← Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland — Page 3

English → Fr Preface Level 5/10

Alice took up the fan and gloves, and, as the hall was very hot, she kept fanning herself all the time she went on talking: "Dear, dear! How queer everything is to-day! And yesterday things went on just as usual.

Alice prit l'éventail et les gants, et, comme le couloir était très chaud, elle continua à s'éventer tout le temps qu'elle parla : « Mon Dieu, mon Dieu ! Comme tout est bizarre aujourd'hui ! Et hier les choses se passaient tout comme d'habitude.

I wonder if I've been changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different.

Je me demande si j'ai été changée pendant la nuit ? Voyons : étais-je la même quand je me suis levée ce matin ? Je crois presque me souvenir d'avoir ressenti quelque chose d'un peu différent.

But if I'm not the same, the next question is, Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle!"

Mais si je ne suis pas la même, la question suivante est : Qui suis-je donc ? Ah, voilà la grande énigme ! »

And she began thinking over all the children she knew that were of the same age as herself, to see if she could have been changed for any of them.

Et elle se mit à passer en revue tous les enfants qu'elle connaissait qui étaient du même âge qu'elle, pour voir si elle aurait pu être changée contre l'un d'eux.

"I'm sure I'm not Ada," she said, "for her hair goes in such long ringlets, and mine doesn't go in ringlets at all; and I'm sure I can't be Mabel, for I know all sorts of things, and she, oh! she knows such a very little!

« Je suis sûre de ne pas être Ada, dit-elle, car ses cheveux forment de si longues boucles, et les miens ne bouclent pas du tout ; et je suis sûre de ne pas pouvoir être Mabel, car je sais toutes sortes de choses, et elle, oh ! elle en sait si peu !

Besides, she's she, and I'm I, and—oh dear, how puzzling it all is!

De plus, elle c'est elle, et moi c'est moi, et — oh là là, que tout cela est déconcertant !

I'll try if I know all the things I used to know.

Je vais voir si je sais encore toutes les choses que je savais autrefois.

Let me see: four times five is twelve, and four times six is thirteen, and four times seven is—oh dear! I shall never get to twenty at that rate!

Voyons : quatre fois cinq font douze, et quatre fois six font treize, et quatre fois sept font — oh là là ! Je n'arriverai jamais à vingt à ce rythme !

However, the Multiplication Table doesn't signify: let's try Geography.

Cependant, la Table de multiplication n'a pas d'importance : essayons la Géographie.

