Complete French course

Front matter

-yCrz,

I i

Quand Même! — Paris.

Preface

For many years Chardenal's Complete French Course has been the most popular and the most successful of the many textbooks for elementary instruction in French. Its success is owing largely to its simplicity and its thoroughness. In revising the book for a new edition the editor has endeavored to retain both of these excellent qualities, and to make the book still more acceptable by the following changes.

The order of presentation has been altered so as to secure from the outset greater variety in the exercises. Among many other changes may be mentioned the early introduction of verbs and their presentation by tenses instead of by conjugations ; the treatment of verbs in -oir as regular verbs of the third conjugation and those in -re as regular verbs of the fourth ; the early introduction of personal pronouns, together with the rule for the agreement of the *past participle used with the verb avoir.

The practical value of the vocabulary has been increased by the insertion of many words and phrases of frequent occurrence in ordinary conversation.

The sentences for translation have been made lively and colloquial. To many of the lessons there have been added whole exercises consisting of questions only. These questions are intended as a basis for conversational work in the classroom, and may all be answered from the material furnished by the preceding lessons. To stimulate conversation still further, a list of expressions for classroom use has been prei)ared.

While as a rule one topic at a time has been presented, every su])ject will be found completely summarized in a single lesson.

ill îv , Preface

The editor's thanks are due to Professor Charles H. Grandgent, of Harvard University, and to many others, for valuable criticisms and suggestions.

December, 1907.

Preface To The 1920 Edition

Since the admirable revision by Mr. Brooks, ChardenaPs Complete French Course has won many new friends and has attained an ever increasing popularity and success. It has now passed through two revisions.

In the first, called the New Chardenal, the method and scope of the book remained unchanged. The exercises for translation were somewhat altered to furnish additional material for conversational work. A number of amusing stories and several full-page illustrations were added.

This 1920 Edition is the latest revision. The body of the book is identical with the previous revision and the two books can be used side by side in the same class.

The 1920 Edition differs from previous versions by the addition of new material. There is more connected reading and there are new illustrations. Both have to do with subjects connected with the Great War, and with changes which have taken place in France since the appearance of the previous edition. The new reading exercises contain a lively and spirited description of points of interest in Alsace and Lorraine and of other scenes which have derived fresh interest from their association with well-known events of recent history.

Introduction

The Alphabet

Orthographic SigDS

Pronunciation

Division of Syllables

Words for Practice

The Linking of Words (Liaison)

Capital Letters

Marks of Punctuation .

Expressions for Classroom Use

PAOB

xi

xi

xii

xxi

xxi

xxiii

xxiv

xxiv

XXV

LESSONS

9. 10.

n.

12. 13. 14.

The Article

Avoir : Present Indicative, Affirmative . Avoir : Present Indicative, Interrogative Etre: Present Indicative, Affirmative Etre : Present Indicative, Interrogative .

Plural of Nouns

Avoir : Present Indicative, Negative

Possessive Adjectives

Avoir: Present Indicative, Negative Interrogative

Agreement of Adjectives ....

Plural of Adjectives . . . • .

Etre : Present Indicative, Negative

Agreement of Adjectives (continued)

Etre : Present Indicative, Negative Interrogative

The Past Indefinite Tense ....

Numeral Adjectives

Ordinal Numbers

Contraction of Preposition à and Definite Article Contraction of Preposition de and Definite Article

