The original French text, with the English definition of each word in a tip box, a page vocabulary, and notes by Susan Rhoads. The French chapter is from Contes et Legendes, Ire Partie ; par H. A. Guerber; New York: American Book Company; 1895; pp. 11-15.
How To Use This Page
ALL THE FRENCH WORDS are defined and conjugated — every one, every time. Each word on this page will show its meaning in English in its context in that phrase, in a Tip Box when your mouse hovers over it.
In addition, the first time the word is used in that way, outside of the headers, it will be in darker blue. Clicking on the first use of the word will take you to the Page Vocabulary at the bottom of the page. All the forms and meanings of that word used on this page only will be listed.
Afterward, when you have reached the word in the Vocabulary, click on the underlined word, and you will return to the first time the word was used in that way in the text.
If the word is blue, and not underlined, it will take you its entry in the Complete Vocabulary for more about that word. There, if it is underlined, it will take you to the first time that word was used in the entire text by Guerber.
If the word is in red, it is a Tricky Word ! It is a new meaning and function for a word with the same spelling that has been used before with a different meaning. Or it is a word that looks like an English word but means something totally different in French. Then it will be clickable, and take you to the dictionary below. The Tip Box will also clue you in.
All the words and their variant meanings and forms used in the entire book are in the Complete Vocabulary at the end of the book.
Also, when you click on the footnote numbers, or symbols (e.g., *, †, etc.), you will jump down to the appropriate note, and can return again by clicking on the symbol there.
IL y avait une fois un, deux, trois ours : un grand ours, un ours de grandeur moyenne, et un petit ours.
Les trois ours demeuraient dans une petite maison, dans une grande forêt.
Dans la maison, il y avait trois lits : un grand lit pour le grand ours, un lit de grandeur moyenne pour l’ours de grandeur moyenne, et un petit lit pour le petit ours.
Il y avait aussi trois chaises : une grande chaise pour le grand ours, une chaise de grandeur moyenne pour l’ours de grandeur moyenne, et une petite chaise pour le petit ours.
Il y avait aussi trois assiettes et trois cuillères : une grande assiette et une grande cuillère pour le grand ours, une assiette de grandeur moyenne et une cuillère de grandeur moyenne pour l’ours de grandeur moyenne, 12 et une petite assiette et une petite cuillère pour le petit ours.
Un jour le grand ours dit de sa grande voix : “J’ai faim.”
“Oui,” dit l’ours de grandeur moyenne de sa voix de grandeur moyenne, “j’ai faim.”
Et le petit ours dit de sa petite voix : “Oui, oui, j’ai faim.”
Les trois ours firent la soupe. Alors ils versèrent la soupe dans les trois assiettes. Ils versèrent une grande portion dans la grande assiette pour le grand ours. Ils versèrent une portion de grandeur moyenne dans l’assiette de grandeur moyenne pour l’ours de grandeur moyenne, et une petite portion dans la petite assiette pour le petit ours.
Alors le grand ours prit la grande cuillère, goûta la soupe et dit : “La soupe est trop chaude.” L’ours de grandeur moyenne prit la cuillère de grandeur moyenne, goûta la soupe et dit : “Oui, la soupe est trop chaude,” et le petit ours prit la petite cuillère, goûta la soupe et dit : “Oui, oui, la soupe est trop chaude.”
Alors le grand ours dit : “Allons nous promener dans la forêt.” “Oui,” dit l’ours de grandeur moyenne, “allons nous promener dans la forêt;” et le le petit ours dit : “Oui, oui, allons nous promener dans la forêt.”
Les trois ours partirent. Ils laissèrent la porte de la maison ouverte, et la soupe sur la table Une petite 13 fille passa. Elle vit la petite maison, elle vit la porte ouverte, et elle vit la soupe sur la table. Elle dit : “J’ai faim,” et elle entra dans la maison.
Elle prit la grande cuillère, goûta la soupe dans la grande assiette, et dit : “Cette soupe est trop chaude.” Alors elle prit la cuillère de grandeur moyenne, goûta la soupe dans l’assiette de grandeur moyenne, et dit : “Cette soupe est trop froide.” Alors elle prit la petite cuillère, goûta la soupe dans la petite assiette, et dit : “Cette soupe est excellente.” La petite fille mangea toute la soupe.
Alors la petite fille dit : “Je suis fatiguée, où y a-t-il une chaise?” Elle vit les trois chaises. Elle alla à la grande chaise, s’assit, et dit : “Cette chaise n’est pas confortable.” Elle alla à la chaise de grandeur moyenne, s’assit, et dit : “Cette chaise n’est pas confortable.” Alors elle alla à la petite chaise, s’assit, et dit : “Cette chaise est très confortable.” Alors la petite fille sauta de joie et et la chaise se cassa !
La petite fille dit : “J’ai sommeil, où y a-t-il un lit?” Elle vit les trois lits. Elle alla au grand lit, se coucha, et dit : “Ce lit n’est pas confortable.” Elle alla au lit de grandeur moyenne, se coucha, et dit : “Ce lit n’est pas confortable.” Alors elle alla au petit lit, se coucha, et dit : “Ce lit est très confortable,” et la petite fille s’endormit.
