Numbers,Times and Dates 1 How do you say numbers in French? Here are some of the cardinal numbers in French:
Here are some of the ordinal numbers in French:
Il habite au cinquième (étage). He lives on the fifth floor. Il est arrivé troisième. He came in third. Here are some fractions, decimals and percentages in French:
2 How do you express the time in French? To talk about the time in French, you normally say: Quelle heure est-il? What time is it? Il est... It’s... une heure one o’clock une heure dix ten past one une heure et quart quarter past one une heure et demie half past one deux heures moins vingt twenty to two deux heures moins le quart quarter to two You can also talk about what time something is happening by saying: À quelle heure? At what time? à minuit at midnight à midi at midday, at noon à une heure (de l’après-midi) at one o’clock (pm) à huit heures (du soir) at eight o’clock (pm) à 11h15 or onze heures quinze at 11.15 or eleven fifteen à 20h45 or vingt heures quarante-cinq at 20.45 or twenty forty-five 3 What are the days of the week in French? Here are the days of the week in French: lundi Monday mardi Tuesday mercredi Wednesday jeudi Thursday vendredi Friday samedi Saturday dimanche Sunday Note that days of the week are not written with a capital letter in French. Here are some common expressions using days of the week: Quand? When? lundi on Monday le lundi on Mondays tous les lundis every Monday mardi dernier lastTuesday vendredi prochain next Friday samedi en huit a week on Saturday samedi en quinze two weeks on Saturday 4 What are the months of the year in French? Here are the months of the year in French:
Note that months of the year are not written with a capital letter in French. Here are some common expressions of time using months of the year: Quand? When? en février in February en 1998 in 1998 le 1er décembre on December 1st le premier décembre on December first en mille neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-huit in nineteen ninety-eight Quel jour sommes-nous? What day is it? Nous sommes le... It’s... lundi 26 février or lundi vingt-six février Monday 26February or Monday twenty-sixth of February dimanche 1er octobre or dimanche premier octobre Sunday 1st October or Sunday the first of October 5 What are some useful time and date phrases in French?
Here are some useful phrases in French to talk about when something is happening: Quand? When? aujourd’hui today ce matin this morning cet après-midi this afternoon ce soir this evening Souvent? How often? tous les jours every day tous les deux jours every other day une fois par semaine once a week deux fois par semaine twice a week une fois par mois once a month Ça s’est passé quand? When did it happen? le matin in the morning le soir in the evening hier yesterday hier soir yesterday evening avant-hier the day before yesterday il y a une semaine a week ago il y a quinze jours weeks ago l’an dernier or l’année dernière last year Ça va se passer quand? When is it going to happen? demain tomorrow demain matin tomorrow morning après-demain the day after tomorrow dans deux jours in two days dans une semaine in a week dans quinze jours in two weeks le mois prochain next month l’an prochain or l’année prochaine next year
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Questions 1 How do you ask a question in French? There are four ways of asking questions in French 1-by making your voice go up at the end of the sentence Vous aimez la France? Do you like France? 2-by using the phrase est-ce que Est-ce que tu connais Marie? Do you know Marie? 3-by changing round the order of words in a sentence Aimez-vous la France? Do you like France? 4-by using a question word Où vont-ils? Where are they going? 2 What's the easiest way to ask a question in French? If you are expecting the answer yes or no, there is a very straightforward way of asking a question. You can keep word order just as it would be in a normal sentence (subject then verb), but turn it into a question by making your voice go up at the end of the sentence. So to turn a sentence into a question, all you need to do is to add a question mark and make your voice go up at the end: Vous aimez la France. You like France. Vous (subject) aimez (verb) la France? Do you like France? On part tout de suite. We're leaving right away. On part tout de suite? Are we leaving right away? C’est vrai. That's true. C’est vrai? Is that true? Tes parents sont en vacances. Your parents are on holiday. Tes parents sont en vacances? Are you parents on holiday? French speakers use this way of asking a question in ordinary, everyday conversations. 3 How do you ask a question in French by using 'est-ce que'? The phrase est-ce que is used to ask a question. Word order stays just the same as it would in an ordinary sentence. Est-ce que comes before the subject, and the verb comes after the subject. So to turn the sentence Tu connais Marie (You know Marie) into a question, all you need to do is to add est-ce que. Est-ce que tu (subject) connais (verb) Marie? Do you know Marie? Est-ce que vous allez en ville? Are you going into town? Est-ce que ta sœur est vraiment heureuse? Is your sister really happy? 4 How do you ask a question in French by changing the word order? In ordinary sentences, the verb comes after its subject. In this type of question, the verb is put before the subject. This change to normal word order is called inversion. You can do this when the subject is a pronoun such as vous or il. When you change the word order (or invert) in this way, you add a hyphen (-) between the verb and the pronoun. Vous (subject) aimez (verb) la France. You like France. Aimez (verb)-vous (subject) la France? Do you like France? Il écrit bien. He writes well. Écrit-il bien? Does he write well? On part tout de suite. We’re leaving right away. Partez-vous tout de suite? Are you leaving right away? This is quite a formal way of asking a question. In the perfect tense and other tenses that consist of two or more words such as the pluperfect, the part of the verb that comes from avoir or être is the one that goes before the pronoun. As-tu vu mon sac? Have you seen my bag? Est-elle restée longtemps? Did she stay long? When the verb ends in a vowel in the il/elle form, -t- is inserted before the pronoun to make the words easier to say. Aime-t-il les chiens? Does he like dogs? A-t-elle assez d’argent? Does she have enough money? Unlike English there are two ways in French of answering yes to a question or statement. oui is the word you use to reply to an ordinary question. ‘Tu l’as fait?’ – ‘Oui.’ Have you done it?’ – ‘Yes.’ ‘Elle est belle, n’est-ce pas?’ – ‘Oui.’ She’s beautiful, isn’t she?’ – ‘Yes.’ si is the word you use to reply to a question or statement that contains a negative expression like ne … pas. ‘Tu ne l’as pas fait?’ – ‘Si.’ Haven’t you done it?-Yes (I have) ‘Elle n’est pas très belle.’ – ‘Mais si!’ She isn’t very beautiful.–Yes, she is! Note that you can also form a question in this way with a noun or a person’s name. If you do this, the noun or name comes first, then you add an extra pronoun after the verb and link them with a hyphen. Jean-Pierre (subject) est( verb)-il (pronoun) là? Is Jean-Pierre there? La pièce dure-t-elle longtemps? Does the play last long? In less formal French, the pronoun may come before the verb, and the noun or name may come at the end of the sentence. Il est là, Jean-Pierre? Is Jean-Pierre there? Elle dure longtemps, la pièce? Does the play last long? 5 How do you ask a question in French using a question word? In English, a question word is a word like when or how that is used to ask for information. French also has some common question words, for example, quand (when) or où (where). You can use a question word by: 1- making your voice go up at the end of the sentence. If you do this, the question word goes at the end of the sentence. 2-using est-ce que. If you do this, the question word goes at the start of the sentence. changing word order so that the verb comes before the subject. If you do this, the question word goes at the start of the sentence. Vous arrivez quand? When do you arrive? Quand est-ce que vous arrivez? When do you arrive? Quand arrivez-vous? When do you arrive? Tu prends quel train? What train are you getting? Quel train est-ce que tu prends? What train are you getting? Quel train prends-tu? What train are you getting? Ils vont où? Where are they going? Où est-ce qu’ils vont? Where are they going? Où vont-ils? Where are they going? 6 What are the main French question words? Listed below are some very common question words in French: combien+ verb? (how much?, how many?) combien de+ noun? (how much?, how many?) Combien coûte cet ordinateur? How much does this computer cost? C’est combien, ce pantalon? How much are these trousers? Tu en veux combien? Deux? How many do you want? Two? Combien de personnes vas-tu inviter? How many people are you going to invite? comment? (how?) Comment va-t-elle? How is she? Comment tu t’appelles? What's your name? pardon and comment are also used to ask someone to repeat something, and are the same as Pardon? in English. quoi can mean the same thing, but is informal, and is the same as What? in English. où? (where?) Où allez-vous? Where are you going? D’où viens-tu? Where are you from? Be careful not to mix up où, which means where, and ou (without an accent), which means or. pourquoi? (why?) Pourquoi est-ce qu’il ne vient pas avec nous? Why isn't he coming with us? quand? (when?) Quand est-ce que tu pars en vacances? When are you going on holiday? Depuis quand est-ce que vous le connaissez? How long have you known him? 7 How do you ask a question in French using 'qui', 'que' and 'quoi'? In questions, qui, que and quoi are all pronouns. Which of them you choose depends on: 1-whether you are referring to people or to things 2-whether you are referring to the subject or object of the verb (the subject is the person or thing that is carrying out the action described by the verb; the object is the person or thing that ‘receives’ the action) 3-whether the word you use will come after a preposition such as à, de or en qui? and que? have longer forms, as shown in the table below. There is a difference in word order between the longer and shorter forms. qui? is used for talking about people, and means who? or whom? in English. You can use whom? in formal English to refer to the object of verb, though most people use who?. qui? can be used after a preposition.
It is possible to finish an English sentence with a preposition such as about or of, even though some people think this is not good grammar. Who did you write to? What are you talking about? It is never possible to end a French sentence with a preposition. 8 How do you ask a question in French using 'quel'? quel? (who?, which? or what?) can be used with a noun (as an adjective) or can replace a noun (as a pronoun). Compare this with que? (and its longer forms) and quoi?, which also mean what?, but are never used with nouns. quel changes its form depending on whether you are referring to something that is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
Quel est ton chanteur préféré? Who’s your favourite singer? Quel vin recommandez-vous? Which wine do you recommend? Quelle est ta couleur préférée? What’s your favourite colour? Quelle heure est-il? What time is it? Quels sont tes chanteurs préférés? Who are your favourite singers? Vous jouez de quels instruments? What instruments do you play? Quelles sont tes couleurs préférées? What are your favourite colours? Quelles chaussures te plaisent le plus? Which shoes do you like best? 9 How do you ask a question in French using 'lequel'? In questions lequel is used to replace a noun. Lequel changes its form depending on whether you are referring to something that is masculine or feminine, singular or plural
‘J’ai choisi un livre.’ – ‘Lequel?’ I’ve chosen a book.–Which one? Laquelle de ces valises est à Bruno? Which of these cases is Bruno’s? ‘Tu te souviens de mes amis?’ – ‘Lesquels?’ Do you remember my friends?– Which ones?’ Lesquelles de vos sœurs sont mariées? Which of your sisters are married? 10 How do you ask a question in French using 'n’est-ce pas' and 'non'? English speakers often use an expression like isn’t it?, don’t they?, weren’t we? or will you? tagged on to the end of a sentence to turn it into a question. French uses n’est-ce pas? instead. This useful little phrase never changes, so is very easy to use. You use it in questions when you expect the person you are talking to to agree with you. Il fait chaud, n’est-ce pas? It’s warm, isn’t it? Tu parles français, n’est-ce pas? You speak French, don’t you? Vous n’oublierez pas, n’est-ce pas? You won't forget, will you? It is very common to use non (no) in the same way in spoken French. hein? means the same as eh? in English, and is only used in very informal conversations. Il fait chaud, non? It's warm, isn't it? Il fait chaud, hein? It's warm, eh? 11 What are direct and indirect questions in French?
