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How to ask politely for something


Est-ce qu'il serait possible de ... ?
Serait-il possible de ... ?
Pourriez-vous ... ?


The phrases serait-il possible de... ? (would it be possible to) and pourriez-vous ...? are used for making particularly polite requests in French.

Serait-il possible d'avoir une serviette supplémentaire?
Would it be possible to have an extra towel?

This form is called the conditional. Il serait is from the verb ê³Ù°ù±ð (to be) and vous pourriez is from pouvoir (to be able).

The verb endings for the conditional tense are :

je -ais nous -ions
tu -ais vous -iez
il/elle/on -ait ils/elles -aient.

These endings are usually added to the infinitive of the verb:


±Ê°ùé´Úé°ù±ð°ù becomes vous préféreriez ? (would you prefer?)


But if the infinitive ends in -re, drop the final 'e':


Dire becomes je dirais, (I would say).


There are a few irregular verbs such as je serais (I would be) and je pourrais (I could), but the endings are still the same.


A tip! The letter before the ending is always an 'r'.

Serait-il possible de manger ici ce soirÌý?
Would it be possible to eat here tonight?
Ìý
Pourriez-vous nous garder nos bagages jusqu'à ce soir ?
Could you keep our luggage till this evening?

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