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An aeroplane is preparing to landS'APPRÊTAIT À ATTERRIR. The pilot and his co-pilot spot the runwayAPERÇURENT LA PISTE and are instantly horrified.
“But it’s tinyMINUSCULE!! We’ll never be able to land on a runway that shortAUSSI COURTE! We’re all going to die! They’re insane for building something this small!”
The tension risesLA TENSION MONTA. The plane descends. At the very last possible moment, it screeches to a stopIL S'ARRÊTA DANS UN CRISSEMENT right at the very end of the runway.
SweatingEN SUEUR but relievedSOULAGÉ, the pilot exclaimsS'EXCLAMA, “That runway was really, really short!”
The co-pilot looks to the right, then to the left, and replies, “Yeah… but wow, was it WIDEQU'EST-CE QU'ELLE ÉTAIT LARGE!”
Vocabulary
Spot: to catch sight of or notice something, often from a distance.
Screech: to make a loud, harsh, piercing cry or sound, often associated with tyres braking suddenly.
The crew managed to spot the runwayAPERCEVOIR LA PISTE through the thick fog.
The car screeched to a stopS'EST ARRÊTÉE DANS UN CRISSEMENT just before the traffic lights.
Grammar
The joke employs the present continuous to set the immediate scene, but the narrative backbone relies on the past simple for completed actions.
Present Continuous for immediate action: An aeroplane is preparing to land.
Exclamatory Inversion: The co-pilot uses was it wide (adjective + subject) to emphasise the intensity of the width.
Synonyms & Alternatives
Tiny: minuscule, minute.
Relieved: comforted, reassured.
Mini Dialogue
Captain Arthur: We need to spot the runwayAPERCEVOIR LA PISTE before our fuel runs out!
Officer Miller: Look! It is right there, but it looks tinyMINUSCULE from this altitude.
Captain Arthur: I am sweatingEN SUEUR, but I think I can make it if I brake hard.
Officer Miller: Great heavens, that was that shortAUSSI COURTE? We almost hit the grass!
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