Quelques minutes après trois ours arrivèrent. Le grand ours regarda sa grande cuillère et sa grande 14 assiette, et dit de sa grande voix : “Quelqu’un est entré et a goûté ma soupe.” L’ours de grandeur moyenne regarda sa cuillère de grandeur moyenne et son assiette de grandeur moyenne, et dit de sa voix de grandeur moyenne : “Oui, quelqu’un est entré et a goûté ma soupe,” et le le petit ours regarda sa petite cuillère et sa petite assiette, et dit de sa petite voix : “Oui, oui, quelqu’un est entré et a mangé toute ma soupe.”
Le grand ours regarda sa grande chaise et dit de sa grande voix : “Quelqu’un est entré et s’est assis sur ma chaise.” L’ours de grandeur moyenne regarda sa chaise de grandeur moyenne, et dit de sa voix de grandeur moyenne : “Oui, quelqu’un est entré et s’est assis; sur ma chaise.” Et le petit ours regarda sa petite chaise, et dit de sa petite voix : “Oui, oui, quelqu’un est entré et a cassé ma petite chaise.”
Alors le grand ours regarda son grand lit et dit de sa grande voix : “Quelqu’un est entré et s’est couché ; sur mon grand lit.” L’ours de grandeur moyenne regarda son lit de grandeur moyenne, et dit de sa voix de grandeur moyenne : “Oui, quelqu’un est entré et s’est couché ; sur mon lit de grandeur moyenne.” Et le petit ours regarda son petit lit, et dit de sa petite voix : “Oui, oui, une petite fille est couchée sur mon petit lit.”
Les trois ours s’approchèrent : “Oh !” dit le grand ours, “cette petite fille est jolie.” L’ours de grandeur moyenne 15 dit : “Oh, oui, cette petite fille est jolie,” et le petit ours dit : “Oh ! Oui, oui, cette petite fille est très jolie.”
A cet instant la petite fille se réveilla. Elle vit le grand ours, l’ours de grandeur moyenne, et le petit ours. Elle dit : “Oh ! J’ai peur,” et elle sauta du lit et partit vite, vite ! “Oh !” dit le grand ours de sa grande voix : “La petite fille a peur .” “Oui,” dit l’ours de grandeur moyenne, “la petite fille a peur.” Et le petit ours dit : “Oui, Oui, elle a peur.”
La petite fille ne visita plus jamais la maison des ours.
1 The original of this story is the common English nursery tale, “The Three Bears and Little Silver Hair.”
Vocabulaire
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
ALL THE FRENCH WORDS in the entire book, are defined and conjugated — every one, every time. Each word will be listed, with its meaning in English in every form it is used in this text.
Each main word entry that is underlined is a link. Click on it to be taken to the first time this word was used in the story — in that exact form, or by that exact definition.
If the main entry has not been used in this exact way, it is the main form of the word, and it is not underlined. In that case, the form of the word which is used in the book will be in an underlined subheading below it.
The resources used can be found in Comments* below.
If the meaning used at the time the book was written is significantly different in today’s French, that is noted. The modern definition may be included.
NOTE !!! A big, big warning. In French, the infinitive form of the verb does not include the preposition to, as in English. Example, from English: the infinitive form of the verb walk, is to walk. This is important because prepositions are often used before the infinitive in French, and thinking that to ought to be part of the translation will end up making for a great deal of confusion.
Monsieur Bill Thayer enlightened me on this point, and has once again rescued me from the French Grammar Swamp.
About types of verbs : to Toynbee, an older grammarian, verbs are classified as active, neuter, and reflective. In modern dictionaries transitive, intransitive and reflexive are used. (I think reflective makes much more sense, though, since it better explains that the action of the verb “reflects” onto the subject.)
The distinctions between neuter, transitive and intransitive verbs are not mentioned for these stories. The details and explanations are long, convoluted and intimidating (to me). If knowing this makes a huge difference to you, write me and tell me why, so I might finally understand it clearly. However, if you want to know such a classifiation for any of the verbs here, write me and I will probably refer you to your own dictionary, until I feel that I can discuss the matter intelligently or helpfully.
The past tense is variously called the Definite Past, or the Simple Past, or the Historic Past, or the Narrative Past. The term Definite Past is used here. This is a little less confusing and makes it clear that the action expressed is definitely over, or in the past — e.g., dansai: I danced.
The definite past is rarely used in modern French, unless in text books or historical accounts. Which makes it a very good reason to only read history and fairy tales, since this form is so easy to translate.
On the other hand, the Imperfect Past (called the Perfect in older books), is used all the time today, even in cases where the past tense is appropriate. It expresses an action that was not completed, or was habitual, or even was just considered or intended but not really done — e.g., dansais can mean : I was dancing, or I did dance, or I used to dance, or I thought about dancing.
So just to confuse things for everybody, in modern French the Imperfect is regularly translated like the Definite Past, so dansais can also mean I danced.
A : preposition or verb (from the verb avoir: have) :
NOTE !!! In modern French this word, used as a preposition, has a grave accent (the reverse of an acute accent): à. This is not always so in older French texts.
There is an ancient example of the use of “a” in a 15th century French text on this site, used as the preposition, à, without the accent.
NOTE !!! Often, When the word à is capitalized, the accent is not included. In that case, differentiating between the preposition and the verb has to be determined by the context.
Here is a modern example of the use of capital “A” on this page, as the preposition, à, without the accent.
(1) à : preposition — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. :
(a) à : .
(b) à : .
(c) Au : contraction; masculine; singular of the preposition à + the definite article Le. .
For other forms, meanings and uses, see the Main Vocabulary entry for the word “A”.
(2) a : verb — active indicative present; third person singular, from the verb avoir: have or be, an irregular verb. ; or .