In French, as in English, questions using someone's words and ending in a question mark are direct questions. When you are telling someone else about a question that is being asked, you use an indirect question. Indirect questions never end with a question mark, and they are always introduced by a verb such as to ask, to tell, to wonder, to know and so on. He asked me what the time was. (His actual question was What is the time?) Tell me which way to go. (Your actual question was Which way do I go?) Word order in indirect questions in French is generally the same as in English: question word +subject + verb. Dites-moi quel (question word) autobus (subject) va (verb) à la gare. Tell me which bus goes to the station. Il m’a demandé combien d’argent j’avais. He asked me how much money I had. Je me demande s’il viendra ou pas. I wonder if he'll come or not. When the subject of the question is a noun and not a pronoun like je or il, the subject and verb that come after the question word are often swapped round. Je me demande où (question word) sont (verb) mes clés (subject). I wonder where my keys are. Demande-lui qui est venu. Ask him who came. Negatives 1 How do you make a sentence negative in French? In French, if you want to make a statement or a sentence negative, you generally use a pair of words, for example, ne … pas (not). The verb goes in the middle. ne … pas not ne … rien nothing, not … anything ne … personne nobody, no one, not … anybody, not … anyone ne … jamais never, not … ever ne … plus no longer, no more, not … any longer, not … any more Je ne fume pas. I don't smoke. Ne changez rien. Don't change anything. Je ne vois personne. I can't see anybody. Elle n’arrive jamais à l’heure. She never arrives on time. Il ne travaille plus ici. He's no longer working here. ne changes to n’ in front of a word that starts with a vowel, most words beginning with h and the French word y. In English, did is often used to make a statement negative. I went to his party. → I didn’t go to his party. We saw David at the weekend. → We didn’t see David at the weekend. Note that the French verb faire is never used in this way. non plus is the equivalent of English neither in phrases like me neither, neither do I and so on. ‘Je n’aime pas les hamburgers. ‘ I don’t like hamburgers.’ – "moi non plus.’ – ‘Me neither.’ Il n’y va pas et moi non plus. He isn’t going and neither am I. The French word ne is missed out when negatives are used without a verb to answer a question. ‘Qui a téléphoné?’ – ‘Personne.’ ‘Who rang?’ – ‘Nobody.’ ‘Qu’est-ce que tu fais cet ‘What are you doing après-midi?’–‘Rien.’ this afternoon?’–‘Nothing In everyday conversation French native speakers often miss out the word ne. Be careful about doing this yourself in formal situations. Je peux pas venir ce soir. I can't come tonight. Il me l’a pas dit. He didnt tell me. Note that in French you will sometimes find two of these negative expressions combined. Ils ne font jamais rien They never do anything d’intéressant. interesting. Je ne connais plus personne I don't know anyone in Nice à Nice. any more. 2 What is the word order with French negatives? Negative expressions in French ‘sandwich’ the verb in the present tense and in other tenses that consist of just one word. ne goes before the verb and the other half of the expression comes after the verb. Il ne boit jamais d’alcool. He never drinks alcohol. Il ne pleuvait pas. It wasn't raining. In the perfect tense and other tenses that consist of two or more words such as the pluperfect, there are two possibilities for word order: ne … pas, ne … rien, ne … plus and ne … jamais follow the pattern: ne (n’) + avoir or être + pas/rien/plus/jamais + past participle Elle n’a pas fait ses devoirs. She hasn't done her homework. Je n’ai rien dit. I didn't say anything. Pierre n’est pas encore arrivé. Pierre isn't here yet. ne … personne follows the pattern: ne (n’) + avoir + past participle + personne Je n’ai vu personne. I didn't see anybody. A negative sentence may also contain a pronoun such as te, le, lui and so on that is the direct or indirect object of the verb, or a reflexive pronoun. If so, ne comes before the pronoun. Je ne t’entends pas. I can't hear you. Ne lui parle pas! Don't speak to him/her! Tu ne te souviens pas de lui? Don't you remember him? Il ne se lève jamais avant midi. He never gets up before midday. When a verb is in the infinitive, ne … pas, ne … rien, ne … plus and ne … jamais come together before the infinitive. Il essayait de ne pas rire. He was trying not to laugh. J’ai peur de ne pas réussir. I'm afraid of not succeeding. After these negative expressions, un, une and des (the indefinite article) and du, de la, de l’ and des (the partitive article) change to de. Il ne reste plus de biscuits. There aren't any biscuits left. 3 What is the difference between 'non' and 'pas' in French?
non (no) is the usual negative answer to a question in French. It can also correspond to not in English. Tu veux nous accompagner?’ – ‘Do you want to come with us?’– ‘Non, merci.’ ‘No thanks.’ Tu viens ou non? Are you coming or not? J’espère que non. I hope not. pas is generally used in French when a distinction is being made, or for emphasis. It, too, often corresponds to not in English. ‘Qui veut m’aider?’ – ‘Pas moi!’ ‘Who wants to help me?–‘Not me! ‘Est-il de retour?‘ – ‘Pas encore.’ ‘Is he back?’ – ‘Not yet.’ ‘Tu as froid?’ – ‘Pas du tout.’ ‘Are you cold?’ – ‘Not at all.’ Pas question! No way! Verbs 4 1 How do you use impersonal verbs in French? In French, impersonal verbs are only used with il (it) and in the infinitive. They are called impersonal verbs because il does not really refer to a real person, animal or thing, just like it and there in English in the examples below. Il pleut. It’s raining. Il va pleuvoir. It`sgoing to rain. Il y a un problème. There’s a problem. Il pourrait y avoir un problème. There could be a problem. There are also some very common verbs that can be used in this way in addition to their normal meanings, for example, avoir, être and faire.
Il y a quelqu’un à la porte. There’s somebody at the door. Il est deux heures. It’s two o’clock. Il faut partir. I’ve/We’ve etc. got to go. Il manque cent euros. 100 euros are missing. Il reste du pain. There’s some bread left. Il vaut mieux ne rien dire. It would be better to say nothing. Several impersonal verbs relate to the weather.
Note that there is another group of useful expressions that start with an impersonal il. These are followed by a form of the verb called the subjunctive. il faut que Il faut que je parte. I’ve got to go. il est nécessaire que Il est nécessaire que le comité The committee has to take a une décision rapidement. decision quickly. il est possible que Il est possible qu’il vienne. He might come. il est dommage que Il est dommage que tu ne l’aies pas vu. It’s a shame you didn’t see him. 2 Which French verbs can be followed by an infinitive without a preposition? In French, a number of verbs and groups of verbs can be followed by an infinitive with no preposition. The following important group of verbs are all very irregular, but they crop up so frequently that they are worth learning in full: devoir (to have to, must, to be due to) Tu dois être fatiguée. You must be tired. Elle doit partir. She has to leave. Le nouveau centre commercial The new shopping centre is due doit ouvrir en mai to open in May pouvoir (can, may) Je peux t’aider, si tu veux. I can help you, if you like. Puis-je venir vous voir samedi? May I come and see you on Saturday savoir (to know how to, can) Tu sais conduire? Can you drive? Je sais faire les omelettes. I know how to make omelettes. vouloir (to want) Élise veut rester un jour de plus. Élise wants to stay one more day. Ma voiture ne veut pas démarrer. My car won’t start. Voulez-vous boire quelque chose? Would you like something to drink voudrais acheter un ordinateur. I’d like to buy a computer. falloir (to be necessary) and valoir mieux (to be better) are only used in the infinitive and with il. Il faut prendre une décision. We/You etc. have to make a decision. Il vaut mieux téléphoner avant. It’s better to ring first. The following common verbs can also be followed by an infinitive without a preposition: adorer to love aimer to like, to love aimer mieux to prefer désirer to want détester to hate envoyer to send espérer to hope faire to make laisser to let préférer to prefer sembler to seem J’espère te voir la semaine prochaine. I hope to see you next week. Ne me fais pas rire! Don’t make me laugh! Je préfère manger à la cantine. I prefer to eat in the canteen. Some of these verbs combine with infinitives to make set phrases with a special meaning. aller chercher quelque chose to go and get something laisser tomber quelque chose to drop something vouloir dire quelque chose to mean something Va chercher ton papa! Go and get your dad! Paul a laissé tomber le vase. Paul dropped the vase. Qu’est-ce que ça veut dire? What does that mean? Verbs that relate to seeing or hearing, such as voir (to see), regarder (to watch, to look at), écouter (to listen to) and entendre (to hear) can be followed by an infinitive. Il nous a vus arriver. He saw us arrive. On entend chanter les oiseaux. You can hear the birds singing. Verbs that relate to movement of some kind and do not have a direct object, such as aller (to go) and venir (to come), can be followed by an infinitive. Je vais voir Nicolas ce soir. I’m going to see Nicolas tonight. Viens voir! Come and see! 3 Which French verbs can be followed by 'à' + infinitive? There are some common French verbs that can be followed by à and an infinitive: s’amuser à faire quelque chose to have fun doing something apprendre à faire quelque chose to learn to do something commencer à faire quelque chose to begin to do something continuer à faire quelque chose to go on doing something s’habituer à faire quelque chose to get used to doing something J’apprends à skier. I’m learning to ski. Il a commencé à pleuvoir. It began to rain. Some French verbs can be followed by a person’s name or by a noun relating to a person, and then by à and an infinitive. Sometimes you need to put à in front of the person too. aider quelqu’un à faire quelque chose to help someone do something apprendre à quelqu’un à faire quelque chose to teach someone to do something inviter quelqu’un à faire quelque chose to invite someone to do something 4 Which French verbs can be followed by 'de' + infinitive? There are some common French verbs that can be followed by de and an infinitive. arrêter de faire quelque chose, to stop doing something s’arrêter de faire quelque chose to stop doing something continuer de faire quelque chose to go on doing something décider de faire quelque chose to decide to do something se dépêcher de faire quelque chose to hurry to do something essayer de faire quelque chose to try to do something s’excuser de faire quelque chose to apologize for doing something finir de faire quelque chose to finish doing something oublier de faire quelque chose to forget to do something proposer de faire quelque chose to suggest doing something refuser de faire quelque chose to refuse to do something suggérer de faire quelque chose to suggest doing something J’ai décidé de lui écrire. I decided to write to her Je leur ai suggéré de partir de bonne heure. I suggested that they set off early. The following French verbs meaning asking or telling are also followed by de and an infinitive. Sometimes you need to put à in front of the person you are asking or telling. commander à quelqu’un de faire quelque chose to order someone to do something demander à quelqu’un de faire quelque c to ask someone to do something dire à quelqu’un de faire quelque chose to tell someone to do something empêcher quelqu’un de faire quelque chose to prevent someone from doing something interdire à quelqu’un de faire quelque chose to forbid someone to do something remercier quelqu’un de faire quelque chose to thank someone for doing something Note that if it is important to emphasize that something is going on at a particular time, you can use the phrase être en train de faire quelque chose. Il est en train de travailler. He’s working. Est-ce que vous pouvez rappeler plus tard? Can you call back later? If you want to say you have just done something, you can use the phrase venir de faire quelque chose. In English you use the past tense, but in French you use the present tense. Élisabeth vient de partir. Élisabeth has just left. 5 What are some common ways to use the infinitive in French?
In French, the infinitive can be used in many ways: after certain adjectives: content de (happy to), prêt à (ready to) Il est toujours prêt à rendre service. He’s always ready to help. after certain prepositions Pour aller à la gare? How do you get to the station? Il est parti sans dire au revoir. He left without saying goodbye. after certain set phrases involving a verb plus a noun avoir envie de faire quelque chose to feel like doing something avoir besoin de faire quelque chose to need to do something avoir peur de faire quelque chose to be frightened of doing something J’ai besoin de changer de l’argent. I need to change some money. in instructions that are aimed at the general public – for example, on signs or in cookery books Ajouter le sel et le poivre, et bien Add the salt and pepper, and mix well Conserver au frais. Keep refrigerated. as the subject or object of a sentence, when the infinitive corresponds to the -ing form in English used as a noun Fumer n’est pas bon pour la santé. Smoking isn’t good for your health. J’adore lire. I love reading. You can use the verb faire with an infinitive to refer to something you are having done by someone else. Je dois faire réparer ma voiture. I have to get my car repaired. Verbs 3 - Future Tense 1 How do you use the future tense in French? In French there is no direct equivalent of the word will in verb forms like will rain or will look and so on. You change the French verb ending instead to form the future tense. Il fera chaud demain. The weather will be warm tomorrow Il sera bientôt là. He’ll be here soon. In French, just as in English, you can use the present tense to refer to something that is going to happen in the future. Je prends le train de dix heures. I’m taking the ten o’clock train. Nous allons à Paris la semaine prochaine. We’re going to Paris next week. In English we often use going to followed by an infinitive to talk about something that will happen in the immediate future. You can use the French verb aller (meaning to go) followed by an infinitive in the same way. Tu vas tomber si tu continues. You’re going to fall if you carry on. Il va manquer le train. He’s going to miss the train. 2 How do you form the future tense in French? To form the future tense in French, you use: the infinitive of -er and -ir verbs, for example, donner, finir the infinitive without the final e of -re verbs: for example, attendr- Then add the correct ending to the stem, depending on whether you are talking about je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. The endings are the same for -er, -ir and -re verbs. Note that apart from the nous and vous forms, the endings are the same as the present tense of avoir.
Elle te donnera mon adresse. She’ll give you my address. Le cours finira à onze heures. The lesson will finish at eleven o’clock. Nous t’attendrons devant le cinéma. We’ll wait for you in front of the cinema. je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. 3 What are the spelling changes in French '-er' verbs in the future tense? As with the present and imperfect tenses, a few French -er verbs change their spellings slightly in the future tense.
