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Lesson 217 of 240

New here? This is lesson 217 of a free 240-lesson French course.

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Steer the conversation in French

Sam and Claire are in a meeting about the museum audio guide. The brief is on the table, but the talk keeps sliding.

Sam almost tells the café postcard story. Claire does not take the bait.

By the end, you'll pull a wandering talk back to the point, add one last note, and flag a detour without shutting anyone down.

Claire wants the brief, not the mystery.

By the end of this lesson

Take the lead and steer a conversation back on track.

  • Si on reprend depuis le brief ?Shall we pick up from the brief?
  • Pour ne pas s'éparpiller.So we don't go off in all directions.
  • Encore une chose sur ___.One more thing about ___
  • Ça m'amène à ___.That leads me to ___
  • Restons sur le sujet.Let's stay on topic.
  • C'est intéressant, mais on s'éloigne.That's interesting, but we're getting off track.

Scene — the brief is open

The small open office looks onto a courtyard. Headphones and museum-guide kits sit on the desks.

Claire has the audio-guide brief open on her laptop. Sam has a café story that is not on the page, and he is about to tell it.

A small open office looks onto a courtyard while Claire works at a laptop and Sam sits at the next desk among headphones and museum-guide kits.

Learn — steer it back

Six lines help you take the lead when a meeting drifts.

You'll restart from the brief, add one last point, and name a detour without dropping the thread.

  1. Claire turns a laptop toward Sam and rests one hand on the desk, calling the work back between them.

    Si on reprend depuis le brief ?

    Shall we pick up from the brief?

    When to use it: Use this when talk has drifted and you want the group back on the brief.

    On here means we, the usual spoken form when you share a task.

    Say it: The final d in reprend is silent.

  2. From high above, Claire sweeps scattered headphones and museum-guide kits into one neat pile while Sam waits at the next desk.

    Pour ne pas s'éparpiller.

    So we don't go off in all directions.

    When to use it: Say this right after a restart to explain why you are tightening the talk.

    S'éparpiller means scatter, so the talk does not split into several threads.

    Say it: The apostrophe in s'éparpiller hides se before a vowel.

  3. Sam leans in from his chair with one finger raised, adding a side point while Claire stays with the laptop.

    Encore une chose sur ___.

    One more thing about ___

    When to use it: Use this to add one last point without opening a new subject.

    Fill the blank with a thing already on the brief, not a new story.

  4. Sam has turned toward the courtyard with both hands open, following a new thread while Claire stays on the laptop.

    Ça m'amène à ___.

    That leads me to ___

    When to use it: Use this to turn a side remark into the next point on the brief.

    The blank is the next item, so the last remark still serves the meeting.

    Say it: The apostrophe in m'amène hides me before a vowel.

  5. Claire holds one palm level over a closed laptop, keeping the work in place while Sam’s hands rest still on the next desk.

    Restons sur le sujet.

    Let's stay on topic.

    When to use it: Say this when someone starts a story that is not on the brief.

    Restons is we, a gentle order to the whole table at once.

  6. Claire looks up from the laptop toward Sam and holds the look after a pause, stopping the drift.

    C'est intéressant, mais on s'éloigne.

    That's interesting, but we're getting off track.

    When to use it: Use this to credit the idea, then name that you are off the brief.

    The mais keeps the first half kind; the second half is the steer.

    Say it: The t in C'est links into intéressant.

Story — she keeps the thread

Watch Claire pull the meeting back to the brief when Sam starts a café story.

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

  1. Claire taps the brief on her laptop. Sam glances at the courtyard, then back.
  2. ClaireBon, on a le brief. Douze minutes, version courte.Right, we have the brief. Twelve minutes, short version.
  3. SamOui. Ce matin au café, Gaspard m'a parlé de la carte postale.Yes. This morning at the café, Gaspard talked to me about the postcard.
  4. ClaireC'est intéressant, mais on s'éloigne. Si on reprend depuis le brief ?That's interesting, but we're getting off track. Shall we pick up from the brief?
  5. SamD'accord. On parle de la salle des sculptures, alors.Okay. We're talking about the sculpture room, then.
  6. She does not look up from the brief.
  7. ClairePour ne pas s'éparpiller.So we don't go off in all directions.
  8. SamEncore une chose sur la durée.One more thing about the length.
  9. ClaireDouze minutes, pas plus. Ça m'amène à la salle du fond.Twelve minutes, no more. That leads me to the back room.
  10. SamC'est une longue histoire, cette carte. Odile ne laisse personne à la table.It's a long story, that postcard. Odile doesn't let anyone sit at the table.
  11. ClaireRestons sur le sujet.Let's stay on topic.
  12. SamOui, pardon. Le ton du guide, pas la carte.Yes, sorry. The tone of the guide, not the postcard.
  13. ClairePour en revenir à ce que je disais.Getting back to what I was saying.
  14. SamOn coupe la salle du fond, et on garde le ton calme.We cut the back room, and we keep the calm tone.
  15. Sam closes his mouth on the café story.
  16. ClaireVoilà. On reste sur le brief.There. We stay on the brief.
  17. SamTrès bien, on fait comme ça.Right, let's do it that way.

Practice — back on track

Eleven quick exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, match, fill a gap, and build a line.

They stay tiny, so the round moves fast.

0 of 11 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    French

    Pour ne pas s'éparpiller.Drop the English here
    Restons sur le sujet.Drop the English here
    C'est intéressant, mais on s'éloigne.Drop the English here

    English

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

  3. What do you say?

    A colleague starts a café story in a meeting about the audio-guide brief. Credit the remark, then flag that you are off the brief.

  4. Fill the gap

    So we don't go off in all directions.

    Pour ne pas ____.

  5. What does it mean?

    Restons sur le sujet.

  6. Swap the word

    The meeting has drifted. Restart from the audio-guide document.

    Si on reprend depuis le ____ ?

  7. Build the line

    Let's stay on topic.

    .

    Tap the words in order.

  8. Pick the reply

    Claire says:

    C'est tout pour la durée ?

    Is that everything on the length?

    And you reply with:

  9. True or false?

    Use this when you want a wandering meeting back on the brief.

  10. What do you say?

    A side note still belongs on the brief. Lead from it into the next item.

  11. What does it mean?

    Pour en revenir à ce que je disais.

Say it — hold the line

Now you're Sam in that meeting. 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. ClaireBon, on a dérapé un peu.Right, we've slipped a bit.
  2. Sam (you)The talk has drifted. Pick up from the document you came to discuss.

    Si on reprend depuis le brief ?

    Shall we pick up from the brief?

0 of 6 said

Recap — what you can say now

FrenchEnglish
Si on reprend depuis le brief ?Shall we pick up from the brief?
Pour ne pas s'éparpiller.So we don't go off in all directions.
Encore une chose sur ___.One more thing about ___
Ça m'amène à ___.That leads me to ___
Restons sur le sujet.Let's stay on topic.
C'est intéressant, mais on s'éloigne.That's interesting, but we're getting off track.
Next: lesson 218Link a story

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A quick round with the Yak Cards keeps your meeting steers ready for the next drift.

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