V

J

2 3 4

VI

Contents

18. Demonstrative Adjectives

20. Demonstrative Pronouns (continued)

21. Cardinal Numbers .

22. Cardinal Numbers {continued)

23. Ordinal Numbers and Fractions

24. Names of Days and Months .

25. Past Participle with être .

26. Personal Pronouns with Prepositions

27. The Adjective tout :

28. The First Conjugation .

29. Personal Pronouns as Direct Objects

30. Past Participle with avoir

31. Plural of Nouns and Adjectives

32. The Second Conjugation

33. Nouns Used in a General Sense

34. Nouais of Quantity .

35. The Third Conjugation .

36. Adverbs of Quantity

37. The Pronoun en . . .

38. Partitive Article and Pronoun

39. The Fourth Conjugation

40. The Partitive Article after a Negative

41. The Partitive with Adjectives

42. The Imperfect Indicative

43. Position of Adjectives

46. Relative and Interrogative Pronouns

48. The Future Tense {continued)

49. Interrogative Adjectives .

50. Time of Day. Dates Conjugation of aller

61. The Seasons. Weather .

Conjugation of faire

Contents vii

PAOK

52. Ages. Dimensions 91

Conjugation of savoir 92

53. The Interrogative Pronoun lequel 94

Conjugation of dire 94

54. The Relative Pronouns lequel and dont .... 97 Conjugation of voir 98

55. Ce qui, ce qu'', and Other Relative Pronouns . . . 100

57. Feminine of Adjectives {continued) .... 105

59. Idioms with avoir Ill

60. The Conditional Mode 113

61. Interrogative Adverbs 117

63. Order of the Pronouns 122

64. Personal Pronouns {continued) 125

65. Pronominal Verbs : Reflexive Use .... 127

66. Pronominal Verbs : Reciprocal Use .... 130

68. The Pronouns y and en 135

69. Personal Pronouns before the Verb .... 138

70. The Definite Article : Summary of its Use . . . 141

71. The Definite Article {continued) . ... . . 144

The Indefinite Article 146

72. Duration of Time 148

73. The Past Definite Tense 151

75. Peculiarities of the First Conjugation {continued) . 158

With Impersonal Verbs 162

77. Formation of the Present Subjunctive . . . .164

78. The Subjunctive of Doubt 106

Conjugation of croire 167

79. The Subjunctive of Emotion . . . . . " . 109 Conjugation of vouloir 170

80. The Subjunctive with ne after Certain Verbs . . 172 Conjugation of craindre 172

81. The Subjunctive in Adjective Clauses ^ . . . 174 Conjugation of connaître 175 viii Contents

PAGS

82. The Subjunctive in Adverbial Clauses . . • .176

83. Summary of the Uses of the Subjunctive . . . 178

84. Sequence of Tenses of the Subjunctive . . .180 The Imperfect Subjunctive 181

85. Further Drill on the Subjunctive 183

Conjugation of falloir and pleuvoir .... 183

86. The Subjunctive in Independent Clauses . . . 185

87. The Subjunctive with que . . . , . .187 Conjugation of venir 188

88. The Infinitive 189

Conjugation of pouvoir 190

89. The Infinitive with the Preposition de ... 192 Conjugation of mettre 193

90. The Infinitive with the Preposition à . . . .195 Conjugation of écrire 196

91. The Subjunctive and the Infinitive Compared . . 197 Conjugation of courir and mourir 198

92. The Present Participle 200

Conjugation of lire and rire 201

Collective Nouns 203

94. Aller, devoir, and faire 206

96. Summary of Relative and Interrogative Pronouns . 215

97. The Position of Adjectives and Adverbs . . .219

101. The Prepositions en and dans 234

Sentences Selected from College Entrance Examinations . 243

APPENDIX OF FORMS AND RULES

The Noun :

Rule for Gender . . , o » . . . 281

Contents îx

PAGE

Formation of the Feminine 282

Formation of the Plural 285

The Adjective :

Formation of the Feminine 287

Possessive Adjectives 288

Demonstrative Adjectives 288

The Pronoun 289

The Verb :

Être 296

Terminations of Regular Verbs 302

The Four Conjugations 304

The Passive Form 312

Conjugation of a Reflexive Verb 313

Conjugation of a Reciprocal Verb 314

Verbs Followed by the Infinitive without a Preposition 328

Verbs Requiring de before an Infinitive . . . 328

Verbs Requiring à before an Infinitive .... 329

Adjectives which Change their Meaning with their Position 331

The Adverb 332

Official Modifications in Syntax 334

INDEX 393

ILLUSTRATIONS

Quand Même ! — Paris '. . Frontispiece

FACING PAGE

Le Pont Alexandre Trois. — Paris 4

Hôtel de Ville. — Louvain 20

Le Château. — Chantilly 36

La Cathédrale. — Reims 52

L'Arc de Triomphe de l'Etoile. — Paris 69

La Tour Saint- Jacques. — Paris 84

Le Louvre. — Paris 100

La Cathédrale. — Metz 116

Strasbourg 133

Le Palais de Versailles 148

Une Vielle Tour à Metz 165

La Cathédrale. — Strasbourg 180

La Galerie des Glaces. — Versailles 197

La Place de la Concorde (Statue de Strasbourg). — Paris . . . 212

Carcassonne • 229

Le Château. — Chenonceaux 237

L'Eglise de la Madeleine. — Paris 244

Le Maréchal Ney. Statue à Metz 268

L'Horloge Astronomique à Strasbourg 278

INTRODUCTION

The Alphabet

abed e fghi

a hé ce dé é^ effe gé ache i

jklm n opqr

stuv w xyz

esse té u vé double vé iks i grec zèd

Orthographie Signs Accents. — Apostrophe. — H3rphen. — Cedilla. — Diaeresis

Three orthographic marks are called accents, — the acute ( ^), the grave (^), and the circumflex (^).

