Learn French: Memorizing Isn’t Learning French (Here’s What To Do Instead)
Avoid one of the biggest mistakes many adult French learners make. In this video, I share 4 of the most popular tips from almost a decade of teaching real, modern French.
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - The real meaning of Quand Même
9:46 - 5 Things you May have missed in Amélie
17:27 - Stop freezing in French
24:40 - Improving your French skills at home
28:47 - Outro
🎓 Join my Everyday French crash course (free): www.commeunefrancaise.com/wel...
If you’re here watching this video, it means you want to learn to speak better French. But if you’ve been studying and practicing for any amount of time, you’ve already realized by now that there’s a difference between merely speaking French and actually “getting” real French.
If you want to sound more authentic when speaking French, and if you want to better understand REAL, modern French conversation… today’s compilation video is for you. These are my most popular “insider” French ticks that will help you truly get better at speaking and understanding everyday French.
Take care and stay safe.
😘 from Grenoble, France.
Géraldine
It seems close to “just the same” or “at the same time” in english… but not always. The exceptions are what make French such a challenging language for anglophones. Great channel by the way! Cheers.
It’s also “regardless”, “anyway”, or “come on”.
Yes, it seems like "all the same"...
@@TIARRA1NDRFUL I was just thinking this. It definitely seems like the use of this is very similar to "all the same" and I definitely think that in all of her examples it could have been translated into this.
@@ericlind6581 He didn't mean that.
@@rufusreloaded1043 mean what? Your comment didn’t mean that,
In English, I think an equivalent would be "all the same." It seems to have all the indefinite meanings that "quand même" does, and could be plugged into almost all - or perhaps all -of the examples
Je viens de lire une blague qui avait un "quand même". Sur la photo on peut voir un père et son fils. Sous l'image se trouve le dialogue: - Depuis que ta mère est partie, c’est dur de m’occuper de vous et du ménage... - Papa, elle est juste partie faire les courses ! - C’est dur quand même ! Merci pour cette vidéo et je pense que les exemples que tu as donnés m'aident vraiment à comprendre le sens. :-) Merci.
I just discovered your videos a couple of weeks ago. I wish I had found them when I started using Doulingo six years ago. I feel like I'm starting all over again, which on the one hand, is quite discouraging, but on the other, just the opposite.
We have the word “stratagem” in English. I guess most people wouldn’t use it often in speech, but of course it depends what you’re discussing. It might come up in business situations. As for “quand même,” it could translate as “even so,” “all the same,” “just the same,” etc. For some of the uses you described, we would have a way to say the same thing in English, but without using any specific phrase that could translate as “quand même.” That’s a great, superbly useful French expression! 😄
Géraldine, vos vidéos sont vraiment géniales! Avec des leçons claires et des quiz, c'est top ! J'ai fait les études du français quand j'avais vingt ans et après je me suis orientée vers une carrière dans le développement personnel donc j'ai tout oublié ! Quand nous nous sommes installés en France il y a trois ans, et que je devais aider mes enfants avec leurs devoirs de français je me suis rendue compte à quel point la langue est difficile... et que je me souvenais plus trop de tous les details ou qu'il y a des choses que je n'ai pas appris pendant 4 ans d'études à l'université ! Je vais montrer vos leçons à mes garçons et je les ai déjà partagées avec mes copains anglophones. Et si vous permettez, je vais partager votre chaîne dans une vidéo pour ma chaîne KZhead ! Merci !
Thank you so much, Géraldine! Your videos always help me a lot:)
I just came across this channel and I love it , thank you so much
So agree. Thank you, Géraldine! Love the idea for improving French at home, I'm starting this with my next shopping list!
It seems to me that it can often be translated to the English expression ‘even so’ which has a similar sense. Love your videos.
Very complete video! 🇫🇷🎉
Super leçon. Merci Geraldine :)
As others have suggested, in the English translation, it is more like, "all the same." Your tone when saying this in English would indicate the negativity or in a respectful response. Merci quand même pour toutes les bonnes informations de cette vidéo Géraldine. :-)
But for some examples of swimming the Atlantic or eating the whole camembert, English has a roughly equivalent expression which fit most other situations. That English expression is, 'All the same' meaning 'Even so', etc.
Thank you for this! I've never even thought to decipher quand même despite only understanding it partially (contradictions)
Well said about keeping French alive in daily life, wherever you are. Mille mercis Geraldine. 🇫🇷🇺🇸 I’m going to check out your video about switching to English - great topic!
