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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this title is available from The British Library

ISBN 0 340 74926 1

First published 1999

Impression number 1098765432
Year 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001

Copyright © 1999 Rosi McNab

All rights reserved. This work is copyright. Permission is given for copies to be made of pages
provided they are used exclusively within the institution for which this work has been purchased.
For reproduction for any other purpose, permission must first be obtained in writing from the
publishers.

Typeset by Wearset, Bolton, Tyne & Wear.

Printed in Great Britain for Hodder & Stoughton Educational, a division of Hodder Headline Pic,
338 Euston Road, London NW1 3BH by The Bath Press, Bath.
 1
mr f ! i

Introduction 1

1 VERBS 3
1.1 The infinitive 3
1.2 Groups of verbs 5
1.3 Irregular verbs 6
1.4 The present tense 7
1.5 Talking about yourself: je 9
1.6 Talking about yourself and someone else: nous 18
1.7 Talking to someone else: tu 22
1.8 Talking to someone else: vous 25
1.9 Talking about someone else: il/elle 29
1.10 Talking about other people: ils/elles 31
1.11 Short cuts 36
1.12 The past tenses 39
1.13 The perfect tense 39
1.14 The imperfect tense 50
1.15 The future tense 53
1.16 The conditional tense 57
1.17 The subjunctive 60
1.18 Other tenses 62
1.19 Imperatives 63
1.20 Negative expressions 64
1.21 Interrogatives 66
1.22 Expressions of time 68
1.23 Quickie tenses 69
1.24 Special uses of avoir 71
1.25 Other problematic verbs 74

2 NOUNS 76
2.1 Recognising nouns 76
2.2 Gender of nouns and the definite article 76
2.3 Nouns and the indefinite article 80
2.4 Partitive articles: some, any 81
•\

2.5 A and the definite article 84

' it-v
IV French Grammar Made Easy

3 PRONOUNS 86
3.1 Subject pronouns 86
3.2 Direct object pronouns 87
3.3 Indirect object pronouns 90
3.4 Other pronouns: y 91
3.5 Other pronouns: en 92
3.6 Word order of pronouns 93
3.7 Emphatic pronouns 94
3.8 Order of pronouns in the imperative 95
3.9 Interrogative pronouns 96
3.10 Possessive pronouns 97
3.11 Relative pronouns 98
3.12 How to say Which one? 99
3.13 Demonstrative pronouns 99

4 ADJECTIVES 101
4.1 Adjectives and adjectival agreement 101
4.2 Adjectives of colour 107
4.3 The position of adjectives 108
4.4 Adjectives with two meanings 109
4.5 The comparative 110
4.6 The superlative 112
4.7 Possessive adjectives: my, your, his, her, etc. 113
4.8 Demonstrative adjectives 117
4.9 Interrogative adjectives 118
4.10 Indefinite adjectives 119

5 ADVERBS 120
5.1 Formation of adverbs 120
5.2 Adjectives used as adverbs 121
5.3 Other useful adverbs 122
5.4 The comparative and superlative of adverbs 122

6 PREPOSITIONS 123
6.1 Recognising prepositions 123
6.2 The preposition a 123
6.3 The preposition de 126
6.4 Prepositions of position 129
6.5 The prepositions en and chez 130
6.6 Useful prepositional phrases 131
6.7 Expressions of time 131

7 CONJUNCTIONS AND OTHER USEFUL NOISES 133

Answers to exercises 134

Verb tables 148

French Grammar Made Easy is a French grammar workbook aimed at
adult non-linguists, that is adults with some rudimentary knowledge of
French, who do not necessarily know anything about grammar, but need to
learn about it so that they can progress beyond phrasebook French.
In the past, grammar has been seen as a barrier to language learning. It
has put more people off learning a language than it has helped. Because of
the way grammar has been portrayed, students were often made to feel that
only those who could master ‘conjugations’ and ‘declensions’ could learn a
language. In fact, you can drive a car without mastering the principles of the
internal combustion engine - but if you do learn where to put the oil and how
to check the tyres and fill up the windscreen wash, it does help!
Grammar is about recognising word patterns which give you a framework
to a language; if you know the framework, you can ‘build’ new language of
your own instead of having to learn everything by heart.
For those who already know some French grammar, short cuts are marked

with to enable you to go straight to the information you need.

A simple guide to the parts of speech

Jp If you know what verbs, nouns, pronouns, adverbs, etc.
are, go on to 1.1.
The most useful categories of words to recognise are:

a.Aw&bs
2 French Grammar Made Easy

1 Verbs - doing words

Verbs tell you what someone or something is doing.
I am going to France, My friend booked the flight, I am going to a meeting.
You also use them to ask questions . . .
Have you seen the film? Are you all right?
. . . and to give instructions.
Fetch it!, Slow down!, Help me!, Wait!
Verbs usually present most problems, so the section dealing with them is the
longest one and comes first in the book.

2 Nouns - naming words

Nouns are the words which tell you:
what something is;
a timetable, a train, a station, a town, a secret
■ who someone is.
a steward, a bank clerk, a baker, a student

3 Pronouns
Pronouns are words which ‘stand in’ for a noun.
M. Bleriot is French. M. Bleriot lives in Paris.
Instead of repeating M. Bleriot, you can say he.
M. Bleriot is French. He lives in Paris.
In the same way, you can say she instead of repeating Florence in the follow¬
ing sentence.
Florence works in Strasbourg. She works at the European Parliament.
These are also pronouns: I, you, it, one, we, they, me, us, them.

4 Adjectives
Adjectives are describing words. They are used to describe something or
someone.
the new house, the red car, a tiny flat, a wet day, a busy secretary

5 Adverbs
Adverbs are words which usually describe a verb, e.g. they describe how
something is ‘done’. They usually answer the question How? and in English,
they often end in -ly.
He runs fast, She eats slowly, It comes naturally\

6 Prepositions
Prepositions are words which usually tell you where something is, e.g. in,
under, on. Words such as to, for, with, and without are also prepositions.
 Verbs
1.1 The infinitive
If you know what the infinitive is, go on to 1.2.

When you look up a verb in a dictionary, you will find the infinitive. This is the
‘name’ of the verb. In English, the infinitive consists of to + verb, e.g. to read,
to buy, to travel.

I Here are some French infinitives. You probably know some of them
already or can guess what they mean. See how many you can match up
with their English counterparts.

Try to look for similarities between the French and the English.
Some are obvious: for example, organiser means to organise.
Others are less obvious, such as laver meaning to wash (a lavatory was
the place where people used to wash) and porter meaning to carry (a
porter was someone who carried something, etc.).

a. parler \ to wash
b. habiter to travel
c. organiser to arrive
d. entrer to verify/check
e. voyager to invite
f. porter ^x to live
g- verifier \ to speak
h. inviter to carry/wear
•
i. laver to organise
•
J- arriver to enter

These are usually referred to as -er verbs because they end in -er.
4 French Grammar Made Easq

II Here are sortie more -er verbs. How many of them do you know
already? They all have to do with food and eating.
a. manger \ to appreciate
fo. diner to taste/try
c. dejeuner to consume
d. apprecier to mix
e. gouter x\ to dine
f. souper to lunch
g- verser to season (add salt and pepper, etc.)
h. deguster x to eat
•
i. consommer to taste/sample
•
3- assaisonner to have supper
k. melanger to pour

If you find it difficult to learn new words, try to find a ‘hook’ to hang
them on: e.g. manger, a manger where you put the food for an
animal. And if you have travelled in France, you will almost certainly have
seen signs at places selling wine, saying Degustation, which means they
are inviting you to taste their wines.

More than 50% of English words derive from French words or have the
same stem. If you don ’t know a verb, try saying the English word with a
French accent - you have a 50% chance of being understood!

Ill What do you think the French for these verbs would be? Cover up the
French and see if you can work it out.
a. to decide decider
b. to prefer preferer
c. to separate separer
d. to turn tourner
e. to return retourner
f. to develop developper
g- to insist insister
h. to change changer
•
i. to continue continuer
•

j- to accept accepter

New words made into verbs are usually -er verbs: e.g. faxer = to
fax; surfer - to surf; monopoliser = to monopolise, etc.
 Verbs 5

1.2 Groups of verbs

If you knowhow to find the ‘stem’ or ‘root’ of a verb, go on
to 1.3.

In English, we just have regular and irregular verbs. A verb like to dance is
regular . . .
dance, dances, danced, danced
.. . and a verb like to fly is irregular.
fly, flies, flew, flown

As you have probably already noticed, French verbs are more complicated!
French schoolchildren have to spend years learning all about French verbs,
but we can find some shortcuts. French also has regular and irregular verbs,
but we usually divide French regular verbs into three main groups to make
them easier to learn, depending on whether the infinitive ends in -er, -ir or -re.

group 1: -er verbs group 2: -ir verbs group 3 -re verbs

jouer finir repondre

regarder dormir descendre

The stem, or root, of the verb is that part which is left after you take off the
ending. It is used in making the other parts of the verb which you use to talk
about the past and the future.

I Which group do these belong to and what is the stem of these verbs?
(Remember: take off the -er, -ir, or -re to find the stem.)
a. vendre to sell (3/vend)
b. montrer to show
c. chanter to sing
d. sortir to go out
e. laver to wash
f. finir to finish/end
g- ecouter to listen
h. fermer to close/shut
i. partir to leave
3- prendre to take
k. choisir to choose
l. porter to wear
m. rentrer to return

Fortunately, over 80% of French verbs belong to group 1 (-er

verbs) and they are mostly regular. When we say they are regular,
we mean they follow the same pattern, so if you learn one, you can work
out the endings you need for all the others.
6 French Grammar Made Easi]

n. venir to come .
o. dormir to sleep .

1.3 Irregular verbs

Some verbs are awkward and don’t really fit into any pattern. They are called
irregular verbs. This means that you have to learn them separately, and, of
course, they are the verbs you are likely to want to use most. Fortunately, you
probably know quite a lot of them already, although you might not be aware
of it: for example, you probably know that I know is je sais or I don’t know is
je ne sais pas.
These are the most important irregular verbs to learn, because they are
the most used:
etre - to be, avoir - to have, aller - to go

Most verbs which end in -oir and -ire are irregular, but they are also very
useful.

-oir verbs -ire verbs

devoir - to have to boire - to drink

pouvoir - to be able to dire - to say
recevoir - to receive ecrire - to write
savoir - to know (something) lire - to read
voir - to see faire - to read
vouloir - to want rire - to laugh
suivre - to follow

and all verbs made up of these verbs, for example:

ecrire - to write —> decrire - to describe
dire - to say —> interdire - to forbid
rire - to laugh —> sourire - to smile
faire - to do —» refaire - to do again

Always look for patterns which will help you to remember new
words, e.g. rire - laugh —> sourire - smile.

I How do you say these in French? Complete the sentence by adding the
correct infinitive.
I would like to . . . Je voudrais . . .
a. eat parler
b. drink acheter
c. sleep partir
d. go ecrire
e. talk ecouter
 Verbs 7

f. do boire
g- understand comprendre
h. buy suivre
•
i. leave aller
•
j- finish faire
k. say lire
1. write manger
m. read dire
n. follow finir
o. listen dormir

II Now read the phrases aloud. For example: a. Je voudrais manger.

You don’t pronounce the -s at the end of voudrais unless the next
word begins with a vowel. If the next word does begin with a
vowel, you run the two words together with a z sound.
Je voudrais aller a Paris. I would like to go to Paris.

1.4 The present tense

If you know about the ‘persons’ of the verb and when to use
the present tense, go on to 1.5.

The present tense is used to say what you are doing now or what is happen¬
ing now. In English, we have two ways of talking about the present.
We can either say what we are doing .. .
I am reading; My friends are working; It is raining.

. . . or we can say what usually/generally happens.

I read magazines; They are vegetarian; It rains every day.

In French, there is only one way of expressing the present tense.

Je lis le journal. I read/I am reading the newspaper.
Ils travaillent a la Defense. They work/They are working at la Defense.
II pleut sur Pans. It is raining/It rains in Paris.

In English, there is only one occasion when we change the verb ending: we
add an -s when we are talking about someone else. This is called the
‘he/she/it’ form or the ‘third person singular’. When we talk about ourselves,
it is called the ‘first person’ and when we talk about you, it is called the
‘second person’.

singular plural

first person I talk we talk

second person you talk you talk
third person he/she/it talks they talk
8 French Grammar Made Easy

In French, the ending changes to show who is speaking.

singular plural

first person je parle nous parlons

second person tu paries vous parlez
third person il/elle parle ils/elles parlent

I je
you tu
he il
she elle
we (my friend and I) nous
you vous
they ils
they (if they are all female) elles

Tu is only used when talking to a child, a relation or very good friend. It

implies a certain degree of intimacy and should not be used to address an
adult unless he or she invites you to use it (see below page 22.)
There is no word for it as everything in French is either masculine or
feminine, even a table and chair are feminine words.
Although vous is followed by a plural verb, it is the word you use for you
in formal and professional conversation, even when addressing only one
person. It is also used to address a stranger.
Ils is used for a mixed group of people (or things) if it includes one or
more males, even if there are more females present. Elies is only used when
everybody in the group is female.
Je, tu, il, eile etc. are called pronouns because they ‘stand in’ for, or rep¬
resent, a person or thing. Mr Bloggs - he; Mr and Mrs Bloggs - they, jim
Bloggs and I - we, etc.

For more information on pronouns, go to 3.1.

I Which pronoun would you use?

a. You are talking about yourself: I am speaking.
b. You are talking about a girlfriend: she is always smartly dressed.
c. You are talking about a male friend: He has a weakness for fast cars.
d. You are talking about yourself and a friend: we are tired.
e. You are asking a child: Are you coming?
f. You are talking to a stranger: What are you doing?
g. You are talking about a group of women: they were discussing their
boss.
h. You are talking about a mixed group or a group of men: they are
attending a conference.
 Verbs 9

II And which pronoun would you use when you are talking about

a. your friend Paul;

b. your friend Martine;
c. Monsieur Leblanc;
d. Monsieur et Madame Lavoine;
e. Mesdames Leblanc et Bouvoir;
f. Sylvie et Charlotte;
g. yourself;
h. Paul, Guillaume et Martine;
i. Messieurs Meugeot, Briand et Duclos;
j. yourself and your friend.

1.5 Talking about yourself: je

1.5.1 Regular -er verbs
In the je form (or first person) of the present tense, all -er verbs end in -e, but
the -e is not pronounced. Try reading them aloud.

e (e acute or accent aigu) sounds ‘ay’, and e (e grave or accent

grave) sounds ‘eh’.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

aimer to like j’aime I like
decider to decide je decide I decide/I am deciding
ecouter to listen j’ecoute I listen/I am listening
habiter to live j’habite I live/I am living
jouer to play je joue I play/I am playing
manger to eat je mange I eat/I am eating
parler to speak je parle I speak/I am speaking
porter to wear je porte I wear/I am wearing
regarder to watch je re garde I watch/I am watching
travailler to work je travaille I work/I am working

I How would you say these in French?

a. I speak English. Je.anglais.
b. I eat cheese. Je.du fromage.
c. I am wearing jeans. Je.un jean.
d. I work in an office. Je.dans un bureau.
e. I am watching the news. Je.les nouvelles.
io -- French Grammar Made Easy

f. I play tennis. Je.au tennis.

g. I like the town. J’.la ville.
h. I am listening to a CD. J’.un compact.
i. I live in England. J’...... en Angleterre.
j. I am deciding about the firm’s Je.de la politique de
policies. Fentreprise.

Now cover up the right-hand side of the page and see if you can do them
again. Say them aloud!

II These are all -er verbs. Fill in the gaps:

a. Je....... dans un bureau. I work in an office.
(travailler)
b. j’....... a huit heures. (arriver) I arrive at 8 o’clock.
c. Je.... ... ma voiture. (garer) I park my car.
d. J’...... . dans Fimmeuble. (entrer) I enter the building.
e. Je.... .. . le concierge, (saluer) I greet the caretaker.
f. Je...... . au huitieme etage. I go up to the eighth floor.
(monter)
g- Je.... ... le code d’entree. I key in the door code.
(composer)
h. j’...., .. dans mon bureau, (entrer) I go into my office.
•
1. j’...., .. mon manteau derriere la I hang my coat up behind the door.
porte. (accrocher)
•

J- Je..... .. a travailler. (commencer) I begin to work.

Choose five of the verbs which you didn’t know before (or had for¬
gotten) and which you think would be useful for you to learn. Write
down the meaning and the first letter of the verb. See how many you can
remember.

1.5.2 -er verbs which change their spelling

Some -er verbs take an accent, change the accent or modify the spelling in
the first person. This is because of changes in the way words are pronounced.
They all still end in -e.

Ill Read the following verbs aloud. Remember that j sounds like the s in
treasure, e sounds like ay and e sounds like eh.
a. acheter - to buy —» ash-e-tay j’achete —»jash-ett
b. esperer - to hope —> ay-spay-ray j’espere —»jes-pear
c. lever - to lift —» luv-vay je leve —» je lev
d. preferer - to prefer —» pray-fay-ray je prefere —» je pray-fair

Verbs with a y in them usually change the y to i (as in some English verbs:
dry —> dries).
 Verbs 11

e. essayer - to try —» es-say-ay j’essaie —»jes-say

f. payer - to pay (for) —» pay-ay je paie —>• je pay
g- envoyer - to send —» ahn-v-why-ay j’envoie —> jahn-v-why

Some verbs double the t or 1.

h. appeler - to call —> apple-ay j’appelle —»jappel
•
i. jeter - to throw (away) —> jut-ay je jette —»je jet

1.5.3 Irregular -er verbs

The most common irregular -er verb is aller (to go). Its first-person form is je
vais (I go/I am going). The s is only pronounced if the next word begins with
a vowel.

IV How would you say . . .?

a. I am going to town. Je....... en ville. (aller)
b. I am buying a new car. . . . une nouvelle voiture. (acheter)
c. I am calling my office. y..... . . mon bureau, (appeler)
d. I prefer beer. Je....... la biere. (preferer)
e. I’m paying. Je • • .(payer)
f. I am sending a letter. J’.. ... . . une lettre. (envoyer)
g- I hope it’ll be fine. J’....,. . qu’il va faire beau, (esperer)
h. I am trying to answer the J’.. ..... de repondre a la question.
question. (essayer)
•
l. I am throwing out the rubbish. Je.... .. . les ordures, (jeter)
•

3- I raise my glass to your good Je....... mon verre a votre sante. (lever)
health.

Highlight any verbs which you might want to use.

V Complete these sentences with the right form of the verb in brackets
and read them aloud. Que faites-vous? What do you do?
a. Je.anglais, (parler)
b. Y.a Londres. (habiter)
c. Je ...... a Paris, (aller)
d. Y.a la gare. (arriver)
e. Y.un taxi- (appeler)
f. Y.dans l’hotel. (entrer)
g. Je.a ma chambre. (monter)
h. Je.au restaurant, (diner = to dine)
i. Y.un fax- (envoyer)
j. Je.une question, (poser = to put)
k. Je.aux cartes, (jouer = to play)
l. Je.cent Euros, (gagner = to win)
12 French Grammar Made Easy

m. Je.a mon ami. (telephoner = to telephone)

n„ Je.la television, (regarder)

1.5.4 Regular -ir verbs

Remember most verbs are -er verbs, so there aren’t so many of

these.

If you already know about regular -ir verbs, go on to the

irregular verbs in 1.5.5.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

choisir to choose je choisis I choose/I am choosing

finir to finish je finis I finish/I am finishing
grossir to put on weight je grossis I am putting on weight
maigrir to lose weight je maigns I am losing weight
remplir to fill in je remplis I am filling in
vieillir to grow old je vieillis I am growing old
applaudir to applaud j’applaudis I applaud
reflechir to reflect je reflechis I am reflecting
ralentir to slow down je ralentis I am slowing down
rougir to blush je rougis I am blushing

Remember that in French you don’t sound the final -s unless the
next word begins with a vowel.

VI Which verb would you use?

a. You have to fill in this form.
b. He has to finish the test.
c. She has to put on more weight.
d. He has to lose weight.
e. You have to choose a prize.
f. We have to think about it.
g. You must slow down at the bend.
h. You have to clap when they have finished.
i. You have to try to grow old gracefully.
j. Don’t blush!

1.5.5 Semi-irregular and irregular -ir verbs

These verbs are sometimes called semi-irregular because they drop the final
consonant of the stem and then add -s, which is not pronounced.
 Verbs 13

infinitive meaning first person meaning

dormir to sleep je dors I sleep/I am sleeping

partir to leave je pars I leave/ I am leaving
sentir to smell je sens I smell
sortir do go out je sors I go out/I am going out

VII Practise saying them aloud, it will help you to remember them. The
s is in brackets to remind you not to pronounce it!
je choisi(s) je fini(s) je grossi(s) je maigri(s)
je pars(s) je sen(s) je sor(s) je dor(s)

If you feel self-conscious about reading aloud, put your hands over
your ears whilst you do it This means that you don’t need to speak
so loudly and you can hear yourself better. If you haven’t tried it before,
try it now. It really works!

VIII How would you say the following?

a. I am going out. Je ... .. . . (sortir)
b. I am finishing the dishes. Je... .. . la vaiselle. (finir)
c. I am choosing a wine. Je... ... un vin. (choisir)
d. I am leaving tomorrow. Je... .. . demain. (partir)
e. I am putting on weight. Je... .. . . (grossir)
f. I sleep in a big bed. Je... .. . dans un grand lit. (dormir)
g- I slow down at the bends. Je... . . . dans les virages. (ralentir)
h. I am thinking about it. )’}'■■■
.... (reflechir)
•

i. I am filling in this form. Je... ... ce formulaire. (rempiir)

•

J- I am getting old! Je... . .. ! (vieillir)

Now cover up the right-hand side of the page and see if you can still do
them.

The following verbs add an i, but they still end in s (which is not pro¬
nounced).

infinitive meaning first person meaning

tenir to hold je tiens I hold/I am holding

venir to come je viens I come/I am coming

And there are some verbs which end in -ir which behave as though they end
in -er.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

ouvrir to open j’ouvre I open/I am opening

couvrir to cover je couvre I cover/I am covering
decouvrir to discover je decouvre I discover/I am discovering
offrir to offer j’offre I offer/I am offering
14 French Grammar (lade Easq

IX How would you say the following?

a. I am coming from the office. .du bureau, (venir)
b. I am offering some flowers. .des fleurs. (offnr)
c. I discover the truth. .la verite. (decouvrir)
d. I am holding the baby. .le bebe. (temr)
e. I am covering the baby. .le bebe. (couvrir)
f. I am opening the window. .la fenetre. (ouvrir)

Say them aloud to get used to the sound of the words. Which ones
sound a little like the English?

1.5.6 Verbs which end in -oir

These verbs look as if they end in -ir, but they actually end in -oir, so they are
a bit different. Unfortunately, they are verbs that you will probably need a lot,
so you should learn them. Look for patterns to help you remember them.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

avoir to have j’ai I have

savoir to know je sais I know

devoir to have to je dois I must/I have to

voir to see je vois I see
recevoir to receive je regois I receive/I am receiving
apercevoir to notice j’apergois I notice

pouvoir to be able je peux I can/I am able

vouloir to want je veux I want

X How would you say the following? Use the verbs in brackets.
a. I have a brother. .un frere. (avoir)
b. I have to go. .partir. (devoir)
c. I know! .! (savoir)
d. I can come. .venir. (pouvoir)
e. I must arrive punctually. .arriver a l’heure. (devoir)
f. I want to go there. .y aller. (vouloir)
g- I see the house. .la maison. (voir)
h. I can speak Spanish. .parler espagnol. (savoir)
•1. I have a new car. .une nouvelle voiture. (avoir)

Cover up the French. Can you still do them?

 Verbs 15

1.5.7 -re verbs

If you already know about regular -re verbs, go on to 1.5.8.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

attendre to wait (for) j’attends I wait/I am waiting (for)

descendre to go down je descends I go down/I am going down
entendre to hear j’entends I hear
repondre to reply je reponds I reply/I am replying
vendre to sell je vends I sell/I am selling

_ ? Cover up the meanings and see how many you know or can work
out. Try to find a ‘related’ English word, e.g. vendre —> vendor.
Look for ways of remembering the ones that you think are important for
you.

These verbs all end in -s when you are talking about yourself (in the first
person singular), but remember you do not pronounce the -s at the end of a
word. Practise saying them aloud, as it will help you to remember them.

XI How would you say the following?

a. I am selling my car. .ma voiture. (vendre)
b. I am replying to the question.a la question, (repondre)
c. I am going down the road. .la me. (descendre)
d. I am waiting for the bus. .le bus. (attendre)
e. I hear some voices. .des voix. (entendre)

Now cover up the right-hand side of the page and see if you can still do them.

1.5.8 Irregular -re verbs

These verbs end in -re but sometimes they change their stem. The changes
have usually been made to make them easier to pronounce. These are the
ones you are likely to need most. Say them aloud and look for patterns.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

etre to be je suis I am

boire to drink je bois I drink/I am drinking

croire to believe je crois I believe

dire to say je dis I say/I am saying

16 French Grammar Made Easy

infinitive meaning first person meaning

ecrire to write j’ecris I write/I am writing

faire to do/make je fais I do/I am doing

lire to read je lis I read/I am reading
connaitre to know je connais I know (a person or thing)
mettre to put je mets I put/I am putting
prendre to take je prends I take/I am taking

Cover up the English and see if you can remember what they all mean, then
cover up the French and see how many you can remember. Which ones
sound really different from what you would expect?

XII How would you say the following? Remember that it is helpful to say
the sentences aloud.
a. I am drinking red wine. .du vin rouge, (boire)
fo. I am writing a letter. .une lettre. (ecrire)
c. Ido sport. .du sport, (faire)
d. I read the newspaper. .le journal, (lire)
e. I lay the table. .la table, (mettre)
f. I am English speaking. .anglophone, (etre)
g. I am saying ‘hello’. .«Bonjour». (dire)
h. I am describing M. Bonnard.M. Bonnard, (decnre)
i. I believe in God. .en Dieu. (croire)
j. I am taking the train. .le tram, (prendre)

1.5.9 How to say ‘no’

If you knowhow to use ne . . . pas, go on to 1.5.10.

To say you don’t do something, you put ne in front of the verb and pas after it.
Je ne sais pas. I don’t know.
Note that ne becomes n’ before a vowel.
Je n’ai pas de ...

XIII Say you don’t do these things by putting ne in front of the verb
and pas after it. Say the sentences aloud to get used to the sound.
a. I haven’t a pen. Je... .. . de stylo, (avoir)
b. I’m not French. Je... . .. frangais(e). (etre)
c. I’m not going to town. Je ... ... en ville. (aller)
d. I don’t drink wine. Je ... .. . de vin. (boire)
 Verbs 17

e. I don’t write letters. Je... . .. de lettres. (ecrire)

f. I don’t do sport. Je .. . . .. de sport, (faire)
g- I don’t read magazines. Je ... . . . de revues, (lire)
h. I don’t know! Je... ... ! (savoir)
•
i. I don’t see. Je... .... (voir)
•

]■ I am not Coming. Je... . . . . (venir)

k. I can’t go. Je... ... y aller. (pouvoir)
1. I don’t want to go there. Je ... . . . y aller. (vouloir)
m. I don’t eat snails. Je... .. . d’escargots. (manger)
n. I am not going out this evening. Je ... .. . ce soir. (sortir)
o I don’t watch TV. Je ... . .. la television, (regarder)

1.5.10 Reflexive verbs

If you know about reflexive verbs, go on to 1.5.11.

We don’t have an equivalent form in English but you probably already know
the reflexive verb s’appeler, to be called. Je m’appelle means I am called or
literally I call myself. The infinitive is s’appeler.
When you are talking about yourself, you use me (or m’ if the verb begins
with a vowel) and the first person of the verb, just as normal.

infinitive meaning first person meaning

s’asseoir to sit down je m’assieds I sit down/I am sitting down

s’endormir to fall asleep je m’endors 1 fall asleep/I am falling
asleep
s’ennuyer to get bored je m’ennuie I get bored/I am getting
bored
s’etonner to be surprised je m’etonne I am surprised
s’habiller to dress yourself/ je m’habille I get dressed/I am getting
to get dressed dressed
se coucher to go to bed je me couche I go to bed/I am going to
bed
se doucher to shower yourself/ je me douche I have a shower/I am having
to have a shower a shower
se laver to wash yourself/ je me lave I wash (myself)/! am
to get washed washing (myself)
se lever to get up je me leve I get up/I am getting up
se reveiller to wake up je me reveille I wake up/I am waking up
18 - French Grammar Made Easq

XIV How would you say the following?

a. I wake up at seven o3clock. .a sept heures.
b. I get up straight away. .toute de suite.
c. I am washing my hair. .les cheveux.
d. I am having a shower.
e. I get dressed.
f. I sit down.
g. I am surprised.
h. I am getting bored,
j. I am going to bed.

1.5.11 Quickie
When talking about yourself in the present tense, you use je and the right
part of the verb.
To find the right part of the verb, you take off the -er/-ir/-re ending.
If it is an -er verb, you put the -e back, but you do not pronounce it.
Most other verbs add an -s, but you do not pronounce the s either.
The most important irregular verbs to remember are:
avoir - to have —> j’ai
etre - to be —»je suis
aller - to go —> je vais
faire - to do —> je fais

1.6 Talking about yourself

and someone else: nous
If you are not going to need to use this form, skip the rest of
this section, and go to 1.6.5, as you need to be able to
recognise it when you hear it, even if you don’t use it.

You use the nous form (or the first person plural) where you use we in
English, i.e. when talking about yourself and someone else: we, my husband
and I, my colleagues and /, my friend and I, Mrs Brown and /, etc.

