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- Topic: French >
- "Tu manges du riz."
148 Comments
Why is salade not correct? On mobile it was pick the missing word and i couldnt pick between riz and salade
because "salade" is feminine, so it would have been "de la" (and not "du" which is masculine).
I have a question. seen that feminine should be ''de la'',why for masculine it's not ''du le''?
l'eau is feminine: une eau
l'alcool is masculine: un alcool
Hence the interest of learning new nouns with their indefinite article.
it is posible to say? UNE EAU ??? isnt sound quite weird??? please could you answer and again thank you
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no, it's not at all. it sound's like "an-eu" "aneu". eu sounds like the "eu" in bleu. correct me if i'm wrong, because i'm still learning too :)
I think you are correct. Water is uncountable so you can't say 'a' water, but rather 'some' water.
We can say "A COFFEE" in french though, at least in this App.. it implies "A (CUP OF) COFFEE)...
But it says you, it doesn't define with is masculine or feminine. I can't decide which is feminine and which words are masculine.
This is kinda super late and may not help you anymore, but because du is de+le, and "le" is masculine, you find the masculine noun to complete the sentence. Salade is feminine, and alcool would be something you would drink, not eat. Therefore "riz" would be the correct answer.
Here's a quick table thing to help you understand this a little better (hopefully)
de+la=de la de+le=du de+les-des
Hope that clears stuff up. :)
It helps to know when to use de la as I don't have a PC for the lessons. Thanks.
You could also open Duolingo on your Mobile Phone's browser.. and there are tips and notes before you take the lesson.
I open my Duo with my mobile browser sometimes.. just to see the tips and notes haha
having a clear voice that does not sound like a robot would make this awesome. that being said. im not gonna complain too much see as this is all free.
You are right, better complain only once, because when you have made progress down the tree, you will have multiple occasions to complain about the robot voice and that would be very repetitive for other learners (having already complained hundreds of times).
I have a similar problem...every time the voice say Tu I understand Je... :-/
nope, but I could see the potential confusion. Although I'm loving this site so far, I think one weakness of duolingo is the lack of enunciation in the voice of the speaker.
If I try, I can REALLY enunciate words in english and make it very clear how to say them, I feel that emphasis is lacking here.
Still, I understand most words, so it's good enough ;)
"tu manges" - "vous mangez"
je mange, tu manges, il/elle/on mange, nous mangeons, vous mangez, ils/elles mangent
Most nouns that are feminine gender usually end in 'e', however there are exceptions so their gender must be learnt
There is no way of knowing; you just have to memorize each noun with its article (that said, English words (like "le weekend") are always masculine.
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Here's the Tips Notes from this skill (Food). I suggest, if you access Duolingo through the mobile app, to check the skill you are doing on your mobile browser to see these. You could see this one here.
The Partitive Article
The partitive article is used for unspecified amounts of uncountable nouns. In English, it can translate to "some", but it's often just omitted. Remember that du is a contraction of de + le and that partitives can elide.
| Gender | Partitive Article | Example |
| Masculine | du | Je mange du poisson. — I am eating fish. |
| Feminine | de la | Je mange de la viande. — I am eating meat. |
| Elided Masc. | de l' | Je mange de l'ananas. — I am eating pineapple. |
| Elided Fem. | de l' | Je bois de l'eau. — I am drinking water. |Nouns almost never appear without articles in French, so articles must be repeated in serial lists.
- Il cuisine du poisson et de la viande — He cooks fish and meat.
Count Noun, Mass Noun, or Both?
Count nouns are discrete and can be counted, like un livre ("a book"). They can be modified by definite and indefinite articles, but not partitive articles.
- Je lis un livre. — I am reading a book.
- Nous avons les livres. — We have the books.
Mass nouns like lait ("milk") are uncountable, and they can be modified by definite and partitive articles, but not indefinite articles.
- Je bois du lait. — I am drinking [some] milk.
- Je bois le lait. — I am drinking the milk.
However, many nouns can behave as both count nouns and mass nouns. This is true for most edible things. For instance, consider poisson ("fish") or vin ("wine"):
- Count noun: Le poisson est rouge. — The fish is red.
- Mass noun: Je mange du poisson. — I eat [some] fish.
