se terminer à
To say 'end at' in French, you use se terminer à.
The phrase terminer à is usually used when referring to the completion or conclusion of a scheduled event or activity.
Did you know?
- The word terme used in se terminer is related to the Roman god Terminus, who was the deity of boundary markers.
- The preposition à in se terminer à is a merger of two opposite Latin prepositions, 'ad' meaning 'to' and 'ab' meaning 'from'.
- The reflexive pronoun se in se terminer suggests that the event 'ends itself', a common feature in French where actions are described as happening to the subject.
Examples in context
- Le cours de français se termine à 16 heures.The French class ends at 4 p.m.
- La conférence finit à 18 heures précises.The conference ends at exactly 6 p.m.
- Le film se termine à minuit.The movie ends at midnight.
- La soirée, ça se termine à quelle heure ?What time does the party end?
- Le film va se terminer à minuit.The movie will end at midnight.
- La réunion doit se terminer à seize heures.The meeting must end at four p.m.
- Le cours va se terminer à midi pile.The class will end at exactly noon.
Example conversation
Hugo and Chloé are discussing their schedule for a workshop.
- HugoÀ quelle heure est-ce que le cours va se terminer ?At what time will the class end?
- ChloéIl va se terminer à dix-sept heures.It will end at five p.m.
- HugoC'est un peu tard pour moi.That is a bit late for me.
- ChloéOn peut partir plus tôt si tu veux.We can leave earlier if you want.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries se, terminer, à, CC BY-SA 4.0.
