Breakdown of Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.
Questions & Answers about Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.
In this sentence, soigné means something like:
- well‑groomed
- neatly dressed
- looking smart / polished
So the idea is: Paul looks neat and well put‑together when he goes to work.
It does not mean “treated by a doctor” here. That other meaning of soigné (as in “medically treated”) is possible in different contexts, but with au travail the natural reading is about appearance and general neatness.
Formally, soigné is the past participle of the verb soigner (to look after, to take care of, to treat), but in this sentence it is used as an adjective:
- Paul est soigné → Paul is neat / well‑groomed.
So grammatically:
- Paul = subject
- est = verb (être)
- soigné = adjective (a state/quality of Paul)
You could analyze it as a “resulting state” from the verb soigner, but for learners it’s easiest to think of soigné here as just an ordinary adjective meaning “neat / well‑groomed.”
In French, adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun they describe.
- Paul is masculine singular → the adjective must also be masculine singular: soigné.
- If it were a woman (e.g. Pauline), you would write:
Pauline est soignée quand elle va au travail.
So:
- Masculine singular: soigné
- Feminine singular: soignée
- Masculine plural: soignés
- Feminine plural: soignées
The ‑e at the end is usually silent in speech, but the written form changes.
They’re related but not identical:
soigné (as in this sentence):
- Focus on appearance or how something has been done.
- About a person: well‑groomed, neat, well‑dressed, polished
- About a thing: carefully done, well‑crafted, refined
e.g. un travail soigné = carefully done work
soigneux / soigneuse:
- Focus on a person’s character / habits.
- Means careful, meticulous, thorough.
- e.g. Il est très soigneux dans son travail. = He is very careful/meticulous in his work.
In your sentence, since we’re talking about how Paul looks when he goes to work, soigné is the natural choice, not soigneux.
Paul se soigne means something different:
- Paul se soigne → Paul is taking care of himself (often about health: medication, rest, etc.).
- Paul est soigné (here) → Paul looks neat / well‑groomed.
So:
- se soigner = to look after oneself (usually health)
- être soigné (as an adjective) = to be neat / well‑presented
They are not interchangeable in this context.
Technically, être + past participle can form a passive, so in theory:
- Paul est soigné could mean “Paul is being treated.”
However, in this exact sentence:
- quand il va au travail (when he goes to work)
- normal, everyday context
- no mention of illness or doctors
For a native speaker, the natural interpretation is about appearance, not medical care.
If you wanted to make the “medical treatment” meaning clear, you’d usually add context:
- Paul est soigné par un médecin.
- Paul est soigné à l’hôpital.
Without that, people will understand your original sentence as “Paul looks neat / well‑groomed when he goes to work.”
The French present tense can express a general habit or a repeated action, just like “When he goes to work, he is neat” in English.
Here, Paul est soigné quand il va au travail most naturally means:
- Paul is (always / generally) neat when he goes to work.
Not just one specific day, but his usual way of presenting himself when he goes to work.
If you wanted to talk very clearly about one particular day, you’d add a time expression:
- Aujourd’hui, Paul est très soigné quand il va au travail.
Today, Paul is very neat when he goes to work.
They’re not quite the same:
quand il va au travail
= when he goes to work / when he is on his way to work
Focus is on the moment of going (leaving home, arriving at the workplace).quand il travaille
= when he works / when he is working
Focus is on the time while he is working.
In context:
Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.
Suggests he dresses neatly to go to work, i.e. his appearance as he leaves for / arrives at work.Paul est soigné quand il travaille.
Could sound more like he maintains a neat appearance or careful manner while he is working.
Both are grammatical, but they don’t emphasize the same moment.
Au is a contraction of à + le:
- à = to / at
- le = the (masculine singular)
- à + le → au
travail is masculine singular: le travail = the work / the job.
So:
- au travail = à + le travail = to (the) work, “to work.”
You can’t say à travail; in standard French you must use the contracted form au whenever à comes before le:
- au cinéma (à + le cinéma)
- au bureau (to the office)
- au restaurant (to the restaurant)
- au travail (to work)
Yes, you can say both, but there’s a nuance:
- au travail = to work (in general, to his job)
- au bureau = to the office (a specific type of workplace: an office)
If Paul works in an office, au bureau is slightly more precise, but au travail is broader and works for almost any kind of job (office, factory, shop, etc.).
Both sentences are natural:
- Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.
- Paul est soigné quand il va au bureau.
Yes, you can say either:
- Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.
- Paul est soigné lorsqu’il va au travail.
Differences:
- quand = very common, neutral, used in all kinds of speech.
- lorsque = a bit more formal or literary, but also completely normal in everyday language.
In meaning, in this sentence, they’re effectively the same: when he goes to work.
Pronunciation (IPA):
soigné → /swa.ɲe/
- soi‑ like “swa”
- ‑gn‑ = the ny sound, like “canyon”: /ɲ/
- final ‑é = /e/, like ay in “day” (but shorter)
Paul est soigné quand il va au travail (approximate IPA):
- /pɔl e swa.ɲe kɑ̃ t‿il va o tʁa.vaj/
Points to notice:
- quand → /kɑ̃/ (nasal vowel, final d silent)
- Liaison: quand il → /kɑ̃ t‿il/ (you pronounce a /t/ between quand and il).
- travail → /tʁa.vaj/ (final l is silent; the last sound is like “eye” /aj/).
So spoken smoothly, you’d hear something like: “Paul est soigné quand il va au travail.” (with a small /t/ link: quan‑til).