Transports à ParisClass 9 French Chapter 6 Notes – Maharashtra Board

Summary: Transports à Paris

6.1 Marc wants to take the metro to the Jardin des Plantes, but Karan asks for the bus so he can see Paris. Marc has the tickets. Karan would also like a taxi ride one day; Marc offers to come back by taxi.

Karan explains that taxis in India are black and yellow and that he often uses his bicycle. Marc has a 21-gear bike, but in France cycling is mostly a sport, while in India it is mainly a means of transport. Mountain bikes (VTT) are popular in French holidays. Then they reach their stop and get off.

6.2–6.4 Talking about hobbies (faire de la musique, faire du sport, lire des BD, aller au cinéma, faire du patinage); people from Algeria, Senegal, Morocco, Italy, Germany, Hungary, China and Brazil who live and work in France and bring their food and culture; transport words (station de métro, tramway, VTT, trottinette, patins à roulettes).

6.5 Grammar: direct object pronouns replace a direct object and usually go before the verb (Tu le prends; Je ne l'aime pas), but after the verb in the affirmative imperative (Donne-les !); revision of ce, cet, cette, ces.

6.6 Exercises revise many tenses and forms plus nationalities, and the sounds [u] (où) and [y] (une); 6.7 Civilisation shows how to travel cheaply in Paris — metro, RER, buses, night buses, trams, Batobus and Vélib' bikes.

Key points to remember

• Transport: le métro, le bus, le taxi, le tramway, le RER, le vélo, le VTT (mountain bike), la trottinette (scooter)
• prendre le bus / le métro; aller à pied / en bus / en métro / en taxi / à vélo
• Hobbies: jouer du piano (instrument), jouer au foot (game), faire du sport, faire du patinage
• Direct object pronouns: me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les (m', t', l' before a vowel)
• The pronoun goes before the verb: Ils achètent les billets → Ils les achètent
• Negative: Je ne l'aime pas — ne before the pronoun, pas after the verb
• Affirmative imperative: pronoun after the verb with a hyphen — Donne-les ! Negative imperative: Ne les mettez pas !
• Demonstratives: ce train, cet avion, cette réponse, ces trains
• Many immigrants come from former French colonies such as Algeria and Morocco; the EU brings Italians, Germans, Hungarians
• Paris public transport is efficient; Vélib' (self-service bikes) and the Batobus on the Seine are eco-friendly

Transports à Paris – Notes

1. 6.1 The dialogue — by bus to the Jardin des Plantes

• This morning Karan and Marc are going to the Jardin des Plantes. Marc suggests the metro, but Karan prefers the bus because he wants to see the city. Marc agrees: 'D'accord ! Allons-y !' When the bus comes, Karan says they must get on quickly (Montons vite !) and Marc already has the tickets.
• Karan dreams of visiting Paris by taxi one day; Marc says they can come home by taxi if he likes ('Si tu veux …').
• Karan tells Marc that taxis back home are black and yellow, and that he often rides his bicycle in India. Marc owns a 21-speed bike, but for him cycling is a sport; for Karan it is above all (surtout) a way of getting around.
• Karan asks if there are mountain bikes (VTT = vélo tout terrain) here. Marc says people use them a lot in the holidays — 'On les utilise beaucoup' (les = les VTT, a direct object pronoun!).
• They arrive: 'Voilà notre destination. Descendons vite !' Key phrases: On prend le métro / le bus — Allons-y ! — Si tu veux … — Surtout (above all) — On les utilise beaucoup.

2. 6.2–6.4 Hobbies, nationalities and transport words

• 6.2 Talking about leisure: J'aime faire de la musique — je joue du piano. J'aime faire du sport — je suis sportif / sportive. J'aime lire — je lis des bandes dessinées (comics). J'aime voir des films — je vais au cinéma. J'aime faire du patinage (skating).
• Remember: jouer de + instrument (du piano, de la guitare); jouer à + game (au foot, aux cartes).
• 6.3 In the metro Karan and Rucha notice people of many nationalities — Algerians, Senegalese, Moroccans. Countries like Algeria and Morocco are former French colonies, so many immigrants came from there, bringing their cuisine and culture.
• With the European Union, Italians, Germans and Hungarians also live in France, as well as Chinese and Brazilians who work there. That is why rap, rumba, Cantonese rice, couscous and pizza are part of everyday French life.
• 6.4 Transport words: une station de métro, un tramway, un VTT (mountain bike), une trottinette (kick scooter), des patins à roulettes (roller skates), un billet (ticket).