Vocabulary

prit
Past tense of 'prendre'; took or grabbed something.
l'
Contraction of 'le' or 'la'; the (before vowel).
éventail
A hand-held fan used for cooling oneself.
et
Conjunction meaning 'and'.
les
Plural definite article meaning 'the'.
gants
Gloves worn on the hands.
comme
Conjunction or adverb meaning 'as' or 'since'.
le
Masculine singular definite article meaning 'the'.
couloir
A hallway or corridor inside a building.
était
Imperfect tense of 'être'; was (describing a state).
très
Adverb meaning 'very', intensifying adjectives.
chaud
Adjective meaning 'hot' or 'warm'.
elle
Third-person singular feminine pronoun meaning 'she'.
continua
Past tense of 'continuer'; continued doing something.
à
Preposition meaning 'to', 'at', or 'in'.
s'
Reflexive pronoun 'se' contracted before a vowel.
éventer
To fan oneself to cool down with air.
tout
Adjective or adverb meaning 'all', 'whole', or 'every'.
temps
Noun meaning 'time' or 'weather'.
qu'
Contraction of 'que'; that, which, or as.
parla
Past tense of 'parler'; spoke or talked.
Mon
Masculine possessive adjective meaning 'my'.
Dieu
Noun meaning 'God'; used in exclamations.
mon
Masculine possessive adjective meaning 'my'.
Comme
Exclamatory word meaning 'how' or 'what' in French.
est
Third-person singular of 'être'; is.
bizarre
Adjective meaning 'strange', 'odd', or 'weird'.
aujourd'hui
Adverb meaning 'today'.
Et
Conjunction meaning 'and'.
hier
Adverb meaning 'yesterday'.
choses
Plural noun meaning 'things'.
se
Reflexive pronoun meaning 'oneself' or 'themselves'.
passaient
Imperfect of 'passer'; were happening or passing.
d'
Contraction of 'de'; of or from before a vowel.
habitude
Noun meaning 'habit' or 'custom'; usual practice.
Je
First-person singular subject pronoun meaning 'I'.
me
First-person reflexive or object pronoun meaning 'me'.
demande
From 'demander'; to ask or wonder about something.
si
Conjunction meaning 'if' or 'whether'.
j'
Contraction of 'je'; I, before a vowel sound.
ai
First-person singular of 'avoir'; have.
été
Past participle of 'être'; been.
changée
Past participle of 'changer'; changed (feminine form).
pendant
Preposition meaning 'during' or 'for' a time period.
la
Feminine singular definite article meaning 'the'.
nuit
Noun meaning 'night'.
Voyons
From 'voir'; let's see, used to express reflection.
étais
Imperfect of 'être'; was (first or second person).
je
First-person singular subject pronoun meaning 'I'.
même
Adjective or adverb meaning 'same' or 'even'.
quand
Conjunction or adverb meaning 'when'.
suis
First-person singular of 'être'; am.
levée
Past participle of 'lever'; got up (feminine form).
ce
Demonstrative adjective meaning 'this' or 'that'.
matin
Noun meaning 'morning'.
crois
From 'croire'; believe or think (first person).
presque
Adverb meaning 'almost' or 'nearly'.
souvenir
To remember; or a memory or keepsake.
avoir
Infinitive verb meaning 'to have'.
ressenti
Past participle of 'ressentir'; felt or experienced emotionally.
quelque
Adjective meaning 'some' or 'a certain'.
chose
Noun meaning 'thing'.
un
Indefinite article or number meaning 'a' or 'one'.
peu
Adverb meaning 'a little' or 'a bit'.
différent
Adjective meaning 'different' or 'unlike something else'.
Mais
Conjunction meaning 'but'.
ne
Negative particle used with 'pas' to negate verbs.
pas
Negative particle meaning 'not'; used with 'ne'.
question
Noun meaning 'question' or 'matter' to address.
suivante
Adjective meaning 'next' or 'following' (feminine form).
Qui
Interrogative pronoun meaning 'who'.
donc
Conjunction or adverb meaning 'so', 'then', or 'therefore'.
Ah
Interjection expressing realization, surprise, or emotion.
voilà
Expression meaning 'there it is' or 'that's it'.
grande
Adjective meaning 'big', 'great', or 'tall' (feminine).
énigme
Noun meaning 'enigma', 'riddle', or 'mystery'.
mit
Past tense of 'mettre'; put or began to do.
passer
To pass, go through, or spend (time).
en
Preposition meaning 'in', 'on', or 'by'.
revue
Review or survey; 'passer en revue' means to review.
tous
Adjective or pronoun meaning 'all' or 'every' (masculine plural).
enfants
Plural noun meaning 'children'.
connaissait
Imperfect of 'connaître'; knew or was familiar with.
qui
Relative or interrogative pronoun meaning 'who' or 'which'.
étaient
Imperfect of 'être'; were (third-person plural).
du
Contraction of 'de le'; of the (masculine singular).
âge
Noun meaning 'age'.
pour
Preposition meaning 'for', 'in order to', or 'to'.
voir
Infinitive verb meaning 'to see'.
aurait
Conditional of 'avoir'; would have.
pu
Past participle of 'pouvoir'; been able to.
être
Infinitive verb meaning 'to be'.
contre
Preposition meaning 'against'.
eux
Disjunctive pronoun meaning 'them' (masculine plural).
sûre
Adjective meaning 'sure' or 'certain' (feminine form).
de
Preposition meaning 'of', 'from', or 'about'.
dit
Past tense of 'dire'; said or told.
car
Conjunction meaning 'because' or 'for'.
ses
Possessive adjective meaning 'his', 'her', or 'its' (plural).
cheveux
Plural noun meaning 'hair' (on one's head).
forment
From 'former'; form or make up a shape.
longues
Adjective meaning 'long' (feminine plural form).
boucles
Plural noun meaning 'curls' or 'loops'.
miens
Possessive pronoun meaning 'mine' (masculine plural).
bouclent
From 'boucler'; to curl, referring to hair curling.
pouvoir
Infinitive verb meaning 'to be able to' or 'can'.
sais
From 'savoir'; know (first-person singular present).
toutes
Adjective or pronoun meaning 'all' (feminine plural form).
sortes
Plural of 'sorte'; kinds, sorts, or types of things.
oh
Interjection expressing surprise, wonder, or emphasis.
sait
From 'savoir'; knows (third-person singular present).
De
Preposition meaning 'of', 'from', or 'about'.
plus
Adverb meaning 'more' or 'furthermore'; also 'no more'.
c'
Contraction of 'ce'; it or this before a vowel.
moi
Disjunctive pronoun meaning 'me' or 'I' (emphatic).
Adverb meaning 'there' or indicating a specific place.
que
Conjunction or pronoun meaning 'that', 'which', or 'what'.
cela
Demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'this'.
déconcertant
Adjective meaning 'disconcerting', 'puzzling', or 'unsettling'.
vais
From 'aller'; going (first-person singular present).
encore
Adverb meaning 'again', 'still', or 'yet'.
savais
Imperfect of 'savoir'; knew or used to know.
autrefois
Adverb meaning 'formerly', 'in the past', or 'once'.
quatre
Cardinal number meaning 'four'.
fois
Noun meaning 'times' as in multiplication or occurrences.
cinq
Cardinal number meaning 'five'.
font
From 'faire'; make or equal (third-person plural).
douze
Cardinal number meaning 'twelve'.
six
Cardinal number meaning 'six'.
treize
Cardinal number meaning 'thirteen'.
sept
Cardinal number meaning 'seven'.
n'
Contraction of 'ne'; negative particle before a vowel.
arriverai
Future tense of 'arriver'; will reach or manage to.
jamais
Adverb meaning 'never' or 'ever'.
vingt
Cardinal number meaning 'twenty'.
rythme
Noun meaning 'rhythm' or 'pace'.
Cependant
Adverb or conjunction meaning 'however' or 'nevertheless'.
Table
Noun meaning 'table'; here refers to multiplication table.
multiplication
Noun meaning 'multiplication'; arithmetic operation.
a
Third-person singular of 'avoir'; has.
importance
Noun meaning 'importance' or 'significance'.
essayons
From 'essayer'; let's try (first-person plural imperative).
Géographie
Noun meaning 'geography'; the study of places and landscapes.
← Previous Next →

Unlock audio playback, vocabulary games, and reading progress tracking.

Create free account →