The acute accent, accent aigu, is used only over the vowel e (é), which then has the sound of a in late. As été, vérité.

The grave accent, accent grave, is used chiefly over the vowel e (è), which then has nearly the sound of e in met. As près, i)ère. It is used over a and ti merely to distinguish certain words which are otherwise spelled alike, and does not alter the pronunciation. As à (to) from a (has) ; là (there) from la (the or her) ; où (where) from ou (o7').

The circumflex accent, accent circonflexe, is used on any vowel, which is then long. As âge, tête, île, dôme, bûche. It frequently indicates that a letter has been dropped, as in île, isle; âme (Latin, anima), soul.

It distinguishes dû (owed) from du {of the), sûr (sure) from sur (upon), mûr (ripe) from mur (wall).

These accents do not imply any stress of voice on the sylhible where they occur.

1 In repeating the alphabet, e is usually pronounced like é; in spelling a word, an unaccented e is given the sound of e in le. See page xiii.

xi xii Introduction

The apostrophe, l'apostrophe, ('), indicates that one of thf vowels, a, e, or i, has been dropped before a word beginning with a vowel or h mute.

a is elided only in the article or pronoun la ; as l'âme for la âme.

e is elided in le, je, me, te, se, de, ce, ne, que (but when je, ce, le, and la come directly after the verb, either as subjects or objects, no elision takes place) ; in jusque and lorsque ; in puisque and quoique before il, ils, elle, elles, on, un, une; in quelque before un, une ; and in entre in compound words.

i is elided only in si before il or lis.

No elision occurs before onze, onzième, oui, huit, huitième.

The hyphen, le trait d'union, (-), marks the connection between two or more words or parts of a word.

The hyphen is used between the verb and the pronouns je, moi, nous, tu, toi, vous, il, ils, elle, elles, le, la, les, lui, leur, y, en, ce, on, when they are placed after a verb of which they are subjects or objects. The other cases of its use will be noticed as they occur.

The cedilla, la cédille, (ç), is put under c when it has the sound of s before a, o, or u. As français, garçon, reçu.

The diaeresis, le tréma, ( ** ), is placed over the second of two vowels to show that it begins a new syllable. As naïf (na-if), noël (no-el).

Pronunciation

Most French sounds have no English equivalents. In the following pages on pronunciation, intended only to supplement the work of the teacher by furnishing examples for the use of both teacher and pupil, the word like means somewhat like, when French and English sounds are compared.

Simple Vowels

a (short) has a sound between the a of bar and the a in mat. As la, the; quatre, four ; table, table; a, has; à, to; Canada, a (long) or a has the sound of a in father. The mouth

Pronunciation xiii

should be opened wide. As, âme soul ; bâtir, to build ; sale, dirty ; fable, fable ; pas, step ; classe, class; espace, space; nation, nation; tentation, temptation.

a is silent in août, Curaçao, toast, Saône.

é has the sound of a in lateA As été, summer; vérité, truth; cédé, yielded; répété, repeated; dégénéré, degenerate.

è and ê vary in sound between the e of met and the ei of their. As près, near; père, father ; mère, mother; tête, head; même, same.

e without an accent has a sound similar to that of e in the before a consonant : the door, the boy, etc. As de, of; je, /; venir, to come. At the end of words of more than one syllable it is silent; as dame, lady; f arine, Jlour. After two consonants, or at the end of a syllable and preceding a consonant, its sound is very indistinct, merely sufficient to pronounce the consonant before it; as arbre, tree; samedi, Saturday. It has the sound of é (a in late) before final d, f, r, z, when these consonants are mute; as pied, /oo^; clef, key; parler, to speak; nez, nose. It has the sound of è before c, f, 1, r, s, t, x, not mute, before final t mute or pronounced, and before a double consonant'; as bee, beak; chef, chief; sel, salt; fer, iron; ferme, farm; belle, beautiful; net, clean; obje(t), object; secre(t), secret; regre(t), regret ; tu es, thou art ; il est, he is.

