Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Sylvain: Bonjour tout le monde, je m’appelle Sylvain.
Céline: Bonjour, moi c’est Céline.
Sam: Sam here! Who Will Be The First Branch They Cut Off The Family Tree? In this lesson, you’ll learn how to nickname in a loving way your family members and talk about family.
Céline: The conversation is between Aurélie and her friend, Daniel, at his place. Aurélie is looking around the living room and she’s wondering about Daniel’s family memorabilia.
Sam: The speakers are friends, therefore, they’ll be speaking informally.
DIALOGUE
Aurélie: Hé! Qu’est-ce que DM signifie sur l’assiette?
Daniel: Dufour Marie. C’est l’assiette de ma grand-tante Marie.
Aurélie: Et là, c’est sa photo ?
Daniel: Oui, elle est avec mon oncle.
Aurélie: Elle semble de mauvaise humeur!
Daniel: On l’a surnommée Tatie la furieuse.
Sam: One more time, slowly.
Female: Ok c’est parti, plus lentement.
Aurélie: Hé! Qu’est-ce que DM signifie sur l’assiette?
Daniel: Dufour Marie. C’est l’assiette de ma grand-tante Marie.
Aurélie: Et là, c’est sa photo?
Daniel: Oui, elle est avec mon oncle.
Aurélie : Elle semble de mauvaise humeur!
Daniel: On l’a surnommée Tatie la furieuse.
Sam: One more time with the English.
Aurélie: Hé! Qu’est-ce que DM signifie sur l’assiette?
Sam: Hey! What does DM mean on this plate?
Daniel: Dufour Marie. C’est l’assiette de ma grand-tante Marie.
Sam: Dufour Marie. It’s my great Aunt Mary’s plates.
Aurélie: Et là, c’est sa photo ?
Sam: And there, is it her picture?
Daniel: Oui, elle est avec mon oncle.
Sam: Yes, she is with my uncle.
Aurélie: Elle semble de mauvaise humeur!
Sam: She seems nasty.
Daniel: On l’a surnommée Tatie la furieuse.
Sam: We nicknamed her Nasty Auntie!
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Céline: So Sam, Sylvain…
Sylvain: Oui?
Céline: …do you have a nickname in your family?
Sylvain: Yes.
Céline: Okay. qu’est-ce que c’est?
Sam: Oh, it’s a long story.
Sylvain: Do you know the Zola personnage? There’s a guy completely alcoholic.
Céline: Oh, really?
Sylvain: Gouget.
Céline: Gouget?
Sylvain: And it’s turned from Gouget progressively changed into Gouzet.
Céline: Ah, Gouzet.
Sylvain: And all the world will know my nickname Gouzet.
Céline: Gouzet. Okay. Gouzet is your nickname.
Sylvain: And my brother always say “mon Gouzet”.
Céline: Mon Gouzet.
Sylvain: Mon Gouzet. My Gouzet. Okay. You’d asked me, I answered.
Céline: Okay, Gouzet. From now it’s Gouzet.
Sam: Is there a translation in English for Gouzet?
Céline: No.
Sylvain: No. It’s family name. Gouget, a name of Zolas roman.
Céline: Yes, Emile Zola.
Sylvain: “L’Assommoir”.
Céline: Ah l’assommoir.
Sylvain: L’Assommoir from Emile Zola.
Sam: Okay. That’s interesting.
Céline: D’accord. Et toi Sam?
Sam: Nickname. No comment.
Céline: Ah bon?
Sylvain: I told my really nickname.
Céline: But nicknames are supposed to be cute, right? I mean, maybe your nickname is not cute but you can tell us.
Sam: Maybe a secret. It’s a secret.
Céline: If you don’t tell us, Sam, we’re going to give you one.
Sam: I don’t have to respond to it, so it’s okay.
Céline: Okay. Okay, let me think about it. But for me, you’re Mr. America.
Sam: Mr. America?
Sylvain: Captain America.
Sam: Captain America? I think maybe for copyright reasons, you can’t use Captain America.
Sylvain: I am sorry for all the rights.
Céline: Okay. So let’s say Capitaine America.
Sam: Capitaine America.
Sylvain: With the French pronunciation, it will be okay.
Céline: Yes.
Sylvain: Capitaine!
Sam: Hopefully, Marvel Comics won’t…
Sylvain: Sorry.
Céline: Okay, let’s get into the vocab.
Sam: Okay.
Sylvain: But your nickname, Céline.
Céline: j’en étais sûre.
Sylvain: J’en étais sûre... She was sure I was asking the question then.
Céline: I don’t have nicknames. Just Céline.
Sylvain: Right. You both!
Céline: Okay.
Sylvain: You’re so…
Sam: Full of it.
Céline: It’s Yna. No, it’s Yna.
Sam: Yna.
Céline: Yna.
Sylvain: It’s cute.
Céline: It is.
Sylvain: Okay. Then now let’s go the grammar vocabulary and all this.