3. 6.5 Grammar — direct object pronouns

• To avoid repeating a direct object, replace it with a pronoun: me (me), te (you), le (him / it, m), la (her / it, f), nous (us), vous (you), les (them). Before a vowel or mute h: m', t', l'.
• Position: the pronoun normally comes just before the conjugated verb — Tu prends le bus → Tu le prends. Ils achètent les billets → Ils les achètent. Elle regarde la carte → Elle la regarde.
• Negative: ne + pronoun + verb + pas — Je n'aime pas cette chemise → Je ne l'aime pas.
• Question by inversion: the pronoun stays in front — Faites-vous votre devoir ? → Le faites-vous ? Rucha le fait-elle ?
• Imperative: affirmative — the pronoun goes after the verb with a hyphen (Donne les réponses → Donne-les ! Prends-le !). Negative — it goes back before the verb (Ne mettez pas ces chaussures → Ne les mettez pas !).

4. 6.5 Revision — demonstrative adjectives

• ce + masculine singular noun: ce train, ce film, ce bus.
• cet + masculine singular noun starting with a vowel or mute h: cet avion, cet hôtel, cet enfant, cet orca (the book treats orca as masculine).
• cette + feminine singular noun: cette réponse, cette chemise, cette station.
• ces + any plural noun: ces trains, ces avions, ces réponses, ces phoques.

5. Exercises and sounds

• Nationalities change for the feminine: marocain → marocaine, pakistanais → pakistanaise, anglais → anglaise, algérien → algérienne, américain → américaine, espagnol → espagnole, japonais → japonaise; suisse stays suisse.
• Nationality as a noun takes a capital letter (les Algériens habitent en Algérie); as an adjective it does not (il est italien). Someone from Hungary is un Hongrois / une Hongroise.
• Prepositions used in the exercises: avec (with), près de (near), pour (in order to), sur (on — on n'a pas le droit de marcher sur la pelouse), à feu doux (on a low flame).
• Phonetics: [u] as in 'où' — written ou (Roux, Toulouse, Ledoux, nous, vous, beaucoup, vouloir, pouvoir); [y] as in 'une' — written u or û (rue, Hugo, Luc, étudiant, université, sûr, tu, vu). Round your lips for both; for [y] say 'i' with rounded lips.
• Proverb to read aloud: 'Vouloir, c'est pouvoir !' — where there's a will, there's a way.

6. 6.7 Civilisation — getting around Paris

• Paris is an expensive city, but you can save a lot of money on travel.
• Public transport (les transports en commun) is very efficient: the metro, buses, the Noctilien night bus, the RER (Réseau Express Régional), trams and the Transilien suburban trains. At the time the book was written it mentioned travel passes such as Carte Mobilis and Navigo Découverte for reductions.
• On the Seine, the Batobus (a river boat service) is popular with tourists — eco-friendly and very pleasant.
• Vélib' (self-service bicycles) is one of Paris's popular, responsible initiatives; the book also mentions Autolib', an electric car-sharing scheme.
• Activity: suggest ways to improve the transport in your own city, using ideas from other countries adapted to India — e.g. bike-sharing, more buses, metro cards.

Les pronoms objets directs — direct object pronouns

Key terms

Transports à Paris – Flashcards

Read the question, answer it in your head, then tap the card to check. 20 cards.

Transports à Paris – MCQ Quiz

15 questions. Tap an option — you will see at once if it is right and why.

How to study Transports à Paris

⏱ About 1 hour 10 minutes

1. Dialogue and culture (20 min)
   Read 6.1 aloud and list every means of transport; read 6.3 and note which nationalities live in France and why.
2. Grammar (25 min)
   Make a table of direct object pronouns; rewrite ten sentences with pronouns in statements, negatives, questions and both kinds of imperative.
3. Practise (25 min)
   Do the 'Try it yourself' exercises, take the quiz, revise with flashcards and finish with 🎮 Play.