📖LearnModule 8 · Lesson 8 of 30Independent User · CEFR B2, first halfUnit 2 · La concession
Même si — the one that behaves differently
Module 8 of the free French course (CEFR B2, first half), lesson 8 of 30: Here is the trap. On this page: 8 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's lesson 8.
The words
French
English
Say it
même si
even if
mehm SEE
tu as raison
you are right
tew ah reh-ZOH(n)
je ne suis pas d'accord
I disagree
zhuh nuh swee pah dah-KOR
l'indicatifmasculine — the article elides to l'
the indicative
la(n)-dee-kah-TEEF
le piège
the trap
luh PYEHZH
se tromper
to be mistaken
suh troh(n)-PAY
admettre
to acknowledge
ahd-MEHTR
en partie
partly
ah(n) pahr-TEE
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
Hear the words
Each word is read twice — say it back in the gap. Computer-generated voice; credits on the course page.
La règle · The rule
Here is the trap. Même si means even if, it sits among a family of subjunctive-takers, and it takes the INDICATIVE. Même si tu as raison, je ne suis pas d'accord — not aies, has.
Et aussi · And also
The reason is worth knowing: même si is a si-clause wearing a hat, and si never takes the subjunctive in French. Say it aloud a dozen times with the indicative and the family resemblance stops misleading you.
Attention · Watch out
même si takes the INDICATIVE, not the subjunctive: même si tu as raison, never même si tu aies raison. It is a si-clause wearing a hat.
Do it now — on paper
Say all 8 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the French spelling alone — begin with même si.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the French.
Write two sentences of your own that get the watch-out line right, then the two practice pages of workbook lesson 8 in Module 8 are the written half of this page.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The French Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.