tenir at C2 — literary & formal
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Meetings held, facts kept to, substance recorded.
Institutional French
In institutional French, meetings are not held by people: they hold themselves. « L’assemblée générale se tiendra le 12 mars » is the standard formula on agendas and in the press, and the pronominal keeps the organiser out of sight. « Tenir compte de » is the neutral verb for weighing something in a decision, and juries and courts use it constantly.
« S’en tenir à » means to confine oneself to something, whether facts, the agenda or one glass, and it suits courts, committees and careful speakers: « nous nous en tiendrons aux faits ». The noun « la teneur » names the substance of a text or a discussion, as in « la teneur des débats », where content matters and wording is deliberately not quoted.
💡 Focus at this level: Formal — se tenir, s’en tenir à, la teneur
👨🏫 How to use « tenir » at this level
1. « Se tenir » = to be held, of a meeting. The organiser stays invisible.
2. « S’en tenir à » = to confine oneself to. Courts and committees.
3. « La teneur » = the substance of a text or a discussion.
🔊 Example sentences
✍️ Practice
Which suits an official agenda: « la réunion aura lieu jeudi » or « la réunion se tiendra jeudi » ?
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« La réunion se tiendra jeudi. » Both are correct, but the pronominal is the institutional form.
Formalise: « On va rester sur ce qui est prouvé. »
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« Nous nous en tiendrons aux faits établis. » S’en tenir à = to confine oneself to.
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