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### The half of a conversation this course has not taught

You can ask for things, thank people and apologise. What you cannot yet do is **answer** — agree, hedge, decline, or react. These eleven words do almost all of that work in spoken French.

### Agreeing, and the register ladder

| word | register | what it does |
|---|---|---|
| **ok** | informal, everywhere | plain agreement |
| **ça marche** | informal | *works for me* — agreeing to a plan |
| **avec plaisir** | polite | accepting an offer warmly |
| **pas de problème** | neutral | *no problem* — after thanks, or agreeing to a favour |

{{item:872507}}

**Avec plaisir** is the one to reach for when someone invites you. *Oui* alone is correct but flat.

### Hedging and reacting

**Ça dépend** is the single most useful hedge in the language — it buys you a whole sentence of thinking time.

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**Ça y est** marks a thing just completed: *there we go, done*. **Super** and **félicitations** are the reactions — one for a thing, one for a person.

### Disagreeing without being rude

**Pas du tout** is an emphatic *not at all*, and it is a full answer on its own. **Moi non plus** is *me neither* — the mirror of *moi aussi*, and you must use it after a negative:

{{item:872528}}

*Moi aussi* after a negative sentence is a beginner's mistake that French speakers notice immediately.

### The tag question

**N'est-ce pas** turns any statement into a question expecting agreement — English *isn't it, aren't you, right*, all in one invariable phrase.

{{item:872531}}

Everyday replies

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite articles and elision (le, la, l')

Indefinite articles (un, une)

Identifying vs. describing (c'est vs. il est)

Feminine adjective agreement (+e)

Plural pronouns and 'to be' (nous sommes, vous êtes)

Formal and informal you (tu vs. vous)

Plural nouns and indefinite articles (des... -s)

Plural definite articles (les)

Plural adjective agreement (+s)

Stressed pronouns (moi, toi, lui)

The verb "to have" singular (j'ai, tu as, il a)

The verb "to have" plural (nous avons, vous avez, ils ont)

There is / there are (il y a)

Basic verbal negation (ne... pas)

Negating "there is" (il n'y a pas de)

Regular -er verbs singular (je parle, tu parles, il parle)

Regular -er verbs plural (nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent)

The verb "to be called" (s'appeler)

Yes/no questions with intonation (Tu parles ?)

Yes/no questions with "Est-ce que" (Est-ce que tu parles ?)

Informal questions (qui, que, quoi)

Standard questions (est-ce que)

Singular possessives (mon, ton, son)

Plural possessives (notre, votre, leur)

Demonstrative adjectives (ce, cet, cette, ces)

Adjective placement

Numbers 1 to 20

Numbers 21 to 100

Age and physical states (avoir)

The verb to go (aller)

The preposition to/at (à, au, aux)

Question word for location (où)

Prepositions for cities and countries (à, en, au, aux)

The verb to come (venir)

The preposition from/of (de, du, des)

Question word for origin (d'où)

The verb to do/make (faire)

Days of the week (lundi, mardi)

Telling time (il est... heure)

Question words for time (quand, à quelle heure)

The verb to take or have (prendre)

The verb to drink (boire)

Partitive articles (du, de la, de l')

Zero quantity (pas de)

Expressions of quantity (un peu de, beaucoup de)

Asking how much or how many (combien, combien de)

Very vs. a lot (très, beaucoup)

The verb to want (vouloir)

Polite requests (je voudrais)

The verb to be able to (pouvoir)

Obligation (devoir)

General obligation (il faut)

Why and because (pourquoi, parce que)

Expressing purpose (pour)

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous)

Daily routine verbs (se lever, s'habiller)

Adverbs of frequency (parfois, rarement)

Never (ne... jamais)

Regular -ir verbs (choisir, finir)

Regular -re verbs (attendre, répondre)

Irregular -ir verbs (sortir, partir, dormir)

Informal 'we' (on)

The imperative mood

Direct object pronouns (le, la, les, l')

The near future (aller + infinitive)

The recent past (venir de + infinitive)

The passé composé with avoir

Irregular past participles (eu, été, fait, pris, vu)

The passé composé with être

The negative passé composé (ne ... pas)

Saying goodbye

Please, sorry and thank you

Which / what (quel)

The indefinite adjective (tout, tous)

Irregular feminine adjectives (-euse, -ve)

Double consonant adjectives (-enne, -ette)

Feminine adjective endings (-ère, -trice)

Irregular plurals (-x)

Plurals ending in -al (-aux)

Present tense stem changes (e to è)

Accent stem changes (é to è)

Double consonant verbs (appeler, jeter)

Verbs ending in -yer (payer, envoyer)

Irregular communication verbs (dire, lire)

Irregular action verbs (écrire, mettre)

Question	Answer
OK, all right	ok
OK, I am coming tomorrow.	Ok, je viens demain.
great, awesome	super
This restaurant is great.	Ce restaurant est super.
Your party is great!	Ta fête est super !
it works, that's fine (agreeing)	ça marche
OK, that works!	Ok, ça marche !
That works, I am booking a table.	Ça marche, je réserve une table.
it depends	ça dépend
Are you coming? It depends.	Est-ce que tu viens ? Ça dépend.
It depends on my appointment.	Ça dépend de mon rendez-vous.
that's it, done	ça y est
That's it, I am finishing my work.	Ça y est, je finis mon travail.
That's it! We are going to the party.	Ça y est ! Nous allons à la fête.
no problem	pas de problème
No problem, I will do the dishes.	Pas de problème, je fais la vaisselle.
Thank you very much! No problem.	Merci beaucoup ! Pas de problème.
with pleasure, gladly	avec plaisir
Are you coming to the party? Gladly!	Tu viens à la fête ? Avec plaisir !
Gladly, I would like a coffee.	Avec plaisir, je voudrais un café.
congratulations	félicitations
Congratulations on your work!	Félicitations pour ton travail !
You win! Congratulations!	Tu gagnes ! Félicitations !
not at all	pas du tout
I do not like this film at all.	Je n'aime pas du tout ce film.
That is not expensive at all.	Ça ne coûte pas du tout cher.
me neither	moi non plus
I am not working tomorrow. Me neither!	Je ne travaille pas demain. Moi non plus !
She does not like fish, and me neither.	Elle n'aime pas le poisson, et moi non plus.
isn't it? right?	n'est-ce pas
You are coming with us, aren't you?	Tu viens avec nous, n'est-ce pas ?
That is your car, isn't it?	C'est ta voiture, n'est-ce pas ?
welcome (adjective)	bienvenu
You are welcome in our house.	Vous êtes bienvenus dans notre maison.
A little help is always welcome.	Un peu d'aide est toujours bienvenue.
hello (on the telephone)	allô
Hello? Yes, it is me.	Allô ? Oui, c'est moi.
Hello, are you there?	Allô, tu es là ?
to joke	plaisanter
No, I am joking!	Non, je plaisante !
He likes to joke with us.	Il aime plaisanter avec nous.

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