Grammar is not a four-letter word. Learning vocabulary is not a form of punishment. They are the basis of any language, and a student who wants more than a tourist's booklet of useful phrases will need to learn them sooner or later. The second edition of this popular little book takes the sting out of the exercise and even makes it a pleasant experience. By tackling issues not addressed in other texts or by doing so in a new way, we examine questions you will find novel and intriguing.

In the section on grammar, we propose a new and better way to tell the use of the passé simple or passé composé and the imparfait. There really are differences in causal conjunctions (parce que/car/comme/puisque). The agreement of the past participle of pronominal verbs (Elle s'est coupée au doigt) is also explained clearly. The updated section on vocabulary helps you distinguish between pouvoir and puissance (power), and the section on style deals with such issues as letter-writing and levels of language.

The purpose of this work, like that of second-language teachers, is to inspire students to seek what is unique in both languages and to reflect on the relationship and interplay between them.

Part One: Grammar
1. Prepositions
For – expressing time
To + infinitive

2. Adverbial Phrases
Adverbial phrases of place

3. Pronouns
Don’t or duquel?
On…vous

4. Verbs
Agreement of the past participle of pronominal verbs
Plus-que-parfait or passé antérieur (passé surcomposé)?
Je l’ai vue les voler
The passive versus the active voice
Imparfait, passé simple and passé compose: the traditional approach
Passé simple (passé compose) / imparfait: a new approach
Some basic points about sentence structure
Future anterior of conjecture, conditional of unconfirmed information
Present participle and gerundive

5. Conjunctions
Causal conjunctions

6. Adjectives
The position of the adjective (Part I)
The position of the adjective (Part II)

7. Articles
Parts of the body
Français / le français

8. Adverbs
Negatives
Position of adverbs

9. Miscellaneous
It is, he is (Part I)
It is (Part II)
You can see
Gender
Negatives and positives: inversion
Guarantee

Part Two: Vocabulary
1. Test
2. Être en accord or Être d’accord?
3. Relatives
4. Holiday, Vacation
5. Décider
6. Pouvoir and Puissance (Power)
7. To Suggest
8. To Visit
9. Se servir de
10. Scarcely, Hardly
11. Could, Would
12. Oui or Si?
13. D’avance / À l’avance
14. Mener/ Porter
15. Sans doute and Other False Friends
16.S’assurer que
17. Food…for Thought
18. Tranché
19. Each / Every
20. Encore and Toujours
21. When is a Rue Not a Street
22. Espoir / Espérance
23. Numbers, Figures and Digits
24. There Are Words…And There Are Words: Mots / Paroles
25. So
26. Diminutives
27. Bouchées, Fournées, Soirées…Chaque jour et Chaque année: Reflections on a Suffix
28. An Employee Isn’t un employé

Conclusion