulary during breakfast time, count number under the shower, do your shopping list in French or glance at your vocabulary list while waiting for the lift.

Add a bit of fun

Listen to some French music and sing it out and aloud. With the internet at hand, it wouldn’t be difficult to download some authentic music for you to listen to. Singing will reinforce your pronunciation and your listening comprehension will be greatly improved as well as your speed in speaking and general fluency.

Immerge yourself in the language

Surround yourself with authentic material as much as possible: nowadays it is possible to have cable television with many foreign channels. Pick up news and programs in French (Le Monde is sold literally 2mn from Eland House): this will add fun to your learning process as watching film and news will be really intriguing and it will help your lateral thinking skills. It is very important to listen and get used to the real speed as well as different accents. At the very beginning it will be difficult to understand even a single word but then it will be coming easier and your brain will absorb much better the overall learning process.

Speak it

Also try to make friends with French speaking people that speak your language. If you live in London, it should not be difficult to come across some French people (even without hanging out in South Ken)

Try it

Look forwards to put all this hard work in practice and book yourself a short break in the country whose language you are studying (not Paris, remember you want to speak French! Lille is only 1h20 away). By programming one foreign trip to France when you start studying French, you will boost motivation to study when you don’t have time.

Get a linguistic toolbox

From Day One, get familiar with some essential phrases like could you repeat more slowly please?( Pouvez-vous répéter plus lentement s’il vous plait?), how do you say this in French ( Comment vous dites ça en français)…,what does this mean ? ( Qu’est-ce que ça veut dire?), I don’t understand ( Je ne comprends pas) or I haven’t understood…(Je n’ai pas compris)” from the beginning. Do not be shy and use them as they will allow you to be pro-active in your language acquisition process.

And never forget to…..

ACCEPT THE DIFFERENT PACES OF THE LEARNING PROCESS

As a beginner linguist, expect to understand very little initially and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Language learning is a process that require a certain degree of patience and acceptance of making mistakes, which is normal –remember how many times you said ‘yes, it’s a car, a red car” to you toddler?-. As long as you keep hearing, reading the correct structures, you will learn them. Students will learn at a different pace. Even advanced students can also experience the feeling that they are not progressing. Progress in language learning is made by reaching several plateaux. Do not despair when reaching one, your brain is only processing the amount of information you have been feeding it.

Do not underestimate lateral thinking learning. No matter how slow, as long as you keep listening and talking you will add new information and suddenly your brain will absorb this without you even realising unlocking your ability to learn new structures and vocabulary. If you feel you are making little progress, try to revise old material or do more exercises and you should improve sooner or later.

How to translate 'exciting" into French without sounding like a pervert

I would not recommend to use the adjective "excitant" in French when you only mean  "thrilling" or "very interesting" as it can be a touch controversial.

As ‘ excitant” means ‘sexually arousing” in standard French, I would suggest the use of "passionant" or "émouvant" to con meanings to the English "exciting", however here are a few English phrases and their French translation.

Now, as for the translation of ‘ I’m so excited’ when you are not able to contain yourself in anticipation, I’m afraid there is no translation as such in French, you would just sound too keen.

You can however say ‘il est surexité” about a child, or any persons who cannot control themselves.

Anything exciting in your life?	Qu’est-ce qui se passe de beau à Paris Qu’est-ce que tu racontes de beau ? Quoi de neuf dans ta vie ?
I must do a spring cleaning this week! How exciting! Yes there is a touch of sarcasm.... Those who know me would confirm.	Je dois faire un grand ménage de printemps. Génial ! Quel pied ! C’est trop top !
An exciting new acting talent	un acteur qui promet

Then again, as it has been with ‘populaire’ (that used to mean only working-class in the not so far away past), the use of ‘excitant’ with the same English meaning might be creeping into French as spoken in France in a near future.

Paris in the springtime?

Avec un mois de mars si doux, je me verrais bien à la terrasse d'un café parisien à regarder passer les passants....
Comme le hasard fait bien les chose, je viens de tomber sur le billet du blog d'une journaliste parisienne, qui nous donne la liste de ses terrasses préférées classées par arrondissement.
Régalez-vous.... et informez-moi du prix du petit noir en terrasse parisienne!

http://www.deedeeparis.com/blog/adresses-paris/terrasses-a-paris

French Prepositions of Places:Test yourself

Voilà une petite histoire avec des trous, comme le Gruyère.... A vous de trouver la bonne préposition. If you need some help with the rules, go to this post

