French pronunciation is the most difficult aspect of learning French for many students, particularly English speakers.

It takes a lot of practice to pronounce French correctly, but if you really want to speak French, good pronunciation is essential. A vowel is a sound that is pronounced through the mouth (and, in the case of nasal vowels, the nose) with no obstruction of the lips, tongue, or throat. Some general guidelines for the pronunciation of the French vowels:
y y y

Most French vowels are pronounced further forward in the mouth than their English counterparts. The tongue must remain tensed throughout the pronunciation of the vowel. French vowels do not diphthong. In English, vowels tend to be followed by a y sound (after a, e, or i) or a w sound (after o or u). In French, this is not the case - the vowel sound remains constant: it does not change into a y or w sound. Thus the French vowel is a "purer" sound than the English vowel.

A, O, and U are sometimes called hard vowels and E and I are soft vowels, because certain consonants (C, G, S) have a "hard" and a "soft" pronunciation, depending on which vowel follows. Vowels followed by M or N are usually nasal. Nasal pronunciation can be very different from the normal pronunciation of each vowel. A nasal vowel is a sound made by expelling air through the mouth and nose without obstruction of the lips, tongue, or throat. Nasal pronunciation can be very different from the normal pronunciation of the same vowels. Accents may change the pronunciation of vowels.
Vowels: French vowels are here separated into single vowels (accented and unaccented), and vowel groups. The letter 'e' is treated in other section. Note that the vowels 'i' and 'u' can generally be pronounced with consonant sounds. As French as croissants are the accents peppered over French vowels. The effects the acute, grave and circumflex have on pronunciation are given below. Of the remainder, some serve to distinguish otherwise identical words (For example: la vs l, and ou vs o), while others are merely garnish (For example: gte, mr). In addition, there is the dieresis which separates vowel sounds. For example, nave is not pronounced 'nev', but as two separate syllables, na-ive.

LETTER SOUND

AS IN

WORD

NOTES

a a i i o o u u y

a ah ah ee y aw o o ew w ee

sack ah bah meet yet saw bone bone

sac pas gteau police bien dome clos cne lune suis

generally before 's' and 'z'

before a vowel generally before s and z

before another vowel Between g and a vowel, u is silent before a consonant

meet

systme

y y y y

o (generally) - make with rounded half-open lips. - like Scots 'oh': keep your lips tightly pursed. u - hold your tongue in the position for 'ooh' and say 'ee'. u (before a vowel) - like y as in 'yet', but with your lips in position to say 'ooh'.

The Letter E: This ubiquitous letter can be pronounced in several different ways.

LETTER SOUND AS IN

WORD

NOTES

e e e

e uh

let about come

cerveau le chaise fort sche bl

Also pronounced as 'a' in a few words, eg 'femme' and the ending '-emment' see below usually silent - see bellow Generally, When comes in a syllable before a sound, it changes to that sound

e e ay

set set say

- a single sound between English 'ee' and 'e'.

Note: Unaccented e is silent (a) when final (generally) and (b) in the second-last syllable after a single consonant. It is pronounced like 'a' in 'about' (a) in monosyllables (eg de, le), (b) in the second-last syllable after two or more consonant sounds, and (c) when final after two or more consonants. Nasal Vowels: Essential to any French caricature, nasal vowels are vowels pronounced through both the mouth and nose. Knowing when to nasalise in French is quite easy; actually doing it is harder. Any time m or n come after a vowel but not before one, you have a nasal vowel. LETTER SOUND WORD Other Spellings

an in on

Ah -> anN ee -> aN oh -> ohN

tante singe son

am, en, em im, un, um, yn, ym, ain, aim, ein, eim om

y y y

an - like French a, but nasalised in - like French , but nasalised on - like French , but nasalised

Vowel Groups: The following vowel letters in combination make single vowel sounds. Any other vowels that come together should be pronounced separately. LETTER SOUND AS IN WORD NOTES

ai au eau ei eu oi ou ou

e o o e ir wa oo w

set bone bone set bird wag boot wet

lait faux eau beige seul toi sou oui before a vowel spelt oeu in a few words

euwith rounded lips and no 'r' sound (Pronounced with tightly rounded lips when final)

Note: Before a vowel, ai, ei, oi, and ui are spelt with a y, eg 'mayonnaise', and pronounced with a 'y' sound after them.