(i) a peur : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean (He, she, it) has fear, this uses this form of the verb avoir with the meaning of , and the feminine singular noun peur : fear, or fright. It is translated as : .
(a) a : used as an auxiliary (helping) verb with other verbs to make the perfect tenses.
(i) a cassé : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. From this form of the irregular verb avoir: have; and cassé, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb casser: to break. .
The past perfect tense is also called the indefinite past.
(ii) a goûté : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. From this form of the irregular verb avoir: have; and goûté, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb goûter: taste. .
The past perfect tense is also called the indefinite past.
(iii) a mangé : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. From this form of the irregular verb avoir: have; and mangé, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb manger: eat. .
The past perfect tense is also called the indefinite past.
Ai : verb — active indicative present; first person singular, from the irregular verb avoir: have or be, an irregular verb. ; or .
(i) J’ai faim : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean I have hunger, this uses this form of the verb avoir with the meaning of , and the feminine singular noun faim : hunger. It is translated as : .
(ii) J’ai peur : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean I have fear, or fright this uses this form of the verb avoir with the meaning of , and the feminine singular noun peur : fear, or fright. It is translated as : .
(iii) J’ai sommeil : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean I have sleepiness, or slumber this uses this form of the verb avoir with the meaning of , and the masculine singular noun sommeil : sleep, or sleepiness, or drowsiness. It is translated as : .
Alla : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb aller: go. .
Allons : verb — active imperative; first person plural, from the verb aller: go. A common exclamation.
Alors : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Anglaise : feminine adjective — singular, or plural from anglais. .
NOTE !!! In the headers, this adjective is modifying Texte, which is a feminine noun. In this use of anglaise as an adjective, it is not capitalized — unless it is at the beginning of a sentence, or in a title.
For other uses, meanings and forms of this word, see the Main Vocabulary entry for anglais.
s’Approchèrent : reflexive verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, — used with the elided reflexive object pronoun S’ : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the verb s’approcher: to approach near. .
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
Après : preposition — masculine or feminine, singular or plural. .
Arrivèrent : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, from the verb arriver: to arrive, or to reach. .
Assiette : feminine noun — singular. .
Assiettes : feminine noun — plural of assiette. .
s’Assis : reflexive form of the verb — past participle; masculine or feminine; singular or plural — used with the elided reflexive object pronoun S’ : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the irregular reflexive verb s’asseoir: sit (oneself) down, or seat (oneself). .
Assis, can also be the conjugation for the past (definite), first person, singular. The meaning is determined by the context of the verb. The use of est, the third person singular, shows that it is being used as a participle in this case.
(1) s’est assis; : verb — passive present indicative; third person; masculine, or feminine; singular. .
Here, the passive present is formed from est, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb être: be; or have; and s’assis, the past participle; masculine or feminine; singular or plural, of the verb s’asseoir: seat oneself; sit (oneself) down.
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
s’Assit : reflexive form of the verb — past (definite); third person singular; — used with the reflexive object pronoun S’ : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive irregular verb s’asseoir: to seat (oneself). .
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
Au : contraction — of à + Le. In this case, it means ; .
Here, it is the contraction of A, the preposition (masculine or feminine; singular or plural) and Le, the definite article, (masculine; plural).
For other meanings, see the Main Vocabulary entry for Au.
Aussi : adverb — masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
Avait : verb — active indicative imperfect; third person singular, from the irregular verb avoir: have or be, an irregular verb. ; or .
Il y avait : idiomatic expression. .
Il, is the personal pronoun; third singular, and means .
Y, is an object pronoun and is commonly translated as .
Avait is from the verb avoir: have or be, and is the indicative imperfect, third singular, and means . Here it is used with the meaning: .
So then, literally, the translation of the phrase il y avait means . It is usually translated as . The longer phrase, Il y avait une fois, means which is commonly translated as: .
The singular Il is used even when the object is plural, but then the usual translation changes the tense to . Example: Il y avait trois dindes. . ., literally : ; or more idiomatically translated : .
se Cassa : reflexive form of the verb — past (definite); third person singular; — used with the reflexive object pronoun Se : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive verb se casser: break (oneself). .
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
Cassé : verb — past participle; masculine; singular, from the verb casser: break. .
(1) a cassé : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. .
Here, the past perfect, also called the indefinite past, is formed from a, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb avoir: have; and cassé, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb casser: to break.
Ce : demonstrative adjective — masculine; singular. .
(1) Cet : demonstrative adjective — masculine; singular, from ce. This is the form used before words beginning with a vowel or mute H. .
In French, besides elision as a method to avoid the sounds of two vowels running together, they also use the “Harmonious T.”, to create euphony, or “prettier” sounds. Instead of using ce, which ends in a vowel, before a word that begins with a vowel — which sounds so ugly to the French ear and looks so ugly to the French eye, a is tossed at the end of ce, yielding cet.
For another example of the Harmonious T see a-t-il.
(2) Cette : demonstrative adjective — feminine; singular, from ce. .
Chaise : feminine noun — singular. .
Chaises : feminine noun — plural of chaise. .
Chaude : feminine adjective — singular; from chaud. .
Confortable. : masculine or feminine adjective; singular; from chaud. .
Contes : masculine noun — plural of conte. .
se Coucha : reflexive form of the verb — past (definite); third person singular; — used with the reflexive object pronoun Se : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive verb se coucher: lie (oneself) down, or go to bed (oneself) . .