1.6.1 The nous form of regular verbs

The nous form is regular in most verbs. It is made by adding -ons to the stem.
(Remember: the stem is made by taking the -er/-ir/-re off the infinitive.)
 Verbs 19

infinitive first person pi. meaning

arriver nous arrivons we arrive/we are arriving

aller nous allons we go/we are going
sortir nous sortons we leave/we are leaving
repondre nous repondons we answer/we are answering
parler nous parlons we talk/we are talking
jouer nous jouons we play/we are playing

I How would you say the following? Use the verb given at the end of the
sentence.
a. We are working today. .aujourd’hui. (travailler)
b. We are playing volleyball tonight. .au volley ce soir. (jouer)
c. We are leaving the house at 6 p.m. .de la maison a 18h00.
(partir)
d. We are dining in a restaurant. .au restaurant, (diner)
e. We are going back home at 10 p.m. .a 22h00. (rentrer)
f. We are going to Paris tomorrow. .a Paris demain. (aller)
g- We are leaving at 8 a.m. .a 8h00. (partir)
h. We arrive at 11.15 a.m. .a llhl5. (arriver)
•
1. We buy our tickets at the station. .nos billets a la gare.
(acheter)
•

J- We have lots of luggage. .beaucoup de bagages. (avoir)

1.6.2 The nous form of irregular verbs

Some verbs change slightly in the nous form. Look for patterns to help you to
remember them.

infinitive meaning first person pi. meaning

faire to do/to make nous faisons we do/we are doing

lire to read nous lisons we re ad/we are reading
dire to say nous disons we say/we are saying
ecrire to write nous ecrivons we write/we are writing
boire to drink nous buvons we drink/we are drinking

prendre to take nous prenons we take/we are taking

comprendre to understand nous comprenons we understand

avoir to have nous avons we have/we are having

devoir to have to nous devons we have to/we must
pouvoir to be able to nous pouvons we are able to/we can
vouloir to want to nous voulons we want to
voir to see nous voyons we see
croire to believe nous croyons we believe
etre to be nous sommes we are
20 French Orammor Made Easij

Verbs ending in -ger (manger, diriger, changer, nager, etc.) add an e to

keep the g soft, but are still pronounced as you would expect.

infinitive meaning first person pi. meaning

manger to eat nous mangeons we eat/we are eating

diriger to direct/ nous dirigeons we direct/we are directing
manage
changer to change nous changeons we change/we are changing
nager to swim nous nageons we swim/we are swimming

Some -ir verbs take ss.

infinitive meaning first person pi. meaning

finir to finish nous finissons we finish/we are finishing

choisir to choose nous choisissons we choose/we are choosing

II How would you say the following?

a. We speak French. Nous.frangais.
b. We see. Nous.
c. We are choosing another day. Nous.un autre jour.
d. We are changing trains. Nous.de tram.
e. We understand. Nous.
f. We are going to town. Nous.en ville.
We are eating in a restaurant. Nous.au restaurant.
h. We are taking the bus. Nous.le bus.
i. We are working late this evening. Nous.tard ce soir.
j. We are playing tennis later. Nous.au tennis plus tard.

1.6.3 Nous and the negative

This works in exactly the same way as the first person singular (je), i.e by
putting ne (or n’) in front of the verb and pas after it.

Ill How would you say you don’t do these things?

a. We don’t speak French. Nous.frangais.
We haven’t got a car. Nous.de voiture.
c. We aren’t going to the cinema. Nous ___au cinema.
d. We aren’t writing a letter. Nous.de lettre.
e. We haven’t any milk. Nous.de lait.
f. We aren’t reading Le Monde. Nous.Le Monde.
g. We don’t watch television. Nous.la television.
h. We aren’t coming tomorrow. Nous.demain.
i. We don’t drink red wine. Nous.de vin rouge.
|. My friend and I haven’t any work. Mon ami et moi.de travail.
k. We aren’t tired. Nous.fatigues.
l. We aren’t seeing Marc tomorrow. Nous___ Marc demain.
 Verbs 21

1.6.4 Nous with reflexive verbs

The reflexive form is made by adding an extra nous.
Nous nous appelons Neil et Ruth. We are called Neil and Ruth.

infinitive meaning 1st person pi. meaning

se depecher to hurry nous nous we hurry up/we are

depechons hurrying up
se lever to get up nous nous we get up/we are
levons getting up
se coucher to go to bed nous nous we go to bed/we are
couchons going to bed
se promener to go for a walk nous nous we go for a walk/we
promenons are going for a walk
se reposer to rest nous nous we have a rest/we
reposons are having a rest
se separer to get separated nous nous we get separated/we
separons are getting separated

IV How would you say the following?

a. We wake up at seven o’clock. .a sept heures. (se reveiller)
b. We get up at eight o’clock. .a huit heures. (se lever)
c. We go to bed at 11 p.m. .a 23h000. (se coucher)
d. We are having a shower. (se doucher)
e. We are having a rest. (se reposer)
f. We are hurrying. (se depecher)
g- We are getting dressed. (s’habiller)
h. We are getting washed. (se laver)
•
i. We are going for a walk. (se promener)
•
J- We are getting separated. (se separer)

Have you noticed that quite a lot of verbs which include ‘get’ in
English are translated by reflexive verbs in French, e.g. get up, get
washed, get dressed, get separated?

1.6.5 Quickie
To talk about yourself and someone else {we), use nous in French.
Most verbs have a regular first person plural, but there are some excep¬
tions.
Some verbs have minor spelling changes, but etre is completely irregular
(nous sommes).
22 French Grammar Made Easy

V Match these English verbs with their French counterparts.

a. we have nous voulons
b. we are nous lisons
c. we are staying nous venons
d. we are eating nous ne comprenons pas
e. we can nous sommes
f. we are not coming nous pouvons
g- we do not understand nous arnvons
h. we want nous restons
i. we are going nous avons
•

]■ we are seeing nous faisons

k. we are leaving nous ne venons pas
1. we are arriving nous allons
m. we are coming nous mangeons
n. we are doing nous partons
o. we are reading nous voyons

Now cover up the French and see if you can do them without help!

1.7 Talking to someone

else: tu
This is the you form, or the ‘second person’ of the verb. There are two forms
of you in French the tu form and the vous form. If you are talking to someone
you know really well - a friend, a child or an animal - you use the tu form.
You do not use it to a stranger, a business acquaintance or an older person.
You use it to someone you know well, if they invite you to.
There is a special verb which means to call someone tu - se tutoyer. If
someone asks: On se tutoie?, it means ‘let’s use the tu form’ (se vouvoyer is
to use the vous form).
The tu form is easy if you know the je form (see 1.5) as, in most verbs, it
sounds exactly the same.

If you are not going to need the tu form, go to 1.8.

1.7.1 Regular verbs

-er verbs
The tu form ends in -es but the -s is not pronounced, so it sounds just like the
je form.
je mange —> tu manges
 Verbs 23

-ir and -re verbs

The tu form is the same as the je form.
je finis, tu finis; je prends, tu prends

Exceptions
alter: je vais, tu vas
avoir: j’ai, tu as
etre: je suis, tu es

I What is the tu form of these verbs?

a. dance f. eat
b. like g- listen
c. live h. play
•
d. speak i. wash
•
e. watch j- work

II Use the right form of the verbs in brackets to tell someone what they
are like.
a. You are talkative. Tu., . bavard(e). (etre)
b. You have got a spot on your nose. Tu. . un bouton sur le nez.
(avoir)
c. You like swimming. Tu. . la natation, (aimer)
d. You eat pizzas. Tu. . des pizzas, (manger)
e. You watch soaps. Tu. . les feuilletons. (regarder)
f. You live in Paris. Tu. . Paris, (habiter)
g- You speak English. Tu. . anglais, (parler)
h. You wear jeans. Tu. . un jean, (porter)
•
i. You do sport. Tu. . du sport, (faire)
•
J- You play tennis. Tu. . au tennis, (jouer)

1.7.2 Reflexive verbs

These are formed in the usual way. The reflexive pronoun is te.

Ill Match the questions. How would you ask a child . . .

a. his or her name? Tu t’interesses aux animaux?
b. at what time he/she gets up? Comment tu t’appelles?
c. when he/she goes to bed? Tu ne t’interesses pas a la musique?
d. if he/she is interested in animals? Tu te leves a quelle heure?
e. if he/she is not interested in music? Tu te couches a quelle heure?
24 French Grammar Made Easq

1.7.3 Asking questions

If you look at the sentences in 1.7.1 and 1.7.2 again, you can see that they can
all be either statements or questions, both in English and in French. To make
them into questions in French, you change the intonation by making the voice
rise towards the end of the phrase.
Tu es fatigue(e)? Are you tired?
Tu te reposes? Are you having a rest?
Tu t’interesses au football? Are you interested in football?
Tu te souviens du jour oil... ? Do you remember the days when . . . ?

In French, you can also make a question by changing the order: invert the
verb and pronoun. (This is one of those times when French is actually easier
than English. In English, there are two different ways of forming a question,
one for each of the two forms of the present tense.)
Habites-tu a Paris? Do you live/Are you living in Paris?
Joues-tu au tennis? Do you play/ Are you playing tennis?
Aimes-tu aller au cinema? Do you like going to the cinerma?
Ecoutes-tu les nouvelles? Do you listen/Are you listening to the news?
Entends-tu bien? Do/Can you hear well?
Manges-tu des pissenlits? Do you eat/Are you eating dandelions?
Parles-tu bien l’allemand? Do you speak German well?
Prends-tu le bus? Do you take the bus?/Are you going by bus?

Practise saying questions to get used to the sound. Remember to

make your voice rise towards the end. You will probably feel silly
at first, but don’t worry, practice eventually makes perfect!

IV Practise asking your friend what he/she is going to do. Just add the tu
form of the verb in brackets.
a. Have you got a meeting in .rendez-vous a Londres mardi
London next Tuesday? prochain? (avoir)
b. Are you leaving very early? .tres tot? (partir)
c. Are you taking the Eurostar? .le Eurostar? (prendre)
d. Do you get in to Waterloo? .a Waterloo? (arriver)
e. Will you eat with us? ...... avec nous? (diner)
f. Are you going back the same .ce soir meme? (rentrer)
evening?

1.7.4 The negative

The negative is made in the usual way by putting ne . . . pas around the verb.
Cover up the French and see if you can translate the English.
 Verbs 25

Tu ne paries pas l’anglais? Don’t you speak English?

Tu ne veux pas aller au Louvre? Don’t you want to go to the Louvre?
Tu ne manges pas de viande? Don’t you eat meat?
Tu ne m’ecoutes pas! You aren’t listening to me!
Tu ne fumes pas? Don’t you smoke?
Tu n’as pas de regrets? Aren’t you sorry?

1.7.5 Quickie
The tu form sounds the same as the je form.
The tu form of -er verbs is the same as the je form, but with an -s on the
end.
The tu form of -ir and -re verbs is the same as the je form.
Questions are formed by changing the intonation or inverting the verb and
the pronoun.
Negatives are formed by putting ne ... pas around the verb.

V Chatting up - imagine you have already got to the tu stage! Match the
phrases, then cover the right-hand side of the page and see if you can
remember the French translations.
a. Would you like a drink? Tu veux une cigarette?
b. Would you prefer a glass of wine? Tu es fatigue(e)?
c. Do you smoke? Tu veux Loire quelque chose?
d. Do you mind if I smoke? Qa te derange si je fume?
e. Do you want a cigarette? Tu fumes?
f. Are you hungry? Tu preferes un verre de vin?
g. Would you like to go to a restaurant? Tu veux aller au restaurant?
h. Are you tired? Tu as quelqu’un dans ta vie?
i. Do you like going to the cinema? Tu aimes aller au cinema?
j. Have you got someone special? As-tu faim?

1.8 Talking to someone

else: vous
This is more important than the tu form as it is the form you will use most. It is
sometimes also called the ‘polite’ form. Just like you in English, it can be used
when addressing one person or more than one person, but it is always fol¬
lowed by the plural form of the verb.
26 French Grammar Made Easy

1.8.1 Regular verbs

The vous form is usually made by adding -ez to the stem. It is easy to learn,
and there are fewer exceptions than usual. It sounds like ay as in parlez-
vous? You probably know a lot of words already.
Parlez-vous anglais? Do you speak English?
Habitez-vous en France? Do you live in France?
Avez-vous une voiture? Have you got a car?

I What do these mean? Pair the sentences.

* AppUljiZ. 5ur CQMPOSTtZ. V0Trt£ 6lU.£r']

0 le bouton o >---- __b. Wait for the tone.

C.
compostz vatre code gnez ici Speak into the microphone.
Sign here.
e.
dans --— Cancel your (bus/train) ticket.
Attended U btf -*>ov\orc *J h Push.
Please hold the line.
{?-^
Pabentcz. * Nt quittez. pas * Wait.
Bi-—-z Press the button.
POU55EZ. Ti^ez.

1.8.2 Irregular verbs

In most irregular verbs, the vous form is made from the same stem as the
nous form. Look at these irregular verbs and try to find patterns which will
help you to remember them. They are often like the infinitive, but not always!

aller vais vas va allons allez vont

avoir ai as a avons avez ont
boire bois bois boit buvons buvez boivent
connaitre connais connais connait connaissons connaissez connaissent
devoir dois dois doit devons devez doivent
dire dis dis dit disons dites disent
dormir dors dors dort dormons dormez dorment
etre suis es est sommes etes sont
faire fais fais fait faisons faites font
lire lis lis lit lisons lisez lisent
pouvoir peux peux peut pouvons pouvez peuvent
prendre prends prends prend prenons prenez prennent
savoir sais sais sait savons savez savent
voir vois vois voit voyons voyez voient
vouloir veux veux veut voulons voulez veulent

Comprendre is like prendre

 Verbs 27

II Tick the ones you know already. Highlight any which are different
from what you would have expected and choose three new ones to
learn.

III Your friend is not well. Give him/her some advice.

a. You look ill. ...... Fair malade. (avoir)
b. Go to see the doctor. .voir le medecin. (aller)
c. Drink more water. .plus d’eau. (boire)
d. Eat more fruit. .plus de fruits, (manger)
e. Move yourself a little. .un peu. (bouger)
f. Smoke less. .moins. (fumer)
g- Go jogging. .du jogging, (faire)
h. Get more fresh air. .a fair frais. (aller)
i. Go to bed earlier. .-vous plus tot. (se coucher) (see 1.8.5)
•

3- Sleep well. .bien. (dormir)

1.8.3 Asking questions

Questions are formed in the same way as the tu form: either by changing the
intonation or by inverting the verb and pronoun.

IV Cover up the French and see if you can ask these questions.
a. Are you going to the meeting? Allez-vous a la reunion?
b. Have you got an appointment? Avez-vous un rendez-vous?
c. Do you know the MD? Connaissez-vous le P.D.G.?
d. Do you know how to operate Savez-vous faire marcher le branchement
the video-link-up? video?
e. Can you contact your boss? Pouvez-vous contacter votre chef?
f. Do you have to go back to the Devez-vous retourner a l’hotel?
hotel?
g- Do you want to use the OHP? Voulez-vous utiliser le retroprojecteur?
h. Can you see the screen? Voyez-vous l’ecran?
•
i. Do you take notes? Prenez-vous des notes?
•
3- Are you making a recording? Faites-vous un enregistrement?
k. Are you ready? Etes-vous pret?
1. Do you understand? Comprenez-vous?

1.8.4 Negation
As with other forms, you make a sentence negative by adding ne . . . pas
around the verb.
28 French Grammar Made Easy

V How would you tell someone not to do these things? First match the
English and French, then cover up the right-hand side of the page and
see if you can remember the French.
a. Don’t smoke. Ne vous penchez pas au-dehors.
b. Don’t walk on the grass. N’ouvrez pas la porte.
c. Don’t eat in the shop. Ne mettez pas vos chaussures de ski sur le
comptoir.
d. Don’t leave your luggage here. Ne buvez pas cette eau.
e. Don’t cross the road. Ne portez pas de noir.
f. Don’t lean out of the window. Ne marchez pas sur 1’herbe.
g» Don’t drink the water. N’attendez pas ici.
h. Don’t wait here. Ne mangez pas dans le magasin.
•
1. Don’t put ski boots on the Ne fumez pas.
counter.
•
J- Don’t wear black. Ne laissez pas vos bagages ici.
k. Don’t open the door. Ne traversez pas la rue.

1.8.5 Reflexive verbs

The reflexive pronoun for the vous form is vous.
Vous vous reposez? Are you having a rest?
Vous vous debrouillez? Can you manage?
Vous vous occupez de l’enfant? Are you looking after the child?

VI Match the following English and French phrases, then cover up the
right-hand side and see if you can remember the French.
a. Can you manage? Vous vous interessez a l’enterprise?
b. Are you interested in the firm? Vous vous occupez des achats?
c. Are you responsible for buying? Vous vous debrouillez?

1.8.6 The imperative

The imperative is used for giving orders, instructions or directions. You use
the vous form without the vous.

VII Let’s try a keep fit session. Give the vous form of the verb in
brackets.
a. Come in! .(entrer)
b. Get in a line. .les uns derriere les autres. (se
mettre)
c. Find a space. .une place, (trouver)
d. Run on the spot. sur place, (courir)
e. Stand with your feet apart. .les pieds. (ecarter)
 Verbs 29

f. Stretch your arms. . les bras, (tendre)

g- Pull your stomach in. ...... le ventre, (rentrer)
h. Lower your shoulders. . les epaules! (baisser)
•
i. Bend your knees. . les genoux. (plier)
•

j- Put your hands on your knees. les mains sur les genoux. (mettre)
k. Don’t move! Ne ....... pas! (bouger)

VIII Tell some French visitors the way to the town hall.
a. .d’ici. (sortir)
b. .a droite. (tourner)
c. .la deuxieme rue a gauche, (prendre)
d. .tout droit, (continuer)
e. .la place, (traverser)
f. .la rue jusqu’au rond-point. (suivre)
g- .a droite et la mairie est en face, (tourner)

1.8.7 Quickie
■ The vous form of regular verbs is made by adding -ez to the stem.
■ The vous form of most irregular verbs is made from the same stem as the
nous form.
■ Questions are formed by intonation or inversion.
■ Negatives are formed by adding ne ... pas.
m Reflexive verbs add the pronoun vous.
■ The vous form is also used for giving orders and instructions.

1.9 Talking about someone

else: il/elle
In French, everything is masculine or feminine. Une maison (a house) is
feminine, so you say ‘she’ is old; un livre (a book) is masculine, so you say
‘he’ is new. Remember, there is no word for it, everything is he or she.
This form is called the ‘third person’. It is easy to learn, as it sounds just
the same as the je form. It is also used after on meaning one.
30 French Grammar Made Easq

1.9.1 Regular verbs

m -er verbs end in e (just as in the first person, or je form).
il/elle mange; parle; habite
m -ir verbs change the -s of the je form to -t (but sound the same).
il/elle finit; choisit
■ -re verbs don’t usually have an ending, but they sound the same as the je
form because the -s wasn’t pronounced anyway!
il/elle repond

I Find the right part of the verb:

a. Zinedine Zidane.au football, (jouer)
b. Celine Dion.des chansons en frangais et en anglais, (chanter)
c. Mon fils.sur Plnternet. (surfer)
d. Sa petite copine.les histoires de Stephen King, (aimer)
e. M. Berriot.des appartements. (louer)
f. M. Patte.sa maison. (vendre)
g. Mme Peugeot.une maison. (acheter)
h. La banque.l’argent. (preter)
i. Le notaire.les documents, (preparer)
j. Mme Peugeot.devant le notaire. (signer)

1.9.2 Irregular verbs

The most common, and most useful, verbs are, or course, irregular!

infinitive meaning third person meaning

avoir to have il/elle a he/she has/is having

etre to be il/elle est he/she is
aller to go il/elle va he/she goes/is going
faire to do/make il/elle fait he/she does/is doing

II How would you say the following?

a. M. Patte .parisien. (etre)
b. 11. a Pans, (habiter) y
c. 11. a Nice, (aller)
d. 11. le train, (prendre) \
e. 11. la nuit dans le train, (passer)
f. Le matin il.a Nice, (arriver)
g- Il. deux grandes valises, (avoir) *
h. Il. ses valises sur un chariot, (laisser)
•
i. Il. signe a un taxi, (faire)
Quand il se., les valises ont disparues. (retourner)''
 Verbs 31

1.9.3 Reflexive verbs

The reflexive pronoun for the il/elle form is se.

infinitive meaning third person meaning

s’appeler to be called il/elle s’appelle he/she is called

s’asseoir to sit down il/elle s’assied he/she sits/is sitting down
se coucher to go to bed il/elle se couche he/she goes/is going to bed
s’ennuyer to get bored il/elle s’ennuie he/she gets/is getting bored
s’etonner to be surprised il/elle s’etonne he/she is surprised
s’habiller to get dressed il/elle s’habille he/she gets/is getting dressed
se laver to get washed il/elle se lave he/she gets/is getting washed
se lever to get up il/elle se leve he/she gets/is getting up
se reveiller to wake up il/elle se reveille he/she wakes/is waking up

Ill Que fait Maurice?

a. II.(se reveiller)
b. II.(se lever)
c. II.les dents, (se laver)
d. II.(se doucher)
e. II.les cheveux. (se brosser)
f. II.(se raser)
g. II.(s’habiller)
h. II.(se chausser)
i. II.son petit dejeuner, (prendre)
j. II.de chez lui. (sortir)

1.9.4
The il/elle form of regular -er verbs is made by adding -e to the stem.
The il/elle form of regular -ir verbs is made by adding -it to the stem.
The il/elle form of regular -re verbs is the same as the stem.
The most common irregular verbs are aller (va), avoir (a), etre (est) and
faire (fait).
The reflexive pronoun for the il/elle form is se.

1.10 Talking about other

people: ils/elles
This is easy, as most verbs sound just the same as for the il/elle forms in 1.9.
32 French Grammar Made Easy

1.10.1 Regular -er verbs

The ils/elles form is the same as the il/elle form, but with-nt added (but not
pronounced).
elle joue - she is playing —» elles jouent - they are playing
il mange - he is eating —> ils mangent - they are eating

However, if the verb begins with a vowel, you carry the s of ils/elles over to
the beginning of the verb.
il aime —» ils aiment (il-s-aime(nt))
elle adore —> elles adorent (elle-s-ador(ent))

1.10.2 Regular and semi-irregular -ir verbs

The ils/elles form is made by adding -ent to the stem, but the -ent is not pro¬
nounced.
il court - he is running —»ils courent - they are running
il dor(t) - he is asleep —> ils dorm(ent) - they are asleep
elle peu(t) - she can —> elles peuv(ent) - they can
*elle sor(t) - she is going out —» elles sort(ent) - they are going out
" elle par(t) - she is leaving —» elles part(ent) - they are leaving

*The t will now be pronounced as it is no longer the last letter of the word.
Some verbs take ss.
il finit - he is finishing —» ils finissent - they are finishing
il choisit - he is choosing —»ils choisissent - they are choosing

1.10.3 Regular-re verbs

If the stem has not changed, the two third-person forms will sound similar,
il attend - he is waiting —> ils attendent (il-s-attend(ent)) - they are waiting
elle repond - she answers —> elles repondent - they answer
il vend - he is selling —»ils vendent - they are selling

Remember, you only use elles if ALL the people (or things) are
feminine. If there is one male in a group, however big the number
of females, you still have to use ils. See 3.1 for more details.

1.10.4 Important irregular verbs

These are verbs to watch because they change unexpectedly.
 Verbs 33

infinitive third person third person meaning

singular plural

aller il/elle va ils/elles vont they go

avoir il/elle a ils/elles ont they have
faire il/elle fait ils/elles font they make/do
etre il/elle est ils/elles sont they are

1.10.5 More irregular (and useful!) verbs

Remember that you don’t pronounce the t or nt at the end of a word!

infinitive third person third person meaning

singular plural

boire il/elle boit ils/elles boivent they drink

dire il/elle dit ils/elles disent they say
lire il/elle lit ils/elles lisent they read
vouloir il/elle veut ils/elles veulent they want
voir il/elle voit ils/elles voient they see
pouvoir il/elle peut ils/elles peuvent they can
devoir il/elle doit ils/elles doivent they have to

I Qu’est-ce qu’il se passe? (What happens?) MAHMOof M |

a. M. et Mme Perigord.faire des courses
b. Ils.. une nouvelle voiture. (avoir)
c. Ils.. a Phypermarche. (aller)
d. Ils.. la voiture sur le parking, (garer)
e. Ils.. leurs courses, (faire)
f. Ils.. de Phypermarche. (sortir)
g- Ils ne ... ... plus leur voiture. (trouver)
h. Ils.. partout. (chercher)
i. Ils ne la .pas. (trouver)
•

J- Ils.. la police, (appeler)

II Typique ou pas?

What don’t M. et Mme Meugot do?

a. M. and Mme Meugot don’t M. et Mme Meugot.anglais.
speak English. (parler)
b. They don’t eat frog’s legs. Ils.de cuisses de grenouille.
(manger)
c. They don’t wear striped Ils.de pull a rayures. (porter)
jumpers.
34 -——— -—- French Grammar Made Easy

d. They don’t drink red wine. Ils. . de vin rouge, (boire)

e. They don’t spend their Ils. . les vacances a St Tropez.
holidays at St Tropez. (passer)
f. They haven’t got a car. Ils. . de voiture. (avoir)
g- They don’t go to the cinema. Ils. . au cinema, (aller)
h. They don’t read Le Monde. Ils. . Le Monde, (lire)
•

i. They don’t watch television. Ils. . la television, (regarder)

•

J- They don’t live in Paris. Ils. . a Paris, (habiter)

1.10.6 Asking questions: the interrogative

Remember, there are three ways of asking a question:
1. You can make a statement and change the intonation.
2. You can ‘invert’ the subject and the verb.
3. You can use a question word, and then invert the subject and the verb.

Ill Use method 2 to turn these statements into questions:

M. et Mme Leblanc habitent en banlieue parisienne.
a. Ils partent en vacances. —> Partent-ils en vacances?
b. Ils prennent le train.
c. Ils vont sur la cote d’Azur.
d. Ils ont une maison secondaire.
e. Ils louent une voiture.
f. Ils jouent au golf.
g- Ils font du ski nautique.
h. Ils ont des amis, qui habitent a St Tropez.

IV Use method 3 with these question words:

a. Where are they going? Ou.? (aller) —» Oil vont-ils?
b. When are they leaving? Quand? (partir)
c. How are they travelling? Comment.a Paris? (voyager)
d. Why are they in Paris? Pourquoi.a Paris? (etre)
e. What are they doing? Que.? (faire)
f. Who are they inviting? Qui.? (inviter)
g- How long are they staying at Combien de temps.a l’hotel?
the hotel? (rester)

1.10.7 Reflexive verbs

The reflexive pronoun for the ils/elles form is se (the same as the il/elle
form). You will find that the singular (il/elle form) and the plural (ils/elles
form) sound the same, as most reflexive verbs are -er verbs. Remember to
pronounce the s if the next word begins with a vowel.
 Verbs 35

V Fill in the missing plurals.

infinitive meaning third person third person

singular plural

s’appeler to be called il/elle s’appelle ils/elles s’appellent

s’asseoir to sit down il/elle s’assied ils/elles s’asseyent
s’en aller to go away il/elle s’en va ils/elles s’en vont
se coucher to go to bed il/elle se couche a.
se doucher to have a shower il/elle se douche b.
s’ennuyer to get bored il/elle s’ennuie ils/elles s’ennuyent
s’etonner to be surprised il/elle s’etonne c.
s’habiller to get dressed il/elle s’habille d.
s’interesser a to be interested in il/elle s’interesse a e.
se laver to get washed il/elle se lave f. .
se lever to get up il/elle se leve g.
se reveiller to wake up il/elle se reveille h.

VI Que font les amies de Florence et Veronique avant de sortir?

a Elies.(se reposer)
b. Elies.(se reveiller)
c. Elies.. (se lever)
d. Elies.(se doucher)
e. Elies.(se preparer)
f. Elies ....... (sortir)
g. Elies.au bar. (aller)
h. Leurs copains n’.pas. (arriver)
i. Elies.(s’ennuyer)
j. Elies.(s’en aller)

1.10.8 Quickie
l The ils/elles form of regular -er, -ir and -re verbs is made by adding -ent to
the stem, and they mostly sound the same as the il/elle form.
1 Some -ir verbs add -issent (finir-ils finissent).
l The four main irregular verbs are aller (vont), avoir (ont), etre (sont) and
faire (font).
l Verbs ending in -ire or -oir are often irregular and need to be learned,
l The reflexive pronoun for the ils/elles form is se.
36 French Grammar Made Easy

1.11 Short cuts

French verbs change the spelling of their endings according to the person
who is doing them. Fortunately, most of them still sound the same except for
the we (or nous) form, which ends in -ons, and the you (or vous) form, which
ends in -ez.
Unfortunately, some of the most common verbs are irregular, but you
probably know a lot of them already: je suis, j’ai, je sais, etc.

