Home  ›  A2  ›  Unit 2  ›  Lesson 7
⭐ LEVEL A2

Lesson 7 — Une minute pour un projet

One minute to pitch a dream · The conditional
Unit 2 · La vie des autres Wishes & future projects Present conditional · lequel
0

Goals

What you'll be able to do
  • 📻 Understand a radio ad
  • 🎯 Pitch a project in one minute
  • 📚 Master the present conditional ("would do")
  • 💭 Express a wish, polite advice, or a polite request
  • ❓ Use lequel / laquelle ("which one?")
  • 🎵 Distinguish [t] / [tʁ] · [d] / [dʁ] · subtle liaisons
1

Discover

A radio show

📻 Only one radio station helps you make your dreams real. Which one?

FLYROCK

« bien sûr ! »

Une minute pour un projet · Every day at 7 p.m.
Flyrock, la radio qui vous écoute. ("the radio that listens to you")

📡 88.5 FM

Dialogue · A minute for Vincent

On Flyrock radio, host Marc invites a different listener every day to pitch a personal project in one minute. Today: Vincent, 22.

Marc — Bienvenue sur Flyrock, Vincent ! Quel est ton projet ?
Welcome to Flyrock, Vincent! What's your project?
Vincent — J'aimerais faire le tour du monde en bateau ! Avec mon meilleur ami, on prendrait une année sabbatique.
I'd love to sail around the world! My best friend and I would take a gap year.
Marc — Génial ! Et laquelle de ces destinations te tente le plus ?
Awesome! And which of those destinations tempts you the most?
Vincent — La Polynésie française, sans hésiter ! On partirait de Marseille, on passerait par les Antilles, puis le Panama, puis le Pacifique.
French Polynesia, no question! We'd leave from Marseille, go through the Caribbean, then Panama, then across the Pacific.
Marc — Et l'argent ? Lequel de vous deux a le budget ?
And the money? Which of you has the budget?
Vincent — Justement, on cherche des sponsors. Si j'avais 50 000 euros, je partirais demain !
That's the thing — we're looking for sponsors. If I had 50,000 euros, I'd leave tomorrow!
Marc — Eh bien, chers auditeurs, vous l'avez entendu : si vous voulez aider Vincent, contactez Flyrock ! À demain, et pour Vincent, nous aimerions vraiment vous voir réaliser ce rêve !
Well, dear listeners, you heard it: if you'd like to help Vincent, get in touch with Flyrock! See you tomorrow — and Vincent, we really would love to see you make this dream real.

💡 Notes

  • Une année sabbatique — a "gap year": a one-year break from work or studies, often used to travel.
  • Faire le tour du monde — to travel around the world.
  • La Polynésie française — French Polynesia: a French overseas territory in the South Pacific (Tahiti, Bora Bora…).
  • Un sponsor — a sponsor (the same English word, just pronounced French-style).
  • « Sans hésiter » = "without hesitation", "without a second thought".
2

Vocabulary

Words to remember
FrenchTypeEnglish
un projetn.m.project, plan
un rêven.m.dream
réaliser (un projet, un rêve)v.to make happen, to realise (⚠ false friend — not "to realise = to notice"!)
une année sabbatiquen.f.gap year, sabbatical
faire le tour du mondev. phraseto travel around the world
un bateaun.m.boat
une destinationn.f.destination
tenterv.to tempt; to try
hésiterv.to hesitate
sans hésiterphrasewithout hesitation
un sponsorn.m.sponsor
un budgetn.m.budget
un auditeur / une auditricen.(radio) listener
la radion.f.radio
une animatrice / un animateurn.radio/TV host, presenter
écouterv.to listen (to)
contacterv.to contact, to get in touch with
aider qn (à + inf.)v.to help someone (to do)
partirv.to leave, to set off
passer (par)v.to go through, to pass by
la Polynésieproper nounPolynesia
les Antillesproper nounthe (French) West Indies / Caribbean
le Pacifiqueproper nounthe Pacific (Ocean)
3

Grammar

How French works

① The present conditional "I would…" — wishes, hypotheticals, polite requests

The present conditional is the French equivalent of English "would + verb". It's used for:

  • ① A wish: J'aimerais faire le tour du monde. "I'd love to travel the world."
  • ② A hypothetical action: Avec un budget, je partirais demain. "With a budget, I'd leave tomorrow."
  • ③ A polite request: Vous pourriez m'aider ? "Could you help me?"
  • ④ Advice: Tu devrais dormir. "You should sleep."