See a nifty page on the difference between the use lay and laid, off site at LousyWriter.com for the reason why you shouldn’t say She laid down on the bed, when it is really “She lay down on the bed.” But you can say “She laid herself down on the bed.”
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
se Couché : reflexive form of the verb — past participle; masculine; singular — used with the elided reflexive object pronoun S’ : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive verb se coucher: lie down (self) down; go to bed. .
(1) s’est couché : verb — passive present indicative; third person; masculine; singular. .
Here, the passive present is formed from est, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb être: be, or have; and se couché, the past participle; masculine; singular, of the verb se coucher: lie down; to lay (oneself) down; go to bed.
Couchée : verb. This is not the reflexive form, although it is still the — past participle; feminine; singular — From the verb coucher: lie down, (or on; upon); sleep; put to bed. .
(1) est couchée : verb — passive present indicative; third person; feminine; singular. .
Here, the passive present is formed from est, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) verb être: be, or have; and couchée, the past participle; masculine; singular, of the verb coucher: sleep; or put to bed or lay down.
Cuillère : feminine noun — singular. .
Cuillères : feminine noun — plural of cuillère. .
Dans : preposition — masculine or feminine, singular or plural. .
De : preposition — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. :
(1) De : .
(2) De : .
Demeuraient : verb — active indicative imperfect; third person plural, from the verb demeurer: live, or dwell. .
Des : contraction — of De + Les. In this case, it means ; .
Here, it is the contraction of De, the preposition (masculine or feminine; singular or plural) and Les, the definite article, (masculine; plural).
For other meanings, see the Main Vocabulary entry for Des.
Deux : cardinal number — masculine or feminine; plural only. .
Dit : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the irregular verb dire: say, or tell. .
Des : contraction — of De + Le. In this case, it means ; .
Here, it is the contraction of De, the preposition (masculine or feminine; singular or plural) and Le, the definite article, (masculine; singular).
For other meanings, see the Main Vocabulary entry for Du.
Elle : personal pronoun (subject) — third person singular; femnine;. .
Elle is a conjunctive subject personal pronoun. This means that it is used as the subject of the verb being used in a phrase, or sentence. Example : Elle est fatiguée, : she is tired.
“Personal pronouns are divided into two classes, conjunctive and disjunctive.
“Conjunctive pronouns are used as subject, direct object, and indirect object of a verb expressed. In all other cases the personal pronoun has the disjunctive form.” Elementary French, p. 192.
s’Endormit : reflexive form of the verb — past (definite); third person singular; — used with the reflexive object pronoun S’ : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive verb se endormir: fall asleep (oneself), or go to sleep (oneself) . .
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
Entra : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb entrer: enter, or come in. .
Entré : verb — past participle; masculine; singular, from the verb entrer: enter, or go in. .
(1) est entré : verb — passive present; third person; masculine; singular. .
Here, the passive present is formed from From est, the passive indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb être: be, or have, in perfect tenses ; and entré, the masculine past participle; singular of the verb entrer: enter; go in.
Est : verb — active indicative present; third person singular, from the verb être: be, an irregular verb. ; or .
Et : conjunction — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
For the first time et is used in this story outside of the page titles see this text entry for et.
Excellente. : feminine adjective — singular; from excellent. .
Faim : feminine noun — singular. .
(a) ai faim : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean (I) has fear, this uses the meaning of ai, the present indicative; first person singular form of the verb avoir in the sense of , and the noun faim : hunger. It is translated as : .
Fatiguée : verb — past participle; feminine; singular, from the verb fatiguer: to tire, or to make weary, to fatigue. As a participle it is translated as : .
(1) suis fatiguée : verb — passive present; first person; feminine; singular. .
From suis, the passive indicative present; first person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb être: to be; [or have] and fatiguée, the feminine past participle; singular of the verb fatiguer: to tire somebody; to overwork; to fatigue; or to wear somebody out.
Fille : feminine noun — singular. .
Firent : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, from the irregular verb faire: do, or make. .
Fois : feminine noun — singular or plural. .
Une Fois : expression. .
Forêt : feminine noun — singular. .
Française : feminine adjective — singular, or plural, from français. .
This adjective is modifying Texte, which is a feminine noun. In this use of française as an adjective, it is not capitalized — unless it is at the beginning of a sentence, or in a title.
For other uses, meanings and forms of this word, see the Main Vocabulary entry for français.
Froide : feminine adjective — singular; from froid. .
Goûta : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb goûter: taste. .
Goûté : verb — past participle; masculine, singular, from the verb goûter: taste. .
(1) a goûté : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. .
Here, the past perfect, also called the indefinite past, is formed from a, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb avoir: have; and goûté, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb goûter: taste.
Grand : masculine adjective — singular. .
Grande : feminine adjective — singular; from grand. .
Grandeur : feminine noun — singular. .
Il : personal pronoun (subject) — third person singular; masculine;. .
Il is a conjunctive subject personal pronoun. This means that it is used as the subject of the verb being used in a phrase, or sentence. Example : Il est fatigué : he is tired.
“Personal pronouns are divided into two classes, conjunctive and disjunctive.
“Conjunctive pronouns are used as subject, direct object, and indirect object of a verb expressed. In all other cases the personal pronoun has the disjunctive form.” Elementary French* p. 192.
Il y avait : idiomatic expression. .
Il, is the personal pronoun; third singular, and means .
Y, is an object pronoun and is usually translated as .
