Frecossais Posted January 27, 2012 Share Posted January 27, 2012 It may be that this has been explored already on the forum, but I can't find it, and my french dictionary isn't making it clear enough: il s'agit de. It seems there are lots of meanings but even when I see it written, I'm not sure what it means in context.Anyone help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5-element Posted January 27, 2012 Share Posted January 27, 2012 The immediate translation that comes to mind, although not very elegant, is "What it's about is..." It is used to emphasize what comes after."Il s'agit de faire vite", although it can't be translated literally - here "il s'agit de" emphasizes the necessity to act quickly. This is just off the top of my head, so there are probably better ways of looking at it. [:)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachapapa Posted January 27, 2012 Share Posted January 27, 2012 It's a question of...Similar to ..se trata de .. in spanish...Similar locutions in italian and portuguese... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted January 28, 2012 Share Posted January 28, 2012 Or pretty simply where you would just say "its" but are adding more detail.Donc: C'est bon ce truc! is just telling you that the object or subject is good, il s'agit d'une prestation à domicile gives some or more detail.I once helped a friend of a friend, an English teacher who was in turn helping someone else write brochures for their handcraft shop, it was mainly explaining what they stocked and displayed for other artists, translations of some of the crafts or explanations where there was not a corresponding English word or craft, trompe à l'oeuil springs to mind, he had translated her il s'agit de....... into "its a question of..........." which I simply corrected to "it is" or "it means".Hope that helps, its a very usefull phrase in your vocabulary once you are comfortable using it.Editted, the example above "il s'agit de faire vite!" is a good one, if you wanted to say an imperative, "you must do it fast" would be "il faut de le faire vite" however it is not necessarily saying why or for what purpose. If say you were telling someone what they need to do to achieve a certain goal, perhaps have their quote for a job considered above others then "il s'agit de le faire vite" is better although réagir would be the better verb to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormanH Posted January 28, 2012 Share Posted January 28, 2012 I don't want to sound patronising (perhaps I am just made that way [8-)]) but it's great to see the progress you have made in French over the last few years Chancer, from somebody asking questions to one who is now in a position to help others. You are a good example to all those who claim to be 'trying' to learn French.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted January 28, 2012 Share Posted January 28, 2012 Thank you so much Norman, that really means a lot to me [:D]During the time that you mention I have not had one single lesson and due to the isolation of my situation (living and working alone) I really get very little contact to practice, I do however have a couple of things in my favour.Being hospitalised through the summer of 2007 was the déclic or wake up call that made me realise that I had to be able to understand and express myself freely in any situation to be truly independant, and I am someone that is fiercely independant.It was difficult but nonetheless necessary to cut myself off completely from the English speaking community and media, the last time I spoke to an English person in France is at least 2 years ago, I have had no access to UK television since 2007 and have only read French books for the last few years.So despite the isolation and lack of day to day contact I have been in total immersion for over 4 years and that is what has really made the difference, I had taken some lessons before so I had the basic knowledge of grammar and tenses to build on but I would say that 90% of my learning has been thanks to French television dire though it may be.Sometimes I find myself in a situation that I may have been in one year before, hôtel des impôts or negotiating with a grossiste for example and it is then that I fully realise the progress that I have made by how much more relaxing the situation is for me and by the results I achieve.This week has been a good one for me as yours is the fourth compliment I have recieved on my progress and it really makes me feel good, one was an E-mail reply from the mother of a young lad in our dive club who I had responded to (she wanted him to share a lift and accommodation with one of us) I have not seen her since last summer and she said how impressed she was with my written French, another was a meeting with the Maire adjoint this week, again not seen him for a year or two and we discussed several rather complex issues and he too complimented me.The biggest shock though was that he turned up the next day and asked me if I would consider being a member of the Conseil municipal [:-))] that really stunned me and boosted my confidence, and lets face it having confidance is a major part of the ability to speak another language and positive feedback really reinforces that confidence.What is really ironic is that out of a village of 1300 habitants despite attending all the ceremonies and defilées, we visit both the French and English cemetaries only he and one other person (an ex combattant) will speak with me, the rest just ignore me through fear and panic including the Maire himself who replies through his secretary despite that we all are speaking French, soon to be ex-Maire I suspect [;-)]Anyway a long posting but thank you again Norman! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted January 28, 2012 Author Share Posted January 28, 2012 Thank you for your replies. They confirm that the sentence written by a friend, "Pascale pense qu'il s'agit de la soeur de Sue." means Pascale thinks it's Sue's sister. Funny, I'd thought the meaning of the expression was somehow more complicated. I will be listening out for it now, and make it my mission to use it correctly in speech.Chancer, did you say Yes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5-element Posted January 28, 2012 Share Posted January 28, 2012 Frecossais, if you had given us the whole sentence I wouldn't have gone into such convolutions to translate "il s'agit de", when it was so simple in your context![:D] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted January 28, 2012 Share Posted January 28, 2012 [quote user="Frecossais"]Chancer, did you say Yes?