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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fremdsprachen
- Sprache: Englisch
Learn to speak French with confidence—the easy way
French For Dummies gives you an immersive look into the foundations of the French language. The trusted Dummies language learning method is quick and practical, so you'll know what to say and do when traveling to a French-speaking country or interacting with French speakers in your community. You'll learn the basics of French grammar and pronunciation, and then you'll explore common phrases you'll need in everyday situations. Total beginners and those with some prior knowledge of français can get ready to study, work, or travel abroad—or integrate French into your everyday life—fast and easy. Make small talk, understand common expressions, navigate business settings, ask for directions, go to the doctor, and beyond, with this essential resource.
- Learn how the French language works—grammar, pronunciation, and important constructions
- Build your vocabulary and learn common expressions you’ll hear while abroad
- Brush up your conversation skills with authentic dialogues, plus follow along with online audio
- Get practice reading, writing, and speaking French, so you’re ready to communicate effectively
With French For Dummies, students, travelers, and business professionals can gain the confidence to converse in French.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025
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French For Dummies®
To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “French For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Conventions Used in This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part 1: Getting Started with French
Chapter 1: The French You Already Know
Checking Out the French You’re Familiar With
Noting Idioms and Popular Expressions
Chapter 2: Laying the Foundation: Basic French Grammar
Discovering the Key Parts of Speech
Cavorting with Verbs
Expressing Action or Being with Verb Tenses
Chapter 3: Getting Started with Pronunciation and Basic Expressions
Sounding Out the French Alphabet
Uttering Vowel and Consonant Sounds
Clarifying Accents, Liaisons, and Elisions
Greetings: Formal and Friendly
Asking Basic Yes or No Questions
Asking and Replying to “How Are You?”
Chapter 4: Getting Your Numbers, Dates, and Times Straight
Counting Your Lucky Stars: Numbers
Using the Calendar and Dates
Telling Time in French
Chapter 5: Talking about Your Home, Family, and Daily Routine
Discussing Where You Live with the Verb Habiter
Discussing Daily Routine with Reflexive Verbs
Using Possessive Adjectives to Introduce Your Family Members
Part 2: French in Action
Chapter 6: Getting to Know You: Making Small Talk
Asking Who, What, Why, and More
Stating Your Preferences
Talking about Your Livelihood
Chatting about the Weather
Deciding to Keep in Touch
Texting Friends and Loved Ones
Chapter 7: Asking Directions and Finding Your Way
Asking and Answering “Where?” Questions
Getting and Giving Directions
Chapter 8: Bon Appétit ! Dining Out and Going to the Market
Dining Out
Going to the Market
Chapter 9: Shopping Made Easy
Going Shopping
Making Comparisons: Good, Better, Best, and More
Chapter 10: Going Out on the Town
Going Out with the Verb “Sortir”
Using Pronominal Verbs and Having Fun with “S’amuser”
Oh, the Places You’ll Go!
Making Plans with Friends
Chapter 11: Recreation and the Outdoors
Playing Sports
Going Downhill — or Cross-Country — Skiing
Going to the Beach
Setting Up Camp
Enjoying Quieter Pursuits
Chapter 12: Taking Care of Business and Telecommunicating
Getting Around — and Along — at the Office
Making Appointments and Minding Business Hours
Making a Cellphone Call
Part 3: French on the Go
Chapter 13: Dealing with Money in a Foreign Land
Getting Current with Currency
Going to the Bank
Using Credit or Debit Cards and ATMs
Saying that You Can, Want, or Have to Do Something
Using Disjunctive Pronouns
Chapter 14: Planning a Trip
Where Do You Want to Go?
Getting Ready for Your Trip
Chapter 15: Getting Around: Planes, Trains, Taxis, and More
Getting through the Airport
Navigating Buses, Trains, and Subways
Getting Around by Car
Chapter 16: Finding a Place to Stay
Finding Accommodations
Checking Into Your Lodging
Checking Out of Your Lodging
Chapter 17: Handling Emergencies
Getting Help Fast
Finding Medical Services
Handling Legal Matters
Part 4: The Part of Tens
Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Pick Up French Quickly
Label Things in Your House
Write Your Shopping Lists in French
Listen to French Music or Podcasts
Watch French Movies
Tune in to TV5 Monde
Read French Publications
Take a Class
Join a French Association
Go Online to Find Topics That Interest You — in French
Connect with Language Learning Apps
Chapter 19: Ten Things Never to Say in French
Using “Tu” When You Mean “Vous”
Using “Bonne Nuit !” for Goodbye
Using “Garçon” or “Porteur” to Address Service Staff
Saying “Je Suis Excité(e)” to Indicate Excitement
Saying “Je suis chaud(e)/froid(e)” to Say You’re Hot or Cold
Saying “Je Suis Plein/e” to Mean You’re Full
Using “de la Glace” to Request Ice
Using “Je Suis … Ans” to Tell Your Age
Asking for Change with “J’ai Besoin de Change”
Using the Verb “Visiter” in Reference to People
Chapter 20: Ten Favorite French Expressions
“À mon avis”
“C’est pas vrai !”
“Avec plaisir”
“Bon appétit !”
“C’est génial”
“À votre santé !”
“À vos souhaits !”
“Quelle horreur !”
“À bientôt”
“Pas mal”
Part 5: Appendixes
Appendix A: French-English Mini-Dictionary
French-English Mini-Dictionary
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
English-French Mini-Dictionary
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
R
S
T
U
V
W
Y
Appendix B: Verb Tables
Regular French Verbs
Auxiliary French Verbs
Irregular and Stem-Changing French Verbs
Appendix C: Answer Key
Index
About the Author
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 1
TABLE 1-1 Words Similar in Meaning, Slightly Different in Spelling
Chapter 2
TABLE 2-1 Common Masculine and Feminine Noun Endings
TABLE 2-2 Definite, Indefinite, and Partitive French Articles
TABLE 2-3 Endings of French Adjectives
TABLE 2-4 Common Irregular Past Participles
Chapter 3
TABLE 3-1 The French Alphabet
TABLE 3-2 French Vowel Sounds
TABLE 3-3 French Nasal Sounds
TABLE 3-4 Tricky French Consonants
Chapter 4
TABLE 4-1 Numbers 1–20
TABLE 4-2 Numbers 21–69 Examples
TABLE 4-3 Ordinal Numbers, from 1
er
through 20
e
Chapter 5
TABLE 5-1 Examples of –er, –ir, and –re Verbs in the Imperative Form
TABLE 5-2 Possessive Adjectives
Chapter 8
TABLE 8-1 Measuring Amounts in Grams
Chapter 9
TABLE 9-1 French Demonstrative Pronouns
Chapter 11
TABLE 11-1 The Verb “Faire” When Used with Sports
TABLE 11-2 The Verb “Jouer” When Used with Sports
Chapter 13
TABLE 13-1 French Disjunctive Pronouns
Chapter 14
TABLE 14-1 Genders of Countries
TABLE 14-2 Geographical Prepositions
TABLE 14-3 Verbs with Irregular Stems but Regular Endings in the Simple Future
TABLE 14-4 French Indirect Object Pronouns
TABLE 14-5 French Possessive Adjectives
List of Illustrations
Chapter 7
FIGURE 7-1: Paris’s 20 districts, with some landmarks identified.
