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Lesson 176 of 240

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The story grows in French

Sam and Inès are back at Café des Tilleuls after the Lyon weekend. Inès is already on her third telling of the wrong train.

By now there is a sprint down the platform. Sam remembers a quiet change of trains.

You'll learn how to stop a tale from growing, name yesterday's version, and say what really happened.

Gaspard listens from the next table. The window table stays empty, as always.

By the end of this lesson

Catch a story as it grows in the retelling.

  • Attends, ce n'était pas si grave.Hang on, it wasn't that bad.
  • Tu racontes ça comme si c'était vrai.You're telling it as if it were true.
  • En vrai, on a juste changé de train.In fact, we just changed trains.
  • La version d'hier n'était pas la même.Yesterday's version wasn't the same.
  • Plus tu racontes, plus ça grossit.The more you tell it, the more it grows.
  • Ce n'est pas du tout comme ça.That's not how it was at all.

Scene — the third telling

A late afternoon at Café des Tilleuls. Sam and Inès sit at a round table. Odile is at the zinc counter.

Gaspard occupies two chairs at the table next to the window. His café crème is still full. The blank brass sign stays on the window table.

Inès is already waving her hands. This is the third time she has told the Lyon train story today.

A late-afternoon wide view of Café des Tilleuls with Sam and Inès at a round table and Gaspard on two chairs by the window beside a full cup.

Learn — when a story grows

Six lines help you catch a story as it grows in the retelling.

You'll slow Inès down, compare two versions, and put the facts back in.

  1. Sam at the round table raises an open palm toward Inès, who still has both hands up in a storytelling pose.

    Attends, ce n'était pas si grave.

    Hang on, it wasn't that bad.

    When to use it: Say this when a friend makes a story sound worse than it was.

    N'était is ne elided before était.

    Say it: The n' in n'était is an elision of ne.

  2. Odile at the zinc pauses her work, both hands on the counter, body turned toward the room as she listens.

    Tu racontes ça comme si c'était vrai.

    You're telling it as if it were true.

    When to use it: Use this when a retelling sounds bigger than the real facts.

    Comme si plus a past form marks a comparison that is not real.

  3. Over Inès's shoulder, Sam leans across the round table with both hands held close together.

    En vrai, on a juste changé de train.

    In fact, we just changed trains.

    When to use it: Use this to put the smaller, real facts back on the table.

    On stands for we in speech, the same people as nous.

    Say it: En vrai starts with a nasal vowel, not a plain n.

  4. Odile has come out along the zinc, one finger raised toward the round table and an unmarked metal pot in her other hand.

    La version d'hier n'était pas la même.

    Yesterday's version wasn't the same.

    When to use it: Say this when today's telling no longer matches yesterday's.

    D'hier is de elided before hier.

    Say it: D'hier is de elided before hier.

  5. Gaspard sits on two chairs at the window table and opens both arms toward Sam and Inès in the background, a full cup in front of him.

    Plus tu racontes, plus ça grossit.

    The more you tell it, the more it grows.

    When to use it: Point this out when each retelling adds extra drama.

    Plus then plus links two changes that grow together.

    Say it: The s in plus is silent before tu.

  6. A close side view of Sam twisted in his chair, one arm cutting sideways through the air, with Inès across the round table.

    Ce n'est pas du tout comme ça.

    That's not how it was at all.

    When to use it: Use this to reject a version that has gone too far.

    Du tout after pas makes the no stronger, a full rejection.

Story — a sprint on the platform

Inès tells the Lyon train story for a third time. Watch how the platform sprint appears.

The highlighted words are the lines you just learned. Turn on Show English if you need it.

  1. The café is quiet. Inès has her denim jacket on the chair.
  2. InèsLe voyage ne s'est pas passé comme prévu.The trip didn't go as planned.
  3. SamAttends, ce n'était pas si grave.Hang on, it wasn't that bad.
  4. She leans forward. This is already the third telling today.
  5. InèsOn a couru jusqu'au bout du quai, Sam.We ran all the way to the end of the platform, Sam.
  6. SamTu racontes ça comme si c'était vrai.You're telling it as if it were true.
  7. InèsJe n'oublierai jamais le moment où on a failli rater le train.I'll never forget the moment we nearly missed the train.
  8. SamEn vrai, on a juste changé de train.In fact, we just changed trains.
  9. Gaspard turns on his two chairs. His café crème is still full.
  10. GaspardC'est le train de Lyon, ça ?That's the Lyon train, is it?
  11. InèsOui, mais la version d'hier était plus calme.Yes, but yesterday's version was calmer.
  12. SamLa version d'hier n'était pas la même.Yesterday's version wasn't the same.
  13. InèsJe rajoute juste un peu, quoi.I just add a little, you know.
  14. SamPlus tu racontes, plus ça grossit.The more you tell it, the more it grows.
  15. GaspardEt le quai, il était long ?And was the platform long?
  16. InèsOui, et on a couru jusqu'au bout.Yes, and we ran all the way to the end.
  17. SamCe n'est pas du tout comme ça.That's not how it was at all.
  18. InèsD'accord, on a juste changé de train. Point.Okay, we just changed trains. Period.

Practice — same trip, bigger tale

Ten short exercises wait here. You'll listen, fill a gap, swap a word, and build a line.

They stay on the café table, so the round moves fast.

0 of 10 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    French

    Tu racontes ça comme si c'était vrai.Drop the English here
    Plus tu racontes, plus ça grossit.Drop the English here
    Ce n'est pas du tout comme ça.Drop the English here

    English

    Drag an English line onto its French, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    Inès is making the Lyon train sound huge. Interrupt her mildly: hang on, it was not that bad.

  4. Fill the gap

    Yesterday's version wasn't the same.

    La version ____ n'était pas la même.

  5. What does it mean?

    Je n'oublierai jamais le moment où on a failli rater le train.

  6. Swap the word

    Inès makes the platform sprint sound like a fact. Call the telling out.

    Tu racontes ça comme si c'était ____.

  7. Build the line

    The more you tell it, the more it grows.

    , .

    Tap the words in order.

  8. Pick the reply

    Inès says:

    On a couru jusqu'au bout du quai !

    We ran all the way to the end of the platform!

    And you reply with:

  9. True or false?

    This line means the trip went exactly as you had planned.

  10. Find the mistake

Say it — keep it to the facts

Now you're Sam at the café table. Inès is on her third telling. When it's your turn, tap the microphone and speak the line.

Tap ▶ first if you want to hear the line. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. InèsOn a couru jusqu'au bout du quai !We ran all the way to the end of the platform!
  2. Sam (you)Stop her there. Say it wasn't that bad.

    Attends, ce n'était pas si grave.

    Hang on, it wasn't that bad.

0 of 6 said

Recap — what you can say now

FrenchEnglish
Attends, ce n'était pas si grave.Hang on, it wasn't that bad.
Tu racontes ça comme si c'était vrai.You're telling it as if it were true.
En vrai, on a juste changé de train.In fact, we just changed trains.
La version d'hier n'était pas la même.Yesterday's version wasn't the same.
Plus tu racontes, plus ça grossit.The more you tell it, the more it grows.
Ce n'est pas du tout comme ça.That's not how it was at all.
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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

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A quick round with the Yak Cards each day keeps the real version ready when a story starts to grow.

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