Voilà le procès-verbal.

Questions & Answers about Voilà le procès-verbal.

What does voilà mean in this sentence?

Here, voilà is used to present or point out something, like here is, there is, or this is in English.

So Voilà le procès-verbal means something like:

  • Here is the report
  • There’s the official report
  • Here’s the record/minutes

In everyday French, voilà is extremely common when showing, handing over, or identifying something.

Why is it le procès-verbal and not un procès-verbal?

Le is the definite article, meaning the.

So le procès-verbal refers to a specific report or document that both speaker and listener already know about, or that is clear from the situation.

Compare:

  • Voilà le procès-verbal = Here is the report / Here is the official record
  • Voilà un procès-verbal = Here is a report / Here is an official record

Using le makes it sound like a particular document is being presented.

What exactly does procès-verbal mean?

Procès-verbal is a formal administrative or legal term. Its exact English translation depends on context.

It can mean:

  • minutes of a meeting
  • an official report
  • a written record
  • a police report
  • a statement of findings

So it is not usually a casual word. It belongs to formal, legal, bureaucratic, or official contexts.

A learner should not try to translate it with one fixed English word every time. The context determines the best choice.

Why is procès-verbal written with a hyphen?

It is a fixed compound noun in French, so it is written with a hyphen: procès-verbal.

Even though verbal looks like the English word verbal, the whole expression is an established noun meaning an official written record. You should learn it as one unit:

  • un procès-verbal
  • le procès-verbal

The hyphen is just part of the standard spelling.

How do you pronounce Voilà le procès-verbal?

A simple pronunciation guide is:

vwah-LAH luh პრო-say vair-BAL

A bit more carefully:

  • Voilà → vwah-lah
  • le → luh
  • procès → pro-say
  • verbal → vair-bal

A few useful notes:

  • The final t in voilà is not pronounced, because there is no t
  • The s in procès is normally silent
  • The final l in verbal is pronounced

If spoken naturally, Voilà le may sound very connected, almost like one unit.

Is voilà formal or informal?

Voilà is very common in everyday spoken French, but it is not necessarily informal. It can also appear in neutral or fairly formal situations when someone is presenting a document or showing something.

So Voilà le procès-verbal can sound natural in many contexts, including:

  • handing someone a document
  • presenting a file in an office
  • showing the minutes of a meeting

However, in very formal writing, French might use other wording instead of voilà.

What is the difference between voici and voilà?

Traditionally:

So in theory, voici is for something near the speaker, and voilà is for something a little farther away.

In modern French, though, voilà is much more common and often replaces voici in everyday speech. Many speakers use voilà even when English would say here is.

So Voilà le procès-verbal is completely natural.

Could I say C’est le procès-verbal instead?

Yes, but the nuance is different.

  • Voilà le procès-verbal = Here is the official report / There’s the report
    This is used when presenting, showing, or producing it.

  • C’est le procès-verbal = It’s the official report / This is the official report
    This identifies the document rather than presenting it.

So both can be correct, but voilà is better if the speaker is actively showing or handing over the document.

Does voilà change depending on gender or number?

No. Voilà does not agree with the noun that follows it.

So you can say:

  • Voilà le procès-verbal
  • Voilà la lettre
  • Voilà les documents

The article and noun change, but voilà stays the same.

What is the plural of procès-verbal?

The plural is procès-verbaux.

So:

  • un procès-verbal
  • des procès-verbaux

This is a useful form to know because it is irregular-looking for English speakers. The second part changes:

  • verbal → verbaux

But procès stays the same in spelling.

Example:

  • Voilà les procès-verbaux. = Here are the official reports / minutes.
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Every French noun is either masculine or feminine, and this affects the articles and adjectives used with it. "Le" is used with masculine nouns and "la" with feminine ones. Adjectives also change form to match — for example, "petit" (masc.) becomes "petite" (fem.).

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