Chapter 13
FIGURE 13-1: All euros look the same from country to country. (Not actual size....
FIGURE 13-2: From left:
La Marianne,
la Semeuse,
and
l’Arbre.
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Begin Reading
Index
About the Author
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French For Dummies®, 3rdEdition
Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com
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Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2025934399
ISBN 978-1-394-32135-3 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-32137-7 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-394-32136-0 (ebk)
Introduction
Bonjour! Welcome to French For Dummies, 3rd Edition. Whether you’re traveling overseas on business, exploring a different culture, or even connecting with your heritage, learning a little bit of the language has many advantages. Whatever your reason for wanting to learn some French, this updated edition of French For Dummies can help. It gives you the skills you need for basic communication in French. I’m not promising fluency here, but if you need to greet someone, purchase a ticket, ask for directions, make a hotel reservation, or order off a menu in French, you need look no further than this book.
Remember that everyday French is like everyday English. In everyday French, you can express yourself adequately by following just a few easy-to-understand grammar rules and by knowing a minimum number of words. So hopefully you find the lessons in this book fun and not the least bit overwhelming.
About This Book
French For Dummies, 3rd Edition, isn’t like a class that you have to drag yourself to twice a week for a specified period of time. You can use this book however you want to, whether your goal is to learn some words and phrases to help you get around when you visit France or a francophone country, or you just want to be able to say “Hello, how are you?” to your French-speaking neighbor. Go through this book at your own pace, reading as much or as little at a time as you like. You don’t have to trudge through the chapters in sequential order, either; just read the sections that interest you.
Conventions Used in This Book
To make this book easy to navigate, I’ve set up some conventions:
French terms are set in
boldface
to make them stand out.
Pronunciation, set in parentheses, follows the French terms. Hyphens connect syllables in the same word as well as words that are linked by the French liaison (which you can find out all about in
Chapter 3
).
Translation of the French terms is set in
italic
and follows the pronunciation.
Because French nouns are typically preceded by an article, this book includes those articles in the word lists, even though the English translation may not use the article. Furthermore, because articles indicate a noun’s gender, they’re helpful bits of information when you’re learning a language. When the article is abbreviated
(
l’
),
however, you can’t tell the gender. In those instances, I add a gender designation: (m) for masculine and (f) for feminine.
Verb conjugation tables throughout this book appear in this form:
Left column:
Verb
conjugations
(lists that show you the forms of a verb) appear in this order:
The “I” form
The “you” (singular informal) form
The “he/she/it/one form
The “we” form
The “you” (plural; and singular formal) form
The “they” (plural) form
Right column:
Pronunciations appear in this column. This example uses the verb
parler
(pahr-ley)
(
to speak
).
The conjugation starts with the French equivalent of
I speak, I do speak,
or
I’m speaking
;
you speak, you do speak,
or
you’re speaking
, and so on.
Conjugation
Pronunciation
je parle
zhuh pahrl
tu parles
tew pahrl
il/elle/on parle
eel/ehl/ohN pahrl
nous parlons
nooh parh-lohN
vous parlez
vooh parh-ley
ils/elles parlent
eel/ehl parhl
So that you can make fast progress in French, this book includes a few elements to help you along:
Talkin’ the Talk dialogues:
The best way to learn a language is to see and hear how it’s used in conversation, so I include dialogues throughout the book. The dialogues come under the heading “Talkin’ the Talk” and show you the French words, the pronunciation, and the English translation.
Words to Know blackboards:
Memorizing key words and phrases can help you learn a language, so I collect the important words in a chapter (or section within a chapter) on a chalkboard, with the heading “Words to Know.”
Fun & Games activities:
If you don’t have actual French speakers to practice your new language skills on, you can use the Fun & Games activities to reinforce what you learn. These games are fun ways to gauge your progress.
Also note that because each language has its own way of expressing ideas, the English translations that I provide for the French terms may not be exactly literal. I want you to know what the speakers want to express, not just the words that they say. For example, you can translate the phrase C’est normal (seh nohr-mahl) literally as It’s normal, but the phrase really means It’s no big deal. This book includes both translations, showing you the difference.
Foolish Assumptions
To write this book, I had to make some assumptions about who you are and what you want from a book called French For Dummies. Here are the assumptions that I’ve made about you:
You know no or very little French — or if you took French back in school, you don’t remember much of it.
You’re not looking for a book that will make you fluent in French; you just want to know some key words, phrases, and sentence constructions so that you can communicate basic information in French.
You don’t want to have to memorize long lists of vocabulary words or a bunch of boring grammar rules.
You want to have fun and learn a little bit of French at the same time.
If these statements apply to you, you’ve found the right book!
Icons Used in This Book
You may be looking for particular information while reading this book. To make certain types of information easier to find, I’ve placed the following icons in the left-hand margins throughout the book:
This icon highlights tips that can make learning French easier.
This icon points out interesting information that you ought not forget.
To help you avoid linguistic, grammatical, and cultural faux pas, I use this icon.
Languages are full of quirks that may trip you up if you’re not prepared for them. This icon points to discussions of these peculiar grammar rules.
If you’re looking for information and advice about culture and travel, look for this icon. It draws your attention to interesting tidbits about the countries in which French is spoken.
Certain dialogues in this book, which have been recorded, give you the opportunity to listen to real French speakers so that you can get a better understanding of what French sounds like. This icon identifies the “Talkin’ the Talk” dialogues available as audio tracks online. (I talk about accessing these dialogues in the following section.)
Beyond the Book
In addition to what you’re reading right now, this book comes with a free, access-anywhere Cheat Sheet that contains tips and vocabulary to help you on your journey to speaking French. To get this Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and type “French For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the search box.
You can find the audio files for a selection of “Talkin’ the Talk” dialogues at www.dummies.com/go/frenchfd3e. Download the tracks, listen to them, and recite the dialogues.
