Aide-mémoire in pdf form

1. Tu/vous = you
"Tu" means "you". It is familier. It's used with family and friends.
It is a subject pronoun.
"Vous" means "you", "y'all" or "you guys". It is Formel or pluriel.
It's used to show respect, anger, or isolation OR to talk to a group of
people.
2. Les pronoms sujets = Subject pronouns
•
•
•
Pronouns replace nouns
Subject pronouns are the nouns doing the action in the
sentence
Note: ONLY 3rd person pronouns will actually replace nouns!
1ere personne
2eme personne
3eme personne
Singulier
je/ j' = I
tu = you (friendly,
familier)
il = he/it, elle = she/it
on = one, we (slang),
people (in general),
qui = who, tout le
monde = everybody
Pluriel
nous = we
vous = y’all or
vous = you (Formel)
ils = they (masculine or
mixed group)
elles = they (feminine
group only)
3. L'élision=Words that must contract
L’élision = the act of making 2 words into one, by dropping the last
letter of the first word and replacing it with an apostrophe.
In French, ONLY the following words will drop their last letter in
front of a word starting with a vowel or silent h.
ce (it) -> c'
de (of, from) -> d'
je (I subject pronoun) -> j'
le, la (the) -> l'
me (me, to me) -> m'
ne (part of not) -> n'
que (that or what) -> qu'
se (one, to oneself)-> s'
si (if) in front of IL only-> s’il
te (you, to you) -> t'
Notice that all these words are “petits”, and almost all of them end
in "e"!
4. Question words - les mots interrogatifs
1. Qui = who (answer with a person!)
2. Comment = how
3. Où = where
4. D'où = from where (answer with de + place)
5. Qu'est-ce que c'est? = What is it? (answer with c'est...)
6. Quel(le)(s) + noun = What, which
7. qu'est-ce que + sujet + verbe = what
8. Quoi = what (comes after conjugated verb)
9. Que = what (before inversion)
10. à quelle heure = at what time (answer with à + specific time)
11. quand = when (answer does NOT have to be specific)
12. est-ce que + sujet+ verbe = is it that? , Do? (oui/non answer)
13. combien = how many/much (give a quantity answer)
14. pourquoi = why (answer with parce que OR pour+infinitif)
5. Comment poser les questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
Raise your voice.
Add "n'est-ce pas" to the end of the statement.
Add "Est-ce que" to the beginning of the statement.
Inversion: flip the pronoun and the conjugated verb, and add a
hyphen.
5. Use a question word.
Ex. Tu es content? Tu es content, n'est-ce pas? Est-ce que tu es
content? Es-tu content? Qui est content?
6. Comment répondre aux questions
If the question subject is:
Tu
3rd person
On
Vous (singulier, Formel)
Vous pluriel
Je
Nous
Then the answer subject is:
Je
3rd person
On
Je
Nous
Tu or vous
Nous or vous
7. Answer words vs. question words
If the answer is....
(c'est) + person
à + person
avec+ person
(à) +place
de + place
à + specific time
approximation of time
number or quantity (+ noun)
parce que, pour + infinitive or
pour + a thing
Tells how you are feeling/ How
you did something, especially
transportation
gives you the answer to a "what"
question
then use the Question word
qui
à qui
avec qui
où
d'où
à quelle heure
quand
combien
pourquoi
comment
quoi (always follows verb)
quel + noun
qu'est-ce que + subject + verb
que + inversion
8. Inversion: sophisticated way of asking ?
•
•
•
•
Inversion is not generally used with "je"
Inversion is the act of swapping the pronom et le verbe conjugué
and adding a hyphen to form a question. Ex. Tu as faim -> As-tu
faim?
Note: For prononciation purposes, if the 3rd person singular
verbe conjugué form ends in a vowel, you place -t- instead of -.
Ex. Il a soif. A-t-il soif?
