What this seminar will cover

1. What this seminar will cover • Important factors to bear in mind when choosing a bilingual dictionary • How to use the dictionary navigation tools to get to the right answer quickly and efficiently • Abbreviations and symbols used in the dictionary • How the dictionary can help you with: • How the dictionary can help you with verbs: • Avoiding mistakes • Extra features • irregular plurals • gender • idioms • word order • subjunctive • tense, subject and object • transitive and intransitive verbs • reflexive, impersonal, and phrasal verbs 1 © Oxford University Press 2005

2. What any good dictionary should offer • Range of vocabulary • Up-to-date vocabulary • Ease of use • Clarity of design • Clear entry structure • Large number of examples • Pointers towards the right translation • Help with forming sentences in French • Sample letters and CVs, verb tables, and other helpful material • And – only with the Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary – a free pronunciation CD-ROM that lets you type in any French word, phrase, or sentence and hear it spoken back so you can practise speaking French for presentations or exams 2 © Oxford University Press 2005

3. What your dictionary can help you with son/sa/ses? warning that téléphoneris followed by à in this context? examples using let in the perfect tense? register? His dad didn’t let me phone my friend Sarah. finding let =allow quickly? examples showing let + another verb in infinitive? mon/ma/mes? Son père ne m’a pas laissé téléphoner à mon amie Sarah. 3 © Oxford University Press 2005

4. Navigating the dictionary • French-English section first, then English-French • grey-edged section in the middle separates the two sides • printed thumb tabs on the outside margin of every page show which letter appears on that page • ‘running heads’ at the top of the page show the first and last words on that page NB: All this applies to the Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary. Other dictionaries may have different conventions. 4 © Oxford University Press 2005

5. The sequence of grammatical categories • French – English • Either: • Adjective • Noun • Adverb Or: • Transitive verb • Intransitive verb • Reflexive verb • Impersonal verb Then: • Compounds • Idioms • English – French • Noun • Adjective • Adverb • Verb • Idioms • Phrasal verbs (e.g. pull in, drop off) Start Programs Microsoft Word NB: All this applies to the Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary. Other dictionaries may have different conventions. Document 5 © Oxford University Press 2005

6. register Informal very informal vulgar or taboo Navigating an English-French entry (I) headword phonetics noun translations given with gender meaning signpostsin parentheses grammaticalcategories contextualizations in square brackets senses within grammaticalcategories contextualization after verb = object contextualization before verb = subject swung dash replaces headword phrasal verbs at end of entry 6 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

7. Navigating an English-French entry (II) a kindly face kindly: adjective or adverb? narrow the meaning by using context un visage sympathique Elle a souri avec gentillesse 7 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

8. Navigating a French-English entry nouns are listed with their gender links to verb tables at back of dictionary warnings of translation traps 8 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

9. Common Grammatical Categories 9 © Oxford University Press 2005

10. Grammatical Categories Exercise Match these words with the correct part of speech crabe bleuâtre parfaitement remarqué bagages se lever ou sur vpr prep nm pp conj adj adv mpl 10 © Oxford University Press 2005

11. Swung Dash (or Tilde) ~ and Hyphen - The swung dash stands for the whole headword so the ending is added: destitute les ~sthe destitute, the poor The hyphen indicates the feminine ending replaces the masculine one: un mouvement gracieux, une danse gracieuse Subject Field Labels Zool = Zoological Equit = Équitation • Check the list of subject field labels in the abbreviations list inside the front cover of the dictionary to see whether it covers areas you are interested in 11 © Oxford University Press 2005

12. Regional Usage GB = British usage US = American usage Can = Canadian usage Aus = Australian usage Helv = Swiss usage Belg = Belgian usage Ir = Irish usage Scot = Scottish usage Register péj, pej = pejorative informal lit = literal very informal fig = figurative vulgar or taboo hum = humorous pejorative = contempt or disapproval figurative = metaphorical 12 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

13. Sentence patterns sb (somebody) qn (quelqu’un) sth (something) qch (quelque chose) shows pattern: permettre à qn de faire qch = to allow sb to do sth verb + à + person + de + verb + thing Ils permettent à leurs enfants d’aller en ville. They allow their children to go into town. à qn shows you must use à with the person montrer qch à qn= to show sth to sb shows pattern: • verb + thing + à + person • I showed Pete my new phone. • J’ai montré mon nouveau portable à Pete. • qch à qn shows: • The thing must come before the person in French • You must use à with the person 13 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

