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I was reading this article on Le Monde, and I learned for the first time that "puis" can mean "and" (as a conjunction), not just "then" (as an adverb).

Dans la cour de l’Elysée, à l’issue de son entretien avec le chef de l’Etat puis d’un déjeuner « familial », M. Hariri, qui était accompagné de sa femme et de son fils aîné, a tenu à remercier M. Macron qui, dans cette crise, « a fait preuve d’une amitié infaillible ».

In the courtyard of the Elysée, at the end of his interview with the head of state and a "family lunch", Saad Hariri, who was accompanied by his wife and eldest son, thanked Emmanuel Macron who, in this crisis, "demonstrated an infallible friendship".

In order to convey the conjunction "and", when should one use "puis" instead of "et"? Is there any rule of thumb, or are the two words interchangeable?

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Actually, the "puis" here does entail the idea of "(and) then / (et) ensuite", not just "and". The discussion first took place, and then they went on to have lunch".

Coming out of the discussion and the ensuing lunch, he insisted on thanking ..."

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  • That makes sense. I think the Wiktionary entry was a bit misleading! It only gave two senses: "and" (conjunction) and "then" (adverb).
    – ktm5124
    Commented Nov 19, 2017 at 7:50
  • @ktm5124 I wonder if you consulted E-F Wiktionary instead of F-F Wiktionnaire? There's plenty of room for misunderstanding as long as you use bilingual dictionaries.
    – Con-gras-tue-les-chiens
    Commented Nov 19, 2017 at 7:58
  • Yep, I consulted Wiktionary. I do hear that Wiktionnaire is a lot better! I should try to use it more.
    – ktm5124
    Commented Nov 19, 2017 at 7:59

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