(= When was he born? He was born the year when France won the World Cup. Quand est-il né ? Il est né l’année où la France a gagné la Coupe du Monde. “Il est tombé depuis son vélo” is incorrect, though, but see above: it’s hard to say why.ģ) We use “où” instead of “quand” when it comes in a sentence after the noun of a duration, as in “l’année où…” (= the year when…), “le moment où…” (= the moment when…) + a “sub-sentence” (part of a sentence with its own subject and verb) We could also say “Il est tombé de son vélo” or “Il est tombé de vélo” (= He fell from his bike). It’s “à” only because the two-word expression “à vélo” is used like “en roulant” (= while rolling / cycling / driving), “en marchant” (= walking)… So “Il est tombé à vélo” (= He fell biking) means “Il est tombé à vélo” (He fell while he was biking) –> “Je te vois depuis mon bureau” = I can see you from my desk.Ģ) “à vélo” means “biking / by bike” “J’y vais à vélo” = I go there by bike, I go there biking. Accent Grave: (à, è, ù) Option key + (found in the top left of your keyboard, on the key with the tilde). I can’t really explain why with a short rule.Ĭommon examples with “depuis” would be “voir + depuis” (to see from ) Accent Aigu: (é) Option key + letter e at the same time. Sometimes, only “de” is correct, as “depuis” would sound too long and strange. We also use the shorter preposition “de” for the same meaning. It stresses the starting point, and the long distance between both points. These are great and difficult questions 🙂ġ) “Depuis” is also used as “from” for a physical place.