The exceptions to this rule are geler (to freeze) and peler (to peel), which change in the same way as lever by changing accents.
Verbs ending in -ayer, such as payer (to pay) and essayer (to try), can be spelled with either a y or an i. So je paierai and je payerai, for example, are both correct
4 How do you form the future tense of reflexive verbs in French? The future tense of French reflexive verbs is formed in just the same way as for ordinary verbs, except that you have to remember to give the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nous, vous, se)
Je me ferai couper les cheveux. I'll get my hair cut. Il se rendra compte de son erreur. He will realize his mistake. me changes to m’, te to t’ and se to s’ before a vowel, most words starting with h and the French word y. 5 How do you form the future tense of irregular verbs in French? In French, there are some verbs that do not use their infinitives as the stem for the future tense, including avoir, être, faire and aller.
Some common Irregular French irregular verbs include
il faut becomes il faudra (it will be necessary to). il pleut becomes il pleuvra (it will rain). 6 How do you use the conditional in French? In French, as in English, the conditional is a verb form used to talk about things that would happen or that would be true under certain conditions, for example, I would help you if I could. It is also used to say what you would like or need, for example, Could you give me the bill? In French, you use the conditional for: asking for something formally and politely, especially in shops Je voudrais un kilo de poires, s'il vous plaît. I would like a kilo of pears, please. saying what you would like J'aimerais aller aux États-Unis. I would like to go to the United States. making a suggestion Je pourrais venir te chercher. I could come and pick you up. giving advice Vous devriez vous excuser. You should say you’re sorry. There is no direct French translation of would in verb forms like would be, would like, would help and so on. You change the French verb ending instead. 7 How do you form the conditional in French? To form the conditional in French, you have to use: the infinitive of -er and -ir verbs, for example, donner-, finir- the infinitive without the final e of -re verbs, for example, attendr- Then add the correct ending to the stem, depending on whether you are talking about je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. The endings are the same for all verbs. In fact, they are the same as the -er and -re endings for the imperfect tense but the stem is the same as the future tense
J’aimerais aller aux États-Unis. I would like to go to the United States je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. Note that you have to be careful not to mix up the future tense and the conditional. They look very similar.
8 What are the spelling changes in French '-er' verbs in the conditional? As with the future tense, a few French -er verbs change their spellings slightly in the conditional. With verbs such as appeler (to call), which end in -eler, the l doubles throughout the future tense.
The exceptions to this rule are geler (to freeze) and peler (to peel), which change in the same way as lever by using accents.
The exceptions to this rule include acheter (to buy), which changes in the same way as lever by using accents.
With verbs such as lever (to raise), peser (to weigh) and acheter (to buy), e changes to è throughout the future tense
9 How do you form the conditional of reflexive verbs in French? The conditional of reflexive verbs is formed in just the same way as for ordinary verbs, except that you have to remember to give the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nous, vous, se).
S'il avait de l'argent, il s'acheterait If he had money, he'd buy a new car. nouvelle voiture. Elle se leverait tôt. She would get up early. me changes to m’, te to t’ and se to s’ before a vowel, most words starting with h and the French word y. 10 How do you form the conditional of irregular verbs in French? The same French verbs that are irregular in the future tense are irregular in the conditional, including:avoir, être, faire, aller, devoir, pouvoir, savoir, tenir, venir, voir, vouloir To form the conditional of an irregular verb, use the same stem as for the future tense, for example: avoir → aur être → ser- Then add the usual endings for the conditional.
J’irais si j’avais le temps. I would go if I had time
Je voudrais un kilo de poires, s’il vous plaît. I would like a kilo of pears, please Tu devrais t’excuser. You should say you’re sorry. Verbs 2 - Past Tenses 1 How do you use the imperfect tense in French? In French, as in English, the imperfect tense is one of the verb tenses used to talk about the past, especially in descriptions, and to say what used to happen, for example, I used to walk to school; It was sunny at the weekend. To talk about actions that took place and were completed in the past, use the perfect tense in French. The French imperfect tense is used: to describe what things were like and how people felt in the past J'étais très triste quand elle est partie. I was very sad when she left. Il pleuvait à verse. It was pouring with rain. to say what used to happen or what you used to do regularly in the past Nous nous levions très tôt à cette époque. We used to get up very early in those days. Je n'aimais jamais le lait. I never used to like milk. to indicate things that were happening or something that was true when something else took place Je regardais la télé quand mon I was watching TV when my portable a sonné. mobile rang. Alors que nous regardions pars As we were looking out of the la fenêtre, nous vu quelqu'un window we saw someone walk traverser la pelouse. across the lawn. Note that if you want to talk about an event or action that took place and was completed in the past, you use the perfect tense. Remember that you never use the verb être to translate was or were in forms like was raining or were looking and so on. You change the French verb ending instead. 2 How do you form the imperfect tense of '-er' verbs in French? To form the imperfect tense of French -er verbs, you use the same stem of the verb as for the present tense. Then you add the correct ending, depending on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles.
Il portait toujours un grand chapeau noir. He always wore a big black hat. Nous habitions à Paris à cette époque. We were living in Paris at that time. Pour gagner un peu d’argent, je To earn a little money I used to give donnais des cours de français. French lessons. je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. 3 How do you form the imperfect tense of '-ir' verbs in French? To form the imperfect tense of French -ir verbs, you use the same stem of the verb as for the present tense. Then you add the correct ending, depending on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles
Il finissait souvent ses devoirs He often finished his homework avant le dîner before dinner. Cet après-midi-là ils choisissaient That afternoon they were choosing a une bague de fiançailles. engagement ring. 4 How do you form the imperfect tense of '-re' verbs in French? To form the imperfect tense of French -re verbs, you use the same stem of the verb as for the present tense. Then you add the correct ending, depending on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. These endings are the same as for -er verbs.
Christine m’attendait tous les Christine used to wait for me every soirs à la sortie.t evening at the exit. Je vivais seule après mon divorce. I was living alone after my divorce.
Il lançait le ballon souvent à David. He often threw the ball to David. Nous placions les plantes devantl We used to put the plants in front oft a fenêtre. he window
Il ne mangeait que du pain. He ate nothing but bread. Nous déménagions tous les deux ans We moved every two years. These verbs follow the 1,2,3,6 pattern. That is, they change in the first, second and third person singular, and in the third person plural. 6 How do you form the imperfect tense of French reflexive verbs? The imperfect tense of reflexive verbs is formed just as for ordinary verbs, except that you add the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nous, vous, se).
me changes to m’, te to t’ and se to s’ before a vowel, most words starting with h and the French word y. 7 How do you form the imperfect tense of French irregular verbs? The only verb in French that is irregular in the imperfect tense is être.
J’étais heureux. I was happy Mon père était instituteur. My father was a primary school teacher. Nous étions contents de le voir. We were pleased to see him. Elles étaient au cinéma. They were at the cinema. 8 How do you form the perfect tense in French? In French, as in English, the perfect is one of the verb tenses used to talk about the past, especially about actions that took place and were completed in the past. Use the imperfect tense for regular events and in most descriptions. You can often recognize a perfect tense in English by a form like I gave, I have finished. Je lui ai donné mon numéro de téléphone. I gave her my phone number. J'ai fini ma soupe. I have finished my soup. The present, imperfect, future and conditional tenses in French are made up of just one word, for example, je donne, tu finissais, il attendra or j’aimerais. The perfect tense has two parts to it: the present tense of the verb avoir (to have) or être (to be) and a part of the main verb called the past participle, like given, finished and done in English In other words, the perfect tense in French is like the form I have done in English. 9 How do you form the past participle in French? To form the past participle of French regular verbs, you use the infinitive of the verb: For -er verbs, you replace the -er at the end of the infinitive with é. Infinitive Take off-er Add-é donner (to give) donn- donné tomber (to fall) tomb- tombé For -ir verbs, you replace the -ir at the end of the infinitive with -i. finir (to finish) fin- fini partir (to leave, to go) part- parti For -re verbs, you replace the -re at the end of the infinitive with -u. attendre (to wait) attend- attendu descendre (to go down, to come down, to get off) descend- descendu Some past participles are irregular. There aren’t too many, so try to learn them. avoir (to have) → eu devoir (to have to, must) → dû dire (to say, to tell) → dit être (to be) → été faire (to do, to make) → fait mettre (to put) → mis pouvoir (to be able to, can) → pu prendre (to take) → pris savoir (to know) → su tenir (to hold) → tenu venir (to come) → venu voir (to see) → vu vouloir (to want) → voulu il pleut becomes il a plu (it rained). il faut becomes il a fallu (it was necessary). 10 Which French verbs form their perfect tense with 'avoir'? Most verbs form their perfect tense with avoir, for example donner:
Elle a donné son numéro de téléphone She gave Claude her phone number à Claude to Claude Il a acheté un ordinateur. He’s bought a computer. Je n’ai pas regardé la télé hier. I didn’t watch TV yesterday. je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. The perfect tense of -ir verbs like finir is formed in the same way, except for the past participle: j’ai fini, tu as fini and so on.The perfect tense of -re verbs like attendre is formed in the same way, except for the past participle: j’ai attendu, tu as attendu and so on. 11 Which French verbs form their perfect tense with 'être'? Most French verbs form their perfect tense with avoir; but there are two main groups of verbs which form their perfect tense with être instead of avoir: all reflexive verbs a group of French verbs that are mainly used to talk about movement or a change of some kind, including these: aller to go venir to come arriver to arrive, to happen partir to leave, to go descendre to go down, to come down, to get off mourir to die monter to go up, to come up entrer to go in, to come in sortir to go out, to come out naître to be born devenir to become rester to stay tomber to fall Je suis allé au match de football hier. I went to the football match yesterday Il est sorti acheter un journal. He’s gone out to buy a newspaper. Vous êtes descendu à quelle station? Which station did you get off at? Note that some French verbs take avoir instead of être when they are used with a direct object, for example: descendre quelque chose to get something down, to bring something down, to take something down monter quelque chose to go up something, to come up something sortir quelque chose to take something out Est-ce que tu as descendu les bagages? Did you bring the bags down? Elle a monté les escaliers. She went up the stairs. Elle a sorti son porte-monnaie de son sac. She took her purse out of her handbag 12 How do you make the past participle agree with the subject of the verb in French? When a verb takes être, the past participle always agrees with the subject of the verb; that is, the endings change in the feminine and plural forms.
Est-ce ton frère est allé à l’étranger? Did your brother go abroad? Elle est venue avec nous. She came with us. Ils sont partis à six heures. They left at six o’clock. Mes cousines sont arrivées hier. My cousins(female) arrived yesterday Here are the perfect tense forms of tomber in full:
Note that when on means we, the past participle can agree with the subject of the sentence, but it is optional. On est arrivés en retard. We arrived late. (masculine) On est rentrées toutes les We both came in at the same time deux à la même heure. (feminine) The perfect tense of -ir verbs like partir is formed in the same way, except for the past participle: je suis parti(e), tu es parti(e) and so on. The perfect tense of -re verbs like descendre is formed in the same way, except for the past participle: je suis descendu(e), tu es descendu(e) and so on. Note that when a verb takes avoir, the past participle usually stays in the masculine singular form, as shown in the table for donner, and does not change for the feminine or plural forms. Il a fini sa dissertation. He’s finished his essay. Elles ont fini leur dissertation. They’ve finished their essay. In one particular case, however, the past participle of verbs with avoir does change in the feminine and plural forms. In the sentences above, dissertation is the direct object of the verb finir. When the direct object comes after the verb, then the past participle doesn’t change. If the direct object comes before the verb, however, the past participle has to change to agree with that direct object. la dissertation qu’il a finie hier the essay that he finished yesterday la dissertation qu’elles ont finie hier the essay that they finished yesterday Since object pronouns usually come before the verb, the past participle changes to agree with the pronoun. Il a bu son thé? – Oui, il l’a bu. Did he drink his tea? – Yes, he’s drunk it Il a bu sa limonade?– Did he drink his lemonade?– Oui, il l’a bue. Yes, he’s drunk it. Remember that with verbs taking être, it is the subject of the verb that tells you what ending to add to the past participle. Compare this with the rule for verbs taking avoir that have a direct object; in their case, it is the direct object coming before the verb that tells you what ending to add to the past participle. 13 How do you form the perfect tense of French reflexive verbs? Here is the perfect tense of the reflexive verb se laver (to wash oneself), (to have a wash, to get washed) in full. Remember that all reflexive verbs take être, and so the past participle of reflexive verbs usually agrees with the subject of the sentence.