📐 Formation: the future stem + the imparfait endings (-ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient). If you know the future and the imparfait, you already know the conditional.

parlerfinirêtreavoir
jeparleraisfiniraisseraisaurais
tuparleraisfiniraisseraisaurais
il / elleparleraitfiniraitseraitaurait
nousparlerionsfinirionsserionsaurions
vousparleriezfiniriezseriezauriez
ils / ellesparleraientfiniraientseraientauraient

📌 Irregular stems (same as the future): aller → j'irais · faire → je ferais · pouvoir → je pourrais · vouloir → je voudrais · venir → je viendrais · voir → je verrais.

💡 For English speakers: French expresses with one verb form what English does with the auxiliary "would". je voudrais = "I would like", tu pourrais = "you could", il aimerait = "he would like". The handy mental shortcut: future stem + "I was/we were" endings.

② Si + imparfait → conditional Hypothetical "if" sentences

To express an unreal hypothesis (present or future), French uses:

👉 Si + imparfait → conditional present

This is exactly the English second conditional: "If I + past, I would + verb".

  • Si j'avais 50 000 euros, je partirais demain.
    "If I had 50,000 euros, I'd leave tomorrow."
  • Si tu étais riche, qu'est-ce que tu ferais ? "If you were rich, what would you do?"
  • Si on pouvait, on irait en Polynésie. "If we could, we'd go to Polynesia."

⚠️ Real vs unreal "if" — same split as English:

  • Si + present + future = real hypothesis (1st conditional). Si je peux, je viendrai. "If I can, I'll come."
  • Si + imparfait + conditional = unreal hypothesis (2nd conditional). Si je pouvais, je viendrais. "If I could, I would come."
⚠️ Trap: never put a conditional after si. English doesn't either ("if I would have…" is non-standard) — but learners sometimes try it. Always: si + imparfait → main clause in conditional. Never si j'aurais.

③ The interrogative pronoun lequel "which one?"

Lequel replaces quel + noun in a question — exactly like English "which one?". It agrees in gender and number with the noun it stands for:

SingularPlural
Masculinelequellesquels
Femininelaquellelesquelles

📌 J'ai trois robes. Laquelle tu préfères ? "I have three dresses. Which one do you prefer?"
📌 Plusieurs destinations sont possibles. Laquelle te tente le plus ?
📌 Tu connais les Antilles ou le Pacifique ? Lesquels tu préfères ?

💡 Easy mnemonic: lequel = "the + which" (le + quel) — and that "le/la/les" tells you the gender of what you're asking about.

4

How to say it

Useful chunks

💭 Expressing a wish

  • J'aimerais faire le tour du monde. "I'd love to travel the world."
  • Je voudrais apprendre le japonais. "I'd like to learn Japanese."
  • On aimerait partir un an. "We'd love to take a year off."
  • Je rêverais de vivre à Tahiti. "I'd dream of living in Tahiti."

🎯 Pitching a project

  • Mon projet, c'est de… "My project is to…"
  • J'aimerais réaliser… "I'd like to make … happen."
  • Si j'avais l'argent, je… "If I had the money, I would…"
  • On partirait de…, on passerait par…, on arriverait à…

🙏 Politeness — softening a request

  • Vous pourriez m'aider ? "Could you help me?"
  • Je voudrais un café. "I'd like a coffee." (instead of the blunt « je veux » = "I want")
  • J'aimerais savoir votre avis. "I'd like to know what you think."