Inversion cannot be used with a noun or a proper noun. Use the
noun, followed by a comma, and then make inversion using a
corresponding pronoun. Ex. Sylvie habite ici. Sylvie, habite-telle ici?
9. Verb vocabulary
•
•
•
•
•
Conjugation (conjugaison) = changing the infinitive to agree with its
subject (ie. subject-verb agreement)
Infinitive (infinitif) = The untouched form of the verb. This is the verb
form you will find in the French dictionary. In English, it starts with "to
___". ex. to run, to sing. It can be either irregular* or regular.
Conjugated verb (verbe conjugué) = the verb form after it has been
changed to agree with the subject
Irregular verb*: Does not follow a pattern for conjugation.
Regular verb: Follows a pattern for conjugation. This pattern is
always: 1. Drop the last 2 letters of the infinitive and 2. Add the
personal endings to the stem.
10. Les noms = nouns (and clues)
•
•
•
Nouns are people, places, things or ideas.
In French, they always have GENDER (m/f)
You MUST memorize gender when you learn the noun.
Here are some clues to help you. If then noun ends in:
-eau, -one, -c, -oir, -ier, -d,
-ille, -ise, -rie, -ique, -ette,
- ment, -l, -f , -b, -et, -ing,
-sion, -tion, -ue , –ace, -ance,
-isme, -k, -ou, -p, -cle
-esse, -fe, -nne, tié
EXCEPT: eau , peau, soif,
boucle
EXCEPT: squelette, golfe,
bastion
Assume masculine
Assume feminine
11. Les articles indéfinis = indefinite articles
SINGULIER:
un = (m) a, an, one
une = (f) a, an, one
PLURIEL:
des = some (use for all plural)
AFTER A NEGATIVE:
de or d' = any (follows "pas de" rule)
Articles are called "gender markers".
ALWAYS use un/une after c'est.
12. L'article défini = the definite article
•
•
•
Definite article = the
Describes a specific object
Used MUCH more in French than English
SINGULIER: le : before masculine singular noun
la: before feminine singular noun
l': before any singular WORD starting with a vowel sound
(vowel/silent h)
PLURIEL:
les: before ALL plural nouns
13. The non-silent "h"
The non-silent (or breathe H) "h" in French is called le h aspiré. It is
shown in the dictionary as an apostrophe ex. ['ariko] = haricot
There is a break between it and the word before. Therefore instead of l' ou
d' ou cet, we use le or la, de and ce or cette.
In 7th grade, you will only learn 4 French words with the non-silent
"h": le haricot vert (green bean), le haut parleur (loudspeaker), le hot
dog, le hamburger
However, feel free to look up words in the dictionary if you want to
learn more!
14. Les noms pluriels= Plural nouns
To make nouns plural in French:
1. Change the article
•
•
Definite article changes to "les"
Indefinite article changes to "des"
2. Add "s" to the noun UNLESS*
- it ends with an "s" or an "x" --> then do NOT do anything!
- it ends with a "u"--> then add an "x" (EXCEPT: pneu= pneus)
Ex. la gomme = les gommes, le drapeau = les drapeaux, le cours = les
cours, l'élève = les élèves, une gomme = des gommes, un bureau = des
bureaux
15. 3rd person singulier
All of the following subjects will take the 3rd person singular form when
conjugating your verb:
il = he
elle = she
on = we (slang, spoken French), one, people (in general)
qui = who
tout le monde = everybody
any singular proper noun: Robert, Paris, New York
any singular noun: la fête, la cassette
la famille = the family This is a single unit, or a "collective noun". Just
like in English, it is conjugated to 3rd person singular form
la classe = the class (same reason as above)
16. Regular "er" verb conjugation
To conjugate regular "er" verbs, drop the "er" from the infinitive and add
the "personal" endings below to the "stem":
Singulier
1 person je -> E
2nd
tu -> ES
person
3rd
il , elle, on, qui, tout le
person
monde, etc.
st
Pluriel
nous -> ONS
vous -> EZ (pronounced
“AY”)
ils elles -> ENT (not
pronounced! This ending is
totally silent!)
