29 Comments
What about Je pense que oui? Is that correct? Do people use it? Thanks :)
"tu sais ce que j'en pense" = you know what I think of it
so, no, it cannot work.
Yet, "je le pense" - like that - will barely be used for "I think so" - it would be really really formal, and sounds even a bit heavy.
"Je le pense" rather means "I mean it".
What is more often used, beside the seimple "je pense", is "Je pense bien" or "je pense que oui" as suggested here below.
Either "Oui, je pense/réfléchis" or "Oui, je suis en train de penser/réfléchir.".
804
Duo is suggesting that Oui, je pense is equivalent to Yes, I think so, in English, which is a pretty clear indication of agreement with previous conversation.
Yes, I am thinking could be an answer to ...Are you busy? ....Arjofocolovi is suggesting in his post that the French answer to that question would besomething other than Oui, je pense.
Such subtleties are beyond Google Translate's computer driven translations.
Or it's what my husband could say to me when I ask him a question and he doesn't answer. :)
Even more frequently "je pense" is just a shorter version of "je pense que oui".
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Seras-tu à l'heure pour le dîner aujourd'hui ? (Will you be on time for dinner today?)
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Oui, je pense // Non, je ne pense pas (yes, I think so // no, I don't think so)
ok i feel a bit dense asking but do all French verbs take both à and de? or is it that most verbs either take only à OR de with a few exceptions that work with both? eg. to continue?
Some verbs are directly transitive (no preposition needed), like "appeler quelqu'un", some have direct and indirect constructions like "donner quelque chose à quelqu'un", some are exclusively constructed with one preposition, others with different prepositions for different meanings... and prepositions are not always "à" or "de". Some have "en", "sur", "dans", "par", "pour"...
So you are not dense, but French grammar is... Happy learning!
I would personally translate it more as "Oui, je réfléchis." Because the verb "penser" is more used to instant thinking or opinions, rather than active reflexion, or deep reflexion, which are often translated with "réfléchir".
But strictly speaking, it's not incorrect.
The male robot has some peculiarities of pronunciation throughout the course. There must be something wrong with his wiring.
- 1749
There is nothing at all wrong with it. It is just a different accent that one will hear especially in the southwest of France. It is a valuable addition to the course to hear different accents rather than a single voice all the time.
On this question, I put "Yes, I am thinking!", and that was wrong. 1) Why is "Yes, I think so" correct and not my answer? 2) What would "Yes, I am thinking" translate to in English?
The answer is in the post just above.
Just to be clear : "Yes, I am thinking" can only be an answer to something like :
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"Am I bothering / disturbing you ?" (Yes, "because" I am thinking)
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"Are you looking for a solution / a way out / another option / etc. ?" (Yes, I am thinking, i.e. trying to figure out something)
or simply:
- Are you thinking ? (Yes, I am [thinking, implied or not])
In the first two examples, the French answer will be "Je réfléchis" ; by default "to be thinking", i.e. "to ponder", "to reflect" is... réfléchir.
Now, as the third example may suggest, it can be the simple verb "to think", that you express in the present continuous. But then in French, to avoid the confusion with "Je pense [que oui]" (I think so), we use the structure that is the equivalent to present continuous, i.e. "être en train de + verbe" (which is usually not compulsory, but in some cases like this one, we'll definitely use it in order to be clear):
- Oui, je suis en train de penser.
Therefore, "Oui, je pense" cannot be "Yes I am thinking", at least by default and out of context.
Why not, "Yes I think." For example, je pense donc je suis - it think therefore I am.
OK, but when would you answer "Yes, I think" ?!?
Either:
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you express that you're affirmative about something; then yoiu must say "I think so"
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or you express what you are doing; then you must say "Yes, I am thinking" (as suggested above, answering a question like "Are you busy right now?"). In this case, the French equivalent would rather be "Je réfléchis / je suis en train de réfléchir".
The only possibility I can think of when you'd confirm that you think (in general, as the present simple implies), is answering a question like "Do you (sometimes / ever) think (about this, etc) ?". But then the answer should be "Yes I do".
In some phrases, exclamation mark is not necessary, but here it seems so - because otherwise I had this right. What's the policy of question/exclamation marks?
Punctuation is (unfortunately) not mandatory on this course. If your sentence was rejected, there must be another reason.