1.11.1 -er verbs

Most French verbs are -er verbs.
The regular endings for -er verbs are -e; -es; -e; -ons; -ez; -ent.
All new verbs are -er verbs, e.g. faxer, surfer.
Most -er verbs are regular, i.e. they follow the same pattern.
Most endings sound the same, but the two marked * sound different.

habiter

J’habite Nous habitons*

tu habites vous habitez*
il/elle habite ils/elles habitent

1.11.2 -ir verbs

■ There are not many-ir verbs.
■ -ir verbs split into two different sorts: those which take ss in the plural
(such as finir and choisir) and those which don’t (such as sortir and partir).
■ In the singular, the endings are -s, -s, -t, but you don’t pronounce any of
them, so they all sound the same.

finir choisir sortir partir

je finis je choisis je sors je pars

tu finis tu choisis tu sors tu pars
il/elle finit il/elle choisit il/elle sort il/elle part
nous finissons nous choisissons nous sortons nous partons
vous finissez vous choisissez vous sortez vous partez
ils/elles finissent ils/elles choisissent ils/elles sortent ils/elles partent
 Verbs 37

1.11.3 Irregular -ir verbs

venir (to come) and tenir (to hold) are irregular, as are verbs made up of
them, e.g. revenir, retenir

venir tenir

je viens je tiens
tu viens tu tiens
il/elle vient il/elle tient
nous venons nous tenons
vous venez vous tenez
ils/elles viennent ils/elles tiennent

1.11.4 -oir verbs

These verbs are not classed as -ir verbs, because they have a pattern of their
own; they are, however, very useful verbs. Cover them up and see if you can
remember their pattern.

devoir savoir voir pouvoir vouloir

je dois je sais je vois je peux je veux

tu dois tu sais tu vois tu peux tu veux
il/elle doit il/elles sait il/elle voit il/elle peut il/elle veut
nous devons nous savons nous voyons nous pouvons nous voulons
voud devez vous savez vous voyez vous pouvez vous voulez
ils/elles doivent ils/elles savent ils/elles voient ils/elles peuvent ils/elles veulent

1.11.5 -re verbs

There are not so many -re verbs and most of them end with -dre and follow
the same pattern. Most parts of the verb sound the same (those which don’t
are marked *).

repondre descendre

je reponds je descends
tu reponds tu descends
il/elle repond il/elle descend
nous repondons* nous descendons*
vous repondez" vous descendez*
ils/elles repondent ils/elles descendent
38 French Grammar Marie Easy

You do not pronounce s, t or d if they come at the end of a word.

1.11.6 Irregular verbs

The following verbs are irregular, but you need to know them as they are
used a lot.

avoir etre aller faire

j’ai je suis je vais je fais

tu as tu es tu vas tu fais
il/elle a il/elle est il/elle va il/elle fait
nous avons nous sommes nous allons nous faisons
vous avez vous etes vous allez vous faites
ils/elles ont ils/elles sont ils/elles vont ils/elles font

Put a ring round the parts of each verb that you know already. Then
try to find a way to learn the other parts. Look for patterns!

Remember that when you say I am going, etc., you do not translate
the ‘am’;you translate I ‘go’.

I You are talking about yourself. Use the verbs in brackets.

a. y.un rendez-vous en ville. (avoir)
b. Je.pret(e). (etre)
c. Je.de l’appartement. (partir)
d. Je.le metro, (prendre)
e. y.a 1’Opera. (arriver)
f. Je.du metro sur la place de 1’Opera. (sortir)
g. y.Pierre et Benedicte. (attendre)
h. Je n’.pas attendre. (aimer)
i. Je.(s’ennuyer)
j. Je.(rentrer)

II Now you are talking about yourself and a partner: Say we do (or don’t
do) the same things. For example:
a. Nous avons un rendez-vous en ville.

III Still using the same sentences, ask someone else if they do the same
things. Use the vous form. For example:
a. Avez-vous un rendez-vous?
 Verbs 39

IV Now report back in the singular, saying he/she does it. For example:
a. Il/Elle a un rendez-vous en ville.

V Finally, say it in the plural: they do it. For example:

a. Ils/Elles ont un rendez-vous en ville.

1.12 The past tenses

If you know when to use the perfect and imperfect tenses
^ go on to 1.13.

1.12.1 The perfect tense (see 1.13)

In French, just as in English, there are lots of different ways of expressing the
past tense. The one you will probably need to use most is the perfect tense, or
passe compose.
I have eaten j’ai mange
I have arrived je suis arrive(e)

The perfect tense translates: I played, I have played and I did play, and the
question forms Have you played? and Did you play? If you are talking or
asking about something in the past, you usually use the perfect tense.

1.12.2 The imperfect tense (see 1.14)

This translates I was playing when ..., Were you playing when ... ? and I used
to play (a long time ago).
You use the imperfect tense:
■ to talk about what used to happen in general;
I used to go to school by bus. J’allais a 1’ecole en bus.
■ to describe things in the past;
It was always raining. II pleuvait tout le temps.
■ to say what was happening when something else happened (an inter¬
rupted action).
I was having a shower when he Je me douchais quand il est arrive,
arrived.

1.13 The perfect tense

If you know how to form the perfect tense with avoir and
etre go to 1.13.1.

The perfect tense in French is made up of two parts like the English perfect
tense: part of the verb avoir (to have) or etre (to be) and the past participle.
40 French Grammar Made Easq

to have past participle avoir participe passe

I have played j’ai joue

he has spoken il a parle
we have moved (house) nous avons demenage

Most verbs go with avoir, but some go with etre e.g. arriver. Instead of
saying I have arrived, in French you say I am arrived. To get used to the sound
of the perfect tense choose one of the phrases, or make up one of your own
and practise saying it until you are really fluent.
Je suis alle(e) au marche et j’ai I went to the market and I bought
achete des tomates. some tomatoes.
Je suis alle(e) a la piscine et I went to the swimming baths and I
j’ai nage pendant une heure. swam for an hour.
Je suis alle(e) en ville et j’ai fait des I went to town and I did some
courses. shopping.
Je suis alle(e) a la gare et j’ai pris le I went to the station and I got the
train de 18hOO. 6 o’clock train.

Reminder

avoir - to have etre - to be

j’ai je suis
tu as tu es
il/elle a il/elle est
nous avons nous sommes
vous avez vous etes
ils/elles ont ils/elles sont

Most verbs go with avoir.

1.13.1 Verbs with etre

The following verbs go with etre. They are the ‘going and coming’ verbs, and
fall naturally into six pairs. It is a good idea to learn them. Try making up a
story, rhyme or picture using them.
aller - to go venir - to come
arriver - to arrive partir - to leave
entrer - to come in sortir - to go out
monter - to climb/go up descendre - to descend/go down
tomber - to fall rester - to stay
naitre - to be born mounr - to die
 Verbs 41

All verbs made up of them, e.g. rentrer, redescendre, etc. also form the
perfect tense with etre.

I Who watched the 9 o’clock news? Complete these sentences by adding

the right form of avoir.
a. Nous.regarde le telejournal de 21h.
b. ]3.regarde le telejournal de 21h.

c. II.regarde le telejournal de 21h.

d. .-tu regarde le telejournal de 21h?
e. Ils.regarde le telejournal de 21h.
f. Elle.regarde le telejournal de 21h.
g. Elies n’.pas regarde le telejournal de 21 h.
h. .-vous regarde le telejournal de 21h?
i. Julie.regarde le telejournal de 21h.
j. Mes parents n’.pas regarde le telejournal de 21h.

II Who went to town? Complete these sentences by adding the right

form of etre.
a. Je.alle(e) en ville.
b. Mon mari.reste a la maison.
c. Mes enfants.alles au Parc des Sciences et de l’Industrie de la Villette.
d. Ma mere.restee a la maison.
e. .-tu alle(e) en ville?
f. M. Hibbert.alle au cinema.
g. Sa femme.restee a la maison.
h. Leur fils.alle a un match de rugby.
i. .-vous restes a la maison?
j. Nous.alles au tierce a Longchamp.

1.13.2 Agreement of past participles

You may have noticed that after verbs which go with etre, the past participle
‘agrees’ with the subject. That is, if the person doing the action is feminine,
you add an -e, if there is more than one person doing the action, you add an
-s, and if there is more than one person and they are all feminine, you add
-es.
None of these endings are pronounced so they are only important if you
are going to write in French. See 1.13.6.
42 French Grammar Made Easy

1.13.3 How to form the past participle of

regular verbs
If you knowhow to form the past participle, go to 1.13.4.

In English, the past participle of regular verbs is formed by adding -ed to the
infinitive.
play —» played; watch —» watched; dance —> danced

In French, -er, -ir and -re verbs form their past participles in different ways.
You take off the ending (-er, -ir or -re) and add the following.

-er verbs -ir verbs -re verbs

r
-e -i -u

parler —» parle; dormir —» dormi; repondre —> repondu

III Using these rules, what would the past participles of these verbs be?
a. jouer k. laver
b. manger 1. demander
c. finir m. fermer
d. vendre n. pousser
e. ecouter o. tirer
f. perdre P- oublier
g- choisir q- sortir
h. attendre r. entrer
i. organiser s. entendre
•
J- inviter t. partir

IV Qu’est-ce qu’ils ont fait hier soir? What did Marc do last night? Add the
right form of the past participle of the verb in brackets.
a. Apres le travail, j’ai.au After work I played squash with
squash avec Jacques, (jouer) Jacques.
b. Puis j’ai.avec ma femme. Then I had dinner with my wife.
(diner)
c. Apres le diner, j’ai.a mon After dinner, I rang my colleague
collegue Jules. (telephoner) Jules.
d. Nous avons.du nouveau We discussed the new plan.
projet. (discuter)
e. II m’a.de sa co-operation. He assured me of his co-operation.
(assurer)
f. Nous avons.d’une date pour We decided on a date for the press
la conference de presse. (decider) conference.
g. II m’a.la nouvelle plaquette He sent me the new brochure by
produit par e-mail, (envoyer) e-mail.
 Verbs 43

h. J’ai.une page, (changer) I changed a page.

i. Je l’ai.(imprimer) I printed it out.
j. Apres ga, j’ai. un feuilleton After that I watched a soap, on TV.
a la television, (regarder)

1.13.4 Irregular past participles

Many English past participles are irregular, but we are so used to them, that
we don’t notice.
run, ran, run; eat, ate, eaten; drink, drank, drunk

Some French verbs also have irregular past participles. Although there seem
to be quite a lot, they are easy to learn, as they mostly follow the same pat¬
terns. These verbs all have past participles which end in -u.

infinitive past example meaning

participle

avoir eu 11 a eu une surprise. He had a surprise.

boire bu Nous avons bu du vin. We have drunk some
wine.
croire cru J’ai cru le reconnaitre. I thought I recognised
him.
devoir du 11 a du y aller. He has had to go
there.
lire lu 11 a lu le livre. He has read the book.
pouvoir pu Vous avez pu manger. You were able to eat.
recevoir regu Elle a regu une lettre. She has received a
letter.
savoir su Ils ont su la reponse. The knew the answer.
voir vu 11 a vu l’accident. He saw the accident.
vouloir voulu Nous avons voulu de l’eau. We wanted some
water.

The past participles of prendre (and verbs made up of prendre) and mettre
end in -s.

infinitive past example meaning

participle

prendre pris Elle a pris son manteau. She took her coat.
comprendre compris J’ai compris. I’ve understood.
apprendre appris Elle a appris son nom. She learned his name.
mettre mis 11 a mis son impermeable. He put on his raincoat.
44 French Grammar Made Easq

The past participles of faire, dire, ecrire end in -t.

infinitive past example meaning

participle

faire fait J’ai fait du sport. I’ve done some

sport.
dire dit 11 m’a dit le nom de son He told me the
amie. name of his friend.
ecrire ecrit Elle a ecrit une lettre. She wrote a letter.

Some verbs don’t follow a pattern.

infinitive past participle example meaning

ouvrir ouvert 11 a ouvert la fenetre. He opened the window.

etre ete J’ai ete fatigue(e). I have been tired.

^ Choose the five which you think you will need most and learn them.

V Complete these sentences by adding the past participle of the verb

given in brackets.
a. Notre client japonais a.la Our Japanese client has seen the new
maquette du nouveau depliant. sample brochure.
(voir)
b. Alain a.les photos, (faire) Alain did the photos.
c. Nous avons.le texte. (ecrire) We wrote the text.
d. Mme Brandt l’a.sur Mrs Brandt put it on the computer.
ordinateur. (mettre)
e. La societe de M. Patte l’a. Mr Patte’s company printed it in
en couleur. (imprimer) colour.
f. Avez-vous.les dernieres Have you seen the latest proofs?
epreuves? (voir)
g. Nous avons.en faire 5 000 We had to make 5,000 copies.
exemplaires. (devoir)
h. Notre client a.satisfait. (etre) Our client was happy.

VI Now tell the story of Marcel’s car. Complete these sentences using
the perfect tense of the verb given in brackets. Not all the past
participles are irregular!
a. Marcel. 100 000 Euros Marcel won 100,000 Euros on the
au loto. (gagner) lottery.
b. II.acheter une nouvelle He wanted to buy a new car for his
voiture pour sa femme, (vouloir) wife.
 Verbs 45

c. II.une pub pour une voiture He read an advert for an electric car.
electrique. (lire)
d. II.la voiture. (acheter) He bought the car.
e. Sa femme n’a pas aime la voiture His wife didn’t like the car and
et.de la vendre. (decider) decided to sell it.
f. Elle .... .. un petit annonce sur She put an advertisement on the
le panneau d’affichage au notice board in the supermarket.
supermarche. (mettre)
g. L’ami de son mari.un Her husband’s friend made an
rendez-vous pour essayer la voiture. appointment to try the car out.
(prendre)
h. Marcel.sa femme avec son Marcel saw his wife in the car with his
ami dans la voiture. (voir) friend.
i. II.qu’ils avaient une liaison. He thought they were having an
(croire) affair.
j. II.la voiture. (suivre) He followed the car.
k. II.des exces de vitesse. (faire) He went too fast.
l. Les gendarmes Y.(arreter) The policie stopped him.
m. II.payer une amende. He had to pay a fine.
(devoir)

VII Can you translate these?

a. Stephanie has read his latest novel (son dernier roman).
b. Have you read the book?
c. We haven’t read the book.
d. They have seen the film.
e. Stephanie saw the film yesterday.
f. We haven’t seen the film.
g. Have you seen the film?
h. Stephanie wrote a letter.
i. I haven’t received a letter.
j. She posted it (mettre a la poste) yesterday.
k. Her husband took his umbrella.
l. He forgot his newspaper.
m. The haven’t understood.
n. We understood.
o. I understood.

VIII Practice with ‘avoir’. How would you say . .

a. I have eaten mange
b. you have
c. we have
d. they have
e. he has
f. she has
g. you have
46 French Grammar Made Easq

h. John has
«

i. Have you?
j- my wife and I have

1.13.5 More on verbs which go with etre

Remember, some verbs go with etre. Aller is one of the ones you use most:
je suis alle(e) nous sommes alle(e)s
tu es alle(e) vous etes alle(e)s
il/elle est alle(e) ils/elles sont alle(e)s

IX Which form of etre would you use to complete these sentences?

a. Nous.alle(e)s en ville.
b. Je.alle(e) au cinema.
c. .-vous alles au cinema?
d. Mes collegues.alles au theatre.
e. Mon ami.alle au concert.
f. Ou.-tu alle(e)?
g. Ma fille.allee chez le dentiste.
h. Mes stagiaires.sorties.
i. Ou.-vous alles?
j. Nous.rentres tard.

All the past participles of verbs that go with etre are regular except
naitre - to be born (he) (which you probably know already) and
mourir- to die (mort) (which sounds like the beginning of mortuary).

Reminder on how to form regular past participles

-er verbs: take off the -er and add -e
-ir verbs: take off the dr and add -i
-re verbs: take off the -re and add -u

X Complete these sentences by adding the past participle. What did

Maurice do?
a. Marcel est.a Phopital voir son pere. (aller)
b. II est.de chez lui a neuf heures vingt. (sortir)
c. Le bus est.a neuf heures et demie. (partir)
d. II est.a dix heures. (arriver)
e. II est.du bus devant Phopital. (descendre)
f. II est.dans Phopital. (entrer)
g. II est.au service cardiologie. (monter)
h. II est.dans Pescalier. (tomber)
i. II est.a Phopital. (rester)
 Verbs 47

XI This time add the correct form of etre.

a. Celine.allee a Paris voir ses parents.
b. Elle.sortie de chez elle a neuf heures vmgt.
c. Je.alle(e) avec elle.
d. Le train.parti a neuf heures et demie.
e. Nous.arrive(e)s a dix heures a la Gare du Nord.
f. Nous.descendu(e)s du train.
g. Son frere.venu la chercher a la gare.
h. Elle.allee chez ses parents.
i. Je.alle(e) au musee du Louvre.

1.13.6 Verbs with etre: past participle

agreement
If you are not going to write in French go on to 1.13.7.

The past participle agrees with the subject (the person who is doing the
action) by taking the following endings (which are not pronounced).

masculine feminine masculine plural feminine plural

— -e -s -es

XII Add endings to the past participles which need them.

a. Ma grand-mere est ne en 1950.
b. Mon grand-pere est mort l’annee derniere.
c. Ma grand-mere est alle chez mes parents.
d. Elle est parti de la maison a onze heures.
e. Elle est arrive a la gare a onze heures et demie.
f. Mes parents sont alle la chercher a la gare.
g. Le train est arrive en retard.
h. Ma tante est venu la voir.
i. Elle est monte au grenier pour chercher de vieilles photos.
j. En descendant elle est tombe et s’est fait mal au genou.

XIII Now see if you can add the correct form: alle, allee, alles, allees.
a. M. Dupm est.a Londres.
b. Son amie Charlotte est.a Pans.
c. Ses parents sont.sur la cote d’Azur.
d. Nous sommes.en Bretagne.
e. Ses collegues sont.en Espagne.
f. Vous etes.en Autriche.
g. Ses grands-parents sont.en Italie.
h. Son meilleur ami est.. en Suisse.
48 French Grammar Made Easu

i. Tu es.aux Etats-Unis ...

j. ... et moi? Je suis.a la maison!

Now see how many of the verbs which go with etre you can still
remember, without looking. There were twelve of them! (See
1.13.1.)

1.13.7 Reflexive verbs in the perfect tense

All reflexive verbs also go with etre.

present perfect

je me leve je me suis leve(e)

tu te leves tu f es leve(e)
il se leve il s’est leve
elle se leve elle s’est levee
nous nous levons nous nous sommes leve(e)s
vous vous levez vous vous etes leve(e)s
ils se levent ils se sont leves
elles se levent elles se sont levees

At first you will probably only need to use reflexive verbs in the first
person (I), so learn one phrase by heart and use it as a model to
make other phrases later.
Je me suis couche(e) turd. I went to bed late.
Je me suis bien debrouille(e). I managed fine.
Je me suis trompe(e) de route. 1 went the wrong way.
Je me suis arrete(e) au bord de la route. I stopped at the roadside.

XIV For more practice with the other persons, see if you can give the
right form of the perfect tense of se lever to complete these sentences:
When did they get up?
a. Ce matin je.a six heures.
b. Le boulanger.a quatre heures.
c. Sa femme.a quatre heures et demie.
d. Gilles.a sept heures et demie.
e. Patrice et Monique.a sept huit heures moins le quart.
f. Celine, a quelle heure tu.?
g. Nous.a six heures.
h. M. et Mme Beriot.a neuf heures.
i. Aurelie et Cecile.a neuf heures et demie.
j. A quelle heure vous ...... ce matin?
 Verbs 49

Here are some more reflexive verbs. You probably know most of them
already.

infinitive meaning present tense perfect tense

s’arreter to stop je m’arrete je me suis arrete(e)

se coucher to go to bed je me couche je me suis couche(e)
se debrouiller to manage je me debrouille je me suis debrouille(e)
s’egarer to get lost je m’egare je me suis egare(e)
s’endormir to fall asleep je m’endors je me suis endormi(e)
s’enerver to get impatient je m’enerve je me suis enerve(e)
s’interesser to be interested je m’interesse je me suis interesse(e)
se laver to get washed je me lave je me suis lave(e)
se moquer to make fun of je me moque je me suis moque(e)
se promener to go for a walk je me promene je me suis promene(e)
se reposer to rest je me repose je me suis repose(e)
se reveiller to wake up je me reveille je me suis reveille(e)
se souvenir to remember je me souviens je me suis souvenu(e)
se tromper to be mistaken je me trompe je me suis trompe(e)

XV What did we do yesterday? Add the right part of the verb given in
brackets.
a. Nous.a huit heures. (se reveiller)
b. Nous.a neuf heures. (se lever)
c. Nous.le long de la riviere, (se promener)
d. Nous.de route, (se tromper)
e. Nous.(s’egarer)
f. Nous.dans un petit village, (s’arreter)
g. Nous.un peu. (se reposer)
h. Mon amie.(s’enerver)
i. Elle.d’un ami qui habite dans le coin, (se souvenir)
j. Elle est partie et je.tout seule. (se debrouiller)

1.13.8 Quickie
You use the perfect tense to talk about something which has happened in
the past.
Most verbs form the perfect tense with avoir and the past participle of the
verb: j’ai mange.
Some verbs (verbs of going and coming and reflexive verbs) form the
perfect tense with etre\ je suis alle(e).
In written French, the past participle of verbs with etre has to agree with
the subject.
50 French Grammar Made Easy

.14 The imperfect tense

If you know when to use the imperfect tense, go to 1.14.1.

You use the imperfect tense to:

* describe what something was like in the past:
When I was small, we lived in Quand j’etais petit(e), nous habitions
Scotland. en Ecosse.
The house was old. La maison etait vieille.
It rained every day. II pleuvait tous les jours.
■ say what someone or something used to do:
I used to walk to school. J’allais a l’ecole a pied.
We used to collect wood for the Nous ramassions du bois pour le feu.
fire.
My father used to go fishing. Mon pere allait a la peche.
■ describe an interrupted action (say what someone/something was doing
when something else happened):
I was watching (imperfect) Je regardais la television quand le
television when the phone rang telephone a sonne.
(perfect).

If you would use ‘was/ were’ or ‘used to’ in English, you need to use
the imperfect tense to say the same thing in French.

1.14.1 Formation of the imperfect tense

To form the imperfect tense, you need to know the nous form of the present
tense, e.g. nous parlons, nous dormons, nous finissons, nous repondons.
Then take off the -ons and add the following endings.

person ending

je -ais
tu -ais
il/elle -ait
nous -ions
vous -iez
ils/elles -aient
 Verbs 51

1.14.2 Regular verbs

infinitive nous form imperfect

habiter habitons habitais

dormir dormons dormais

finir fmissons finissais

repondre repondons repondais

i Que faisaient-ils? What were they doing when the lights went out?
a. Mon mari.devant la television, (dormir)
b. Jean-Claude.la television, (regarder)
c. Melanie.une revue, (lire)
d. Je.avec ma voisine. (discuter)
e. Nous.du nouveau premier ministre. (parler)
f. Sandrine.une douche, (prendre)
g- Francois.a sa petite amie. (telephoner)
h. Laurence et son amie.sa moto dans le garage, (reparer)
i. Nicolas et Alexandre.au billard dans la salle de jeux. (jouer)

1.14.3 Irregular verbs

These verbs are irregular in the nous form of the present tense.

infinitive nous form imperfect

avoir avons avais

etre etes etions*
aller allons allais
boire buvons buvais
manger mangeons mangeais
lire lisons lisais
faire faisons faisais

* In written French note the change of accent in the imperfect of etre.

II Give the correct form of avoir.

a. She was ten. Elle.dix ans.
b. They were hungry. Ils.faim.
c. We were thirsty. Nous.soif.
d. You were late. Vous.du retard.
e. I had a terrible headache. J’.un mal de tete affreux.
For expressions with avoir see 1.24.
52 French Grammar Made Easy

III Now do the same with etre.

a. He was young. II.jeune.
b. They were pretty. Ils.beaux.
c. You were magnificent. Vous.magnifique!
d. It was sad. C’.triste.
e. We were tired. Nous.fatigues.

IV Give the correct form of the imperfect of the verb in brackets.

a. y.a l’arret du bus. (attendre)
b» Tu.McSolaar sur ton
baladeur. (ecouter)
c. Nous.en ville. (aller)
d. Patrice.son journal, (lire)
e. II.sa petite amie. (attendre)
f. Martin.de chez lui. (sortir)
g. Ses parents.a la campagne.
(etre)
h. Sylvie.du jogging, (faire)
i. Vous.la television, (regarder)
j. Mon pere.un aperitif, (boire)

V Complete the sentences by adding the correct form of the imperfect of

the verb in brackets.
a. 11. beau, (faire)
b. 11 ...... . (neiger)*
c. il y • • ■ • . . du soleil. (avoir)
d. Le vent. .(souffler)
e. Le soleil .(briber)
f. 11. . (pleuvoir)
g° La brume.(se dissip
h. 11 ...... chaud. (faire)
i. il y • • • • .. un orage. (avoir)
•

]■ La mer . .agitee. (etre)

* In written French when g is followed by a or o, you need to add an e to keep the sound soft.
(See Section 1.6.2.)

1.14.4 Perfect or imperfect?

Remember to use the imperfect tense for the action that was ongoing and the
perfect tense for the action that ‘interrupted’ it.

VI You need to use both the imperfect and the perfect in these
sentences.
a. Ses parents.(habiter) a Nice quand Nadege.(naitre).
b. Quand elle.(etre) petite, sa famille.(demenager) a Paris.
 Verbs 53

c. Elle ...... (avoir) cinq ans quand son frere.(naitre).

d. II.(avoir) un accident quand il.(avoir) dix ans.
e. II.(traverser) la rue quand une voiture.(gnller) le feu rouge.
f. Nadege.(voir) l’accident pendant qu’elle.(attendre) le bus.
g. Elle.(avoir) dix-neuf ans quand elle.(passer) son bac.
h. Elle.(faire) des etudes de biologie quand elle.(decider) de quitter
l’universite.
i. Elle.(suivre) un cours de dactylo quand elle.(voir) l’annonce de
Megasoc.
j. Elle.(travailler) dans la societe quand elle.(rencontrer) son futur
mari.
k. Elle.(etre) chef du personnel quand il.(poser) sa candidature.
l. Il.(faire) beau quand ils.(se marier).

1.14.5 Quickie
■ The imperfect tense is easy as it is always formed in the same way.
■ Take the nous form of the verb in the present tense, remove the -ons and
add the new endings. The endings are the same for all verbs, and only the
nous and vous forms sound different: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.
■ You are most likely to need to use the imperfect tense when talking about
yourself.. .
■ ... or about the weather: il faisait, ily avait, etc.

VII How would you say the following?

a. When I was young . . .
b. When I was waiting at the bus stop . ..
c. It was raining.
d. It was cold.
e. It was sunny.

1.15 The future tense

You use the future tense to talk about something that is going to happen,
something you want to do or are going to do in the future. In French, just as in
English, there are two ways of saying what is going to happern.

1.15.1 Futur proche or near future

This is like the English I am going to ..., e.g. I am going to go, He is going
to play, and is made up of aller (to go) and the main verb, just as it is in
English.
Je vais sortir. I am going to go out.
54 French Grammar Made Easy

This is the most useful future tense to learn as it is used most frequently in
conversation, when talking about the near future: this evening, tomorrow, in
the next few days.
To make the futur proche, you need to know the present tense of the verb
aller and the infinitive of the verb you want to use.

aller

singular meaning plural meaning

je vais I am going nous allons we are going

tu vas you are going vous allez you are going
il/elle va he/she is going ils/elles vont they are going

Je vais diner au restaurant. I am going to eat in the restaurant.

Tu vas regarder remission. You are going to watch the programme.
II va arriver en retard. He is going to arrive late.
Nous allons dejeuner. We are going to have breakfast.
Vous allez visiter le musee. You are going to visit the museum.
Ils vont faire du ski. They are going to go skiing.

I What are these people going to do? Complete the sentences by adding
the correct form of the verb aller.
a. Je. faire de la planche a voile.
b. Tu. . faire du parapente.
c. Maurice .faire du rafting.
d. Nous ... ... faire du VTT.
e. Vous ... .. . faire du ski de fond.
f. Nathalie et Simon.faire du surf de neige.
g- Vous ... ... faire du canyoning?
h. Patrice et Benjamin.. faire de l’escalade.
•
1. Je. rester a la maison.

II L’anniversaire de Cally McGael. What are they going to do for Cally’s

birthday? Add the missing part of aller.
a. Ses collegues.organiser une fete.
b. Thomas ...faire un gateau.
c. Barbara .. -envoyer les invitations.
d. Cass et Col.preparer le repas.
e. Ben. . acheter du champagne.
f. Son chef. .lui offrir un cadeau.
g- Norman . .decorer la piece.
h. Nous .... . . aider Norman.
•
1. Mike .... .. chercher des verres.
j- Vous .... .. chanter ‘bon anniversaire’.
 Verbs 55

1.15.2 The futur

This is the ‘proper’ future tense. It translates the English will and can imply
intention as well as future action.
je jouerai ✓ I will play
il ira he will go
ils ecouteront they will listen

Fortunately, most verbs are regular! The futur is made by adding these
endings to the infinitive: -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont. If the infinitive ends in -e,
take the -e off first.

-er verbs -ir verbs -re verbs

je parlerai je finirai je repondrai

tu parleras tu finiras tu repondras
il/elle parlera il/elle finira il/elle repondra
nous parlerons nous finirons nous repondrons
vous parlerez vous finirez vous repondrez
ils/elles parleront ils/elles finiront ils/elles repondront

III Give the correct future tense of the verbs in brackets.

a. nous.(regarder)
b. tu.(preparer)
c. vous.(mettre)
d. ils.(manger)
e. il.(prendre)
f. vous.(sortir)
g. elles.(arriver)
h. nous.(entrer)
i. je.(partir)
j. elle.(porter)

IV Que porteront-ils? What are they going to wear for the mardi-gras
carnival?
a. Je.le costume traditionnel.
b. Juliette.une jupe fleurie et une blouse blanche.
c. Mon ami.son tailleur noir et une echarpe blanche.
d. Nicolas.son jean delave et un vieux tee-shirt, comme toujours.
e. Mes amies.les robes traditionelles brodees.
f. Mes amis.un pantalon noir et une chemise blanche.
g. Nous.des chaussettes blanches et les chaussures noires.
h. Que.-vous?
 56 French Grammar Made Easy

1.15.3 Irregular verbs

Some of the most common verbs are irregular in the future tense.