When on means we, the past participle can agree with the subject of the sentence, but it is optional.
On s’est lavées l’une après l’autre. We washed ourselves one after the other (feminine) Note that the past participle of reflexive verbs does not change if the direct object (la jambe in the example below) follows the verb. Elle s’est cassé la jambe. She’s broken her leg. Verbs 1- Present Tense 1 What are the most important points about French verbs? In French, as in English, verbs are usually used with a noun, with a pronoun such as I, you or she, or with somebody’s name. They can relate to the present, the past and the future; this is called their tense. In French, verbs are either: regular; their forms follow the normal rules irregular; their forms do not follow the normal rules Regular English verbs have a base form (the form of the verb without any endings added to it, for example, walk). The base form can have to in front of it, for example, to walk. This is called the infinitive. You will find one of these forms when you look a verb up in a dictionary. French verbs also have an infinitive, which ends in -er, -ir or -re, for example, donner (to give), finir (to finish), attendre (to wait). Regular French verbs belong to one of these three verb groups, which are called conjugations. English verbs have other forms apart from the base form and infinitive: a form ending in -s (walks), a form ending in -ing (walking), and a form ending in -ed (walked). French verbs have many more forms than this, which are made up of endings added to a stem. The stem of a verb can usually be worked out from the infinitive. French verb endings change, depending on who you are talking about: je (I), tu (you), il/elle/on (he/she/one) in the singular, or nous (we), vous (you) and ils/elles (they) in the plural. French verbs also have different forms depending on whether you are referring to the present, future or past. Some verbs in French do not follow the normal rules, and are called irregular verbs. These include some very common and important verbs like avoir (to have), être (to be), faire (to do, to make) and aller (to go). 2 How do you use the present tense in French? In French, as in English, the present tense is used to talk about what is true at the moment, what happens regularly and what is happening now, for example, I’m a student, I travel to college by train, I am studying languages. There is more than one way to express the present tense in English. For example, you can say either I give, I am giving, or occasionally I do give. In French you use the same form (je donne) for all of these. In French, as in English, you can also use the present tense to talk about something that is going to happen in the near future. Je vais en France le mois prochain. I’m going to France next month. Nous prenons le train de dix heures. We’re getting the ten o’clock train. Although English sometimes uses parts of the verb to be to form the present tense of other verbs (for example, I am listening, she is talking), French never uses the verb être in this way. 3 How do you form the present tense of regular '-er' (first conjugation) French verbs? If an infinitive in French ends in -er, it means the verb belongs to the first conjugation, for example, donner, aimer, parler. To know which form of the verb to use in French, you need to work out what the stem of the verb is and then add the correct ending. The stem of -er verbs in the present tense is formed by taking the infinitive and chopping off -er.
Now you know how to find the stem of a verb, you can add the correct ending. Which one you choose will depend on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. Here are the present tense endings for -er verbs:
Marie regarde la télé. Marie is watching TV. Le train arrive à deux heures. The train arrives at 2 o’clock. je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel (a, e, i, o or u), most words starting with h, and the French word y. Note that there are a few regular -er verbs that are spelled slightly differently from the way you might expect. 4 How do you form the present tense of regular '-ir' (second conjugation) French verbs? If an infinitive ends in -ir, it means the verb belongs to the second conjugation, for example, finir, choisir, remplir.The stem of -ir verbs in the present tense is formed by taking the infinitive and chopping off -ir.
Now add the correct ending, depending on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. Here are the present tense endings for -ir verbs:
Le cours finit à onze heures. The lesson finishes at eleven o’clock. Je finis mes devoirs. I’m finishing my homework. Note that je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. The nous and vous forms of -ir verbs have an extra syllable. tu fi|nis (two syllables) vous fi|ni|ssez (three syllables) 5 How do you form the present tense of regular '-re' (third conjugation) French verbs? If an infinitive ends in -re, it means the verb belongs to the third conjugation, for example, attendre, vendre, entendre. The stem of -re verbs in the present tense is formed by taking the infinitive and chopping off -re.
Now add the correct ending, depending on whether you are referring to je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils or elles. Here are the present tense endings for -re verbs:
J’attends ma sœur. I’m waiting for my sister. Chaque matin nous attendons le train Every morning we wait for the ensemble. train together. je changes to j’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y.
The exceptions to this rule are geler (to freeze) and peler (to peel), which change in the same way as lever by using accents. Verbs like this are sometimes called ‘1, 2, 3, 6 verbs’ because they change in the first person singular (je), second person singular (tu), and third person singular and plural (il/elle/on and ils/elles).
The exceptions to this rule include acheter (to buy), which changes in the same way as lever by using accents. Verbs like this are sometimes called ‘1, 2, 3, 6 verbs’.
Verbs like this are sometimes called ‘1, 2, 3, 6 verbs’.
12 How do you form the present tense of irregular French verbs? Some verbs in French do not follow the normal rules. These verbs include some very common and important verbs like avoir (to have), être (to be), faire (to do, to make) and aller (to go).
13 How do you form the imperative in French? In French, there are two forms of the imperative that are used to give instructions or orders to someone. These correspond to tu and vous. There is also a form of the imperative that corresponds to nous. This means the same as let’s in English. It is not used as often as the tu and vous forms. For regular verbs in French, the imperative is the same as the tu, nous and vous forms of the present tense, except that you do not say the pronouns tu, nous and vous. Also, in the tu form of -er verbs like donner, the final -s is dropped.
Donne-moi ça! Give me that! Finissez vos devoirs et allez vous coucher. Finish your homework and go to bed. Attendons le bus. Let’s wait for the bus. When a tu imperative comes before en or y, the final -s is kept to make the words easier to pronounce. The s is pronounced like the z in the English word zip: Vas-y! Go on Donnes-en à ton frère. Give some to your brother. The French verbs avoir (to have), être (to be), savoir (to know) and vouloir (to want) have irregular imperative forms.
Sois sage. Be good. Veuillez fermer la porte. Please shut the door. Pierre, ayez confiance en vous. Have confidence in yourself, Peter. Sache que tu seras toujours la ici. We want you to know you'll be welcome here any time
Ne me dérange pas. Don’t disturb me. Ne leur parlons pas. Let’s not speak to them. Ne le regardez pas. Don’t look at him/it. If you are telling someone to do something, you put the object pronouns after the verb and join the two words with a hyphen. The word order is the same as in English. Excusez-moi. Excuse me. Aide-nous. Help us. Attendons-la. Let’s wait for her/it. Orders and instructions telling someone to do something may contain direct object and indirect object pronouns. When this happens, the pronouns go in this order: Prête-les-moi! Lend them to me! or Lend me them! Donnez-la-nous! Give it to us! or Give us it! 15 How do you use reflexive verbs in French? In French, reflexive verbs are much more common than in English, and many are used in everyday French. They are shown in dictionaries as se plus the infinitive (se means himself, herself, itself, themselves or oneself). se is called a reflexive pronoun. Reflexive verbs are often used to describe things you do (to yourself) every day or that involve a change of some sort (going to bed, sitting down, getting angry, going to sleep). Some of the most common French reflexive verbs are listed here: s’amuser to play, to enjoy oneself s’appeler to be called s’arrêter to stop s’asseoir to sit down se baigner to go swimming se coucher to go to bed se dépêcher to hurry s’habiller to get dressed s’intéresser à quelque chose to be interested in something se laver to wash, to have a wash se lever to get up, to rise, to stand up se passer to take place, to happen, to go se promener to go for a walk se rappeler to remember se réveiller to wake up se trouver to be (situated) Qu’est-ce qui se passe? What’s happening? Le soleil se lève à cinq heures. The sun rises at five o’clock. Asseyez-vous! Sit down! se changes to s’ in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y. Note that se and s’ are very rarely translated as himself and so on in English. Some French verbs can be used with a reflexive pronoun or without a reflexive pronoun, for example, the verbs appeler and s’appeler, and arrêter and s’arrêter. Sometimes, however, their meaning may change. Appelle le chien. Call the dog. Je m’appelle Jacques. I am called Jacques. Il arrête le moteur. He switches off the engine. Elle s’arrête devant une vitrine. She stops in front of a shop window. 16 How do you form the present tense of reflexive verbs in French? To use a reflexive verb in French, you need to decide which reflexive pronoun to use. The forms shown in brackets in the table are used before a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, or the French word y.
Je me lève tôt. I get up early. Elle s’habille. She’s getting dressed. Ils s’intéressent beaucoup aux animaux. They’re very interested in animals. The present tense forms of a reflexive verb work in just the same way as an ordinary verb, except that the reflexive pronoun is used as well.
Some reflexive verbs, such as s’asseoir (to sit down), are irregular. Asseyez-vous et attachez votre ceinture. Sit down and fasten your seat belt. 17 Where do you put the reflexive pronoun in French?
In the present tense, the reflexive pronoun almost always comes before the verb. Je me couche tôt. I go to bed early. Comment t’appelles-tu? What’s your name? When telling someone not to do something, you put the reflexive pronoun before the verb as usual. Ne te lève pas. Don’t get up. Ne vous habillez pas. Don’t get dressed. When telling someone to do something, you put the reflexive pronoun after the verb and join the two words with a hyphen. Lève-toi! Get up! Dépêchez-vous! Hurry up! Habillons-nous. Let’s get dressed. When you are telling someone to do something, te or t’ changes to toi. Assieds-toi. Sit down. When you are telling someone not to do something, te or t’ is used, not toi. Ne te lève pas. Don’t get up. We use each other in English when we are talking about two people, and one another when we are talking about three or more people. The French reflexive pronouns nous, vous and se can all mean two or more people. Nous nous parlons tous les jours. We speak to each other every day. On se voit demain? Shall we see each other tomorrow? Les trois pays se ressemblent beaucoup. The three countries are really like one another. Adverbs 1 How do you form French adverbs? Adverbs in French never change their form, no matter what they refer to. Il est très beau. He's very handsome. Elles sont très belles. They're very beautiful. J’y vais souvent. I often go there . Nous y allons souvent. We often go there. Note that there is one exception to this rule. The word tout changes in certain phrases, for example, tout seul (all alone). Il est arrivé tout seul. He arrived on his own. Elle est souvent toute seule. She's often on her own. Many French adverbs end in -ment. This is usually added to the end of the feminine singular form of the adjective.
The adverb ending -ment is added to the masculine not the feminine form of the adjective if the masculine ends in -é, -i or -u.
If the adjective ends in -ant, the adverb ends in -amment. If the adjective ends in -ent, the adverb ends in -emment. The first vowel in the -emment and -amment endings is pronounced in the same way in both – like the a in the English word cat. courant → couramment (fluently), récent → récemment (recently) Note that an exception to this rule is the adverb lentement (slowly), which comes from the adjective lent (slow). 2 What are the irregular French adverbs? There are a number of common irregular adverbs in French.
Elle travaille bien. She works well. C’est un emploi très mal payé. It’s a very badly paid job. 3 Which French adjectives are used as adverbs? Certain adjectives are used as adverbs in French, mostly in set phrases.
4 Which French adverbs are made up of more than one word? French adverbs can be made up of several words instead of just one. Here are some common ones:
D'habitude, je mange chez moi à midi. I usually have lunch at home. Dépêche-toi, sinon tu vas arriver en retard! Hurry up or you'll be late! Je le vois de temps en temps. I see him from time to time. 5 What are comparative adverbs in French? Adverbs can be used to make comparisons in French, just as they can in English. The comparative (more often, faster) of adverbs is formed using the same phrases as for adjectives. plus … (que) more … (than) Tu marches plus vite que moi. You walk faster than me. Elle chante plus fort que les autres. She's singing louder than the others. moins… (que) less … (than) Parle moins vite! Don’t speak so fast! literally:Speak less fast! Nous nous voyons moins souvent qu’avant. We see each other less often than before. aussi… que as … as Je parle français aussi bien que toi! I can speak French as well as you! Viens aussi vite que possible. Come as quickly as possible. 6 What are the superlative adverbs in French? In French, the superlative of adverbs (the most, the fastest) is formed using the same phrases as for adjectives, except that le never changes to la or les in the feminine and plural with adverbs as it does with adjectives. le plus… (que) the most… (that) Marianne parle le plus vite. Marianne speaks fastest. Les enfants crient le plus fort. The children shout loudest. le moins … (que) the least … (that) Il travaille le moins vite. He works slowest. C'est lui qui nous visite le moins souvent. He's the one who visits us the least., 7 What are the irregular French comparative and superlative adverbs? Some of the most common French adverbs have irregular comparative and superlative forms.
