Latest / Learn French with Fexingo / French Household Chores Basics - Learn with Fexingo
Transcript
- Lucas: Welcome back to another episode of Learn French with Fexingo. I'm Lucas, and I'm here with Luna. Luna: Hi everyone! It is so good to be back with you all today. We have been talking about homes lately, right? Lucas: That's right. In the last few episodes, we talked about the rooms in a house—like the bedroom, the bathroom, and the kitchen. We also looked at some furniture and objects. Luna: Yes, exactly. We learned words like 'la table' and 'le lit.' But Lucas, I realized something this morning. Lucas: Oh? What did you realize? Luna: I know what my house looks like, but I don't really know how to talk about keeping it clean. I mean, I have to do things every day. Lucas: You are absolutely right. Knowing the rooms is one thing, but knowing the actions you do in those rooms is another skill entirely. Today, we are going to focus on that. Luna: So, what are we learning today? Is it just random verbs? Lucas: No, not random. We are going to learn four very common phrases for household chores. These are things almost everyone does. Let's start with the big one. The general act of cleaning. Luna: Okay. How do you say 'I do the cleaning' or 'I am tidying up'? Lucas: The most natural way to say this is: Je fais le ménage. Luna: Je fais le ménage. Lucas: Let's break it down. 'Je fais' means 'I do' or 'I make.' And 'le ménage' is the noun for 'the cleaning' or 'the housework.' So together, it literally means 'I do the housework.' Luna: Got it. 'Je fais le ménage.' It feels like a good starting point because it covers everything. Lucas: Exactly. It is the umbrella term. Now, let's get more specific. Imagine you are inside, and you need to clean the floors. Luna: Right. I hate sweeping, but I love vacuuming. How do you say 'I vacuum'? Lucas: To say 'I vacuum,' we use the verb 'passer.' The phrase is: Je passe l'aspirateur. Luna: Je passe l'aspirateur. Lucas: Perfect pronunciation. 'Je passe' comes from the verb 'passer,' which often means 'to pass,' but here it means 'to go over' or 'to run through.' 'L'aspirateur' is obviously 'the vacuum cleaner.' Luna: So, 'Je passe l'aspirateur.' That makes sense. It sounds very active. Lucas: It is very active. Now, let's move to the kitchen. We talked about 'la cuisine' last time. After you eat, there is usually a mess. Luna: Ugh, yes. The worst part. How do I say 'I wash the dishes'? Lucas: This is a classic phrase. You use the verb 'laver,' which means 'to wash.' The phrase is: Je lave la vaisselle. Luna: Je lave la vaisselle. Lucas: Spot on. 'La vaisselle' refers to all the plates, bowls, cups, and cutlery. So 'Je lave la vaisselle' is specifically washing the dishes by hand or loading the machine. Luna: I love that word 'vaisselle.' It sounds fancy for just dirty plates. Lucas: It does sound a bit elegant, doesn't it? Finally, let's talk about getting rid of the waste. This is important if you live in an apartment. Luna: Oh, the trash. Yes. How do you say 'I take out the trash'? Lucas: We use the verb 'sortir,' which means 'to take out' or 'to go out.' The phrase is: Je sors les poubelles. Luna: Je sors les poubelles. Lucas: Excellent. 'Les poubelles' is plural because in France, you often have different bins for recycling and general waste. So you take them all out. Luna: Je sors les poubelles. Okay, so we have four main phrases today. Lucas: Yes. Let's review them quickly. First, the general cleaning. Luna: Je fais le ménage. Lucas: Second, the vacuuming. Luna: Je passe l'aspirateur. Lucas: Third, the dishes. Luna: Je lave la vaisselle. Lucas: And fourth, the trash. Luna: Je sors les poubelles. Lucas: Great job, Luna. These are incredibly useful sentences. You can use them to tell your friends what you did yesterday, or what you plan to do today. Luna: I feel much more confident about my weekend now. I can actually describe my chores in French. Lucas: That is the goal. Practice saying these out loud. Try putting them together in a little story. Like, 'First I do the housework, then I vacuum...' Luna: Yes! 'D'abord, je fais le ménage. Ensuite, je passe l'aspirateur.' It flows nicely. Lucas: It really does. And remember, consistency is key. Even ten minutes a day with these phrases will help them stick. Luna: Absolutely. If Fexingo has been helping you make actual progress with this language, the way these stay ad-free is listener support — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Lucas: Yeah. It really is just about supporting the work so we can keep making these small, digestible lessons for you. Every bit helps us keep the show running smoothly. Luna: Thanks so much for listening and for your support. It means the world to us. Lucas: Now, back to our phrases. Can you think of a chore you did this morning using one of these sentences? Luna: I definitely washed the dishes after breakfast. Je lave la vaisselle! Lucas: Perfect. And maybe later you will vacuum? Je passe l'aspirateur? Luna: Maybe! Or maybe I'll just do the general cleaning. Je fais le ménage. Lucas: Whatever you choose, just say it in French. That is how you learn. Take out the trash too, just in case. Je sors les poubelles. Luna: no joke. It smells bad in there. Okay, Lucas, I think we are done for today. Lucas: We are. Thanks for hanging out with us. Keep practicing these four phrases. See you next time. Luna: Bye everyone! Au revoir!