What you’ll be able to do
In Level 4 you hear French at normal speed, with the idioms and nuance that help you sound more natural.
Understand French at full speed
Listen to each email read by native speakers at normal speaking speed, then unpick every word.
Use idiom and nuance
Learn the expressions and subtleties that textbooks often skip.
Tackle the trickier grammar
Get to grips with the harder structures, explained in context.
Follow a story in emails
Stay with Sylvie and Matthieu’s lives in Paris from one lesson to the next.
Who presents the course
Mark and Pierre-Benoît talk through every email together, in a mix of French and English, drawing out the vocabulary, the idiomatic expressions and the trickier corners of the grammar.
Sylvie works for a publishing company and writes to her over-protective mother, Monique. Matthieu, a young accountant, confides in his best friend Gabrielle. They’ve just arrived in Paris and don’t know anyone, or each other, yet.
Inside every lesson
Listen first for the gist, then go deeper with the transcript and the language study.
What’s included
Pay once and it’s yours for life, on every device you use.
- 40 serialised lessons One email each, following the story.
- A language study for each The extended episode, in French and English.
- Full transcripts For the main lesson and the language study.
- A slower reading of every email To help you catch every word.
- A quiz every ten lessons Check your progress as you go.
- Lifetime access One payment, no subscription.
Listen
The main lesson
The email read at normal speed by native speakers, with Mark and Pierre-Benoît picking out the key language.
Read
The transcript
Read everything that’s said, written out with notes, so you can follow every word.
Study
The language study
A longer episode on grammar, idiom and vocabulary, with a slower reading of the email.
Notes
The study transcript
Read the language study, written out in full.
The 40 lessons
The story is told in 40 emails between Sylvie, Matthieu, Monique and Gabrielle, with a quiz after every ten lessons.
Part 1 · Lessons 1 to 10
Fresh starts
Sylvie starts again in Paris after a break-up and writes home to Épinal, Matthieu finds the capital lonely and writes to Gabrielle in Rennes, and a rushed morning ends in a collision on the métro.
- 1Une maison bien vide sans Sylvie
- 2Premières semaines à Paris : métro, boulot, dodo
- 3Une amitié trop précieuse pour être gâchée
- 4Matthieu tire un trait sur la soirée
- 5Une visite à Paris se prépare
- 6Enfin les clés de l’appartement
- 7L’ennui à Rennes, le rêve de Paris
- 8La vie parisienne n’a rien de palpitant
- 9Les voyages de papa
- 10Une collision gênante dans le métro
Part 2 · Lessons 11 to 20
The stranger on the RER
Gabrielle tries to push Matthieu into dating, Sylvie’s parents visit Paris and Thomas reappears in Rennes, while Matthieu finally works up the courage to speak to the girl on his train.
- 11Un site de rencontres pour Matthieu ?
- 12Percuté par la jeune fille du RER
- 13Maman croit déjà au destin
- 14Un nouveau projet, pas de place pour l’amour
- 15Ne laisse pas passer ta chance
- 16Plus facile à dire qu’à faire
- 17Guillaume rentre du Japon
- 18En route pour Épinal
- 19Gabrielle retombe dans les bras de Thomas
- 20Matthieu prend son courage à deux mains
Part 3 · Lessons 21 to 30
A date is set
A family weekend in Épinal brings Patrick back into view, Sylvie and Matthieu learn each other’s names and plan a first date, and Gabrielle decides to move in with Thomas.
- 21Toute la famille réunie ce week-end
- 22L’homme du RER fait le premier pas
- 23Il y a de l’amour dans l’air
- 24Le prénom de la jeune fille du RER
- 25Le programme du week-end à Épinal
- 26Maman joue les entremetteuses
- 27Un itinéraire romantique et une grande décision
- 28Attention, tu fonces droit dans le mur
- 29Patrick aimerait bien revoir Sylvie
- 30Patrick, toujours trop d’après-rasage
Part 4 · Lessons 31 to 40
Endings and beginnings
Thomas lets Gabrielle down again, Sylvie and Matthieu’s first date in the Quartier latin goes well and a romance begins, and Gabrielle tries her luck with online dating.
- 31Gabrielle découvre les messages de Lucie
- 32Un premier rendez-vous réussi
- 33Dimanche midi, et toujours pas de nouvelles
- 34Le récit d’un premier rendez-vous
- 35Gabrielle se lance dans les rencontres en ligne
- 36Doucement mais sûrement
- 37Guillaume repart au Japon
- 38Tout l’opposé de Pierre
- 39Un profil à relire avant publication
- 40L’amour là où on ne l’attend pas
From learners on the course
“I loved the free material so much that I inevitably felt like shelling out (how to say in French?) for the premium version of season 4.”
“What a great first episode! Already so many fun and useful expressions. And you even had a brief discussion about liaison- I found it interesting to hear “tu sois allé” without the liaison and I was hoping you would mention this. I was taught to always say the liaison in this type of situation. Your response was simple, voilà, merci!”
“I am on season 4 of french and love the tremendous detail in the extended version. The chemistry between Mark and Pierre-Benoit makes it fun.”
Questions
What’s the difference between the course and the free podcast?
The free podcast has the main lessons. The course adds a longer language study for every lesson, a slower reading of each email, full transcripts of both, and quizzes.
Is it all in French?
It’s a mix of French and English, and everything that’s said is in the transcripts, so you can always check.
Is Level 4 right for me?
It’s for upper intermediate learners, usually after Level 3. If you can get the gist of the first free Level 4 episode, the course will take you the rest of the way.
Can I download the materials?
Yes, the audio and transcripts download to your device.
Can I try it before I buy?
Yes. You can listen to the lessons free on the podcast. The course adds all the support that goes with them: a longer language study for every lesson, a slower reading of each email, full transcripts and quizzes.
How long do I have access?
For life. Pay once and it’s yours, across all of your devices.
When does it start and finish?
It starts the moment you join and has no end date. It’s self-paced, so you set the timeline.
Find the course that fits you
Coffee Break French has five levels, from absolute beginner to advanced. If this one doesn’t feel right, try the level above or below.
The Level 1 course40 lessons for absolute beginners, with video lessons, notes and exercises
The Level 2 courseMove beyond the basics and learn the grammar you need to go further
The Level 3 courseFollow a 40-lesson story set in Nice and broaden what you can understand and say
La Vérité éclate toujoursChallenge yourself with a crime novel for advanced learners, with all the support you need
Coffee Break French · Level 4
Take on the challenge
Every lesson comes with a language study and full transcripts, so you can follow every word of the story.
$269One payment, yours for life
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