- Count noun: Le vin est blanc. — The wine is white.
- Mass noun: Je bois du vin rouge ou blanc. — I drink red or white wine.
Note that some mass nouns can be pluralized in English when they refer to multiple types of the noun, but this usage isn't found in French. For instance, "the fishes" refers to multiple species of fish, while les poissons just refers to multiple fish.
Omitted Articles
When an article is missing in an English sentence, it must be added to the French translation. The definite article can be used to fill this void in three situations:
- Almost anywhere one would use "the" in English (i.e. when referring to specific things).
- Before the subject of a sentence to state general truths about it.
- Before the direct object of a verb of appreciation (like aimer) to express like/dislike.
If any of the above is true, then use the definite article. Otherwise, use the indefinite or partitive, depending on whether or not the noun is countable.
- I like wine, but I am drinking milk. — J'aime le vin, mais je bois du lait.
Both articles are missing in the English version of this example. Aimer expresses fondness for wine, so le vin should be used there. However, boire is not a verb of appreciation, so the partitive du should be used on the uncountable lait.
- Cats are animals. — Les chats sont des animaux.
This is a general truth about cats, but #2 above can only apply to subjects, so only chats takes a definite article here. Animaux are countable, so use the plural indefinite des.
- He likes to eat meat. — Il aime manger de la viande.
This is a tricky example because the meat is the direct object of manger, not aimer. Thus, #3 does not apply and viande cannot take a definite article.
Also, the French definite article can be ambiguous when translating from French to English. It can often refer to both a specific noun and the general sense of a noun.
- Les chats sont des animaux. — Cats are animals. / The cats are animals.
De + Definite Article
De plus a definite article can also have other meanings. De means "of" or "from", so this can also indicate possession or association with a definite noun.
- La copie du livre. — The copy of the book.
- Les copies des livres. — The copies of the books.
- L'enfant de la femme. — The woman's child.
I am struggling with the difference in pronunciation of mange and manges, the s seems silent- and they sound the same- but then again, a lot of theses sound the same to me!
"Tu" is used when you talk to someone you know, like friends. "Vous" is used when you talk to strangers, or when you're meeting with someone important. You're supposed to use vous when you don't know.
Why does du not apply to the other words and only rice.doesn't du mean some
"du" applies to every masculine singular noun starting with a consonant.
- du pain, du vin, du boeuf, du beurre, du bonheur, du pouvoir, etc.
You are supposed to have learned that salad = une salade, feminine.
Now, if you also know that rice = un riz, masculine, you have the key:
- de la salade is feminine
- du riz is masculine
"alcool" is a masculine form so -d'- would be most appropriate for it since it is a word starting with a vowel, a -d'- is most appropriate. If "du" it were feminine, it would be "de la" for salade, but the sentence says "du", so the correct option is riz.
Is there an official way to identify whether a word is feminine or not? These types of questions are really starting to trip me up because I dont know where "de la" is used instead of "du" and vice versa. Do I just have to memerize the masculine from the feminine? Somebody help me. I need it.
salade is feminine: une salade, la salade, de la salade
alcool is masculine and starts with a vowel sound: un alcool, l'alcool, de l'alcool
I see. And I also looked at your other comments. They are very helpful. Thanks a lot :)
so is that means the word ''de'' is not only for feminine?And if the word start with a vowel may be like ''de l'oignon'' or ''de l'ean'' is that right? By the way,why isn't it be like ''du l'alcool''?
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does it have to do with the countable and uncountable categories as well ? what exactly can i use for alcohol articles all together ?
Salade and riz are both foods... So why was I marked incorrect when I chose salade?
"Tu manges du salade" is not valid? I realise now that "riz" is the new word that is being tested for, but...
for some reason on my phone they were not showing, on my laptop now i see them. Thank you for all your input, i frequently read your responses to people, always enlightening :)
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Then you say it wrong. It's "je mange la salade" or "je mande de la salade". Because salade is feminine.
How are you supposed to know witch one to pick if you can eat both RICE AND SALAD I picked salad and got it wrong
You are supposed to have already come across "le/un/du riz", masculine and "la/une/de la salade", feminine.