Where to Go from Here
Learning a language is all about jumping in and giving it a try. So make the leap! Start at the beginning, pick a chapter that interests you, or listen to a few dialogues online. Before long, you’ll be able to respond Oui! (wee!) (Yes!) when people ask Parlez-vous français ? (pahr-ley vooh frahN-seh?) (Do you speak French?).
Note: If you’ve never been exposed to French before, you may want to read the chapters in Part I before you tackle the later chapters. Part I gives you some of the basics that you need to know about the language, such as how to pronounce the various sounds, some basic expressions and words, and the fundamentals of French sentence structure.
Part 1
Getting Started with French
IN THIS PART …
Find out how many French words and idioms you already know.
Get the basics on French grammar.
Dive into the French alphabet and practice pronunciation and simple expressions.
Dial in on numbers: Get acquainted with dates and time.
Discover how to talk about yourself, your home, and your family.
Chapter 1
The French You Already Know
IN THIS CHAPTER
French words that are identical or similar to their English counterparts
French words whose meanings don’t match their English look-alikes
Idioms and popular expressions you may already know
Learning a new language can be challenging. Not only do you need to know a whole new vocabulary, but you also need to twist your head around different grammar rules and your tongue around different pronunciation rules. But here’s some good news that may make the task seem a little less daunting: You already know quite a few French words and expressions. How? Because the English language, being the borrower that it is, contains many French words and expressions. And French has absorbed some English words, too.
In this chapter, you can explore some French words and phrases without having to know pronunciation or grammar rules (that info comes in Chapters 2 and 3). Here, I include French words that are spelled the same and mean the same as their English counterparts, as well as words that are close in meaning and spelling. But because not every French word that resembles an English word shares its meaning, I also tell you which words fall into this category. In addition, I include some French expressions that you probably already know and understand. By the end of this chapter, you may discover that you actually know more French than you previously thought.
Checking Out the French You’re Familiar With
With just a narrow stretch of water between them, the English and the French have historically been pretty close, even if they haven’t always been the friendly allies they are today. In fact, French was the language of the English court for a very long time — a fact that many people tend to forget. (The Normans who invaded England in 1066 with William the Conqueror were French, as were some of the most prominent people in English history.)
How does this brief history lesson relate to you learning French? Well today, approximately 35 percent of English vocabulary is of French origin. That being the case, you already know an impressive amount of French, whether you realize it or not. The only pitfall you have to watch out for is that sometimes the English words have a different meaning from their French counterparts, and they almost certainly have a different pronunciation.
French nouns are preceded by either definite or indefinite articles. The definite articles are le (masculine), la (feminine), l’ (an abbreviation of either le or la), and les (plural); these are the equivalent to the English word the. The indefinite articles are un (masculine), une (feminine), des (plural); these are all equivalent to the English words a, an, or some. While you dive into French, knowing which articles go with which nouns helps you identify the noun’s gender; that’s why the lists throughout this book include the articles. Because the abbreviated article l’ obscures the noun’s gender, I added the gender in parentheses. Finally, because in English, articles are not always used, I don’t include them in the translations of the word lists: l’université (f) (lew-nee-vehr-see-tey) (university) and le kiosque (luh kyohhsk) (kiosk), for example.
Friendly allies — bons alliés
Several French words are spelled the same and have the same meaning as their English counterparts. The only thing that may be different is the pronunciation (for more on pronunciation guidelines, head to Chapter 3). Take a look at these bonsalliés (bohN-zah-lyey) (friendly allies):
l’art
(m) (lahr)
brave
(brahv)
le bureau
(luh bew-roh)
le client
(luh klee-yahN)
le concert
(luh kohN-sehr)
la condition
(lah kohN-dee-syohN)
content
(kohN-tahN)
le courage
(luh kooh-rahzh)
le cousin
(luh kooh-zaN)
la culture
(lah kewl-tewr)
différent
(dee-fey-rahN)
excellent
(ehk-seh-lahN)
le garage
(luh gah-rahzh)
le guide
(luh geed)
important
(aN-pohr-tahN)
le journal
(luh zhoohr-nahl)
la machine
(lah mah-sheen)
le message
(luh mey-sahzh)
le moment
(luh moh-mahN)
la nation
(lah nah-syohN)
l’orange
(f) (loh-rahNzh)
le parent
(luh pah-rahN)
possible
(poh-see-bluh)
principal
(praN-see-pahl)
probable
(proh-bah-bluh)
la question
(lah kehs-tyohN)
la radio
(lah rah-dyoh)
le restaurant
(luh rehs-toh-rahN)
la rose
(lah rohz)
la route
(lah rooht)
la science
(lah syahNs)
le secret
(luh suh-kreh)
le service
(luh sehr-vees)
le signal
(luh see-nyahl)
le silence
(luh see-lahNs)
la solitude
(lah soh-lee-tewd)
le sport
(luh spohr)
la station
(lah stah-syohN)
la statue
(lah stah-tew)
la suggestion
(lah sewg-zheh-styohN)
la surprise
(lah sewr-preez)
la table
(lah tah-bluh)
le taxi
(luh tah-ksee)
le tennis
(luh tey-nees)
le train
(luh traN)
urgent
(ewr-zhahN)
violet
(vyoh-leh)
le voyage
(luh voh-yahzh)
le zoo
(luh zooh)
Close look-alikes
Some French words, although not identical in spelling to their English counterparts, look very similar. These words also have similar meanings. Table 1-1 shows words that fit into this category.
