Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.

I feel mentally tired tonight.

Breakdown of Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.

• je: I
• fatigué: tired
• se: oneself
• sentir: to feel
• ce soir: tonight
• mentalement: mentally

Questions & Answers about Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.

Why is it je me sens and not just je sens?

In French, se sentir (reflexive verb) means “to feel (a certain way)” about yourself:

• Je me sens fatigué. = I feel tired.
• Je me sens bien. = I feel good.

Without the reflexive pronoun me, sentir usually means “to smell” (literally or figuratively):

• Je sens quelque chose. = I smell something / I sense something.

So je me sens mentalement fatigué = “I feel mentally tired,”
whereas je sens mentalement fatigué would be wrong / meaningless in standard French.

What tense is je me sens and how is se sentir conjugated?

Je me sens is in the present tense, 1st person singular.

Se sentir (to feel) in the present tense is:

• je me sens – I feel
• tu te sens – you feel (informal)
• il / elle / on se sent – he / she / one feels
• nous nous sentons – we feel
• vous vous sentez – you feel (formal or plural)
• ils / elles se sentent – they feel

In your sentence, je me sens describes how you feel right now (this evening).

Why is me used instead of m’ in je me sens?

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous, se) become m’, t’, s’ only before a vowel or mute h:

• Je m’appelle… (because appelle starts with a vowel)
• Je m’habille. (because habille starts with a mute h)

But sens starts with s, a consonant, so there is no elision:

• Je me sens (not je m’sens in standard writing).

In fast spoken French, people may sound like they’re saying j’me sens, but in writing it stays je me sens.

Why is fatigué masculine? What if the speaker is a woman?

Adjectives in French agree with the gender and number of the subject.

• If the speaker is male (or grammatically masculine), use fatigué.
• If the speaker is female, use fatiguée (add -e).

So:

• A man: Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.
• A woman: Je me sens mentalement fatiguée ce soir.

Spoken, the extra -e often changes the pronunciation slightly:
fatigué [fa-ti-gay] vs fatiguée [fa-ti-gay] – usually very similar, but in careful speech, you may hear the difference in liaison in some contexts.

Can I say Je suis mentalement fatigué ce soir instead of Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say both; they’re both correct and natural.

• Je suis mentalement fatigué ce soir.
  = I am mentally tired this evening.
  → Simple statement of fact.

• Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.
  = I feel mentally tired this evening.
  → Emphasizes your subjective feeling right now.

In everyday conversation, je suis fatigué is even more common.
Je me sens fatigué sounds slightly more focused on your internal experience, but the difference is subtle.

Why is mentalement before fatigué? Could I say Je me sens fatigué mentalement?

Both are possible:

• Je me sens mentalement fatigué.
• Je me sens fatigué mentalement.

Mentalement is an adverb describing how you are tired.
Adverbs in French are fairly flexible in position:

1. Before the adjective:

   • mentalement fatigué → very natural; common pattern (physiquement fatigué, émotionnellement épuisé, etc.).

2. After the adjective:

   • fatigué mentalement → also correct, sometimes used to stress the mental aspect (contrasting it with physical tiredness).

In your sentence, mentalement fatigué is probably the most neutral and natural order.

Why is it mentalement and not mentale?

• Mentale is an adjective: it must modify a noun.
  
  • la fatigue mentale = mental fatigue
• Mentalement is an adverb: it modifies a verb or adjective.
  
  • être mentalement fatigué = to be mentally tired

In je me sens mentalement fatigué, mentalement modifies the adjective fatigué.
You cannot say je me sens mentale fatigué; that would be ungrammatical.

Why is ce soir at the end of the sentence? Can it go at the beginning?

Time expressions like ce soir (this evening) are quite flexible. All of these are correct:

• Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.
• Ce soir, je me sens mentalement fatigué.
• Je me sens, ce soir, mentalement fatigué. (more formal/literary or for special emphasis)

The most natural everyday order is usually:

Subject + verb + rest of the information + time expression at the end

So your original sentence is completely standard.

What exactly does ce soir mean? Is it “tonight” or “this evening”?

Ce soir can translate as “this evening” or “tonight”, depending on context.

• If it’s still daytime: ce soir usually refers to later today, in the evening/night.
• If it’s already evening: it refers to this current evening/tonight.

English makes a slight distinction between evening and night; French ce soir covers both in most everyday situations.

Could I just say Je suis fatigué ce soir without mentalement?

Yes.

• Je suis fatigué ce soir. = I am tired tonight.

Without mentalement, it usually implies general tiredness (often physical).
By adding mentalement, you specify that the fatigue is mental/psychological rather than (or more than) physical:

• Je suis mentalement fatigué ce soir. = I am mentally tired tonight.

Is there a difference between fatigué and épuisé here?

Yes, it’s a difference of degree:

• fatigué = tired
• épuisé = exhausted, completely worn out

So:

• Je me sens mentalement fatigué ce soir.
  → I feel mentally tired.

• Je me sens mentalement épuisé ce soir.
  → I feel mentally exhausted tonight (much stronger).

Both are common; choose based on how strong you want the feeling to be.