D’ailleurs, Marie arrive bientôt.

By the way, Marie is arriving soon.

Breakdown of D’ailleurs, Marie arrive bientôt.

• Marie: Marie
• bientôt: soon
• arriver: to arrive
• d'ailleurs: by the way

Questions & Answers about D’ailleurs, Marie arrive bientôt.

What exactly does D’ailleurs add to the sentence?

It’s a discourse marker that adds a related, supporting, or incidental remark. Depending on context, it can mean “by the way,” “incidentally,” “besides,” or “for that matter.” It does not mean “so/therefore” and it’s not the same as “in fact.” Example: Il fait froid; d’ailleurs, il va neiger. (“It’s cold; what’s more, it’s going to snow.”)

Why is there an apostrophe in D’ailleurs?

Because of elision: de becomes d’ before a word starting with a vowel or mute h. ailleurs begins with a vowel, so you must write d’ailleurs, not “de ailleurs.” At the start of a sentence, capitalize the D: D’ailleurs; in the middle, it’s d’ailleurs.

How do you pronounce D’ailleurs?

Approximate it as “die-YEUR.” IPA: [dajœʁ].

• d’ = [d]
• ai ≈ [a]
• ll after i gives a “y” sound [j]
• eurs ≈ [œʁ] (final s is silent) So it flows as [da-jœʁ].

Do we need the comma after D’ailleurs?

Yes, it’s standard to set off a sentence-initial discourse marker with a comma: D’ailleurs, …. You can also place it mid‑sentence and set it off with commas: …, d’ailleurs, …. Writing it without a comma is usually considered poor style.

Why is arrive in the present if it’s talking about the future?

French often uses the present for a near or scheduled future. Marie arrive bientôt naturally means “Marie will arrive soon.” Alternatives:

• Marie va bientôt arriver (near future, very immediate/expected)
• Marie arrivera bientôt (simple future, a bit more neutral or formal) All three are common; the nuance is subtle.

Where does bientôt go in the sentence?

With a simple tense, it typically follows the conjugated verb: Marie arrive bientôt; Marie arrivera bientôt. With the near future, it comes between aller and the infinitive: Marie va bientôt arriver. Fronting it for emphasis is possible but less neutral: Bientôt, Marie arrive.

Can I use tôt instead of bientôt?

No. They mean different things.

• bientôt = “soon” (relative to now): Marie arrive bientôt = “Marie will arrive soon.”
• tôt = “early” (relative to an expected time): Marie arrive tôt = “Marie arrives early.”

Why use arriver and not venir?

• arriver = “to arrive” (reach a destination). It’s neutral about where the speaker is.
• venir = “to come (toward the speaker or here).” So Marie arrive bientôt = “She’ll be arriving soon (at the destination).” Marie vient bientôt (nous voir) = “She’s coming soon (to see us/come here).” Without a complement, Marie vient bientôt usually implies “here,” but it can sound incomplete unless context is clear.

Does Marie being feminine change the verb form in Marie arrive?

Not in the present: arrive is the same for he/she/it. Gender shows up in some compound tenses with participle agreement when using être:

• Past: Marie est arrivée (feminine -e on the participle).

Is the circumflex in bientôt really necessary?

Yes. The standard spelling is bientôt with ô. Writing “bientot” is a mistake in standard French. Pronunciation tip: [bjɛ̃to]—nasal “ien” [jɛ̃], then a closed “o.”

How can I type the accents (ô, the curly apostrophe ’)?

• Mac: ô = Option+i, then o. Curly apostrophe often appears automatically in many apps; otherwise use Option+] or insert from the Character Viewer.
• Windows: add a French or US‑International keyboard; or Alt code: ô = Alt+0244. Curly apostrophe ’ can be inserted via Unicode (Alt+0146 in some apps) or by using a word processor’s smart quotes.
• Phones/tablets: long‑press the letter: hold “o” for ô, hold the apostrophe key for ’.

Is D’ailleurs formal or casual? Are there synonyms?

Neutral. Very common in speech and writing.

• Similar/nearby: par ailleurs (more formal: “moreover”), au fait / à propos (“by the way”), d’ailleurs (“incidentally/besides/for that matter”).
• Don’t confuse with: en fait (“actually/in fact”), en effet (“indeed/as a matter of fact”), du coup (colloquial “so/as a result”).

Any liaisons or linking to watch for in the sentence?

• D’ailleurs: elision makes it flow as one unit [dajœʁ].
• Marie arrive: no liaison (final “e” in Marie is vowel-like; no linking consonant).
• arrive bientôt: ends in the consonant [v] followed by [b], so no liaison; just link smoothly: [aʁiv bjɛ̃to].

What does ailleurs mean by itself, and how does that relate to d’ailleurs?

ailleurs by itself means “elsewhere.” The literal d’ailleurs is “from elsewhere,” but as a fixed expression it functions idiomatically to add a related remark (“besides/incidentally/for that matter”), not to talk about location.