How to express your opinion
À mon avis, c'est un bon groupe
Je pense que c'est un bon groupe
Je suis sûr que ça va être un bon groupe
Je pense que c'est un bon groupe
Je suis sûr que ça va être un bon groupe
To say what you think, use je pense, which is from the verb penser. If your feelings are a bit stronger, say je crois, which is from croire (to believe). If you're sure you can say je suis sûr, or sûre if you're a woman. In French these expressions are followed by que, meaning 'that', often left out in English.
Vous croyez qu'il neigera demain ?
Do you think (that) it will snow tomorrow?
Je pense que le temps va changer.
I think (that) the weather is going to change.
Nous sommes sûrs qu'il habite ici.
We're sure (that) he lives here.
The phrase à mon avis can begin or end a sentence.
À mon avis, le climat change.
In my opinion, the climate is changing.
C'est difficile, à mon avis.
It's difficult, in my opinion.
To ask someone else their opinion, change mon to votre
À votre avis, ça va être difficile ?
In your opinion, is it going to be difficult?
Use parce que (because) and puisque (since) to give reasons for your opinions.
J'aime la radio parce qu'il y a beaucoup de bulletins d'information.
I like the radio because there are lots of news bulletins.
Je pense que ça va être un grand spectacle
I think it's going to be a great show
C'est un grand spectacle parce que toute l'histoire du ski y est racontée.
It's a great show because the whole history of skiing is told in it.
Des tornades se passent puisque le climat change.
Tornadoes happen because the climate is changing.
How to talk about future events and actions
Qu'est-ce que vous allez faire ?
On continuera à grater.
On continuera à grater.
A chatty way of talking about things that are going to happen soon is to use the verb aller: on va commencer, nous allons faire etc.
This is the equivalent of saying 'going to start, going to do.' (See La Randonnée for more details)
A more formal way and emphatic way of referring to future events is through a set of verb endings:
je commencerai, tu commenceras, il/elle/on commencera
nous commencerons, vous commencerez, ils/elles commenceront
nous commencerons, vous commencerez, ils/elles commenceront
This is the equivalent of 'will begin' in English.
The future tense of most verbs is formed by adding the endings highlighted above on to the infinitive:
travailler becomes je travaillerai.
But if the infinitive ends in -re, you drop the final 'e':
Dire becomes je dirai
There are a few irregular verbs such as je serai, (from être), nous aurons, (from avoir) and vous ferez, (from faire), but the endings are still the same.
A tip! The letter before the ending is always an 'r'.
Vous ferez mieux de venir nous aider.
You'll do better by coming to help us.
Ça ne sera jamais terminé dans huit jours.
That will never be finished in eight days.
How to ask politely for something
Est-ce qu'il serait possible de ... ?
Serait-il possible de ... ?
Pourriez-vous ... ?
Serait-il possible de ... ?
Pourriez-vous ... ?
The phrases serait-il possible de... ? (would it be possible to) and pourriez-vous ...? are used for making particularly polite requests in French.
Serait-il possible d'avoir une serviette supplémentaire?
Would it be possible to have an extra towel?
This form is called the conditional. Il serait is from the verb être (to be) and vous pourriez is from pouvoir (to be able).
The verb endings for the conditional tense are :
je -ais nous -ions
tu -ais vous -iez
il/elle/on -ait ils/elles -aient.
tu -ais vous -iez
il/elle/on -ait ils/elles -aient.
These endings are usually added to the infinitive of the verb:
Préférer becomes vous préféreriez ? (would you prefer?)
But if the infinitive ends in -re, drop the final 'e':
Dire becomes je dirais, (I would say).
There are a few irregular verbs such as je serais (I would be) and je pourrais (I could), but the endings are still the same.
A tip! The letter before the ending is always an 'r'.
Serait-il possible de manger ici ce soir ?
Would it be possible to eat here tonight?
Pourriez-vous nous garder nos bagages jusqu'à ce soir ?
Could you keep our luggage till this evening?
How to say the right thing on special occasions
Félicitations pour votre mariage
Bonne chance !
Je vous souhaite un joyeux anniversaire
Bonne chance !
