| Let's look at the sentence pattern. |
| This pattern is the structure that most of our examples will follow. |
| Je voudrais + noun phrase + adjective. |
| I would like + noun phrase + adjective. |
| Let's look at Je voudrais first. |
| Je means "I," and voudrais means "would like." Together, Je voudrais means "I would like." This phrase stays the same no matter what you would like. |
| After that is a noun phrase, the thing that you want. |
| And last is the adjective—the word that describes the noun. In French, the adjective usually comes after the noun, not before it, like in English. |
| So the whole pattern is Je voudrais + noun + adjective, or I would like + noun + adjective. |
| Let's see how a line from the dialogue follows this pattern. |
| Je voudrais une peinture originale. |
| "I would like an original painting." |
| In this sentence: |
| Je voudrais means "I would like." |
| Une peinture is the noun phrase meaning "a painting." Une is the article for feminine nouns, and peinture is feminine, meaning "painting." |
| Originale is the adjective meaning "original." It comes after the noun, following the French word order. |
| So, Je voudrais une peinture originale. translates to "I would like an original painting." |
| Now, you can use this structure to ask for anything in French politely! |
| In French, adjectives usually follow the noun, but not always — it depends on the adjective. Some adjectives come before nouns, just like in English. |
| This is common with certain short or frequently used adjectives like petit, meaning "small," grand, meaning "big," or beau, which means "beautiful." |
| In these cases, the pattern becomes |
| Je voudrais + article + adjective + noun. |
| "I would like + article + adjective + noun." |
| We'll see some examples later. |
| Let's talk about the difference between voudrais and veux. |
| Both are conjugated forms of the French verb vouloir, which means "to want." |
| Voudrais means "would like," and it's the polite way to ask for something. |
| You'll hear it often in cafés, stores, or anytime someone wants to make a request in a respectful and courteous way. |
| On the other hand, veux means "want," and it's a lot more direct. In some situations, it can sound too strong or even impolite. |
| When speaking to waiters, strangers, or in formal situations, voudrais is the better choice to keep your tone polite and friendly. |
| Now let's look at some speaking examples. |
| Je voudrais une belle maison. |
| "I would like a beautiful house." |
| Can you see how the second pattern applies here? |
| Let's break it down: |
| Here, Je voudrais means "I would like." |
| Une means "a;" it is the article. |
| Belle means "beautiful," and it is the adjective. |
| Maison means "house," which is the noun. |
| In French, adjectives like belle often come before the noun (especially for beauty, age, goodness, and size—known as BAGS adjectives), which is why belle maison is correct, and the sentence follows the "Je voudrais + article + adjective + noun." pattern. |
| Here's another example |
| Je voudrais un sandwich chaud. |
| "I would like a warm sandwich." |
| Je voudrais un sandwich chaud. |
| "I would like a warm sandwich." |
| Let's try one more, |
| Je veux une grande pizza. |
| "I want a big pizza." |
| Je veux une grande pizza. |
| "I want a big pizza." |
| Another one. |
| Je voudrais un café fort. |
| "I would like a strong coffee." |
| Je voudrais un café fort. |
| "I would like a strong coffee." |
| One last example. |
| Je veux un petit chien. |
| "I want a small dog." |
| Je veux un petit chien. |
| "I want a small dog." |
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