Of the 18 French consonants, b, d, f, k, l, p, t and v are pronounced pretty much as in English. The letter w appears in words from German and English and is pronounced as English v or w. As in English, q only appears before u in French. French easy consonants: LETTER b d f k l p t SOUND beh deh eff kah ell peh teh WORD bonbons - candy dinde - turkey fvrier - february kiosque - newstand fleurs - flowers pomme - apple tomate - tomato

There is no inintial aspiration when pronouncing French consonants. However, there is a slight aspiration after pronouncing French consonants. In English, someone might say soup without opening his mouth at the end of the word, thus "swallowing" the last sound. In French, you must open your mouth to complete the word. French consonants are pronounced almost like in English, except that you don't linger on them; let them explode and move on to the vowel that follows. You can't pronounce French with a lazy mouth. Remember to articulate. Another few words of caution: In French, the consonants at the end of a word are not usually pronounced, except for c, f, r, and l (the consonants in the word careful).

LETTER SOUND c c g g h j m n r s s x x y
y

AS IN cash set set god measure hour measure more not sit zip fix exam yet

WORD NOTES cache cette a gant gens hier je moi non rouge soie pause fixe exercise yeux generally before e, i and y only occurs before a, o, and u generally before e, i and y always silent syllable initial syllable initial generally between vowels generally between vowels (ex-) before a vowel

c s s g zh zh m n r s z ks gz y

r - pronounced at the back of the throat, with your uvula. Needs lots of practise.

Combinations

Of the several consonant and vowel-consonant combinations used in French, two are pronounced as in English: ph and sc (pronounced [s] before e or i). LETTER SOUND AS IN ch gn il qu tch th ti sh ny y k ch t sy ship onion yet quiche check Thomas WORD NOTES chic Boulogne oeuil quand tchque th run the sounds together see below pronounced (kw) in a few words very rare rare before a vowel, similary '-tie' is pronounced like French 'si'

pass you action

Definition: A noun is a word that represents a thing, whether that thing is concrete (For Example a home, a cat) or abstract (an idea, happiness). In French, all nouns have a gender - they are either masculine or feminine. It is very important to learn a noun's gender along with the noun itself because articles, adjectives, and some verbs have to agree with nouns; that is, they change depending on the gender of the noun they precede or follow. The gender of some nouns makes sense (homme (man) is masculine, femme (woman) is feminine) but others don't (personne (person) is always feminine, even if the person is a man!). Examples in French: un livre une chaise book chair

There are some tendencies in the gender of nouns, but there are always exceptions. Countries and names that end in e are usually (but not always) feminine. There are a few common patterns, but please don't use these as a way to avoid learning the genders of nouns - just learn each word as gender + noun and then you'll know them forever. ENDING IN GENERAL EXCEPTIONS un million un billion un bastion un invit un muse une plage une rage une image une peau

-ion

Feminine

un lion un scion un avion un comit un lyce une page une nage une cage l'eau (fem.)

-t -e

Feminine Feminine

-age

Masculine

-eau Plural of Regular French Nouns

Masculine

Most French nouns form their plural by adding the letter S. The plural form will usually sound the same as the singular. Nevertheless, the French add the letter S when they write. While the indefinite form of the article is un or une, its plural form is des for both masculine and feminine nouns.

Nearly all French nouns have different forms for singular and plural. In addition, many nouns that refer to people have both a masculine and a feminine form. Many of the rules here also apply to adjectives. Note that the gender rules apply only to people and some animals. They do not apply to objects, which have a masculine or a feminine form, never both. A. Most nouns add an e for feminine and an s for plural SINGULAR PLURAL SINGULAR PLURAL invits ami amis MASC. invit invites amie Amies FEM. invite

B. When a noun ends in e, there is no difference between the masculine and feminine forms SINGULAR PLURAL MASC. touriste touristes FEM. touriste touristes

C. When a noun ends in s, x, or z there is no difference between the singular and plural forms SINGULAR le fils le gaz PLURAL les fils les gaz

D. Irregular gender patterns ENDING -an -en -on -er -eur -teur MASC. paysan gardien patron boulanger danseur acteur FEM. paysanne gardienne patronne boulangre danseuse actrice

E. Irregular plural patterns ENDING -ail -al -eau -eu -ou SINGULAR travail cheval chteau feu bijou PLURAL travaux chevaux chateaux feux bijoux

Definition: A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. French pronouns are inflected to indicate their role in the sentence. Pronouns are words that substitute for nouns. French draws them in many places where English does not; as a result, there are many more pronouns in French than there are in English. Different kinds of French pronouns: 1. Subject Pronouns The subject of a sentence is the person or thing which performs the action. Subject pronouns replace this person or thing. You must understand subject pronouns before you begin conjugating verbs, as the forms of verbs change for each one. SINGULAR PLURAL (I) (we) Je/j' nous (you familiar) vous (you people) tu il, elle, on (he, she) ils, elles (they) Note: j' (I) is only used when followed by a vowel or mute h. Since all nouns are either masculine or feminine, they use the 3rd person subject pronouns which correspond to their gender. Thus il can refer to a male he or a masculine noun it and elle can refer to a female she or a feminine noun it. Elles means they when all of the nouns (both people and things) referred to are feminine. If there are any masculine nouns, the subject pronoun defaults to the masculine ils. Ils and elles are pronounced exactly like il and elle.

