Learn how to ask about someone's occupation
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Céline: Bonjour je suis Céline. |
| Sylvain: Et moi c’est Sylvain. |
| Sam: Sam here! Do You Wear Spandex To Work? In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask informally about a third-person job and the feminization of profession. |
| Céline: The conversation is between Aurélie and Daniel. Daniel’s brother caught Aurélie’s attention in the family picture. |
| Sam: Speakers are friends, therefore, they will be speaking informally. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Sweety Aurélie: Et ton frère, il fait quoi? |
| Pimple Daniel: J’y crois pas ! |
| Sweety Aurélie: S’il te plaît ! |
| Pimple Daniel: Okay. Mon frère est artisan ébéniste. Il a sa propre entreprise. |
| Sweety Aurélie: Ah, ouais? |
| Pimple Daniel: Et il joue à la guitare. |
| Sweety Aurélie: La guitare? Moi aussi! |
| Sam: One more time, slowly. |
| Female: Encore une fois, lentement. |
| Sweety Aurélie: Et ton frère, il fait quoi? |
| Pimple Daniel: J’y crois pas! |
| Sweety Aurélie: S’il te plaît! |
| Pimple Daniel: Okay. Mon frère est artisan ébéniste. Il a sa propre entreprise. |
| Sweety Aurélie: Ah, ouais? |
| Pimple Daniel: Et il joue à la guitare. |
| Sweety Aurélie: La guitare? Moi aussi! |
| Sam: One more time with the English. |
| Female: Encore une fois avec l’anglais. |
| Sweety Aurélie: Et ton frère, il fait quoi? “And your brother, what does he do?” |
| Pimple Daniel: J’y crois pas! “I don't believe this!” |
| Sweety Aurélie: S’il te plait! “Please!” |
| Pimple Daniel: Okay. Mon frère est artisan ébéniste. Il a sa propre entreprise. “Okay, my brother is a cabinetmaker. He has his own company.” |
| Sweety Aurélie: Ah, ouais? “Oh, yeah?” |
| Pimple Daniel: Et il joue à la guitare. “And he plays the guitar.” |
| Sweety Aurélie: La guitare? Moi aussi! “The guitar? Me, too!” |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Céline: So guys, do you play any instrument? |
| Sam: No. |
| Céline: No? L’accordéon. |
| Sylvain: l’accordéon? |
| Céline: L’accordéon. |
| Sylvain: non. |
| Sam: Non. |
| Céline: Oui mais l’accordéon c’est très français. Accordéon is really French. How do you say accordéon in English? |
| Sam: Accordion. |
| Céline: Okay. There’s a famous woman. Do you know her? |
| Sylvain: I’m listening. |
| Céline: Yeah? Yvette Horner. |
| Sylvain: Oh, Yvette Horner! |
| Sam: Who’s that? |
| Céline: Yvette Horner, she’s a famous famous famous accordionist. |
| Sam: Oh, yeah. I have her… don’t have her sheet. Sorry. |
| Céline: No, you don’t have. Me neither. |
| Sam: You should buy. |
| Céline: You remember? That was long time ago. Gaultier. |
| Sylvain: Gaultier. |
| Céline: Gaultier. Jean Paul Gaultier dressed her. |
| Sylvain: I don’t think it’s… |
| Sam: I don’t really… |
| Céline: She is a “rousse”. |
| Sam: Red head? |
| Sylvain: Yeah. |
| Céline: Yeah. |
| Sam: Me, too. |
| Céline: No, no, red hair, not red head. Okay. Ah d’accord c’était encore une blague. Oulà la aujourd’hui il y a beaucoup de blagues! |
| Sylvain: Sam est en forme! |
| Céline: So yeah. But some people play it. |
| Sam: Some people play it. |
| Céline: Yeah. |
| Sam: Do you play? |
| Céline: Moi? Ah non pas du tout. |
| Sam: Why? |
| Céline: It’s really difficult to play. |
| Sam: Maybe. |
| Céline: And do you know les bals musettes? |
| Sylvain: les bals musettes, mais ça existe plus ça! |
| Sam: Oh, that’s… |
| Céline: Mais non c’est très français, c’est le… accordéon. |
| Sylvain: Okay, okay. |
| Sam: What is it? Can you explain? |
| Céline: Bals musette? Okay. Sylvain, qu’est-ce que c’est un bal musette? |