Photo http://www.wix.com/danielecapes/matieres-couleurs-textures

Aurélie a grandi ____ Paris, plus précisément ____ banlieue, mais ses parents venaient ___ Normandie. Fait amusant, ils venaient même ____ village qui s'appelait Camembert. Aurélie passait toutes les vacances scolaires ____ Normandie. Quand elle a eu 18 ans; elle a décidé de prendre une année sabbatique avant de commencer ses études à l'université pour faire letour d'Europe. Elle est partie de Paris en train et elle est arrivée avec le Thalys ____ Bruxelles, puis elle a continué en car jusque ____ Hollande. Elle a acheté un vélo ____Utrecht et elle est allé en vélo jusque _____ Amsterdam. Elle a dormi dans une auberge de jeunesse sur une péniche puis elle a vendu son vélo. Elle a rencontré un groupe de jeunes grecs qui voulaient visiter ____ Copenhague.Elle leur a demandé si elle pouvait se joindre à leur groupe pour aller ____ Danemark et ils ont pris le train jusqu'à la capitale danoise. Après Copenhague, elle a décidé d'aller __ Allemagne. Elle est arrivée ___ Berlin et elle est restée dans un squat d'artistes où il y avait des chambres à louer. Le lendemain elle partait pour ___ Autriche. Elle s'est arrêtée ____ Salzbourg pour visiter la maison de Mozart puis elle est allée _____Vienne pour manger les célèbres patisseries autrichiennes. Elle a eu envie de faire une croisière sur le Danube et d'aller  ____ Hongrie.  ______ Budapest, elle a voulu voir la Méditerranée et elle a traversé _____ Slovénie pour aller sur la côte croate ____ Zadar. De là elle a continué vers _____Grèce. Elle est arrivée ____ Athènes, elle a visité le Parthénon puis elle a repris un autre bateau pour ______ Turquie. ____ Turquie, elle a rencontré son futur mari et ils ont traversé le pays pour aller ____Ankara pour voir des amis qui y habitaient. Ensuite, ils sont allés ___ Istambul pour prendre un autre bateau pour aller ___Egypte.

Correction disponible par email

French Prepositions of places- Cities, Countries, British Counties, etc....

Ah ! le problème des prépositions en français !!!!

Tout d’abord, (First of all) you have to remember that in English, you choose a preposition according to the verb you’re using.  Au fait (by the way), a preposition is  the annoying linking word between words–like: in, to, from,...-  which seems to be always be a random one in a foreign language.

Par exemple:

I am in Paris,

I go to Paris,

I am staying in Rome,

I live in Dublin

How to I get to Glasgow from here?

So, in English, it can be in or to in front of cities ( to if you indicate movement).

Well in French, it’s not the verb which determines the preposition, it’s the place.

Par exemple:

Je vais à Paris,

Je suis à Paris,

J’habite à Dublin

Comment je fais pour aller à Glasgow?

It’s « à » because it’s a city (you’ll be happy to know it works from capital cities to hamlet or city district).

If you are talking about British counties, always use “dans le”.

Par exemple:

Je suis dans le Kent,

Je vais dans le Cumbria pour Noël ( si c’est possible avec la neige !)

Now, if you are talking about a country, c’est une autre paire de manche ( another kettle of fish)  because in French, countries can be either masculine or feminine and some plural.  Isn’t French fun?

Let’s see if we can shed some light on the issue!

Some countries are feminine: La France, La Grande-Bretagne, La Belgique, La Chine,…

Other are masculine : Le Portugal, Le Kenya, le Danemark, Le Canada, le Pays de Galles….

Some starting with a vowel are either masculine or feminine but it doesn’t make a difference : L’Italie, L’Espagne, L’Afghanistan, L’Irak, l’Iran, l’Angleterre, L’Ecosse,….

Some countries are plural: Les Etats-Unis, Les Philippines, Les Pays-Bas, Les Emirats-Arabes, ….

Do not despair, there is a trick : As you may have noticed above, almost all countries that end in -e are considered to be feminine for grammatical purposes.  The exceptions are:

le Belize

le Cambodge
le Mexique
le Mozambique
le Zaïre
le Zimbabwe

As all continents in French end in –e, they are considered to be feminine for grammatical purposes.  (L’Asie, l’Amérique du Nord, l’Amérique du Sud, l’Afrique, l’Antarctique, l’Australie, l’Europe)
When using verbs like aller, être, habiter, rester, you need to be careful with the gender of the country :
With feminine countries:                   EN                 

J’habite/ Je suis/ Je vais/ Je reste/ en France, enItalie, en Norvège…..

With masculine countries :               AU                 

J’habite/ Je suis/ Je vais/ Je reste au Portugal, qu Brésil, qu Zaïre…

With plural countries :                       AUX               

J’habite/ Je suis/ Je vais/ Je reste aux Etats-Unis, aux Philippines…

When using the verb venir, you need to be careful with the preposition:
With feminine countries:                   DE

Je viens de France, d’Italie, de Norvège…..

With masculine countries :               DU

Je viens du Portugal, du Brésil, du Zaïre…

With plural countries :                       DES

Je viens des Etats-Unis, des Philippines…

Now, practice makes perfect :
Répondez dans un commentaire/comment :

D’où venez-vous/ Vous venez d’où/ …

Vous habitez où ?