Céline: Okay.
Sam: I think next is the vocabulary.
Sylvain: Thank you!
Sam: Okay. Let’s look at some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first item?
VOCAB LIST
Sylvain: Assiette [natural native speed].
Sam: Plate.
Sylvain: Assiette [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Assiette [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Céline: Grand-tante [natural native speed].
Sam: Great-aunt.
Céline: Grand-tante [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Grand-tante [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Sylvain: Photo [natural native speed].
Sam: Picture.
Sylvain : Photo [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Photo [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Céline: Avec.
Sam: With.
Céline: Avec. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Avec. [natural native speed]
Sam: Next…
Sylvain: Oncle [natural native speed].
Sam: Uncle.
Sylvain: Oncle [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Oncle [natural native speed].
Sam: Next word?
Sylvain: Signifier [natural native speed].
Sam: To mean.
Sylvain: Signifier [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Signifier [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Céline: Sembler [natural native speed].
Sam: To seem.
Céline: Sembler [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Sembler [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Céline: Humeur [natural native speed].
Sam: Mood.
Céline: Humeur [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Humeur [natural native speed].
Sam: Next…
Sylvain: Surnommer [natural native speed].
Sam: Nicknamed.
Sylvain: Surnommer [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Surnommer [natural native speed].
Sam: And lastly…
Céline: Furieux (-euse) [natural native speed].
Sam: Furious (feminine).
Céline: Furieux (-euse) [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Furieux (-euse) [natural native speed].
Sam: Now, let’s have a closer look how some of these items are used.
Sylvain: Signifier is “to mean.”
Sam: Can you provide an example with signifier?
Sylvain: Qu’est-ce que “fourchette” signifie?
Céline: ça signifie “fork”.
Sam: What does “fourchette” mean? It means fork.
Sylvain: There is a more common way to ask for the meaning of a word. You can use “qu’est-ce que ça veut dire fourchette?”.
Sam: “What does fork mean?” Great. You’ll find both ways in the vocabulary question section in the learning center.
Céline: The next set of words is “furieuse” or “furieux”.
Sylvain: They both mean “furious.” The former is feminine and the latter is masculine.
Sam: Oh. And there’s a rule for the masculine and feminine forms?
Céline: Yes. All the masculine adjectives ending with eux have their feminine counterparts ending in eus.
Sam: Oh, okay. Then there’s “sembler” which means “to seem.”
Céline: For example, Sylvain?
Sylvain: For example, tu sembles fatiguée.
Sam: “You seem tired.”
Céline: Oui je suis crevée.
Sylvain: Meaning “I’m really tired.”
Céline: Yes. But it’s in slang French.
Sylvain: Yes, I’m tired. It has been a long time since I have heard this one.
Céline: Oui je suis crevée!
Sylvain: Ah ben ça fait longtemps que j’ai pas entendu ce mot-là!
Sam: So you’re really tired and “crevée” is slang and it’s been a long time since you’ve heard that word?
Sylvain: Slang in French is “argot”.
Céline: oui argot.
Sam: Oh, really?
Céline: Yeah.
Sylvain: Yeah. Yeah. It’s a complex language.
Sam: That’s great that you guys add a slang. And you know what, we’ll try our best to add some slang here and there. What’s our last item?
Céline: It is “mauvaise.” It’s the feminine form of “bad.”
Sylvain: The masculine form is “mauvais.”
Sam: Okay. How about an example with the word “mauvaise”?
Céline: Angèle a mauvaise haleine le matin.
Sylvain: “Angèle has bad breath in the morning.”
Sam: Maybe we should give her some advice or Altoids? Now guys, let’s look at some grammar. Today, we’ll focus on family members.