Je vous souhaite un joyeux anniversaire
Just as in English, French short set phrases are used to congratulate or encourage someone:
Bon anniversaire !
Happy birthday!
Bonne chance !
Good luck!
Joyeux Noël !
Merry Christmas!
If the occasion calls for a more formal greeting, begin with je vous souhaite ... (I wish you ...). Souhaite is from the regular verb souhaiter.
Je vous souhaite beaucoup de succès
I wish you lots of success
For particularly solemn occasions like funerals, there's an even more formal way to begin a written message: Veuillez. It really means 'please' and is actually the imperative form of the verb vouloir.
Veuillez accepter toutes mes condoléances.
Please accept my sincere condolences
Je pense à toi/ à vous en ce moment difficile.
I'm thinking of you at this difficult time.
Veuillez bien recevoir l'expression de mes sentiments distingués.
Yours faithfully.
How to ask questions and to say whether something is good or bad
Qui va gagner ?
Quel est votre joueur préféré ?
Ils sont forts
Just as English question words often begin 'wh', so French question words often begin 'qu': qui (who), quand (when), que (what), quoi (what), quel (which). Other question words include où (where), comment (how), combien (how much) and pourquoi (why).
Use quoi only at the end of a sentence, or after a preposition (such as pour, à).
Vous faites quoi ?
What are you doing?
Vous jouez à quoi ?
What do you play?
Quel is an adjective. It is always accompanied by a noun with which it agrees in gender and number.
Quel joueur ?
Which player? (masculine singular)
Quelle équipe ?
Which team? (feminine singular)
Quels joueurs ?
Which players? (masculine plural)
Quelles equipes ?
Which teams? (feminine plural)
Est-ce que has no meaning of its own, but it turns a sentence into a question. It can also be combined with où, qui, quand or que.
Qu'est-ce que vous pensez du match?
What do you think of the match?
(needs link to other question notes)
(needs link to other question notes)
To describe a player or team as 'good', the word fort meaning 'strong' is often used. As it's an adjective, this can be forte, forts or fortes.
L'équipe est très forte.
The team's very strong
To say that a team or player is bad, you can use mauvais, but a more colloquial alternative is nul or nulle, which means "rubbish".
Comment est le match ?
What's the match like?
Vous êtes supporteur de qui ?
Whom do you support?
Le meilleur gardien français.
The best French goalkeeper
Mes pires erreurs.
My worst mistakes
How to talk about yourself
Je suis célibataire
Je suis plutôt énergique et sportive
J'aime aller au cinéma
Je suis plutôt énergique et sportive
J'aime aller au cinéma
To say what you like in French, use j'aime. If you really like something, say j'aime bien and if you love it, say j'adore. Je n'aime pas means "I don't like" and if you're not that keen on something, say je n'aime pas trop...
Similarly, you can say:
Je ne regarde pas trop la télé.
I don't watch that much TV.
To say what you are like, start with je suis and follow it with a suitable adjective. You can qualify your statement with très (very), un peu (a bit) or assez (quite). Plutôt is also a very common, conversational word, which means fairly, pretty or kind of:
Je suis plutôt sceptique.
I'm fairly /pretty sceptical.
C'est plutôt sympa.
It's pretty nice (kind of).
Young people use tu rather than vous when talking to each other. Tu is only used when talking to a friend; otherwise use vous. The tu form usually sounds the same as the je form because the final 's' of the verb is silent: j'aime, tu aimes, j'écoute, tu écoutes.
Mon type d'homme est patient et gentil.
My type of man is patient and kind.
Dans la vie tu es comment ?
What sort of person are you?
Je suis plutôt musclé.
I'm pretty muscular (muscly).
How to say what used to happen
Louis Lumière était un inventeur génial
Les frères Lumière vivaient ici
Les frères Lumière vivaient ici
To describe how something was or used to be like, French verbs have a particular set of verb endings:
je vivais tu vivais il/elle/on vivait
I/you/he/she/one used to live
nous vivions vous viviez ils/elles vivaient
We/you/they used to live
By the way, when spoken, ais, ais, ait, aient all sound the same.
This is called the imperfect tense, imparfait in French, because it doesn't refer to a single completed action but something that happened over a long period, or used to happen regularly.