-> E
ex. chanter = to sing
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
je chante = I sing, I am singing, I do sing
tu chantes = you sing, you are singing, you do sing
il chante = he sings, he is singing, he does sing
on chante = we sing, one sings, people sing etc.
nous chantons = we sing, we are singing, we do sing
vous chantez = you (Formel) sing, y'all (you guys) are singing, y'all do
sing, you (Formel) do sing
elles chantent = they (féminin) sing, they are singing, they do sing
17. Regular "ir" verbs
To conjugate regular "ir" verbs, first you drop the "ir”. Then you add the
personal ending to the stem.
1st person
2nd
person
3rd
person
Singulier
is
is
Pluriel
issons
issez
it
issent
18. Regular “re” verbs
To conjugate "re" verbs, first you drop the "re”. Then you add the
personal ending to the stem.
1st person
2nd
person
3rd
person
Singulier
s
s
Pluriel
ons
ez
- (don’t add
anything)
ent
The regular -re verbs you have learned are:
descendre = to go down, to get off
perdre = to lose
vendre = to sell
répondre = to answer
attendre = to wait (for)
entendre = to hear
19. Multiple verbs in sentence
In French, whenever you have multiple verbs in a sentence, follow this
rule:
sujet + verbe conjugué + infinitif(s)
To make it negative, follow the hot dog rule (ne...pas goes around the
conjugated verb)!
sujet + ne or n' + verbe conjugué + pas + infinitifs
In English, this translates 2 ways:
J'aime travailler = I love to work or I love working.
Ils détestent étudier et passer les examens = They hate (studying/to study) and (taking/to
take) tests.
20. Négation - THE HOT DOG RULE
To make a sentence negative in French, wrap "ne" "pas" around the
conjugated verb.
(Think of the conjugated verb as the hot dog, and the ne...pas will wrap
around him like a bun).
ex. Je suis français becomes Je ne suis pas français. = I am not French.
Ne = bun suis = hot dog pas = bun
***In front of a vowel or a silent "h", ne becomes n'.
ex. Il est intelligent becomes: Il n'est pas intelligent
21. "Pas de" = "not any" rule
un, une, des, de la, du, or de l' change to de or d' (meaning "any")
IF 1). They come directly after a "pas"
OR 2). They come directly after a "pas + verb form"
Ex1. J'écoute des cassettes. Je n'écoute pas de cassettes. (makes a PAS
DE) = I don't listen to any cassette tapes.
Ex 2. J'aime écouter des amis. Je n'aime pas écouter d'amis.
I like to listen to some friends. I don't like to listen to any friends.
23. Avoir* - to have
Singulier
1 person J’ai = I have
2nd
tu as = you (friendly,
person
familier) have
rd
3
il a = he has
person
elle a = she has
on a= one has, we
(slang) have, people
(in general) have
qui a = who has
tout le monde a =
everybody has
st
Pluriel
nous avons = we have
vous avez = y’all have or you
(Formel) have
ils ont= they (masculine or
mixed group) have
elles ont = they (feminine
group only) have
22. Être * = to be
The irregular verb être means "to be" and is conjugated in the following
bizarre way (you must memorize it!)
st
1 person
2nd person
3rd person
Singulier
je suis = I am,
Suisje? = Am I?
tu es = you (friendly,
familier) are
il est = he is
elle est = she is
on est= one is, we
(slang) are, people (in
general) are
qui est = who is
tout le monde est =
everybody is
Pluriel
nous sommes = we are
vous êtes = y’all are or you
(Formel) are
ils sont= they (masculine or
mixed group) are
elles sont = they (feminine group
only) are
• c'est * = it is (*special cases only)
1. before a stress pronoun (moi)
2. before a person's name
3. before un/une or sing. possessive adjective + noun. ex. c'est une porte.
