Dialogue
Papoter or discuter: from a friendly chat to a focused discussion
Follow two friends as a relaxed chat becomes a discussion about their project. Practise papoter avec, discuter de and the difference from an argument.
- B1
- 11 lines
- Practice mode
- Learn this in the B1 notebook →
In short
Papoter means “to chat” and highlights a relaxed exchange. Discuter can mean “to talk” or “to discuss”, especially when you name a topic. Use avec for the person and de for the topic: discuter du projet avec Léa.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
Léa and Malik meet before class. They start with weekend news, then settle how to present their project. In practice mode, take Malik’s part: each cue tells you what to say before you reveal the French.
- Léa
Salut ! Tu as deux minutes pour papoter ?
English
Hi! Have you got a couple of minutes for a chat?
- Malik
Oui, avec plaisir. Tu as passé un bon week-end ?
Accept and ask about her weekend.
English
Yes, I’d love to. Did you have a good weekend?
- Léa
Oui, j’ai retrouvé une amie. On a papoté toute la soirée.
English
Yes, I met up with a friend. We chatted all evening.
- Malik
De quoi avez-vous parlé ?
Ask what they talked about.
English
What did you talk about?
- Léa
De nos vacances et de nos projets. Et toi ?
English
About our holidays and our plans. What about you?
- Malik
J’ai travaillé sur notre présentation. On peut en discuter ?
Say you worked on the presentation and ask to discuss it.
English
I worked on our presentation. Can we discuss it?
- Léa
Bien sûr. Tu veux discuter du début ou de la conclusion ?
English
Of course. Do you want to discuss the beginning or the conclusion?
- Malik
De la conclusion. Je la trouve un peu longue.
Choose the conclusion and say it is a little long.
English
The conclusion. I find it a little long.
- Léa
D’accord. On garde seulement les deux dernières phrases ?
English
All right. Shall we keep just the last two sentences?
- Malik
Oui, et on ajoute un exemple à l’oral.
Agree and suggest adding an example when speaking.
English
Yes, and we’ll add an example when we speak.
- Léa
Ça marche. On en reparle après le cours.
English
That works. We’ll talk about it again after class.
What is the difference between papoter and discuter?
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je papote avec Léa. | I’m chatting with Léa. |
| Nous papotons de nos vacances. | We’re chatting about our holidays. |
| Je discute du projet avec Malik. | I’m discussing the project with Malik. |
| Nous discutons de la conclusion. | We’re discussing the conclusion. |
Before le, de becomes du: discuter du projet. Before a vowel, use d’: discuter d’une idée. In On peut en discuter ?, en stands for the topic already mentioned: the presentation.
Elles discutent calmement de deux solutions.
They are calmly discussing two solutions.
Elles se disputent à propos du projet.
They are arguing about the project.
Discuter can describe a calm exchange. Se disputer explicitly describes an argument. Likewise, papoter tells you the exchange is relaxed; the topic can still matter to the speakers. Two friends can chat about an important plan.