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### Asking "why" and saying "because"

To ask "why" in French, use the question word **pourquoi**. To answer with "because", use **parce que**.

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Notice that **que** becomes **qu'** whenever the following word begins with a vowel or a silent *h* (for example, *il* or *elle*).

### Calling in sick

If you need to explain an absence, you can use **parce que** with common health vocabulary, like **un rhume** (a cold), **la fièvre** (fever), or the verb **tousser** (to cough).

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### Traffic and delays

Another common reason to explain why you are late (**en retard**) is being stuck (**bloqué**) due to traffic. You will often use the phrase **parce qu'il y a...** (because there is...).

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### Canceling plans

You can put these explanations together when you need to cancel (**annuler**) a meeting or an appointment.

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Why and because (pourquoi, parce que)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular 'to be' and indefinite articles (je suis un...)

Singular definite articles (le, la, l')

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)

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)

Knowing facts vs. familiarity (savoir, connaître)

Question	Answer
absent	absent
Why are you absent today?	Pourquoi est-ce que tu es absent aujourd'hui ?
sick	malade
Because I am sick.	Parce que je suis malade.
the cold (illness)	le rhume
Is it because you have a cold?	Est-ce que c'est parce que tu as un rhume ?
the fever	la fièvre
Yes, I have a cold and a little fever.	Oui, j'ai un rhume et un peu de fièvre.
to cough	tousser
Are you still coughing?	Est-ce que tu tousses toujours ?
Yes, I cannot work because I have a fever and I am coughing.	Oui, je ne peux pas travailler parce que j'ai de la fièvre et je tousse.
Why are you late?	Pourquoi est-ce que tu es en retard ?
the traffic jam (m)	l'embouteillage
Because there is a traffic jam in the city center.	Parce qu'il y a un embouteillage dans le centre-ville.
stuck	bloqué
Are you still stuck in a traffic jam?	Est-ce que tu es toujours bloqué dans un embouteillage ?
the accident (m)	l'accident
serious	grave
I am stuck on the bridge because there is a serious accident.	Je suis bloqué sur le pont parce qu'il y a un accident grave.
Is it a big problem?	Est-ce que c'est un grand problème ?
to cancel	annuler
Why are you canceling the meeting?	Pourquoi est-ce que vous annulez la réunion ?
Because the boss is absent today.	Parce que le chef est absent aujourd'hui.
Why is he canceling the appointment? Because he is sick.	Pourquoi est-ce qu'il annule le rendez-vous ? Parce qu'il est malade.
Why are you blocked? Because there is a serious accident.	Pourquoi est-ce que tu es bloqué ? Parce qu'il y a un accident grave.
if	si
If you are sick, you do not work.	Si tu es malade, tu ne travailles pas.
If the train is delayed, I cancel the appointment.	Si le train a du retard, j'annule le rendez-vous.
like, as	comme
I cough like my brother.	Je tousse comme mon frère.
He is sick like you.	Il est malade comme toi.
so, then	alors
There is an accident, so I am stuck.	Il y a un accident, alors je suis bloqué.
The boss is absent, so we are cancelling the meeting.	Le chef est absent, alors nous annulons la réunion.
to be in pain, to hurt	avoir mal
I am in pain, I am going to the doctor.	J'ai mal, je vais chez le médecin.
He is in pain and he has a fever.	Il a mal et il a de la fièvre.
badly; pain	mal
He is working badly today.	Il travaille mal aujourd'hui.
He speaks French badly.	Il parle mal français.
the hand	la main
My hand hurts.	J'ai mal à la main.
He has a book in his hand.	Il a un livre dans la main.
the head	la tête
I have a headache.	J'ai mal à la tête.
His head is hot, he is ill.	Sa tête est chaude, il est malade.
the nose	le nez
The baby has a small nose.	Le bébé a un petit nez.
My nose is cold.	Mon nez est froid.
the ear (f)	l'oreille
My ear hurts.	J'ai mal à l'oreille.
The dog has big ears.	Le chien a de grandes oreilles.

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