TABLE 1-1 Words Similar in Meaning, Slightly Different in Spelling
French
English
French
English
l’ acteur (m) (lahk-tuhr)
actor
l’hôtel (m) (loh-tehl)
hotel
l’adresse (f) (lah-drehs)
address
le kiosque (luh kyohhsk)
kiosk
l’aéroport (m) (lah-eyr-oh-pohr)
airport
la lampe (lah lahmp)
lamp
l’allée (f) (lah-ley)
alley
la lettre (lah leh-truh)
letter
l’Américain (m)/l’Américaine (f) (lah-mey-ree-kaN/lah-mey-ree-kehn)
American
la mémoire (lah mey-mwahr)
memory
l’âge (m) (lahzh)
age
le miroir (luh mee-rwahr)
mirror
l’artiste (m/f) (lahr-teest)
artist
la musique (lah mew-zeek)
music
la banque (lah bahNk)
bank
la nationalité (lah nah-syoh-nah-lee-tey)
nationality
la cathédrale (lah kah-tey-drahl)
cathedral
nécessaire (ney-sey-sehr)
necessary
le chèque (luh shehk)
check
ordinaire (ohr-dee-nehr)
ordinary
la classe (lah klahs)
class
le papier (luh pah-pyey)
paper
la chambre (lah shahN-bruh)
chamber, bedroom
le poème (luh poh-ehm)
poem
la comédie (lah koh-mey-dee)
comedy
potentiel (poh-tahN-syehl)
potential
le congrès (luh kohN-greh)
congress
le problème (luh proh-blehm)
problem
la crème (lah krehm)
cream
le professeur (luh proh-feh-suhr)
teacher/professor
la démocratie (lah dey-moh-krah-see)
democracy
le sénateur (luh sey-nah-tuhr)
senator
le développement (luh dey-vlohp-mahN)
development
le succès (luh sew-kseh)
success
la famille (lah fah-meey)
family
la terrasse (lah teh-rahs)
terrace
la géographie (lah zhey-oh-grah-fee)
geography
la tragédie (lah trah-zhey-dee)
tragedy
le gouvernement (luh gooh-vehr-nuh-mahN)
government
l’université (f) (lew-nee-vehr-see-tey)
university
l’histoire (f) (lee-stwahr)
history
la visite (lah vee-zeet)
visit
False friends — faux amis
Some French words are faux amis (foh-zah-mee) (false friends). They look similar to English words, but they don’t have the same meaning. Misusing these words can be quite confusing. For example, if you tell someone that your young adult son or daughter is in a collège (koh-lehzh), they’d probably look at you — or your child — strangely because the French word collège means middle school, not university. The following list shows some of these easy-to-confuse words:
actuellement
(ahk-tew-ehl-mahN): This word means
currently
, not
actually
. The French word for
actually
is
en fait
(ahN feht).
assister à
(ah-sees-tey ah): This word means
to attend
, not
to assist
. The French word for
to assist
is
aider
(ey-dey).
attendre
(ah-tahN-druh): This word means
to wait for
, not
to attend
. The French word for
to attend
is
assister à
(ah-sees-tey ah).
la bague
(lah bahg): This word means
ring
(the kind you wear on your finger), not
bag
. The French word for
bag
is
le sac
(luh sahk).
blesser
(bleh-sey): This word means
to wound
or
to hurt
. The French word for
to bless
is
bénir
(bey-neer).
la cave
(lah kahv): The French word
cave
means
cellar
in French. The word for
cave
is
la grotte
(lah grohht) in French.
le collège
(luh koh-lehzh) means
middle school
; use the French word
l’université
(f) (lew-nee-vehr-see-tey) when you want to say
college
.
formidable
(fohr-mee-dah-bluh): This word means
wonderful
or
tremendous
, not
fearsome
or
daunting
. To say
formidable
in French, you use the word
redoutable
(ruh-dooh-tah-bluh).
la lecture
(lah leh-ktewr): This word means
a reading
, as in a reading of Balzac’s novels. The word for
lecture
is
la conférence
(lah kohN-fey-rahNs).
la librairie
(lah lee-brey-ree): This word means
bookstore
, not
library
. The French word for
library
is
la bibliothèque
(lah bee-blee-oh-tehk).
la place
(lah plahs): This word means
square
,
seat at the theater
, or
seat on the bus
, not
place
. The French word for
place
is
le lieu
(luh lyuh) or
l’endroit
(m) (lahN-drwah).
rester
(rehs-tey): This word means
to stay
or
to remain
, not
to rest
. The French word for
to rest
is
se reposer
(suh-ruh-poh-zey).
sympathique
(saN-pah-teek): This word means
nice
. To say
sympathetic
in French, you say
compatissant(e)
(kohN-pah-tee-sahN[t]).
la veste
(lah vehst): This word means
jacket
in French, not
vest
or
waistcoat
. The French word for
vest
is
le gilet
(luh zhee-leh).
Borrowed English words
The preceding sections note quite a few English words that have been borrowed from French even though their pronunciation is different. These words have either retained their French meaning or have a different one.
But English isn’t the only language that’s nicked a few words. French has also borrowed many words from English and continues to do so in spite of the loud protest by purists who condemn this trend as a sign of cultural contamination and name it franglais (frahN-gleh): Here’s a list of some of the terms borrowed from English and absorbed into the French language. Note the different pronunciation:
le budget
(luh bewd-zheh)
le business
(luh beez-nehs)
le camping
(luh kahN-peeng)
le chewing-gum
(luh shweeng-gohhm)
les chips
(ley sheep[s])
le coca
(luh koh-kah)
cool
(koohl)
le fast food
(luh fahst foohd)
le hamburger
(luh ahm-boohr-guhr)
la jet set
(lah jeht seht)
le manager
(luh mah-nah-jehr)
le marketing
(luh mahr-kuh-teeng)
le parking
(luh pahr-keen)
le rock
(luh rohk) (as in rock music)
le shopping
(luh shoh-peeng)
le steak
(luh stehk)
le chat
/le tchat
(luh chaht)
le tunnel
(luh tew-nehl)
le week-end
(luh wee-kehnd)
Talkin’ the Talk
Take a look at this conversation between two young French people making plans for their weekend. They’re using several words borrowed from English.
Thomas:
Sylvie, qu’est-ce que tu fais ce week-end ?
seel-vee, kehs-kuh tew feh suh wee-kehnd?
Sylvie, what are you doing this weekend?
Sylvie:
Oh, du shopping probablement. Tu veux venir avec moi ?
oh, dew shoh-peeng proh-bah-bluh-mahN. tew vuh vuh-nee-rah-vehk mwah?
Oh, I’ll probably go shopping. Do you want to come with me?
Thomas:
OK, cool, et après, on va aller manger dans un fast food.
oh-keh, kooh-ley-ah-preh, ohN vah ah-ley mahN-zhey dahN-zuhN fahst foohd.
Okay, cool, and afterwards, we’ll go eat in a fast food place.
Sylvie:
J’espère qu’on va trouver un parking !
zhehs-pehr kohN vah trooh-vey uhN pahr-keeng!
I hope we’ll be able to find a parking space!
Noting Idioms and Popular Expressions
French, like English, has many idioms (unusual ways of expressing feelings and ideas). You may find the meaning of these expressions puzzling if you try to translate them word for word.
These fixed forms of expression belong specifically to the language in question. If you walked up to a French person and said Il pleut des chats et des chiens (eel pluh dey shah ey dey shyaN) (It’s raining cats and dogs), he or she would question your sanity. On the other hand, you may find yourself wondering what French speakers mean when they say Il tombe des cordes (eel tohNb dey kohrd), whose literal translation is Ropes are falling, but it’s roughly equivalent to It’s raining cats and dogs.
Apart from idioms, which take a long time to comprehend and belong specifically to a culture, every language has many expressions and phrases that you can easily learn and use. Here are a few of the useful expressions you frequently hear in French:
À bientôt
(ah byaN toh)
(See you soon)
À la vôtre !
