# FR: I've not been talking to you lately



## dlr21

Hi,

I undertand that the present perfect progressive can be translated in to the present in french and depuis is used to indicate time. eg "i have been walking for hours".  can the words 'lately' and 'recently' (récemment) be used in the same manner with the present tense to indicate that the thing the person is talking about is still happening. eg "i have been driving to work lately" (and still do) or "recently, i have been working here at the bank too" or must depuis be used?

where the action has clearly finished, and the passe compose is used, can i still use a 'time word' such as récemment eg, "I've not been talking to you lately" (but clearly that has now ceased to be)

merci!

Deano.


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## melu85

could you provide French examples and we'll tell you which is correct?


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## dlr21

Hi,

(present) "récemment, je marche à l'école" would this be the translation of "recently, i have been walking to school"  if i were still in the habbit of walking to school

(passe compose) "je ne t'ai pas parlé récemment" = "i have not been talking to you lately.." ?

thanks

dean.


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## melu85

using the passé composé is the correct form (not present ) in both examples.


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## dlr21

Hi,

thanks for your reply.

In english these two phrases mean the same thing (i got hurt at some time in the past. i now drive to school) :

"i have been driving to school since the accident occured"

"the accident ruined my ankle, so lately i have been driving to school"

I can translate the top sentence into the simple present + depuis BUT i can only translate the bottom phrase into the passe compose?

cheers,

Deano.


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## melu85

> "i have been driving to school since the accident occured" *Je vais à l'école en voiture depuis l'accident. (there's a reference to a starting point in this example)*
> 
> "the accident ruined my ankle, so lately i have been driving to school" (*je vais...ces temps-ci/ je suis allé....dernièrement)*


 
It depends on the time reference.


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## dlr21

Hi,

thanks melu85. so we can say that in french: 

only present + depuis conveys that something( habit, routine or action) continues now after starting earlier. 

so the case where the english don't use a for/since reference yet mean that the action still continues, the translation would need to be rearranged (as you say, je vais...ces temps-ci*)*

merci!

Dean.


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## melu85

dlr21 said:


> only present + depuis conveys that something( habit, routine or action) continues now.
> 
> so the case where the english don't use a for/since reference yet mean that the action still continues, the translation would need to be rearranged (as you say, je vais...ces temps-ci*) I'd say it depends on the adverb you're using.*
> 
> merci!
> 
> Dean.


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## Valosh

dlr21 said:


> Hi,
> 
> (present) "récemment, je marche à l'école" would this be the translation of "recently, i have been walking to school" if i were still in the habbit of walking to school
> 
> (passe compose) "je ne t'ai pas parlé récemment" = "i have not been talking to you lately.." ?
> 
> thanks
> 
> dean.


 
walking to school is NOT je marche à l'école but rather:
Je vais à l'école à pied. 
And I would Not use récemment with this sentence, it doesn't sound right. Try:
Je vais à l'école à pied depuis peu.
If you really want to use "marche" you could say:
Je marche jusqu'à l'école depuis peu.
Good luck!


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## dlr21

Hi valosh,

Thanks for the corrections!. so to confirm once again (really to get it into my thick head) i can say in english "i have been walking to school recently" and mean that i continue to do so (i may or may not be in the act of doing it now, but the habit or routine of travelling by foot continues) and this is best translated in french as "Je vais à l'école à pied depuis peu" because inorder to convey that the habit continues, present + depuis must be used. 

does the same rule apply for the past perfect progressive: imparfait + depuis only?

thanks all,

Deano.


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## Valosh

dlr21 said:


> Hi valosh,
> 
> Thanks for the corrections!. so to confirm once again (really to get it into my thick head) i can say in english "i have been walking to school recently" and mean that i continue to do so (i may or may not be in the act of doing it now, but the habit or routine of travelling by foot continues) and this is best translated in french as "Je vais à l'école à pied depuis peu" because inorder to convey that the habit continues, present + depuis must be used.
> 
> does the same rule apply for the past perfect progressive: imparfait + depuis only?
> 
> thanks all,
> 
> Deano.


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## dlr21

bonsoir,

This is great, thank guys. if i could ask quickly:

"you're back!. you look tired, what have you been doing?"

_"i've been mowing the lawn for the last hour and a half"_

would the reply be translated to the passe compose + pendant? (as opposed to depuis)

Merci beaucoup

deano.


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## Valosh

J'ai passé la dernière heure et demie à tondre la pelouse= I spent the last hour and a half mowing the lawn/I've been mowing the lawn for the last hour and a half.
Can't really use pendant or depuis here, doesn't sound right. 
You could say:
J'ai tondu la pelouse pendant une heure et demie=I mowed the lawn for one and a half hour. But that doesn't say that it was the "last" hour and a half.
Je tonds la pelouse depuis une heure et demie=I've been mowing the lawn for one and a half hour. But that implies that you are still at it!!
Good luck !


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## ramaud

dlr21 said:


> bonsoir,
> 
> This is great, thank guys. if i could ask quickly:
> 
> "you're back!. you look tired, what have you been doing?"
> 
> _"i've been mowing the lawn for the last hour and a half"_
> 
> would the reply be translated to the passe compose + pendant? (as opposed to depuis)
> 
> Merci beaucoup
> 
> deano.


 

ususally when  you use the passé composé in French, it refers to something you're not doing any more
that's why the present perfect should be translated by the present tense (if the habit continues or if you're still at it!)
when you want to translate 'for' by 'pendant', you're not saying you're still mowing the lawn but that you spent some time before so it refers to the past (no connection with the present)
I don't know if that helps!


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## dlr21

Hi,

Me again! 



Valosh said:


> J'ai tondu la pelouse pendant une heure et demie=I mowed the lawn for one and a half hour. But that doesn't say that it was the "last" hour and a half.


 - does the situation not imply that the time spent was recent though? in english its conceivable that the sentence "i have been mowing the lawn for an hour" (dropping the 'last' from my example) could mean that the person has finished. would your example above be the correct translation? 

Damn my ambiguous native tongue!

thanks,

Dean.


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## Frenchpastorale

Hello...
Complicated points where our native languages doesn't give any proper answers...
In French we wouldn't say " Récemment, je marche à l'école."
"Récemment" is used to give an indication on what strated in the recent past.
It requires the "passé composé" : " Récemment, j'ai décidé de marcher pour aller à l'école"."Récemment j'ai changé de numéro de téléphone". It means it's done and still true.
You'd say ' Depuis peu, je marche pour aller à l'école". With the "présent" here...It seems the fact you want to insist upon is the "marche" itself...

For the lawn...we have some nice thing with "Je viens de tondre la pelouse pendant une heure et demie".
Does it help?


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## dlr21

Hi,

Thanks for your reply frenchpastorale. the 'marche' thing was just a poorly translated example on my part.

You're right of course, using 'viens de', as the english use 'just', is more accurate or at least conveys more meaning. im just wondering if the french could ever use le passe + pendant to mean a recent action, in place of viens de + pendant (even if it is a bit 'sloppy'). eg, J'ai couru pendant une heure: je suis morte...


im just trying to get a idea of the boundaries of its use.

cheers all,


Dean.


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## Frenchpastorale

Hey Dean, the example is perfect...
Here the 'venir de" is implied, she is red, out of breath and close to the heart attack...
The "passé composé" to signify it's over , "pendant" for the duration and then the present. 
Here again, the context is the key...


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