Look for patterns to help you remember them and choose the four
that you think you are most likely to need, and learn the je form of
them.

infinitive future

etre je serai, tu seras, ...

avoir j’aurai, tu auras, ...
aller j’irai, tu iras, ...
faire je ferai, tu feras, ...

devoir je devrai, tu devras, ...

pouvoir je pourrai, tu pourras, ...
savoir je saurai, tu sauras, ...
voir je verrai, tu verras, ...
vouloir je voudrai, tu voudras,...
falloir il faudra

venir je viendrai, tu viendras, ...

tenir je tiendrai, tu tiendras, ...

Useful expressions:
on verra we will see
il faudra it will be necessary

V For more practice give the correct form of the verb in brackets.
a. r
. . (aller)
b. vous . .(venir)
c. tu . . . . .. (faire)
d. nous . .(avoir)
e. il . . . . .. (etre)
f. elle . . .. .. (voir)
g- ils ....... (vouloir)
h. nous . .(devoir)
i. vous . .(savoir)
•

b elles .. .... (tenir)

k. il . . . . . . (falloir)
1. vous . .(pouvoir)

VI Ils vont dans les Alpes. Add the correct form of the verb in brackets.
Nous.apres-demain. (partir)
<TJ
A

Le taxi.a cinq heures. (arriver)

 Verbs 57

c. Nous.le vol de huit heures trente. (prendre)

d. II y.un bus pour faire le trajet de Taeroport a la station de ski. (avoir)
e. Tout le monde.du ski. (faire)
f. A midi, nous.au chalet, (dejeuner)
g. On.le soir. (sortir)
h. II.froid. (faire)
, i. Nous.porter des vetements chauds. (devoir)

1.16 The conditional tense

The conditional tense is used to translate would in English. It is called the con-
: ditional because you are making a condition: I would go if you paid me! But it
i is also used to be more polite: I would like a box of chocolates.

1.16.1 Formation of the conditional

It is easy to learn, as it is just like the future but it has slightly different
i endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.

-er verbs -ir verbs -re verbs

je jouerais je finirais je repondrais

tu jouerais tu finirais tu repondrais
il/elle jouerait il/elle finirait il/elle repondrait
nous jouenons nous finirions nous repondrions
vous joueriez vous finiriez vous repondriez
ils/elles joueraient ils/elles finiraient il/elles repondraient

I How would you say the following?

i I would . . .
, a. eat (manger)
b. drink (boire)
c. sleep (dormir)
, d. speak (parler)
e. live (habiter)
f. buy (acheter)
g. ask (demander)
,h. listen (ecouter)
i. watch (regarder)

II Add the right part of jouer to the following.

a. I would play tennis. Je.au tennis.
b. My friend would play too. Mon amie.aussi.
58 -- French Grammar Made Easy ■

c. Her friends would play too. Ses amies .. .... aussi.

d. We wouldn’t play. Nous ne ... ... pas.
e. You would play football. Vous. au foot.

Ill Add the right part of preferer to these sentences.

a. I would prefer to go to the Je.aller a la plage.
beach.
b. My boyfriend would prefer to Mon petit ami.faire de la planche
go windsurfing. a voile.
c. My girlfriends would prefer Mes amies . .aller en ville.
to go to town.
d. We would prefer to eat in a Nous. manger au restaurant.
restaurant.
e. What would you prefer? Que.-vous?

IV Now add the right part of aimer.

a. I would like to go out. Y.sortir.
b. Gilles would like to stay in. Gilles. rester a la maison.
c. Patrice would like to go to the Patrice. . aller au cinema.
cinema.
d. My parents would like to go to Mes parents .aller aux Etats-Unis.
America.
e. What would you like to do? Qu’est-ce que vous.faire?

1.16.2 Irregular verbs

These are just the same as in the future, but with the new endings.

infinitive conditional meanings

etre je serais I would be

avoir j’aurais I would have
aller j’irais I would go
faire je ferais I would do

devoir je devrais I ought to

pouvoir je pourrais I could
savoir je saurais I would know
voir je verrais I would see
vouloir je voudrais I would like
falloir il faudrait It would be necessary

tenir je tiendrais I would hold

venir je viendrais I would come
 Verbs 59

V Talking about yourself: how would you say the following?

I would like a baguette. Je.une baguette, (vouloir)
rd
A

I would go to town. Y .en ville. (aller)

c. I would have a friend. Y .un ami. (avoir)
d. I would see my friends. Je.mes amis, (voir)
e. I would go to France. y.en France, (aller)
f. I would go windsurfing. Je.faire de la planche a voile.
(pouvoir)
g- I would be happy. Je. heureux/heureuse. (etre)
h. I would know the answer. Je. la reponse. (savoir)
•
i. I would have to go out. Je. sortir. (devoir)
•
j- I would hold his hand. Je lui ... ... la main, (tenir)

VI What could they do? Fill in the correct form of pouvoir.

a. Nicole could go home. Nicole . .rentrer chez elle.
b. We could go to the cinema. Nous .. . . . . aller au cinema.
c. We could go to the leisure Nous .. .... aller au centre de loisirs.
centre.
d. I could do judo. Je. faire du judo.
e. You could play volleyball. Vous ... ... jouer au volleyball.
f. Camille could go riding. Camille .faire du cheval.
g- The children could go Les enfants.aller a la piscine.
swimming.
h. We could meet afterwards. Nous ..,. .. . se retrouver apres.
•
1. We could go to McDonalds. Nous ..,.... aller chez McDo.
•
J- We could go back to my house. Nous ..,. . . . rentrer chez moi.

1.16.3 Quickie

■ The conditional translates would, e.g. I would go, I would like.

You probably already know je voudrais (/ would like), so you already know
the ending.
Remember that the endings for je/tu/il/elle/on and ils/elles all sound the
same, so you just have to remember the -ions and -iez endings for nous
and vous.
The most useful conditionals are:
je voudrais I would like
j aimerais I would like
je prefererais I would prefer
on pourrait one/we could
on devrait one/we should
il faudrait it would be necessary
60 French Grammar Made Easy

1.17 The subjunctive

If you are not ready for the subjunctive yet go on to 1.17.3.

The subjunctive is not used much in English any more (only in

expressions such as If I were you ...), but it is still used in certain expressions
in French. It is useful to be able to recognise it when you hear it. Try to
learn one or two of the expressions by heart and then use them as a model, or
find out how to avoid expressions which need the subjunctive and go on to
1.18!
In French, the subjunctive is used after verbs expressing a wish or
desire . ..
I would like him to go. j’aimerais qu’il parte.
I wish him to come. Je voudrais qu’il vienne.

... or a requirement (after il faut que (it is necessary that)) .. .

He must be able to drive. II faut qu’il sache conduire.

... and after certain fixed expressions,

in order to afin que
although bien que
before avant que
until jusqu’a ce que

1.17.1 Formation of the subjunctive

The subjunctive is formed by taking the ils form of the present tense,
removing the -ent and then adding these endings: -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez,
-ent. Fortunately, in regular -er verbs (and therefore most verbs), in
most persons it sounds just like the present, so you can’t tell whether you
are using it or not. Unfortunately, the verbs you use most are irregular.
Even if you do not want to learn them, you should be able to recognise
them.

Regular verbs

porter finir formir repondre

je porte je finisse je dorme je reponde

tu portes tu finisses tu dormes tu repondes
il/elle porte il/elle finisse il/elle dorme il/elle reponde
nous portions nous Emissions nous dormions nous repondions
vous portiez vous finissiez vous dormiez vous repondiez
ils/elles portent ils/elles finissent ils/elles dorment ils/elles repondent
 Verbs 61

Irregular verbs
The most useful irregular verbs are:

aller avoir etre faire pouvoir savoir vouloir

j’aille j’aie je sots je fasse je puisse je sache je veuille

tu ailles tu aies tu sots tu fasses tu puisses tu saches tu veuilles
il/elle aille il/elle ait il/elle soit il/elle fasse il/elle puisse il/elle sache il/elle veuille
nous aillions nous ayons nous soyons nous fassions nous puissions nous sachions nous veuillions
vous ailliez vous ayez vous soyez vous fassiez vous puissiez vous sachiez vous veuilliez
lls/elles aillent ils/elles aient ils/elles soient ils/elles fassent ils/elles puissent lls/elles sachent ils/elles veuillent

1.17.2 Expressions which take the

subjunctive
Expressions of necessity
II faut que je parte. I have to go.
II est necessaire qu’elle sache. She has to know.

Wishes or preferences
Je veux qu’il soit a l’heure. I want him to be on time.
II prefere que j’y aille. He prefers me to go (there).

Possibility
II est possible qu’il puisse venir. It is possible that he can come.
II est impossible qu’il soit en retard. It is not possible for him to be late.

Doubt and disbelief

Je ne crois pas qu’il soit malade. I don’t believe that he is ill.
Je doute qu’il fasse tres froid. I don’t think that it will be very cold.

Regret
Je regrette qu’il ait ete blesse. I am sorry that he has been hurt.
Je suis desole(e) que vous ne I am sorry that you can’t come.
puissiez venir.

Bien que - although

Bien que vous soyez malade, vous Although you are ill, you have to go
devez vous presenter au tribunal. to court.

1.17.3 Recognising the subjunctive

Even if you do not feel ready to use the subjunctive yet, it is useful to be able
to recognise when you hear it.
62 French Grammar Made Easq

I Which verb is being used? Read the sentence and work out the
infinitive of the word in italics.
a. II faut qu’il vienne. He must come.
b. Je ne crois pas qu’il prenne le bus. I don’t believe he’ll come by bus.
c. Je regrette qu’il ne fasse pas beau I’m sorry that it’s not fine today.
aujourd’hui.
d. Soyez le bienvenue! Welcome!
e. II est possible qu’ils aient oublie. It’s possible that they might have
forgotten.
f. Bien qu’elle ait une voiture, elle Although she has a car, she prefers to
prefere prendre le metro. take the tube.

1.18 Other tenses

Just when you think you have learned all the tenses, you pick up a book or a
newspaper and find that there are even more. Fortunately, you don’t have to
learn to use them to speak good French, but it is a good idea to be able to
recognise them. Here are two more.

If you don’t need them yet go on to 1.19.

1.18.1 The pluperfect tense

This translates the English I had done something when ... It is formed in the
same way in French as in English, i.e. it is the same as the perfect tense but
with the imperfect form of avoir or etre.

perfect pluperfect

j’ai mange I have eaten j’avais mange I had eaten

je suis alle(e) I went j’etais alle(e) I had been

1.18.2 The past historic

This tense is used in written French in narration, when writing about events
that happened in the past. You will find it in some books, novels and news¬
papers. It is usually used in the third person.
Quand Sybille remonta chez elle, vers onze heures du soir, elle entendit de loin la
guitare. Elle trouva le musicien assis sous un arbre dans le jardin. Elle ne le recon-
naissa pas jusqu’a ce qu’il ...
When Sybille made her way home at about eleven o’clock at night, she heard the
distant sound of a guitar. She found the musician seated under a tree in the
garden. She did not recognise him until he .. .
 Verbs 63

These are the past-historic endings.

travailler finir vendre

je travaillai je finis je vendis

tu travaillas ^ tu finis tu vendis
il/elle travailla il/elle finit il/elle vendit
nous travaillames nous finimes nous vendimes
vous travaillates vous finites vous vendites
ils/elles travaillerent ils/elles finirent ils/elles vendirent

For a full list of tenses, see the verb tables page 148.

1.19 Imperatives
If you remember how to give orders and instructions go on
to 1.20.

The imperative is the part of the verb you use when you are telling someone
to do something, or giving instructions or an order: Watch out! Stop! Turn left!
etc.
When you use the imperative you usually use the vous part of the verb.
You use the tu form only when speaking to someone you know well or
someone much younger than you.
Look at these examples. You will probably have heard some of these
before. Which ones do you know already?
Come on! Venez!
Go! Allez!
Cross the road! Traversez la rue!
Turn left! Tournez a gauche!
Listen! Ecoutez!
Wait! Attendez!
Hold on (telephone). Ne quittez pas.
Wait (telephone). Patientez.
Hurry up! Depechez-vous!

1.19.1 Formation of the imperative

Vous form
To make the imperative, you use the vous form of the verb without the vous.

Tu form
You use the tu form of the verb, but -er verbs lose the final -s (but as it isn’t
pronounced, it sounds the same). Remember that you may only use the tu
64 French Grammar Made Easy

form to a child or someone you know really well who has asked you to
tutoyer.

I How would you give these instructions? If you are likely to need to use
the tu form (Mange les legumes! Va au lit!) practise both forms; otherwise
concentrate on the vous form.
a. .a gauche! (tourner)
b. .les marches! (monter)
c. .la premiere me a gauche! (prendre)
d. .tout droit, (continuer)
e. .jusqu’aux prochains feux. (aller)
f. .a droite et a gauche! (regarder)
g. .la rue! (traverser)
h. .le bus. (prendre)
i. .devant le theatre, (descendre)

II These instructions are from a souffle recipe. Put them in the vous
form.
a. Pre-heat the oven. ... le four, (prechauffer)
b. Chop the onions. .. . l’oignon. (emincer)
c. Beat the eggs. ... les oeufs. (battre)
d. Put the onion into a bowl. ... l’oignon dans un saladier. (mettre)
e. Add the oil and the beaten eggs.... .. . l’huile et les oeufs battus. (ajouter)
f. Mix well. . . . bien. (melanger)
g- Butter an oven-proof dish. .. . un moule. (beurrer)
h. Pour the mixture into the dish. ... le melange dans le moule. (verser)
•
i. Put the dish into the oven. . .. le moule au four, (mettre)
•
]■ Cook for ten minutes. . .. pendant dix minutes, (faire cuire)

III How would you tell someone to do these things? Use the vous form.
a. Watch less television. . . . moins la television, (regarder)
b. Eat more vegetables. ... plus de legumes, (manger)
c. Drink more water. ... plus d’eau. (boire)
d. Go jogging. . .. du jogging, (faire)
e. Close the door. ... la porte. (fermer)
f. Open the window. ... la fenetre. (ouvrir)
g- Show your passport. . .. votre passeport. (presenter)
h. Speak more slowly. ... plus lentement. (parler)
•
i. Come with me. ... avec moi. (venir)

1.20 Negative expressions

Negative statements include saying what you don’t do, and expressions with
no, nothing, never, nobody, etc.
 Verbs 65

1.20.1 How to say you don’t do something

You already know to put ne in front of the verb and pas after the verb.
I don’t know. Je ne sais pas.
I don’t speak French. Je ne parle pas frangais.
I don’t eat meat. Je ne mange pas de viande.
He doesn’t drink wine. II ne boit pas de vin.
They don’t live in Paris. Ils n’habitent pas a Paris.
You aren’t married? Vous n’etes pas marie(e)?

1.20.2 Some more negative expressions

ne . . . plus no longer/more
Nous n’allons plus en ville. We don’t go to town any more.

ne . . . que only
II ne boit que du coca. He only drinks coca cola.

ne .. . jamais never
Elle n’est jamais allee a Paris. She has never been to Paris.

ne .. . rien nothing/not anything

Je n’ai rien fait. I didn’t do anything.

ne . . . personne nobody/no one

II n’a vu personne. He didn’t see anyone.

I How would you say the following? If possible, say them aloud so that
you can get used to the sound of them. Then cover up the English, read
them again and think about the meaning. Finally cover up the French
and translate the whole sentence.
a. I have never been to France. Je.... .. suis. . alle(e) en France.
b. He has never seen Frederic. 11.. .a.vu Frederic.
c. We have never eaten in a Nous.avons .dine au
restaurant. restaurant.
d. They have never eaten meat. 11.. .ont. mange de viande.
e. You have never learned to Vous . .avez .. .... appris a nager
swim?

f. I don’t see Aline any more. Je .... .. vois. . Aline.

g- She doesn’t ride a bike any Elle .. . . . . fait . . . .. . de velo.
more.
h. They don’t live in Paris any Ils . . . . . .habitent . .Paris.
longer.
•
l. He doesn’t listen to his wife 11.. .ecoute . .. ... sa femme.
any more.
66 French Grammar Made Easq

j. They don’t have any more Ils ont. d’argent.

money.

k. I don’t see anybody. Je.vois

l. I didn’t see anybody. Je.ai vu
m. Jean-Luc saw nobody. Jean-Luc.a vu.
n. Nobody saw Jean-Luc. .a vu Jean-Luc.
o. They didn’t hurt anyone. Ils.ont fait de mal a.

p I have only ten Euros left, II.me reste.dix Euros.

q. They only have a small house, Ils.ont.une petite maison.
v. There is only one bedroom. II.y a.une chambre.
s. Mr. Beriot only has one son. M. Beriot.a.un fils.
t. We only have a black and Nous.avons.une imprimante
white printer. noir et blanc.

u. I don’t have anything. Je.ai.

v. They haven’t seen anything. Ils.ont.vu.
w. We didn’t hear anything. Nous.avons.entendu.
x. You do nothing! Vous.faites.!
y. They never did anything. Ils.ont.fait!

II Match up these sentences.

a. We haven’t anything to eat. Je n’avais pas le temps d’aller en ville.
b. Nobody has been shopping. II n’y a que du pain et du fromage.
c. I didn’t have time to go to town Je n’ai plus d’argent.
d. There is only some bread and Nous n’avons rien a manger.
cheese.
e. You never go to the Vous n’allez jamais au supermarche.
supermarket.
f. I haven’t any more money. Personne n’a fait les courses.

Remember to use de to replace du/de la/des after negative

expressions.

1.21 Interrogatives
If you remember how to ask questions go on to 1.21.4.

There are three ways of asking a question:

■ you can make a statement and change the intonation;
■ you can invert the subject and the verb;
■ you can use a question word, and then invert the subject and the verb.

In the following sections, read the examples and then cover up the English
and see if you understand the meanings; then cover up the French and see if
you can put them back into French.
 Verbs 67

1.21.1 Changing the intonation

This is the most colloquial way to ask a question, but if in doubt, you can
always fall back on it.

Remember that the voice rises at the end of the question and falls at
the end of a statement.

Vous comprenez? You understand?

Vous parlez anglais? You speak English?
Vous connaissez l’hotel Superbe? You know the Hotel Superbe?
Ce train va a Rouen? This train is going to Rouen?

1.21.2 Inverting the subject and the verb

Comprenez-vous? Do you understand?
Parlez-vous anglais? Do you speak English?
Connaissez-vous l’hotel Superbe? Do you know the Hotel Superbe?
Ce train, va-t-il a Rouen? Is this train going to Rouen?

Notice that in the third person, if the b ends in a vowel, you have to add -t.
Joue-t-elle au tennis? Does she play tennis?
A-t-il une nouvelle voiture? Has he got a new car?

1.21.3 Using a question word

Ou allez-vous? Where are you going?
Comment va-t-il a Paris? How is he going to Paris?
Pourquoi est-elle a Paris? Why is she in Paris?
Quand partez-vous? When are you learning?
Que faites-vous? What are you doing?
Qui connaissez-vous? Who do you know?
Combien de chambres avez-vous? How many bedrooms do you have?

You use qui (who?) for people and que (what?) for things.

1.21.4 Which?
Quel is really an adjective, as it goes together with a noun and therefore has
to agree with it (though its different forms mostly sound the same): quel,
quelle, quels, quelles.
68 French Grammar Made Easy

Quel CD cherche-t-il? Which CD is he looking for?

Quelle saison preferez-vous? Which season do you prefer?
Quels musiciens preferez-vous? Which musicians do you prefer?
Quelles chanteuses preferez-vous? Which (female) singers do you prefer?

I Which form of quel would you use in the following?

a. Which author do you prefer? .ecrivam preferez-vous?
b. Which films do you prefer? .films preferez-vous?
c. Which programmes do you .emissions preferez-vous?
prefer?
d. Which actress do you prefer? .actrice preferez-vous?

1.21.5 Est-ce que . . .

You can use est-ce que and then you don’t need to invert the subject and the
verb.
Ou est-ce que vous allez? Where are you going?
Comment est-ce qu’il va a Paris? How is he going to Paris?
Pourquoi est-ce que vous allez a Paris? Why are you going to Paris?
Quand est-ce que je dois partir? When do I have to leave?
Qu’est-ce qu’il fait? What is he doing?
Qui est-ce que vous connaissez deja? Who do you know already?
Combien de chambres est-ce qu’il y a? How many rooms are there?

1.22 Expressions of time

In these expressions, you use a different tense in French from the one you
would expect to use in English.

1.22.1 Depuis- since

In English, when we want to say we have been doing something for a certain
length of time, we use the past tense. In French, they say they have been
doing it since (a year etc.) and still are so they use the present tense.
J’habite ici depuis six ans. I have lived here for six years.
II apprend le frangais depuis deux He has been learning French for two
ans. years.
J’ai cette voiture depuis un an. I have had this car a year.
Ils attendent depuis une heure. They have been waiting an hour.
Je suis ici depuis deux jours. I have been here two days.
 Verbs 69

I How would you answer these questions (remember to use the present
tense)?
a. Depuis quand habitez-vous ici?
b. Depuis combien de temps apprenez-vous le frangais?
c. Depuis combien de temps connaissez-vous votre meilleur ami/votre meilleure
amie?

1.22.2 Venir de - to have just

Instead of using the past tense and saying I have just seen him, in French you
use the verb venir and say I come from seeing him.

Present tense
Je viens de rentrer. I have just got in.
II vient de telephoner. He has just rung.
Nous venons de voir un film We have just seen a dreadful film.
epouvantable.

Imperfect tense
Je venais de rentrer quand . .. I had just got in when . . .
II venait de telephoner quand ... He had just rung when . . .
Nous venions de voir ce film We had just seen this dreadful film
epouvantable quand .. . when . ..

1.22.3 When and the future

If you are talking about two things which will happen in the future, one
depending on the other, both statements have to be in the future in French.
Quand ll neigera, nous irons faire When it snows, we will go skiing.
du ski. (When it will snow, we will . . .)
Quand ll fera beau, nous jouerons When it’s fine, we will play tennis.
au tennis.
Quand je serai vieux/vieille j’irai When I am old, I am going to live by
vivre au bord de la mer. the sea. (When I will be old, I will live
by the sea.)

1.23 Quickie tenses

If you know when to use the different tenses, go on to 1.24.

Present tense
You use the present tense to talk about what is happening now . . .
Je lis I am reading
70 French Grammar Made Easq

. . . and to express generalisations.

Je ne regarde pas cX-Files\ I don’t watch the X-Files.

These are the question forms.

Lisez-vous le journal? Are you reading the paper?
Regardez-vous... ? Do you watch . . . ?

Perfect tense
You use the perfect tense to talk about what has happened in the past.
J’ai joue au tennis. I played tennis.
J’ai essaye. I have tried.

These are the question forms.

Avez-vous joue? Have you played?
Avez-vous essaye? Did you try?

Imperfect tense
You use the imperfect tense to talk about what has happened in the past if:
■ it was a habitual action;
Je jouais quand j’etais petit(e). I used to play (when I was young).
* it was an ongoing and interrupted action.
Je regardais la television quand I was watching television when I
j’ai entendu les nouvelles de ... heard the news about . . .

These are the question forms.

Jouiez-vous ... ? Did you used to play . . . ?
Regardiez-vous la television Were you watching television
quand ...? when . ..?

Near future
You use the near future or futur proche to translate what you are about to do.
Je vais aller. I am going to go.
II va partir. He is going to leave.

These are the question forms.

Allez-vous aller? Are you going to go?
Va-t-il partir? Is he going to leave?

Future
The future tense is used to express intention of what you are going to do in
the future.
Je rangerai mon bureau la semaine I will tidy my office next week.
prochaine.
Quand nous irons en France j’lrai When we (will) go to France, I will go
voir . .. and see . . .

These are the question forms.

Que ferez-vous? What will you do?
Quand partirez-vous? When will you go?
 Verbs 71

Imperative
The imperative is used to give orders or instructions.
Allez chercher mes pantoufles! Fetch me my slippers!
Fermez la porte! Shut the door!

Interrogative
The interrogative is used to ask questions.
Avez-vous... ? Have you got a ... ?
Avez-vous vu ... ? Did you see . . . ?

Conditional
The conditional is used to put things more politely . ..
Je voudrais ... I would like . ..
Pourriez-vous m’aider? Could you help me?

... or to express conditions.

Je vous acheterais un cadeau si I would buy you a present if I had
j’avais assez d’argent. enough money.

Recognising a verb
If a word that you don’t know comes after a noun, the name of a
person or after a pronoun (je, tu, il/elle, nous, vous, ils/elles), it is
probably a verb.
■ If it ends in -e, -es, -ons, -ez, -ent, -s, -t, or -ont, it is probably a verb
in the present tense.
ii If it ends in -rai, -ras, -ra, -rons, -rez or -ront, it is probably a verb in
the future.
m If it comes after a part of avoir or etre and ends with e(e/s), u(e/s) or
i(e/s), it is probably the past participle of a verb.
it If it ends in -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez or -aient, it is probably the imperfect
tense of a verb.
m If it ends in -rais, -rait, -rions, -riez or -raient, it is probably the con¬
ditional of a verb.

1.24 Special uses of avoir

Avoir is used in some expressions where have is not used in English. Here
are some examples.

1.24.1 Age
You use avoir to say how old you are.
J’ai trente ans. 1 um 30. (I have 30 years.)
Quel age as-tu? How old are you? (What age have you?)
72 French Grammar Made Easq

II a dix ans. He is ten. (He has ten years.)

Nous avons 29 et 30 ans. We are 29 and 30 years old. (We have
29 and 30 years.)
Vous avez quel age? How old are you? (What age have you?)
Ils ont 50 ans. They are 50. (They have 50 years.)

Now say how old you are: J’ai . . . ans.

1.24.2 Saying what you need

avoir besoin de = to need
J’ai besoin d’un marteau. I need a hammer.
As-tu besoin d’aide? Do you need help?
II a besoin de dormir. He needs to sleep.
Nous avons besoin d’argent. We need some money.
Avez-vous besoin de nous? Do you need us?
Ils ont besoin d’une plus grande maison. They need a bigger house.

1.24.3 Expressing fear

avoir peur de = to be afraid of
J’ai peur des hauteurs. I am afraid of heights.
As-tu le vertige? Do you suffer from vertigo?
Elle a peur des araignees. She is afraid of spiders.
Nous avons peur de l’orage. We are afraid of storms.
Avez-vous peur des fantomes? Are you afraid of ghosts?
Ils ont peur des voyous. They are afraid of hooligans.

1.24.4 Expressing cold and heat

avoir froid/chaud = to be cold/hot
J’ai froid. I am cold.
As-tu froid? Are you cold?
II a froid. He is cold.
Nous avons chaud. We are hot.
Avez-vous trop chaud? Are you too hot?
Ils ont chaud. They are hot.

1.24.5 Expressing hunger and thirst

avoir faim/soif = to be hungry/thirsty
J’ai faim. I am hungry.
As-tu faim? Are you hungry?
 Verbs 73

II a soif. He is thirsty.
Nous avons soif. We are thirsty.
Avez-vous faim? Are you hungry?
Ils ont faim. They are hungry.

1.24.6 Being right or wrong

avoir raison/tort = to be right/wrong
J’ai raison. I am right.
Tu as raison! You are right!
II a tort. He is wrong.
Nous avons raison. We are right.
Vous avez tort! You are wrong!
Ils ont tort. They are wrong.

I How would you say the following?

We are right.
O' il)

You are wrong.

c. I am hot.
d. He is thirsty.
e. They are hungry.
f. We are cold.
g. I am thirsty.
h. I need a beer.
i. We need a new car.
j. I am right.
k. They are wrong.
l. I am very cold.
m. They are hot.
n. We are thirsty.
o. I am afraid of spiders.
p. Are you thirsty?
q. Are you cold?
r. Are you hot?
s. Are you hungry?
t. Are you right?
u. You are wrong!
v. Are you afraid?
w. I am not afraid.
x. He is not afraid.
y. We are not afraid.
z. He is right.
74 French Grammar Made Easy

1.24.7 Talking about not feeling well

Avoir is also used when talking about what is wrong with you: avoir mal = to
hurt.
J’ai mal a la tete. I have a headache.
As-tu mal a la jambe? Does your leg hurt?
II a mal aux dents. He has toothache.
Nous avons mal aux pieds. We have sore feet.
Avez-vous mal a la tete? Have you got a headache?
Ils ont mal au coeur. They feel sick.

Parts of the body which might hurt!

singular plural meaning

un oeil les yeux eye(s)

une oreille les oreilles ear(s)
le dent les dents tooth/teeth
la main les mains hand(s)
le doigt les doigts finger(s)
le bras les bras arm(s)
la jambe les jambes leg(s)
le pied les pieds foot/feet
le dos back

Le coeur (heart) is used to refer to stomach ache/heartburn.

II How would you say the following?

a. I have a headache.
b. Have you got toothache?
c. Her foot hurts.
d. My arms ache.
e. His knee hurts.
f. Have you got a headache?
g. She has earache.
h. Do you feel sick?
i. Does your back hurt?
j. He has backache.

1.25 Other problematic verbs

1.25.1 se souvenir de — to remember
In French, you remind yourself of something.
 Verbs 75

Je me souviens du moment ou j’ai I remember the moment when I had

eu I’accident. the accident.
Je m’en souviens. I remember it.
Je ne m’en souviens pas. I don’t remember it.

1.25.2 savoir and connaitre - to know

Savoir is to know how to do something (as a result of learning how to do it).
Je sais conduire. I know how to drive a car.
Je savais cuisiner. I used to know how to cook.
Connaitre is to know a person, thing or place (to recognise by seeing,
hearing, tasting or touching).
Je le connais. I know it/him.
Je l’ai connu. I knew him.