Elle danse mieux que moi. She dances better than me. C’est lui qui danse le mieux. He dances best. Richard travaille plus que son frère. Richard works more than his brother. C'est ce qui m'a surpris le plus. That's what surprised me the most. C'est Gordon qui a mangé le moins. Gordon ate the least. 8 Which French adverbs do not end in '-ment'? Many very common French adverbs do not end in -ment. They are worth learning.
Note that jamais can sometimes be used without ne to mean never or ever. ‘Est-ce que tu vas souvent au cinéma?’ Do you go to the cinema a lot?’ ‘Non, jamais.’ –‘No, never As-tu jamais revu ton père? Did you ever see your father again?
Be careful not to confuse peu, which means not much or not very, with un peu, which means a little or a bit. Il voyage peu. He doesn't travel much. Elle est un peu timide. She's a bit shy.
Note that vite and rapide can both mean fast or quick. Remember, though, that vite is an adverb and rapide is an adjective. une voiture rapide a fast carIl roule trop vite. He drives too fast. Some of the French adverbs listed above can be followed by de and used in front of a noun to talk about quantities or numbers of things or people: assez de (enough) Nous n’avons pas assez de temps. We don't have enough time. beaucoupde (a lot of) Elle fait beaucoup de fautes. She makes a lot of mistakes. trop de (too much, too many) J’ai mangé trop de fromage. I've eaten too much cheese. Some of the French adverbs listed above can be used as prepositions: après, avant, devant, derrière, depuis. 9 What is the word order of French adverbs with verbs? In French, when an adverb goes with a verb that consists of just one word, such as a verb in the present tense or the imperfect tense, it generally goes after that verb. Il neige toujours en janvier. It always snows in January. Je pensais souvent à toi. I often used to think about you. When an adverb goes with a verb that consists of more than one word, such as a verb in the perfect tense, it generally comes between the part of the verb that comes from avoir or être and the past participle. Il a trop mangé. He’s eaten too much. Ils sont déjà partis. They’ve already gone. This rule covers most adverbs that tell you about quantity or time, and some very common ones telling you how something is done.
Some adverbs follow the past participle of verbs that consist of more than one word. This rule covers most adverbs that tell you how or where something is done, and a few adverbs that tell you about time.
On les a vus partout. We saw them everywhere. Elle est revenue hier. She came back yesterday. 10 What is the word order of French adverbs with adjectives or other adverbs?
When an adverb goes with an adjective, it generally comes just before that adjective. Ils ont une très belle maison. They have a very nice house. une femme bien habillée a well-dressed woman When an adverb goes with another adverb, it generally comes just before that adverb. C’est trop tard. It's too late. Fatima travaille beaucoup plus vite. Fatima works much faster. Pronouns 2 11 How do you use the French pronoun 'y'? The French pronoun y does not usually refer to people. How we translate it into English depends on where it is found in French. y is used with verbs and phrases normally followed by à to avoid repeating the same word. ‘Je pensais à l’examen.’–‘Mais ‘ I was thinking about the exam.’ d’y penser!’ –‘Well, stop thinking about it! (y replaces à in penser à quelque chose) ‘Je ne m’attendais pas à ça.’ – I wasn’t expecting that.’–‘Well, I ‘Moi, je m’y attendais.’ was expecting it (y replaces ça in penser à quelque chose) y can also mean there. It can be used to replace phrases that would use prepositions such as dans (in) and sur (on). Elle y passe tout l’été. She spends the whole summer there. Regarde dans le tiroir. Je Look in the drawer. I think the keys que les clés y sont. are in there. y usually comes before the verb. Comment fait-on pour y aller? How do you get there? N’y pense plus. Don’t think about it any more. In orders and instructions telling someone to do something, y comes after the verb is are attached to it with a hyphen (-). Restez-y. Stay there. y comes after other direct or indirect object pronouns. Je m’y attendais. I was expecting it. 12 How do you use different types of French pronoun together? In English, you sometimes find a direct object pronoun and an indirect object pronoun in the same sentence. He gave me (indirect object) them (direct object).He gave them (direct object) to me (indirect object).When this happens in French, you have to put the indirect and direct object pronouns in a certain order.
Dominique vous l’envoie demain. Dominique’s sending it to you tomorrow Il te les a montrés? Has he shown them to you? Je les lui ai lus. I read them to him/her. Ne la leur donne pas. Don’t give it to them. Elle ne m’en a pas parlé. She didn’t speak to me about it. 13 What are the indefinite pronouns in French? In French, an indefinite pronoun is one of a small group of pronouns which are used to refer to people or things in a general way without saying exactly who or what they are. Here are the most common French indefinite pronouns: chacun (masculine singular)/chacune (feminine singular) each, everyone Nous avons chacun donné dix euros. We each gave ten euros. Chacun fait ce qu’il veut. Everyone does what they like. Toutes les villas ont chacune leur piscine.Each villa has its own swimming pool. personne nobody/no one, anybody/anyone Il n’y a personne à la maison. There’s no one at home. Elle ne veut voir personne. She doesn’t want to see anybody. You can use personne on its own to answer a question. Qui connaît la réponse? Personne. Who knows the answer? No one. If the sentence contains a verb you have to use ne with it. Personne n’est venu. Nobody came. quelque chose something, anything J’ai quelque chose pour toi. I’ve got something for you. Avez-vous quelque chose à déclarer? Do you have anything to declare? quelqu’un somebody/someone, anybody/anyone Il y a quelqu’un à la porte. There’s someone at the door. Quelqu’un a vu mon parapluie? Has anybody seen my umbrella? rien nothing, anything Elle n’a rien dit. She didn’t say anything. Rien n’a changé. Nothing’s changed. You can use rien on its own to answer a question. ‘Qu’est-ce tu as acheté?’ – ‘Rien.’ What did you buy?’ – ‘Nothing.’ If the sentence contains a verb you have to use ne with it. Il n’a rien mangé. He’s eaten nothing. tout everything Il organise tout. He’s organizing everything. Tout va bien? Is everything OK? tous (masculine plural)/toutes (feminine plural) all Je les connais tous. I know them all. Elles sont toutes arrivées? Are they all here? You can use quelque chose de/rien de and quelqu’un de/personne de with adjectives if you want to say nothing interesting, something new and so on. rien d’intéressant nothing interesting 14 How do you use the relative pronouns 'qui' and 'que' in French? In French, qui and que can both refer to people or things.
Mon frère, qui a vingt ans, est My brother, who’s twenty, is at à l’université. university. Est-ce qu’il y a un bus qui va au Is there a bus that goes to the town centre-ville? centre? Les amis que je vois le plus sont The friends (that) I see most are Léa Léa et Mehdi. and Mehdi. Voilà la maison que nous voulons That’s the house (which) we want to acheter. buy. Note that que changes to qu’ in front of a word beginning with a vowel and most words beginning with h. qui is also used after a preposition such as à, de or pour to talk about people. la personne à qui il parle the person he is speaking to les enfants pour qui j’ai acheté the children I bought sweets for des bonbons Note that in English we often miss out the object pronouns who, which and that. For example, we can say both the friends that I see most, or the friends I see most, and the house which we want to buy, or the house we want to buy. In French you can never miss out que or qui in this way. 15 How do you use the relative pronoun 'lequel' in French? In French, lequel (which) is used after a preposition such as à, de or pour to talk about things. It has to agree with the noun it replaces.
le livre pour lequel elle est connue the book she is famous for la table sur laquelle j’ai mis mon sac the table I put my bag on Remember that à and de combine with the definite article le to become au and du, and with les to become aux and des. lequel/lesquels/lesquelles combine with à and de as shown. laquelle doesn’t change.
16 How do you use the relative pronoun 'dont' in French? In French, dont (whose, of whom, of which, about which) is used to refer to people or things, but its form never changes. la femme dont la voiture est en panne the woman whose car has broken down les films dont tu parles the films you’re talking about deux livres, dont l’un est en anglais one of which is in English Il y avait plusieurs personnes, dont Gabrielle. There were several people, among them Gabrielle 17 How do you use the demonstrative pronoun 'ce' in French? In French, ce is usually used with the verb être (to be) in the expressions c’est (it is, that is), c’était (it was, that was), ce sont (it is, that is) and so on. C’est moi. It’s me.C’était mon frère. That was my brother.Ce sont eux. It’s them. ce becomes c’ when it is followed by a part of the verb that starts with e or é. C’était mon frère. That was my brother. ce becomes ç’ when it is followed by a part of the verb that starts with a. Ç’a été difficile. It was difficult. Note that after c’est and ce sont and so on you have to use the emphatic form of the pronoun, for example, moi instead of je, eux instead of ils and so on. C’est moi. It’s me. ce is used: with a noun or a question word to identify a person or thing Qui est-ce? Who is it?, Who’s this/that? Ce sont des professeurs. They’re teachers. Qu’est-ce que c’est? What’s this/that? C’est un ouvre-boîte. It is a tin-opener. with an adjective to refer to a statement, idea and so on that cannot be classed as either masculine or feminine C’est très intéressant. That’s/It’s very interesting. C’est dangereux. That is/It is dangerous. Ce n’est pas grave. It doesn’t matter. for emphasis C’est moi qui ai téléphoné. It was me who phoned. Ce sont les enfants qui ont fait le gâteau. It was the children who made the cake. 18 How do you use the demonstrative pronouns 'cela', 'ça' and 'ceci' in French? In French, cela and ça mean it, this or that. Both refer to a statement, an idea or an object. ça is used instead of cela in everyday, informal French. Ça ne fait rien. It doesn’t matter Écoute-moi ça! Listen to this! Cela dépend. That/It depends. Je n’aime pas cela. I don’t like that Donne-moi ça! Give me that! ça and cela are used in a more general way than il and elle, which are usually linked to a noun that has already been mentioned. Alors, ma nouvelle voiture, elle te plaît? So, do you like my new car? Ça te plaît d’aller à l’étranger? Do you like going abroad? ceci means this and is not as common as cela and ça. It is used to talk about something that has not yet been mentioned. Lisez ceci. Read this. ceci is also used to hand or show someone something. Prends ceci. Tu en auras besoin. Take this. You’ll need it. 19 How do you use the demonstrative pronoun 'celui' in French? In French, celui and celle mean the one; ceux and celles mean the ones. The form you choose depends on whether the noun it is replacing is masculine or feminine, and singular or plural.