To make the imparfait of a verb, you start with the 'nous' form of the present tense, then replace the -ons with the endings listed above.
To say "I used to work" you start from travaillons (the nous ending of travailler) and swap the -ons for -ais, which gives you je travaillais.
Similarly, finir => nous finiss-ons => je finiss-ais
Être is the only verb that doesn't follow this rule. Its imperfect is j'étais, on était, vous étiez etc.
C'était très intéressant.
It was very interesting.
To talk about the year when something happened, you start with the thousands, then add the hundreds and the tens to it: 1895 is Mille huit cent quatre-vingt quinze.
Les premiers films duraient 55 secondes.
The first films lasted 55 seconds.
Il portait des moustaches.
He had a moustache.
How to say where you've been, when you arrived etc
On est parti ?
Je suis arrivée ici il y a trois ans.
Vous êtes arrivés à quelle heure ?
Je suis arrivée ici il y a trois ans.
Vous êtes arrivés à quelle heure ?
One way of talking about what you've done is to use part of the verb avoir with a past participle ( See chambre d'hôte) : j'ai fait, on a visité, vous avez bien dormi ? etc This is called the perfect tense and it describes completed actions.
But there are a handful of verbs that form their perfect tense with parts of être instead of avoir. These include aller, venir, arriver, partir and other verbs to do with movement.
Ma femme est allée en Italie.
My wife has gone to Italy.
Nous sommes partis à 9 heures.
We left at 9 o'clock.
On est arrivé hier.
We arrived yesterday.
For this group of verbs the past participle changes like an adjective according to the gender or number of the subject. These different endings only really matter if you are writing French as they don't affect pronunciation.
Je suis arrivée hier.
I arrived yesterday (a woman speaking)
Vous êtes arrivés quand ?
When did you arrive? (said to a group of males)
This tense is called the passé composé and can have several English translations. Il est allé à Paris can mean: he went, he has gone or he has been to Paris.
Elles sont parties très tôt.
They left very early.
Je suis arrivée ici il y a une vingtaine d'années.
I arrived here about twenty years ago.
Ils sont venus nous voir.
They came to see us.
How to say what you've done and how it's been
Avez-vous bien dormi ?
On a beaucoup aimé le calme.
On a beaucoup aimé le calme.
The French way of talking about what you have done, or what has happened, follows a similar pattern to English. You start with j'ai, on a, nous avons etc (I have, we have etc) and follow this with a word like aimé, vu, fait, dormi (loved, seen, done, slept) .This part of the verb called the past participle.
Most past participles end in -é, -i or -u. Regular -er verbs like aimer give aimé, -ir verbs like finir give fini while -re verbs like rendre give rendu.
But there are plenty of irregular past participles:
vu from voir, fait from faire, pu from pouvoir, été from être, eu from avoir
The French term for this is le passé composé; in English it's the perfect tense, perfect in the sense of 'complete' because it describes a finished action. The English translation includes words like 'have , 'did' or the ending '..ed'.
J'ai visité Cassis: I have visited Cassis, I visited Cassis, I did visit Cassis.
J'ai bien aimé Cassis.
I really liked Cassis.
Vous avez vu ces trois petits villages.
You saw those three little villages.
How to say what's wrong and ask for a remedy
J'ai mal à l'oreille
J'ai mal au ventre
Vous avez quelque chose ?
J'ai mal au ventre
Vous avez quelque chose ?
The verb avoir (to have) is very helpful for talking about ailments. Apart from using it to say you have a problem or pain (j'ai un problème, j'ai une douleur). The expression avoir mal à helps you to be more specific.
The part of the body that's giving trouble goes after the à :
j'ai mal à la gorge.
I have a sore throat.
If the painful part is a masculine word like le dos you have to say au :
j'ai mal au dos.
I've got backache.
If it's plural, like les dents, you have to say aux :
j'ai mal aux dents.
I've got toothache.
The present tense of avoir (I have, you have etc) is :
j'ai, tu as, il/ elle/ on a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont.
J'ai quelque chose pour vous.
I've got something for you.
Vous avez un problème ?
Have you got a problem?
