Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Today's lesson is not only for all of the vegetarians out there but is also for anyone with an aversion to a particular food! There are many reasons a person won't eat a particular food, and there may be instances when communicating this is necessary. Today, we'll go over some phrases to ensure you don't get any unwanted surprises on your plate.

Lesson focus

In French, "I am a vegetarian" is Je suis végétarien.
Je suis végétarien.
Let’s break it down by syllable: Je suis végétarien.
Now let's hear it once again: Je suis végétarien.
The first word, je, means "I," as we have learned.
This is followed by suis, which in English means "am."
Suis
And, suis
So to recap here, we have Je suis, literally, this means "I am."
Let’s take a look at the next word, végétarien, which means "vegetarian."
Végétarien
And, végétarien
So all together, we have Je suis végétarien. Literally, this means "I am vegetarian."
Another way you communicate you don't eat a particular food is by saying just that!
In French, "I don't eat meat!" is Je ne mange pas la viande.
Je ne mange pas la viande.
Let’s break it down by syllable: Je ne mange pas la viande.
Now let's hear it once again: Je ne mange pas la viande.
The first word, je, means "I," as we learned.
This is followed by ne, which in French is a negative auxiliary that comes before the verb.
Ne
And, ne
So to recap here, we have Je ne. Literally, this means "I not."
Let’s take a look at the next word, mange, means "eat."
Mange
And, mange
This is followed by pas, which in French is a negative auxiliary that comes after the verb.
Pas
And, pas.
Next we have la, which in French is “the” in the feminine.
La
And, la
Finally, we have viande, which in French is "meat."
Viande
viande
So all together, we have Je ne mange pas la viande. Literally, this means "I don't eat meat."
This sentence pattern can be used for other kinds of food by simply changing just one word! So let's take a look at some other possibilities. Let's try “cheese.” In French, “cheese” is fromage.
fromage
fromage
So let's try it with the phrase.
“I don't eat cheese” is Je ne mange pas la fromage.
Je ne mange pas la fromage.
Cultural Insight
I don't eat meat myself, and you don't know how many times I've been invited to dinner and forgotten to tell the hosts ahead of time. I show up and sure enough it's rack of lamb or burgundy beef. If you're eating at people's homes and you don't eat meat, be sure to tell them as they may not make enough vegetarian options for a person to eat a full meal. At the same time, even if you do warn them, be sure to get a little protein on your own as even that the French cook vegetables very well, they don't often make main dishes out of them.

Outro

Okay, to close out this lesson, we'd like you to practice what you've just learned. I'll provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you're responsible for shouting it aloud. You have a few seconds before I give you the answer, so bonne chance, that means “good luck” in French. Ok, here we go!
“I am a vegetarian.” - Je suis végétarien.
Je suis végétarien.
Je suis végétarien.
"I don't eat meat!" - Je ne mange pas la viande.
Je ne mange pas la viande.
Je ne mange pas la viande.
This is the end of today’s lesson. See you soon! À bientôt!

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