4. before a date
• ce sont* = these are/ those are
Use ce sont when you have plural cases:
1. before 2 or more proper names
2. before des or pluriel possessive adjective + noun ex. Ce sont des livres.
24. Les adjectifs = adjectives
•
•
•
•
•
Adjectives describe nouns.
In French, adjectifs go AFTER the noun.
Adjectifs will change to take the gender (f/m) of the noun they describe
(this is called “agreement”). The dictionary gives the masculine form
of the adjective. To make it feminine: 1. If it ends in “e”, do
NOTHING! 2. If it doesn’t end in “e”, just add an “e” to the end
(usually).
Adjectifs will also change to become plural if the noun is plural following the same rules as plural nouns. (add an “s” or an “x”)
(Exception: bleu => bleus)
Some adjectifs never change, and they will be marked with INV
(invariable) in the dictionary
25. Possessive Adjectives
Possessive adjectives replace the definite article and come BEFORE the
noun (just like the definite article)
LE
My
mon
Your
ton
His
son
Her
son
Our
notre
Your (formel) votre
Their
leur
LA
ma
ta
sa
sa
notre
votre
leur
L'
mon
ton
son
son
notre
votre
leur
LES
mes
tes
ses
ses
nos
vos
leurs
Example: Elle a son stylo. She has her pen. Instead of “le” stylo, we use
“son”.
26. PAN BAGS = adjectives that come before
Some adjectives will come before the noun instead of after it. They must
still agree in number and in gender with the noun they are describing.
PA: Possessive adjectives = mon, ton, son, etc.
N: Number = un, deux, trois, premier, deuxième, etc.
B: Beauty = beau (handsome), joli (pretty)
A: Age = jeune (young), nouveau (new), vieux (old)
G: Goodness = bon/ bonne (good), mauvais (bad), meilleur (best)
S: Size = grand (big), petit (small)
27. Irregular Adjectives: beau, nouveau, vieux
These irregular adjectives come before the noun, and must agree with the
noun they describe. You will have to memorize all their forms:(
Anglais
Masc
Sing
Masc Sing before vowel or
silent h
Old
Vieux
Vieil
New
Nouveau Nouvel
Handsome,
Beau
Beautiful
Bel
Fem
sing
Fem
plural
Vieux
Vieille
Vieilles
Nouveaux
Nouvelle Nouvelles
Beaux
Belle
Masc
plural
Belles
28. Annoying de rule: des + plural adj. + noun
Des = some. However, if you have "des" followed by a plural adjective
(BAGS) followed by a noun THEN...
“des” changes to de or d'
ex. des filles = some girls
de jolies filles = some pretty girls
d'autres filles = some other girls NOTE: The new word still means "some"
29. Les chiffres
21, 31, 41, 51, 61, 71 all have et
81, 91 DON'T have et
Notice that all these numbers have 3 words in them. If you cannot
remember whether to add the “et”, ask yourself whether there are 3 words
already.
Careful! You add the et ONLY to numbers ending in "1". Don't be tempted
to add it to other numbers.
quatre-vingt-un (3 words, so no need for et), vingt et un (3 words)
centimeter and century have cent = 100
millimeter has mille = 1000
32. Futur proche= aller + infinitive
The futur proche is an easy way to make a future tense in French.
Subject +conjugated form of ALLER+infinitive.
Whenever you see the aller + infinitive construction, I want you to think
WILL.
For negative, wrap the ne..pas around the conjugated verb (aller!)
Ex. Je vais étudier, et tu ne vas pas écouter la radio. I will study (I am going to
study)
30. 12 hour clock- l'horloge de 12 heures
This clock is used when giving the time orally, and is similar to the US
time. You ONLY use the numbers 1 to 11, and you indicate the time of day
(am or pm) using: du matin (in the morning), de l'après-midi (12h31 to
around 16h30) and du soir (in the evening).
