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🇫🇷 French · Beginner Level 3

PART 1 · LESSON 10 OF 30 · 40 MINUTES

Thirty!

Emma turned thirty in August, with no party. Two months later, her friends have a surprise for her. Say surprise and happy birthday, say "I wasn't expecting it at all", ask and give ages, open a present and say "you shouldn't have", talk about the autumn holidays in Brittany, blow out the candles, thank everyone, and hear some big news from Hugo.

Audio instruction: English

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THE STORY

It's Friday evening, October 16, 2026. Emma turned thirty in early August, a few weeks before Chicago, and she said no party. Tonight Chloe has invited her for a quiet dinner at her flat, just the two of them. Emma rings the bell. The flat is dark. Then the lights come on, and the whole room shouts. Later, Chloe's phone rings, and the call is for Emma. This is the conversation you'll be able to say by the end of the lesson.

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Words and phrases

The lesson is for your ears. Open this afterwards, to see what you learned.
Surprise !sewr-PREEZSurprise!
avec deux mois de retardah-vehk duh mwah duh ruh-TARtwo months late
Vous êtes tous là !voo-zeht toos LAHYou're all here!
du toutdew TOOat all
Je ne m'y attendais pas du tout !zhuh nuh mee ah-tah(n)-deh pah dew TOOI wasn't expecting it at all!
Tu as quel âge ?tew ah kehl AHZHHow old are you?
J'ai trente ans.zhay trah(n)-TAH(N)I'm thirty.
Ça ne me rajeunit pas !sah nuh muh rah-zhuh-NEE PAHI'm not getting any younger!
Ouvre-le !oo-vruh-LUHOpen it!
deux billets de trainduh bee-yeh duh TRA(N)two train tickets

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