2. y Direct Object Pronouns French language has direct object pronouns, words that replace the direct object. Direct object pronouns take the place of the direct object nouns. While the direct object noun follows the verb, the pronoun is placed in front of it, for example: tu prends lavion (you take the airplane), tu le prends (you take it). SINGULAR PLURAL (me) (us) me/m' nous (you familiar) vous (you people) te (you formal) les (them) vous le (l'), la (l') (him, her) Note: Me, te, and le/la change to m', t', and l' in front of a vowel or mute h. Examples in French: Je le mange. I'm eating it. Il la voit. He sees her. Je t'aime. I love you. Tu m'aimes. You love me. Note: When deciding between direct and indirect objects, the general rule is that if the person or thing is preceded by a preposition, that person/thing is an indirect object. If it is not preceded by a preposition, it is a direct object.

y Indirect Object Pronouns Indirect objects are the people or things in a sentence to/for whom/what or the action of the verb occurs. SINGULAR PLURAL (me) (us) me/m' nous (you familiar) vous (you people) te (you formal) leur (them) vous (him, her) lui Examples in French: Je lui parle. I'm talking to him. Il leur achte des livres. He buys books for them. Je vous donne le pain. I'm giving the bread to you. Elle m'a crit. She wrote to me.

Note: Je le lui donne I give it to him the first pronoun is subject (I), the second pronoun is direct object (le), the third one is indirect object (lui) because it is the one to which the action is occurring. y Reflexive Pronouns As we have learned in the verbs section, reflexive verbs express an action that acts upon the subject, and with the reflexive verbs you will find reflexive pronouns, which are placed in front of the conjugated verb For example: Je me lave (I wash myself). SINGULAR me (myself) (yourself familiar) te vous (yourself formal) (himself, herself) se Examples in French: Nous nous parlons. We're talking to each other. Ils ne s'habillent pas. They aren't getting dressed. y Disjunctive Pronouns French disjunctive pronouns (also known as stressed pronouns) are used to emphasize a noun or pronoun that refers to a person. A disjunctive pronoun is widely used (after prepositions, to emphasize nouns or pronouns, after c'est and ce sont, to answer questions) SINGULAR (me) moi (you familiar) toi (you formal) vous lui, soi, elle (him, himself, her) Examples in French PLURAL (us) nous (you people) vous (them) eux, elles PLURAL (ourselves) nous (yourself) vous (themselves) se

1. To emphasize nouns or pronouns (accent tonique) Je pense qu'il a raison. I think he's right. Moi, je pense qu'il a tort. I think he's wrong. Je ne sais pas, moi. I don't know.

2. After c'est and ce sont (accent tonique) Ce sont elles qui aiment Machupicchu. They love Machupicchu. C'est toi qui tudies l'art. You're the one who's studying art.

3. When a sentence has more than one subject or object Carlos et moi jouons au tennis. Carlos and I are playing tennis. Toi et lui, vous tes trs gentils. You and he are very kind. Je les ai vus, lui et elle. I saw him and her.

4. To answer questions Qui va la plage? Who is going to the beach? Lui. He is.

5. After prepositions (indirect object) Vas-tu manger sans moi ? Are you going to eat without me? Louis habite chez elle. Louis lives at her house. Ce livre est toi. This is your book.

6. After que in comparisons Elle est plus grande que toi. She is taller than you (are).

7. With words like aussi, seul, and surtout Elle aussi veut venir. She wants to come too. Lui seul a travaill hier. He alone worked yesterday.

8. With -mme(s) for emphasis Prpare-t-il le dner lui-mme ? Is he making dinner himself? Nous le ferons nous-mmes. We'll do it ourselves.

9. With the negative adverb ne...que and conjunction ne...ni...ni Je ne connais que lui ici. He's the only one I know here. Ni toi ni moi ne le comprenons. Neither you nor I understand it.

10. After the preposition to indicate possession Quel livre est toi ? Which book is yours? Ce stylo est moi. This pen is mine.