Avait is from the verb avoir: have or be, and is the indicative imperfect, third singular, and means . Here it is used with the meaning: .
So then, literally, the translation of the phrase il y avait means . It is usually translated as . The longer phrase, Il y avait une fois, means which is commonly translated as: .
The singular Il is used even when the object is plural, but then the usual translation changes the tense to . Example: Il y avait trois dindes. . ., literally : ; or more idiomatically translated : .
Ils : personal pronoun (subject) — third person plural; masculine.
.
Ils is a conjunctive subject personal pronoun. This means that it is used as the subject of the verb being used in a phrase, or sentence. Example : Ils sont fatiguées : they are fatigued.
“Personal pronouns are divided into two classes, conjunctive and disjunctive.
“Conjunctive pronouns are used as subject, direct object, and indirect object of a verb expressed. In all other cases the personal pronoun has the disjunctive form.” Elementary French* p. 192.
Instant : masculine adjective — singular. .
Ire : abbreviation for the ordinal number — feminine or plural. .
This notation of I plus re makes this the ordinal number abbreviation, for first. In French, the full word is première. Just as in English, we use 1, or I, plus st, to make 1st, or Ist, as an abbreviation for first.
J’ : personal pronoun (subject) — first person singular; masculine or feminine. This is the elided (shortened) form of Je. .
Elision, occurs when a word, (usually a two letter word,) that ends in a vowel comes before a word that starts with a vowel. The French then drop that end vowel from the first word and join it with an apostrophe to the following word. This is done because the sound is felt to be more harmonious, or euphonious to the ear. It is also frequently done in other languages, like Greek and Italian.
In modern writing, there is no space between the elided word, with its apostrophe and the word following it. This can vary in older texts, and in other languages.
J’ is a conjunctive subject personal pronoun. This means that it is used as the subject of the verb being used in a phrase, or sentence. Example : J’ ai faim : I am hungry.
“Personal pronouns are divided into two classes, conjunctive and disjunctive.
“Conjunctive pronouns are used as subject, direct object, and indirect object of a verb expressed. In all other cases the personal pronoun has the disjunctive form.” Elementary French* p. 192.
Jamais : adverb of negation; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. With a verb is must be used with the adverb ne; or n’. If a verb is not used in the phrase, it can be used along to make a negative statement. It means : .
(1) Ne . . . jamais : Ne is an adverb of negation, too. When combined with jamais, in a phrase, with a verb, it means : .
Je : personal pronoun (subject) — first person singular; masculine or feminine; . .
Je is a conjunctive subject personal pronoun. This means that it is used as the subject of the verb being used in a phrase, or sentence. Example : Je suis fatiguée : I am tired.
“Personal pronouns are divided into two classes, conjunctive and disjunctive.
“Conjunctive pronouns are used as subject, direct object, and indirect object of a verb expressed. In all other cases the personal pronoun has the disjunctive form.” Elementary French* p. 192.
Joie : feminine noun — singular. .
Jolie : feminine adjective — singular; from joli. .
Jour : masculine noun — singular. .
L’ : definite article — masculine or feminine; singular. It is the elided or shortened form for either La, or Le. The gender it represents is determined by the gender of the noun it is modifying. The meaning doesn’t change, it always means : .
(1) L’ : elision of the feminine, singular definite article La. .
(2) L’ : elision of the masculine, singular definite article Le. .
Whether feminine or masculine, the meaning doesn’t change — it always means The, since common nouns in English are neuter — so there is no distinction in translation between masculine and feminine forms of either articles or nouns in French.
For all the possible forms, uses and meanings, see the Main Vocabulary entry for Le.
NOTE !!! Although this shortened form of Le, or La may be feminine or masculine, depending on the noun it modifies, it is always singular.
In L’, the vowel, e or a is dropped. This happens when the word is followed by a noun beginning with a vowel or a silent h. This is done because the French, like some other nations, didn’t like say 2 vowels together, thinking it sounded awkward and ugly. The word for this process is called elision.
When pronouncing the word, then, you would say both together — Le-di-tion, for L’Édition, etc.
The French adore elision, and do it in all sorts of places, which makes oral French really, really hard to understand to beginning listeners trying to learn the lingo. Practically every word in the language sounds like it starts with L.
Also, the article, whether la, le, les, un, une, or unes, etc., is regularly used in French, not like in English, where it is often omitted.
La : definite article — feminine; singular of Le. .
This word is singular only, never plural. In Spanish, “las” is the feminine plural, but not in French. Les is the plural for both genders in French.
(1) Les : definite article; masculine, or feminine; plural of La or Le. .
Laissèrent : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, from the verb laisser: leave, or let (permit). .
Le : definite article — masculine; singular. .
For other forms, meanings and uses, see the Main Vocabulary entry for the word Le.
(1) La : feminine definite article; singular of Le. .
This word is singular only, never plural. In Spanish, las is the feminine plural, but not in French. Les is the plural for both genders in French.
(2) Les : definite article; masculine, or feminine; plural of La or Le. .
Legendes : feminine noun — plural of legende. .
Les : definite article — masculine or feminine, definite article; plural of Le or La.
Lit : masculine noun — singular.
Lits : masculine noun — plural of lit. .
Ma : possessive adjective; first person singular; masculine or feminine, from mon. .
The gender of the subject cannot be determined from the use of this adjective. The gender is determined by the noun it is modifying. If you are a guy, and want to say I ate my soup, in French, it would be Je mangea ma soupe, not Je mangea mon soupe. This becomes a big problem when the subject has not been identified before, either as a male or a female.