(ah lah voh-truh!)
(Cheers!)
À mon avis
(ah mohN-nah-vee)
(in my opinion)
À tes !
/vos souhaits !
(ah tey!/voh sweh!)
(Bless you!/Gesundheit!)
Allez ! Un petit effort !
(ah-ley! uhN puh-tee-teh-fohr!)
(Come on! Try a little!)
Bien sûr.
(byaN sewr.)
(Of course.)
Bon appétit !
(bohN-nah-pey-tee!)
(Enjoy your meal!)
Ça vaut la peine/
le coup.
(sah voh lah pehn/luh kooh.)
(It’s worth it.)
D’accord.
(dah-kohr.)
(Okay.)
De rien.
(duh ryaN.)
(Don’t mention it.)
Jamais de la vie !
(zhah-meh duh lah vee!) or
Pas question !
(pah kehs-tyohN!)
(No way!)
Revenons à nos moutons.
(ruh-vuh-nohN ah noh mooh-tohN.)
(Let’s get back to the subject at hand.)
Tant mieux.
(tahN myuh.)
(So much the better.)
Tant pis.
(tahN pee.)
(Too bad.)
Tout à fait.
(tooh-tah feh.)
(Quite./Absolutely.)
Un coup d’œil
(uhN kooh duhy)
(a glance, a quick look)
Chapter 2
Laying the Foundation: Basic French Grammar
IN THIS CHAPTER
Getting familiar with nouns, articles, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs
Introducing regular and irregular verbs
Constructing simple sentences using the present, past, and immediate future tenses
In your native language, you instinctively know how to form sentences and ask questions that make sense. However, when learning a new language, you need to learn that language’s grammar because it lays the foundation for communicating correctly and effectively. This chapter simplifies French grammar, introducing you to the parts of speech and telling you how to construct grammatically correct sentences. You may be surprised to discover that learning basic French grammar is easy and completely painless. The key to success is to remain cool and patient. Little by little — and before you know it — you’ll be able to speak French.
Discovering the Key Parts of Speech
Words are classified based on their parts of speech — verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections — depending on how they are used. In the following sections, I concentrate on a few key parts of speech that you need to know in order to form and understand basic French sentences: nouns, articles, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs. You can check out verbs in the section “Cavorting with Verbs,” later in this chapter.
Using nouns to name things
Nouns name things: people, objects, places, concepts, and so on. House is a noun. So is Mary, and truth, and Paris. French and English nouns have a few key differences, however.
Unraveling the whole gender thing
Unlike English nouns, all French nouns have a gender: They are either grammatically masculine or feminine. You need to know whether a noun is masculine or feminine because that gender has an impact on sentence construction. For example, if the noun is feminine singular, the articles and adjectives that modify that noun must also be feminine singular.
But how do you know whether a noun is masculine or feminine? For the most part, just look at the word’s ending. With a few exceptions, the ending of a noun gives you a rather good indication of its gender. Table 2-1 shows common masculine and feminine endings.
TABLE 2-1 Common Masculine and Feminine Noun Endings
Masculine Endings
Example
Feminine Endings
Example
–eur (uhr)
l’auteur (loh-tuhr) (author);le bonheur (luh boh-nuhr) (happiness)
–ade (ahd)
la promenade (lah prohm-nahd) (walk);la limonade (lah lee-moh-nahd) (lemonade)
–eau (oh)
le chapeau (luh shah-poh) (hat);le manteau (luh mahN-toh) (coat)
–ance/–ence (ahNs)
la naissance (lah neh-sahNs) (birth);la différence (lah dee-fey-rahNs) (difference)
–isme (eez-muh)
le capitalisme (luh kah-pee-tah-leez-muh) (capitalism);le féminisme (luh fey-mee-neez-muh) (feminism)
–oire (wahr)
la mémoire (lah mey-mwahr) (memory);la victoire (lah veek-twahr) (victory)
–ment (mahN)
l’appartement (lah-pahr-tuh-mahN) (apartment);le logement (luh lohzh-mahN) (lodging, place of residence)
–sion/–tion (syohN)
l’impression (laN-prey-syohN) (impression);la condition (lah kohN-dee-syohN) (condition)
–ail (ahy)
le travail (luh trah-vahy) (work);le détail (luh dey-tahy) (detail)
–son (zohN)
la saison (lah seh-zohN) (season);la maison (lah meh-zohN) (house)
Final vowels other than –e
le cinéma (luh see-ney-mah) (movies);le piano (luh pyah-noh) (piano);le genou (luh zhuh-nooh) (knee)
–té, –ée (tey, ey)
la liberté (lah lee-behr-tey) (freedom);l’égalité (ley-gah-lee-tey) (equality);l’idée (lee-dey) (idea); la pensée (lah pahN-sey) (thought)
–al (ahl)
le journal (luh zhoohr-nahl) (newspaper);le festival (luh feh-stee-vahl) (festival)
–ie (ee)
la boulangerie (lah booh-lahN-zhree) (bakery);l’épicerie (ley-pees-ree) (grocery store)
Some noun categories are always masculine, such as days, months, seasons, colors, languages, types of trees and cheeses, and borrowed words, such as couscous, Coca-Cola, baklava, and so on.
Some nouns are always feminine, even when they refer to a male. Here are some examples:
une connaissance
(ewn koh neh-sahNs)
(an acquaintance)
une personne
(ewn pehr-sohhn)
(person)
une star
(ewn stahr)
(movie star)
une victime
(ewn veek-teem)
(victim)
If you come across a noun that doesn’t follow any of the patterns in Table 2-1, simply consult Appendix A in the back of this book or a French dictionary to find out whether a noun is masculine or feminine.
Making singular nouns plural
In French, as in English, nouns are either singular or plural. In other words, they have a number. To make nouns plural, you simply add an –s to most of them, just like in English. La maison (lah meh-zohN) (house) is singular, and les maisons (ley meh-zohN) (houses) is plural. (Don’t forget to change the article to the plural, as well.)
However, if a noun ends in –eau, you add an –x instead of an –s to make it plural: The singular le bureau (luh bew-roh) (office, desk) becomes the plural les bureaux (ley bew-roh) (offices, desks). Some words ending in -ou or -eu can take either an s or an x to form the plural. For example, you add an s to the word les fous (ley fooh) (the fools/crazy ones) to make it plural, but you add an x to les genoux (ley zhuh-nooh) (the knees). You add an s to les pneus (ley pnuh) (the tires) to make it plural, but an x to les jeux (ley zhuh) (the games) for the plural. If you aren’t sure whether a noun ending in -ou or -eu takes an s or an x in the plural, consult a French dictionary.
