Proposing an improvement in French
Two colleagues want to improve a room where they work during the day. The table is far from the window; they can move it themselves without paying, or buy a lamp. Build a short proposal: problem, options, reason, response and next step.
Words for a concrete problem
Une pièce is a room; sombre means dark, une table a table, une fenêtre a window, une lampe a lamp, lourde heavy, and une solution a solution. Déplacer means to change something’s position: déplacer la table is to move the table, not move house. The nouns here are feminine: la table est lourde, une bonne solution; bonne agrees with solution. Recall moins cher que, “less expensive than”, à mon avis, “in my opinion”, and on pourrait, “we could”, before listening.
From a problem to a workable answer
A and B are the two colleagues. Cette pièce est trop sombre pour travailler identifies both the problem and its consequence: the room is too dark to work in. Each on pourrait introduces a possible solution, not a decision already made; here on means “we” and takes pourrait, a third-person singular form. They compare the cost, then A raises the table’s weight as a practical objection. B acknowledges it and proposes doing the job à deux, “with two people”. Read and listen, then try each role.
- A
Cette pièce est trop sombre pour travailler.
- B
On pourrait déplacer la table près de la fenêtre.
- A
On pourrait aussi acheter une lampe.
- B
Déplacer la table coûte moins cher qu’acheter une lampe.
- A
Mais la table est lourde.
- B
C’est vrai, mais on peut la déplacer à deux.
Compare the same criterion
Déplacer la table coûte moins cher qu’acheter une lampe compares the cost of two actions: moving the table and buying a lamp. The infinitives name those actions; qu’ is que before the vowel in acheter. Cher stays unchanged in coûte cher because it describes the cost, rather than a feminine noun. Here moving the table is free because the colleagues do it themselves; “less expensive” alone does not mean “free”. Use on pourrait + infinitive to put each option on the table before choosing.
action coûte moins cher que autre action
On pourrait déplacer la table près de la fenêtre.
On pourrait aussi acheter une lampe.
Déplacer la table coûte moins cher qu’acheter une lampe.
State your choice and explain it
À mon avis marks a good solution as the speaker’s judgment, not a fact everyone must accept. Puisque cela coûte moins cher gives a reason already shared in this situation: “since it costs less”; cela refers to moving the table. Je propose de déplacer la table samedi adds an action and a time: “I propose moving the table on Saturday”. This is a supported recognition alternative: keep de before the infinitive after propose, unlike English “propose moving”. Samedi here is the coming Saturday. For the decision, On va déplacer la table parce que cela coûte moins cher means “We are going to move the table because it costs less”. On va expresses the familiar plan, and parce que introduces its reason; no new conjugation table is needed.
À mon avis, déplacer la table est une bonne solution, puisque cela coûte moins cher.
In my opinion, moving the table is a good solution, since it costs less.
Je propose de déplacer la table samedi.
On va déplacer la table parce que cela coûte moins cher.
Acknowledge the objection, then address it
Mais la table est lourde is a practical concern, not a personal attack. C’est vrai, mais on peut la déplacer à deux acknowledges that the table is heavy and answers that concern with two people; la stands for la table before déplacer. Simply repeating that the plan is cheaper would not answer the weight objection. On est donc d’accord pour déplacer la table samedi checks the shared choice and timing: “So we agree on moving the table on Saturday”. A and B have accepted the two-person plan; the wording contains no tu/vous distinction.
Mais la table est lourde.
C’est vrai, mais on peut la déplacer à deux.
On est donc d’accord pour déplacer la table samedi.
Recognize a specialist word with support
A shop’s written estimate can say Le devis pour la lampe est de deux cents euros: “The estimate for the lamp is two hundred euros”. Un devis is an estimate of the proposed cost before purchase, not proof that payment has been made. This is a separate supported reading example; you do not need devis to make the proposal or to write the summary below. Recognize the amount as €200 and do not turn it into a payment already made.
Le devis pour la lampe est de deux cents euros.
Write to the colleague who was absent
You speak for A and B and write to a colleague who missed their discussion. First, without looking at the answers, write four sentences: “This room is too dark to work in”; “Moving the table costs less than buying a lamp”; “We are going to move the table because it costs less”; “So we agree on moving the table on Saturday”. Saturday is the coming Saturday, and the two colleagues will move it themselves. The examples below form one possible short message; compare your version with them, checking both options, the reason and the date. Then answer aloud when the colleague says Mais la table est lourde, using the two-person solution from the discussion. The phrase je propose de is a supported recognition alternative in the earlier section; you do not need to produce it in this task.
Cette pièce est trop sombre pour travailler.
Déplacer la table coûte moins cher qu’acheter une lampe.
On va déplacer la table parce que cela coûte moins cher.
On est donc d’accord pour déplacer la table samedi.
Keep the decision and the next step
A useful summary keeps the problem, the comparison, the choice with its reason, and the next step; it need not transcribe every turn. On va déplacer la table parce que cela coûte moins cher states the group’s plan and reason, while the final confirmation keeps Saturday explicit. On va expresses the familiar plan; conversational on takes a singular verb, as in on est. Read your four-sentence message once as a connected text, then check that you can also explain the response to the weight objection. For a new room, use the same sequence with a problem and options that actually fit it.
On va déplacer la table parce que cela coûte moins cher.
On est donc d’accord pour déplacer la table samedi.