1.25.3 to take and to bring

These English verbs can be translated in various ways.
■ prendre - to take transport
Je prends le bus. I am taking the bus.
■ emporter - to take away (something you can carry)
une pizza a emporter a take-away pizza
■ emmener - to take (someone somewhere)
J’ai emmene ma tante a l’aeroport. I took my aunt to the airport.
■ apporter- to bring (something you can carry)
Je vous ai apporte un gateau. I have brought you a cake.
■ amener- to bring (someone somewhere)
Amenez un ami a la fete ce soir, si Bring a guest to the party tonight, if
vous voulez. you like.
 Nouns
2.1 Recognising nouns
If you know what a noun is, go on to 2.2.

Nouns are naming words. They tell you who somebody is (e.g. he is a soldier,
she is a mother) or what something is (e.g. it is a table, it is a rainbow).

You can recognise nouns because you can say ‘the’ or ‘a’ in front of
them, e.g. a pencil, the dog, the house, the postman.

2.2 Gender of nouns and the

definite article
The word the is called the definite article because it refers to a definite thing,
e.g. the pen (which you are using) and not just any pen.

2.2.1 Le and la
If you know about le and la and the gender of nouns, go on
to 2.3.

In French, all nouns are either masculine or feminine.

■ The word for the in front of masculine nouns is le.
le gargon the boy
le journal the newspaper
■ The word for the in front of feminine nouns is la.
la fille the girl
la porte the door
 Nouns 77

It is not always so easy to tell which words are going to be masculine or

feminine. When you look a word up in the dictionary, it usually tells you the
gender of the word in brackets after it: maison (f) house appartement (m)
flat

I Put the correct form (le or la) in front of these.

a. .voiture (f) car
b. .valise (f) suitcase
c. .sac (m) bag
d. .portable (m) laptop or mobile phone
e. .calculette (f) calculator
f. .fichier (m) file
g- .carte bancaire (f) bank card
h. .reservation (f) reservation
•
i. .manteau (m) coat
•
3- .billet (m) ticket (for train/plane/ferry/theatre, etc.)
k. .ticket (m) ticket (for bus/cinema)

II Now do the same for these places.

a. .maison (f) house
b. .station-service (f) petrol station
c. .gare (m) station
d. .rue (f) street
e. .boulevard (m) avenue
f. .station de metro (f) underground station
g- .magasm (m) shop
h. .banque (f) bank
•
i. .poste (f) post office
•
J- .pont (m) bridge

2.2.2 L’
If the word begins with a vowel or silent h, you use 1’ for both masculine and
feminine words as it makes them easier to say.
hotel (m) l’hotel hotel
avenue (f) l’avenue avenue

III Fill in the gaps with le, la or 1’.

a. .appartement (m) flat
b. .chateau (m) castle
c. .ecole (f) school
d. .hopital (m) hospital
e. .eglise (f) church
f. .mairie (m) town hall
g. .immeuble (m) block of flats
78 French Grammar Made Easq

h. .hotel (m) hotel

•
1. .avenue (f) ave iue
•

J- .entree (f) entrance

k. .arbre (m) tree
1. .bebe (m) baby
m. .eau (f) water
n. .enfant (m) child
o. .homme (m) man
P- .horloge (m) clock
q- .riviere (f) river
r. .rue (f) street
s. .ville (f) town
t. .village (m) village

2.2.3 Shortcuts: masculine and

feminine nouns
As it is not always possible to tell whether a word is masculine or feminine in
French, it is helpful to learn the le or la when you learn it. However there are
a few groups of words which are all masculine or all feminine.
These ones are all masculine:
■ Words for male relations and jobs: le pere (the father), le gargon (the boy),
le boulanger (the baker).
■ Days, months, seasons, weights and measures and languages: le deux (the
number two), le mercredi (Wednesday), l’hiver (the winter), le kilo (the
kilo), le frangais (the French language).
■ Most words which have been adopted from English: le short (the shorts), le
jean (the jeans), le Walkman (the Walkman), le blues (the blues), le parking
(the car park).
■ Countries, rivers, vegetables and fruit not ending in -e: le Japon (Japan), le
chou (the cabbage), le citron (the lemon).
■ Nouns which end in -c; le lac (the lake), -e: le passe (the past), -eau*: le
bateau (the boat) or -ou: le trou (the hole)
The exception to this is l’eau (water), which is feminine.

These words are all feminine:

■ Female relations and female occupations: la mere (the mother), la tante
(the aunt), la boulangere (the baker (f)).
■ Most countries, rivers, vegetables and fruits ending in -e: La Russie
(Russia), La Seine (the Seine), la carotte (the carrot), la poire (the pear).
Exceptions: le Rhone (the Rhone), le pamplemousse (grapefruit).
■ Shops: la boutique (the shop), la boulangerie (the baker’s).
 Nouns 79

IV Using the above rules to help you, put the correct form of le or la in
front of these words.
a. .dimanche k. .boucherie
b. .salade 1. .lundi
c. . Canada m. .patisserie
d. .Loire n. .France
e. .gateau o. . hockey
f. .printemps P- .marche
g- . litre q- .Dordogne
h. .basket-ball r. ..... sweat-shirt
•
i. .tennis s. .chateau
•

)■ .ski t. .frangais

2.2.4 The plural

In the plural, the word for the becomes les for ALL nouns.

singular plural

la maison les maisons

le studio les studios
l’appartement les appartements

To make the plural of the noun in English, we usually add an -s. In French,
most words make their plural in the same way, by adding -s.
la maison —> les maisons; le chien —> les chiens; la rue —» les rues

The -s is not pronounced when saying the word, so the singular

and plural sound the same.

2.2.5 Common irregular plurals

The following categories form their plurals in different ways.
■ Most words which end in -al form their plural in -aux (pronounced ‘o’),
un journal - a newspaper —> deux journaux - two newspapers
un cheval - a horse —> deux chevaux - two horses
un animal - an animal —»trois animaux - three animals
■ Most words which end in -au, -eau and -eu add -x.
un manteau - a coat —» cinq manteaux - five coats
un neveu - a nephew —> trois neveux - three nephews
BUT
le pneu - the tyre —»les pneus - the tyres
80 French Grammar Made Easq

« Seven words ending in -ou and -x: genou - knee, caillou - pebble, bijou -
jewel, joujou - toy, hibou - owl, chou - cabbage, pou - louse.
un genou —» deux genoux
■ Other words ending in -ou form their plural with -s.
le trou - the hole -» les trous - the holes
m Two words which are mostly used in the plural are un cheveu - a (single)
hair —> les cheveux - hair and un ceil - an eye —> les yeux - the eyes.
■ Words which already end in -s, -x, or -z don’t change in the plural,
le bras - the arm —> les bras - the arms
le prix - the price —> les prix - the prices
le nez - the nose —> les nez - the noses

V Put these words into the plural.

a. 1’animal the animal
b. l’oiseau the bird
c. le genou the knee
d. le cheval the horse
e. le bateau the boat
f. le journal the newspaper
g- le chateau the castle
h. le neveu the nephew
i. le cadeau the present

¥1 Write out the plural forms of these words. Check what they already
end in first!
a. le fils the son
b. le Frangais the Frenchman
c. l’Anglais the Englishman
d. la croix the cross
e. le repas the meal
f. le feu the fire
g- le pneu the tyre
h. le chou the cabbage
•
1. le bois the wood
•

J- la souris the mouse

2.3 Nouns and the indefinite

article
The word a is called the indefinite article because it refers to any one item
and not a specific one: a bottle of red wine, not the bottle that you have
chosen specifically.
■ The word for a in front of masculine noun is un.
un verre a glass
■ The word for a in front of feminine noun is une.
une bouteille a bottle
 Nouns 81

I Imagine this is your family. How would you say you have one of all
these?

J’ai. . .
a. ... frere f. .tante
b. .. . soeur g- .beau-pere
c. .. . grand-pere h. .cousme
d. .. . grand-mere i. ...... belle-mere
•

e. .. . oncle J- .chien

In French, you omit the indefinite article when talking about jobs or profes¬
sions.
II est etudiant. He is a student.
Elle est vetermaire. She is a vet.
M. Brown est medecin. Mr Brown is a doctor.
Mme Gibbs est professeur de dessin. Mrs Gibbs is an art teacher.

2.4 Partitive articles: some,

any
The partitive article is the grammatical name for the words which translate
some or any. It refers to an unspecified quantity, e.g. le sucre (the sugar) —»
du sucre (some/any sugar).

2.4.1 Du, de la, de V or des?

The partitive article in French is made up of de (of) and the definite article
(le, la, 1’ or les).

De + le becomes du and de + les becomes des.

Del’ is used before both masculine and feminine nouns which
begin with a vowel or a silent h.

masculine feminine plural

du (de 1’) de la (de F) des

Je voudrais du pain. I would like some bread.

Avez-vous du pain? Have you got any bread?
82 French Grammar Made Easq

I How would you ask for some of these?

Avez-vous . . . ?
a. .... .. sucre (m) f. .... cognac (m)
b. . . huile (f) g. .... lait (m)
c. .... .. beurre (m) h. . .. . pommes (pi)
•
d. .. pain de campagne (m) 1. ... . confiture (f)
•
e. _ .. petits pains (pi) j. . .. . miel (m)

In English, we sometimes miss out the word some or any, but in French
must put it in.

II Que buvez-vous? Put in the correct form: du, de la or de F.

Je bois ... I drink

a. .... .. biere (f) f. .... cafe (m)
b. .. vin (m) g. .... the (m)
c. .... . . limonade (f) h. .... jus d’orange (m)
•
d. .. coca-cola (m) i. .... eau (f)
•
e. .... .. lait (m) j. .... champagne (m)

Ill Add the correct form of un/une or des.

Je porte ... I am wearing

a. .manteau noir. a black coat
b. .chapeau de fourrure. a fur hat
c. .gants en cuir. leather gloves
d. .echarpe en soie rouge. a red silk scarf
e. .chemise blanche. a white shirt
f. .costume gris. a grey suit
g. .chaussettes grises. grey socks
h. .chaussures noires. black shoes
i. .parapluie noir. a black umbrella
j. .journal sous le bras. a newspaper under my arm

2.4.2 How to say ‘not any9

When any follows a negative statement (e.g. I don’t have any/I don’t drink
any), you use de for both masculine and feminine words. You always need to
use de in French, even when you drop the any in English.
Je ne veux pas de cafe. I don’t want any coffee.
Je ne mange pas de salade. I don’t eat salad.

De changes to d’ before a vowel or a silent h.

 Nouns 83

IV Say what is not available. Use II n’y a pas . . . (There isn’t any . . .).
a. ketchup f. beurre
b. confiture g. fromage
c. mayonnaise h. soupe
d. sucre i. jus d’orange
e. lait j. yaourt

V Now say that you don’t eat these things. Use je ne mange pas . . .
a. noix (pi) - walnuts
b. cacahuetes (pi) - peanuts
c. sucreries (pi) - sweets
d. viande (f) - meat
e. poisson (m) - fish
f. laitue (f) - lettuce
g. tomates (pi) - tomatoes
h. legumes (pi) - vegetables
i. pain (m) - bread
j. escargots (pi) - snails

2.4.3 Other expressions with de or d’

The following expressions are very common, so it’s worth learning them.
J’ai beaucoup de I have a lot of
J’ai assez de I have enough (of)
J’ai trop de I have too much/many (of)

Try saying them aloud to get used to the sound of them.

iliti

VI How would you say you have lots of the following?

a. livres
b. BDs
c. CDs
d. photos

VII Now say that you have enough of the following.

a. essence
b. argent
c. informations
d. temps
e. catalogues
84 French Grammar Made Easq

VIII Finally, say that you have too much/many of the following.
a. travail
b. invitations
c. deplacements
d. bagages
e. papiers

2.5 A and the definite article

When a is used in front of the definite article, it changes in the masculine and
plural.
a + le becomes au
a + les becomes aux
m before words beginning with a vowel or silent h, you use a V

masculine feminine plural

au (a 1’) a la (a Y) aux

2.5.1 A + article used in answer to the

question, ‘What kind of?’
Quelle sorte de sandwich/glace? What kind of sandwich/ice cream?
Un sandwich au fromage./Une A cheese sandwich./A chocolate ice
glace au chocolat. cream.

I Quel parfum? Say what sort of ice cream you would like.

Je voudrais une glace . . .

a. .la vanille
b. .le citron
c. .la pistache
d. .le cassis
e. .1’abricot
f. .le chocolat
g. .la banane
h. .la fraise
i. .1’orange
j. .la mangue

II Now say what sort of sandwich you would like.

Je voudrais un sandwich . . .
a. .le jambon
b. .le poulet
 Nouns 85

c. .le saucisson
d. .le fromage
e. .la sardine
f. .le thon
g. .les rillettes
h. .le camembert

_ N Remember that the final -x in aux is not pronounced ...

^zy une tarte aux /raises, une glace aux fruits rouges, une omelette aux fines
herbes
... unless it is followed by a word beginning with a vowel, and then it
sounds like an ‘s’ at the beginning of the next word.
un flan auxasperges, une quiche auxjipinards, un gateau auxamandes

2.5.2 A+ article used to translate ‘at the’

or ‘to the9
Je vais au bureau. I am going to the office.

Ill Say where you are going.

Je vais . . .
a. .la plage
b. .l’hotel
c. .la piscine
d. .l’hopital
e. .le musee
f. .le cinema
g. .le theatre
h. .la station-service
i. .la banque
j. .la gare

IV How would you ask the way to these places in Rouen?

Excusez-moi, pourriez-vous m’indiquer comment aller . . . ?

a. .l’eglise St-Ouen
b. .la cathedrale Jeanne d’Arc
c. .le Gros Horloge
d.l’Hotel de Ville
e. .la rue des Capucines
f. .le musee du Theatre
g. .l’office du tourisme
h. .la Seine
i. .la Place du marche
j. .les toilettes publiques
 Pronouns
A pronoun is a word which stands for a noun so that instead of saying Mr
Jones, you can say he, instead of saying the lady, you can say she, and instead
of my husband/wife and I, you can say we.

3.1 Subj ect pronouns

If you know what a subject pronoun is go on to 3.2.

The subject is the person or thing who does the action.

/run,you play, he eats, she drinks, it shuts, we live, joz/ swim, they talk

The subject pronouns in French are as follows.

singular plural

first person je -1 nous - we

second person tu - you vous - you
third person il - he/it ils - they
elle - she/it elles - they
on - one
_

3.1.1 First person

Je in front of a word beginning with a vowel becomes j’. It is only written with a
capital letter at the beginning of a sentence.

3.1.2 Second person

There are two forms of the word for you, tu and vous.
m Tu is used in the singular and only when talking to someone you know
well who has invited you to do so, or to a child.
 Pronouns 87

M Vous is often referred to as the ‘polite’ form, as it is used not only in the
plural but also when talking to someone older than you or to a stranger,
even if there is only one person.

There is a special verb which means to call someone tu - tutoyer - and a verb
which means to call someone vous - vouvoyer.

3.1.3 Third person

Remember that everything in French is either masculine or feminine. A chair
is feminine, so if you want to say anything about it, you have to use elle (she);
similarly, a book is masculine so if you want to refer to it, you have to say il
(he).
In the plural, you use ils to refer to more than one masculine person or
thing, or to a mixture of masculine and feminine things. You only use elles if
all the people or things are feminine words, so if you have a group of ten
ladies and one man, you must still refer to them as ils.

I Which pronoun would you use in these sentences?

a. Jean habite en France.habite dans le Nord.
b. Paul et Marianne habitent dans le Sud.habitent a Marseille.
c. Moi? .habite a Paris.
d. Ou habitez-.?
e. J’habite a Paris avec mes amis.habitons un grand immeuble boulevard
Haussmann.
f. Severine et Emmanuelle habitent dans la banlieue nord.ont un petit
appartement.
g. Ma soeur habite a Lyon.fait ses etudes a l’universite Lyon III.
h. Mes grands-parents habitent en Auvergne.ont une ferme.
i. Ou habites-.?
j. Mon frere joue au tennis.joue tres bien.

3.2 Direct object pronouns

If you know what a direct object pronoun is and how to use
it, go on to 3.3.

The direct object is the person or thing who has the action done to it.
John called me, he saw you, they bought it, they found her, Elisabeth saw us, we saw
you, we know them

I Which are the direct object pronouns in these English sentences?

a. He sees me.
b. I see him.
88 - French Grammar Made Easy

c. They see us,

d. We see them.
e. I see you.
f. I am eating them.
g. She is making it.
h. He finds them.
i. They find us.
j. We find you.
In English, direct objects come after the verb.

3.2.1 French direct obj ect pronouns

singular plural

first person me - me nous - us

second person te - you vous - you
third person le - him/it les - them
la - her/it

In French, they come in front of the verb.

Je le/la/les vois. I see him/her/them.
II me/nous voit. He sees me/us.
Ils te/vous voient. They see you.

When you don’t know whether the person or thing is masculine or

feminine, use le.

II Put the correct pronoun in these sentences.

a. He sees me. II.voit.
b. I see him. Je.vois.
c. I eat them. Je.mange.
d. I don’t eat it (meat). Je ne.mange pas.
e. The children don’t watch them Les enfants ne.regardent pas.
(films).
f. I am making it (the cake). Je.fais.
g. She is eating it (the biscuit). Elle.mange.
h. Mr Durand is buying them M. Durand.achete.
(cigars).
i. Mrs Durand does not smoke Mme Durand ne.fume pas.
them.
j. Mr Pernod doesn’t like you. M. Pernod ne.aime pas.
k. They saw us. Ils.ont vus.
l. We saw them. Nous.avons vus.
m. He bought it (the car). II.a achetee.
n. They found you. Ils.ont trouves.
o. He pushed me. II.a pousse(e).
 Pronouns 89

p- I missed it (the bus). Je... .. .ai rate.

q- We ate them. Nous .avons manges
r. Have you lost it (the cat)? Vous .avez perdu?
s. My husband saw it (the cat). Mon man.a vu.
t. We will find it (the cat). Nous .trouverons.

3.2.2 Past participle agreement

You only need this for written French. It does not alter the pronunciation.

If you are not going to need it, go on to 3.3.

In the perfect tense, the past participle ‘agrees’ with a direct object if the
direct object comes in front of the verb. ‘Agreement’ means adding the
following endings to the past participle.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

— -e -s -es

Je Fai vu. I saw him.

Je Fai vue. I saw her.
Je les ai achetes. I bought them (the onions).
Je les ai achetees. I bought them (the apples).

The past participle also agrees with the object if the object comes in front of
the subject and the relative pronoun que.
Le temps qu’il a perdu ... The time that he has lost . . .
La maison que j’ai vue ... The house that I have seen . . .
Les courses qu’elle a faites ... The shopping that she did . . .
Les verres qu’il a casse ... The glasses that he broke . . .

Ill Replace the word in italics with le, la or les.

Martin a vu son amie - II l’a vue

a. II a vu son ami.
b. II a vu ses amis.
c. II a vu ses amies.
d. II a perdu sa montre.
e. II a achete la nouvelle montre.
f. II a trouve sa montre.
g. II a donne la nouvelle montre a son amie.
90 French Grammar Made Easii

IV Add an ending to the past participle, where necessary.

Jean-Claude . . .
La femme qu’il a aime.
rt
A

Le livres qu’il a lu.

c. Les emissions qu’il a regarde.
d. La voiture qu’il a conduit.
e. Les papiers qu’il a signe.
f. Les mensonges qu’il a dit.
g. Son ami qu’il a trahi.

3.3 Indirect object pronouns

If you know what an indirect object pronoun is and how to
use it, go on to 3.4.
In English, an indirect object pronoun is the same as a direct object pronoun
but has (or can have) to or for in front of it.
I bought her it. = I bought it (direct object - it is the thing that you bought) for
her (indirect object).
Give me it. = Give it (direct object) to me (indirect object).
They showed him it. = They showed it (direct object) to him (indirect object).

I Identify the indirect object pronouns in these English sentences.

a. He lent me his pen.
b. I wrote them a letter.
c. He read it to them.
d. They sent me a reply.
e. I gave it to him.
f. He translated it for me.
g. He wrote them an explanation.
h. I bought her some chocolates.
i. I told them I would be late.
j. I gave him a new pen for his help.

3.3.1 French indirect object pronouns

singular plural

first person me - to me nous - to us

second person te - to you vous - to you
third person lui - to him/her/it leur - to them
 Pronouns 91

In French, you always put the indirect object pronoun in front of the verb.
II me donne des fleurs. He gives (to) me flowers.
Je vous donne un coup de fil. I’ll give you a call.
Je lui envoie un fax. I am sending him/her a fax.
Nous leur avons donne les billets. We have given them the tickets.
Vous ne nous avez pas donne les cles. You haven’t given us the keys.

II Fill in the missing pronouns.

a. II.prete son stylo, (her)
b. Je.envoie une lettre. (them)
c. II.raconte une histoire. (me)
d. Nous.achetons un cadeau. (them)
e. Vous.donnez une invitation. (us)
f. M. Bertrand.presente sa femme, (you)
g. Nous.offrons des fleurs. (her)
h. Elle.remercie. (us)
i. Je.dis cBon anniversaire!’ (him)
j. On.offre une bouteille de cognac, (them)

3.4 Other pronouns: y

If you know about y, go on to 3.5.

Y -there stands for a place that you have already mentioned. It always goes in
front of the verb.
John est alle en Grece. John has been to Greece.
II y est alle deux fois. He has been (there) twice.
Y etes-vous deja alle? Have you been (there)?

Sometimes we would miss it out in English, but you need to put it in in French.
II va en ville. He is going to town.
J’y vais aussi. I am going (there) too.
Allons-y! Let’s go (there).

Try reading them aloud to get used to the sound of the sentence.

I In the following sentences, replace the name of the place (shown in

italics) with the pronoun y. For example:

Benedicte va a Paris. —> Benedicte y va.

a. Monique habite a Lyon.
b. Je vais en ville.
c. Nous allons au cinema au moins trois fois par mois.
d. Etes-vous jamais alles en Ecosse?
92 French Grammar Made Easy

e. Ils mangent souvent au restaurant.

f. Oh! II faisait beau sur la cote d'Azur.
g. Nous avons fait de la planche a voile sur le lac d'Annecy.
h. II a ecoute le Requiem de Mozart a laphonoteque.
i. Nous achetons nos fruits et nos legumes au marche.
j. Manges-tu souvent au McDo?

Y is also used to translate: in it/them, about it/them, etc.

Je ne m’y interesse pas. I am not interested (in it/them).
Je n’y pense jamais. I don’t ever think about it/them.

3.5 Other pronouns: en

En refers to something you have already mentioned and stands for of it or of
them.
J’en ai beaucoup. I’ve got a lot (of them).
Les escargots? J’en mange. I eat (some of) them.
Je n’en mange pas. I don’t eat them.

Like y, we often miss it out in English, but you must include it in French.
Les photos de Liam? En avez-vous? The photos of Liam? Have you any (of
them)?
J’en ai beaucoup. I’ve got a lot (of them).
Je n’en ai pas. I haven’t any (of them).

I Rephrase these sentences using en instead of the word in italics.

Remember to put en in front of the verb!
a. J’ai beaucoup de CDs.
b. II n’a pas d'ordinateur.
c. II a trois stylos.
d. Combien de livres avez-vous?
e. Nous avons beaucoup de differents vins.
f. Avez-vous des cigarettes?
g. Ils ont trois chiens.
h. Avez-vous une voiture?
i. Oui, j’ai une nouvelle voiture.
j. Mon ami n’a pas de voiture.

If you need to replace a + noun, use y. If you need to replace de +

noun, use en.
 Pronouns 93

3.5.1 Devoir, pouvoir, savoir, vouloir and

falloir
These verbs are usually used together with another verb, and the pronoun
comes in front of the verb it refers to (which will be the second verb or the
infinitive).
Je dois les surveiller. I have to keep an eye on them.
II ne peut pas y aller. He can’t go there.
Vous savez le faire. You know how to do it.
Elle veut en avoir. She wants to have some.
II faut le finir. We/You have to finish it.

II Replace the words in italics with a pronoun.

a. Nous ne pouvons pas aller a Paris.
b. Je dois payer Paddition.
c. Vous savez comment utiliser le fax.
d. Elle veut acheter une carte pour la fete des meres.
e. II faut aller a laposte.
f. II peut lire le journal maintenant.

3.6 Word order of pronouns

If you have more than one pronoun in front of the verb, they always go in the
following order.

je me
tu te le
il/elle/on (ne) se la lui y en verb (pas)
nous nous les leur
vous vous les
ils/elles

Remember en always goes at the end.

■' "'-v. ' '

I How would you say the following?

a. He saw me.
b. She saw him.
c. He bought it (the car).
d. She didn’t like him.
e. I can do it.
f. I can’t do it.
94 -- French Grammar Made Easy

g. We went there.
h. They accompanied us.
i. I bought some.
j. I threw them away, (les journaux)

II How would you say the following?

a. He gave it to me. (son numero de telephone)
b. I gave it to her.
c. She gave it to them.
d. They gave it to you.
e. You gave it to us.
f. She bought him it. (le livre)
g. He read it.
h. He gave it to us.
i. We gave it to you.
j. They read it to them.

3.7 Emphatic pronouns

These are used for emphasis and are only used when talking about people or
animals.
Qui est la? Moi! Who is there? Me!
A-t-il une voiture? Lui? Non! Has he got a car? What, him? No!

Emphatic pronouns are also used after prepositions: avec moi (with me),
sans lui (without him), pour eux (for them), selon moi (in my opinion), chez
toi (at your house), etc.
C’est a moi. It’s mine.
II est avec moi. He’s with me.
Nous achetons un cadeau pour elle. We’re buying a present for her.
II est parti sans elle. He went without her.

They are also used with the imperative (for people).

Attendez-moi! Wait for me!

3.7.1 French emphatic pronouns

singular plural

first person moi me nous us

second person toi you vous you
third person lui him eux them, (m)
elle her elles them, (f)
 Pronouns 95

I Replace the people in italics with the right form of the emphatic
pronoun.
a. Ce stylo est a Jean-Pierre.
b. Maurice est alle en ville sans safemme.
c. Elle est sortie avec ses amies.
d. M. Bertrand a achete un cadeau pour safille.
e. Le sac bleu est a Sylvain, et le sac rouge est a Maurice.
f. As-tu vu le film, Maurice?
g. II a mange avec moi et mes enfants.
h. Nous sommes partis sans nos enfants.
i. On a achete des glaces pour toi et tes copains.
j. C’est Marcl

II How would you say the following?

a. Are you coming with me? Vous venez avec ....
b. I am going with him. Je vais avec.
c. He went without us. II est parti sans.
d. We will leave without her. Nous partirons sans .,
e. We are buying it for you. Nous l’achetons pour
f. In his opinion, we are too old. Selon.nous sommes trop vieux.
g. In my opinion, he is wrong. Selon.il a tort.
h. We are going without him. Nous allons sans
i. They are going without her. Ils vont sans
j. She is coming with us. Elle vient avec ..

3.8 Order of pronouns in the

imperative
The pronouns come after the verb and are hyphenated to it.

,This is easy to remember, as the order is just t

*© English!

Regardez-moi. Look at me.

Tenez-le. Hold it.
Choisissez-le. Choose it.
Donne-le-moi. Give it to me.
Restez-y. Stay there.
Achetez-en. Buy some.
Mangez-les. Eat them.
96 French Grammar Made Easy

The pronouns used in the imperative are as follows.

le moi en
la toi y
lui
les nous
vous
leur

3.9 Interrogative pronouns

An interrogative pronoun is used to ask the question Who? or What?. In
French. You use qui? (who?) when talking about a person and que? (what?)
when talking about a thing.
You can use the short form . . .
Qui? Who?
Qui dit ga? Who says that?
Que? What?
Que dit-il? What is he saying?

. or the long form.

Qui est-ce qui... ? Who (is it that) . . . ?
Qui est-ce qui dit ga? Who (is it that) says that?
Qu’est-ce que ... ? What (is it that) . . . ?
Qu’est-ce qu’il dit? What is (it that) he (is) saying?

Note that with the short form, you have to invert the subject and the verb.
With the long form, the word order stays the same.

3.9.1 Qui ox que?

If the word comes in front of the verb, it will be the subject, and if it
comes after it, it will be the object

I Ask about the person or thing in italics. What question would you ask?
For example:

Michel arrive en premier. —» Qui arrive/Qui est-ce qui arrive en premier?

a. Jean-Luc porte unpantalon rouge et unpull bleu.
b. Thomas joue au basket.
c. Nous mangeons du pain grille.
d. Jerome fait sa declaration d’impots.
e. Je veux un billet aller retour.
f. Vous buvez deVeau.
g. Elvire va au cinema.
 Pronouns 97

3.10 Possessive pronouns

You can avoid using possessive pronouns by using the expression
c’est a ... and the emphatic pronouns (see 3.7 above).

If you prefer to avoid the possessive pronouns, go on to

3.11.
Possessive pronouns translate the English mine, yours, his, hers, ours, yours,
theirs. They have to agree with the noun they are replacing.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

mine le mien la mienne les miens les miennes

yours le tien la tienne les tiens les tiennes
his/hers/its le sien la sienne les siens les siennes
ours le notre la notre les notres les notres
yours le votre la votre les votres les votres
theirs le leur la leur les leurs les leurs

Regardez cette voiture, c’est la mienne. Look at this car, it’s mine.
(la mienne to agree with voiture)
C’est a moi. It’s mine.
Ce porte-monnaie, c’est le sien. This purse is hers.
(le sien to agree with porte-monnaie)
C’est a elle. It’s hers.