Lesson focus

Céline: Family is important to me. In particular, mes parents.
Sylvain: Your parents, of course.
Sam: What about siblings? Don’t you have any siblings?
Sylvain: J’ai un frère.
Céline: J’ai deux frères et deux soeurs.
Sam: So Sylvain, you have one brother. And Céline, you have?
Céline: deux frères
Sam: Two brothers?
Céline: et deux soeurs.
Sam: And two sisters. Wow, a big family. You know what, I’ve only got one sister. She’s older than me.
Céline: Une grande soeur.
Sam: Yes.
Sylvain: Une grande soeur.
Sam: That’s big sister.
Céline: D’accord.
Sam: How about your grandparents? Do they have siblings?
Sylvain: Usually yes.
Céline: Yeah, but…yeah. Yeah. Maybe. I don’t know. I forgot.
Sylvain: It’s a good question. Yeah. My grand-mère paternelle a un frère.
Sam: So your paternal grandmother has one brother?
Sylvain: And my grand-mère maternelle est fille unique.
Sam: Ah, your maternal grandmother is an only child. Wow.
Sylvain: That’s right.
Sam: My grandmother had…oh, I don’t know on either side. They’re really big family.
Céline: Yeah, me too.
Sam: So sorry if they’re listening. I don’t remember.
Céline: Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I’m sorry, too. Actually, they don’t understand English. It’s fine.
Sam: Okay. I probably should have said that in French in case my family is listening, that’s if they bothered…
Céline: I mean, it’s no problem because they don’t understand French either, so it’s fine.
Sam: Yeah. And they don’t have a computer, so…maybe.
Sylvain: Okay.
Sam: Okay. Hey, guys, mère is “mother.” How would you say “my father”?
Sylvain: mon père.
Sam: Okay. And grandmother is grand-mère.
Céline: grand-mère oui. So grandfather?
Sam: grand-père.
Sylvain: Grand-père.
Sylvain: But you have to notice an interesting point here.
Sam: Okay. What’s the point?
Sylvain: We don’t say “grande mère”; we say “grand-mère” even if it’s a feminine…
Sam: Ah, you leave out the D.
Sylvain: …it is masculine. That’s before the Middle Age tradition. I escaped the explanation because everybody was…
Sam: I think our listeners will understand.
Céline: Yes.
Sam: grand-mère.
Céline: grand-mère.
Sam: grand-père.
Céline: So how do you call your grandmother?
Sam: Grandmother?
Céline: Grandmother? Grand-mère?
Sam: Grandma. Grandma.
Céline: Grandmom. Okay.
Sam: Grandma.
Céline: Usually in France, we say…we also say grand-mère or mamie. Mamie, Papi.
Sam: Is that like saying grandma? Because where I live, they say “grandma” like M-A.
Céline: No, no. On dit Mamie, Papi.
Sylvain: Mamie, Papi ouais.
Sam: So there’s no translation with grandma?
Sylvain: Mais grand-mère.
Céline: Grand-mère.
Sylvain: On l’a déjà dit.
Sam: Of course.
Céline: On l’a déjà dit Sam, tu ne suis pas, you’re sleeping.
Sam: No, no, just eating.
Céline: And I also have a beau-père.
Sylvain: un beau-père.
Céline: un beau-père.
Sylvain: What is a Beau-père?
Sam: A beau-père? A handsome…
Sylvain: No…
Céline: Yeah, he’s handsome too but..
Sam: Your husband’s father? Stepfather?
Céline: Yes, stepfather. Beau-père.
Sylvain: Not the father-in-law?
Céline: Also father-in-law.
Sylvain: Okay.
Céline: But I don’t have a father-in-law. Not yet.
Sam: Okay. Or maybe we can get into that nuance in another lesson.
Sylvain: English.
Sam: You guys are a piece of work. In case any of my family members had bought a computer, which you haven’t probably, hello.
Céline: Sylvain?
Sylvain: Bonjour aussi à… Bonjour à toute ma famille en France, à Tatie, Mamie, tout le monde et euh à mon frère et euh ma maman euh et ben pis tous les amis hein. Bonjour à tous!
Céline: Ah ben oui attends attends attends mais toi t’as dit tout le monde alors moi je sais: euh bonjour maman, bonjour papa, bonjour Claude, Emmanuel, Edouard, Antoine, Virginie, tout le monde. Gros gros bisous.
Sam: Yeah. Now, if someone to say hello to you guys’ families and also to apologies for the strange French accent sometimes. Say hello to your families.
Sylvain: What strange accent?
Céline: Mais non!
Sam: My accent, American.
Céline: Mais il est beau ton accent américain. I love your American accent.
Sylvain: Please listen.
Sam: You love America, too?
Céline: I love your American accent when you speak French.
Sam: What does it sound like? Sound American?
Céline: Oh, yeah, definitely.
Sam: Okay.
Sylvain: That’s nice. Listener, please keep your accent. It’s a charm.
Sam: Oh. I think so too.
Céline: Bisous bisous.
Sam: Of course. Bisous bisous.
Sylvain: Ouais.
Sam: Okay. I think that’s a good place to end for today. So let’s wrap up today’s lesson. So, anything else, guys?
Céline: Okay. I just say I lied. My nickname is not Yna.
Sam: What is your nickname?
Céline: It’s mangouste.
Sam: mangouste?
Sylvain: génial! génial!
Sam: What does mangouste mean in English?
Céline: mongoose.
Sam: mongoose.
Céline: oui.
Sam: mangoose?
Céline: mangoose.
Sylvain: She hates men.

Outro

Sam: Okay. Well, thank you guys for listening. See you next time.
Sylvain: See you!
Céline: Bye, au revoir!

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