This is also true in English, though, since our possessive adjective My, also is genderless. It just seems more confusing in French because of the gender forms applied to almost every other word in the sentence but this.
An example of this linguistic quirk in the French language is in the text on this site, the Chronicle of Du Guesclin. In the Preface by the anonymous author, starting with the phrase “En ma pensées” (In my thoughts), he or she uses ma and mon throughout it, depending on the noun modified. It is impossible to determine whether the author was a man or a woman because he never tells us his name.
This is one of the two letter words that is never elided. M’ is a different word entirely.
Maison : masculine noun — singular. .
Mangé : verb — past participle; masculine, singular, from the mildly irregular verb manger: eat. .
(1) a mangé : verb — active indicative past perfect; third person; masculine; singular. .
Here, the past perfect, also called the indefinite past, is formed from a, the active indicative present; third person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb avoir: have; and mangé, the masculine past participle; singular, of the verb manger: eat.
Mangea : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the irregular verb manger: eat. .
NOTE !!! Since manger is an example of a verb that ends in ger in the infinitive, it shows the rule that when such verbs are conjugated a e is added after the g, before the endings are added. This is to preserve the soft sound of the g in the word. Elementary French, p. 294.
Minutes : feminine noun — singular; from minute . .
Mon : possessive adjective; first person singular, masculine or feminine, singular. .
NOTE !!! In most cases, Mon is used with masculine nouns. But . . . since Ma, the feminine form, is never used before a word starting with a vowel or mute ‘h’, then Mon is used in this case.
The gender of the subject cannot be determined from the use of this adjective. The gender is determined by the noun it is modifying. If you are a guy, and say I ate my soup, in French, it would be Je mangea ma soupe, not Je mangea mon soupe. This becomes a big problem when the subject has not been identified before, either as a male or a female.
This is also true in English, though, since our possessive adjective My, also is genderless. It just seems more confusing in French because of the gender forms applied to almost every other word in the sentence but this.
An example of this quirk in the French language is in the text on this site, the Chronicle of Du Guesclin. In the Preface by the anonymous author, starting with the phrase “En ma pensées” (In my thoughts), he or she uses ma and mon throughout it, depending on the noun modified. It is impossible to determine whether the author was a man or a woman because he never tells us his name.
Moyenne : feminine adjective — singular; from moyen. .
N’ : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. The elided form of Ne. This is a word of negation. It means No, or Not. It is only used with a verb. It is usually never used alone. Two words of negation are necessary (usually) to make a negative statement when a verb is in the phrase. The words commonly used with ne to make negation are: pas, jamais, plus, que, point, guère, rien, personne. The meaning changes with each combination. All the other words, except que can be used, without Ne, only if there is no verb in the sentence, and still imply negation. (Elementary French, pp. 183-4.). See below. .
(1) N’ . . . pas : Pas is an adverb of negation, too. When combined with n’ in a phrase, with a verb, it means : .
(a) N’est pas : N’, Ne and Pas are adverbs of negation. Both are usually necessary with a verb, to make a statement of negation. When used in a phrase together, it means : . When combined with the est, the active indicative present; third person singular, from the irregular verb être : to be, it means : .
Ne : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. It is only used with a verb. It means No, or Not. It is never used alone usually. Two words of negation are usually necessary to make a negative statement when a verb is in the phrase. The words commonly used with ne to make negation are: pas, jamais, plus, que, point, guère, rien, personne. The meaning changes with each combination. All the other words, except que can be used, without Ne, only if there is no verb in the sentence, and still imply negation. (Elementary French, pp. 183-4.). See below. .
(1) Ne . . . jamais : Jamais is an adverb of negation, too. When combined with ne in a phrase, with a verb, it means : .
Nous : reflexive pronoun (object) — first person; masculine or feminine; plural. .
(1) Nous promener : idiomatic expression reflexive pronoun (object) — first person; masculine or feminine; plural and the infinitive form of reflexive verb se promener: walk; or take a walk. The subject pronoun, also nous, is implied).
A reflexive pronoun is a personal (object) pronoun that is used with a reflexive (or pronominal) verb. It tells you that object of the action of a reflexive verb is the subject. The subject pronoun is still used with the reflexive pronoun, but it is always before the object or reflexive pronoun. Example : Il S’assit, He seated (himself), or he sat (himself) down. See Elementary French, p. 273).
NOTE !!! Nous can also be a subject pronoun. Which is really confusing when used with the reflexive pronoun. Nous nous asseyons, We seated ourselves.
Oh : Exclamation [interjection]; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Où : indefinite pronoun; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Ou without a grave accent: Ou, is a different word entirely !!! When the accent on this word is omitted when the whole word is capitalized in a title, the meaning must be determined from the context.
Oui : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Ours : masculine noun — singular, or plural. .
The use of the singular articles, L’, or Le, or Un, will mean that only one bear is referred to. The use of the plural article, les, means more than one bear is meant. The same is true for other plural or singular modifiers: de, des, son or ses, etc.
Ouverte : feminine adjective — singular; from ouvert. .
Here, Ouverte, which is a past participle, is being used as an adjective. It is from the irregular verb ouvrir: open.
Par : preposition — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. :
Partie : feminine noun — singular. .
Partirent : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, from the verb partir: depart, or leave. or set off. .
Partit : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb partir: depart, or leave. .
