News - Classic - French Blabla

Episode 39 – Listen if you hesitate about the pronunciation of “plus”

18 December 2020 by Caro

Welcome to the thirty-ninth episode of the French Blabla podcast where we will cover tips to increase your fluency while boosting your way of learning. Today’s episode is a special request from a dear listener, Sarah. She contacted me on the chat and she told me “Caroline, in french you usually drop the last letter. But how is it with the “plus” I can’t figure out when to say plu or plus“. When I read her question, I panicked a little bit because there was no way I could explain the rules in just two sentences on a chat while preparing dinner. I gave her a very simplified answer but we really need an episode. This is a topic that comes up a lot and a question that you will find in many French podcasts. Today is my turn to cover it. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

The rules you need to know how to pronounce the word “plus”
A challenge for you to shine

A day in French – 20 – Snow

11 December 2020 by Caro

A day in French

Welcome to the twentieth episode of this series that will transport you to the daily life of a French woman. We will cover specific vocabulary to increase your fluency while practicing particular grammar points. In this new episode, we’ll be talking about snow and the dangers of winter. I don’t particularly like snow and I would like to tell you why in this episode. I will also share a painful anecdote about my relationship with winter. Don’t forget to download the study guide to get access to the transcription. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Winter and snow vocabulary
Review the subjunctive with feelings
A challenge for you to shine

A day in French – 19 – The postman Cheval

4 December 2020 by Caro

A day in French

Welcome to the nineteenth episode of this series that will transport you to the daily life of a French woman. We will cover specific vocabulary to increase your fluency while practicing particular grammar points. Did it ever happen to you that you woke up in the middle of the night and an idea popped into your mind, for no reason whatsoever. That’s exactly what happened to me for this episode. I got up and suddenly this idea knocked on my door. She said (because idea is a feminine word in French) “ Caroline, in your next episode you’re going to talk about this famous French postman and you will do a special beginner episode”. I said ok. Now we’re here together, dear listeners, and I’m going to talk about M. Cheval. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Amazing story of Ferdinand Cheval
A story to review the beginner basics
A challenge for you to shine

Episode 38 – Using “alors” doesn’t have to be hard. Discover these 5 meanings

27 November 2020 by Caro

Advanced, Intermediate, Sound like a native

Welcome to the thirty-eighth episode of the French Blabla podcast where we will cover tips to increase your fluency while boosting your way of learning. In episode 36, we talked about different ways to express the phrase “je ne sais pas”. One of these ways was “alors là”, my personal favourite. I thought about this phrase and realized that this word “alors” is really multifaceted. So today, we will dive into some meanings that the word “alors” has. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Five new ways to use this little word
How to show emotion like a native
The absolute no-no when cooking carbonara

A day in French – 18 – Wigs

20 November 2020 by Caro

A day in French

Welcome to the eighteenth episode of this series that will transport you to the daily life of a French woman. We will cover specific vocabulary to increase your fluency while practicing particular grammar points. Days ago, I was working on the last Day in French in the living room while the other members of my family were watching TV. In France, the national public TV service loves historical documentaries about famous figures who influenced our History. They were watching a tv program about Marie-Antoinette and they were talking about her wigs. We all know some tidbits about her but learning about the quirky fashion trends of the end of the eighteenth century in Paris was something new for me and I found it highly interesting. So, I would like to share it with you today. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Cultural nugget about crazy wigs of the time
Review the past conditional
Review the pronoun Y
A challenge for you to shine

A day in French – 17 – Election

13 November 2020 by Caro

A day in French

Welcome to the seventeenth episode of this series that will transport you to the daily life of a French woman. We will cover specific vocabulary to increase your fluency while practicing particular grammar points. Today I’d like to use the news to talk about our topic. This presidential election was a good opportunity to study this very specific vocabulary. We will also do a small comparison between how we elect our French president and how you, American people elect your president. If I make any mistake, please correct me in the comment section. Don’t forget to download the study guide to get access to the transcription. Stay tuned!

A special task to review how to blame and reproach with the conditional past. Choose a politician from your country and write in the comment section what they should have done, shouldn’t have done, could have done to be a better politician. Check episode 37 to review the grammar.

In this Episode

Vocabulary of the election
Cultural nugget about how we elect our president
A challenge for you to shine

Episode 37 – Let’s remember grammar!

