What this seminar will cover

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:
• irregular plurals
• gender
• idioms
• word order
• subjunctive
• How the dictionary can help you with verbs:
•
•
•
tense, subject and object
transitive and intransitive verbs
reflexive, impersonal, and phrasal verbs
• Avoiding mistakes
• Extra features
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© Oxford University Press 2005
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
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What your dictionary can help you with
son/sa/ses?
examples using let
in the perfect tense?
register?
warning that téléphoner
is followed by à in
this context?
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.
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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.
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The sequence of grammatical categories
English – French
Start
Programs
• Noun
Either:
• Adjective
• Adjective
• Adverb
• Noun
• Verb
• Idioms
Microsoft Word
French – English
• Adverb
Or:
• Transitive verb
• Phrasal verbs
(e.g. pull in, drop off) • Intransitive verb
• Reflexive verb
• Impersonal verb
Document
NB: All this applies to the OxfordHachette French Dictionary.
Other dictionaries may have
different conventions.
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Then:
• Compounds
• Idioms
Navigating an English-French entry (I)
headword
phonetics
noun translations
given with gender
meaning signposts
in parentheses
grammatical
categories
contextualizations
in square brackets
senses within
grammatical
categories
contextualization
after verb = object
contextualization
before verb = subject
swung dash
replaces headword
register
Informal
very informal
vulgar or taboo
phrasal verbs
at end of entry
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Navigating an English-French entry (II)
a kindly face
kindly: adjective
or adverb?
narrow the
meaning by
using context
un visage sympathique
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Elle a souri avec gentillesse
© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Navigating a French-English entry
nouns are listed
with their gender
links to verb tables
at back of dictionary
warnings of
translation traps
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Common Grammatical Categories
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adj
adjective
describes a noun
sad, triste
adv
adverb
tells you how sth is done
comfortably,
confortablement
art
article
definite article: the
indefinite article: a
the, le, la, les
a, un, une
aux
auxiliary verb
used with main verb to show tense
she has arrived
elle est arrivée
conj
conjunction
links two phrases
because, car
n
noun
thing, person or idea
life, vie
pp
past participle
forms perfect tense with aux verb
I have eaten
j’ai mangé
prep
preposition
used with noun to show position
near, près de
pron
pronoun
stands instead of a noun
he, il
pron poss
possessive
pronoun
word used to show who sth belongs to
his, her, son, sa
vpr
reflexive verb
verb requiring a reflexive pronoun
to trouble oneself,
se donner la peine
© Oxford University Press 2005
Grammatical Categories Exercise
Match these words with the correct part of speech
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crabe
vpr
bleuâtre
prep
parfaitement
nm
remarqué
pp
bagages
conj
se lever
adj
ou
adv
sur
mpl
Swung Dash (or Tilde) ~ and Hyphen The swung dash stands for
the whole headword so the
ending is added:
The hyphen indicates the
feminine ending replaces the
masculine one:
destitute
les ~s the destitute, the poor
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
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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
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
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
shows
pattern:
montrer qch à qn = to show sth to sb
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
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Phonetics
des
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hôtels
des haricots
© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
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
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Gender
1
2
3
4
8
5
6
7
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
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 herself to grasp the nettle.
Louis peut sortir s’il veut; moi, j’ai d’autres chats à fouetter.
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Word Order
shows
constructio
n where
word order
changes:
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Expressions requiring the subjunctive
warning
note:
shows when
subjunctive is
required:
note use of
subjunctive:
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
Verb Basics
Types of verbs:
• Transitive and Intransitive
• Reflexive
• Impersonal
• English phrasal verbs
Other help with verbs:
• Verb tables
• Verb complementation
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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
– Gertrude loves 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
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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
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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.
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Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (II)
• The same verb can be used both transitively and intransitively:
• sortir
- Elle a sorti son deuxième album = She brought out her second
album = 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)
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Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Exercise
éparpiller: Il a
éparpillé ses
vêtements
transitive
(vtr) and
intransitive
(vi)
dispersés takes
an extra -e
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© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
se disperser: les
oiseaux se sont
dispersés
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
- Puis je 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
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Reflexive Verbs (II)
1st pers singular
je
me
je ne me rappelle pas les mots/chiffres exacts
I don't remember the actual words/figures
2nd pers singular
tu
te
pour qui est-ce que tu te prends?
who do you think you are?
3rd pers singular
il/elle/on
se
l'action se passe à Beyrouth
the action takes place in Beirut
1st pers plural
nous
nous
nous nous sommes disputés avec nos professeurs
we had a confrontation with our teachers
2nd pers plural
vous
vous
vous vous trompez fort
you are sadly mistaken
3rd pers plural
ils/elles
se
ils ne se sont pas vraiment plaints
they didn't actually complain
• 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.
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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
•
Falloir and neiger are the only verbs that only ever take il
English Phrasal Verbs
• Phrasal verbs are at the end of the entry, marked
Phrasal verbs
• verb + preposition or adverb e.g. run away
• Other examples: give up, take off, let down
• There are no phrasal verbs in French
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Verb Tables
Verbs are listed at their infinitive form:
we went to Italy
they bought a DVD
elles veulent partir
j’ai mis la table
je me suis trompé
il s’agit de ta santé






Wellington defeated Napoleon
look up the infinitive go
look up the infinitive buy
look up the infinitive vouloir
look up the infinitive mettre
look up the infinitive tromper
look up the infinitive agir
check against verb
table 57 at the back
past participle
Wellington a vaincu Napoléon
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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.:
verb + que + indicative
(verb form used to express factual
statements or questions)
verb + que + subjunctive
(verb form used to express
hypothetical statements)
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Je crois qu’il fait de son
mieux.
Je ne crois pas qu’il fasse
de son mieux.
verb + à + faire
Il a commencé à pleurer.
verb + de + faire
Elle a décidé de voyager.
© Oxford University Press 2005
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.
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Adapting examples
Careful! Sometimes you may need to adapt a given translation
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.
nous nous moquons de lui)
• need to use the right structures (e.g. permettre à qn de faire qch)
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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
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What else can a good dictionary offer you?
1 Information about life and culture
2 Thematic boxes explaining
grammatical points and giving
extra vocabulary, crossreferenced from the headword
3 Correspondence – letters,
CVs, emails, and linking
vocabulary useful for essays
Letter openings
The standard opening greeting
for personal correspondence is
Cher/Chère
4 French verb tables
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in other words
In other words, we must be wary of
hasty judgments. Autant dire qu’il
faut se méfier de jugements hâtifs.
© Oxford Hachette Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860363-0
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:
• common grammatical categories
• swung dash (or tilde) and hyphen
• subject field labels
• regional labels
• register labels
• sb, sth, qn, and qch
• phonetics
• How the dictionary can help you with:
• irregular plurals
• gender
• idioms
• word order
• subjunctive
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© Oxford University Press 2005
Review (II)
• How the dictionary can help you with verbs:
• tense, subject, and object
• direct and indirect objects
• transitive and intransitive verbs
• reflexive verbs
• impersonal verbs
• phrasal verbs
• verb tables
• verb complementation
• Avoiding mistakes:
• adapting examples
• cross-checking
• Extra features
Questions
A chance to discuss any ideas or points raised in the seminar
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© Oxford University Press 2005