I Replace the nouns in italics with the correct form of the pronoun.
a. Ce stylo est a moi. C’est le mien.
b. Ces stylos sont a moi. Ce sont.
c. Cette voiture est a mon pere. C’est.
d. Ces livres sont a ma grand-mere. Ce sont.
e. Cette tasse est a vous. C’est.
f. Ces revues sont a mes freres. Ce sont.
g. Cette moto est a vous? C’est.?
h. Cesfrites sont pour nous. Ce sont.
i. Ces glaces sont pour vous. Ce sont.
98 French Grammar Made Easy

3.11 Relative pronouns

If you can recognise a relative pronoun, go on to 3.12.

Relative pronouns are the words who, which and whose when they are used to
refer to someone already mentioned.
la femme qui habite a cote The lady who lives next door
le chien qui aboie toute la nuit the dog which barks all night
mon portable qui ne marche plus my mobile which doesn’t work any
more
le livre que nous venons d’acheter the book which we have just bought
l’homme dont la voiture est toujours the man whose car is always parked
garee devant notre maison in front of our house

The part of the sentence after the relative pronoun is called a relative clause.

A ‘clause’ is the name for subordinate or lesser part of a sentence

which doesn’t make sense on its own but needs the rest of the
sentence to make it make sense.

3.11.1 Relative pronouns qui, que, dont

Qui - who/which
Qui always refers to the subject of the sentence. In the following clause, qui
is the subject of the verb porte.
la femme qui porte une robe bleue the woman who wears a blue dress

Que - whom/which
Que refers to the object of the sentence. In the following clause, que is the
object of je vois.
la femme que je vois the woman (that) I see

Dont - whose/of whom/of which

la femme dont je connais le mari the lady whose husband I know
la personne dont j’ai oublie le nom the person whose name I have forgotten

I Which relative pronoun would you use?

a. The man in the suit and tie is L’homme .... .. est venu en costume-
called Mr Bertrand. cravate s’appelle M. Bertrand.
b. The man I don’t know is L’homme .. .. .. je ne connais pas porte
wearing the sunglasses. des lunettes de soleil.
c. The man whose wife is ill isn’t L’homme .... .. la femme est malade ne
coming. vient pas.
d. The person I was waiting for La personne .. .... j’attendais n’est pas
didn’t arrive. arrivee.
 Pronouns 99

e. The person whose address La personne.vous m’avez donne

you gave me isn’t at that l’adresse n’est plus a cet adresse.
address any more.
f. The person who wants to buy La personne.veut acheter
the flat has already put in an fimmeuble a deja fait une offre.
offer.

3.12 How to say Which one?

After a preposition lequel is used for things.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

lequel laquelle lesquels lesquelles

Nous avons six chiots. Lequel We have six puppies. Which one
voulez-vous? would you like?
Regardez les maisons a louer. Look at the houses to let. Which
Laquelle preferez-vous? would you prefer?
Essayez nos nouveaux parfums. Try our new perfumes. Which ones
Lesquel aimez-vous? do you like?

3.13 Demonstrative pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are so called because they point out a particular
one.

3.13.1 The one which/whose/etc.

The pronouns agree with the noun they represent and are followed by qui/
que or a preposition.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

celui celle ceux celles

J’ai donne la photo a mon cousin, I gave the photo to my cousin, the
celle de ma tante le jour de son mariage. one of my aunt on her wedding day.
100 French Grammar Made Easy

Avez-vous vu mon stylo, celui que Have you seen my pen, the one my
mon pere m’a donne pour mes 21 ans? father gave me for my 21 st?
II faut changer les fleurs, celles You must change the flowers, the
dans le vase de la salle a manger. ones in the vase in the dining-room.
Achetez des haricots, ceux qui sont Buy some beans, the ones which are
les plus beaux. the nicest.

3.13.2 This one/that one

Celui-ci can also mean the former and celui-la the latter.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

this/these one(s) celui-ci celle-ci ceux-ci celles-ci

(here)
that/those one(s) celui-la celle-la ceux-la celles-la
(there)

Quelle bague preferez-vous? Which ring do you prefer?

Je prefere celle-ci. I prefer this one (here).
Vous preferez celle-la. You prefer that one (there).

Quelle porte-monnaie preferez-vous? Which purse do you prefer?

Je prefere celui-la. I prefer that one (there).
Vous preferez celui-ci. You prefer this one (here).

I Say you want to change these things.

Je voudrais changer . . .
a. these gloves gant (m)
b. this ring bague (f)
c. that purse porte-monnaie (m)
d. those shoes chaussure (f)
e. these lamps lampe (f)
f. that tyre pneu (m)
g- this pullover pull (m)
h. those books livre (m)
 Adjectives
4.1 Adjectives and adjectival
agreement
Ml If you know what an adjective is, go on to 4.1.1.

Adjectives are ‘describing’ words; you use them to say what something or
someone is like.

I Highlight the adjectives in these sentences.

Jack is tall and very sporty.
tT !U

He has short, dark hair and blue-grey eyes.

He has a new, blue car.
(L O

He likes to wear smart clothes when he goes to work and casual

clothes at the weekend.
His house is quite small but it has a big garden.
His girlfriend is small and bubbly.
She manages a large bank.
He has an older brother and a younger sister.
i. His favourite dish is tagliatelle alia carbonara.
j. He likes his coffee very hot and very black.

4.1.1 Adj ectival agreement

In French the adjective ‘agrees’ with the noun.

If you know about adjectival agreement, go on to 4.2.

102 French Grammar Made Easq

If the noun is feminine singular, most adjectives add -e (unless they

already end in -e).
If the noun is masculine plural, most adjectives add -s.
If the noun is feminine plural, most adjectives add -es.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

— -e -s -es
petit petite petits petites
timide timide timides timides

In French, most endings are not pronounced, so many adjectives

sound the same in all forms BUT if the adjective ends in -d, -s or -t,
the added -e and -es will mean that you have to pronounce the final -d/-
s/-t. So grand is pronounced gr-aa-n, but grande is pronounced gr-aa-
nd; similarly petit = pe-ti and petite = pe-teet; and gris is pronounced
gri, but grise sounds something like greaze.

II Fill in the missing forms and then try saying them aloud and note
which ones will sound different.

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

a. happy content
b. sad triste
c. short court
d. tall/big grand
e. weak faible
f. strong fort
g- intelligent intelligent
h. stupid stupide
•
1. pretty joli
•
J- ugly laid
k. fun marrant
1. naughty mechant
m. bad mauvais
n. young jeune
o. wide large
P- thin mince
q. modern moderne
r. clean propre
s. dirty sale
t. friendly aimable
 fldjecMves 103

III Which form of the adjective in brackets would you use to complete
these sentences?
a. John a les cheveux.(court)
b. II est.(content)
c. II a une soeur qui s’appelle Louise, (petit)
d. Et deux.freres qui s’appellent Yann et Serge, (grand)
e. Louise est.(joli)
f. Yann et Serge sont.(mince)
g. Ils ont les cheveux.(noir)
h. Louise est tres.(intelligent)
i. Mais elle est souvent.(mechant)
j. Yann et Serge sont.(marrant)
k. Patrice habite une.ville. (petit)
l. II habite un quartier.(calme)
m. Le lotissement ou il habite est.(moderne)
n. Les maisons sont assez.(grand)
o. II a un.jardin. (petit)
p. Le salon est.(grand)
q. La cuisine est assez.(petit)
r. Et les chambres ne sont pas.non plus, (grand)
s. II a une.vue de son bureau, (joli)
t. II prefere les maisons.(moderne)

4.1.2 Irregular adjectives

Adjectives which end in -f
These make the feminine by replacing the -f with -ve.

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

active actif active actifs actives

sporty sportif sportive sportifs sportives
new neuf neuve neufs neuves

Adjectives which end in -x

These make the feminine by replacing the -x with -se.

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

dreadful affreux affreuse affreux affreuses

ambitious ambitieux ambitieuse ambitieux ambitieuses
boring ennuyeux ennuyeuse ennuyeux ennuyeuses
104 French Grammar Made Easy

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

generous genereux genereuse genereux genereuses

happy heureux heureuse heureux heureuses
joyful joyeux joyeuse joyeux joyeuses
serious serieux serieuse serieux serieuses

Other adjectives which end in -x

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

old vieux (vieil*) vieille vieux vieilles

soft/sweet doux douce doux douces
false/wrong faux fausse faux fausses

* You use vieil before masculine nouns beginning with a vowel or silent h.

IV Choose the right form of the adjectives in brackets.

a. M. Barnard est tres.(actif)
b. Mme Barnard n’est pas.(sportif)
c. Les filles Barnard sont.(sportif)
d. Leurs fils, Etienne et Marc, sont.(paresseux)
e. Mme Dubois n’est pas.(vieux)
f. Son fils, Nicolas, est tres.(ambitieux)
g. Ses filles, Marianne et Laurence, ne sont pas.(heureux)
h. Le film etait.(ennuyeux)
i. Les chiens sont.(heureux)
j. Mon chat est.(paresseux)
k. Marilene est.(serieux)
l. Sa peau est.(doux)
m. Ses parents sont.(ambitieux)
n. La pollution est.(affreux)
o. Mes grand-parents sont.(vieux)
p. La reponse est.(faux)
q. Ma tante n’est pas.(genereux)
r. Ces histoires sont.(ennuyeux)
s. Mes notes sont.(affreux)
t. .Noel! (joyeux)

Adjectives which end in -s5 -n or -1

These usually double the final consonant before adding -e.
 RdjecNves 105

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

low bas basse bas basses

fat/big gros grosse gros grosses

good bon bonne bons bonnes

old ancien ancienne anciens anciennes

kind/nice gentil gentille gentils gentilles

natural naturel naturelle naturels naturelles

Adjectives which end in -eai

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

beautiful/ beau (bel*) belle beaux belles

good
looking

new nouveau nouvelle nouveaux nouvelles

(nouveP')

* Before masculine nouns beginning with a vowel or silent h, beau becomes bel and nouveau
becomes nouvel: un bel/nouvel hotel.

Adjectives which end in -ng

These add u before the -e.

long long longue longs longues

V Give the right form of the adjectives in brackets.

a. Mon oncle est.(gros)
b. Ma tante n’est pas.(gros)
c. Ma petite soeur est.(gentil)
d. Mes parents ne sont pas.(gentil)
e. Ma grande soeur est.(beau)
f. Son ami n’est pas.(beau)
g. Mes amies sont.(bon)
h. Mes grands-parents sont.(bon)
i. Buvez de l’eau.! (naturel)
j. Les images sont.(naturel)
k. Avignon est une ville.(ancien)
l. M. Hibert est un.professeur de geographie. (ancien)
m. La Haye est la capitale des Pays.(bas)
106 French Grammar Made East]

n. La chaise est trop.(bas)

o. C’est un.livre. (nouveau)
p. II y a un.hotel dans cette rue. (nouveau)
q. Les.maisons sont dans la rue Lecourbe. (nouveau)
r. Quelle.vue! (beau)
s. Nous avons une.voiture. (nouveau)
t. Mes notes sont.(bon)

Adjectives which end in -er

The feminine forms take a grave accent.

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

dear/ cher chere chers cheres

expensive
proud her here hers fieres
last dernier derniere derniers dernieres
first premier premiere premiers premiere

Adjectives which end in -C

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

dry sec seche secs seches

white blanc blanche blancs blanches
Greek grec grecque grecs grecques
public public publique publics publiques

VI Give the right form of the adjectives in brackets.

a. C’est le.jour des vacances. (premier)
b. C’est la.fois que je vais en France, (premier)
c. La semaine.nous sommes alles a New York, (dernier)
d. Avez-vous vu le.film de Gerard Depardieu? (dernier)
e. Mes cheveux sont trop.(sec)
f. J’ai les mains.(sec)
g. II prefere le vin.(blanc)
h. Elle porte des sandales.(blanc)
i. Sa chemise est.(blanc)
j. Mes.amis, (cher)
k. Ma.amie. (cher)
l. Mon ami est tres.de sa moto. (her)
m. Ses parents sont tres.de lui. (her)
 Adjectives 107

n. C est la.tarte aux fraises. (dernier)

o. II a mange le.croissant, (dernier)
p. On a trouve un ancien vase.(grec)
q. Les lies.sont tres belles, (grec)
r. On va au jardin.(public)
s. La piscine.n’est pas encore ouverte. (public)
t. II prefere un vin.(sec)
u. II voyage en.classe. (premier)
v. Les cheveux de mon grand-pere sont.(blanc)

4.2 Adjectives of colour

Most adjectives of colour agree in the same way as other adjectives, and they
always come after the noun they describe.

4.2.1 Regular adj ectives

Remember that the plural -s is not pronounced and most forms of

the adjectives of colour will sound the same except for vert/verte
and blanc/blanche.

Adjectives of colour form their agreements in the same way as adjectives,

including those which end in -e and -c (see 4.1.1 and 4.1.2).

singular plural

meaning masculine feminine masculine feminine

black noir noire noirs noires

blue bleu bleue bleus bleues
green vert verte verts vertes

red rouge rouge rouges rouges

yellow jaune jaune jaunes jaunes
white blanc blanche blancs blanches

Adjectives of colour always come after the noun.

La Maison Blanche, la robe noire, les chemises bleues

I Complete the sentences with the right form of the colour given in
brackets.
a. Sandrine porte une jupe.(rouge)
b. Ses sandales sont.(vert)
 108 French Grammar Made Easy

c. Matthias porte une chemise.(gris)

d. Sa gabardine est.(bleu)
e. Kathy porte une robe du soir.(bleu)
f. Ses chaussures sont.(rouge)
g. Simon porte un tee-shirt.(jaune)
h. Ses espadrilles sont.(rouge)
i. Jennifer porte un tailleur-pantalon.(bleu)
j. Ses bottes en caoutchouc sont.(jaune)

4.2.2 Adjectives of colour which

don’t change
Adjectives made up of two words.
bleu marine, bleu pale, bleu clair, bleu fonce
Nouns which are being used as adjectives,
brown (chestnut) marron, marron, marron, marron
ivory ivoire, ivoire, ivoire, ivoire
(parma) violet parme, parme, parme, parme
chocolate chocolat, chocolat, chocolat, chocolat

When two colour words are used together, they are hyphenated.
bleu-vert, bleu-gris

II Add the correct form of the adjective given in brackets.

Severine a les yeux.(bleu-vert)
a n trp

... et des cheveux.(marron)

Elle porte un sarong., ... (bleu marine)
... un bustier.(ivoire)
... et un cardigan.(parme)
Ses mocassions sont.(bleu clair)
... et ses chaussettes.(blanc)
Erin

Les murs de son atelier de peintre sont.(rose pale)

i. ... les ndeaux sont.(rose fonce)
j. ... et la porte est.(turquoise)

4.3 The position of adjectives

Most adjectives and all adjectives of colour come after the noun . . .
la maison moderne, le gargon paresseux
. . . although in French, some adjectives do come in front of the noun they
qualify/describe.
la petite maison, le grand batiment
 Adjectives 109

The adjectives which do come in front of the noun are beau, bon, demi,
grand, gros, jeune, joli, long, mauvais, prochain*, vieux.

I Put these adjectives in the right place.

a. une enterprise (jeune) k. une histoire (interessante)
b. une jacinthe (bleue) 1. une couleur (jolie)
c. un enfant (sage) m. une erreur (grosse)
d. un bijou (petit) n. un philosophe (moderne)
e. une femme (belle) o. un film (ennuyeux)
f. un apres-midi (paresseux) P- un voyage (long)
g- un chateau (vieux) q- une experience (mauvaise)
h. une idee (bonne) r. une ville (grande)
•
1. un chat (petit/noir) s. des falaises (blanches)
•
J- un rat (gros) t. un penseur (nouveau)

4.4 Adjectives with two

meanings
Some adjectives have a completely different meaning depending on whether
they are used in front of or after the noun.
un cher ami a dear friend
un pullover cher an expensive pullover
un ancien eleve a former pupil
une ville ancienne an old town
mes propres mains my own hands
des mains propres clean hands
Ce pauvre enfant! That poor child!
une famille pauvre a poor family
le seul homme au monde the only man in the world
L’homme seul pres de la porte est The man on his own by the door is
M. Begum. Mr Beguin.

I Put the adjective in the right place in the sentence according to the
context.
a. M. Gilbert l’a vu de ses yeux. (propres)
b. Je vais vous presenter, auditeurs, un auteur contemporain. (chers)
c. Jerome est un eleve de mon lycee. (ancien)
d. Je n’ai plus de chaussettes. (propres)
e. La voiture la plus est une Ferrari, (chere)
f. Mon oncle nous a montre la ville. (ancienne)

* When used with days of the week, months and years, prochain(e) comes after the noun. See
4.4 for other adjectives that can occur in both positions.
110 French Grammar Made Easy

g. Des millions de cailles sont tuees chaque annee pendant la saison de la chasse.
(pauvres)
h. Les families habitent dans des bidonvilles. (pauvres)
i. La solution, c’est d’aller voir par vous-merne. (seule)
j. L’homme qui attend le bus, c’est M. Robert, (seul)

4.5 The comparative

The comparative is the form you use when you are comparing two things and
say, for example, that something is bigger, smaller, newer, older, etc.

4.5.1 The comparative in French

In French, you put plus (more) or moins (less) in front of the adjective.
M. Bertrand est important. Le Mr Bertrand is important. The
P.D.G.* est plus important. MD is more important.

Marc est petit. Sa soeur est plus Marc is small. His sister is smaller.
petite.

Fabien est intelligent. Son frere Fabien is intelligent. His brother is

est moins intelligent. less intelligent.

I Say the second things are all ‘more’ than the first.
a. Nicolas est timide mais sa soeur est plus timide.
b. Notre maison est grande mais votre maison est.
c. Cet exercice est difficile mais l’exercice suivant est.
d. L’article du Nouveleconomiste est interessant mais 1’emission sur C4 est
e. Le mont Blanc est haut mais le mont Everest est.
f. La Seine est longue mais le Rhone est.

II Now say the second things are all ‘less’ than the first.
a. Une Mercedes est chere mais une Citroen est.
b. La banque X est grande mais la banque Y est.
c. L’equipe A est bonne mais l’equipe B est.
d. L’emission 1 est mteressante mais 1’emission 2 est.

* P.D.G. = President directeur general.

 fldjecMves m

4.5.2 Comparing two things

When you say something is bigger than something else, you use que.
II est plus grand que moi. He is bigger than me.
II est moms intelligent que son frere. He is less intelligent than his brother.

4.5.3 Saying as ... as

If you are comparing two things which are similar, you use the expression
aussi (grand(e)) que (as (big) as).
II est aussi grand que son pere. He is as big as his father.
II est aussi etrange que son frere. He is as strange as his brother.

III Say these places are bigger (+), smaller (-) or as big as (=).
(Remember to make grand agree with the noun where necessary.)
a. L’Hotel Bellevue est.l’Hotel Bijou. (—)
b. Paris est.Lyon. (+)
c. M. Bricolage est.Lacroix. (=)
d. L’hypermarche Champion est.Continent. (—)
e. Le lac d’Annecy est.le lac du Bourget. (—)
f. La Tour Eiffel est ...... que Blackpool Tower. (+)

IV Make these things more, less or just as . . . as.

a. Le mont Everest est.le Kilimanjaro. (+ haut)
b. La Seine est.la Loire. (— long)
c. En Afrique, il fait.en Europe. (+ chaud)
d. La vue de la montagne est.la vue du lac. (= beau)
e. Le footing est.le yoga. (+ fatigant)

4.5.4 Good, better

masculine feminine

singular bon, meilleur bonne, meilleure

plural bons, meilleurs bonnes, meilleures

V How would you say these things are better?

a. Le vin rouge est bon mais le vin blanc est.
b. Les chaussures sont bonnes mais les sandales sont
c. La Citroen est bonne mais la Mercedes est.
d. Les spaghettis sont bons mais les canellonis sont .
e. Le cafe est bon mais le chocolat est.
f. Les filles sont bonnes mais les gargons sont.
g. Cette annee, mon fils a de.notes.
h. On attend de.nouvelles de l’hopital.
112 French Grammar Made Easq

Bon(s) and bonne(s) do sound different, but meilleur(s) and

meilleure(s) sound nearly the same.

4.6 The superlative

You use the superlative when you are comparing more than two things. You
use it to say something is the biggest, the smallest, the best or the worst, etc.
Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Europe.
Cantona is the best footballer.

4.6.1 The superlative in French

In French, as in English, you add the definite article to the comparative form.
Nicolas est grand, Ludovic est plus Nicolas is big, Ludovic is bigger but
grand mais Stephane est le plus grand. Stephane is the biggest.

Marianne est petite, Gregoire est plus Marianne is small, Gregoire is smaller
petit mais Mathieu est le plus petit. but Mathieu is the smallest.

Also as in English, if you are talking about someone’s best friend/worst

experience/etc., mon/ma/mes, etc. can be used instead of the definite
article.
ma plus grande crainte my biggest fear
leur plus grand desir their dearest wish
notre plus petit chat our smallest cat

I Put the adjectives in brackets into the correct form of the superlative.
a. La montagne.d’Europe est le Mont Blanc. (+ haut)
b. Le fleuve.de France est la Loire. (+ long)
c. La grotte.s’appelle le puits d’Aphanize. (4- profond)
d. Le stalagmite.se trouve dans Armand. (+ grand)
e. Le reseau de grottes . s’appelle Felix Trombe et s’etend sur 70 km.
(+ long)
f. Le glacier.d’Europe s’appelle le glacier d’Argentiere. (+ long)
g. Le lac naturel.de France est le lac du Bourget. (+ grand)
h. L’acteur frangais.s’appelle Gerard Depardieu. (+ connu)
i. L’arbre vivant.a 4 700 ans. (+ vieux)
j. L’animal qui a la morsure est un requin noir. (+ fort)
 Adjectives 113

4.6.2 Irregular superlatives: good, better,

best
As with good in English, bon has an irregular comparative and superlative
form.

adjective comparative superlative

bon meilleur le meilleur

good better best

Simon est bon joueur de bridge. Simon is a good bridge player.

Thomas est meilleur joueur de Thomas is a better bridge player
bridge que Simon. than Simon.
Boris est le meilleur joueur de Boris is the best bridge player.
bridge.
Sandrine est la meilleure joueuse Sandrine is the best bridge player.
de bridge.

II Add the correct form (meilleur/meilleure/meilleurs/meilleures).

a. C’est mon.parapluie. Ne le perdez pas!
b. C’est ma.photo de mon ami.
c. Ma.amie s’appelle Celine.
d. La vue d’ici est la.de la region.
e. Cette eglise est le.exemple d’une eglise romane en France.

4.7 Possessive adjectives:

my, your, his, her, etc.
If you know all about possessive adjectives, go on to 4.8.

Possessive adjectives are words which tell you to whom something belongs:
my coat, his umbrella, your briefcase, their house, our cat, etc. These are
important words that we don’t usually think of as adjectives, but they
‘describe’ a noun so they are classed as adjectives.
In English, we only have one form of each: my, your, his, her, our, their. In
French, the possessive adjective has to agree with the noun it is describing.
114 French Grammar Made Easii

4.7.1 Possessive adjectives in French

masculine feminine plural

my mon ma mes
your (tu) ton ta tes
his/her son sa ses
our notre notre nos
your (vous) votre votre VOS
their leur leur leurs

4.7.2 My (mon, ma, mes)

The word for my agrees with the person or thing it is describing. This means
that you use the masculine form (mon) with masculine nouns,
mon frere my brother
mon portable my mobile
mon ami my friend

My in front of feminine nouns is ma.

ma sceur my sister
ma voiture my car

But you use mon in front of feminine nouns which begin with a vowel. This is
because it is easier to say. However, if there is another word between them,
e.g. petite, it goes back to being ma.
mon amie my (female) friend
ma petite amie my girlfriend

You use the plural form mes with plural nouns.

mes parents my parents
mes amis, mes amies my friends

I Mon, ma or mes?
a. .ordinateur f. . dossier
b. .cles g. . courrier
c. .mobile h. . carte bancaire
d. •
...... agenda i. . . ticket de bus
e. •
.crayon j. . porte-monnaie

II Now do the same for your clothes ■ ■ ■

a. .pantalon f. . anorak
b. .chemise g. . manteau
c. .pull h. . echarpe
o
d. .chaussettes 1. . . gants
•
e. .chaussures h . . parapluie
 Adjectives 115

III . . . and your family. Imagine you are showing someone photographs
of your family. What would you say?

C’est mon/ma . . ./Ce sont mes . . .

•
a. enfants e. mere l. cousin
•
b. man f. soeur J- fils
c. femme g- freres k. fille
d. pere h. grands-parents

4.7.3 Your (ton, ta, tes)

If you are not going to need the ton form (it behaves just
like the mon form), go on to 4.7.4.

The words for your (ton, ta, tes) rhyme with the words for my (mon, ma,
mes) and behave in the same way.

IV Put the correct form of ton, ta or tes in front of these words.

C’est ton/ta . . ./Ce sont tes . . .

a. enfants e. frere h. fils
•
b. pere f. grands-parents l. chiens
•
c. mere g- fille J- chat
d. sceurs

V How would you ask what they are called?

Comment s’appelle ton/ta . . . ?/Comment s’appellent tes ..

a. collegues e. amis h. amie
•
b. collegue f. amies l. petite amie
•
c. copain g- ami 3* petit ami
d. copines

4.7.4 His and her (son, sa, ses)

The words for his/her also rhyme with mon, ma, mes and ton, ta, tes and are
used in the same way. Notice that son frere means his/her brother, sa soeur
means his/her sister and ses parents means his/her parents.

VI Parlez-moi de Thomas. Tell me about Thomas by filling in the right

word (son, sa, ses).
a. .amie s’appelle Juliette.
b. .cousin s’appelle Auban.
c. .frere est grand.
d. .mere est sculpteur.
e. .pere travaille a la BCE (Banque Centrale Europeenne).
116 French Grammar Made Easq

f. .soeur fait de la recherche en cardiologie.

g. .petit frere n’a que dix ans.
h. .sport prefere est le tennis.
i. .plat prefere est la pizza ‘Quatre saisons’.
j. .couleur preferee est le rouge coquelicot.

VII Parlez-moi de Charlotte. Now do the same for Charlotte’s family and
friends.
a. .amie s’appelle Jennifer.
b. .petit ami s’appelle Benjamin.
c. .frere s’appelle Nicolas.
d. .soeur s’appelle Isabelle.
e. Comment s’appellent.parents?
f. .scooter est noir et jaune.
g. .passion, c’est le theatre.
h. .couleur preferee est le bleu.
i. .plat prefere est le filet de veau Marengo.
j. .boisson preferee est un cocktail a base de champagne.

4.7.5 Our (notre/nos)

The word for our is notre. It is the same for both masculine and feminine, but
changes to nos in the pural: notre appartement, notre maison, nos enfants.

VIII How would you say these are our things?

C’est notre . . ./Ce sont nos . . .

a. maison e. vins h. jardin
•
b. appartement f. garage i. arbres
•
c. balcon g- voiture )• pelouse
d. cave

4.7.6 Your (votre/vos)

The word for your (vous form) is easy to remember because it rhymes with
notre and nos and behaves in the same way: votre appartement, votre
maison, vos enfants.

IX Ask if these are your things.

C’est votre . . . ?/Ce sont vos . . . ?

a. bureau e. manteau h. affaires
•
b. chaise f. gants i. portefeuille
•
c. ordinateur g- parapluie 3- cles
d. papiers
 Adjectives 117

4.7.7 Their (ieur/ieurs)

The word for their is leur. It adds an -s in the plural: leur appartement, leur
maison, leurs enfants.

X Say these are their things.

C’est leur . . ./Ce sont leurs .. .

a. voiture
b. garage
c. velos
d. jardin
e. fleurs
f. plantes
g. maison
h. porte
i. fenetres
j. balcon

4.7.8 Quickie
■ Mon, ma and mes, etc. agree with the words they describe.
■ If a female noun begins with a vowel, you use mon/ton/son instead of
ma/ta/sa.
■ Son, sa and ses mean both his and hers.
■ Notre, votre and leur become nos, vos and leurs in the plural.

4.8 Demonstrative adjectives

The demonstrative adjective points out a particular thing or things.
this page, that book, these clothes

4.8.1 Demonstrative adj ectives in French

singular plural

masculine feminine

ce (cet*) cette ces

* You use cet before a masculine noun which begins with a vowel or silent h.
 118 French Grammar Made Easq

I Put the correct form (ce, cet, cette or ces) in front of these words.
Je vous conseille.hotel.
a o &* p>

Derriere.maison il y a un grand jardin.

Dans.jardin il y a beaucoup de plantes exotiques.
personnes travaillent dans le jardin.
fleurs sont rares.
sriq r»

arbre est tres vieux.

porte est pour les visiteurs.
depliants sont gratuits.
i. .homme prend des photos.
j. Il est defendu de prendre des photos au cours de la visite de.musee.

4.8.2 This/that/these/those
To differentiate between things that are close to you (this/these) and things
that are further away (that/those), you add -ci or -la to the noun,
ce chien-ci this dog
ce chien-la that dog
cette fleur-ci this flower
cette fleur-la that flower
ces gants-ci these gloves
ces gants-la those gloves

To remember which is which, think of ici (here) and la (there).

4.9 Interrogative adjectives

The interrogative adjective which is translated in French by quel, which
agrees with the noun.

singular plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

quel quelle quels quelles

I Put in the correct form: quel, quelle, quels or quelles.

a Which hotel would you prefer? Vous preferez.hotel?
b. Which room would you prefer? Vous preferez.chambre?
c. Which table do you prefer? Vous preferez.table?
d. Which flowers do you prefer? Vous preferez.fleurs?
e. Which address should I send Je l’envoie a.adresse?
it to?
 Adjectives 119

f. Which flat do you live in? Vous habitez.appartement?

g. I don’t know which coat to Je ne sais pas.manteau porter.
wear.
h. Which shoes are you going .chaussures allez-vous porter?
to wear? .