J'ai un gros rhume.
I've got a heavy cold
How to talk about dishes
Il faut des produits frais
Il faut faire quoi ?
Ça a l'air bon
Il faut faire quoi ?
Ça a l'air bon
Il faut tells you what you need or what you need to do. It never changes, whatever follows it.
Il faut can be followed by nouns:
Il faut du vin blanc et des oignons
You need white wine and onions
Or it can be followed by the infinitive of verbs:
Il faut compter 20 minutes
You need to wait 20 minutes
You'll also hear il faut followed by que:
Il faut que ça mijote
It must be simmering (literally, it's necessary that it simmers)
'Ça a l'air ...' is a useful catch-all expression to say how something seems, looks or smells.
Ça a l'air bon.
That looks good.
Ça a l'air délicieux.
That smells delicious.
Il faut du persil et de l'ail.
You need parsley and garlic.
Il faut compter une bonne demi-heure.
You need to give it a good half-hour.
Vous avez l'air occupé.
You look busy.
How to say what you're going to do.
On va marcher pendant une heure et demie.
Nous allons prendre le GR98 ?
On va aller jusqu'à la Grande Candelle.
Nous allons prendre le GR98 ?
On va aller jusqu'à la Grande Candelle.
The French way of saying what you're going to do has the same pattern as English. You start with je vais, on va, nous allons etc (the present tense of aller) and follow it with another verb like marcher, prendre, finir (the infinitive form of the verb).
The French term for this is le futur proche- the near future- because, like the English equivalent, it's often used to say what you're going to do or what's going to happen shortly.
Le chemin va nous emmener à
The path is going to take us to
Ça va être très beau !
It's going to be lovely!
If there are words like "him", "her", "us", involved (object pronouns), they come in front of the second verb:
Il va nous guider.
He's going to guide us.
On va aller chercher le GR98.
We're going to be looking for the GR98.
How to get and give general information
On cherche une maison.
On va réfléchir.
On peut visiter ?
On va réfléchir.
On peut visiter ?
The French word on is far more widely used and informal than the English "one". Its most common translation is "we".
On is a pronoun and has the same verb endings as il and elle, so it is always singular, even when referring to "we": il peut, elle peut, on peut.
The phrase on peut is very common as it means 'you can', 'it is possible' when you are talking generally. The verb that follows "on peut" is in the infinitive. It's a very handy way to ask if you can do something:
On peut manger ?
Peut-on entrer ?
Peut-on acheter une maison pas chère ?
Can we buy a cheap house?
On est aujourd'hui à €329 000.
Today it's €329,000.
On a déjà vu cet appartement.
We've seen that flat already.
How to ask questions
Il coûte combien ?
Il y a une supérette près d'ici ?
Est-ce que le gîte est disponible ?
Il y a une supérette près d'ici ?
Est-ce que le gîte est disponible ?
The simplest way to ask questions in French is to make your voice rise at the end of the sentence; the word order is the same as in a statement.
Vous partez en vacances ?
Are you going on holiday?
Vous acceptez les chèques ?
Do you accept cheques?
Very commonly though, French people start a question with est-ce que...? Est-ce que has no real meaning when on its own. Its function is to turn a statement into a question.
Est-ce qu'on peut réserver par téléphone ?
Can we book by phone?
Est-ce qu'il y a des choses à faire ?
Are there things to do?
Question words like où ? quand ? and combien ? can begin a question, as in English.
Où est-il ?
Where is he ?
Combien coûte un aller-retour ?
How much is a return ticket ?
In spoken French, though, they often come at the end of a question.
Ça coûte combien ?
How much does it cost?
Vos amis arrivent quand ?
When are your friends arriving?
Vous prenez des arrhes ?
Do you take a deposit?
Est-ce qu'il est disponible pour le week-end du onze ?
Is it available the weekend of the 11th?
On peut y aller à pied ?
Can we walk there?
alking about food and eating out
J'ai faim
Vous voulez manger quoi ?
Je préfère le filet de boeuf
Moi aussi
Vous voulez manger quoi ?
Je préfère le filet de boeuf
Moi aussi
To find out what someone would like to eat, use the question
Qu'est-ce que vous voulez manger ?
or more chattily,
vous voulez manger quoi ?