14. Phonetics des hôtels des haricots 14 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

15. Irregular Plurals lice lice =poux Cross-checking is particularly useful for adjectives ending in –al: plural is géniaux plural is bancals And for hyphenated words: plural is bandes-annonces plural is bandes-son 15 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

16. Gender 1 2 3 4 8 5 6 7 16 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

17. Idioms Idiom= a saying whose meaning has evolved so that it is now different from the original literal meaning of the key words within it. It was a difficult decision for Carol, and it was a long time before she could bring herselfto grasp the nettle. Louis peut sortir s’il veut; moi, j’ai d’autres chats à fouetter. 17 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

18. Word Order shows construction where word order changes: 18 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

19. Expressions requiring the subjunctive warning note: shows when subjunctive is required: note use of subjunctive: 19 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

20. Verb Basics Types of verbs: • Transitive and Intransitive • Reflexive • Impersonal • English phrasal verbs • Verb tables • Verb complementation Other help with verbs: 20 © Oxford University Press 2005

21. Quick refresher on grammatical verb terms (I) • Tense = present, future, past, conditional, imperfect etc. • Subject = the noun or pronoun that causes the action of the verb • Gertrudeloves Eric = Gertrude aime Eric • The dog ate the meat =Le chien a mangé la viande • Object= the word or group of words which is affected by the action indicated by the verb • Gertrude loves Eric = Gertrude aime Eric • The dog ate the meat = Le chien a mangé la viande 21 © Oxford University Press 2005

22. Quick refresher on grammatical verb terms (II) • Objects can be further divided into direct and indirect objects: • Direct object = the noun or pronoun directly affected by the verb - Gertrude aime Eric = Gertrude loves Eric - Gertrude l’aime = Gertrude loves him - Le chien a mangé la viande = The dog ate the meat - Le chien l’a mangée = The dog ate it • Indirect object = the noun or pronoun indirectly affected by the verb. In English, indirect objects are usually preceded by a preposition (from, to, at, etc.) - Gertrude parle à Eric = Gertrude speaks to Eric - Gertrude lui parle = Gertrude speaks to him (or to her) - Eric sourit à Gertrude = Eric smiles at Gertrude - Eric lui sourit = Eric smiles at her 22 © Oxford University Press 2005

23. Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (I) Transitive verbs = vtr (verbe transitif ) = verbs used with direct object • I wrote the letter = J’ai écrit la lettre • Gertrude loves Eric and Wilhelmina= Gertrude aime Eric et Wilhelmina • She loves them = Elle les aime Intransitive verbs = vi (verbe intransitif ) = verbs that do not have an object • He died yesterday = Il est mort hier • She ran very fast = Elle a couru très vite • Eric and Wilhelmina left yesterday = Eric et Wilhelmina sont partis hier • Transitive verbs do something to the object that follows them. • Intransitive verbs stand on their own without an object following them. 23 © Oxford University Press 2005

24. Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (II) • The same verb can be used both transitively and intransitively: • sortir - Elle a sortison deuxième album=She brought out her secondalbum = transitive use (son deuxième album = direct object) - Elle est sortie =She went out = intransitive use (no object) • rentrer - Il a rentré la voiture =He brought the car in = transitive use (la voiture = direct object) - Il est rentré =He came back = intransitive use (no object) • scatter - He scattered his papers = transitive use (his papers = direct object) - The birds scattered = intransitive use (no object) 24 © Oxford University Press 2005

25. Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Exercise éparpiller: Il a éparpillé ses vêtements transitive (vtr) and intransitive (vi) se disperser: les oiseaux se sont dispersés dispersés takes an extra -e 25 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

26. Reflexive Verbs (I) • English-French: v refl = reflexive verb • French-English: vpr = verbe pronominal • Reflexive verbs are verbs whose subject is the same as their object. They describe what you do to yourself. They are conjugated with être. • Reflexive verbs are used with an extra pronoun, called a ‘reflexive pronoun’: myself, yourself, yourselves, themselves, etc / me, te, se etc - Je me lève = I get up - Puisje me lave et je me brosse les dents = I wash myself and brush my teeth (literally = brush to myself the teeth) • The same verb can be used reflexively and not reflexively: - Elle a ouvert la porte = She opened the door - La porte s’est ouverte = The door opened 26 © Oxford University Press 2005