There are five special cases (every 15 minutes, noon and midnight) that
you MUST memorize that happen only for 12 hour time:
1. quarter past = et quart Ex. 2:15pm
2. half past = et demie Ex. 11:30 am
3. quarter to = moins le quart* *Just like in English, you need to go to the
next hour and subtract. Ex. 6:45pm = Il est sept heures moins le quart du
soir.
3a. minus = moins. In French time, anytime after the half hour will jump
ahead to the next hour and subtract the minutes using “moins”.
Ex: 4:35am = Il est cinq heures moins vingt-cinq du matin.
4. noon = Il est midi. NO heure! 12:05 pm = Il est midi cinq.
5. midnight = Il est minuit. No heure! 12:15 am = Il est minuit et quart.
33. Verbs ending in "ger" #
Verbs ending in -ger are conjugated just like regular "er" verbs (drop the
"er" and add e, es, e, ons, ez, ent). However the nous form gets an extra "e"
for pronounciation purposes.
Nous mangeons
Nous voyageons
Nous changeons
# sign denotes "spelling changing verbs" in Mme CHAN's class. They are
considered "regular" because they follow the same "er" endings and
pronunciation, but they have something bizarre in their spelling that you
MUST memorize.
31. Aller = to go*
1st person
2nd
person
3rd
person
Singulier
Je vais = I go, I am
going, I do go
tu vas = you
(friendly, familier) go,
you are going, you do
go
il va = he goes
elle va = she goes
on va= one goes, we
(slang) go, people (in
general) go
qui va = who goes
tout le monde va =
everybody goes
Pluriel
nous allons = we go, we are
going, we do go
vous allez = y’all go or you
(Formel) go
ils vont= they (masculine or
mixed group) go
elles vont = they (feminine
group only) go, they are going,
they do go
31. Aller = to go* (derrière)
Remember that Aller* is used in French to ask how people are:
Comment allez-vous? How are you? (Formel ou pluriel) literally: How are
you going? ie. How are you feeling?
Comment vas-tu? How are you? (informel, singulier)
Comment ça va? How's it going?
34. Verbs ending in -yer #
Verbs ending in -yer follow the same conjugation rules for "er" verbs.
However the "y" changes to an "i" for the boot form (je, tu, il and ils
form).
ex. payer # = to pay (for)
Singulier
1st person Je paie
Pluriel
nous payons
2nd
person
3rd
person
tu paies
vous payez
il /elle/ on/ qui/ tout le
monde paie
Ils/elles paient
essayer = to try
35. Acheter# , préférer#, récupérer#
In the boot, the middle e will become è.
Ex. acheter # = to buy
Singulier
1 person J’achète
Pluriel
nous achetons
2nd
person
3rd
person
tu achètes
vous achetez
il /elle/ on/ qui/ tout le
monde achète
Ils/elles achètent
st
The same is true for préférer = to prefer and récupérer = to claim
(luggage). The middle é will change to è in the boot.
36. -cer# verbs
Verbs ending in -cer are spelling changing verbs. Pas de panique! They
are still regular, and follow the "er" verb conjugation rules. However, they
add a ç in the nous form. Pourquoi? For prononciation purposes only!
Remember that whenever there is a "c" followed by an "o" or an "a" in
French, it sounds like a "k". In order to make it sound like an "s", we use
the cedilla accent: ç.
ex. annoncer = to announce: nous annonçons
Also, commencer = to start: nous commençons
37. avoir* Idiomatic expressions
Certain expressions in French do not translate word for word into English.
These are called idiomatic expressions and they must be memorized.
avoir ___ ans = to be ____ years old
avoir soif = to be thirsty
avoir faim = to be hungry
avoir chaud = to be hot
avoir froid = to be cold (note: the chaud and froid are not treated as
adjectives in this expression, so you don't have to worry about agreement)
Ex. (Notice that each sentence has a conjugated verb.)
Quel âge as-tu? J'ai treize ans.
Est-ce que tu as soif? Oui, je vais commander un coca.