If a noun already ends in an –s, –z, or –x, you don’t add anything to it. In these instances, the article (and the context) makes clear that the noun is plural:
Singular
Plural
un fils (uhN fees) (son)
des fils (dey fees) (sons)
un nez (uhN ney) (nose)
des nez (dey ney) (noses)
un époux (uhN-ney-pooh) (spouse)
des époux (dey-zey-pooh) (spouses)
Keeping an eye on articles
Unlike English nouns, which don’t necessarily need articles (the words the,a, and an), French nouns are almost always preceded by articles. In English, for example, you say France, but in French, you say la France (lah frahNs). The same convention applies to plural nouns: mountains in English becomes les montagnes (ley mohN-tah-nyuh) in French. Another difference between English and French articles is that French articles mark the gender and the number of nouns.
When you learn the gender of a noun, try to learn the article that goes with it. Instead of memorizing the noun table (tah-bluh) (table), for example, memorize la table (lah tah-bluh) (the table) or une table (ewn tah-bluh) (a table). Instead of livre (lee-vruh) (book), think le livre (luh lee-vruh) (the book) or un livre (uhN lee-vruh) (a book).
Table 2-2 lists the variations of definite, indefinite, and partitive articles in French. The following sections give you details on how to use these articles.
TABLE 2-2 Definite, Indefinite, and Partitive French Articles
Type of Article
Masculine
Feminine
Preceding a Vowel or Mute H
Masculine and Feminine Plural
Definite (the)
le (luh)
la (lah)
l’ (see note)
les (ley)
Indefinite (a, an, some)
un (uhN)
une (ewn)
un (uhN), une (ewn)
des (dey)
Partitive (some, any)
du (dew)
de la (duh lah)
de l’ (see note)
des (dey)
Note: L’ (ehl ah-pohs-trohf) means l apostrophe and de l’ (duh ehl ah-pohs-trohf) means de l apostrophe. You use these abbreviations when a vowel or a mute h follows the articles.
Defining definite articles
The definite article refers to a specific noun and has only one form in English, even when used in the plural: the. In French, because nouns have a gender, the article has to take the gender of the noun, as well as its number (singular or plural). Here are the definite articles in French:
le
(luh) — masculine definite article, singular
la
(lah) — feminine definite article, singular
l’
(ehl ah-pohs-trohf) — masculine and feminine definite article, singular, used in front of nouns that start with a vowel or mute
h
.
les
(ley) — masculine and feminine definite article, plural
For example, the word nuage is masculine singular; therefore, you add a masculine singular article in front of it: le nuage (luh new-ahzh) (the cloud). You follow the same pattern for a feminine singular noun: Simply add the feminine singular article la in front of maison, for example, and you have la maison (lah meh-zohN) (the house). If the noun is plural, regardless of whether it’s masculine or feminine, the article is always les. For example, les nuages (ley new-ahzh) (the clouds) or les maisons (ley meh-zohN) (the houses).
If a masculine or feminine noun begins with a vowel or a mute h (more on the mute h in Chapter 3), then you drop the e in le and the a in la, and you add an apostrophe, l’. If nouns beginning with a vowel or a mute h are plural, just use les (ley). Here are some examples:
l’idée
(f) (lee-dey)
(idea)
les idées
(ley-zee-dey)
(ideas)
l’hôtel
(m) (loh-tehl)
(hotel)
les hôtels
(ley-zoh-tehl)
(hotels)
French also uses definite articles after verbs of preference, such as aimer (eh-mey) (to like, to love),adorer (ah-doh-rey) (to adore, to love),détester (dey-tehs-tey) (to hate), and préférer (prey-fey-rey) (to prefer). (You can check out verbs of preference in Chapter 6.) For example: J’aime le café (zhehm luh kah-fey) (I like coffee).
Using the indefinite article
When referring to undetermined objects, you use indefinite articles, equivalent to the English words a and an. In French, the indefinite articles are
un
(uhN)
(a, an)
— masculine indefinite article, singular
une
(ewn)
(a, an)
— feminine indefinite article, singular
des
(dey)
(some, any)
— masculine and feminine indefinite article, plural
You use French indefinite articles the same way you use English indefinite articles. Check out the following examples:
Paris est une grande ville.
(pah-ree eh-tewn grahNd veel.)
(Paris is a big city.)
Je voudrais un café.
(zhuh vooh-dreh-zuhN kah-fey.)
(I would like a coffee.)
Il y a des maisons dans la rue.
(eel ee ah dey meh-zohN dahN lah rew.)
(There are houses on the street.)
Choosing the partitive
The French language has a specific article that refers to a part of something, as opposed to the whole quantity, or to things that you can’t count, such as rice. You can sometimes translate this article as some or any, but English frequently just omits it.
As you may guess, the article has a masculine form, du (dew); a feminine form, de la (duh lah); and a plural form, des (dey). There is also a singular form when the noun that follows starts with a vowel or a mute h, de l’ (duh ehl ah-pohs-trohf). Here are a few examples:
Je voudrais du pain et du fromage.
(zhuh vooh-dreh dew paN ey dew froh-mahzh.)
(I would like [some] bread and [some] cheese.)
Si tu as soif, bois de l’eau !
(see tew ah swahf, bwah duh loh!)
(If you are thirsty, drink [some] water!)
Il mange souvent de la salade.
(eel mahNzh sooh-vahN duh lah sah-lahd.)
(He often eats [some] salad.)
Meeting subject pronouns face to face
Pronouns replace nouns, enabling you to avoid clumsy repetition when you write or speak. In French, pronouns change, depending on their role (subject, direct object, indirect object, or to show possession) in a sentence. Fortunately, you don’t need to worry about all those different forms at this point. Instead, this section focuses on French subject pronouns, those that function as subjects. (The other pronouns are covered in various chapters throughout the book.)
In a sentence, the subject indicates who or what is performing the action. In the sentence “John plays tennis,” John is the subject. You can replace John with the pronoun he, and the sentence becomes “He plays tennis.” In this case, the pronoun he is the subject. Here are the French subject pronouns with their English translations:
Singular
Plural
je (zhuh) (I)
nous (nooh) (we)
tu (tew) (you)
vous (vooh) (you)
il/elle/on (eel/ehl/ohN) (he/she/it, one)
ils/elles (eel/ehl) (they)
Taking a closer look at “je”
Unlike the English pronoun I, you don’t capitalize je in French, unless it begins the sentence. Also, if the verb that follows je begins with a vowel or a mute h (head to Chapter 3 for more on the mute h), the –e is dropped and an apostrophe added. This doesn’t happen with any other subject pronoun. Here’s an example:
J’aime le français. (zhehm luh frahN-seh.) (I like French.)
