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Gaspiller or consommer: eight questions on use and waste

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Practise the difference between consuming resources and wasting them. Eight French questions use food, water, paper and electricity in concrete situations.

In short

Consommer means consuming or using a resource. Gaspiller means wasting it. La lampe consomme de l’électricité describes use; Laisser la lumière allumée dans une pièce vide gaspille de l’électricité points to avoidable use.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn

A tap drips into a kitchen sink beside a plain water jug.
A running tap can gaspiller de l’eau. Illustration: Atelier

consommerto consume; to use

Focus: the resource used or the amount

Cette machine consomme dix litres d’eau par cycle.
This machine uses ten litres of water per cycle.

gaspillerto waste

Focus: the resource lost or used needlessly

Le robinet coule toute la nuit : on gaspille de l’eau.
The tap runs all night: we are wasting water.

Resources in an ordinary day

A family of six may consommer plus d’eau than one person. The larger total tells you about consumption. To explain waste, add the reason: le robinet reste ouvert, le pain finit à la poubelle or les mêmes pages sont imprimées trois fois.

Two noun families
VerbNounPhrase
consommerla consommationla consommation d’eau
gaspillerle gaspillagele gaspillage alimentaire
  1. Question 1No account needed
    Choose the neutral verb for a stated quantity of use.Cet appareil ___ deux kilowattheures par jour.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    consomme. Consomme reports how much electricity the device uses; the sentence gives no waste judgement.

  2. Question 2No account needed
    Which sentence explicitly calls the water use wasteful?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    Nous gaspillons de l’eau en laissant le robinet ouvert.. Gaspillons calls it waste and the open tap explains why.

  3. Question 3No account needed
    What does le gaspillage alimentaire mean?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    food waste. Gaspillage alimentaire names food going to waste, rather than all food eaten.

  4. Question 4No account needed
    Which phrase names the amount of water used?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    la consommation d’eau. La consommation d’eau concerns water use; quality and price describe different properties.

  5. Question 5No account needed
    You mean “avoid wasting paper”. Complete the phrase.Éviter de ___ du papier.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    gaspiller. Éviter de gaspiller du papier means avoiding needless use or loss of paper.

  6. Question 6No account needed
    A report says Les élèves consomment moins d’eau. What has decreased?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    The amount of water used.. Consomment moins d’eau reports lower water use. The sentence says nothing about price or pupil numbers.

  7. Question 7No account needed
    Choose the sentence that gives a clear reason for calling the bread wasted.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    Le pain encore frais a été jeté à la poubelle.. Fresh bread thrown away gives the reason for gaspillage alimentaire.

  8. Question 8No account needed
    What is the difference between consommer de l’énergie and gaspiller de l’énergie?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    Using energy; wasting energy.. Consommer describes use. Gaspiller adds the meaning that energy is used wastefully.

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