# FR: four months of which were spent in



## puddlejumper

Hello/Bonjour,

I'm confused about the use of "(se) passer" in the sense of time passing.  Is the following an accurate, grammatically correct statement?

"Il a habité aux Etats-Unis pendant sept ans, dont trois ou quatre mois se sont passés à la Nouvelle-Orléans."

(I want to say that he lived in the States for seven years, three or four months of which were spent in New Orleans.)

Thanks!


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## blu-ray

It is correct in your sentence, but actually you don't need it here. Just write "Il a habité aux USA pendant 7 ans, dont 3 ou 4 à la Nouvelle-Orléans".
Anyway your sentence is correct, just sounds weird


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## cropje_jnr

You could even say '_qu'il a passés_' or simply '_passés_', both of which would be more logical translations. Blu-ray is quite right, however, in saying _dont_ is all that is required here.


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## puddlejumper

Thanks so much!


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## Tararam

How come it's "à la Nouvelle-Orléans" and not just "à Nouvelle-Orléans?


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## blu-ray

Tararam said:


> How come it's "à la Nouvelle-Orléans" and not just "à Nouvelle-Orléans?



In French, the city is called "La Nouvelle Orléans".


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## roymail

blu-ray said:


> In French, the city is called "La Nouvelle Orléans".


 
La logique est :
Parmi les "Orléans", c'est LA nouvelle.
Comme la Nouvelle Zélande etc...


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## Dezzo

blu-ray said:


> It is correct in your sentence, but actually you don't need it here. Just write "Il a habité aux USA pendant 7 ans, dont 3 ou 4 à la Nouvelle-Orléans".
> Anyway your sentence is correct, just sounds weird



Puddlejumper's original sentence stated that the individual concerned "lived in the States for seven *years*, three or four *months* of which were spent in New Orleans". [Emphasis added to "years" (in the first part of the sentence) and "months" (in the second part)]  

I rather think that blu-ray's suggestion overlooks this mix of "years" and "months".  The suggestion will, however, be fine if one adds the word "mois" after "dont 3 ou 4" so that it reads: "Il a habité aux USA pendant 7 ans, dont 3 ou 4 mois à la Nouvelle-Orléans".

On a minor point, my preference would be for "Etats-unis" rather than "USA".


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## lady_byron

Dezzo said:


> On a minor point, my preference would be for "Etats-unis" rather than "USA".


Hello,
Forgive my nit-picking, but it is: Etats-*U*nis.


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## Dezzo

Not nit-picking - I agree. I have been influenced by a widespread French tendency to "de-capitalise". One writes: "Un des Etats *u*nis d'Amérique" (source: Larousse - Dictionnaire des difficultés de la langue française) but "les Etats-*U*nis". Not worth starting a new thread, since you are quite right


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## Laürenar

Another minor point: _*É*tats-Unis_. Let's not forget the accent even on capital letters (Moreover, it seems much more beautiful to my eyes).


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## lady_byron

Tiens, c'est la première fois que j'entends dire qu'il faut un accent sur les lettres majuscules! Puis-je avoir la référence de cette règle? Merci!


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## Laürenar

[...]

Voir l'explication sur le site de l'Académie française.
http://www.academie-francaise.fr/langue/questions.html#accentuation


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## lady_byron

Laürenar said:


> Voir l'explication sur le site de l'Académie française.
> http://www.academie-francaise.fr/langue/questions.html#accentuation


 
Merci beaucoup Laürenar, vraiment très intéressant !


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## Nicomon

[...]

Pour en revenir à la question du post, je dirais comme Dezzo.

_Il a habité aux États-Unis pendant 7 ans, dont 3 ou 4 mois à la Nouvelle-Orléans._ (including 3 or 4 months in New Orleans)

Autre solution possible :

_Il a *vécu* aux États-Unis pendant 7 ans, durant lesquels il a *habité/passé* 3 ou 4 mois à la Nouvelle-Orléans._


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