Can French people understand English?

Hopeful   Wed Nov 16, 2005 6:21 pm GMT
Can the French people understand a lot of English without speaking the language? (when they read)
Only wondering
Hopeful   Wed Nov 16, 2005 6:22 pm GMT
since so many English words are of French origin
Cro Magnon   Wed Nov 16, 2005 8:43 pm GMT
Nope! As an English speaker, I can recognize familiar words when reading French, but I can't understand it. I'm sure it's the same way for French speakers reading English.
nico   Wed Nov 16, 2005 8:50 pm GMT
Cro Magnonis right, as a french person, i needed to learn it. You cannot understand the meanings if you don't.
Guest   Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:01 pm GMT
---Cro Magnonis right, as a french person, i needed to learn it.---

LOL are you actually claiming YOU are ABLE to speak ENGLISH nico?!

JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA
bernard   Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:11 pm GMT
No, for french people english is completly unintelligible without learning it.

In spoken english words of french origins are generally not at all recognisable, since the prononciation is completly different. For written english we can recognise some words of french origins, but they are very often strongly "germanized" or used as false friends or in a different meaning than in french. The "core" words are moslty of germanic origin and aslo is the grammar, complelty exotic and non-logic to us.
Brennus   Wed Nov 16, 2005 10:49 pm GMT
Not without special study and vice versa.
Guest   Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:55 am GMT
" Can the French people understand a lot of English without speaking the language? (when they read)
Only wondering "


In your sentence the only word that a french could understand is "language", but even then it is not the equivalent of the french word "langage" but of the french word "langue".
Guest   Thu Nov 17, 2005 9:34 am GMT
From the context, seeing the words "French" and "English" in the same sentence, "language" could easily be taken for "langue". "People" also looks like the French word "peuple".
Adam   Thu Nov 17, 2005 7:24 pm GMT
Or the French "weekend" looks remarkably like the English "weekend."

They can't invent their own words so they steal ours.
Guest   Thu Nov 17, 2005 7:52 pm GMT
You can say the same as to English.
Sander   Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:06 pm GMT
=>They can't invent their own words so they steal ours. <=

Erm Adam in that case, the English language 'stole' about 80 to 85% of it's words...
Pete   Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:38 pm GMT
No, they can't. And old French people never learns English, they seem not to like it. I think French people in general don't like English much.

(They must be spoiled becaus Britain took over French possesions in America, Canada maybe...) hahaha

But you can find young French people speaking English. Moreover, hearing a French girl speaking posh English is one of the sexiest things ever, it make them even more desirable. oh GOD!!!
Pete   Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:39 pm GMT
OMG, sorry for those mistakes, it says:

becaus

make

It should say:

bacause

makes
Guest   Thu Nov 17, 2005 8:45 pm GMT
"OMG, sorry for those mistakes, it says:"

Back to the old drawing board, as usual.

"(They must be spoiled becaus Britain took over French possesions in America, Canada maybe...) hahaha "

Napoleon sold them in the Louisiana Purchase. hahaha