Learn French: Il mange juste une tranche de jambon. - He is just eating a slice of ham.

Il mange juste une tranche de jambon.

He is just eating a slice of ham.

Breakdown of Il mange juste une tranche de jambon.

Questions & Answers about Il mange juste une tranche de jambon.

The lesson is about très and beaucoup. How does juste fit in, and where do we put it?

Juste (just or only) is an adverb. Just like beaucoup modifies a verb to say how much someone does something, juste limits it. In French, short adverbs usually go right after the conjugated verb. That is why we say Il mange juste, similar to Il mange beaucoup (He eats a lot).

Ham is masculine, so why is it de jambon instead of du jambon?

You would normally use du for a masculine noun, like Il mange du jambon (He is eating some ham). However, une tranche (a slice) is a measure of quantity. In French, after an expression of quantity, you always drop the article and use a simple de or d'.

Does juste mean he ate a moment ago, or that he is only eating a slice?

In this sentence, juste means only or simply (He is only eating a slice). If you want to express time and say he just ate a moment ago, French uses a totally different structure with the verb venir (to come), as in Il vient de manger.

The English translation says he is eating, but doesn't mange mean he eats?

French has only one present tense. Il mange translates to both he eats (a regular habit) and he is eating (happening right now). You can always tell which one makes sense based on the context of the conversation.