Module 10 – Mode, forme, et santé
Deuxième partie: La Santé et le bien-être, la grammaire
In this section:
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impersonal verbs and expressions
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interrogative pronouns
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le verbe devoir
impersonal verbs and expressions
falloir (il faut …) ‘to be necessary’
The verb falloir only exists in the impersonal form (il faut). It always expresses the notion of necessity or obligation which is translated into English in various ways (‘must,’ ‘should,’ ‘have to’). Falloir may be followed by an infinitive as in (a), by a noun as in (b), or it may be preceded by a pronoun acting as an indirect object as in (c).
Photo by Mat Napo on Unsplash.
(a) Il faut être actif/active pour être en bonne santé. It is necessary to be active to be in good health.
(b) Il faut du sommeil pour être en bonne santé. Sleep is necessary for good physical and mental health.
phyique et psychologique.
(c) Il me faut un bon livre pour s’endormir. I need a good book to fall asleep.
impersonal expressions with ‘être’ + [adjective]
The impersonal subject il may appear with the verb être followed by an adjective and an infinitive. Note that the infinitive is always introduced by the preposition de in such impersonal expressions:
Il est + [adjective] + de + [infinitive]
| Tex: Il est amusant de lire les journaux américains! | Tex: It’s fun to read American newspapers! | |
| Tammy: Il est difficile de comprendre ton humour. | Tammy: It is difficult to understand your sense of humor. |
other common impersonal expressions
Il y a, there is, there are
il est + clock time (Il est deux heures, It’s two o’clock.)
Il s’agit de, to be about, to be a matter of, to be a question of
Il vaut mieux, to be better, to be advisable
Listen to the dialogue:
| Tammy: Il est 18 h. Regardons le journal télévisé. Il y a un reportage sur la santé mentale. | Tammy: It’s 6 o’clock. Let’s watch the news. There’s a report on mental health. | |
| Tex: Ah oui. Il s’agit d‘améliorer la qualité de votre sommeil. Il vaut mieux le regarder au lieu de changer de chaîne! | Tex: Oh yes. It’s about improving your quality of sleep. It’s better to watch it than change the channel! |
interrogative pronouns
questions about people
Qui is used to ask questions about people. It may be the subject or the direct object in a sentence and thus, can mean either ‘who?’ or ‘whom?’ You may also choose to use the longer forms: qui est-ce qui to ask ‘who?’, qui est-ce que to ask ‘whom?’
As the subject: qui, qui est-ce qui
As the direct object: qui, qui est-ce que
| Bette: Qui est à la porte? Oh, c’est toi, Tammy. | Bette: Who is at the door? Oh, it’s you, Tammy. | |
| Qui cherches-tu? | Whom are you looking for? | |
| Tammy: Je cherche Tex. | Tammy: I’m looking for Tex. | |
| Bette: Il n’est pas là. | Bette: He’s not here. | |
| Cinq minutes plus tard … | Five minutes later … | |
| Bette: Encore! Qui est-ce qui est à la porte? Oh! C’est toi, Tex! | Bette: Again! Who is at the door? Oh! It’s you Tex! | |
| Qui est-ce que tu cherches? Moi peut-être? | Whom are you looking for? Me perhaps? | |
| Tex: Non, je cherche Tammy. | Tex: No, I’m looking for Tammy. | |
| Bette: Elle n’est pas là. | Bette: She’s not here. |
questions about things
Qu’est-ce qui, que, and its longer form qu’est-ce que are used to ask questions about things. They are used to ask ‘what?’. Que and its longer form qu’est-ce que are direct objects in a sentence, whereas qu’est-ce qui may be used only as the subject. (There is no short form of qu’est-ce qui.)
As the subject: qu’est-ce qui
As the direct object: que, qu’est-ce que
As the object of a preposition: quoi
| Tammy arrive chez Tex. Elle voit Tex et David. | Tammy arrives at Tex’s house. She sees Tex and David. | |
| Tammy: Qu’est-ce qui se passe, Tex? | Tammy: What’s going on, Tex? | |
| Tex: Nous te cherchions. | Tex: We were looking for you. | |
| Tammy: Ah bon? Qu’est-ce que vous faites ? | Tammy: Really? What are you doing? | |
| Tex: On vas au cinéma. Tu veux aller avec nous ? | Tex: We are going to the movies. Do you want to go? | |
| Tammy: Oh, de quoi tu parles? On devait aller au gym. | Tammy: Oh, what are you talking about? We were supposed to go to the gym. | |
| Tex: Mais, il est plus amusant d’aller au cinéma qu’au gym ! | Tex: But it’s more fun to go to the movies than to the gym! |
le verbe devoir
devoir
Devoir expresses obligation, probability, and supposition but if followed by a noun, expresses the idea “to owe”. This verb is irregular in its present form. Once again, the “boot” formation is seen with this verb; the stem changes in the 1st and 2nd person plural conjugations.
| devoir ‘to have to, be supposed to/ to owe’ | |
| je dois | nous devons |
| tu dois | vous devez |
| il/elle/iel/on doit | ils/elles/iels doivent |
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past participle: dû |
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Devoir may be followed by an infinitive or may stand alone to have the meaning “to have to” (Je dois partir, I must leave.) When followed by a noun, devoir means “to owe” (Je dois 10 dollars).
