Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.

After the appointment, Paul is reassured.

Breakdown of Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.

• être: to be
• Paul: Paul
• après: after
• la consultation: the appointment
• rassuré: reassured

Questions & Answers about Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.

Why is it la consultation and not le consultation?

In French, consultation is a feminine noun, so it takes the feminine article la.

• la consultation = the consultation (feminine)
• If it were masculine, you would use le, but consultation is always feminine in French.

Could you also say Après consultation without the article la?

Yes, Après consultation is possible, but it sounds more formal and a bit bureaucratic, like something you might see in an official report or a medical file.

• Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré. → neutral, everyday style.
• Après consultation, Paul est rassuré. → more formal / written style, often used in professional contexts.

In everyday spoken French, Après la consultation is more natural.

Why is it est rassuré (present tense) and not a été rassuré (past tense)?

Paul est rassuré describes Paul’s current state after the consultation: he is now in a reassured, calm state.

If you said Paul a été rassuré, you would focus more on the action of someone having reassured him at some point in the past (the act of reassuring), not just on his present state.

• Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.
  → The result: now he is reassured.
• Après la consultation, Paul a été rassuré par le médecin.
  → The action: he was reassured by the doctor during the consultation.

Is rassuré an adjective here, or is this a passive verb form?

It can be analyzed both ways, but in this sentence it behaves mainly like an adjective describing Paul’s emotional state.

• The verb rassurer means to reassure.
• The past participle rassuré can be used:
  
  • With être in a passive construction: Il est rassuré par le médecin.
  • As an adjective: Il est rassuré maintenant.

In Paul est rassuré, there is no agent mentioned (no one par quelqu’un), and we’re focusing on his state, so it’s most natural to treat rassuré as an adjective.

How would the ending of rassuré change with a woman or with several people?

Rassuré agrees in gender and number with the subject, because it functions like an adjective here:

• Masculine singular: Paul est rassuré.
• Feminine singular: Pauline est rassurée.
• Masculine plural or mixed group: Paul et Marc sont rassurés.
• Feminine plural: Pauline et Marie sont rassurées.

So you add e for feminine, s for plural, and es for feminine plural.

What is the nuance of rassuré? Is it the same as soulagé?

They are close but not identical:

• rassuré: reassured; his worries or fears have been calmed because he got convincing information or explanations.
• soulagé: relieved; a weight has been lifted (pain, burden, pressure, danger, or anxiety).

In a medical context:

• After the doctor explains that the test results are normal, Paul is rassuré (he no longer fears something serious).
• If Paul had been in pain and the treatment works, he is soulagé (relieved from the pain).

Often both can be true at the same time, but rassuré focuses more on anxiety being calmed by reassurance.

Could you also say Après la consultation, Paul se sent rassuré? What’s the difference?

Yes, that is correct French, and quite natural:

• Paul est rassuré.
  → Describes his state as a fact: he is reassured.
• Paul se sent rassuré.
  → Emphasizes his subjective feeling: he feels reassured.

In many contexts, they are interchangeable, but se sent highlights Paul’s personal perception of his emotional state.

When should I use après + noun (like après la consultation) versus après que + subject + verb?

Use après + noun when you refer to an event as a simple thing:

• Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.
  After the consultation (as an event), Paul is reassured.

Use après que + clause when you want a full sentence after après:

• Après que Paul a parlé au médecin, il est rassuré.
  After Paul has talked to the doctor, he is reassured.

So:

• après
  • noun: après le dîner, après le match, après la réunion
• après que
  • subject + verb: après que tu es parti, après qu’il a compris

What exactly does consultation refer to in French?

In French, la consultation usually refers to a professional appointment where you get advice or an opinion:

• Most commonly: a medical appointment (doctor, specialist, etc.).
• It can also be a consultation with a lawyer, psychologist, etc.

It’s similar to English consultation, but everyday French uses la consultation especially for going to see a doctor. Context normally makes it clear which type.

Can I change the word order and say Paul est rassuré après la consultation?

Yes, that is also correct and natural:

• Après la consultation, Paul est rassuré.
• Paul est rassuré après la consultation.

The meaning is the same. Putting Après la consultation at the beginning slightly emphasizes the time frame (what happens after the consultation), but both orders are fine in spoken and written French.

How do you pronounce rassuré, and where is the stress?

Rassuré is pronounced approximately rah-sü-ray in English terms. In IPA: [ʁa.sy.ʁe].

• ras- like ra in rapport
• -su- like su in sur but without the r, with rounded lips
• -ré like ré in réalité, with a clear é sound

In French, stress is generally on the last syllable of a word or phrase, so here it falls on -ré.

How would you make the sentence negative?

You place ne … pas around est:

• Après la consultation, Paul n’est pas rassuré.
  (After the consultation, Paul is not reassured.)

In speech, especially informally, the ne is often dropped:

• Après la consultation, Paul est pas rassuré.

But in standard written French, you should write n’est pas.