4.10 Indefinite adjectives

These adjectives agree as normal with the noun (but note that some, such as
plusieurs and quelques, are only used in the plural).

autre (other)
Je vais prendre une autre route. I am going to take another road.
Connaissez-vous des autres Do you know any other stories?
histoires?

certain (certain)
Cette operation demande un This procedure demands a certain
certain savoir-faire. competence.
11 y a une certaine emission que je There is a certain programme I watch
regarde tous les jours. every day.

chaque (each/every)
chaque jour each day
chaque fois every time

meme (same)
en meme temps at the same time
je vois les memes gens dans le I see the same people in the office.
bureau.

plusieurs (some)
J’y suis alle plusieurs fois. I have been (there) several times.

quelques (a few)
Avez-vous quelques minutes? Have you got a few minutes?

tout (all)
tout le temps all the time
toute ma famille all my family
tous les autres all the others
toutes les fleurs all the flowers
 Adverbs
Adverbs are words which describe a verb.
She drives fast. He speaks too loudly.

Some adverbs can qualify an adjective or adverb, e.g. very, quite, too.

5.1 Formation of adverbs

5.1.1 Regular adverbs
Most French adverbs are formed by adding -ment to the feminine form of the
adjective.
douce —» doucement quietly/softly
lent —> lentement slowly
traditionnelle —» traditionnellement traditionally
normale —> normalement normally/usually
reguliere —» regulierement regularly

5.1.2 Adjectives ending in -ent and -ant

These change the ending to -emment or -amment. The only exception is
lent (see above).
evident —» evidemment evidently
constant —> constamment constantly
recent —> recemment recently
 Adverbs 121

5.1.3 Adverbs to watch

adjective adverb

bon - good bien - well

mauvais - bad mal - badly
continu - continuous continument - continuously
gentil - nice gentiment - nicely
petit - little peu - few
meilleur - better mieux - better

5.2 Adjectives used as

adverbs
Some adjectives can be used as adverbs in certain contexts.
■ when talking about speaking/singing/playing an instrument
fort loud/strong
parler fort to talk loudly
haut high
chanter haut to sing high
bas low
parler bas to speak in a low voice
■ When talking about prices
cher dear
(^a coute cher. It is expensive.
When saying whether something is true or false
vrai true
C’est vrai. It’s true,
faux false
C’est faux. It’s wrong/false.
■ In certain other situations
dur hard
C’est dur. It’s hard/difficult.
court short
couper court to cut short
net neat/tidy
refuser net to refuse point blank
 122 French Grammar Made Easy

I How would you say?

Speak more slowly, please! Parlez plus., s’ll vous plait!
cd 43

He refused point blank.

c. That’s not true!
d. It’s too expensive.
e. Speak more loudly, please.

5.3 Other useful adverbs

The following adverbs are very common, so it’s worth learning them,
tres - very
assez - quite
trop - too
souvent - frequently/often

5.4 The comparative and

superlative of adverbs
The comparative and superlative forms of adverbs are made like the compar¬
ative and superlative of adjectives, using plus or le plus, etc.
Lire, c’est difficile. Reading is difficult.
Comprendre, c’est plus difficile. Understanding is more difficult.
Parler, c’est le plus difficile. Speaking is the most difficult.

The following adverbs have irregular comparative and superlative forms.

adverb comparative superlative

beaucoup plus le plus

peu moins le moins
bien mieux le mieux
 Prepositions
6.1 Recognising prepositions
If you know what a preposition is go on to 6.2.

Prepositions are words like in, on, and under. Unlike adjectives, they do not
change. They are usually used in conjunction with a noun or pronoun, e.g. in
the cupboard, near the station, for her, with me.
Prepositions can tell you:
■ where a person or thing is, i.e. its position
sur la table on the table
sous le pont under the bridge
■ how something is done, i.e. manner
avec du beurre with butter
sans eau without water
when something happens, i.e. time
dans une minute in a minute
apres le diner after dinner
for whom something is done
pour moi for me

6.2 The preposition a

6.2.1 Uses of a
A is a very useful preposition. It can be used to convey position, manner, time
and possession according to the context in which it is used.

Position
II habite a la campagne. He lives in the country.
Pour aller a la gare? To get to the station?
124 French Grammar Made Easy

Manner/sort
un sandwich au jambon a ham sandwich
un homme aux cheveux longs a man with long hair

Time
Le tram part a 10h45. The train leaves at 10.45.

Possession
C’est a moi! It’s mine!

6.2.2 A and the definite article

When a is used in front of the definite article and a noun, it combines with the
article to make au in the masculine singular and aux in the plural.

masculine feminine plural

a + le —> au a + la —> a la a + les —» aux

Je vais au cinema chaque semaine. I go to the cinema every week.

Mon frere aime aller aux marches. My brother likes going to the markets.

6.2.3 A meaning at or to
This is usually in answer to the question ou (where).
Je suis a la maison. I am at home.
Je vais au bureau. I am going to the office.

I How would you say you were going to these places?

Je vais a . . .
a. la plage
b. le bureau
c. I’hotel
d. le marche
e. le musee
f. la banque
g- Thopital
h. l’aeroport
i. le distributeur (cash point)
J- la gare
 Prepositions 125
A

6.2.4 A used with towns and countries

A is also used with:
* the names of all towns
* the names of countries which are masculine, unless they begin with a vowel
Si the names of all countries and regions which include les in their name
au Canada, au Luxembourg, aux Etats-Unis

You use en with all feminine names of countries and ones which
begin with a vowel.
en Angleterre en France

II How would you say where these places are?

La Tour Eiffel est. Paris.
v iq r»(D clo cr pj

Buckingham Palace est.Londres.

L’Empire State Building est.Etats-Unis.
Montreal est. Canada.
Tokyo est.Japon.
La Cour europeenne de justice se trouve.Luxembourg.
La Haye est.Pays-Bas.
La Guadeloupe est.Antilles.
i. On parle frangais.Quebec.
j. Lisbonne est.Portugal.

The rule for a + definite article applies with the names of towns:
a + le —> au and a + les —> aux.

Ill How would you say you are going to these places?

Je vais a . ..
a. Le Havre
b. Le Mans
c. les Champs-Elysees
d. les Deux-Alpes
e. le Lavandou
f. le Louvre
g. les Menuires
h. la Cite des Sciences et de l’lndustrie

6.2.5 A used in answer to the question:

What kind of?
Notice that when you are saying what kind of sandwich, cake, ice cream, etc.
you want, you have to add au/a 1’/a la/a 1* or aux in French where there is no
word in English.
126 French Grammar Made Easy

Quelle sorte de sandwich voulez-vous? What sort of sandwich would you like?
Un sandwich au fromage. A cheese sandwich.
Une glace quel parfum? What flavour ice cream?
Une glace au chocolat. A chocolate ice cream.

IV How would you ask for these sandwiches?

Je voudrais un sandwich a . . .
a. le jambon
b. le fromage
c. la banane
d. la confiture
e. les tomates
f. le thon
g. le lard
h. le saucisson

6.2.6 A used in expressions of power

A is used in these expressions.
a essence petrol
a vent wind powered
a propulsion nucleaire nuclear powered

Remember that the final -x in aux is not pronounced ...

une tarte aux /raises, une glace aux cerises, une omelette aux fines herbes
... unless it is followed by a word beginning with a vowel, and then it
makes a liaison, the z sound being carried on to the beginning of the next
word.
un flan auxasperges, une quiche auxepinards, un gateau auxjimandes

6.3 The preposition de

6.3.1 De and the definite article
When de is used in front of the definite article, it combines to make du in the
masculine singular and des in the plural.

masculine feminine plural

de + le —> du de + la —> de la de + les —> des

 Prepositions 127

6.3.2 Uses of de
De can mean:
■ of
C’est le centre de la ville. It’s the centre of the town.
■ from
M. Beriot arrive de la gare. Mr Beriot is coming from the station.
11 than
Maurice a plus de vingt ans et Maurice is more than twenty and less
moins de trente ans. than thirty years old.
with/in
La voiture est couverte de boue. The car is covered in mud.

I Complete these sentences using de and the phrase in brackets.

a. Les touristes arrivent .... .. . (le Japon)
b Ils descendent.(le train)
c. Ils font un tour.(Les monuments)
d. Ils visitent le musee. . . (le Louvre)
e. Ils traversent la place .... ... (la Concorde)
f. Ils prennent le pont. . . (Bir-Halceim)
g- Ils prennent des photos . .(la Tour Eiffel)
h. Leur hotel est pres. . (la place du Trocadero)

6.3.3 De meaning some (of)

Where English uses some (of), French needs de plus the definite article.
Je voudrais du beurre, de la I’d like some butter, some jam and
confiture et des cerises. some cherries.

See also 2.4.

II Tony prepare le diner. What does he need? Remember that in negative

sentences, you use de without the article.
a. J’ai besom.(le jambon), ...
b. .(les pommes de terre), ...
c. .(les tomates) . ..
d. . .. et.(la salade).
e. Nous n’avons plus.(les tomates).
f. Je veux.(la moutarde), .. .
g.(Thuile), ...
h. .(le sel) ...
i. ... et.(le poivre) pour faire une mayonnaise.
128 French Grammar Made Easq

6.3.4 De in expressions of quantity

In these expressions, the de does not change.
un kilo de a kilo of
un kilo de pommes de terre a kilo of potatoes
une bouteille de a bottle of
une bouteille de ketchup a bottle of ketchup
une boite de a tin/can of
une boite de sardines a tin of sardines
un lot de a pack of/special offer of
un lot de trois savons a pack of three soaps
un litre de a litre of
un litre de lait a litre of milk

III Au restaurant. How would you ask for these?

You also use de in the following expressions of quantity. Again, the de does
not change.
assez de enough (of)
II a assez d’argent. He has enough money,
beaucoup de a lot of
J’ai beaucoup de travail. I have a lot of work,
peu de a little
un peu de sel a little salt
plus de more (of)
II a plus d’argent. He has more money,
moins de less
Elle a moins d’argent que son She has less money than her business
partenaire. partner.
trop de too many (of)
Elle fait trop de fautes. She makes too many mistakes.

See also 2.4.3.

 Prepositions 129

6.4 Prepositions of position

Prepositions which tell you position (where something or somebody is)
include the following.
dans in
dans la maison in the house
derriere behind
derriere la porte behind the door
devant in front of
devant le cinema in front of the cinema
entre between
entre le cinema et le cafe between the cinema and the cafe
sous under
sous le pont under the bridge
sur on
sur la table on the table

I Ou est Jean-Pierre? Match the picture with the sentence.

a. II est sous la douche.

b. II est derriere la porte de la salle de bains.

c. II est devant la glace.

d. II est entre la cuisine et la salle a manger.

e. II est sur son lit.

f. II est dans un fauteuil. 6.

130 French Grammar Made Easq

II What you would say to tell someone where the telephone is?

II y a un telephone . . .

6.5 The prepositions en and

chez
En translates in when you are talking about countries which are feminine or
begin with a vowel.
Elle habite en Espagne. She lives in Spain.

Chez is a special preposition which means at the house of. It is followed by

the person’s name or the relevant emphatic pronoun (moi, toi, lui, elle,
nous, vous, elles, eux).
chez moi at my house
chez lui at his/her house
 Prepositions 131

6.6 Useful prepositional

phrases
These tell you where something or someone is. They are called phrases
because they are made up of more than one word, e.g. in front of is a preposi¬
tional phrase in English because it is made up of three words.

. Remember that:
de + le becomes du
de + la does not change: de la
de + r does not change: de 1’
de + les becomes des

en face de opposite
pres de near
loin de far from
a cote de beside/next to
au-dessus de above
au-dessous de below/beneath
autour de around

The following useful expressions tell you where someone or something

building.
en haut upstairs
en bas downstairs
au rez de chaussee on the ground floor
au premier/deuxieme etage on the first/second floor
au sous-sol in the basement

6.7 Expressions of time

These tell you when something happened,
a at
a dix heures at ten o’clock
apres after
apres le petit dejeuner after breakfast
avant before
avant d’aller au bureau before going to the office
pendant during
pendant la journee during the day
pour for
pour une semaine for a week (in the future)
vers about
 132 French Grammar Made Easy

vers dix heures about/towards ten o’clock

depuis since
Je t’attends depuis ce matin. I’ve been waiting for you since this
morning.

The French use depuis (since) when in English we often use ‘for’.
See 1.22.1 for verb tenses with depuis.

II habite ici depuis trois ans. He has been living here for three
years.
Depuis combien de temps How long have you been studying
prenez-vous des cours de frangais? French (and you still are)?
Je prends des cours de frangais I have been doing it (and I still am)
depuis deux ans. for two years.

I How would you answer these questions, using the information given in
brackets?

Depuis combien de temps .. .

. Marc prend-il des cours d’espagnol? (deux ans)
fiTJU

. habite-t-il a Paris? (cinq ans)

. M. Proudhon habite-t-il a Paris? (deux mois)
fLO

. joue-t-il de la guitare? (un an)

. travaille-t-il dans cette boulangerie? (six mois)
r* fl>

. joue-t-il aux echecs? (son enfance)

. Constance est-elle vegetarienne? (Page de treize ans)
STVQ

. fait-elle du ski? (cinq ans)

i. ... font-ils de la planche? (Pete dernier)
j. ... regardent-ils des films de science fiction? (trois ans)
k. ... sortent-ils ensemble? (six mois)
 Conjunctions
and other
useful noises
Here are some useful words for joining two parts of a sentence or filling in
gaps in a conversation.
et and
mais but
puis then
alors then, so
en tout cas anyway
eh ben .. . well, er
et voila and there you are
voici here is
oh la la oh dear
C’est tout! That’s all!

And some other useful phrases.

Ne quittez pas. Hold on. (on the telephone)
Veuillez patienter. Please wait, (on the telephone)
Attendez. Wait.
Je n’en sais rien. I don’t know anything about it.
Je m’en doute. I should have known.
(Jla m’etonnerait. I find that surprising (I would be
surprised if that were true).
1.1
I a parler to speak b habiter to live c organiser to organise d entrer to
enter e voyager to travel f porter to carry/wear g verifier to verify/check
h inviter to invite i laver to wash j arriver to arrive

II a manger to eat b diner to dine c dejeuner to lunch d apprecier to

appreciate e gouter to taste/try f souper to have supper g verser to pour
h deguster to taste/sample i consommer to consume j assaisonner to season
(add salt and pepper, etc.) k melanger to mix

1.2
I a 3/vend b 1/montr c 1/chant d 2/sort e 1/lav f 2/fin g 1/ecout
h 1/ferm i 2/part j 3/prend k 2/chois 1 1/port m 1/rentr n 2/ven
o 2/dorm

1.3
I a eat manger b drink boire c sleep dormir d go aller e talk parler f do
faire g understand comprendre h buy acheter i leave partir j finish finir
k say dire 1 write ecrire m read lire n follow suivre o listen ecouter

1.4
I a je b elle c il d nous e tu f vous g elles h ils

II a il b elle c il d ils e elles f elles g je h ils i ils j nous

1.5
I a parle b mange c porte d travaille e regarde fjoue g aime
h ecoute i habite j decide

II a travaille b arrive c gare d entre e salue f monte g compose

h entre i accroche j commence

IV a vais b achete c appelle d prefere e paie f envoie g espere

h essaie i jette j leve
 Answers to exercises 135

V a parle b habite c vais d arrive e appelle f entre g monte h dine

i envoie j pose k joue 1 gagne m telephone n regarde

VI a remplir b finir c grossir d maigrir e choisir f reflechir g ralentir

h applaudir i vieillir j rougir

VIII a sors b finis c choisis d pars e grossis f dors g ralentis

h reflechis i remplis j vieillis

IX ajeviens bj’offre c Je decouvre djetiens ejecouvre fj’ouvre

X a J’ai b Je dois c Je sais d Je peux e Je dois f Je veux g Je vois h Je

sais ij’ai

XI a Je vends b Je reponds c Je descends dj’attends ej’entends

XII a Je bois b J’ecris c Je fais d Je lis e Je mets f Je suis g Je dis h Je

decris i Je crois j Je prends

XIII a n’ai pas. b ne suis pas. c ne vais pas. d ne bois pas. e n’ecris pas.
f ne fais pas. g ne lis pas. h ne sais pas i ne vois pas j ne viens pas k ne
peux pas 1 ne veux pas m ne mange pas n ne sors pas o ne regarde pas

XIV a Je me reveille b Je me leve c Je me lave d Je me douche, e Je

m’habille. f Je m’assieds. gjem’etonne. hjem’ennuie. ijemecouche.

1.6
I a Nous travaillons aujourd’hui. b Nous jouons au volley ce soir. c Nous
partons de la maison a 18h00. d Nous dinons au restaurant, e Nous rentrons
a 22h00. f Nous allons a Paris demain. g Nous partons a 8h00. h Nous
arrivons a 1 lhl5. i Nous achetons nos billets a la gare. j Nous avons
beaucoup de bagages.

II a parlons b voyons c choisissons d changeons e comprenons

f allons g mangeons h prenons i travaillons j jouons

III a ne parlons pas b n’avons pas c n’allons pas d n’ecrivons pas

e n’avons pas f ne lisons pas g ne regardons pas h ne venons pas i ne
buvons pas j n’avons pas k ne sommes pas 1 ne voyons pas

IV a Nous nous reveillons b Nous nous levons c Nous nous couchons

d Nous nous douchons. e Nous nous reposons. f Nous nous depechons.
g Nous nous habillons. h Nous nous lavons. i Nous nous promenons.
j Nous nous separons.

V a we have nous avons b we are nous sommes c we are staying nous

restons d we are eating nous mangeons e we can nous pouvons f we are
not coming nous ne venons pas g we do not understand nous ne comprenons
pas h we want nous voulons i we are going nous allons j we are seeing
nous voyons k we are leaving nous partons 1 we are arriving nous arrivons
m we are coming nous venons n we are doing nous faisons o we are reading
nous lisons
136 French Grammar Made Easy

1.7
I a tu danses fe tu aimes c tu habites d tu paries e tu regardes f tu
manges g tu ecoutes htujoues i tu laves j tu travailles

II a es b as c aimes d manges e regardes f habites g paries h portes

i fais j joues

III a Comment tu t’appelles? b Tu te leves a quelle heure? c Tu te couches

a quelle heure? d Tu t’interesses aux animaux? e Tu ne t’interesses pas a la
musique?

IV a Tu as b Tu pars c Tu prends d Tu arrives e Tu dines f Tu rentres

V a Would you like a drink? Tu veux boire quelque chose? b Would you
prefer a glass of wine? Tu preferes un verre de vin? c Do you smoke? Tu
fumes? d Do you mind if I smoke? Qa te derange si je fume? e Do you want a
cigarette? Tu veux une cigarette? f Are you hungry? As-tu faim? g Would you
like to go to a restaurant? Tu veux aller au restaurant? h Are you tired? Tu es
fatigue(e)? i Do you like going to the cinema? Tu aimes aller au cinema?
j Have you got someone special? Tu as quelqu’un dans ta vie?

1.8
I a Appuyez sur le bouton. Press the button, b Composez votre code. Enter
your PIN. c Parlez dans le micro. Speak into the microphone, d Attendez le
bip sonore. Wait for the tone, e Poussez. Push, f Tirez. Pull, g Compostez
votre billet. Cancel your (bus/train) ticket, h Signez ici. Sign here, i Ne
quittez pas. Please hold the line, j Patientez. Wait

III a Avez b Allez c Buvez d Mangez e Bougez f Fumez g Faites

h Allez i Couchez-vous j Dormez

V a Don’t smoke. Ne fumez pas. b Dont’ walk on the grass. Ne marchez pas
sur l’herbe. c Don’t eat in the shop. Ne mangez pas dans le magasin.
d Don’t leave your luggage here. Ne laissez pas vos bagages ici. e Don’t
cross the road. Ne traversez pas la rue. f Don’t lean out of the window.
Ne vous penchez pas au-dehors. g Don’t drink the water. Ne buvez pas
cette eau. h Don’t wait here. N’attendez pas ici. i Don’t put ski boots on
the counter. Ne mettez pas vos chaussures de ski sur le comptoir. j Don’t
wear black. Ne portez pas de noir. k Don’t open the door. N’ouvrez pas la
porte.

VI a Can you manage? Vous vous debrouillez? b Are you interested in the
firm? Vous vous interessez a l’entreprise? c Are you responsible for buying?
Vous vous occupez des achats?

VII a Entrez b Mettez-vous c Trouvez d Courez e Ecartez f Tendez

g Rentrez h Baissez i Pliez j Mettez k Bougez

VIII a Sortez b Tournez c Prenez d Continuez e Traversez f Suivez

g Tournez
 Answers to exercises 137

1.9
I a joue b chante c surfe d aime e lone f vend g achete h prete
i prepare j signe

II a est b habite c va d prend e passe f arrive g a h laisse i fait

j retourne

III a se reveille b se leve c se lave d se douche e se brosse f se rase

g s’habille h se chausse i prend j sort

1.10
I a doivent b ont c vont d garent e font f sortent g trouvent
h cherchent i trouvent j appellent

II a ne parlent pas b ne mangent pas c ne portent pas d ne boivent pas

e ne passent pas f n’ont pas g ne vont pas h ne lisent pas i ne regardent
pas j n’habitent pas

III a Partent-ils . . . ? b Prennent-ils . . . ? c Vont-ils . . . ? d Ont-ils . . . ?

e Louent-ils . . . ? f Jouent-ils . . . ? g Font-ils . . . ? h Ont-ils . . . ?

IV a vont-ils? b partent-ils? c voyagent-ils . . . ? d sont-ils . . . ? e font-ils?

f invitent-ils? g restent-ils . . . ?

V a ils/elles se couchent b ils/elles se douchent c ils/elles s’etonnent

d ils/elles s’habillent e ils/elles s’interessent a f ils/elles se lavent
g ils/elles se levent h ils/elles se reveillent

VI a se reposent b se reveillent c se levent d se douchent e se

preparent f sortent g vont h arrivent i s’ennuient j s’en vont

1.11
I a ai b suis c pars d prends e arrive f sors g attends h aime
i m’ennuie j rentre

II a Nous avons un rendez-vous en ville. b Nous sommes pret(e)s. c Nous

partons de l’appartement. d Nous prenons le metro, e Nous arrivons a
1’Opera, f Nous sortons du metro sur la place de 1’Opera, g Nous attendons
Pierre et Benedicte. h Nous n’aimons pas attendre. i Nous nous ennuyons.
j Nous rentrons chez nous.
/V

III a Avez-vous un rendez-vous en ville? b Etes-vous pret(e)s? c Partez-

vous de l’appartement? d Prenez-vous le metro? e Arrivez-vous a VOpera?
f Sortez-vous du metro sur la place de 1’Opera? g Attendez-vous Pierre et
Benedicte? h N’aimez-vous pas attendre? i Vous ennuyez-vous? j Rendez¬
vous chez vous?

IV a Il/Elle a un rendez-vous en ville. b Il/Elle est pret(e). c Il/Elle sort de

l’appartement. d Il/Elle prend le metro, e Il/Elle arrive a l’Opera. f Il/Elle
sort du metro sur la place de 1’Opera. g Il/Elle attend Pierre et Benedicte.
h Il/Elle n’aime pas attendre. i Il/Elle s’ennuie. j II rentre chez lui./Elle
rentre chez elle.
138 French Grammar Made Easq

V a Ils/Elles ont un rendez-vous en ville b Ils/Elles sont pret(e)s.

c Ils/Elles sortent de l’appartement. d Ils/Elles prennent le metro,
e Ils/Elles arrivent a 1’Opera, f Ils/Elles sortent du metro sur la place de
1;Opera, g Ils/Elles attendent Pierre et Benedicte. h Ils/Elles n’aiment pas
attendre. i Ils/Elles ennuient. j Ils/Elles rentrent chez eux.

1.13
I a avons b ai c a d As e ont fa g ont h Avez i a j ont
rv

II a suis b est c sont d est e Es f est g est h est i Etes j sommes

III a joue b mange c fini d vendu e ecoute f perdu g choisi h attendu

i organise j invite k lave 1 demande m ferme n pousse o tire p oublie
q sorti r entre s entendu t parti

IV a joue b dine c telephone d discute e assure f decide g envoye

h change i imprime j regarde

V a vu b fait c ecrit d mis e imprime f vu g du h ete

VI a a gagne b a voulu c a lu da achete e a decide f a mis g a pris

h a vu i a cru j a suivi k a fait 1 ont arrete m a du

VII a Stephanie a lu son dernier roman, b Avez-vous lu le livre?/As-tu lu le

livre? c Nous n’avons pas lu le livre. d Ils ont vu le film, e Stephanie a vu le
film hier. f Nous n’avons pas vu le film, g Avez-vous vu le film?/As-tu vu le
film? h Stephanie a ecrit une lettre. i Je n’ai pas regu de lettre. j Elle l’a
mise a la poste hier. k Son mari a pris son parapluie. 1II a oublie son
journal, m Ils n’ont pas compris. n Nous avons compris. o J’ai compris.

VIII aj’ ai b tu as/vous avez c nous avons d ils/elles ont e il a f elle a

g vous avez/tu as h John a i Avez-vous?/As-tu? j ma femme et moi avons
a

IX a sommes b suis c Etes d sont e est f es g est h sont i etes

j sommes

X a alle b sorti c parti d arrive e descendu f entre g monte h tombe

i reste

XI a est b est c suis d est e sommes f sommes g est h est i suis

XII a nee b mort c allee d partie e arrivee f alles g arrive h venue

i montee j tombee

XIII a alle b allee c alles d alle(e)s e alle(e)s f alle(e)s g alles h alle

i alle(e) j alle(e)

XIV a me suis leve(e) b s’est leve c s’est levee d s’est leve e se sont
leves f t’es levee g nous sommes leve(e)s h se sont leves i se sont levees
j vous etes leve(e)s

XV a nous sommes reveille(e)s b nous sommes leve(e)s c nous sommes

prommene(e)s d nous sommes trompe(e)s e nous sommes egare(e)s
 Answers to exercises 139

f nous sommes arrete(e)s g nous sommes repose(e)s h s’est enervee

i s’est souvenue j me suis debrouillee

1.14
I a dormait b regardait c lisait d discutais e parlions f prenait
g telephonait h reparaient i jouaient

II a avait b avaient c avions d aviez e avais

III a etait b etaient c etiez d etait e etions

IV a attendais b ecoutais c allions d lisait e attendait f sortait g etaient

h faisait i regardiez j buvait

V a faisait b neigeait e avait d soufflait e brillait f pleuvait g se

dissipait h faisait i avait j etait

VI a habitaient; est nee b etait; a demenage c avait; est ne da eu; avait

e traversait; a grille f a vu; attendait g avait; a passe h faisait; a decide
i suivait; a vu j travaillait; a recontre k etait; a pose 1 faisait; se sont maries

VII a Quand j’etais petit(e) ... b Quand j’attendais le bus ... c II pleuvait.
d II faisait froid. e II y avait du soleii.

1.15
I a vais b vas c va d allons e allez f vont g allez h vont i vais

II a vont b va c va d vont e va f va g va h allons i va j allez

III a regarderons b prepareras c mettrez d mangeront e prendra

f sortirez g arriveront h entrerons i partirai j portera

IV a porterai b portera c portera d portera e porteront f porteront

g porterons h porterez

V a irai b viendrez c feras d aurons e sera f verra g voudront

h devrons i saurez j tiendront k faudra 1 pourrez

VI a partirons b arrivera c prendrons d aura e fera f dejeunerons

g sortira h fera i devrons

1.16
I a je mangerais b je boirais c je dormirais d je parlerais e j’habiterais
f j’acheterais g je demanderais h j’ecouterais i je regarderais

II a jouerais b jouerait c joueraient d jouerions e joueriez

III a prefererais b prefererait c prefereraient d prefererions

e prefereriez

IV a aimerais b aimerait c aimerait d aimeraient e aimeriez

V a voudrais b irais c aurais d verrais e irais f pourrais g serais

h saurais i devrais j tiendrais
140 French Grammar Made Easy

VI a pourrait b pourrions c pourrions d pourrais e pourriez f pourrait

g pourraient h pourrions i pourrions j pourrions

1.17
I a venir b prendre c faire d etre e avoir f avoir

1.19
I a Tournez/Tourne b Montez/Monte c Prenez/Prends
d Continuez/Continue e Allez/Va f Regardez/Regarde
g Traversez/Traverse h Prenez/Prends i Descendez/Descends

II a Prechauffez b Emincez c Battez d Mettez e Ajoutez fMelangez

g Beurrez h Versez i Mettez j Faites cuire

III a Regardez b Mangez c Buvez d Faites e Fermez f Ouvrez

g Presentez h Parlez i Venez

1.20
I a Je ne suis jamais alle(e) en France, b II n’a jamais vu Frederic, c Nous
n’avons jamais dine au restaurant, d Ils n’ont jamais mange de viande.
e Vous n’avez jamais appris a nager? f Je ne vois plus Aline, g Elle ne fait
plus de velo. h Ils n’habitent plus Paris, i II n’ecoute plus sa femme, j Ils
n’ont plus d’argent. k Je ne vois personne. 1 Je n’ai vu personne. m Jean-
Luc n’a vu personne. n Personne n’a vu Jean-Luc. o Ils n’ont fait de mal a
personne. p II ne me reste que dix Euros, q Ils n’ont qu’une petite maison.
r II n’y a qu’une chambre. s M. Beriot n’a qu’un fils, t Nous n’avons qu’une
imprimante noir et blanc. ujen’airien. v Ils n’ont rien vu. w Nous n’avons
rien entendu. x Vous ne faites rien! y Ils n’ont jamais rien fait!

