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quelque chose vs. autre chose
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Bonjour,
I'm going through level 2 now and am confused as to when to use quelque chose vs. autre chose. I know in level 1 there were several examples where the waiter asked "autre chose" after ordering something. Now on level 2, lesson 9 in the tutorial (near the end at about 5 mins) the dialogue uses quelque chose, specifically "et vous voulez boire quelque chose" - do you want to drink anything? These seems like the same question as the waiter asking "autre chose" to mean anything else.
Is there a rule I'm not understanding that would make this easy to know when to use autre chose vs quelque chose?
Merci!
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That’s a great question — and it’s wonderful to see you paying such close attention to these small but important distinctions!
You’re right that quelque chose and autre chose can sound similar, but they’re used in slightly different contexts:
quelque chose means something or anything.
Example: Vous voulez boire quelque chose ? → “Would you like to drink something?”
This is used when offering or asking if someone wants anything at all.autre chose means something else.
Example: Autre chose ? → “Anything else?”
This is used when you’ve already mentioned or ordered something, and you’re asking if the person wants something in addition.So in your examples:
The waiter saying “Autre chose ?” comes after you’ve already ordered something.
The phrase “Vous voulez boire quelque chose ?” is a general offer, not a follow-up.
That’s why they’re not interchangeable — quelque chose introduces something new, while autre chose refers to an additional thing.
Hope this clears it up! You’re doing great — it’s details like this that make a big difference as you move forward in Level 2.
Best regards,