More on “il,” “elle,” “ils,” and “elles”
As mentioned previously, French nouns are either feminine or masculine. The same is true of French pronouns. Therefore, il refers not only to a person, meaning he, but also to a masculine singular object, meaning it. For example, il siffle (eel see-fluh) could mean he is whistling or it is whistling, depending on the context of the sentence. The same thing applies to elle. Elle est belle (ehl eh behl) could mean she is beautiful or it is beautiful. Of course, ils and elles, the masculine and feminine third person plurals, have only one meaning, they, regardless of whether they refer to people or things.
Using “tu” or “vous” to say you
Both tu and vous mean you, but you need to be aware of a fundamental difference between them. Tu is always singular, whereas vous can be singular or plural.
Vous is both singular and plural, yet even when it refers to one person, you always conjugate the verb in the plural. So start practicing your greetings using vous and the corresponding verb form ending –ez (except for three irregular verbs), whether you’re addressing one person or more.
How you address someone in French depends on how well you know them. If the person is a family member, a peer, or a child, you use tu, which is an informal way of speaking to someone. You need to use the more polite and respectful form of the English you,vous, in situations when you
Meet someone for the first time (unless that person is a child)
Talk to someone older than yourself
Talk to someone who has authority, such as your teacher or your supervisor
Refer to two or more people
Go to Chapter 3 for more information about using tu and vous.
In France, using tu to address a stranger or a new acquaintance sounds strange (at best) and impolite (at worst). However, if you go to Québec, Canada, you may notice that the familiar tu is much more liberally used at all times.
Using “on” for all
On, a very versatile subject pronoun, has several meanings: one,we,they, and people. The sentence On parle français au Québec (ohN pahrl frahN-seh oh key-behk), for example, can mean One speaks French in Québec or We/they/people speak French in Québec.
You can also use on when you want to repeat something that you’ve heard without revealing your source: On m’a dit qu’on vous a renvoyé (ohN mah dee kohN vooh-zah rahN-vwah-ey) (Someone told me that you got fired).
Pretty handy pronoun, right? Remember that whether on refers to a singular or a plural subject, its verb conjugation is always third person singular. (See the verb conjugations in the section “Cavorting with Verbs,” later in this chapter.)
What are your pronouns? Quels sont tes/vos pronoms ? (kehl sohN tey/voh proh-nohN)
In 2021, one of the most respected dictionaries in France, Le Robert, included the non-binary or gender-neutral pronouns iel (yehl) and its plural iels (yehl) in its dictionary. Its definition of these pronouns is as follows: A personal subject pronoun in the third person singular “iel” and plural “iels”, used to evoke a person no matter his/her gender. Iel is defined as non-binary.
Needless to say, much controversy surrounds these gender-neutral pronouns because they pose a linguistic challenge in French, which is a gender-centered language. Some challenges include figuring out adjective and pronoun agreements, for example. However, the French have found a few ways to use this inclusive language when writing by using un point médian (uhN pwaN mey-dee-ahN) (a median/middot point) to indicate the masculine, feminine, and even plural forms of the same term as in this sentence, Iel est charmant.e (yehl eh shahr-mahN.t) (They are charming).
Sometimes, the median point is placed at midpoint (called an interpunct), as in, Iel est charmant.e.
You can also use epicene adjectives, meaning adjectives that lack gender distinction or belong to all genders, as in: Iel est calme (yehl eh kahlm) (They are calm).
So to ask What are your pronouns in French, you would say, Quels sont tes/vos pronoms ? (kehl sohN tey/voh proh-nohN). You would answer with, Mes pronoms sont … (mey proh-nohN sohN) (My pronouns are …):
il
/lui
(eel/lwee)
(he/him)
elle
/elle
(ehl/ehl)
(she/her)
iel
/iels
(yehl/ehl-lwee)
(they/them)
This trend in using gender-neutral pronouns, however, has caused quite a stir with French political figures, including the Minister of Education from 2017 to 2022, Jean-Michel Blanquer, who strongly opposed them. Even the French Senate voted against inclusive writing in October of 2023. The gender-neutral pronouns are a work in progress in French, and as such, they’re the subject of continuing debates.
Getting descriptive with adjectives
Adjectives describe nouns. Because French nouns have both gender and number, adjectives have to match the nouns that they modify in both gender and number.
Changing adjective endings to specify gender
You must change the ending of an adjective so that it agrees in gender and number with the noun that it modifies. Table 2-3 shows the masculine and feminine singular and plural forms of adjective endings, as well as examples using these endings.
A few adjectives have very irregular forms in the feminine singular:
beau
/belle
(boh/behl)
(beautiful):
un beau garçon
(uhN boh gahr-sohN)
(a beautiful [handsome] boy)
and
une belle fille
(ewn behl feey)
(a beautiful girl)
nouveau
/nouvelle
(nooh-voh/nooh-vehl)
(new):
un nouveau manteau
(uhN nooh-voh mahN-toh)
(a new coat)
and
une nouvelle robe
(ewn nooh-vehl rohhb)
(a new dress)
vieux
/vieille
(vyuh/vyehy) (
old
):
un vieux bureau
(uhN vyuh bew-roh)
(an old desk)
and
une vieille maison
(ewn vyehy meh-zohN)
(an old house)
TABLE 2-3 Endings of French Adjectives
Masc., Sing
Fem. Sing.
Masc. Plural
Fem. Plural
–e:calme (kahlm) (calm)
–e:calme (kahlm)
–es:calmes (kahlm)
–es:calmes (kahlm)
–é:fatigué (fah-tee-gey) (tired)
–ée:fatiguée (fah-tee-gey)
–és:fatigués (fah-tee-gey)
–ées:fatiguées (fah-tee-gey)
–consonant: grand (grahN) (big, tall)
–consonant + e:grande (grahNd)
–consonant + s:grands (grahN)
–consonant + es:grandes (grahNd)
–eux:heureux (uh-ruh) (happy)
–euse:heureuse (uh-ruhz)
–eux:heureux (uh-ruh)
–euses:heureuses (uh-ruhz)
–eur:travailleur (trah-vah-yuhr) (hard working)
–euse:travailleuse (trah-vah-yuhz)
–eurs:travailleurs (trah-vah-yuhr)
–euses:travailleuses (trah-vah-yuhz)
–teur:conservateur (kohN-sehr-vah-tuhr) (conservative)
–trice:conservatrice (kohN-sehr-vah-trees)
–teurs:conservateurs (kohN-sehr-vah-tuhr)
–trices:conservatrices (kohN-sehr-vah-trees)
–f: sportif (spohr-teef) (athletic)
–ve:sportive (spohr-teev)
–fs:sportifs (spohr-teef)
–ves:sportives (spohr-teev)
–ien:canadien (kah-nah-dyaN) (Canadian)
–ienne:canadienne (kah-nah-dyehn)
–iens:canadiens (kah-nah-dyaN)
–iennes:canadiennes (kah-nah-dyehn)
–on:bon (bohN) (good)
–onne:bonne (bohhn)
–ons:bons (bohN)
–onnes:bonnes (bohhn)
–er:fier (fyehr) (proud)
–ère:fière (fyehr)
–ers:fiers (fyehr)
–ères:fières (fyehr)
These three adjectives also have special forms used before a masculine singular noun that begins with a vowel or a mute h. Simply take the feminine form of these adjectives, belle, nouvelle, and vieille, drop the -le, and you get bel, nouvel, and vieil. For example, un bel appartement (uhN behl ah-pahr-tuh-mahN) (a beautiful apartment),un nouvel ordinateur (uhN nooh-vehl ohr-dee-nah-tuhr) (a new computer),un vieil homme (uhN vyehy-ohm) (an old man).