celui and its other forms are used before qui, que or dont ‘Quelle robe préférez-vous?’–‘Celle qui est en vitrine.’ ‘Which dress do you like best?’–‘The one in the window.’ Prends ceux que tu préfères. Take the ones you like best. celui dont je t’ai parlé the one I told you about celui qui est proche de la fontaine the one near the fountain celui and its other forms can be used with de to show who something belongs to. In English, we would use ‘s. Je n’ai pas d’appareil photo I haven’t got a camera but I can je peux emprunter celui de ma sœur. borrow my sister’s. Comparez vos réponses à celles de Compare your answers with your votre voisin. neighbour’s. You can add the endings -ci and -là to celui and its other forms to emphasize the difference between something that is close to you and something that is further away. use -ci for something that is closer to you use -là for something that is further away
On prend quel fromage? Celui-ci ou celui-là? Which cheese shall we get? This one or that one
Ces chemises ont deux poches mais These shirts have two pockets but celles-là n’en ont pas. those have none Pronouns 1 1 How do you use French subject pronouns? In French, subject pronouns are words such as I, he, she and they are in English. They perform the action of the verb when it's clear who is being talked about. Here are the French subject pronouns:
Je pars en vacances demain. I’m going on holiday tomorrow. Nous habitons à Nice. We live in Nice. je changes to j’ in front of words beginning with a vowel, most words beginning with h, and the French word y. J’arrive! I’m just coming! Bon, j’y vais. Right, I’m off. 2 How do you know when to use 'tu' or 'vous' in French? In English we have only one way of saying you. In French, there are two words: tu and vous. The word you use depends on: whether you are talking to one person or more than one person whether you are talking to a friend or family member, or someone else. If you are talking to one person you know well, such as a friend, a young person or a relative, use tu. Tu me prêtes ce CD? Will you lend me this CD? If you are talking to one person you do not know so well, such as your teacher, your boss or a stranger, use vous. Vous pouvez entrer. You may come in. If you are in doubt as to which form of you to use, it is safest to use vous and you will not offend anybody. If you are talking to more than one person, you have to use vous, no matter how well you know them. Vous comprenez, les enfants? Do you understand, children? Note that the adjectives you use with tu and vous have to agree in the feminine and plural forms. Vous êtes certain, Monsieur Leclerc? Are you sure, Mr Leclerc? (masculine singular) Vous êtes certains, les enfants? Are you sure, children? (masculine plural) Note that any past participles (the form of the verb ending in -é, -i or -u) used with être in tenses such as the perfect also have to agree in the feminine and plural forms. Vous êtes partie quand, Estelle? When did you leave, Estelle? (feminine singular) Estelle et Sophie – vous êtes parties quand? Estelle and Sophie – when did (feminine plural) you leave 3 When do you use the French subject pronouns 'il/elle', 'ils/elles' and 'on'? In English we generally refer to things (such as table, book, car) only as it. In French, il (he, it) and elle (she, it) are used to talk about a thing, as well as about a person or an animal. You use il for masculine nouns and elle for feminine nouns. Il est déjà parti. He’s already left. Elle est actrice. She’s an actress. Il mord, ton chien? Does your dog bite? Prends cette chaise. Elle est plus confortable. Take this chair. It’s more comfortable. il is also used to talk about the weather, the time and in certain other set phrases, often in the same way as some phrases with it in English. Il pleut. It’s raining. Il est deux heures. It’s two o’clock Il faut partir. We/You have to go. ils (they) and elles (they) are used in the plural to talk about things, as well as about people or animals. Use ils for masculine nouns and elles for feminine nouns. Ils vont appeler ce soir. They are going to call tonight. Où sont Anne et Rachel?–Elles sont Where are Anne and Rachel?– à la piscine They’re at the swimming pool. ‘Est-ce qu’il reste des billets?’ ‘Are there are any tickets left? No, ‘Non, ils sont tous vendus.’ they’re all sold.’ ‘Tu aimes ces chaussures?’– Do you like those shoes?’– ‘Non, elles sont affreuses!’ ‘No, they’re horrible!’ ‘Non, elles sont affreuses!’ If you are talking about a masculine and a feminine noun, use ils. Que font ton père et ta mère quand What do you father and mother ils partent en vacances? do when they go on holiday? Où sont le poivre et la moutarde?– Where are the pepper and the mustard? ‘Ils sont déjà sur la table.’ – ‘They’re already on the table.’ on is frequently used in informal, everyday French to mean we. On va à la plage demain. We’re going to the beach tomorrow On y va? Shall we go? on can also have the sense of someone or they. On m’a volé mon porte-monnaie. Someone has stolen my purse. On vous demande au téléphone. There’s a phone call for you. on is often used to avoid a passive construction in French. On m’a dit que tu étais malade. I was told you were ill. You can also use on as we use you in English when we mean people in general. On peut visiter le château en été. You can visit the castle in the summer. D’ici on peut voir les côtes françaises. From here you can see the French coast. The form of the verb you use with on is the same as the il/elle form. 4 How do you use French direct object pronouns? In French, direct object pronouns stand in for nouns when it is clear who or what is being talked about, and save having to repeat the noun. Here are the French direct object pronouns:
Ils vont nous aider. They’re going to help us Je la vois. I can see her/it. ‘Tu aimes les carottes?’–‘Non, je les déteste!’ Do you like carrots?’–‘No, I hate them!’ Note that you cannot use direct object pronouns after a preposition like à or de, or when you want to emphasize something. me changes to m’, te to t’, and le/la to l’ in front of words beginning with a vowel, most words beginning with h, and the French word y. Je t’aime. I love you. Tu m’entends? Can you hear me? In orders and instructions telling someone to do something, moi is used instead of me, and toi is used instead of te. Aidez-moi! Help me! Assieds-toi. Sit down. le is sometimes used to refer back to an idea or information that has already been given. The word it is often missed out in English. ‘Ta chemise est très sale.’ – ‘Je le sais.’ ‘Your shirt’s very dirty.’ – ‘I know. 5 What is the word order with direct object pronouns in French? In French, the direct object pronoun usually comes before the verb. Je t’aime. I love you. Les voyez-vous? Can you see them? Elle ne nous connaît pas. She doesn’t know us. Note that in orders and instructions telling someone to do something, the direct object pronoun comes after the verb. Asseyez-vous. Sit down. In tenses like the perfect that are formed with avoir or être and the past participle (the part of the verb that ends in -é, -i or -u in French), the direct object pronoun comes before the part of the verb that comes from avoir or être. Il m’a vu. He saw me. When a verb like vouloir (to want) or pouvoir (to be able to, can) is followed by another verb in the infinitive (the ‘to’ form of the verb), the direct object pronoun comes before the infinitive. Il voudrait la revoir. He’d like to see her again. Puis-je vous aider? Can I help you? 6 How do you use indirect object pronouns in French? In French, when a verb has two objects (a direct one and an indirect one), the indirect object pronoun is used instead of a noun to show the person or thing the action is intended to benefit or harm. For example, me in He gave me a book; Can you get me a towel? It is important to understand the difference between direct and indirect object pronouns in English, as they can have different forms in French: An indirect object answers the question who to/for? or to/for what? He gave me a book. → Who did he give the book to? → me (=indirect object pronoun) Can you get me a towel? → Who can you get a towel for? → me (=indirect object pronoun) If something answers the question what or who, then it is the direct object and not the indirect object He gave me a book. → What did he give me? → a book (=direct object) Can you get me a towel? → What can you get me? → a towel (=direct object) Here are the French indirect object pronouns:
Il nous écrit tous les jours. He writes to us every day. Ils te cachent quelque chose. They’re hiding something from you me changes to m’ and te to t’ in front of words beginning with a vowel, most words beginning with h, and the French word y. Il m’a donné un livre. He gave me a book. Tu m’apportes une serviette? Can you get me a towel? French indirect object pronouns can be used instead of the preposition à with a noun. J’écris à Suzanne. I’m writing to Suzanne. → Je lui écris. I’m writing to her. Donne du lait au chat Give the cat some milk.Donne-lui du lait. Give it some milk Some French verbs like demander à (to ask) and téléphoner à (to phone) take an indirect object even though English uses a direct object. Il leur téléphone tous les soirs. He phones them every evening. On the other hand, some French verbs like attendre (to wait for), chercher (to look for) and regarder (to look at) take a direct object even though English uses an indirect object. Je les attends devant la gare. I’ll wait for them outside the station. The indirect object pronoun usually comes before the verb in French. Dominique vous écrit une lettre. Dominique’s writing you a letter Il ne nous parle pas. He doesn’t speak to us. Il ne veut pas me répondre. He won’t answer me. Note that in orders and instructions telling someone to do something, the indirect object pronoun comes after the verb. Donne-moi ça! Give me that! 7 What are the emphatic pronouns in French? In French, there is a set of pronouns which you use after prepositions, when you want to emphasize something and in certain other cases, for example Is this for me? These are called emphatic pronouns or stressed pronouns.
Je pense souvent à toi. I often think about you. C’est pour moi? I often think about you. Venez avec moi. Come with me. Il a besoin de nous. He needs us. soi (oneself) is used with the subject pronoun on and with words like tout le monde (everyone) or chacun (each one). Il faut avoir confiance en soi. You have to have confidence in yourself. Tout le monde est rentré chez soi. Everyone went home. 8 When do you use French emphatic pronouns? In French, emphatic pronouns are used in the following circumstances: after a preposition C’est pour moi? Is this for me? for emphasis, especially where a contrast is involved Toi, tu ressembles à ton père, mais elle non. You look like your father, she doesn’t. Il m’énerve, lui! He’s getting on my nerves! on their own without a verb ‘Qui a cassé la fenêtre?’ – ‘Lui.’ Who broke the window? – He did. ‘Je suis fatiguée.’ – ‘Moi aussi.’ I’m tired.’ – ‘Me too.’ after c’est and ce sont (it is) C’est toi, Sim Is that you, Simon? Ce sont eux. It’s them. in comparisons Tu es plus jeune que moi. You’re younger than me. Il est moins grand que toi. He’s smaller than you (are). when the subject of the sentence is made up of two pronouns, or of a pronoun and a noun Mon père et elle ne s’entendent pas. My father and she don’t get on. Note that you can add -même or -mêmes to the emphatic pronouns when you particularly want to emphasize something. These forms correspond to English myself, ourselves and so on.
Je l’ai fait moi-même. I did it myself. Elle l’a choisi elle-même. She chose it herself. 9 What are the possessive pronouns in French? In French, possessive pronouns are used instead of a noun to show that one person or thing belongs to another. For example, Ask Carole if this pen is hers. Here are the French possessive pronouns:
Ces CD-là, ce sontles miens. Those CDs are mine.
Heureusement que tu as tes clés. J’ai It’s lucky you’ve got your keys. oublié les miennes. I forgot mine. In French, possessive pronouns agree with what they describe, not with the person who owns that thing. For example, le sien can mean his or hers, but can only be used to replace a masculine singular noun. C’est le vélo de Paul?’ – ‘Oui, c’est le sien.’ Is that Paul’s bike?’ – ‘Yes, it’s his.’ C’est le vélo d’Isabelle?–Oui, c’est le sien. Is that Isabelle’s bike?–Yes, it’s hers Note that à with the definite article le becomes au, and à with les becomes aux, so: à + le mien → au mien à + les miens → aux miens à + les miennes → aux miennes Tu préfères ce manteauau mien? Do you prefer this coat to mine? Remember that de with the definite article le becomes du, and de with les becomes des, so: de + le mien → du mien de + les miens → des miens de + les miennes → des miennes J’ai oublié mes clés. J’ai besoin des tiennes. I’ve forgotten my keys. I need yours 10 How do you use the French pronoun 'en'? The French pronoun en does not usually refer to people. How we translate it into English depends on where en is found in French. en is used with verbs and phrases normally followed by de to avoid repeating the same word. Si tu as un problème, tu peux m’en parler. If you’ve got a problem, you can talk to me (en replaces de in parler de quelque chose) me about it. Est-ce que tu peux me prêter ce livre? Can you lend me that book? I J’en ai besoin. need it.(en replaces de in avoir besoin de quelque chose) Il a un beau jardin et il en est très fier. He’s got a beautiful garden and is very (en replaces de in être fier de quelque chose) proud of it. en can also replace the partitive article (du, de la, de l’, des). Je n’ai pas d’argent. Tu en as? I haven’t got any money. Have you got any?‘ Tu peux me prêter des timbres? Can you lend me some stamps?’– ‘Non, je dois en acheter.’ ‘No, I have to buy some.’ When en is used with avoir, with il y a or with numbers, it is often not translated in English but can never be missed out in French. ‘Est-ce que tu as un dictionnaire?’ – Have you got a dictionary?’ – ‘Oui, j’en ai un.’ ‘Yes,I’ve got one.’ ‘Combien d’élèves y a-t-il dans ta classe?’ ‘How many pupils are there in – ‘Il y en a trente.’ your class?’- "There are thirty.’ ‘ J’en veux deux. I want two (of them). en usually comes before the verb. J’en veux. I want some. Elle en a parlé avec lui. She talked to him about it. En êtes-vous content? Are you pleased with it/them? In orders and instructions telling someone to do something, en comes after the verb and is attached to it with a hyphen (-). Prenez-en. Take some. en comes after other direct or indirect object pronouns. Donnez-leur-en. Give them some. Il m’en a parlé. He spoke to me about it. Adjectives 2 1 What is the word order with French adjectives? French adjectives usually go after the noun they are describing. l’heure exacte the right time la page suivante the following page French adjectives describing colours, shapes or nationalities always go after the noun. des cravates rouges red ties une table ronde a round table un mot françaisa French word Some very common French adjectives usually come before the noun. beau lovely, beautiful bon good, right court short grand tall, big, long, great gros big, fat haut high jeune young joli pretty long long mauvais bad, poor meille better nouveau new petit small, little premier first vieux old une belle journée a lovely day Bonne chance! Good luck! There is a small group of common adjectives whose meaning changes depending on whether they come before the noun or go after it.