II a Nous n’avons rien a manger, b Personne n’a fait les courses, c Je

n’avais pas le temps d’aller en ville. d II n’y a que du pain et du fromage.
e Vous n’allez jamais au supermarche. f Je n’ai plus d’argent.

1.21
I a Quel b Quels c Quelles d Quelle

1.22
I a J’habite ici depuis . . . ans. b J’apprends le frangais depuis . . . ans. c Je
connais mon meilleur ami/ma meilleure amie depuis . . . ans.

1.24
I a Nous avons raison, b Vous avez tort./Tu as tort, c J’ai chaud. d II a soif.
e Ils/Elles ont faim. f Nous avons froid. g J’ai soif. h J’ai besoin d’une
biere. i Nous avons besoin d’une nouvelle voiture. j J’ai raison, k Ils/Elles
ont tort, k J’ai tres froid. m Ils/Elles ont chaud. n Nous avons soif. o J’ai
peur des araignees. p Avez-vous soif?/As-tu soif? q Avez-vous froid?/As-tu
froid? r Avez-vous chaud?/As-tu chaud? s Avez-vous faim?/As-tu faim?
t Avez-vous raison?/As tu raison? u Vous avez tort!/Tu as tort! v Avez-vous
 Answers to exercises 141

peur?/As-tu peur? w Je n’ai pas peur. x II n’a pas peur. y Nous n’avons pas
peur. z II a raison.

II a]’ ai mal a la tete. b Avez-vous mal aux dents?/As-tu mal aux dents?
c Elle a mal au pied, d J’ai mal aux bras, e II a mal au genou. f Avez-vous
mal a la tete?/As-tu mal a la tete? g Elle a mal aux oreilles. h Avez-vous mal
au cceur?/As-tu mal au coeur? i Avez-vous mal au dos?/As-tu mal au dos?
j II a mal au dos.

2.2
I a la voiture b la valise c le sac d le portable e la calculette f le fichier
g la carte bancaire h la reservation i le manteau j le billet k le ticket

II a la maison b la station-service c la gare d la rue e le boulevard f la

station de metro g le magasin h la banque i la poste j le pont

III a l’appartement b le chateau c 1’ecole d Fhopital e Feglise fla

mairie g l’immeuble h l’hotel i 1’avenue j 1’entree k Farbre I le bebe
m Feau n l’enfant o l’homme p l’horloge q la riviere r la me s la ville
t le village

IV a le dimanche b la salade c le Canada d la Loire e le gateau f le

printemps g le litre h le basket-ball i le tennis j le ski k la boucherie
1 le lundi m la patisserie n la France o le hockey p le marche q la
Dordogne r le sweat-shirt s le chateau t le frangais

V a les animaux b les oiseaux c les genoux d les chevaux e les bateaux
f les journaux g les chateaux h les neveux i les cadeaux

VI a les fils b les Frangais c les Anglais d les croix e les repas f les feux
g les pneus h les choux i les bois j les souris

2.3
I a un frere b une sceur c un grand-pere d une grand-mere e un oncle
f une tante g un beau-pere h une cousine i une belle-mere j un chien

2.4
I a du b de F c du d du e des f du g du h des i de la j du

II a de la b du c de la d du e du f du g du hdu i de F J du

III a un b un c des d une e une fun g des h des i un j un

IV a II n’y a pas de ketchup, b II n’y a pas de confiture. c II n’y a pas de

mayonnaise, d II n’y a pas de sucre, e II n’y a pas de lait. f II n’y a pas de
beurre. g II n’y a pas de fromage. h II n’y a pas de soupe. i II n’y a pas de
jus d’orange. j II n’y a pas de yaourt.

V a Je ne mange pas de noix. b Je ne mange pas de cacahuetes. c Je ne

mange pas de sucreries. d Je ne mange pas de viande. e Je ne mange pas
de poisson. f Je ne mange pas de laitue. g Je ne mange pas de tomates.
142 French Grammar Made Easq

h Je ne mange pas de legumes, i Je ne mange pas de pain, j Je ne mange

pas d’escargots.

VI a J’ai beaucoup de livres. b J’ai beaucoup de BDs. c J’ai beaucoup de

CDs. d J’ai beaucoup de photos.

VII a J’ai assez d’essence. b J’ai assez d’argent. c J’ai assez d’informations,
d J’ai assez de temps, e J’ai assez de catalogues.

VIII a J’ai trop de travail, b J’ai trop d’invitations. c J’ai trop de

deplacements, d J’ai trop de bagages. e J’ai trop de papiers.

2.5
I aalavanille b au citron calapistache d au cassis eal’abricot f au
chocolat g a la banane h a la fraise i a l’orange j a la mangue

II a au jambon b au poulet c au saucisson d au fromage e a la sardine

f au thon g aux rillettes h au camembert

III a a la plage b a l’hotel c a la piscine d a l’hopital e au musee f au

cinema g au theatre h a la station-service i a la banque j a la gare

IV a a l’eglise St-Ouen b a la cathedrale Jeanne d’Arc c au Gros Horloge

d a l’Hotel de Ville e a la rue des Capucines f au musee du Theatre g a
l’office de tourisme h a la Seine i a la Place du marche j aux toilettes
publiques

3.1
I a II b Ils c J’ d vous e Nous f Elies g Elle h Ils i tu j II

3.2
I a me b him c us d them e you f them g it h them i us j you

II a me b le c les d la e les fie g le h les i les j vous/t’ k nous

1 les ml’ n vous o m’ pi’ q les r 1’ si’ t le

III alll’avu. blllesavus. clllesavues. d II l’a perdue, e II l’a achetee.

f II l’a trouvee. g II l’a donnee . ..

IV a aimee b lus c regardees d conduite e signes f dits g trahi

3.3
I a me b them c them d me e him f me g them h her i them j him

II a lui b leur c me d leur e nous f vous/te g lui h nous i lui j leur

3.4
I a Monique y habite. bj’yvais. c Nous y allons au moins trois fois par
mois. d Y etes-vous jamais alles? e Ils y mangent souvent. f II y faisait
beau, g Nous y avons fait de la planche a voile, h II y a ecoute le Requiem
 Rnsiuers to exercises 143

de Mozart, i Nous y achetons nos fruits et nos legumes, j Y manges-tu

souvent?

3.5
I a J’en ai beaucoup. blln’enapas. c II en a trois. d Combien en avez-
vous? e Nous en avons beaucoup de differents. f En avez-vous? g Ils en
ont trois. h En-avez vous une? i Oui, j’en ai une. j Mon ami n’en a pas.

II a y aller b le payer c l’utiliser d en acheter (une) e y aller fie lire

3.6
I allm’avu(e). bEllel’avu. c II l’a achetee. d Elle ne l’a pas aime. e Je
peux le faire. f Je ne peux pas le faire. g Nous sommes y alle(e)s.
h Ils/Elles nous ont accompagne(e)s. i J’en ai achete. j Je les ai jetes.

II a II me 1’a donne. b Je le lui ai donne. c Elle le leur a donne. dlls vous

l’ont donne. e Vous nous l’avez donne. f Elle le lui a achete. g II l’a lu. h II
nous l’a donne. i Nous vous l’avons donne. j Ils le leur ont lu.

3.7
I a lui b elle c elles d elle e lui, lui f toi g nous h eux i vous j lui

II a moi b lui c nous d elle e vous/toi f lui g moi h lui i elle j nous

3.9
I a Que porte Jean-Luc?/Qu’est-ce que Jean-Luc porte? b Qui/Qui est-ce
qui joue au foot? c Que mangeons-nous?/Qu’est-ce que nous mangeons?
d Que fait Jerome?/Qu’est-ce que Jerome fait? e Que veux-je?/Qu’est-ce que
je veux? f Que buvez-vous?/Qu’est-ce que vous buvez? g Qui/Qui est-ce
qui va au cinema?

3.10
I a le mien b les miens c la sienne d les siens e la votre f les leurs g la
votre h les notres i les votres

3.11
I a qui b que c dont d que e dont f qui

3.13
I a ceux-ci b celle-ci c celui-la d celles-la e celles-ci f celui-la g celui-
ci h ceux-la

4.1
I a tall, sporty b short, dark, blue-grey c new, blue d smart, casual
e small, big f small, bubbly g large h older, younger i favourite j hot,
black
144 French Grammar Made Easy

II

Singular Plural

masculine feminine masculine feminine

a content contente contents contentes

b triste triste tristes tristes
c court courte courts courtes
d grand grande grands grandes
e faible faible faibles faibles
f fort forte forts fortes
g intelligent intelligente intelligents intelligentes
h stupide stupide stupides stupides
•

i joli jolie jolis jolies

•

3 laid laide laids laides

k marrant marrante marrants marrantes
1 mechant mechante mechants mechantes
m mauvais mauvaise mauvais mauvaises
n jeune jeune jeunes jeunes
© large large larges larges
P mince mince minces minces
q moderne moderne modernes modernes
r propre propre propres propres
s sale sale sales sales
t aimable aimable aimables aimables

III a courts b content c petite d grands e jolie f minces g noirs

h intelligente i mechante j marrants k petite 1 calme m moderne
n grandes o petit p grand q petite r grandes s jolie t modernes

IV a actif b sportive c sportives d paresseux e vieille f ambitieux

g heureuses h ennuyeux i heureux j paresseux k serieuse 1 douce
m ambitieux n affreuse o vieux p fausse q genereuse r ennuyeuses
s affreuses t Joyeux

V a gros b grosse c gentille d gentils e belle f beau g bonnes h bons

i naturelle j naturelles k ancienne 1 ancien m Bas n basse o nouveau
p nouvel q nouvelles r belle s nouvelle t bonnes

VI a premier b premiere c derniere d dernier e secs f seches g blanc

h blanches i blanche j chers k chere 1 her m hers n derniere
© dernier p grec q grecques r public s publique t sec u premiere
v blancs

4.2
I a rouge b vertes c grise d bleue e bleue f rouges g jaune h rouges
i bleu j jaunes
 Answers to exercises 145

II a bleu-vert b marron c bleu marine d ivoire e parme f bleu clair

g blanches h rose pale i rose fonce j turquoise

4.3
I a une jeune enterprise b une jacinthe bleue c un enfant sage d un petit
bijou e une belie femme f un apres-midi paresseux g un vieux chateau
h une bonne idee i un petit chat noir j un gros rat k une histoire
interessante 1 une jolie couleur m une grosse erreur n un philosophe
moderne o un film ennuyeux p un long voyage q une mauvaise
experience r une grand ville s des falaises blanches t un penseur nouveau

4.4
I a M. Gilbert l’a vu de ses propres yeux. b Je vais vous presenter, chers
auditeurs, un auteur contemporain. c Jerome est un ancien eleve de mon
lycee. d Je n’ai plus de chaussettes propres. e La voiture la plus chere est
une Ferrari, f Mon oncle nous a montre la ville ancienne. g Des millions de
pauvres cailles sont tuees chaque annee pendant la saison de la chasse.
h Les families pauvres habitent dans des bidonvilles. i La seule solution,
c’est d’aller voir par vous-meme. j L’homme seul qui attend le bus, c’est
M. Robert.

4.5
I a plus timide b plus grande c plus difficile d plus interessante e plus
haut f plus long

II a moins chere b moins grande c moins bonne d moins interessante

III a moins grand que b plus grand que c aussi grand que d moins grand
que e moins grand que f plus grande que

IV a plus haut que b moins longue que c plus chaud qu’ d aussi belle que
e plus fatigant que

V a meilleur b meilleures c meilleure d meilleurs e meilleur

f meilleurs g meilleures h meilleures

4.6
I a la plus haute b le plus long c la plus profonde d le plus grand e le
plus long f le plus long g le plus grand h le plus connu i le plus vieux
j la plus forte

II a meilleur b meilleure c meilleure d meilleure e meilleur

4.7
I a mon b mes c mon d mon e mon f mon g mon h ma i mon j mon

II a mon b ma c mon d mes e mes f mon g mon h mon i mes j mon

III a Ce sont mes enfants. b C’est mon mari. c C’est ma femme, d C’est
mon pere. e C’est ma mere, f C’est ma soeur. g Ce sont mes freres. h Ce
146 French Grammar Made Easy

sont mes grands-parents. i C’est mon cousin, j C’est mon fils, k C’est ma
fille.

IV a Ce sont tes enfants. b C’est ton pere. c C’est ta mere, d Ce sont tes
soeurs. e C’est ton frere. f Ce sont tes grands-parents. g C’est ta fille.
h C’est ton fils, i Ce sont tes chiens. j C’est ton chat.

V a Comment s’appellent tes collegues? b Comment s’appelle ton/ta

collegue? c Comment s’appelle ton copain? d Comment s’appellent tes
copines? e Comment s’appellent tes amis? f Comment s’apellent tes amies?
g Comment s’appelle ton ami? h Comment s’appelle ton amie? i Comment
s’appelle ta petite amie? j Comment s’appelle ton petit ami?

VI a Son b Son c Son d Sa e Son f Sa g Son h Son i Son j Sa

VII a Son b Son c Son d Sa e ses f Son g Sa h Sa i Son j Sa

VIII a C’est notre maison. b C’est notre appartement. c C’est notre

balcon. d C’est notre cave, e Ce sont nos vins. f C’est notre garage.
g C’est notre voiture. h C’est notre jardin. i Ce sont nos arbres. j C’est
notre pelouse.

IX a C’est votre bureau? b C’est votre chaise? c C’est votre ordinateur?

d Ce sont vos papiers? e C’est votre manteau? f Ce sont vos gants? g C’est
votre parapluie? h Ce sont vos affaires? i C’est votre portefeuille? j Ce
sont vos cles?

X a C’est leur voiture. b C’est leur garage, c Ce sont leurs velos. d C’est
leur jardin. e Ce sont leurs fleurs. f Ce sont leurs plantes. g C’est leur
maison. h C’est leur porte. i Ce sont leurs fenetres. j C’est leur balcon.

4.8
I a cet b cette c ce d Ces e Ces f Cet g Cette h Ces i Cet j ce

4.9
I a quel b quelle c quelle d quelles e quel f quel g quel h Quelles

5.2
I a lentement b II a refuse net. c Ce n’est pas vrai! d C’est trop cher.
e Parlez plus fort, s’il vous plait.

6.2
a Je vais a la plage, b Je vais au bureau, c Je vais a l’hotel. d Je vais au
marche. e Je vais au musee. f Je vais a la banque. g Je vais a l’aeroport.
i Je vais au distributeur. j Je vais a la gare.

II a a b a c aux d au e au f au g au h aux i au j au

III a Je vais au Havre, b Je vais au Mans, c Je vais aux Champs-Elysees.

d Je vais aux Deux-Alpes. e Je vais au Lavandou. f Je vais au Louvre, g Je
vais aux Menuires. h Je vais a la Cite des Sciences et de l’lndustrie.
 Answers fo exercises 147

IV a Je voudrais un sandwich au jambon. b Je voudrais un sandwich au

fromage. c Je voudrais un sandwich a la banane. d Je voudrais un sandwich
a la confiture, e Je voudrais un sandwich aux tomates. f Je voudrais un
sandwich au thon. g Je voudrais un sandwich au lard, h Je voudrais un
sandwich au saucisson.

6.3
I a du Japon b du train c des monuments d du Louvre e de la Concorde
f de Bir-Hakeim g de la Tour Eiffel h de la Place du Trocadero

II a du jambon b des pommes de terre c des tomates d de la salade

e de tomates f de la moutarde g de l’huile h du sel i du poivre

III a une bouteille de vin b un verre d’eau c une tasse de cafe d du sucre
e une omelette au fromage f du pain g une glace a la fraise h une salade
de fruits

6.4
I a3 b 6 cl d2 e4 f5

II a sur la table b sur l’etagere c sous le placard d dans le tiroir

e derriere le rideau

6.7
I a II prend les cours d’espagnol depuis deux ans. b II habite a Paris depuis
cinq ans. c M. Proudhon habite a Paris depuis deux mois. d II joue de la
guitare depuis un an. e II travaille dans cette boulangerie depuis six mois.
f II joue aux echecs depuis son enfance. g Constance est vegetarienne
depuis l’age de treize ans. h Elle fait du ski depuis cinq ans. i Ils font de la
planche depuis l’ete dernier, j Ils regardent des films de science fiction
depuis trois ans. k Ils sortent ensemble depuis six mois.
 Avoir and etre
Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future
Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

avoir j’ai nous avons j’ai eu j’aurai

to have tu as vous avez j’avais j’aurais
il a ils ont que j’aie

etre je suis nous sommes j’ai ete je serai

to be tu es vous etes j’etais je serais
il est ils sont que je sois

Regular - er, -ir and -re verbs

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future
Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

parler je parle nous parlons j’ai parle je parlerai

to speak tu paries vous parlez je parlais je parlerais
il parle ils parlent que je parle

finir je finis nous finissons j’ai fini je finirai

to finish tu finis vous finissez je finissais je finirais
il finit ils finissent que je finisse

repondre je reponds nous repondons j’ai repondu je repondrai

to reply tu reponds vous repondez je repondais je repondrais
il repond ils repondent que je reponde
 Verb rabies 149

Irregular verbs
Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future
✓
Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

acheter j’achete nous achetons j’ai achete j’acheterai

to buy tu achetes vous achetez j’achetais j’acheterais
il achete ils achetent que j’achete

admettre see: mettre

to admit

aller je vais nous allons je suis alle(e) j’irai

to go tu vas vous allez j’allais j’irais
il va ils vont que j’aille

apercevoir j’aper^ois nous apercevons j’ai apergu j’apercevrai

to catch sight tu apergois vous apercevez j’apercevais j’apercevrais
of il aper^oit ils apergoivent que j’aper^oive

apparaitre see: paraitre

to appear

apprendre see: prendre

to learn

s’asseoir je m’assieds nous nous asseyons je me suis assis(e) je m’assierai

to sit down tu t’assieds vous vous asseyez je m’asseyais je m’assierais
il s’assied ils s’asseyent que je m’asseye

atteindre j’atteins nous atteignons j’ai atteint j’atteindrai

to reach tu atteins vous atteignez j’attegnais j’atteindrais
il atteint ils atteignent que j’atteigne

battre je bats nous battons j’ai battu je battrai

to beat tu bats vous battez je battais je battrais
il bat ils battent que je batte

boire je bois nous buvons j’ai bu je boirai

to drink tu bois vous buvez je buvais je boirais
il boit ils boivent que je boive

commencer je commence nous commen9ons j’ai commence je commencerai

to begin tu commences vous commencez je commengais je commencerais
il commence ils commencent que je commence

comprendre see: prendre

to understand
150 French Grammar Made Easy

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future

Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

conduire je conduis nous conduisons j’ai conduit je conduirai

to drive tu conduis vous conduisez je conduisais je conduirais
il conduit ils conduisent que je conduise

connaitre je connais nous connaissons j’ai connu je connaitrai

to know7 tu connais vous connaissez je connaissais je connaitrais
il connait ils connaissent que je connaisse

coudre je couds nous cousons j’ai cousu je coudrai

to sew tu couds vous cousez je cousais je coudrais
il coud ils cousent que je couse

courir je cours nous courons j’ai couru je courrai

to run tu cours vous courez je courais je courrais
il court ils courent que je coure

couvrir see: ouvrir

to cover

craindre je crains nous craignons j’ai craint je craindrai

to fear tu crains vous craignez je craignais je craindrais
il craint ils craignent que je craigne

croire je crois nous croyons j’ai cru je croirai

to believe tu crois vous croyez je croyais je croirais
ils croit ils croient que je croie

cueillir je cueille nous cueillons j’ai cueilli je cueillerai

to gather tu cueilles vous cueillez je cueillais je cueillerais
il cueille ils cueillent que je cueille

decouvrir see: ouvrir

to discover

decrire see: ecrire

to describe

devoir je dois nous devons j’ai du je devrai

to have to tu dois vous devez je devais je devrais
il doit ils doivent que je doive

dire je dis nous disons j’ai dit je dirai

to say tu dis vous dites je disais je dirais
il dit ils disent que je dise

dormir je dors nous dormons j’ai dormi je dormirai

to sleep tu dors vous dormez je dormais je dormirais
il dort ils dorment que je dorme
 Verb tables 151

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future

Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

ecrire j ’ecris nous ecrivons j’ai ecrit j’ecrirai

to write tu ecris vous ecrivez j’ecrivais j’ecrirais
il ecrit ils ecrivent que j’ecrive

envoyer j’envoie nous envoyons j’ai envoye j’enverrai

to send tu envoies vous envoyez j’envoyais j’enverrais
il envoie ils envoient que j’envoie

essayer j’essaie nous essayons j’ai essay e j’essayerai

to try tu essaies vous essayez j’essayais j’essayerais
il essaie ils essaient que j’essaie

faire je fais nous faisons j’ai fait je ferai

to do/make tu fais vous faites je faisais je ferais
il fait ils font que je fasse

falloir il faut il a fallu il faudra

to be il fallait il faudrait
necessary qu’il faille

introduire see: conduire

to introduce

lever je leve nouslevons j’ai leve je leverai

to raise/lift tu leves vouslevez je levais je leverais
il leve ils levent que je leve

lire je lis nous lisons j’ai lu je lirai

to read tu lis vous lisez je lisais je lirais
il lit ils lisent que je lise

manger je mange nous mangeons j’ai mange je mangerai

to eat tu manges vous mangez je mangeais je mangerais
il mange ils mangent que je mange

mettre je mets nous mettons j’ai mis je mettrai

to put tu mets vous mettez je mettais je mettrais
il met ils mettent que je mette

mourir je meurs nous mourons je suis mort(e) je mourrai

to die tu meurs vous mourez je mourais je mourrais
il meurt ils meurent que je meure

nager see: manger

to swim

naitre je nais nous naissons je suis ne(e) je naitrai

to be born tu nais vous naissez je naissais je naitrais
il nait ils naissent que je naisse
152 French Grammar Made Easy

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future

Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

offrir j’offre nous offrons j’ai offert j’offrirai

to offer tu offres vous offrez j’offrais j’offrirais
il offre ils offrent que j’offre

ouvrir j’ouvre nous ouvrons j’ai ouvert j’ouvrirai

to open tu ouvres vous ouvrez j’ouvrais j’ouvrirais
il ouvre ils ouvrent que j’ouvre

paraitre je parais nous paraissons j’ai paru je paraitrai

to appear/ tu parais vous paraissez je paraissais je paraitrais
seem il parait ils paraissent que je paraisse

partir je pars nous partons je suis parti(e) je partirai

to leave tu pars vous partez je partais je partirais
ils part ils partent que je parte

payer je paie nous payons j’ai paye je paierai

to pay tu paies vous payez je payais je paierais
il paie ils paient que je paie

permettre see: mettre

to permit

plaindre je plains nous plaignons j’ai plaint je plaindrai

to pity tu plains vous plaignez je plaignais je plaindrais
il plaint ils plaignent que je plaigne

pleuvoir il pleut il a plu il pleuvra

to rain il pleuvait il pleuvrait
qu’il pleuve

poursuivre see: suivre

to pursue

pou voir je peux nous pouvons j’ai pu je pourrai

to be able to tu peux vous pouvez je pouvais je pourrais
il peut ils peuvent que je puisse

prendre je prends nous prenons j’ai pris je prendrai

to take tu prends vous prenez je prenais je prendrais
il prend ils prennent que je prenne

recevoir je retpois nous recevons j’ai regu je recevrai

to receive tu regois vous recevez je recevais je recevrais
il regoit ils regoivent que je regoive

reconnaitre see: connaitre

to recognise
 Verb fables 153

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future

Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

resoudre je resous nous resolvons j’ai resolu je resoudrai

to resolve tu resous vous resolvez je resolvais je resoudrais
il resout ils resolvent que je resolve

rire je ris nous rions j’ai ri je rirai

to laugh tu ris vous riez je riais je rirais
il rit ils rient que je rie

rompre je romps nous rompons j’ai rompu je romprai

to break tu romps vous rompez je rompais je romprais
(a contract, etc.) il romp ils rompent que je rompe

savoir je sais nous savons j’ai su je saurai

to know tu sais vous savez je savais je saurais
il sait ils savent que je sache

sentir je sens nous sentons j’ai senti je sentirai

to smell tu sens vous sentez je sentais je sentirais
il sent ils sentent que je sente

servir je sers nous servons j’ai servi je servirai

to serve tu sers vous servez je servais je servirais
il sert ils servent que je serve

sortir je sors nous sortons je suis sorti(e) je sortirai

to go out tu sors vous sortez je sortais je sortirais
il sort ils sortent que je sorte

souffrir je souffre nous souffrons j’ai souffert je souffrirai

to suffer tu souffres vous souffrez je souffrais je souffrirais
il souffre ils souffrent que je souffre

sourire je souris nous sourions j’ai souri je sourirai

to smile tu souris vous souriez je souriais je sourirais
il sourit ils sourient que je sourie

suivre je suis nous suivons j’ai suivi je suivrai

to follow tu suis vous suivez je suivais je suivrais
il suit ils suivent que je suive

tenir je tiens nous tenons j’ai tenu je tiendrai

to hold tu tiens vous tenez je tenais je tiendrais
il tient ils tiennent que je tienne

vaincre je vaincs nous vainquons j’ai vaincu je vaincrai

to defeat tu vaincs vous vainquez je vainquais je vaincrais
il vainc ils vainquent que je vainque
154 French Grammar Made Easy

Infinitive Present tense Perfect Future

Imperfect Conditional
Subjunctive

valoir je vaux nous valons j’ai valu je vaudrai

to be worth tu vaux vous valez je valais je vaudrais
il vaut ils valent que je vale

venir je viens nous venons je suis venu(e) je viendrai

to come tu viens vous venez je venais je viendrais
il vient ils viennent que je vienne

vivre je vis nous vivons j’ai vecu je vivrai

to live tu vis vous vivez je vivais je vivrais
il vit ils vivent que je vive

voir je vois nous voyons j’ai vu je verrai

to see tu vois vous voyez je voyais je verrais
il voit ils voient que je voie

vouloir je veux nous voulons j’ai voulu je voudrai

to want tu veux vous voulez je voulais je voudrais
il veut ils veulent que je veuille

Verbs and prepositions

These verbs are followed by prepositions in English, but not in French.

attendre to wait for

J’attends le bus. I’m waiting for the bus.
chercher to look for
II cherche son parapluie. He’s looking for his umbrella,
demander to ask for
Je demande une reponse. I’m asking for a reply,
ecouter to listen to
Elle ecoute un CD de Celine Dion, She’s listening to a Celine Dion CD.
habiter to live in/at
Mon collegue habite Paris, My colleague lives in Paris,
mettre to put (on)
Marianne met son impermeable, Marianne puts on her raincoat.
payer to pay for
Je paie l’addition. I pay the bill.
regarder to look at/watch
II regarde sa montre. He’s looking at his watch.
sortir to go out
Elle sort. She’s going out.
 Verb rabies 155

Some verbs which don’t require a preposition in English are followed by de

in French. These are some of the most commonly used ones.
s’apercevoir de to notice
II s’est aperqu de l’heure. He noticed the time,
changer de to change
Elle a change de robe. She changed her dress,
discuter de to discuss
Ils ont discute des nouvelles. They discussed the news,
douter de to doubt
Elle doute de son intention, She doubts his intention.
jouer de to play (an instrument)
Elle joue du piano, She plays the piano,
manquer de to lack
II manque d’humour. He lacks humour,
se mefier de to mistrust
Elle se mefie de son collegue. She mistrusts her colleague,
se servir de to use
II se sert des idees de son ami. He uses his friend’s ideas,
se souvenir de to remember
Je me souviens des vacances. I remember the holidays,
se tromper de to mistake
II s’est trompe de route. He mistook the way/took a wrong turn.

These are some of the verbs which are followed by a in French.

aider quelqu’un a to help someone
J’ai aide mon pere a classer. I helped my father with the fitting,
s’appreter a to prepare to
II s’est apprete a aller a la reunion, He prepared to go to the meeting,
arriver a to manage to
Elle est arrivee a ouvrir la boite. She managed to open the tin.
assister a to attend
J’ai assiste a deux reunions, I attended two meetings,
commencer a to begin to
Elle a commence a chanter, She began to sing,
demander a to ask
J’ai demande a mon collegue de I asked my colleague to help me.
m’aider.
des(obeir) a to (dis)obey
L’enfant a (des)obei a son pere. The child (dis)obeyed its father,
(de)plaire a to (dis)please
Elle fait tout pour plaire a ses enfants. She does everything to please her
children.
s’interesser a to be interested in
Je m’interesse au cinema comme I’m interested in a career in the
metier, cinema,
jouer a to play a sport
II joue au tennis. He plays tennis.
156 French Grammar Made Easy

penser a to think about

Je pense a lui. I’m thinking about him.
renoncer a to renounce/give up
II a renonce a fumer. He gave up smoking,
repondre a to reply to
II a repondu a mes questions, He replied to my questions,
resister a to resist
II a resiste a ses cajoleries, He resisted her coaxing,
ressembler a to resemble
II ressemble a son pere. He resembles his father,
reussir a to succeed in
II a reussi a envoyer le fax a temps, He succeeded in sending the fax in
time.
telephoner a to ring (up)
II a telephone a son collegue. He rang his colleague.
tenir a to be determined to
Je tiens a y aller. I’m determined to go (there).
F rench Grammar Made Easy is for those non-linguists who
have some knowledge of the language but need to know
the basics of grammar to progress beyond phrasebook
French. It has been designed to guide the learner through the
nuts and bolts of the French language in plain English, following
the principle that we can all understand enough grammar to put
the language together without having to master "conjugations"
and "declensions". This is a book for people who want to drive a
car without mastering the principles of the internal combustion
engine - but find that if they know where to put the oil and how to
check the tyres, it does help!

E xplanations are supported throughout by exercises for

learners to check their understanding and answers are
given at the back of the book. And for people with some
language-learning experience, a fast-track route signals short cuts
to help you go straight to the information that you need most.
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