Learn French By Podcast

In this lesson, Amélie will tell us about 'les Vélib' (vélos libres), an initiative in the French capital which puts bicycles at the disposal of those looking for a healthier option for getting around. We'll learn new expressions including 'Ça marche du tonnerre!' and 'prendre un abonnement'. We'll study some verbs, too, including 'assombrir', 'se réjouir de' and 'mettre en place'.

Continuing our theme of the last lesson, this time we look at the promises made by President Sarkozy in relation to the environment during the run-up to the French presidential elections. Let’s examine what he said … and what he promised. We'll hear Jacques' and Laure's views on some of those promises, too…

Though he wasn’t in the final reckoning for the French presidential election, the participation of Nicolas Hulot, a prominent environmentalist, drew the attention of many French voters to the precarious state of our planet. In this lesson, let’s focus on some vocabulary which relates to environmental issues. We’ll start with a role-play between Natacha and Matthieu.

The number of hours worked per week by French employees has been a hot topic in France recently. In this lesson, let’s study some of the vocabulary which will enable us to talk about overtime, in particular. Let's listen to a conversation between Christian and Marie in which Christian chastises Marie for not standing up to her boss and saying enough is enough…

Perhaps the first thing tourists to the French capital must think about is how best to get around. In this lesson, lesson 70, let’s hear a conversation which takes place at the ticket counter to find out how to approach this task. We'll revise the expression 'I'd like [+ infinitive]…', we'll discuss the verbs 'exister' and 'circuler' and we'll see how to respond to the expressions 'Ça fait' and 'Ça fera' when making a payment.

In the last lesson, we were talking about hiring a car. In this second part of the two-part lesson, let’s complete the task. We’ll hear the final part of the discussion between the customer and agent of the car hire company. We'll study the expressions 'être garé', we'll practice the Imperative in the context of giving directions and we'll discover the names of specific parts of the body of a car. Let's begin...

It's summer vacation time. In this lesson, let's discover how to carry out a common task for tourists - to hire a car. We'll learn how to ask the basic questions related to this undertaking, as well as some more specific vocabulary including 'car insurance', 'driving licence', 'deposit', 'petrol', 'a refill (of the tank)', and more.

Antoine and Linda are visiting the Louvre Museum in this lesson. Though it should be an enjoyable outing, Antoine is unhappy about a number of things and is doing his fair share of moaning and groaning. So, let's learn how to say 'You never stop moaning!'. There are lots of other interesting expressions, too, including: 'You didn't have to (come, you know!)', 'Try to talk more quietly!' and 'Don't draw attention to yourself!'...

A listener recently asked us: 'Which lesson deals with 'Ça va?'!…' Though it's a simple expression, it's an essential one. As it’s been a while since we’ve had a beginner lesson, let's visit some of the basics in this short lesson. We’ll see how to ask how someone is, we’ll learn a little about the weather, and we'll see examples of 'tout' and 'toute'. Let's get going.

It’s a physical feeling we experience frequently, after sport, a day’s gardening, whatever. We’ll be talking about feeling stiff in this lesson – lesson 65. We'll see how to say 'What's the matter?', 'What did you do to yourself!?', 'You should have...' and a range of othe useful expressions and vocabulary. Allons-y!...

A good deed - giving blood, to be precise - is the topic of this lesson, lesson 64. We'll study a variety of expressions, including 'I did a good deed...' and 'It's for that (very) reason that...'. We'll also learn the meaning of an amusing expression: 'tomber dans les pommes'. At first sight, it appears to have something to do with falling into apples but, in fact, means something quite different! Let's get started...

We're looking for someone to help us with a specific task, once again, in this lesson. The job in question is electrical work: we'll discover some electricity-related vocabulary and we'll revise some key expressions from previous lessons including: 'venir de (+ infinitive)', 'avoir besoin de', and 'falloir (+ infinitive)'. We'll also learn how to say 'When it comes to...' and 'You mustn't joke about that!' Allons-y!

We're looking for someone to help create a website in this lesson - Lesson 62. We'll learn some useful computing-related vocabulary. In addition to this, we'll study the useful expressions 's'y connaître en', 'donner un coup de main (à quelqu'un)' and 'se débrouiller'. Let's get started...

When we bump into someone we haven’t met for a while, we’ll commonly ask them what they’ve been up to. That’s the topic of this lesson. We'll work with a variety of useful expressions including: 'Ça fait…?', 'pas mal de' and 'Ça a mis…'. We'll also see how to make use of the verbs 'devenir', 'intervenir' and 'se permettre de'.

In this lesson, we'll study the vocabulary needed to ask someone how he or she is progressing at an art course. We'll examine a range of useful expressions, including 'avoir peur de', 'il y a toutes sortes de' and 'se moquer de (quelqu'un)'. We'll also look at 'plaire (à)', a common verb but one which is often the cause of errors for learners of French.

We'll discover how to discuss a programme from last night's TV schedule in this lesson. In particular, Xavier talks about a documentary he saw on the life of Henri Troyat, a prolific French writer. We'll meet - and practice - new expressions including 'passer à la télé', 'être décédé', 'être crevé' and 'rester éveillé jusqu'à'. Allons-y!

In our recent discussion of American politics, we mentioned Barack Obama. This time our role-play will focus on whether America is ready for a woman to take the top job at the Oval Office. Let's hear what Caroline, in particular, thinks of Hillary Clinton and her chances of landing the ultimate position in politics. We'll learn some new expressions including 's'exprimer', 'être persuadé que', 'être ouvert d'esprit', and more.

France will soon have a new President. So, too, will the U.S. In London, Tony Blair will be leaving 10 Downing Street after 10 years as British Prime Minister. In this lesson, let's study some vocabulary and expressions related to the political scene in the U.S. as eyes are turning towards the White House. Allons-y!…

Hardly a day passes without the terrible conflict in Iraq making the news headlines. In this lesson, lesson 56, we'll study vocabulary which will allow us to offer an opinion on a situation for which a solution seems more elusive than ever.

This time, our dog is in trouble and requires a trip to the vet. We'll learn how to say that something is wrong and we'll study a number of useful verbs, including 'rester', 'se mettre à', 's'attarder' and 'se rétablir'. It's a longer lesson this time, so let's get started...