Voulez is from the verb vouloir (to want) and the form for "I want" is je veux. But, just as in English, it's more polite to say je voudrais (I would like).
To ask what someone else prefers and say what you prefer, use the verb préférer. It's regular, apart from a change of accents, which alters the pronunciation, of course.
Vous préférez la soupe ou le pâté ?
Je préfère la soupe
There are several conversational expressions to show that you agree with a suggestion:
moi aussi
me too
pourquoi pas ?
why not?
ça m'est égal
I don't mind
I'm hungry is j'ai faim. J'ai is from the verb avoir (to have), so what you are saying literally in French is 'I have hunger'. It's one of a number of common expressions using avoir in this way: j'ai soif (I'm thirsty) j'ai froid/chaud ( I'm hot/ cold)
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a à la carte ?
What's on the menu?
Vous préférez quel plat ?
What dish do you prefer?
Il y a plusieurs menus.
There are several set menus.
Des kebabs à emporter.
Kebabs to take away.
How to compare things and express a preference
Moi, je préfère le Gigondas
Celui-ci me va bien
Il est beaucoup plus doux
Celui-ci me va bien
Il est beaucoup plus doux
To compare two things, use plus (more) or moins (less, not as). They are used with virtually all adjectives, even though the English translation often has an "-er" instead of "more".
Plus doux
sweeter
Il est plus jeune
he's younger
Il est moins original
it's less original
One common exception is meilleur, which means "better"
Elle est carrément meilleure
she's clearly better
To say 'than', use que:
Le deuxième est plus doux que le premier
The second one is sweeter than the first.
To avoid having to repeat a masculine noun like le vin, you can use celui-ci (this one) or celui-là (that one). The feminine equivalents are celle-ci and celle-là. These (ones) and those (ones) are ceux-ci and ceux-là for masculines and celles-ci and celles-là for feminines.
Celui-ci va très bien avec une bonne viande.
This one goes very well with good-quality meat.
Vous préférez quelle bouteille ?
Which bottle do you prefer?
Je préfère celle-là.
I prefer that one.
Le Muscadet est plus sec que le Sauternes.
The Muscadet is dryer than the Sauternes.
Instructions and warnings
Suivez-moi !
Soyez bien prudents !
On doit porter un casque
Soyez bien prudents !
On doit porter un casque
Instructions and warnings are given by using the -ez ending of a verb without the vous. Grammatically, this is known as the imperative form.
Tenez !
Hold on!
Suivez-moi !
Follow me!
Faites attention !
Pay attention!
An exception to this general rule is soyez... ! (be... !) which is the imperative form of être.
Il faut also tells you that you have to do something. It never changes, no matter who is talking, and can be translated in English as "you/we must" or "it is necessary to". The following verb is in the infinitive form.
Il faut écouter.
You must listen.
Il faut porter un casque.
You must wear a helmet.
Another way of saying "have to" or "must" is with the verb devoir.
je dois tu dois il/ elle/ on doit,
nous devons vous devez ils/ elles doivent
nous devons vous devez ils/ elles doivent
As with il faut, the verb that follows is in the infinitive form.
On doit porter un casque.
We must wear a helmet.
Allez !
Off you go!
Choisissez un niveau.
Choose a level.
Payez 10 euros; il faut payer 10 euros.
Pay 10 euros; you need to pay 10 euros.
How to talk about others
Elle a six ans.
Elle a de beaux yeux bleus.
Il est très timide.
Elle a de beaux yeux bleus.
Il est très timide.
To talk about another person, animal or thing, use il and elle. Plural (they) is ils and elles. Use elles when talking about a group of women or girls only. For a mixed group, even if there is only one man, use ils.
The il/elle form of verbs in the present tense.
Verbs like aimer and jouer ends in -e: il aime, elle joue.
Verbs like finir ends in -it : il/elle finit
Verbs like vendre ends in -d : il/elle vend.
The ils/elles ending is almost always -ent: elles aiment, ils finissent, ils vendent.
Some common verbs are irregular: il/elle est, ils/elles sont (from être, to be), il/elle a, ils/elles ont (from avoir, to have).
