Watch out for the many french verbs ‘to walk’ - they can trip you up

WALKING, HIKING AND STROLLING IN FRANCE CAN STRETCH YOUR VOCABULARY AND YOUR LEGS, EXPLAINS COLUMNIST ANNALIZA DAVIS It made sense when I learned that _promenade_ was French for a walk, as I

had grown up near Cheltenham Promenade and its Regency streets. It conjured images of refined ladies taking the air. WHO WILL YOU TAKE ON THE WALK? The verb, however, is a little more

complicated as you have to stipulate exactly what you are walking: _Je vais me promener_ (myself) or_ je vais promener le chien_ (the dog). Furthermore, it is often used figuratively – for

example, when someone is misleading or manipulating you (_tu me promènes!_) or when you tell someone to get lost (_je l’ai envoyé promener_). ARE WE GOING THERE ON FOOT? _Marcher _is

probably the best verb to describe walking, so you could join a _club de marche _and say _J’aime bien marcher_, if you like walking rather than jogging. As for simply strolling along, that’s

_balader_ or even_ flâner_, which additionally suggests you are in holiday mode, in no particular hurry. To explain that you will walk rather than take a bus, bike or car, it is _aller à

pied_, so _On y va à pied?_ would be “Are we going there on foot?”. READ MORE: WHY EXERCISE CAN PUT YOU ON THE FAST TRACK TO BEING FLUENT IN FRENCH A HIKE ON A BIKE And finally, as you will

see in any large sports shop, you have _randonner_, a far more serious and energetic business that is essentially hiking or trekking. For this activity, you will need _chaussures de

randonnée_, and if you are a regular _randonneur_, you will casually shorten it to _rando_ (pronounced ‘ron-doh’). Whether you are walking, strolling or hiking, look out for variations with

these verbs. Unlike in English, bikes can join in (_promener à vélo_ and _balader à vélo_), so if you ask for a list of local _randonnées_, you will also receive cycle trails. AND LET’S

FINISH ON MY PERSONAL FAVOURITE If you are invited to take a_ balade en mer_, do not be alarmed: no one is asking you to walk on water. It is a little boat trip, so go ahead and enjoy it!

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