You are such a good teacher! And I love your style, very inspiring and so French!
Excellent video!!!
Merci Géraldine c’est très utile
Bonjour Géraldine! J'aime cette vidéo ! 🥰 I'm currently in your just finished 30-day French Challenge class and I enjoyed every minute of it! Merci beaucoup ! Ps. "Quand même" reminds me very much of the word "really" in English. Really can be used to stress the importance or significance of something (ie. It's really good!), could signify shock or disapproval (ie. Really now! Or just really!? 🤨😲), to kind of confirm (ie. Oh really? 🤔)
Cette vidéo etait bien conçue!!
Je suis niveau B1 en français et je suis exactement bloqué sur le sujet de cette vidéo. C'était un voyage difficile jusqu'à B1 car je suis également chercheur avec un poste d'ingénieur. J'ai un délai de 15 mois pour résoudre ce problème que j'ai en français. Ça fait peur 😳😤😅
merci beacoup! Cette video est parfait pour m'aider à améliorer mon français.
Cette lecon est super! Pensez comme une francaise! Merci, Geraldine. Vous etes une excellente instructrice.
Interesting vid. I had always translated it to “even so”
I always thought of QM as even so or all the same. This video was helpful.
Vous êtes complètement unique parmi tous les KZheadrs au niveau de la profondeur de vos points d'explication et leur subtilité. En plus c'est fait exprès pour nous les anglophones parce que ce sont en anglais bien évidemment mais aussi parce que vous connaissez les épreuves que nous avons en former un cerveau anglophone de penser en français. En bref un vrai prof !
Plus les films de Agnes Varda "Un chant l'autre pas" - "Visages Villages" - "Les plages d'Agnes" et "Varda" I saw with my Mom. : )
Géraldine, vous êtes la meilleure prof de français!
So useful ❤️❤️❤️
This is super! 🙂 Thank you so much Geraldine, your videos have really helped me. I have studied French for many years but always struggled with the spoken language. Watching your videos has really helped me understand and improve my spoken French.
Yup, me too.
Merci beaucoup. 🙏
These compilation videos of previous lessons are a fantastic idea! A great reminder to review the material. The two most important things to focus on for language acquisition are: 1. understanding 2. REPETITION of this understanding. Literally building new neural networks in the brain takes time and work. Bravo Géraldine!!!
Grocery list in French! very good idea, Geraldine!
When the video starts with a KZhead ad for learning French you get a little confused before getting it is ad 😅 Quand même, c'est la vie 🤷🏼♂️
This is a compilation of previous videos including "The Real Meaning of Quand Même for English Speakers" on which I have thoughts. Pour la surprise, et un peu pour le désappointement je pense que l'expression "seriously!?" est une bonne approximation. Par example: "Quand même, arriver avec une heure de retard, c’est pas sympa." : "Seriously!? It's not cool to arrive an hour late." "Tu n’as quand même pas mangé tout le camembert, si?": "You didn't seriously eat all the ... did you?" "Quand même! Il peut pas t’envoyer un message?" : "Seriously!? (or "come on, really?") He couldn't even send you a text?" "Ah ouais, quand même!" : "Oh wow, really!?" D'autres expressions en anglais qui peuvent remplacer quand même dans les exemples donnés dans cette vidéo incluent: "All the same, anyway, nevertheless, still, even so, just the same," and "and yet." I interpret the negative sense as an exclamatory and inquisitive or exasperated: "really, seriously, actually, for real."
Very detailed 👌veey useful. Merci!
Merci Geraldine!! Tu est une de me prof de français favorite. C'est ça correct?..merci!!
In many cases, not all, quand même corresponds quite well to the English 'all the same'. This phrase can also be used to convey a hint of irony or contradiction.
Cette vidéo est inhabituellement longue, mais intéressante et utile, Gèraldine. Comme dèhabitude. Merci beaucoup. J'ai deux remarques, Géraldine, très amical et franc. Si j'étais vous, je changerais légèrement le titre de cette vidéo, par example "Mémoriser n'est pas seulement une façon d'apprendre le français". Il est bien connu que la mémorisation est un facteur d'apprentissage très important. "Repetitio est mather studiorum" ; Je crois que vous réussirez cet aphorisme latin. Et encore une fois "Si j'étais vous". Je me concentrais sur la préparation de quelques vidéos avec des verbes à particule différents. J'ai l'impression que les français en ont pleins, tout comme l'anglais. Dans l'apprentissage d'une langue, ce sont plutôt les obstacles les plus difficiles. Et cela demande de la mémoire, soit dit en passant. Restez en bonne santé et prenez soin de vous.