Quand Arthur a faim, il mange beaucoup
38. à, au, à la, à l', aux: to/at (the)
I. à means to, at, in (only translated as "in" with cities)
Use à in front of names of people, city names and possessive
adjectives.
II. When à is followed by a definite article (le, la, l', les) it may contract
into a new word AND its meaning changes to: to the, or at the
à la, à l', au (contraction of à in front of le), aux (contraction of à in
front of les)
III. à contractions are also used with food expressions (you must
memorize, but they follow the same rules)
39. De, du, de la, de l', des: from/of (the)
I. de means from, of
II. "De" can be used to show possession. This replaces the "'s" that we
have in English. Ex. C'est le livre de Liliane. C'est la voiture de mes
parents. C'est le chien des voisins.
III. When followed by a definite article (le, la, l', les) it may contract into
a new word AND its meaning changes to: from the, of the
de la , de l', du (morph of de in front of le), des (morph of de in
front of les)
NOTICE: If "DE" is followed by 1). a person's name or 2). a
possessive adjective or 3). the name of a city, then we don't need the
contraction de la, de l', du, or des - we only use DE or D' (if the word
starts with a vowel or silent h.)
42. Vouloir*= to want
Notice that the Je and Tu forms are spelled the same. Also, I refer to this as
a BOOT verb because the Je, Tu, Il and Ils all have the same root veu.
Singulier
1 person Je veux = I want, I do
want, I am wanting
nd
2
tu veux = you
person
(friendly, familier)
want
rd
3
il /elle/ on/ qui/ tout
person
le monde veut =
he/she/we/ who/
everybody wants
st
Pluriel
nous voulons = we want, we
do want, we are wanting
vous voulez = y’all want, or
you (Formel) want
voulez-vous? Do you want?
ils veulent= they (masculine or
mixed group) want
elles veulent = they (feminine
group only) want
Je voudrais = I would like (Vouloir conjugation, but in conditional tense)
40. Faire* = to make, to do
Faire is an irregular verb. It is used in many French weather expressions.
Singulier
1st person Je fais = I make/do, I
am making/doing, I do
make/do
nd
2
tu fais = you
person
(friendly, familier)
make/do, you are
making/doing
rd
3
il /elle/ on/ qui/ tout
person
le monde fait =
he/she/we/ who/
everybody makes/
does
Pluriel
nous faisons = we make/do,
we are making/doing, we do
make/do
vous faites = y’all make/do,
y’all are making/doing, or you
(Formel) make/do
ils font= they (masculine or
mixed group) make/do
elles font = they (feminine
group only) make/do, they are
making/doing
Font-ils...? Do they make...?
41. Faire* idiomatic expressions
1. faire with weather expressions: il fait... beau, mauvais, du soleil, du
vent, gris, froid, chaud, frais
2. faire les devoirs = to do homework
3. faire la cuisine = to cook
4. faire attention = to pay attention
5. faire les courses = to go shopping
6. faire un pique-nique = to have a picnic
7. faire des fautes = to make mistakes
8. faire des bagages/valises = to pack your bags
9. faire de + definite article + sport = to do a sport (le ski, le tennis, le
baseball etc)
10. faire de + definite article + subject = to study a certain subject
ex. faire du français = to study French, faire de l'anglais, faire des maths,
faire de la biologie
43. Pouvoir = to be able/can*
Notice that the Je and Tu forms are spelled the same. Also, I refer to this as
a BOOT verb because the Je, Tu, Il and Ils all have the same root peu.
Singulier
1 person Je peux = I am able
to, I can (Puis-je? =
Can I?)
nd
2
tu peux = you
person
(friendly, familier) are
able to, you can
rd
3
il /elle/ on/ qui/ tout
person
le monde peut =
he/she/we/ who/
everybody is able
to/can
st
Pluriel
nous pouvons = we are able
to, we can
vous pouvez = y’all can or you
(Formel) are able to/ you can
ils peuvent= they (masculine
or mixed group) are able to
elles peuvent = they (feminine
group only) can
44. The partitive: du, de la, de l', de, d'
•
•
•
•
•
Le partitif = de la, du, de l'
Le partitif becomes de (d') after a negative.