Je commence :

Je viens de France, de Poitiers

J’habite en Grande-Bretagne, à Londres, à Colliers Wood, près de Wimbledon.

Petits tests do this one if you want to be challenged geographically

 Les capitales du monde

Put the right preposition in front of the capital city and then choose from the list of countries the matching one for the city. Bonne chance!
PS: Keys are in the next exercise.

Je vais_____ Lima______+ pays???___________ Je vais_____ Lisbonne Je vais_____ Ljubljana, Je vais_____ Lomé Je vais_____ Londres , Je vais_____ Luanda, Je vais_____ Madrid, Je vais_____ Manille  Je vais_____ Mexico , Je vais_____ Monrovia , Je vais_____ Montevideo, Je vais_____ Moscou Je vais_____ Nairobi , Je vais_____ N’Djaména , Je vais_____ New Delhi, Je vais_____ Niamey Je vais_____ Nouakchott, Je vais_____ Oslo, Je vais_____ Ottawa Je vais_____ Ouagadougou Je vais_____ Pékin, Je vais_____ Prague, Je vais_____ Pyongyang, Je vais_____ Rabat , Je vais_____ Reykjavik, Je vais_____ Riga, Je vais_____ Riyad, Je vais_____ Rome, Je vais_____ San José , Je vais_____ Sanaa , Je vais_____ Santiago , Je vais_____ Sarajevo, Je vais_____ Séoul, Je vais_____ Sofia, Je vais_____ Stockholm, Je vais_____ Tachkent, Je vais_____ Tallinn, Je vais_____ Téhéran, Je vais_____ Tokyo , Je vais_____ Tripoli, Je vais_____ Tunis, Je vais_____ Varsovie, Je vais_____ Vienne, Je vais_____ Washington, Je vais_____ Wellington, Je vais_____ Yaoundé , Je vais_____ Zagreb,

Angola Arabie saoudite Autriche Bosnie -Herzégovine Bulgarie Burkina Faso Cameroun Canada Chili Chine Corée du Nord Corée du Sud Costa Rica Croatie Espagne Estonie États_Unis Inde Iran Islande Italie Japon Kenya Lettonie Liberia Libye Maroc Mauritanie Mexique Niger Norvège Nouvelle_Zélande Ouzbékistan Pérou Philippines Pologne Portugal République tchèque Royaume-Uni Russie Slovénie Suède Tchad Togo Tunisie Uruguay Yémen

Or this one if you are geographically challenged

Je vais_____ Lima , _______ Pérou

Je vais_____ Lisbonne , _______ Portugal

Je vais_____ Ljubljana, _______Slovénie

Je vais_____ Lomé , _______ Togo

Je vais_____ Londres , _______ Royaume-Uni

Je vais_____ Luanda, _______Angola

Je vais_____ Madrid, _______Espagne

Je vais_____ Manille ,________ Philippines

Je vais_____ Mexico , _______ Mexique

Je vais_____ Monrovia , _______ Liberia

Je vais_____ Montevideo, _______Uruguay

Je vais_____ Moscou, _______Russie

Je vais_____ Nairobi , _______ Kenya

Je vais_____ N’Djaména , _______ Tchad

Je vais_____ New Delhi, _______Inde

Je vais_____ Niamey , _______ Niger

Je vais_____ Nouakchott, _______Mauritanie

Je vais_____ Oslo, _______Norvège

Je vais_____ Ottawa , _______ Canada

Je vais_____ Ouagadougou , _______ Burkina Faso

Je vais_____ Pékin, _______Chine

Je vais_____ Prague, _______République tchèque

Je vais_____ Pyongyang, _______Corée du Nord

Je vais_____ Rabat , _______ Maroc

Je vais_____ Reykjavik, _______Islande

Je vais_____ Riga, _______Lettonie

Je vais_____ Riyad, _______Arabie saoudite

Je vais_____ Rome, _______Italie

Je vais_____ San José , _______ Costa Rica

Je vais_____ Sanaa , _______ Yémen

Je vais_____ Santiago , _______ Chili

Je vais_____ Sarajevo, _______BosnieJe vais_____Herzégovine

Je vais_____ Séoul, _______Corée du Sud

Je vais_____ Sofia, _______Bulgarie

Je vais_____ Stockholm, _______Suède

Je vais_____ Tachkent, _______Ouzbékistan

Je vais_____ Tallinn, _______Estonie

Je vais_____ Téhéran, _______Iran

Je vais_____ Tokyo , _______ Japon

Je vais_____ Tripoli, _______Libye

Je vais_____ Tunis, _______Tunisie

Je vais_____ Varsovie, _______Pologne

Je vais_____ Vienne, _______Autriche

Je vais_____ Washington,________États_Unis

Je vais_____ Wellington, _______Nouvelle_Zélande

Je vais_____ Yaoundé , _______ Cameroun

Je vais_____ Zagreb, _______Croatie