[/quote]I said ouimaisnonmaisouimaisnon........... [;-)]The elections are not till 2014 so there is plenty of time, however if the adjoint becomes the Maire it would certainly be a pleasure to serve alongside himI asked a few discreet questions today and it was confirmed that I would be ineligible were my current situation irrégulière to still be the case, I reckon it would be worth my while to poke my head above the parapet, [;-)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cendrillon Posted January 29, 2012 Share Posted January 29, 2012 de quoiwhat De quoi s'agit-il? What is this about? dimanche Sunday 29 vingt-neuf janvier January If you enjoy your free word of the day from Bitesized Languages , please spread the word and tell you rfriends! http://www.bitesizedlanguages.comWell there's a coincidence! This popped up today in "bitesized French" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachapapa Posted January 29, 2012 Share Posted January 29, 2012 Similar use in explanation by right wing majority regarding the " in blue funk panic six TV channel address to people dwarfalogue".Officiellement, il s'agit pour le président de présenter les décisions prises à la suite du "sommet de crise" du 18 janvier, sur le financement de la protection sociale, la lutte contre le chômage, l'amélioration de la compétitivité des entreprises et la relance de l'offre de logement.Iwould either say:Pour moi, il s'agit de....ouIl s'agit pour moi de.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted January 29, 2012 Author Share Posted January 29, 2012 [quote user="5-element"]Frecossais, if you had given us the whole sentence I wouldn't have gone into such convolutions to translate "il s'agit de", when it was so simple in your context![:D][/quote]Sorry 5-e. But your reply is still valid as there seem to be nuances of meaning in il s'agit de, and I'd like to feel I'd got it right when I use it, as I certainly will. So thank you anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormanH Posted January 29, 2012 Share Posted January 29, 2012 I think that there is a hint of 'the crux of the matter' in il s'agit de, or 'the important thing is to'It stresses the aspect that is the most important, such as speed of who to write to etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachapapa Posted January 29, 2012 Share Posted January 29, 2012 A few examples:http://www.linguee.fr/francais-anglais/search?query=il+s%27agit+de&moreResults=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted January 29, 2012 Author Share Posted January 29, 2012 Thanks PPP. This is useful, and something I can go over with my group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachapapa Posted January 30, 2012 Share Posted January 30, 2012 [quote user="Frecossais"]Thanks PPP. This is useful, and something I can go over with my group.[/quote]Glad to be of assistance.If you are looking for something good , thorough , comprehensive and " vorsprung durch technik". then linguee is the "cat's whiskers".Started in september 2010 and since then has made spectacular progress, it is not a translator like babel or google but a first class dictionary in the pairs formed by english, french, german, spanish and portuguese; chinese is planned for the future. The search engine is excellent at throwing up examples of translations including a target word or phrase. Their web browser targets reliable translated material, for example organisations of the european union whose translation quality is extremely reliable.http://www.linguee.com/english-german/page/about.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share Posted January 31, 2012 [quote user="pachapapa"][quote user="Frecossais"]Thanks PPP. This is useful, and something I can go over with my group.[/quote]Glad to be of assistance.If you are looking for something good , thorough , comprehensive and " vorsprung durch technik". then linguee is the "cat's whiskers".Started in september 2010 and since then has made spectacular progress, it is not a translator like babel or google but a first class dictionary in the pairs formed by english, french, german, spanish and portuguese; chinese is planned for the future. The search engine is excellent at throwing up examples of translations including a target word or phrase. Their web browser targets reliable translated material, for example organisations of the european union whose translation quality is extremely reliable.http://www.linguee.com/english-german/page/about.php[/quote]Looked this up PPP and chose a few words at random. The way they put the words in context gave me a clearer idea of the different senses in which they can be used. As you say, a very useful tool in the quest to become a French speaker.I've also passed on the link to my French group to see what they all think. Thank you again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frecossais Posted January 31, 2012 Author Share Posted January 31, 2012 Chancer, if you can regularise your situation, I'd say Go for it. It's a great compliment to you that you were asked to consider it, someone obviously recognises your ability to look at the bigger picture. Personally I have noticed that you provide useful answers to queries made by forum members without being in the least patronising or rude. You'd be an asset. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 [:$][:$]To date around here that has been an enormous handicap and seen as a sign of weakness to be mercilessly exploited.I am optimistic that the conseil municipal will be different, I know one of the members, he runs a small family T.P. business and I have a huge respect for him.I am under no illusions and believe that they find it really hard to get people to give up their time for the good of the community, "why should I, whats in it for me?" etc, the current Maire is only interested in the salary and social position, I really do hope that the first adjoint becomes the Maire in 2014, I also reckon that if my foreign name was on the list it would be barré by most people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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