Kind of like Je vous en prie..has lots of uses
Merci
Bonjour Geraldine. J'Aime les films Francaise. Aussi j'ai view "Paris" - "Dans le Courtyard" "Let the Sunshine Soleil In" and les videos de Le Festival aux Films a Cannes. :) Merci Beaucoup pour les fantastique lecons. : ) Bonne journee. : )
This is so useful to know! Even the title of the video could have been: What is “comme meme”. 😀
The word ‘though’ used often in spoken American conversation is in the same context as ‘quand meme’; like ‘though’ comes at very end.
If I had French people around me, I’d be perfect.. I do try but everyone around me speaks English. Great video
To add to the collection we might also say ... I'm not fond of spinach but I'll eat it all the same. Getting the sense of it is the trick.
Very nice
Thank you for this video, and the many others you have made. Without reference to a dictionary, my first inclination is to translate “quand même” as “all the same”. Although this translation is not ideal for some of your examples, I believe it works well for the majority of them.
I have a bachelor's in French. What comes to mind when I hear "Quand meme" is "Anyway", but then, the meaning changes according to he context. I think she did a great job finding the equivalents in English. She is great!
I was thinking that it sounds like, “even so”
i've subscribed and i love the explanations and examples. i would say "are u" not aren't u" in the sentence about swimming across the atlantic. either here or in another video i watched today, u pronounced "owl" improperly. think of the word "wow." then add an "l" and drop the first "w."
J’ai changé mon langue dans Mon Facebook a francais et ça m’aime vraiment.
J'ai view les filmes Francaise "Le Mauvais Herbs" aussi et "La Verite" "Belle de Jour" "Tristana" "Park Benches/ du Jardin" "Un fille en un train" "Mississippi Mermaid" "Le Sage Femme" "Parapluies de Cherbourg" "Potiche" et le programme en Francais "Dix Pour Cent" a practise mon Francais. Dernier semaine a le Festival Filmes a Cannes aussi. Les nouveus films sont : "De Son Vivant" et "Jane par Charlotte." Salut Bonne Nuite. Je s'apprie votre videos Francais. : )
J'Aime ca beaucoup. Merci beaucoup. Pas Grenoble - a Paris. : ) Bon leson. Bonne Nuite. : )
Seems a bit like " nonetheless "
Hello, do you offer private lessons ? Thank you
my guess that `quand-même` meant "at the same time" almost works (one can say "at the same time" in the place of "still" or "and yet" in casual spoken American English)... peut-être...
Vous etes fantastique. Merci Beauchamp pour les lessons❣️ Mon telephone eat en englais, pas en Francais en ce moment. S'il vous plait, corriger moi si j'ai fait des erreurs 🌺
There is a button on the lower left corner that changes the keyboard from English to French
My goodness, how I wish I could speak French the way Geraldine speaks English! Not in a million years I’m afraid!
Often quand même could translate to "all the same", for example in the sentences about eating vegetables or not hitch hiking.
So far the first three examples you could use “still” we don’t say it much in English but we still do sometimes.
‘ All the same!’ seems very similar in spoken Br English.
The english translation getting closest is: nevertheless or nontheless. These expressions may have come a bit out of fashion, but I would use them quand meme!
does it mean the same as the Spanish expression "igualmente?"
I a;ways use it as though it's the word STILL -- "It was raining, still (quand meme) we enjoyed our walk in the park." Am I wrong?
It also might be translated into English as "all the same" or "even though."
Je dirais "even so" est assez proche.
Can you please tell me where i can find dual subtitle for Amelie? i can only use either English or French but would love to see both at the same time! Amelie is my all time favourite movie. That's the movie that i always watch when i need a pick me up. Now that i'm learning French, i have one more reason to watch this movie :)
Bonjour, This is a great question. However, I am not sure I ever came across dual subtitles for this movie. Fabien Comme Une Française Team
Thank you so much! I’ll be able to speak to my wife without sounding like a text book 📚😅 She’s always correcting my American accent and french grammar.