Adjectives, or describing words, have four forms - masculine and feminine singular and masculine and feminine plural:
il est grand, elle est grande, ils sont grands, elles sont grandes.
The extra 'e' in the feminine forms means the preceding consonant is pronounced, whereas it's silent in the masculine forms.
Ce chat est très gentil.
This cat is very nice.
Mon animal préféré...
My favourite animal ...
Ma tante préférée ...
My favourite aunt ...
Les baleines sont belles.
Whales are beautiful.
How to talk about your plans and make arrangements
Je ne peux pas aujourd'hui
J'ai une réunion importante
Tu es libre demain ?
Je ne peux pas aujourd'hui
J'ai une réunion importante
Tu es libre demain ?
To accept or turn down an invitation, say je peux (I can), or je ne peux pas (I can't). Peux is from the verb pouvoir
To say what you have to do, use je dois (I must). It's from the verb devoir and is followed by another verb in the infinitive:
Je dois aller à mon rendez-vous
I must go to my appointment.
With questions and negatives, English also uses "do" "don't" and "doesn't", which have no equivalent in French.
Tu travailles ici ?
Do you work here ?
Je ne travaille pas ici.
I don't work here.
How to talk about your job
Je suis chauffeur Je travaille à la piscine
Je m'occupe d'un snack-bar
To say what you do, use je suis followed by the name of your job. There's no need for le or la:
Je m'occupe d'un snack-bar
To say what you do, use je suis followed by the name of your job. There's no need for le or la:
Je suis secrétaire
I'm a secreatary
Je suis mécanicien
I'm a mechanic
To say more about what you do, use je with an appropriate verb:
Je travaille
I work
Je fais
I do
Je commence
I begin
Je m'occupe de
I'm in charge of...
Travailler and commencer are "regular" verbs which follow a predictable pattern. From the -er ending of their infinitive (the dictionary form) you can work out the other endings: je commence, vous commencez... There are similar patterns for verbs ending in -ir and -re (like finir and descendre).
Faire and être are "irregular" verbs that don't follow the usual patterns :
Je fais, vous faites
je suis, vous êtes
Some verbs have an extra me (m' before a vowel). This is a reflexive verb, as the action involves just yourself, not anyone or anything else:
je me lève
I get up, literally I get myself up
je m'occupe
I'm busy, literally I occupy myself
You may hear the following expressions when people talk about their jobs:
Je commence ma journée à 08h30.
I begin my day at 8.30.
Vous faites quoi comme travail ?
What's your job?
Votre travail, il est comment ?
What's your work like?
Vous avez un autre métier pendant l'été ?
Do you have another job in summer?
Asking for things in shops and paying for them
Je voudrais un kilo de pommes
Je voudrais deux bottes de carottes
Je vais prendre du saucisson sec
Je voudrais deux bottes de carottes
Je vais prendre du saucisson sec
When asking for things, it's usual to begin with a phrase like je voudrais... (I'd like...) or je vais prendre...(I'll take...). To find out if something's in stock, ask Vous avez... ? (Have you got...?).
Je voudrais du fromage de chèvre.
I'd like some goat's cheese.
Je vais prendre des pommes.
I'll take some apples.
Vous avez du Camembert ?
Have you any Camembert?
If you know how much of something you want use un kilo... , demi-kilo ... deux cent grammes, une tranche, une boîte or even un morceau. All of these are followed by de:
Un morceau de fromage
A piece of cheese
Deux tranches de jambon
Two slices of ham
To say you'll have some apples, cheese etc, you need to use du , de la , de l' or des, depending on what you're asking for:
Je voudrais du fromage
I'd like some cheese
(le fromage is masculine and singular)
Je vais prendre des pommes
I'd like some apples
(les pommes are plural)
When it comes to paying you might be asked if you're paying with cash, en espèces, or with a credit card, par carte bleue or just Vous réglez comment ? /Vous payez comment ? How are you paying? Other key shopping phrases you'll hear are:
C'est tout ?
Is that all?
Avec ceci /cela ?
Anything else?
Bonne journée
Have a nice day
Kaydol:
Kayıtlar (Atom)