It is used to indicate an unknown quantity OR a part of something usually foods and drinks.
It looks like "of" or "of the" but it's NOT! It means "some, any" and is
usually used when talking about food.
NOT used after AIMER, ADORER, DÉTESTER, PRÉFÉRER or
ÊTRE because they take the definite article instead (le, la, l', les). In
class, we used the acronym "All amazing dads prefer être" to
remember these particular verbs.
Je veux du pain. BUT: Le pain n'est pas bon.
J'ai soif. Je commande de l'eau minérale. J'aime l'eau minérale.
Il achète de la viande. Il adore le steak.
Nous ne voulons pas de salade. Nous détestons les haricots verts.
Ils peuvent acheter des fruits. Ils préfèrent les yaourts.
45. Irreg. -ir*: dormir, servir, partir, sortir
dormir = to sleep, servir= to serve, partir = to leave, to depart,
sortir= to exit, to take out, to go out
These are 2 stem verbs.
For the singular stem, drop the last 3 letters.
For the plural stem, drop the last 2 letters.
OR another way to look at it:
For the singular stem, take the first 3 letters of the infinitive
For the plural stem, take the first 4 letters of the infinitive
Don’t forget to add the personal endings:
s, s, t, ons, ez, ent
46. Adj. and nouns ending in –al
Any French adjective or noun that ends with -al will change to -aux for the
plural (NEVER ALS)
ex. un cheval international = des chevaux internationaux
Note: This is only true for those words ending in -al. If they end in -ale,
then this rule is invalid!
singulier
pluriel
masculin
-al
-aux
féminin
-ale
-ales
47. Quel (what, which) et Tout(all, every)
Quel and tout are both adjectives, and must agree in number and gender
with the noun that comes AFTER them (ie. the noun that they describe):
What, which The entire, the whole (all the)
Masc. Sing. Quel
Tout le/l'
Fem. Sing. Quelle
Toute la/l'
All, every
Masc. Pl.
Quels
Tous les
Fem. Pl.
Quelles
Toutes les
48. "What" in French
There are 4 different ways to say "what" in French. Each has a different
placement/function in the sentence, so you have to look at the entire
sentence structure to decide which one to use.
QUOI: It MUST follow the verb AND it will not be directly followed by a
noun!
QUEL (LE)(S): used in front of a noun, or in front of être + noun . (This
also translates as "which")
QUE (QU'): used before inversion (verbe conjugué-pronom sujet)
QU'EST-CE QUE+ sujet+ verbe
ex. Tu fais quoi ce soir? = Qu'est-ce que tu fais? = Que fais-tu?
Quelle boisson est-ce que tu vas commander?
Quel livre est-ce que tu regardes?
Quelle est la date aujourd'hui?
Quel temps fait-il?
49. Mettre *= to place, to put
st
1 person
2nd
person
3rd
person
Singulier
Je mets
Tu mets
Pluriel
Nous mettons
Vous mettez
Il/elle/ on/ qui/ tout le
monde met
Ils/ elles mettent
Mettre also has a few idiomatic expressions you must memorize:
mettre le couvert = to set the table
mettre la télé = to turn on the tv (this can also be used for the radio: mettre
la radio)
50. Demonstrative adjectives: this/that/those
Demonstrative adjectives are used to point out a specific person or object.
They translate to "this, that, those or these" in English. They are used in
place of an article, just like Quel and Possessive Adjectives!
ce
cet
cette
ces
Used in front of a masculine singular noun
Used in front of a masculine singular noun
starting with a vowel or silent h (MSVH)
Used for ALL feminine singular nouns
Used or ALL plural nouns
Replaces LE
Replaces L’
Replaces LA
Replaces LES