Pendant
Example: Je lis un livre pendant le déjeuner.
Definition
"Pendant" is a French preposition used to indicate the duration of an action or event, meaning 'during' or 'for' a certain period of time. For example, in the phrase 'Je lis un livre pendant le déjeuner,' it expresses reading a book during lunchtime.
Etymology
The French word "pendant" comes from the present participle of the verb 'pendre,' meaning 'to hang.' Originally, it conveyed the idea of something hanging or lasting over a period. Over time, it evolved to express the duration of time an action spans. Did you know? This hanging metaphor nicely captures the sense of time 'hanging over' an event.
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"Pendant" appears in the Vocaplus list "French - General - (A1) - set 2", containing 103 commonly used words.
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