Le câble du micro est cassé.

The microphone cable is broken.

Breakdown of Le câble du micro est cassé.

• être: to be
• cassé: broken
• du: of the
• le micro: the microphone
• le câble: the cable

Questions & Answers about Le câble du micro est cassé.

Why is it du micro and not de le micro?

In French, de + le always contracts to du.

• de le micro → du micro

So du micro literally means of the microphone or the microphone’s.
This is the standard way to show possession or a close relationship between two nouns:

• le câble du micro = the microphone’s cable / the cable of the microphone
• la porte de la voiture = the car door
• les clés du prof = the teacher’s keys

Why is it le câble and not un câble?

Le means the, while un means a.

• Le câble du micro est cassé = The microphone cable is broken (we have a specific cable in mind, usually the one belonging to this microphone).
• Un câble du micro est cassé would mean a cable of the microphone is broken, which sounds odd in most contexts, because a typical mic has one main cable.

Native speakers usually assume a particular, known cable here, so they use le.

Why is it micro and not microphone?

Micro is just a common shortened form of microphone in French, like mic for microphone in English.

• Both un micro and un microphone are masculine and mean the same thing.
• micro is very frequent in everyday speech and writing.
• microphone can sound a bit more technical or formal, but is also fine.

You could say:

• Le câble du micro est cassé.
• Le câble du microphone est cassé.

Both are correct; the first is simply more natural in most situations.

Why is cassé and not cassée or cassés?

French past participles used as adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe.

• le câble → masculine singular
• So cassé must also be masculine singular: cassé

Other possible forms:

• la prise est cassée (feminine singular)
• les câbles sont cassés (masculine plural)
• les prises sont cassées (feminine plural)

In the sentence, the only thing that matters is the gender and number of câble. That’s why we have cassé.

What is the difference between est cassé and s’est cassé?

• est cassé describes a state:

  • Le câble du micro est cassé.
    → The cable is (in a broken state).

• s’est cassé describes the event of breaking (it broke):

  • Le câble du micro s’est cassé.
    → The microphone cable broke.

So:

• Use est cassé when you are describing the current condition.
• Use s’est cassé (or a cassé quelque chose) when talking about the moment it broke.

Could I say Le câble du micro a cassé?

This is not really idiomatic in French.

For it broke, French usually uses the reflexive form with se casser for objects:

• Le câble du micro s’est cassé. = The microphone cable broke.

casser without se normally takes a direct object:

• J’ai cassé le câble du micro. = I broke the microphone cable.

So:

• Le câble du micro a cassé sounds wrong or very unusual.
• Prefer Le câble du micro s’est cassé for the cable broke.

Is there a difference between cassé and words like en panne, abîmé, or défectueux?

Yes, they have different nuances:

• cassé = physically broken, often in pieces or unable to function because something is snapped/damaged.

  • Le câble est cassé. → The cable is broken (physically).

• en panne = out of order, not working (usually for devices, machines, vehicles).

  • Le micro est en panne. → The microphone is not working.

• abîmé = damaged, worn, deteriorated, but not necessarily completely broken.

  • Le câble est abîmé. → The cable is damaged (maybe frayed, bent, etc.).

• défectueux = faulty, defective (often more technical/formal).

  • Le câble est défectueux. → The cable has a defect / does not work properly.

For a clearly broken cable, cassé is the simplest, most direct word.

How does possession work here? Is le câble du micro the same as the microphone’s cable?

Yes. French does not use an ’s construction; it uses de + noun for possession or close relationships.

Patterns:

• le câble du micro = the microphone’s cable
• la clé de la porte = the door’s key
• le fils du voisin = the neighbor’s son

If you want to specify my, your, etc., you just add a possessive adjective:

• le câble de mon micro = the cable of my microphone / my microphone cable
• le câble de ce micro = the cable of this microphone / this microphone’s cable

How do you pronounce Le câble du micro est cassé? Which letters are silent?

Approximate pronunciation in IPA:
[lə kɑːbl dy mikʁo ɛ kase] (France; vowel quality varies by region).

Word by word:

• Le → lə (the final e is a schwa sound).

• câble → kabl

  • â is like a long a.
  • Final -e is silent.

• du → dy

  • Like dy in dune (with rounded lips).

• micro → mikʁo

  • r is the French guttural ʁ.

• est → ɛ

  • Final -st is silent.

• cassé → kase

  • Final -é sounds like ay in say.
  • The ss is pronounced s (not z).

There are no liaisons in this sentence because each following word begins with a consonant, not a vowel.