In et, les, des, ces, mes, tes, ses, the e is longer than e in est, is, but not quite so long as e in nez, 7iose.

In femme, woman; solennel, solemn; hennir, ta neigh; nenni, no, not by any means, and in all adverbs ending in -emment, the first e has the sound of French short a.^

1 When we pronounce an English vowel slowly, we really produce two sounds, a slight finish or vanishing sound being heard. A French vowel has only one sound. Practise the various vowel and nasal sounds, tirst i)lacing the mouth in position, and then uttering the sound without moving lips, tongue, or jaws. Practise prolonging the sound, always stopping abruptly.

2 Really a meaiam a.

xîv Introduction

i and î usually have the sound of i in machine. As nid. nest; gris, gray; île, island; fini, finished; midi, noon; ici, here. In the last three of these examples the first i is shorter than the second.

0 (open) has a sound between the o of not and the u of nut. As robe, dress; mode, fashion; mol, soft; votre, i/oi^r; école, school ; bonne, good (fern.) ; parole, woi^d.

0 (closed) has the sound of o in note. As mot, icord; côté, side; le vôtre, yours; rôle, roll, rôle; rose, rose; chose, thing; fosse, grave.

u is pronounced like u in German, but has no equivalent in English. To form it, round the lips as if about to whistle, then without moving the lips, say ee. Tu, thou; rue, street; plus, more; lune, moon; murmure, murmur. It is usually silent after q and also when standing between g and e or g and i. As qui, who; quatre, /o?/?*; guerre, war; guide, guide.

y following a consonant, or standing alone, has the sound of French i. As type, type; y, there.

y standing between two vowels performs the office of iy, the i uniting with the preceding vowel. As rayon, ray, = rai-yon ; appuyer, to support, = appui-yer. (See below. Compound Vowels.) Pays, paysan, paysage = pai-is, etc.

Compound Vowels and Diphthongs

ai at the end of verbs, in gai, quai, and in je sais, tu sais, il sait, has the sound of é: j'ai, / have; je donnerai, / shall give; otherwise it has the sound of è: mais, but; vrai, true; je donnerais, / should give.

In faisant, doing, and its derivatives, it has the sound of e.

au, eau have the sound of o in note. As autre, other; chapeau, hat; beau, handsome. In Paul, mauvais, bad, and before r, au has the sound of open o.

el has the sound of è. As reine, queen.

Pronunciation xv

eu, œu have no equivalent in English. The sound is somewhat like that of i in sir, pronounced with the lips rounded, and is longer in some words than in others. As feu, fire; ûevLTjfloîver; œuf, egg.

In all parts of the verb avoir, to have^ eu has the sound of u.

ou has the sound of oo in moon. As jour, day.

oi has nearly the sound of wak; more correctly, it is a combination of French ou and medium a. As moi, me; roi, khig. Be careful not to get a sound resembling a in the English word ball.

oe has the sound of oi in moelle and poêle.

In all other diphthongs the first vowel is pronounced quickly and the voice dwells on the second. As ciel, heaven; Dieu, God; bruit, noise; oui, yes; juin, June. Distinguish carefully between ou-i and u-i, the latter being a combination of French u and i. As puis (pu-i), then; huile, oil. C'est lui, it is he; but c'est Louis, it is Louis.

Nasal Vowels

m and n, when final or before a consonant, lose their value as consonants and form with the preceding vowel a nasal sound which is a true vowel. These sounds have no exact equivalents in English ; and in pronouncing them, care must be taken that no consonant ?)i, 7i, or ng be heard.

They are divided into four groups :

an 1

I

^ am I

I. = art m want.

en

em J

As dans, in; lampe, lamp; enfant, child; empire, empire; grand, large.

En ità silent in the ending of the third person plural of all verbs. As ils donnent, they give.

XVI

Introduction

= an in hank, not too flat.

in

yn ym

As vin, loine; important, important; pain, bread; faim, ^wnger ; sein, breast; syntaxe, syntax; symbole, symbol.

En = in in examen, examination^ européen, European. Some pronounce en in hymen like in, but the best authorities favor -ène (hymène).

-ien final or in the verbs tenir, to hold., and venir, to come., = i-in (French i followed by nasal in). As bien, (bi-in), well; rien, nothing ; tiens, hold; viens, come.

om oing

:0U followed by nasal in. As coin (cou-in), corner ; loin, far; moins, less; poing, ^s«.