27. Reflexive Verbs (II) • Remember: just because a verb is reflexive in the source language, it doesn’t mean it’s reflexive in the target language. None of the examples in this table is translated by a reflexive verb in English. • A reflexive verb table showing a model verb, s’adonner, is on p 1925 at the back of the Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary. 27 © Oxford University Press 2005

28. Phrasal verbs Impersonal Verbs • Impersonal verbs = v impers throughout the dictionary • Impersonal verbs use the impersonal pronoun it or il: • Il faut que tu sois prêt = You must/It is necessary that you be ready • Il pleut = It is raining • Falloirand neiger are the only verbs that only ever take il English Phrasal Verbs • Phrasal verbs are at the end of the entry, marked • verb + preposition or adverb e.g. run away • Other examples:give up, take off, let down • There are no phrasal verbs in French 28 © Oxford University Press 2005

29. Verb Tables Verbs are listed at their infinitive form: we went to Italy  look up the infinitive go they bought a DVD  look up the infinitive buy elles veulent partir  look up the infinitive vouloir j’aimis la table  look up the infinitive mettre je me suis trompé look up the infinitive tromper il s’agit de ta santé  look up the infinitive agir check against verb table 57 at the back Wellington defeated Napoleon past participle Wellington a vaincu Napoléon 29 © Oxford University Press 2005

30. Verb Complementation (I) = the range of structures that can be used after any given verb • There are many different patterns of verb complementation in French, e.g.: 30 © Oxford University Press 2005

31. Verb Complementation (II) She allowed Matt to go out permettre à qn de faire qch = to allow sb to do sth Elle a permis à Matt de sortir She wanted him to leave to want sb to do = vouloir que qn fasse Elle voulait qu’il parte • The dictionary entry gives you information on all these constructions. 31 © Oxford University Press 2005

32. Adapting examples Nouns: • may have irregular plurals • may require modifications to determiners or possessive adjectives (e.g. mon ► ma or mes) • feminine nouns may require accompanying adjectives to add -e • if you refer back to feminine nouns in a following sentence, the pronoun will be elle/elles or la/les Verbs: • need to be in the correct form, unless the sentence uses the infinitive • need the appropriate reflexive pronoun, if they are reflexive (e.g. nousnousmoquons de lui) • need to use the right structures (e.g. permettre à qn de faire qch) Careful! Sometimes you may need to adapt a given translation 32 © Oxford University Press 2005

33. Cross-checking Cross-checking on the other side of the dictionary helps when: • a French word has several meanings • you are unsure which French translation to choose • you don’t know if the French word you know can be used in a certain context • you want to check the plural or feminine form • you want to know how to conjugate the verb 33 © Oxford University Press 2005

34. What else can a good dictionary offer you? Information about life and culture Thematic boxes explaining grammatical points and giving extra vocabulary, cross-referenced from the headword Correspondence – letters, CVs, emails, and linking vocabulary useful for essays French verb tables 1 2 3 Letter openings The standard opening greeting for personal correspondence is Cher/Chère in other words In other words, we must be wary of hasty judgments. Autant dire qu’il faut se méfier de jugements hâtifs. 4 34 © Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0 © Oxford University Press 2005

35. Review (I) • Important factors to bear in mind when choosing a bilingual dictionary • Navigating through an entry – English-French, then French-English • Explaining abbreviations and symbols: • How the dictionary can help you with: • common grammatical categories • swung dash (or tilde) and hyphen • subject field labels • regional labels • register labels • sb, sth, qn, and qch • phonetics • irregular plurals • gender • idioms • word order • subjunctive 35 © Oxford University Press 2005

36. Review (II) • How the dictionary can help you with verbs: • Avoiding mistakes: • Extra features • tense, subject, and object • direct and indirect objects • transitive and intransitive verbs • reflexive verbs • impersonal verbs • phrasal verbs • verb tables • verb complementation • adapting examples • cross-checking Questions A chance to discuss any ideas or points raised in the seminar 36 © Oxford University Press 2005