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EveryLingua

B2

Fließend

Hier verschwindet die Anstrengung aus dem Zuhören. Ein Vortrag, eine Diskussion, ein Zeitungstext im eigenen Fachgebiet gehen ohne ständiges Nachfragen durch.

Beim Sprechen kommt eine Wahl dazu, die es vorher nicht gab: Für dieselbe Sache gibt es jetzt mehrere Formulierungen, und sie klingen unterschiedlich höflich, unterschiedlich sicher, unterschiedlich formell.

Noch ohne Familie18

The future

2

B2The future that is already over«Will have finished» — and «when I have finished» too.B2The future used for a guess«That’ll be the postman» — the same trick, the same words.

The subjunctive

1

B2The subjunctive in the pastOne letter apart from the ordinary perfect, and inaudible.

If-sentences

4

B2When it is too late«had known» and «would have come», built with two auxiliaries.B2Conditions without si«in case it rains» becomes a conditional here.B2Mixed conditionsThe same mixing English does, with the same signal words.B2Wishes and regrets«I wish» has no verb here: it is a si with nothing after it.

The passive

2

B2se and se faire«get your wallet stolen» and «have your hair cut», in one verb.B2par or de — who acts, and who feels«covered with» is already de; «loved by» is not par.

Joining sentences

2

B2The relative pronoun after a prepositionEnglish hides these by stranding the preposition; French cannot.B2The relative clause without quiThe shortening English does most often is the one French forbids.

Reported speech

3

B2The tense moves back one stepEnglish backshifts too — but it lets you skip it, and French does not.B2Passing on a questionOne English what becomes two French words.B2The reporting verbsprétendre is not pretend, and the gap between them is wide.

What follows a verb

3

B2The gérondifEnglish -ing does five jobs; en plus -ant does one.B2Having something done, and letting it happenmake, have and get are all one verb here.B2The infinitif passéAfter eating is exactly the mistake here.

The finishing touches

1

B2What is emphasised goes inside a frameEnglish can just say it louder; French has to build the cleft.