Pas : adverb of negation; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. With a verb is must be used with the adverb ne; or n’. If a verb is not used in the phrase, it can be used alone to make a negative statement. It means : .
(1) N’ . . . pas : N̵ is an adverb of negation, too. When combined with pas, in a phrase, with a verb, it means : .
Passa : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb passer: pass, or go by. .
Petit : masculine adjective — singular. .
Petite : feminine adjective — singular; from petit. .
Peur : feminine noun — singular. .
(a) a peur; : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean (He, she, it) has fear, this uses the meaning of a, the present indicative; third person singular form of the verb avoirin the sense of , and the noun peur : fear, or fright. It is translated as : .
(b) ai peur; : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean (I) has fear, this uses the meaning of a, the present indicative; first person singular form of the verb avoirin the sense of , and the noun peur : fear, or fright. It is translated as : .
Plus : adverb of comparison — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Porte : feminine noun — singular. .
Portion : feminine noun — singular. .
Pour : preposition — masculine or feminine, singular or plural. .
Précédent : feminine adjective — singular; from precedent. .
Prit : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the irregular verb prendre: take or get. .
Projet : masculine noun — singular. .
In the headers and footers of the pages, this refers to the general site plan of this website: Elfinspell.
Se Promener : Reflexive Verb. Active Infinitive. .
(1) Nous promener : idiomatic expression reflexive pronoun (object) — first person; masculine or feminine; plural and the infinitive form of reflexive verb se promener: walk. (The subject pronoun, also nous, is implied). .
NOTE !!! Nous can also be a subject pronoun. Which is really confusing when used with the reflexive pronoun. Nous nous asseyons, We seated ourselves. Here, in the text, the subject is indicated in Allons, which is preceding the reflexive pronoun. Allons! Nous Promener. Come lets's take a walk!
Quelques : indefinite adjective; masculine or feminine; plural from quelque. .
Quelqu’un : indefinite pronoun — masculine; singular. Formed from the elided indefinite adjective; masculine; singular, quelque: some; or a few; and the indefinite article; masculine; singular, un: one; or an. .
Regarda : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb regarder: look, or look at, look upon; or regard; watch. .
se Réveilla : reflexive form of the verb — past (definite); third person singular; — used with the reflexive object pronoun Se : himself, herself, itself or themselves. From the reflexive verb se réveiller: wake up, or awaken. .
NOTE !!! A reflexive verb is one whose action is reflected onto the subject of the verb, instead of acting on some other object (something or somebody else besides the subject) in a sentence. They are also called pronominal verbs. Example: S’approchèrent = they brought themselves near, in comparison with Ils approchèrent la maison: They approached the house.
NOTE !!! Most verbs can be used as reflexive verbs along with their non-reflexive use. All it takes is adding the appropriate reflexive (reflective) object pronoun to do this. It (the object pronoun) shows that the action of the verb "reflects" onto the subject of the verb. Sometimes the use of the reflexive form can change the meaning of the verb significantly !!!
While most verbs can act be made to act reflexively by adding the reflexive pronoun, there are some verbs that are only used reflexively.
(The reflexive object pronouns are: Se (including S’), me, te, nous, and vous.)
S’ : reflexive pronoun (object) — third person; masculine or feminine; singular or p;ural. This is the elided (shortened) form of Se. .
A reflexive pronoun is a personal (object) pronoun that is used with a reflexive (or pronominal) verb. It tells you that object of the action of a reflexive verb is the subject. The subject pronoun is still used with the reflexive pronoun, but it is always before the object or reflexive pronoun. Example : Il S’assit, He seated (himself), or he sat (himself) down. See Elementary French, p. 273).
Although se is third person singular or plural, the conjugation of the reflexive verb and the subject pronoun, if included, will often tell you how many individuals are meant by the se. Example : Ils s’assirent : They seated (themselves).
Elision, occurs when a word, (usually a two letter word,) that ends in a vowel comes before a word that starts with a vowel. The French then drop that end vowel from the first word and join it with an apostrophe to the following word. This is done because the sound is felt to be more harmonious, or euphonious to the ear. It is also frequently done in other languages, like Greek and Italian.
In modern writing, there is no space between the elided word, with its apostrophe and the word following it. This can vary in older texts, and in other languages.
S’ is never an elided form of Sa, which is one of the two letter words that is never elided. It is a different word entirely.
Sa : possessive adjective; third person singular; feminine, from son . .
Son : Sa is never used before a word starting with a vowel or mute ‘h’, because it is not a happy sound to the French ear. In this case, as with assiette in the story above, Son, which is usually used with masculine nouns, is used here instead. It still means His, her, or its.
The gender of the subject cannot be determined from the use of this adjective. The gender is determined by the noun it is modifying. So to say Bertrand eats his soup, in French, would be Bertrand mange sa soupe, not Bertran mange son soupe. This becomes a big problem when the subject has not been identified before, either as a male or a female.
This is also true in English, though, since our possessive adjective My, also is genderless. It just seems more confusing in French because of the gender forms applied to almost every other word in the sentence but this.
An example of this quirk in the French language is in the text on this site, the Chronicle of Du Guesclin. In the Preface by the anonymous author, starting with the phrase “En ma pensées” (In my thoughts), he or she uses ma and mon throughout it, depending on the noun modified. It is impossible to determine whether the author was a man or a woman because he never tells us his name.
Sa is one of the two letter words that is never elided. S’ is a different word entirely.
Sauta : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb sauter: leap, or jump; or jump over. .
