Learn Hardcore French: Cette situation est étrange, mais personne ne veut interrompre la conversation. - This situation is strange, but no one wants to interrupt the conversation.

ce – masculine singular before a consonant (e.g. ce problème)
cet – masculine singular before a vowel or mute h (e.g. cet homme, cet avion)
cette – feminine singular (any initial letter) (e.g. cette idée, cette situation)
ces – plural for both genders (e.g. ces idées, ces problèmes)

Because situation is a feminine noun (une situation), you must use cette: cette situation.

Could I say cette étrange situation instead of cette situation est étrange? What’s the difference?

Yes, both are possible, but they are not used in the same way.

Cette situation est étrange.
- étrange is a predicate adjective after the verb être.
- Very neutral, just describing the situation: “This situation is strange.”
Cette étrange situation…
- étrange directly modifies the noun; it comes before it.
- This is more literary / stylistic and often adds a subjective or slightly dramatic tone, more like “this strange situation (of ours)” with some emotional coloring.

So the original sentence uses the most neutral, everyday structure: [noun] + est + [adjective].

Why is there a comma before mais? Is it obligatory?

In French, a comma before mais is very common when it links two clauses that could stand as separate sentences:

Cette situation est étrange, mais personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.

Each part has its own subject and verb (cette situation est, personne ne veut), so the comma is justified.

Is it obligatory?

In practice, good written French nearly always keeps the comma here.
Leaving it out (Cette situation est étrange mais personne ne veut…) is possible but much less common in careful writing, and can look a bit careless.

How is mais different from pourtant or cependant? Could I replace mais here?

All three express contrast, but they are used differently.

mais = but (coordinating conjunction)
- Joins two clauses directly.
- Very common, neutral, spoken and written.
- Cette situation est étrange, mais personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
pourtant, cependant = yet / however / nevertheless (adverbs)
- Often start a new clause or sentence.
- Slightly more formal, especially cependant.
- You would typically write:
  - Cette situation est étrange. Pourtant, personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
  - Cette situation est étrange ; cependant, personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.

You cannot just replace mais with pourtant or cependant without changing the structure and punctuation.

Why do we have personne ne veut and not just personne veut?

French negative structures use ne with a negative word:

ne … pas – not
ne … jamais – never
ne … rien – nothing
ne … personne / personne ne … – nobody / no one

Here, personne is the subject meaning nobody, so the pattern is:

Personne ne + [verb] = Nobody [verbs]

So:

Personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
= Nobody wants to interrupt the conversation.

Leaving out ne (Personne veut…) is considered incorrect in standard written French.
In casual speech, many people do drop ne, but in that case they usually say Y a personne qui veut interrompre la conversation, not Personne veut… in this exact structure.

Why is it veut and not veulent after personne?

In French, the verb agrees with the grammatical subject, not the “idea” of plurality.

personne is grammatically singular, even though it refers to “no people”.
Therefore the verb must be 3rd person singular: il/elle/on veut → personne veut.

So we say:

Personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
(Not: Personne ne veulent…)

Why is the infinitive interrompre used directly after veut with no word like “to”?

In French, after many verbs of desire, intention, or ability, you use the bare infinitive:

vouloir faire – to want to do
pouvoir venir – to be able to come
savoir nager – to know how to swim

There is no separate word like English to in front of the infinitive. The infinitive itself (interrompre) already plays that role.

So:

veut interrompre = wants to interrupt
not veut à interrompre (incorrect)
not veut de interrompre (incorrect)

Why is it la conversation and not une conversation or leur conversation?

French uses the definite article (le, la, les) more often than English does. Here:

la conversation suggests a specific conversation that is already known from context (the one currently happening between those people).
English also says “interrupt the conversation” in this kind of context, so the logic is similar.

Alternatives would slightly change the meaning:

une conversation – a conversation (any conversation, more general or introducing it for the first time)
leur conversation – their conversation (emphasizing that the conversation belongs to “them”)

In a typical scene where some people are talking and others are observing, la conversation is the natural choice.

Could I say interrompre la discussion or couper la parole instead of interrompre la conversation?

Yes, but the nuances differ:

interrompre la conversation
- Neutral, standard: interrupt the conversation (as an activity/event).
interrompre la discussion
- Similar, but discussion can suggest a more structured talk, debate, or argument.
couper la parole (à quelqu’un)
- Literally “cut someone’s speech”.
- Means to cut someone off while they’re speaking, to speak over them.
- Normally requires an indirect object:
  - Personne ne veut lui couper la parole.
    (Nobody wants to cut him/her off.)

So in this sentence, interrompre la conversation is the broad, neutral choice. The others would work, but they slightly refocus the image.

What exactly does étrange mean here? Is it like bizarre or weird?

étrange means strange, odd, unusual. Compared to related words:

étrange
- Neutral to mildly strong.
- Can be formal or informal.
- Slightly more elegant than bizarre in many contexts.
bizarre
- Overlaps with étrange, often close to English weird.
- In everyday speech, can feel stronger or more informal.
curieux / curieuse (about a situation)
- Often means strange / odd as well, but with a nuance of puzzling / intriguing.

In Cette situation est étrange, you can safely understand it as “This situation is strange/odd.”
Replacing it with bizarre is usually possible: Cette situation est bizarre, but the tone may feel a bit more colloquial or “weird” rather than just “unusual.”

Is the ne in personne ne veut pronounced in spoken French, or is it usually dropped?

In careful or formal speech, you do pronounce it:

[pɛʁ.sɔn nə vø] → personne ne veut

In everyday informal speech, French speakers often drop ne in many negative structures:

Je ne veux pas → Je veux pas
Il n’a jamais → Il a jamais

However, with personne as a subject, people often change the structure instead of simply dropping ne. For example:

Written standard: Personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
Informal spoken alternative:
- Y a personne qui veut interrompre la conversation.

So personne ne veut is perfectly correct and natural in writing and careful speech; in very casual conversation, you might hear different wordings.

Where can personne appear in a sentence? Is personne ne veut interrompre la conversation the only order?

There are two main patterns:

personne as subject (like in your sentence):
- Personne ne veut interrompre la conversation.
  → Nobody wants to interrupt the conversation.
- Pattern: Personne ne + [verb]
personne as object:
- Je ne vois personne. → I don’t see anyone / I see nobody.
- Il ne veut inviter personne. → He doesn’t want to invite anyone.

You cannot say things like:

✗ Ne veut personne interrompre la conversation. (incorrect)
✗ Personne veut interrompre… in standard French (missing ne)

So with personne as subject, the safe pattern is:

Personne ne + [verb] …