The French reading room
One sentence of «La Dernière Classe»
C’est en l’honneur de cette dernière classe qu’il avait mis ses beaux habits du dimanche, et, maintenant, je comprenais pourquoi ces vieux du village étaient venus s’asseoir au bout de la salle.
It was in honour of this last class that he had put on his fine Sunday clothes, and now I understood why those old men of the village had come to sit at the back of the room.
Where it stands
The sentences either side of it, each with its own page.
Cela semblait dire qu’ils regrettaient de ne pas y être venus plus souvent, à cette école.
It seemed to say that they were sorry they had not come more often, to this school.
It was also a way of thanking our master for his forty years of good service, and of paying their respects to the country that was passing away…
Every word in it
| As printed | Dictionary form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| C | ce | this, that; these, those (dem. adj.); it, that (pron.) — c’est, it is; ce qui, ce que — what |
| est | être | to be (v.); c’est — it is; also forms the past of some verbs: elle est venue — she came |
| en | en | in, into; while (+ -ing) (prep.); of it, of them, some (pron.); en train de — in the middle of; s’en aller — to go away |
| l | le | the (le, la, l’, les); him, her, it, them — as an object (art./pron.) |
| honneur | honneur | honour (n., m.); en l’honneur de — in honour of |
| de | de | of, from; some, any (prep./partitive art.) — du pain, de l’eau; pas de — no, not any; de… en… — from… to… |
| dernière | dernier | last (adj.); l’an dernier — last year; ce dernier — the latter, this last one |
| classe | classe | class, lesson; classroom (n., f.); faire la classe — to teach |
| qu | que | that, which, whom; than; how…! (conj./rel. pron.); ne… que — only |
| il | il | he; it (il, ils — they) (pron.); il y a — there is; il faut — one must |
| avait | avoir | to have (v.); il y a — there is, there are; avoir beau + inf. — to do in vain; avoir peur — to be afraid |
| mis | mettre | to put; to put on, wear (v.); se mettre à — to begin to; se mettre dans le lit — to get into bed; se mettre le cœur à l’envers — to fret |
| ses | son | his, her, its (det.) — son, sa, ses; also le son, sound: à son de trompe; also bran (n., m.) — du son, rabbit bait |
| beaux | beau | beautiful, handsome; fine (adj.) — bel before a vowel; un beau matin — one fine morning; à belles dents — with gusto |
| habits | habit | garment, dress, gown (n., m.); pl. — clothes |
| du | du | of the, from the (de + le) (contr.) |
| dimanche | dimanche | Sunday (n., m.) |
| et | et | and (conj.) |
| maintenant | maintenant | now (adv.) |
| je | je | I (pron.) |
| comprenais | comprendre | to understand (v.) |
| pourquoi | pourquoi | why (adv.) |
| vieux | vieux | old (adj.) — vieille, vieil; les vieux — the old folk (n., m.); la vieille — the old one |
| village | village | village (n., m.) |
| venus | venir | to come (v.); venir de + inf. — to have just done; il vint à elle — there came up to her; venir à passer — to happen to pass |
| s | se | himself, herself, itself, themselves; each other (reflexive pron.); s’ also stands for si — if — in s’il, s’ils |
| asseoir | asseoir | to seat (v.); s’asseoir — to sit down; faire asseoir, to have (someone) sit; assis — seated, sitting |
| au | au | to the, at the, in the (à + le) (contr.); au secours ! — help! |
| bout | bout | end (n., m.); au bout de — at the end of, after; venir à bout de — to manage; jusqu’au bout — to the very end |
| salle | salle | room, hall (n., f.) |
Read «La Dernière Classe» in the room Every word glossed where it stands, the English a tap away. The whole tale is free and asks for no account.