Se : reflexive pronoun (object) — third person; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
A reflexive pronoun is a personal (object) pronoun that is used with a reflexive (or pronominal) verb. It tells you that object of the action of a reflexive verb is the subject. The subject pronoun is still used with the reflexive pronoun, but it is always before the object or reflexive pronoun. Example : Il S’assit, He seated (himself), or he sat (himself) down. — Elementary French, p. 273).
Although se is third person singular or plural, the conjugation of the reflexive verb and the subject pronoun, if included, will often tell you how many individuals are meant by the se. Example : Ils s’assirent : They seated (themselves).
Sommeil : masculine noun — singular. .
(a) J’ai sommeil; : idiomatic expression. Although, it could mean (I) have sleepiness, this uses the meaning of ai, the present indicative; first person singular form of the verb avoirin the sense of , and the noun sommeil : sleepiness, or drowsiness, or sleep. It is translated as : .
Son : possessive adjective; third person singular; masculine or feminine. .
NOTE !!! In most cases, Son is used with masculine nouns. But . . . since Sa, the feminine form, is never used before a word starting with a vowel or mute ‘h’, then Son is used in this case.
The gender of the subject cannot be determined from the use of this adjective. The gender is determined by the noun it is modifying. So to say Bertrand eats his soup, in French, would be Bertrand mange sa soupe, not Bertran mange son soupe. This becomes a big problem when the gender of the subject has not been identified before, as either a male or a female.
This is also true in English, though, since our possessive adjective My, also is genderless. It just seems more confusing in French because of the gender forms applied to almost every other word in the sentence but this.
An example of this quirk in the French language is in the text on this site, the Chronicle of Du Guesclin. In the Preface by the anonymous author, starting with the phrase “En ma pensées” (In my thoughts), he or she uses ma and mon throughout it, depending on the noun modified. It is impossible to determine whether the author was a man or a woman because he never tells us his name.
Soupe : feminine noun — singular. .
Suis : verb — active indicative present; first person singular, from the verb être: be; [or have], an irregular verb. ; or .
(1) suis fatiguée : verb — passive present; first person; feminine; singular. .
From suis, the passive indicative present; first person singular, (masculine or feminine) form of the auxiliary (helping) irregular verb être: to be; [or have] and fatiguée, the feminine past participle; singular of the verb fatiguer: to tire somebody; to overwork; to fatigue; or to wear somebody out.
Suivante : feminine adjective — singular; from suivant. .
Sur : preposition — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
For other meanings and uses of sur see the Vocabulary.
Table : feminine noun — singular. .
Texte : feminine noun — singular. .
Toute : feminine adjective — singular from tout. .
NOTE !!! This is an irregular adjective. It is placed before the article, possessive adjective, and/or the noun in a phrase, instead of afterwards, as in toute ma soupe : all my soup.
NOTE !!! It is also irregularly conjugated in the plural: (tous, as in Tous les ours : All the bears; or every bear.
Très : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Trois : cardinal number — masculine or feminine; plural only. .
Trop : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Un : indefinite article or cardinal number; masculine; singular. This word has two meanings, which are often used interchangeably : .
In a list of numbered items, it is easy to see that the number Un, or one, is meant; the rest of the time it can mean either a, or an.
This word is singular only, never plural.
(1) Un : indefinite article; masculine; singular. .
(2) Un : cardinal number — masculine; singular. .
Une : indefinite article, or cardinal number; feminine; singular from Un. This word has two meanings, which are often used interchangeably : .
In a list of numbered items, it is easy to see that the number Un, or one, is meant; the rest of the time it can mean either a, or an.
This word is singular only, never plural.
(1) Une : indefinite article; feminine; singular; of Un. .
(2) Une : cardinal number — masculine; singular; of Un. .
(a) Une Fois : expression. .
Versèrent : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person plural, from the transitive use of the verb verser: pour, or spill. .
Visita : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the verb visiter: visit, or call on, or upon. .
Vit : verb — active indicative past (definite); third person singular, from the irregular verb voir: see. .
Vite : adverb — masculine or feminine; singular or plural. .
Vocabulaire : masculine noun — singular. .
In French, the word is not used in the sense of a word list with definitions, as in this book by Guerber and other English books. In French, this would be called a Lexique, or Glossaire.
Here, this link will take you to the cumulative Vocabulary with all the French words translated into English, for the entire book. There is a smaller vocabulary list for only the words used in a specific story at the bottom of its page.
Voix : feminine noun — singular. .
Y : personal object pronoun; masculine or feminine; singular or plural. It is usually translated as : .
From Elementary French, p. 204 — “The Pronoun Y is used to take the place of the preposition à (sometimes en and dans) and an object pronoun when the pronoun refers to a thing (rarely when it refers to a person). This occurs with all the various meanings of à, to, at, in, etc.; . . . Observe that y often translates .”
Il y avait : idiomatic expression. .
Il, is the personal pronoun; third singular, and means .
Y, is an object pronoun and is commonly translated as .
Avait is from the verb avoir: have or be, and is the indicative imperfect, third singular, and means . Here it is used with the meaning: .
So then, literally, the translation of the phrase il y avait means . It is usually translated as . The longer phrase, Il y avait une fois, means which is commonly translated as: .
The singular Il is used even when the object is plural, but then the usual translation changes the tense to . Example: Il y avait trois dindes. . ., literally : ; or more idiomatically translated : .
Copyright © by Susan Rhoads, Elfinspell 2008