Putting the adjective in the right place
Most French adjectives are placed after the noun that they describe, which is the opposite from English. Whereas in English, you say an interesting trip, for example, in French, you say un voyage intéressant (uhN voh-yahzh aN-tey-reh-sahN). However, this rule changes when the adjectives relate to any of the following. In these cases, the adjective goes in front of the noun:
Beauty:
Including
beau
/belle
(boh/behl)
(beautiful)
and
joli
/jolie
(zhoh-lee)
(pretty)
Age:
Including words such as
jeune
(zhuhn)
(young),
vieux
/vieille
(vyuh/vyehy)
(old),
and
nouveau
/nouvelle
(nooh-voh/nooh-vehl)
(new)
Numbers:
Including
premier
/première
(pruh-myey/pruh-myehr)
(first),
dernier
/dernière
(dehr-nyey/dehr-nyehr)
(last),
deux
(duh)
(two),
trois
(trwah)
(three),
and so forth
Goodness (or lack of it):
Including
bon
/bonne
(bohN/bohhn)
(good),
mauvais
/mauvaise
(moh-veh/moh-vehz)
(bad),
and
gentil
/gentille
(zhahN-tee/zhahN-teey)
(nice)
Size:
Including words such as
grand
/grande
(grahN/grahNd)
(big, tall),
petit
/petite
(puh-tee/puh-teet)
(small, little),
and
gros
/grosse
(groh/grohs)
(large, fat, thick)
To help you remember that these categories of adjectives precede the noun in French, think B-A-N-G-S: Beauty, Age, Numbers, Goodness, Size.
Some adjectives are a little tricky because they can change meaning according to whether you place them before or after the noun. Check out the following list:
ancien
/ancienne
(ahN-syaN/ahN-syehn): Before the noun, it means
former;
after the noun, it means
ancient
or
old
.
cher
/chère
(shehr/shehr): Before the noun, it means
dear;
after the noun, it means
expensive
.
pauvre
(poh-vruh): Before the noun, it means
unfortunate;
and after, it means
penniless
.
propre
(proh-pruh): Before the noun, it means
own;
after the noun, it means
clean
.
Here’s a way to remember the different meanings of these adjectives: When placed before the noun, the meaning is figurative. When placed after the noun, the meaning is literal. Here are some examples:
un ancien collègue
(uhN-nahN-syaN koh-lehg)
(a former colleague)
versus
un bâtiment ancien
(uhN bah-tee-mahN ahN-syaN)
(an old building)
un pauvre garçon
(uhN poh-vruh gahr-sohN)
(an unfortunate boy)
versus
un enfant pauvre
(uhN-nahN-fahN poh-vruh)
(a poor or impoverished child)
Getting creative with adverbs
An adverb is a word that modifies (describes) a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. In English, many adverbs end with –ly: quickly,nervously,slowly, and so on. In French, most adverbs end in –ment, and they usually follow the verb. Here are the rules for French adverbs:
To the feminine form of an adjective, add
–ment:
lente
(lahNt)
(slow)
becomes
lentement
(lahNt-mahN)
(slowly),
and
active
(ahk-teev)
(active)
becomes
activement
(ack-teev-mahN)
(actively)
.
To the masculine form of an adjective that ends in a vowel, add
–ment:
vrai
(vreh)
(true)
becomes
vraiment
(vreh-mahN)
(truly, really),
and
absolu
(ahb-soh-lew)
(absolute)
becomes
absolument
(ahb-soh-lew-mahN)
(absolutely).
To the masculine form of an adjective that ends in
–ent
or
–ant
, drop the
nt
and add
–mment:
constant
(kohN-stahN)
(constant)
becomes
constamment
(kohN-stah-mahN)
(constantly),
and
évident
(ey-vee-dahN)
(evident)
becomes
évidemment
(ey-vee-dah-mahN)
(evidently, obviously).
The adverbial forms of good and bad are irregular in French. The adjective good — bon (bohN) — becomes the adverb bien (byaN) (well) and mauvais (moh-veh) (bad) becomes mal (mahl) (badly).
Most adverbs in French come right after the verb:
Parlez lentement, s’il vous plaît.
(pahr-ley lahNt-mahN, seel-vooh-pleh.)
(Speak slowly, please.)
Les petits oiseaux chantent joyeusement.
(ley puh-tee-zwah-zoh shahNt zhwah-yuhz-mahN.)
(The little birds sing happily.)
Cavorting with Verbs
A verb expresses an action or a state of being. In French, as in English, the verb form that’s not conjugated and has no marking to indicate a subject or a tense (past, present, or future) for the action is called the infinitive form. English infinitives begin with to, as in to go or to speak. In French, infinitives have special endings, such as –er,–ir, or –re:
parler
(pahr-ley)
(to speak)
finir
(fee-neer)
(to finish)
vendre
(vahN-druh)
(to sell)
In addition, verbs can be regular or irregular. Regular verbs have the same stem throughout the conjugation, while the stems of irregular verbs change. (The stem is the main part of the verb, before you add the endings.) For example, in English, the verb to love is a regular verb because it has the same stem, regardless of who the subject is: I love,you love,he/she/it loves,we love,you love,they love. But the verb to be is irregular because it doesn’t have a common stem throughout the conjugation. The form of the verb depends on the subject: I am,you are,he/she/it is,we are,you are,they are.
Just as in English, French verbs must correspond to the subjects (you don’t say, for example, The children sings). In French, the verb has a special ending for each subject (I,you,she,we, and so on). The following sections have the details.
