Tag Archives: French Translation Practice

English/French Translation Practice

KS3 English/French Translation

Fire in the mountains!
Can you translate this short story into French without looking anything up?

(Do not cheat – You’re wasting your time if you do that)

Attempt this translation practice after studying the story in French first and joining in with the video clips available here: French Story about a Forest Fire.

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Fire in the mountains!
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This is a true story.
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It is summer.  It is hot!
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We often go to the beach.
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The earth is dry.  What heat!
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When it’s hot you can hear crickets.  Listen!
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One day I look out of the window and I see smoke!
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The smell of smoke is everywhere!
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There, can you see?  Oh no, it’s dangerous!
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It’s very dangerous because of the heat!
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I’m worried, but suddenly I hear an airplane!
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The plane passes overhead.
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It’s a fire-fighting plane, flying towards the fire!
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The plane drops water on the fire and it sets off again!
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I see two fire-fighting planes.
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One after the other the airplanes bomb the fire, and they set off again.
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Suddenly I hear a huge noise!
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This time it is a fire-fighting helicopter!
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It is transporting a load of water.
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The water is in the bucket.
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It’s impressive!
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The situation is urgent!
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Luckily there is no wind, and the bombers succeed in extinguishing the fire.
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What causes forest fires?
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Sometimes it is lightening, but most of the time it is human negligence.
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Watch out for your rubbish!
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Use all these French Words in your translation:

la foudre
la négligence humaine
les cigales
un canadair
l’un après l’autre
quelque part
partout
vos déchets
un hélicoptère bombardier
la plupart du temps
tout à coup
à cause de
au-dessus
les feux de forêt
l’incendie

A Green Mouse French - Holiday Resource!
Fire in the Mountains:  Incendie à la montagne