Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.

We talk about weight training during dinner.

Breakdown of Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.

• nous: we
• pendant: during
• parler: to talk
• de: about
• le dîner: the dinner
• la musculation: the weight training

Questions & Answers about Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.

Why is it nous parlons and not just parlons like in English where we sometimes drop the subject?

In French, you almost always need to use a subject pronoun (je, tu, il/elle, nous, vous, ils/elles).
So:

• Nous parlons = We talk / We are talking
• Just parlons (without nous) is not a normal statement; it’s only used:
  • in the imperative (a command): Parlons ! = Let’s talk!

For a normal sentence describing what happens, you must say Nous parlons.

Why is it parlons de and not parlons sur?

The verb parler changes preposition depending on meaning:

• parler de quelque chose = to talk about something

  • Nous parlons de la musculation. = We’re talking about weight training.

• parler à quelqu’un = to talk to someone

  • Je parle à mon ami. = I’m talking to my friend.

Parler sur someone exists but means something like to badmouth someone, not simply “to talk about” them.

So for “talk about X”, the standard is parler de X, never parler sur X in this neutral sense.

Why is it de la musculation and not just de musculation?

De la here is a partitive article (like “some” in English):

• Nous parlons de la musculation.
  = We are talking about (the topic of) weight training / bodybuilding in general.

Musculation is an uncountable activity noun here, like la musique, la politique.
In French, when you’re talking about a subject in a general, abstract way, you often use the definite article:

• J’aime la musique. = I like music.
• Nous parlons de la politique. = We talk about politics.
• Nous parlons de la musculation. = We talk about weight training.

You might see parler musculation in very casual speech or headlines, but the standard “talk about weight training” is parler de la musculation.

What exactly does musculation mean? Is it like “exercise” in general?

No, la musculation is more specific than “exercise”:

• la musculation = strength training / weight training / bodybuilding-type exercise
  (working with weights, machines, bodyweight to build muscle)

For general “exercise” in French, people usually say:

• faire du sport = to exercise / to do sports
• faire de l’exercice = to exercise

So parler de la musculation focuses on gym/strength training, not all physical activity.

Why is it pendant le dîner and not just pendant dîner?

In French, meals are usually used with a definite article:

• le petit-déjeuner = breakfast
• le déjeuner = lunch
• le dîner = dinner

When you talk about something happening during the meal, you normally say:

• pendant le dîner
• pendant le déjeuner, etc.

So pendant le dîner literally means “during the dinner”.
Saying pendant dîner without le is not correct here.

Could I say au dîner instead of pendant le dîner?

You can say au dîner, but the nuance is a bit different:

• pendant le dîner focuses on time: while we are eating dinner.
• au dîner can mean at dinner / at the dinner event (the occasion, the gathering).

In everyday conversation:

• Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.
  = While we’re eating, that’s the topic of conversation.

Au dîner is more common when you’re talking about an event:

• J’ai rencontré Paul au dîner.
  = I met Paul at the dinner.

Your original sentence with pendant le dîner is the clearest way to say “while we’re having dinner”.

Is dîner a noun or a verb here? And what gender is it?

In pendant le dîner, dîner is a noun meaning dinner, and it is masculine:

• le dîner = the dinner

There is also a verb:

• dîner (verb) = to have dinner / to dine
  
  • Nous dînons à 20h. = We have dinner at 8 p.m.

So:

• Nous dînons = We are having dinner. (verb)
• pendant le dîner = during the dinner. (noun)

Can I move pendant le dîner to another place in the sentence?

Yes. French word order is flexible for time expressions. All of these are correct, with slightly different emphasis:

• Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.
• Pendant le dîner, nous parlons de la musculation.
• Nous, pendant le dîner, nous parlons de la musculation. (more spoken, with repeated nous)

The most neutral is the original: Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.

What tense is parlons, and does it mean “we talk” or “we are talking”?

Parlons is present tense, 1st person plural (we) of parler.

In French, the simple present covers both English forms:

• Nous parlons de la musculation.
  = We talk about weight training (habitually)
  = We are talking about weight training (right now), depending on context.

French usually does not use a separate “-ing” form with être (to be) for this meaning; the plain present (nous parlons) is enough.

Is there a liaison between nous and parlons when you say Nous parlons?

No liaison here.

• Nous ends in a usually silent -s.
• Liaison happens when the next word starts with a vowel sound:
  e.g. nous avons → nou-z-avon.

But parlons starts with p, a consonant, so:

• Nous parlons is pronounced roughly: [nu par-lon]
  (no extra z or s sound between nous and parlons).

How do you pronounce musculation and dîner?

Approximate pronunciations:

• musculation → [mys-kla-sjɔ̃]

  • mu = like mew (but rounded lips)
  • sca = like skla
  • tion = sjɔ̃ (like “syaw̃”, nasal at the end)

• dîner → [di-ne]

  • di = like dee
  • ner = like nay

So the whole sentence:

• Nous parlons de la musculation pendant le dîner.
  ≈ Nu par-lon də la mys-kla-sjɔ̃ pɑ̃-dɑ̃ lə di-ne.