Remember that dernier (last) and prochain (next) go after nouns relating to time, for example, semaine (week) and mois (month). Otherwise they go before the noun. la semaine dernière last week la dernière fois que je t’ai vu the last time I saw you la semaine prochaine next week la prochaine fois que j’y vais the next time I go there N.B. When certain adjectives are used with certain nouns, they take on a meaning you cannot always guess. You may need to check these in your dictionary and learn them. Here are a few: mon petit ami my boyfriend les petits pois peas les grandes vacances the summer holidays une grande personne an adult, a grown-up In French you can use more than one adjective at a time to describe someone or something. If one of the adjectives usually comes before the noun and the other usually goes after the noun, the word order follows the usual pattern. une jeune femme blonde a young blonde woman un nouveau film intéressant an interesting new film If both adjectives usually come after the noun, they are joined together with et (and). un homme mince et laid a thin, ugly man une personne intelligente et drôle an intelligent, funny person 2 How do you form comparative adjectives in French? In French, to say that something is easier, more expensive and so on, you use plus (more) before the adjective. Cette question est plus facile. This question is easier. Cette veste est plus chère. This jacket is more expensive. To say something is less expensive, less complicated and so on, you use moins (less) before the adjective. Cette veste est moins chère. This jacket is less expensive. un projet moins compliqué a less complicated plan To introduce the person or thing you are making the comparison with, use que (than). Elle est plus petite que moi. She's smaller than me. Cette question est plus facile que la première This question is easier than the first one. To say that something or someone is as … as something or someone else, use aussi … que. Il est aussi inquiet que moi. He's as worried as me. Cette ville n’est pas aussi grande que Bordeaux. The town isn't as big as Bordeaux 3 How do you form superlative adjectives in French? In French, to say that something or someone is easiest, prettiest, most expensive and so on, you use: le plus with masculine singular adjectives la plus with feminine singular adjectives les plus with plural adjectives (for both masculine and feminine) le guide le plus utile the most useful guide book la question la plus facile the easiest question les plus grands hôtels the biggest hotels les plus petites voitures the smallest cars To say that something or someone is the least easy, the least pretty, the least expensive and so on, you use: le moins with masculine singular adjectives la moins with feminine singular adjectives les moins with plural adjectives (for both masculine and feminine). le guide le moins utile the least useful guidebook Cette question est la moins facile. This question is the least easy (or the hardest) les mois les moins agréables the least pleasant months les moins belles photos the least attractive photos N.B. That when the adjective comes after the noun, you repeat the definite article (le, la or les). les mois les moins agréables the least pleasant months When the adjective comes before the noun, you do not repeat the definite article. les moins belles photos the least attractive photos In phrases like the biggest hotel in London and the oldest person in the village, you use de to translate in. le plus grand hôtel de Londres the biggest hotel in London la personne la plus âgée du village he oldest person in the village 4 What are the irregular comparative and superlative adjectives in French? In French, as English, some adjectives have irregular comparative and superlative forms – better instead of ‘more good’, and worst instead of ‘most bad’
J’ai une meilleure idée I've got a better idea. Il ne fait pas le moindre effort. He doesn't make the slightest effort Remember to choose the right form of the adjective to match the noun or pronoun, depending on whether it is masculine or feminine, singular or plural. Don’t forget to change le to la or les in superlatives. Note that bien and its comparative and superlative forms mieux and le mieux can be both adjectives and adverbs. Il est bien, ce restaurant. (=adjective) This restaurant is good. Elle va mieux aujourd’hui. (=adverb) She's better today. 5 How do you use the French demonstrative adjectives 'ce', 'cette', 'cet' and 'ces'? In French, as in English, demonstrative adjectives are used with a noun to point out a particular thing or person, for example, this woman, that dog. In French you use the demonstrative adjective ce to point out a particular thing or person. Like all adjectives in French, ce changes its form to cette, cet or ces, depending on whether you are referring to a noun that is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
N.B. That cet is used in front of masculine singular nouns which begin with a vowel and most words beginning with h. cet oiseau this/that bird cet hôpital this/that hospital N.B. That ce comes before the noun it refers to. Combien coûte ce manteau? How much is this/that coat? Comment s’appelle cette entreprise? What is this/that company called? Ces livres sont très intéressants. These/Those books are very interesting. Ces couleurs sont jolies. These/Those colours are pretty. If you want to emphasize the difference between something that is close to you and something that is further away, you can add: -ci on the end of the noun for things that are closer Prends cette valise-ci. Take this case -là on the end of the noun for things that are further away Est-ce que tu reconnais cette personne-là? Do you recognize that person? 6 What are the possessive adjectives in French? In French, as in English, possessive adjectives are used with a noun to show that one person or thing belongs to another. Like all French adjectives, these agree with the noun they refer to.
N.B. that you use mon, ton and son with feminine singular nouns in front of words that begin with a vowel and most words beginning with h. This makes them easier to say. mon assiette my plate ton histoire your story son erreur his/her mistake mon autre sœur my other sister Possessive adjectives come before the noun they describe. Voilà mon mari. There's my husband. Mon frère et ma sœur habitent à Glasgow. My brother and sister live in Glasgow Est-ce que tes voisins vendent leur maison? Are your neighbours selling their house? Rangez vos affaires. Put your things away. Remember that possessive adjectives agree with what they describe, not with the person who owns that thing. For example, sa can mean his, her, its and one’s, but can only ever be used with a feminine singular noun. Paul cherche sa montre Paul's looking for his watch. Paul cherche ses lunettes. Paul’s looking for his glasses. Catherine a appelé son frère. Catherine called her brother. Catherine a appelé sa sœur. Catherine called her sister. The equivalent of your in French is ton/ta/tes for someone you call tu, or votre/vos for someone you call vous. Note that possessive adjectives are not normally used with parts of the body. Use le, la, l’ or les instead. J’ai mal à la mai . My hand hurts. 7 What are the indefinite adjectives in French? In French, as in English, an indefinite adjective is one of a small group of adjectives that are used to talk about people or things in a general way without saying exactly who or what they are. This type of adjective comes before the noun it refers to. Here are the most common French indefinite adjectives:
J’ai d’autres projets. I've got other plans.
J’y vais chaque année. I go every year. J’ai le même manteau. I have the same coat. Il a quelques amis à Paris. He has some friends in Paris Il reste quelques bouteilles. There are a few bottles left. Il travaille tout le temps. He works all the time. Remember that you can also use tout to talk about how often something happens. tous les jours every day tous les deux jours every other day Note that these words can also be used as pronouns, standing in place of a noun instead of being used with one. chaque and quelques have a slightly different form when they are used in this way. Adjectives 1 What is an adjective? An adjective is a ‘describing’ word that tells you more about a person or thing, such as their appearance, colour, size or other qualities, for example, pretty, blue, big. Using Adjectives Adjectives are words like clever, expensive and silly that tell you more about a noun (a living being, thing or idea). They can also tell you more about a pronoun, such as he or they. They can be used next to a noun they are describing, or can be separated from the noun by a verb like be, look, feel and so on. a clever girl; an expensive coat; a silly idea; He is just being silly In English, the only time an adjective changes its form is when you are making a comparison. She is cleverer than her brother; That’s the silliest idea I ever heard! In French, however, most adjectives agree with what they are describing. This means that their endings change depending on whether the person or thing you are referring to is masculine or feminine, and singular or plural. un mot français a French word une chanson française a French song des traditions françaises French traditions In English we put adjectives before the noun they describe, but in French you usually put them after it. un chat noir a black cat. Most French adjectives change their form, according to whether the person or thing they are describing is masculine or feminine, singular or plural. In French adjectives usually go after the noun they describe. Making Adjectives Agree 1 The Basic Rules In dictionaries, regular French adjectives are usually shown in the masculine singular form. You need to know how to change them to make them agree with the noun or pronoun that they are describing. To make an adjective agree with the noun or pronoun it describes, you simply add the following endings in most cases:
2 Making adjectives feminine With most adjectives you add an -e to the masculine singular form to make it feminine. un chat noir a black cat → une chemise noire a black shirt un sac lourd a heavy bag → une valise lourde a heavy suitcase If the adjective already ends in an -e in the masculine, you do not add another -e. un sac jaune a yellow bag → une chemise jaune a yellow shirt un garçon sage a good boy → une fille sage a good girl Some changes to endings are a little more complicated but still follow a regular pattern. Sometimes you have to double the consonant as well as adding an -e.
un bon repas a good meal → de bonne humeur in a good mood un homme cruel a cruel man → une remarque cruelle a cruel remark N.B. If a masculine adjective ends in a vowel (a, e, i, o or u), its pronunciation does not change when an -e is added to form the feminine. For example, joli and jolie are both pronounced the same. If a masculine adjective ends with a consonant that is not pronounced, such as -d, -s or -t, you do pronounce that consonant when an -e is added in the feminine. For example, in chaud (hot, warm), you cannot hear the d when it is said out loud but in the feminine form chaude, you can hear the d sound. This is also true when you have to double the consonant before the -e is added, for example, gros (big, fat), where you cannot hear the s, and the feminine form grosse, where you can hear the s sound. Some masculine adjectives, such as bon (good) or italien (Italian), end in what is called a nasal vowel and an -n. With these words, you pronounce the vowel ‘through your nose’ but do not say the n. When the consonant is doubled and an -e is added in the feminine – bonne, italienne – the vowel becomes a normal one instead of a nasal vowel and you do pronounce the n. Some very common adjectives have irregular feminine forms.
mon sport favori my favourite sport ma chanson favorite my favourite song un ami grec a Greek (male) friend une amie grecque a Greek (female) friend A very small group of French adjectives have an extra masculine singular form that is used in front of words that begin with a vowel (a, e, i, o or u) and most words beginning with h. These adjectives also have an irregular feminine form.
un bel appartement a beautiful flat
le Nouvel An New Year un vieil arbre an old tree 3 Making Adjectives Plural With most adjectives you add an -s to the masculine singular or feminine singular form to make it plural. un chat noir black cat des chats noirs black cats une valise lourde heavy suitcase des valises lourdes heavy suitcases N.B. When an adjective describes a masculine and a feminine noun or pronoun, use the masculine plural form of the adjective. La maison et le jardin sont beaux. The house and garden are beautiful. Sophie et son petit ami sont très gentils. Sophie and her boyfriend are very nice. If the masculine singular form already ends in an -s or an -x, you do not add an -s. un fromage français a French cheese → des fromages françai French cheeses un homme dangereux a dangerous man →des hommes dangereux dangerous men If the masculine singular form ends in -eau or -al, the masculine plural is usually -eaux or -aux. le nouveau professeur the new teacher→les nouveaux professeurs the new teachers le rôle principal the main role →les rôles principaux the main roles N.B. Adding an -s or an -x does not change the pronunciation of a word. For example, noir and noirs sound just the same, as do nouveau and nouveaux. When the -s or -x ending comes before a word starting with a vowel or most words starting with h, you have to pronounce the s or x on the end of the adjective. It sounds like the z in the English word zip. les anciens élèves the former pupils de grands hôtels big hotels 4 Invariable adjectives A small number of adjectives (mostly relating to colours) do not change in the feminine or plural. They are called invariable because their form never changes, no matter what they are describing. These adjectives are often made up of more than one word – for example, bleu marine (navy blue), or else come from the names of fruit or nuts for example, orange (orange), marron (brown). des chaussures marron brown shoes Il porte un pullover marron He's wearing a brown jumper. une veste bleu marine a navy blue jacket Elle porte des gants bleu mariine She's wearing navy blue gloves Elle a des lunettes orange. She's got orange glasses. une tenue chic a smart outfit des jeux super great games Articles 4 The Partitive Article: du, de la, de l’ and des 1 The basic rules du, de la, de l’ and des can all be used to give information about the amount or quantity of a particular thing. They are often translated into English as some or any. In French, you choose between du, de la, de l’ and des, depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
N.B. de + le and de la change to de l’ when they are used in front of a word starting with a vowel, most words starting with h, and y. N.B. du is also a combination of de + le and has other meanings, such as saying who something belongs to or where something is from. N.B. des is also a combination of de + les and has other meanings, such as saying who something belongs to or where something is from. 2 The partitive article in negative sentences In French, you use word pairs like ne … pas (not) and ne … jamais (never) to say that something is not happening or not true. In this type of expression, du, de la, de l’ and des all change to de. Nous n’avons pas de beurre. We don’t have any butter. Je ne mange jamais de viande. I never eat meat. Il n’y a pas de timbres. There aren’t any stamps. N.B. de changes to d’ in front of a word starting with a vowel and most nouns starting with h. Il n’a pas d’argent. He doesn’t have any money. Il n’y a pas d’horloge dans la salle. There isn’t a clock in the room. There are some very common adjectives, like beau, bon and petit, that can come before the noun instead of after it. When an adjective comes before a plural noun, des changes to de. J’ai reçu de beaux cadeaux. I got some lovely presents. Cette région a de très jolis villages. This area has some very pretty villages. 3 The Meaning of du, de la, de l’ and des du, de la, de l’ and des are often translated into English as some or any, but there are times when no word is used in English to translate the French. Il me doit de l’argent. He owes me (some) money. Je vais acheter de la farine et du I’m going to buy (some) flour pour faire un gâteau. and butter to make a cake. Est-ce qu’il y a des lettres pour moi? Are there any letters for me? Elle ne veut pas de beurre. She doesn’t want any butter. Je ne prends pas de lait. I don’t take milk. N.B. du, de la, de l’ and des can NEVER be missed out in French, even if there is no word in English. With masculine singular nouns → use du. With feminine singular nouns → use de la. With singular nouns starting with a vowel and some nouns beginning with h → use de l’. With plural nouns → use des. du, de la, de l’ and des → change to de or d’ in negative sentences. Articles 3 The Indefinite Article: un, une and des 1 The Basic Rules In English we have the indefinite article a, which changes to an in front of a word that starts with a vowel. In the plural we say either some, any or nothing at all. In French, you choose from un, une and des, depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine, and singular or plural.
