Aujourd’hui, Paul est le gagnant du match de football.

Today, Paul is the winner of the soccer game.

Breakdown of Aujourd’hui, Paul est le gagnant du match de football.

• être: to be
• Paul: Paul
• aujourd'hui: today
• de: of
• du: of the
• le match: the match
• le football: the football
• le gagnant: the winner

Questions & Answers about Aujourd’hui, Paul est le gagnant du match de football.

Why is there an apostrophe in Aujourd’hui? What does this word literally mean?

Aujourd’hui is written with an apostrophe because it is historically a combination of au jour d’hui (literally “on the day of today”). Over time it fused into a single word: aujourd’hui.

• au = on the / at the
• jour = day
• d’ = of
• hui (old word) = today / this day

In modern French, you simply learn it as the single word aujourd’hui, meaning today. The apostrophe is just a historical remnant; you don’t split it in normal usage.

Why is there a comma after Aujourd’hui? Is it necessary?

In Aujourd’hui, Paul est le gagnant du match de football, the comma separates an introductory time expression (Aujourd’hui) from the main clause.

• It is very common to use a comma after short adverbs like Aujourd’hui, Hier, Demain when they come at the beginning:
  • Hier, j’ai vu Paul.
  • Demain, nous partirons.

Is it strictly required?

• In everyday writing, you’ll almost always see it.
• Omitting it (Aujourd’hui Paul est le gagnant…) isn’t “wrong” in casual contexts, but it looks less natural and less clear in standard written French.

So: use the comma in writing; it’s the safest and most natural choice.

Why is it Paul est le gagnant and not C’est Paul le gagnant? Are both possible?

Both structures exist, but they’re used a bit differently:

1. Paul est le gagnant du match de football.

   • Neutral factual statement: Paul is the winner of the football match.
   • Focus is on the identity/status of Paul.

2. C’est Paul le gagnant du match de football.

   • This puts more emphasis on Paul as the person you are identifying.
   • Often used when you’re contrasting or revealing:
     • Ce n’est pas Marc, c’est Paul le gagnant.
       It’s not Marc, it’s Paul who is the winner.

In your sentence, Paul est le gagnant du match de football is perfectly natural and slightly more neutral. C’est Paul le gagnant… adds a bit of emphasis on Paul as the specific winner.

Why do we say le gagnant and not just gagnant?

In French, you almost always need an article (or another determiner) before a singular noun.

• le gagnant = the winner
• Just gagnant on its own would feel incomplete in this kind of sentence.

Compare:

• Paul est le gagnant. = Paul is the winner.
• Paul est gagnant. = Paul is winning / in a winning position (more like an adjective, different nuance).

So:

• To say “Paul is the winner (the one who won the match)”, you use le gagnant with the definite article le.

Why is it le gagnant (masculine)? How would it change for a woman?

Gagnant is a noun (and also an adjective) that agrees in gender:

• Masculine singular: le gagnant
• Feminine singular: la gagnante

With a female winner:

• Aujourd’hui, Pauline est la gagnante du match de football.

Plural forms:

• Masculine (or mixed group): les gagnants
• Feminine only: les gagnantes

French will often change the ending -ant → -ante for the feminine form of some nouns/adjectives referring to people:

• étudiant / étudiante, participant / participante, gagnant / gagnante.

What does du mean in du match de football? Why not just de le match?

du is a contraction of de + le:

• de = of / from
• le = the (masculine singular)
• de + le → du

So:

• du match de football = of the football match / from the football match

You cannot say de le match in standard French; you must contract it:

• ❌ de le match
• ✅ du match

Why is it du match de football and not just du football?

Both can exist, but they don’t mean exactly the same thing:

• le gagnant du match de football

  • Focus on a specific match: “the winner of the football match”.

• le gagnant du football

  • This would sound strange; it feels more like “the winner of football (as a whole sport)”, which isn’t what you mean.

If you want to say “the winner of the match”, you need match:

• le gagnant du match (you can drop de football if it’s clear from context).
• le gagnant du match de football if you want to specify the type of match.

What is the gender of match in French, and can I use another word like jeu instead?

In French:

• un match (masculine) = a match / a game (in the sports sense).

So you say:

• le match, du match, ce match, un match important, etc.

Jeu means “game” in a broader sense, but for sports competitions, match is the natural word:

• un match de football, un match de tennis, un match de basket.

Saying le gagnant du jeu de football would sound odd in French; match is what is normally used in sports contexts.

In French, does football mean soccer or American football?

In France and most of the French‑speaking world:

• le football (very often shortened to le foot) = what Americans call soccer.

For American football, French normally says:

• le football américain.

So in le match de football, the default interpretation is a soccer match unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

Why is the verb in the present tense est (“is”)? The match is finished, so why not a past tense like a été?

French often uses the present tense to talk about a result or current status that comes from a past event:

• Paul est le gagnant du match de football.
  = Paul is the winner now, as a result of that match that already took place.

If you say:

• Paul a été le gagnant du match de football.
  = Paul was the winner of the football match (past, with a bit more distance; it does not emphasize his current status as winner right now).

In sports reporting and normal conversation about a result, present tense is very natural in French:

• Le PSG est le champion cette année.
• Elle est la gagnante du concours.

Can I put Aujourd’hui at the end of the sentence instead of at the beginning?

You can, but it changes the feel slightly.

• Aujourd’hui, Paul est le gagnant du match de football.

  • Neutral and very natural: you set the time first, then give the information.

• Paul est le gagnant du match de football aujourd’hui.

  • Also correct, but aujourd’hui feels a bit more like an extra detail tagged on at the end.
  • In many contexts it’s still fine and used.

Placing Aujourd’hui at the beginning is more typical when you want to anchor the whole statement in time right away.

How do you pronounce this sentence? Are there any silent letters or liaisons I should know about?

Approximate pronunciation (using English-like hints):

• Aujourd’hui → oh-zhoor-dwee

  • The d’ links to hui: dwee.
  • Final -i is pronounced: dwee, not dwee-uh.

• Paul → like English Paul (French tends to say it a bit shorter).

• est → eh (the -st is silent here).

• le → lə (very short, like l

  • a weak uh).

• gagnant → ga-nyan

  • gn = like ny in canyon.
  • Final -t is silent.
  • Nasal vowel at the end: yan with the n not fully pronounced.

• du → dy (like “dew” but with rounded lips).

• match → match (much like English “match”; the final -ch is pronounced tch).

• de → də (very short, weak vowel).

• football → in France typically foot-bol

  • First part like English foot (short oo), final -all as ol.

There is no obligatory liaison between est and le here (you do not say ez‑le). You simply say: [eh lə].