| Sylvain: Alors dans les… normalement, for the 14th of July, the French National… |
| Céline: …Holiday? |
| Sylvain: …Holiday, at the night, you...he’s laughing at me. |
| Sam: That’s not to be confused with the 4th of July. That’s a different day. |
| Céline: Oh, 14th. |
| Sylvain: On the night of the 13th, they organize popular party. |
| Sam: Like a block party. |
| Céline: Yeah, a block party. Yeah. |
| Sylvain: Block party. Yeah. Where everybody dance with the sound of the accordéon. |
| Sam: Sound good. |
| Céline: Oui. Voilà! |
| Sylvain: Oui… Eh bien... |
| Sam: I was just thinking about… |
| Sylvain: ...parlez-moi de votre enfance! |
| Sam: I was thinking about how great that party must be in France on the 13th. We should go. |
| Céline: Yeah. It’s a little bit far from here, but yeah. |
| Sam: That’s okay. |
| Céline: We can make our own block party. |
| Sam: Yeah. And let’s have it between the 4th and 14th. That way, we can celebrate Independence Day and Bastille Day. |
| Céline: That’s great! A party for 10 days! |
| Sam: Yeah! Lots of hotdogs, soda, cheeseburgers. |
| Céline: Yeah. And cheese tout court. |
| Sam: And wine. |
| Sylvain: Cheese tout court. |
| Sam: chèvre de fromage. Fromage de chèvre. |
| Céline: Oui parce que chèvre de fromage, I don’t think that can be… très bon. |
| Sylvain: Fromage de chèvre. |
| Sam: Especially on a hotdog. |
| Sylvain: les Américains! |
| Céline: Ah les Américains! les Américains… alors Sam, on va… |
| Sam: Yeah, I’m American. Sorry. |
| Céline: I know you’re American. It’s obvious. I mean, you don’t have to mention it. |
| Sam: Okay. Let’s move on to the vocabulary. |
| Céline: Yes, vocab, vocab, vocab. |
| Sam: Yeah, vocabulary. Everybody put down your hotdogs. It’s the vocabulary. |
| Céline: Arrête avec les hotdogs. Tu as faim hein. Tu as faim? |
| Sam: Always. |
| Céline: Donc le premier mot. First item. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Sylvain: J’y crois. |
| Sam: I believe it. |
| Sylvain: J’y crois. [slowly - broken down by syllable] J’y crois. [natural native speed] |
| Sam: Next… |
| Sylvain: Artisan [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Artisan. |
| Sylvain: Artisan [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Artisan [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Next… |
| Sylvain: Ébéniste [natural native speed] |
| Sam: Craftsman. |
| Sylvain: Ébéniste [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Ébéniste [natural native speed]. |
| Céline: Propre [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Own, clean. |
| Céline: Propre [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Propre [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Next… |
| Sylvain: Une entreprise [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Enterprise. |
| Sylvain: Une entreprise [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Une entreprise [natural native speed]. |
| Sylvain: Jouer [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: To play. |
| Sylvain: Jouer [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Jouer [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Next… |
| Céline: Guitare [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: Guitar. |
| Céline: Guitare [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Guitare [natural native speed]. |
| Sam: And lastly… |
| Sylvain: Moi aussi. |
| Sam: Me too or me also. |
| Sylvain: Moi aussi. [slowly - broken down by syllable] Moi aussi. [natural native speed] |
| Sam: Let’s look at some vocabulary usage. Our first word is “croire.” |
| Sylvain: A verb. |
| Sam: Of course. |
| Céline: Meaning “to believe.” We use it to talk about opinions and beliefs. |