Constant correcting halts flow and confidence. Self correction will come in time by listening to spoken French.
@@maryoruanai4671 Agreed. English natives rarely correct foreign speakers because of the global occurrence of English, so people get the idea they aren't making mistakes. It helps confidence which irons out most mistakes over time with usage.
In any case
Merci quand meme - Thank you just the same. ???
Seems to me re: Quand Même, the closest English translation might be "Come on!" whether negative or positive = "Let's be real". What do you think?
Bonjour
It’s more like, ‘oh, all the same’, in English?
It’s sounds also like even though and anyways🤗🤓
So what is the main meaning of quand meme?
I was under the impression that you wouldn't use "tu" with a stranger or someone you didn't know very familiarly. Has that changed?
I also prefer the English translation (in contrast) „even though“ - He‘s nice even though he talks a lot.
It seems strange to me to see a y in the middle of a French word. "Sympa". Is it a new word ?
Esto se traduce en español directamente y aplicable a: como quiera No te gustan los vegetales pero como quiera te los comes Gracias como quiera La belleza de las lenguas romances, muchas gracias Geraldine, es mi primera vez visitando Francia, intento hablar francés y si se nota que los locales lo agradecen
I really enjoy your videos, though I would really prefer if they were all in French. I think we would learn more. I appreciate them, quand meme.
there is lot of homework to do before your brain starts thinking in FRENCH , English being a foreign language, this is out of experience. At first it is ONLY translation that works, but once you get a good handle on it via learning the basics then comes thinking in French with practice , I guess.
Vous êtes très Mignonne 👍
If you are English, then you will know how to use "all the same... ", or "even so...", or "still..." or "yet...." They are all ways of qualifying by slightly bringing down a peg or two. All of these are expressed in French as "quand meme"
👍💜
The Germans badly need a verb for queueing. They would always say "waiting in line" which is a generic verb that needs a subject to qualify. Not the same. At least the French have one, because it's a French word. But is it pronounced the same as in English? I speak French and I have no idea.
En français queueing peut être traduit par: faire la queue.
Hi Geraldine Love your persona and instructive videos. When you say en fait you pronounced the t I always thought that you only pronounce the t if it has an e after it. Which is correct? Many thanks
The closest English phrase would be "all the same" (which also doesn't mean what it says). Bah, You will eat them all the same. It's an archaic phrase in English (although it still pops up - "just the same" is another form of it).
Of course it would be rude to eat the camembert by yourself. I wanted at least half.
i like you
The nearest English equivalent to the French quand meme would be "nevertheless".
Until i live in afrench country,iwill never speak french like french people despite learning since 1997
Tu peux le repeter? X Tu peux repeter? x Tu le peux repeter? x Tu peux repeter ca? x Peux tu repeter le truc?
I’m just confused why “avec” is added in the sentence “Quand meme, arriver avec une heure de retard…”
Bonjour, Literally, "to arrive with (avec) half an hour (of lateness/tardiness)" for "to be 30-minute late." Fabien Comme Une Française Team
Fast spoken French, plus accents, is a nightmare. For such a beautiful language, spoken french is so vulgaire. Its so common to use endless filler and short words. In English, when people do that, its considered quite rude and immature. I guess its a cultural thing.
You are beautiful
U R right to denounce "comme même". But "Eh bah" is faulty : U should have said & written "Eh bien", or Eh ben". The literal translation "when same" is just strange : Agreed, "même" can often mean "same" when used as an adjective ; "c'est la même chose" = "it's the same thing". But look at "lui-même"... that's "himself" ; and at "même lui" = "even him"... Even stranger is "passer en anglais". (around 20:20). I loved that movie (just before 21:21). The Title ? "Ridicule". It!s properly SCANDALOUS you presumed you could so debase the presidential motto "en même temps" by that feeble "on the other hand" (If you had seen your own "excellent" video, you'd have said "at the same time", wouldn't you?). And the "liste de courses". You have your fun with that devilish phone. Well done. Congratulations. But your strange method lead to an aberrant question : when shall I use "majuscules" in French ? Not the best French lesson I heard. Perhaps the stupidest, if I may say so.
I don't know any single word of Frenches
Imagine being french and still dont understand french.. how the hell are we supposed to learn it then xd
Merci beaucoup parce que « quand même » était très difficile à comprendre. Je vais garder ce leçon.