French expressions

Liaisons

In a liaison, an otherwise silent ending consonant is pushed to the next word, where it's pronounced as part of the first syllable. Like elisions, this prevents consecutive vowel sounds. Liaisons are possible whenever a silent ending consonant is followed by a word beginning in a vowel sound, but some liaisons are mandatory and others are forbidden.

Here are some mandatory liaisons, along with approximate pronunciations:

• Articles and adjectives with nouns. For example, un homme ("uh-nohm"), mon orange ("mohn-norahnge"), or deux hommes ("duh-zohm").

• Pronouns and verbs. For example, nous allons ("noo-zalohn") or est-il ("ay-teel").

• Single-syllable adverbs and prepositions. For instance, très utile ("tray-zuteel") or chez elle ("shay-zell").

Liaisons are forbidden:

• Before and after et ("and").

• After singular nouns (including proper nouns and names).

• After inversions (which you'll learn in "Questions").

• Before an aspirated H (e.g. héros - "hero").

• After a nasal sound, except that un, on, and en do liaise.

Note that some consonants take on a different sound in liaisons, and it's important to pronounce these correctly when speaking.

Original Consonant	Resulting Liaison Sound	Example
-s, -x, -z	Z	des hommes ("day-zohm")
-d	T	un grand arbre ("uhn-grahn-tarbre")
-f	V	neuf ans ("nuh-vahn")

Liaison rules vary among speakers, particularly across dialects, and fewer liaisons tend to appear in casual and slow speech. Note that the slow mode in Duo listening exercises does not include liaisons.

Enchaînement

In enchaînements, ending consonant sounds are pushed onto the next word if it begins in a vowel. This is essentially the same as a liaison, except that the consonant sound wasn't silent beforehand. For instance:

• elle est is pronounced like "eh-lay".

• mange une pomme is pronounced like "mahn-jun-pom".

The Impersonal Expression Il Y A

Impersonal expressions are phrases where there isn't a real subject. For instance, in the phrase "It is snowing" (Il neige), "it" doesn't refer to anything. It's a dummy subject that exists just to maintain the sentence structure.

One of the most common impersonal expressions is il y a, which is an idiom for "there is" or "there are".

• Il y a une fille ici. — There is a girl here.

• Il y a un garçon. (There is a boy. )

• Il y a un serpent dans ma botte ! — There's a snake in my boot!

"C'est" vs. "Il Est" Background

The French expressions c'est and il est are extremely important impersonal phrases. They can mean "this is," "that is," "it is," "they are," and even "he / she is." Both c'est and il est are well-used French sayings that date back centuries. C'est la vie is a very old, very common French idiomatic saying, which means "That's life," and "Such is life." It has been around the world and back as a mainstay in dozens of cultures.

In France, it's still used in the same sense as always, as a sort of restrained, slightly fatalistic lamentation that this is how life is and there's not much you can do about it.

By contrast, il est is a bit more straightforward—it means exactly what it says—as in the phrase il est possible, which means "it is possible."

Determining when to use c'est versus il est requires understanding the background behind each phrase as well as studying the use of the terms in context. Despite their similar meanings, the expressions c'est and il est are not interchangeable, as these examples show:

• Paris? C'est magnifique! > Paris? It's magnificent!

• Il est facile d'apprendre le français. > It's easy to learn French.

• C'est une fille sympa, Lise. > Lise? She's a nice girl.

• Où est Paul? Il est en retard. > Where's Paul? He's late.

  C'est has an undefined, exaggerated meaning, such as "Paris?It's magnificent!" By contrast, il est is very literal, as in Il est en retard.

(He is late.)

When to Use "C'est" vs. "Il Est"

There are rules that determine when to use c'est and when to say Il est. The table summarizes words or phrases you can use after each of saying.

Il Est		C'est
Adjective describing a person Il est fort, cet homme. (That man is strong.) Elle est intelligente. (She is smart.)	vs.	Adjective describing a situation J'entends sa voix, c'est bizarre. (I hear his voice, it's weird.) C'est normal! (That's normal!)
Unmodified adverb Il est tard. (It's late.) Elles sont ici. (They are here)	vs.	Modified adverb C'est trop tard. (It's too late.) C'est très loin d'ici. (It's very far from here.)
Unmodified noun Il est avocat. (He's a lawyer.) Elle est actrice. (She's an actress.)	vs.	Modified noun C'est un avocat. (He's a lawyer.) C'est une bonne actrice. (She's a good actress.)
Preposition[al phrase (people)] Il est à la banque. (He's at the bank.) Elle est en France. (She's in France.)		Proper name C'est Luc. (That's Luc.)
Stressed pronoun C'est moi. (That's me.)

"C'est" and "Il Est" Swapouts

C'est* and il est are the root forms, used for impersonal expressions and general comments, as in: It's interesting, It's nice, It's fortunate, and It's too bad.

When talking about specific people, things, or ideas, c'est and il est may change.

• C'est becomes ce sont (those are) when followed by a plural noun. In spoken French, though, c'est is often used anyway.

• Il est becomes elle est, ils sont, or elles sont (she is, they are, or they are) as appropriate depending on the gender and number of the noun that it is replacing or modifying, as in:

• Ce sont des Français? Non, des Italiens. > Are they French? No, Italian.

• Voici Alice—**elle est professeur**. > This is Alice—she's a teacher.

Non, ce n'est pas d'accord. Really? - No, it's not fine.

Non, ce n'est pas ça. No, it's not. I'm sorry.

Non, ce n'est pas une question. No, that's not a proper question.

Non, ce n'est pas une histoire. No, that's not a story.

Non, ce n'est pas vrai. No, this is not right.

Non, ce n'est pas notre avenir. No, this is not our future.

Non, ce n'est pas illégal. No, it's not illegal.

Non, ce n'est pas une aventure. No, it's not an adventure.

Non, ce n'est pas le problème. No, it's not that.

Non, ce n'est pas elle. No, that's not her.