| Sylvain: Je crois aux extraterrestres. |
| Sam: “I believe in aliens.” Oh, me too! Do you believe they’re going to land on the Eiffel Tower, too? |
| Sylvain: Yes! They’re already there. |
| Sam: Sure. |
| Céline: Oh. |
| Sam: I don’t know about you, guys. I’m a little bit skeptical, though. |
| Céline: Moi aussi je suis sceptique. |
| Sylvain: They are living with us, I’m sure. |
| Sam: Where? |
| Sylvain: Near us. |
| Céline: Oh mon Dieu! |
| Sam: Are we the aliens or are they the aliens? That’s a question we can answer later. |
| Céline: Okay. |
| Sylvain: Yes. |
| Sam: Yeah. |
| Céline: The next word is propre. Clean. Propre comme un sou neuf. |
| Sam: “Clean as a new coin.” “propre” is an adjective which has two definitions. This one is used in order to say something is clean. |
| Céline: However, in the dialogue, it is used as “own” – to indicate ownership. |
| Sylvain: J’ai mon propre appartement. |
| Sam: “I have my own apartment” or “I have my own flat.” |
| Céline: J’ai ma propre opinion. |
| Sam: “I have my own opinion.” We noticed that, all right. |
| Sylvain: Oh, yes, yes, yes. |
| Céline: Okay, the next word is “ébéniste.” |
| Sam: A craftsman. |
| Céline: Oui. |
| Sam: Are they popular? |
| Céline: Of course. It’s handmade. It’s not the cheapest way to get furniture. But over in France, there’s an appreciation of handcraft, even though not everybody can afford it. |
| Sylvain: That’s a rare job now. |
| Céline: But it pays. |
| Sylvain: It pays and it’s respected also. |
| Sam: Okay, okay. I’m sure its region has its own furniture style. Interesting. I can’t wait to discover some old traditional houses and furniture. |
| Céline: Oui. The next word is “jouer.” |
| Sam: “To play.” |
| Sylvain: This is an easy verb to conjugate. The main reason is because its regular verb from the first verb group. |
| Céline: Par exemple, j’aime jouer au mille bornes. |
| Sylvain: C’est quoi le mille bornes? |
| Céline: It means “one thousand kilometers.” It’s a card game where each player is a driver and you have to stop them to reach 1,000 kilometers. |
| Sam: I wonder if that’s like tunk. But anyway, that sounds neat. |
| Céline: Yeah. It’s really fun. Well, you can play with family, too. |
| Sylvain: Easy to play also, maybe. |
| Sam: Wow. Like poker. |
| Céline: No. Poker is more like adult games. |
| Sylvain: And you play money. |
| Céline: Yes. |
| Sam: You can play for cookies, too. |
| Céline: Also you can say je joue au football . |
| Sylvain: Je joue au football. |
| Sam: “I play soccer.” |
| Céline: Exactement. |
| Sam: I’m sorry, “I play football.” |
| Sylvain: That’s right. |
| Sam: For all you American business, they’re talking about soccer and not football. |
| Céline: Yeah. Did you know, Sam, that in France, every town and every village has its own soccer field? |
| Sam: Football field. |
| Céline: You see, I’m becoming American. |
| Sam: That’s a good thing. Yeah. So each town or village has its own soccer field, to American listeners, or has its own football field. So enough with the jokes. |
| Céline: Yes. |
| Sam: Let’s move on to the grammar, but we’ll still keep it fun. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Céline: So, as mentioned in the dialogue, we will study occupation and how to name them for women and men. |
| Sylvain: Pay close attention. There are seven categories to form the feminine and masculine form respectively. |
| Sam: Great. So what would be “host” in French? |
| Céline: Animateur. Merci Sylvain. All the profession in French and in -teur or in -trice, the former for masculine items and the latter for feminine items. |
| Sylvain: Donc, un animateur, une animatrice. |