6 November 2020 by Caro

Beginners, Intermediate, Language Boost

Welcome to the thirty-seventh episode of the French Blabla podcast where we will cover tips to increase your fluency while boosting your way of learning. Today’s episode is a special request from a dear listener, Russ. In episode 33, he told me that he struggles to remember and use certain phrases that combine too many verbs. We will talk about a method that will help you remember difficult grammar. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

My personal method to remember difficult grammar
A talk about chunking
A challenge for you to shine

Episode 36 – Don’t say “je ne sais pas”, use these words instead

30 October 2020 by Caro

Advanced, Beginners, Intermediate, Sound like a native

Welcome to the thirty-sixth episode of the French Blabla podcast where we will cover tips to increase your fluency while boosting your way of learning. In episode 33, we talked about different alternatives to the word “oui” you could use to enrich your conversation and to become a more active participant. In this episode, we continue to expand our vocabulary and we’re going to tackle the phrase “je ne sais pas”. It’s totally ok to use this in your conversations but let’s study some other ways to express this idea in a bit more colourful way. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Master different ways to show your ignorance like a native
Add nuances through different “je ne sais pas”
A funny anecdote about cultural differences

A day in French – 16 – The phone call

11 September 2020 by Caro

A day in French

Welcome to the sixteenth episode of this series that will transport you to the daily life of a French woman. We will cover specific vocabulary to increase your fluency while practicing particular grammar points. I wasn’t planning on creating this episode but I got so upset with what happened that I thought it was the perfect opportunity to review some more subjunctive. Some phone calls can be so annoying and I’m sure all of you can relate with this. Let’s talk about this particular phone call I received some time ago. Don’t forget to download the study guide to get access to the transcription. Stay tuned!

In this Episode

Vocabulary of a phone call
Review the subjunctive with negative/bad feelings
A challenge for you to shine

La Saga de l’été – Le banc public de Nice – Episode 8

4 September 2020 by Caro

La Saga de l'été

Welcome to the eighth episode of our summer series “La Saga de l’été”. This summer, we will travel to the south of France in the town of Nice. This is the last episode of our saga. Our metal friends’ adventure will soon be over as they’re about to be saved and go back to their dearest Promenade in Nice. If you haven’t listened to the previous episode, click here. Don’t forget to download the study guide to get access to the transcription and the vocabulary. Stay tuned!

Book a lesson

Hosted by

Caro, your French
teacher

Coucou, moi c'est Caroline. I've been a French teacher for more than a decade now, both online and in-school. I help you speak more naturally and understand spoken French.

Book a lesson

Hosted by

Caro, your French
teacher

Coucou, moi c'est Caroline. I've been a French teacher for more than a decade now, both online and in-school. I help you speak more naturally and understand spoken French.

Episode 39 – Listen if you hesitate about the pronunciation of “plus”

A day in French – 20 – Snow

A day in French – 19 – The postman Cheval

Episode 38 – Using “alors” doesn’t have to be hard. Discover these 5 meanings

A day in French – 18 – Wigs

A day in French – 17 – Election

Episode 37 – Let’s remember grammar!

Episode 36 – Don’t say “je ne sais pas”, use these words instead

A day in French – 16 – The phone call

La Saga de l’été – Le banc public de Nice – Episode 8

Book a lesson

Hosted by

Caro, your Frenchteacher

Coucou, moi c'est Caroline. I've been a French teacher for more than a decade now, both online and in-school. I help you speak more naturally and understand spoken French.

Book a lesson

Hosted by

Caro, your Frenchteacher

Coucou, moi c'est Caroline. I've been a French teacher for more than a decade now, both online and in-school. I help you speak more naturally and understand spoken French.

Episode 39 – Listen if you hesitate about the pronunciation of “plus”

A day in French – 20 – Snow

A day in French – 19 – The postman Cheval

Episode 38 – Using “alors” doesn’t have to be hard. Discover these 5 meanings

A day in French – 18 – Wigs

A day in French – 17 – Election

Episode 37 – Let’s remember grammar!

Episode 36 – Don’t say “je ne sais pas”, use these words instead

A day in French – 16 – The phone call

La Saga de l’été – Le banc public de Nice – Episode 8

Caro, your French
teacher

Caro, your French
teacher