Therefore, if you are proposed "du"..., you have to understand that the only word fitting in will be masculine.
'Du', Is this specific to use with food or can be used in other contexts. Eg.: 'Je lisent du livre'. Is it right? Also, if anyone explains in what ways can 'du' be used? Omlette du fromage = cheese omelette So by going by this, will sandwich du fromage translates to sandwich cheese, but I want to convey cheese sandwich.
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First, despite its widespread popularity amongst English speakers, omelette du fromage is very wrong in French. The right way to say it is omelette au fromage.
Second, partitive articles (du, de la, de l' and des) can be used with anything, but only if they are uncountable or treated in an uncountable way, like water, sand, iron, wind, etc.
Du is a contraction of de and le, like au, which is a contraction of à and le.
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Because it starts with a vowel, so the correct partitive article to use is de l' : de l'alcool.
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There is no simple, straightforward way to tell, just by looking at the word (like its spelling or last syllable). There are a few patterns, but the most precise of them is only good less than 80% of the time, so I wouldn't bother spending time to memorize them.
Just like English spelling, if you don't learn them while you learn the word, you can check in a dictionary, it will always be indicated (usually by a small m. or f., sometimes n m/n f : "noun, masculine"; "noun, feminine").
Why my dictionary translate "de la" to "of the" shouldnt it translate to "some" ???
Either translation is correct! de/du can mean some, but in some phrases or sentences, such as "le livre de Sam," it means the book of sam, showing possesion. It's kind of confusing, but both translations are correct.
Salade is a feminine word. The question is tu manges du ____. Du=de+le, which means that the answer would have to be feminine, because le is the masculine word for the. Salade is feminine, and so you wouldn't be able to apply it in this context. Here's a quick table to help you out in the future. de la=de+la de le=de+le de+les= des
Hope that clears some stuff up. :)
Why do we have to put du in front of riz? I understand that de means of and du is de + le but wouldn't that sentence be "You are eating of the rice".
de/du can have two meanings. One, like you mentioned, is showing possession. For example, "le livre de Sam" would be translated as "the book of Sam." However, de/du can also mean "some" or "any." So in this context, where it says "Tu manges du riz" it's actually saying "you eat some rice" rather than "you eat of the rice."
Hey! I just realized i can move the correct box up and down! Interesting...
Salade is a feminine word. The question is tu manges du ____. Du=de+le, which means that the answer would have to be feminine, because le is the masculine word for the. Salade is feminine, and so you wouldn't be able to apply it in this context. Here's a quick table to help you out in the future. de la=de+la de le=de+le de+les= des
Hope that clears some stuff up. :)
No. In their simplest correct forms, De+le=du, de+la=de la, and de+les=des.
Du is de+le. Le is a masculine article, meaning that the noun that comes after it must also be masculine. Salade is feminine, which eliminates that answer. And if you "manges" something, it means you eat it. You can't eat alcool, so the only possible answer is riz. Riz also happens to be food, and a "masculine" word.
I am an English speaker and this is my first attempt at a foreign language. Are there any hints at remembering the gender of objects? I seem to always get it wrong.
It's really hard to learn at first, but after learning French for a while your brain will put the pieces together for you, and you'll have them memorized. Oftentimes, nouns or adjectives that end in "e" are feminine, but that is not always the case. It'll come with time...good luck?
Why doesn't "alcool" work? Is it because it's femanine? (it doesn't appear to be femanine. Unless its just one of those words you need to remember is femanine) Or is it not accepted because you can't say "du alcool"? Like how you dont say "le alcool" but instead you say "l'alcool"
"tu manges" means "you eat." You can't really eat alcool, so...yeah. Riz is the right answer.
Im starting to see how this works. Yhe trick is noticing of the leading words or for mascline or femenin
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De and Du both can mean having possession, or some/any. le and la both mean the. Le is masculine, la is feminine.
de la=de+la du=de+le
You eat a salad, it should be marked correct. I agree you eat rice but also you eat salad. You cant drink it.
If the sentence reads, Tu manges du .??. And salade is feminine and it would be 'de la' and du is the contraction of 'de le' what is the contraction for 'de la' ??
What is wrong with Your Eat RICE. And excuse me, i do not have time to read the whole thread.