| Sam: So all the professions in French end in -teur or -trice. How about “professor”? |
| Sylvain: Good question. |
| Céline: Some occupation are identical in both genders, un professeur ou une professeur. |
| Sam: Oh, I’m really confused, but not so confused. I have a simple question: is there a way to know which profession doesn’t change? |
| Sylvain: That’s a really good question, but… |
| Céline: That’s a killer, actually. No. Only with practice and exposure to the language. |
| Sylvain: That’s right. |
| Sam: So that’s too bad. There’s no exact science to it. |
| Sylvain: All profession ending in silent E as “comptable” are identical at the feminine and masculine form. |
| Sam: So anything ending with E is identical. Okay. That’s easy. |
| Céline: Okay. Let’s say you’re still studying. You are un étudiant as “étudiant” ends with a consonant. Just add the feminine mark, the letter E to make it feminine. |
| Sam: So a lady who is a student, that would be une étudiante. |
| Sylvain: Then there are profession that end in -eur, as vendeur. |
| Céline: If you find one in -eur preceded by the consonant other than T, the feminine is -euse. So, un vendeur, une vendeuse. |
| Sam: How many more? |
| Céline: Are you bored now? Okay, we are moving on, right? |
| Sam: Pipe down. I guess I’d better be nice with the French alliance here. |
| Sylvain: Where were you, Céline? Talking about occupation ending in -er? |
| Céline: Yes, in ER as for un cuisiner “chef”, add an E. And don’t forget the accent grave on the preceding E. |
| Sam: If you got lost during any of that, check out the grammar bank in our lesson. |
| Sylvain: The last two are the easiest, I think – the occupation ending on “IEN”. As un musician, the feminine form is musicienne. |
| Céline: That’s right, Sylvain. You just add “ne” and you have it. I’ll stop the tattering soon and this is the last one. The profession ending in “éde” with the accent aigu… |
| Sylvain: Just add the letter E. Concerning the accent and for more information, check the notes section in the grammar bank of this lesson. I think it should be a good idea to review everything. |
| Sam: Okay. Thank you, guys. |
| Céline: Okay. Let’s practice. |
| Sylvain: I was thinking about the same thing. |
| Céline: Les grands esprits se rencontrent! |
| Sam: “Great minds think alike”, or at least one. |
| Sylvain: Sam, vendeur feminine? |
| Sam: No, masculine. |
| Céline: But let’s… No, no, no, no. guys.That’s too easy. Let’s recap. How would you ask about someone’s job? Do you remember that lesson? |
| Sylvain: I don’t. |
| Sam: I don’t either. |
| Céline: Come on, you’re French. You know that. Okay, for example, Sam… |
| Sylvain: What’s your profession? |
| Sam: qu’est-ce que tu fais or qu’est-ce que vous faites? |
| Céline: so, Sam, qu’est-ce que tu fais? |
| Sam: What’s my job? Je suis animateur. |
| Sylvain: Wow. |
| Céline: C’est un travail intéressant. |
| Sylvain: And Céline, what’s her job? |
| Sam: Céline. puis-je te poser une question, Céline? |
| Céline: Tout à fait. |
| Sam: May I ask you a question? Qu’est-ce que tu fais? |
| Céline: Je suis chômeuse. |
| Sam: Yeah, out of work? |
| Céline: Exactement. |
| Sam: C’est dommage! |
| Céline: Eh oui. |
| Sam: Désolé. |
| Céline: Et vous Sylvain qu’est-ce que vous faites? |
| Sylvain: Je suis professeur. |
| Sam: You’re a professor. Fantastique. |
| Céline: Bravo Sylvain! |
| Sam: Tu es très intelligent n’est-ce pas? |
| Sylvain: NON! |
| Sam: Plus ou moins? Non? Okay. |
| Sylvain: Plus ou moins. |
Outro |
| Sam: Until next time. Au revoir! |
| Sylvain: A bientôt. |
| Céline: Au revoir monsieur l’Américain! |
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