Latest / Learn French with Fexingo / French Time Basics – Quelle heure est-il?
Transcript
- Lucas: Hey Luna, ready for another tiny French lesson? Luna: Always! What are we learning today? Lucas: Time! Telling time in French. Super useful. Luna: Oh, like 'what time is it?' I've definitely needed that. Lucas: Exactly. So the question is: Quelle heure est-il? Say it with me. Luna: Quelle heure est-il? Lucas: Perfect. It means 'What time is it?' Let's break it down: quelle = what, heure = hour, est-il = is it. So literally 'what hour is it?' Luna: Quelle heure est-il? Got it. Now how do I answer? Lucas: For one o'clock, you say: Il est une heure. Repeat that. Luna: Il est une heure. Lucas: Nice! Note: une because heure is feminine. For two o'clock: Il est deux heures. Try that. Luna: Il est deux heures. Lucas: Yes! For three: Il est trois heures. You get the pattern. Luna: Il est trois heures. So il est + number + heures. Lucas: Exactly. But there are two special ones: noon and midnight. For noon: Il est midi. For midnight: Il est minuit. Try each. Luna: Il est midi. Il est minuit. Lucas: Great! Midi and minuit are masculine, so no 'heure' needed. Let's practice with a little scene. Imagine you're at a café in Paris. You ask the waiter: Quelle heure est-il? Luna: Quelle heure est-il? Lucas: And the waiter looks at his watch and says: Il est une heure. So it's 1 PM. Luna: Il est une heure. Perfect for lunch. Lucas: Exactly. Now let's try a different time. You're meeting a friend. You ask: Quelle heure est-il? Your friend says: Il est trois heures. Luna: Quelle heure est-il? Il est trois heures. Lucas: Awesome. Let's do a quick quiz. I'll say a time in English, you say it in French. One o'clock. Luna: Il est une heure. Lucas: Two o'clock. Luna: Il est deux heures. Lucas: Noon. Luna: Il est midi. Lucas: Midnight. Luna: Il est minuit. Lucas: You're a natural! Now let's put it together in a mini dialog. I'll be the waiter. You ask the time. Luna: Quelle heure est-il? Lucas: Il est deux heures. Merci et bonne journée. Luna: Merci, au revoir! Lucas: Lovely. See how natural that feels? You just had a tiny French conversation about time. Luna: That's so cool. I can actually ask for the time now! Lucas: And answer too. Remember, practice makes progress. Try asking yourself 'Quelle heure est-il?' throughout the day and answering in French. Luna: I will. Thanks Lucas! This was fun. Lucas: You're welcome. And remember, you can get more practice with Fexingo's other episodes. Keep it up! Luna: See you next time! Lucas: À bientôt!