💡 In French, using the conditional with vouloir or aimer is the standard polite move — much like English "I would like" vs "I want".

5

Practice

Try it out

Exercise 1 · Conjugate in the conditional

Put each verb in the present conditional.

  1. Je (aimer) faire le tour du monde.
  2. Tu (vouloir) un café ?
  3. Vous (pouvoir) m'aider ?
  4. Nous (partir) demain.
  5. Elles (être) contentes.
  6. Il (avoir) 30 ans cette année.
  7. Je (devoir) dormir plus tôt.
  8. On (faire) le voyage ensemble.

Exercise 2 · Si + imparfait + conditional

Build the sentence by conjugating both verbs.

  1. Si je (avoir) de l'argent, je (voyager) .
  2. Si tu (être) président, qu'est-ce que tu (faire)  ?
  3. Si nous (pouvoir) , nous (aller) à Tahiti.
  4. Si elle (savoir) chanter, elle (devenir) chanteuse.
  5. Si vous (vivre) en France, vous (parler) mieux français.

Exercise 3 · Lequel / laquelle / lesquels / lesquelles?

Fill in with the right form.

  1. J'ai trois robes. tu préfères ?
  2. Voici les deux destinations possibles. te tente le plus ?
  3. Mes amis sont à Paris ou à Lyon. tu visites ?
  4. J'ai écouté deux chansons. tu connais ?
  5. Tu connais les Antilles et le Pacifique ? tu préfères ?
  6. Plusieurs sponsors nous écrivent. est le plus généreux ?

Exercise 4 · If you were…

Complete each sentence in your own words.

  1. Si tu étais riche, qu'est-ce que tu ferais ? →
  2. Si tu pouvais voyager, où irais-tu ? →
  3. Si tu avais un superpouvoir, lequel choisirais-tu ? →

💡 Free-answer exercise — no auto-correction.

Exercise 5 · Listening comprehension

Listen to Vincent's pitch again and answer.

  1. What is Vincent's project? →
  2. With whom? →
  3. Which city would they leave from? →
  4. What's their favourite destination? →
  5. How much money do they need? →
6

Communicate

Real-world tasks

📻 Your minute, your project

Your turn! Pitch a personal project (real or imagined) to the class in 1 minute. Use the conditional and the structure « Si j'avais X, je… ». Classmates then ask follow-up questions using lequel.

Idea bank: a once-in-a-lifetime trip · open a restaurant · learn 5 languages · record an album · write a novel · buy a château…

💌 Letter to a fairy godmother

Imagine a fairy is granting you 3 wishes. Write her an 80-word letter saying what you'd ask for (in the conditional): « J'aimerais… Je voudrais… Je rêverais de… ».

7

Pronunciation

Consonant clusters & the French R

The [tʁ] / [dʁ] clusters A signature French sound

The tr [tʁ] cluster is unmistakably French. To produce it: say [t], then immediately roll into the uvular [ʁ] (back-of-throat).

  1. très, trois, trop, trouver, train, traiteur
  2. drôle, vendredi, tendre
  3. croire, croissant, écrire

Liaisons and linking

Tout est bon [tut-ɛ-bɔ̃] · nous avons [nu-z-a-vɔ̃] · les amis [le-z-a-mi]

The r in the conditional

The conditional is wall-to-wall r's: j'aimerais, tu voudrais, on partirait, ils sauraient. If your French [ʁ] is shaky, this tense will expose it — drill it.

💬 Tip for English speakers: the English /r/ is made with the tongue (curled back, mid-mouth). The French [ʁ] is made at the back of the throat — same place as a soft gargle, or German "Bach". Try this:

  1. Say "ah" while looking in a mirror.
  2. Now narrow the back of your throat slightly (like the start of a gargle).
  3. You should hear a soft scraping sound — that's [ʁ].

Don't try to "trill" it like Spanish or Italian — French [ʁ] is throaty, not rolled.