Another French question...

[Jane in NC]

It seems that I have a problem: paraitre, avoir l'air, sembler.

Are they used interchangably? Suppose "he is tired" and forgive my lack of symbols, please:

Il parait fatigue.

Il a l'air fatigue.

Il semble fatigue.

Are there times when one of the verbs is a better expression than another? In English, we would use "He appears tired" and "He seems tired" to mean the same thing. Is this true in French?

Thank you in advance to the kind soul who can help.

Jane

[CleoQc]

That's a toughy...

First, "he is tired" would be "il est fatigué". There's no doubt there.

All other versions have "doubt".


Il parait fatigué.
Il a l'air fatigué.
Il semble fatigué.



The second one uses familiar language. You would say it, write it in an email. But not use it in a formal presentation.

First and third are pretty much interchangeable. I would say, to me, the first one really hints at outside appearances. The third one would take into account non visual cues. But it's really splitting hairs.

[Laura Corin]

I really appreciate having you on the board, Cleo. I am working within my knowledge at the moment, teaching my boys French, but I will definitely need help as time goes on, and it's great to have you around.

Laura

[CleoQc]

I'm going to be asking a lot of English help soon! My son is reaching the limits of what I can teach him! LOL...

Donnant donnant..

[Nan in Mass]

Ask, ask away, Cleo. I owe you lots and lots of English help GRIN. AND... I would be happy to help anyway, because I find it interesting to think about how English works.

[Jane in NC]

That's a toughy...

First, "he is tired" would be "il est fatigué". There's no doubt there.

All other versions have "doubt".


Il parait fatigué.
Il a l'air fatigué.
Il semble fatigué.



The second one uses familiar language. You would say it, write it in an email. But not use it in a formal presentation.

First and third are pretty much interchangeable. I would say, to me, the first one really hints at outside appearances. The third one would take into account non visual cues. But it's really splitting hairs.

Well, Cleo, I owe you more than thanks. Eventually I see you touring the US (with a side trip to Scotland), tutoring French for your supper and a bed.

Your explanation mirrors English. He appears tired (Il parait fatigué) is based more on a physical look, whereas he seems tired (Il semble fatigué) is often on some intuitive understanding. It is that middle one (Il a l'air fatigué) that just doesn't seem to translate directly into common English usage which may be why I was feeling stumped. It helps to know that all three statements say that the poor fellow in question seems tired, none are incorrect and that the second is informal.

Merci, my friend.

Jane

[CleoQc]

how about this?

Il a l'air fatigué -> he looks like he's tired.

That's as close to a literal translation as I can get.

Touring with tutoring seems like a great idea :)

[Jane in NC]

how about this?

Il a l'air fatigué -> he looks like he's tired.

That's as close to a literal translation as I can get.

Touring with tutoring seems like a great idea :)

Thanks again. I may be back with some followup questions tomorrow after I look over exercises in the French in Action workbook. This is a case where I don't think the answers are necessarily obvious or unique.