N.B. des is used in front of plural nouns, whether they are masculine or feminine, and whatever letter they start with. des is also a combination of de + les and has other meanings, such as saying who something belongs to or where something is from. When des is used in front of a word that starts with a consonant (any letter except a, e, i, o or u), you DO NOT say the s on the end of des: des chiens (some/any) dogs.When des is used in front of a word that starts with a vowel, and most words starting with h, you DO pronounce the s on the end. It sounds like the z in the English word zip: des amis (some/any) friends, des hôtels (some/any) hotels. 2 The Indefinite Article in Negative Sentences In English we use words like not and never to indicate that something is not happening or is not true. The sentences that these words are used in are called negative sentences. I do not know him. I never do my homework on time. In French, you use word pairs like ne … pas (not) and ne … jamais (never) to say that something is not happening or not true. When un, une or des is used after this type of expression, it has to be changed to de. Je n’ai pas de vélo. I don’t have a bike. Nous n’avons pas de cousins. We don’t have any cousins. N.B. de changes to d’ in front of a word starting with a vowel and most words starting with h. Je n’ai pas d’ordinateur. I don’t have a computer. Il n’y a pas d’horloge dans la salle. There isn’t a clock in the room. There are some very common adjectives, like beau, bon and petit, that can come BEFORE the noun instead of after it. When an adjective comes before a plural noun, des changes to de. J’ai reçu de beaux cadeaux. I got some lovely presents. Cette région a de très jolis villages. This area has some very pretty villages. 3 The Meaning of des des can mean different things in English, depending on the sentence. Some is often the best word to use. J’ai un chien, deux chats et des souris. I’ve got a dog, two cats and some mice Tu veux des chips? Would you like some crisps? In questions and negative sentences des means any, or is not translated at all. Tu as des frères? Have you got any brothers? Avez-vous des timbres? Do you have stamps? Il n’y a pas d’œufs. There aren’t any eggs. As an English speaker, you will know what sounds right in your own language. The important thing to remember is that des can NEVER be missed out in French, even if there is no word in English. 4 Using the Indefinite Article The indefinite article is used in French in much the same way as we use a, some and any in English. There are two places where the indefinite article is NOT used: a) With the adjective quel (what a), in sentences like Quel dommage! What a shame! Quelle surprise! What a surprise! Quelle bonne idée! What a good idea! b) When you say what jobs people do Il est professeur. He’s a teacher. Ma mère est infirmière My mother’s a nurse. N.B. When you use c’est (he/she is), you DO use un or une. When you use ce sont (they are), you DO use des. C’est un médecin. He is/She is a doctor. Ce sont des acteurs. They are actors.
With masculine singular nouns → use un. With feminine singular nouns → use une. With plural nouns → use des. un, une and des → change to de or d’ in negative sentences. The indefinite article is not usually used when you say what jobs people do, or in exclamations with quel. Articles 2 The Definite Article: le, la, l` and les 1 The Basic Rules In English we only have one definite article: the. In French, there is more than one definite article to choose from. All French nouns are either masculine or feminine and, just as in English, they can be either singular or plural. The word you choose for the depends on whether the noun it is used with is masculine or feminine, singular or plural
N.B. le and la change to l’ when they are used in front of a word starting with a vowel and most words starting with h.
Remember that you have to make the noun plural too, just as you would in English. In French, you usually add an -s, and when les is used in front of a word that starts with a consonant, you do not pronounce the s: les chiens the dogs. When les is used in front of a word that starts with a vowel, most words starting with h, and the French word y, you do pronounce the s on the end of les. It sounds like the z in the English word zip: les amis the friends, les hôtels the hotels. It is generally a good idea to learn the article or the gender with the noun when you come across a word for the first time, so that you know whether it is masculine or feminine. A good dictionary will also give you this information. 2 How do you use the French word 'à' with 'le', 'la', 'l’' and 'les'? The French word à is translated into English in several different ways, including at or to. There are special rules when you use it together with le and les. When à is followed by le, the two words become au. When à is followed by les, the two words become aux. When à is followed by la or l’, the words do not change.
Note that le and la change to l’ when they are used in front of a word starting with a vowel and most words starting with h. 3 How do you use the French word 'de' with 'le', 'la', 'l’' and 'les'? The French word de is translated into English in several different ways, including of and from. There are special rules when you use it together with le and les.
Note that le and la change to l’ when they are used in front of a word starting with a vowel and most words starting with h. 4 How do you use the definite article in French? The definite article in French (le, la, l’ and les) is used in more or less the same way as we use the in English, but it is also used in French in a few places where you might not expect it. The definite article is used with words like prices, flu and time that describe qualities, ideas or experiences (called abstract nouns) rather than something that you can touch with your hand. Usually, the is missed out in English with this type of word. Les prix montent. Prices are rising. Je n’ai pas le temps. I don’t have time. J’ai la grippe. I’ve got flu. N.B. There are some set phrases using avoir, avec or sans followed by a noun, where the definite article is NOT used
You also use the definite article when you are talking about things like coffee or computers(called concrete nouns) if you are talking generally about that thing.
Usually, the is missed out in English with this type of word. Je n’aime pas le café. I don’t like coffee Je n’aime pas le café. I don’t like coffee. Les ordinateurs coûtent très cher. Computers are very expensive. Les professeurs ne gagnent pas beaucoup. Teachers don’t earn very much. If you are talking about a part of your body, you usually use a word like my or his in English, but in French you usually use the definite article. Tourne la tête à gauche. Turn your head to the left Il s’est cassé le bras. He’s broken his arm. J’ai mal à la gorge. I’ve got a sore throat. In French you have to use the definite article in front of the names of countries, continents and regions. la Bretagne Brittany l’Europe Europe J’ai acheté ce poster au Japon. I bought this poster in Japan. Je viens des États-Unis. I come from the United States. N.B. If the name of the country comes after the French word en, meaning to or in, you do not use the definite article. en is used with the names of countries, continents and regions that are feminine in French Je vais en Écosse le mois prochain. I’m going to Scotland next month Il travaille en Allemagne. He works in Germany. You often use the definite article with the name of school subjects, languages and sports. Tu aimes les maths? Do you like maths? J’apprends le français depuis trois ans. I’ve been learning French for three years. Mon sport préféré, c’est le foot. My favourite sport is football. N.B. The definite article is not used after en. Comment est-ce qu’on dit ‘fils’ en anglais? How do you say ‘fils’ in English? Sophie est nulle en chimie. Sophie’s no good at chemistry. When you use the verb parler (to speak) in front of the name of the language, you do not always need to use the definite article in French. Tu parles espagnol? Do you speak Spanish? Il parle bien l’anglais. He speaks English well. You use le with dates, and also with the names of the days of the week and the seasons when you are talking about something that you do regularly or that is a habit. Elle part le 7 mai. She’s leaving on the seventh of May. Je vais chez ma grand-mère le dimanche. I go to my grandmother’s on Sundays N.B. You do not use the definite article after en. En hiver nous faisons du ski. In winter we go skiing. You often find the definite article in phrases that tell you about prices and rates. 6 euros le kilo 6 euros a kilo 3 euros la pièce 3 euros each On roulait à 100 kilomètres à l’heure. We were doing 100 kilometres an hour. Guide to French Patois! So, you’ve spent all that money on French lessons and phrase books, you move to the North of France and guess what, the neighbours speak another language! You might not have heard of Ch’ti but if you visit Northern France, even if you just drive through, it’s highly likely you’ll come across this term in shops, on car stickers or in restaurants. It’s a slang term that describes a native of northern France – it is a contraction of the term Ch’timi, and was a term invented during WWI by French soldiers to label their comrades from northern France. The term derives from the local contraction of the pronouns “toi” and “moi” into “ti” and “mi”. With the release of Dany Boon’s blockbuster (in France at least – where it is the biggest grossing French film ever) movie Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis in 2008, it became trendy to be from northern France and to be able to understand and speak the ch’ti dialect! Really, that’s what we’ve been told anyway! The title of the film translated into English means “welcome to the sticks” and basically exploits the French feeling that the north of France is a little unsophisticated. Actually, it is beautiful (in most places) and the film wonderfully portrays the story of the ch’tis “A visitor cries twice up north: once on his arrival and once at his departure”. Here are some commonly used words that you may come across when visiting the north of France – although “real” French is what everyone speaks – most of the time! You might even want to throw a few words into conversation with your neighbours if you’re in the the Nord-Pas de Calais region – don’t try it in the South though they’ll think you’re bonkers!
Articles 1 What is an Article? In English, an article is one of the words the, a, and an which is given in front of a noun. The Different Types of Article The definite article: le, la, l’ and les The indefinite article: un, une and des The partitive article: du, de la, de l’ and des Use of the Three Types of Article:
1) The definite article the in English. This is used to identify a particular thing or person. I’m going to the supermarket. That’s the woman I was talking to. 2) The indefinite article a or an in English, some or any (or no word at all) in the plural. This is used to refer to something unspecific, or that you do not really know about. Is there a supermarket near here? I need a day off. 3) The partitive article some or any (or no word at all) in English. This is used to talk about quantities or amounts. Can you lend me some sugar? Did you buy any wine? Do you like chocolate? Introduction Soon after we moved to France we were approached by a French couple who wanted to improve their English as they were president of the twinning society.
We started doing informal weekly sessions with them and it wasn`t long before other French and English couples wanted to join. The sessions soon reached four or five couples from each community, so we moved the sessions to a room in the Council offices. As I said, the sessions were informal and lasted about 2 to 2.5 hours, once a week in the afternoon. They allowed us to partake of a lunchtime digestif, an afternoon tea or coffee and an aperitif before dinner. We spent most of the time "chatting" in each others language and trying to get to grips with the idiosyncracies of our respective grammars. It was also useful to seek advice on French bureaucracy. Many of the sessions descended into good hearted criticism of each others language and syntax. For example, why are there so many different endings to verbs depending on the personal pronoun used compared with only one or two in English, why are all nouns gender based, why do so many words sound the same but are spelt differently and on and on? One important point that did come out of these sessions was that a good knowledge of grammar was required if one wanted to make progress in either language. To illustrate the difficulties we encountered with each other`s language, I set out below something we tried to explain to them I take it you already know Of tough and bough and cough and dough Others may stumble, but not you On hiccough, thorough, lough and through Well done! And now you wish perhaps, To learn of less familiar traps. Beware of heard, a dreadful word That looks like beard and sounds like bird And dead; it`s said like bed, not bread- For goodness sake, don`t call it deed! Watch out for meat and great and threat (They rhyme with suite and straight and debt) A moth is not a moth in mother Nor both in bother, broth in brother, And here is not a match for there, Nor dear and fear for bear and pear. And then there`s dose and rose and lose- Just look them up-and goose and choose, And cork and work , and card and ward, And font and front and word and sward, And do and go, and thwart and cart- Come come Iv`e hardly made a start! A dreadful language? Man alive! I`d mastered it when I was five! |
AuthorMy name is Jack, I live in at the back of Greta Garbo`s home for wayward boys and girls Categories
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