Definition: In French, prepositions are words which link two related parts of a sentence. They are placed in front of nouns in order to indicate a relationship between that noun and the verb, adjective, or noun that precedes it. Examples in French: I'm talking to Jean. Je parle Jean. Il est de Paris. He is from Paris. The book is for you. Le livre est pour toi.

y French Prepositions () - (to, at, in)

Definition: is a very important preposition, despite its tiny size. Its many different meanings and uses in French include all of the following. 1. Location or destination J'habite Paris I live in Paris Je vais Rome I'm going to Rome Je suis la banque I'm at the bank 2. Distance in time or space J'habite 10 mtres de lui I live 10 meters from him Il est 5 minutes de moi He is 5 minutes from me 3. Point in time Nous arrivons 7h00 We arrive at 7:00 Il est mort 100 ans He died at the age of 100 4. Manner, style, or characteristic Il habite la franaise He lives in the French style un enfant aux yeux bleus blue-eyed child / child with blue eyes fait la main made by hand aller pied to go on / by foot

5. Possession un ami moi a friend of mine Ce livre est Jean This is Jean's book 6. Measurement acheter au kilo to buy by the kilogram payer la semaine to pay by the week 7. Purpose or use une tasse th teacup / cup for tea un sac dos backpack / pack for the back 8. In the passive infinitive louer for rent Je n'ai rien lire I have nothing to read

y French Prepositions (aprs & derrire) - (after)

Definition: There is often confusion between the prepositions aprs and derrire and their opposites avant and devant. Aprs and derrire are used in the following circumstances: 1. Aprs expresses something to do with time and means after. It can be used in front of a temporal expression, noun, pronoun, verb, or clause. aprs 3h00 after 3:00 aprs le cours after the class aprs avoir mang after eating aprs qu'il le fera after he does it 2. Derrire expresses position or location (figurative or literal) and means behind. It can be used only in front of a noun or pronoun. derrire la maison behind the house chercher derrire les apparences look behind (beyond) appearances

y French Prepositions (avant & devant) - (before)

Definition: Because they can both mean before, there is often confusion between the prepositions avant and devant. But there's a big difference in the way they are used. 1. Avant expresses something to do with time. It can be used in front of a temporal expression, noun, pronoun, verb, or clause. avant midi before noon avant l'examen before the test avant de partir before leaving avant que nous ne partions before we leave 2. Devant expresses position or location (figurative or literal) and means before or in front of. It can be used only in front of a noun or pronoun. devant la voiture in front of the car devant les juges before the judges devant le danger faced with / in the face of danger. Il est devant toi. He's in front of you.

y French Prepositions (avec) - (with)

Definition: Avec is the French equivalent of with. It can express 1. Accompaniment J'irai avec toi. I'll go with you Il est d'accord avec nous. He agrees with us 2. Cause On oublie tout avec le temps One forgets everything in time Tu m'nerves avec ce bruit You're bothering me with this noise 3. Something in addition: avec a et avec a ? anything else? j'ai froid et avec a j'ai faim I'm cold, and besides that I'm hungry

4. The equivalent of an adverb: avec + noun avec joie joyfully avec colre angrily Examples in French: se fcher avec qqun to get mad at someone se lever avec le jour to get up at the crack of dawn se mettre en rapport avec to get in touch with prendre des gants avec qqun to handle someone with kid gloves
y French Prepositions (chez) - (among)

Definition: Chez is a great French word, English haven't a equivalent word. It can mean any of the following: 1. at/to the house of chez mon oncle at/to my uncle's house chez moi at/to my house, (at) home 2. at/to the office/store of chez le mdecin at/to the doctor's office chez le boucher at/to the butcher's 3. among (une coutume) chez les Franais (a custom) among the French 4. in the work/writings of chez Molire in Molire's work/writing

5. for/with chez lui, c'est une habitude it's a habit with him c'est bizarre chez un enfant it's strange for a child
y French Prepositions (dans) - (in)

Definition: The French preposition dans must be followed by an article or some other determiner, it cannot be followed directly by a noun. It usually means in, but can indicate all of the following: 1. Physical location dans la bote in the box dans la rue in the street boire dans une tasse to drink from a cup prendre qqchose dans une bote to take s.t. from a box copier qqchose dans un livre to copy s.t. from a book dans l'avion on the plane mettre qqchose dans le tiroir put s.t. in the drawer monter dans le train to get on the train voir qqun dans l'escalier to see someone on the stairs 2. Figurative location dans la situation actuelle in the current situation dans ces conditions in/under these conditions 3. Time (en vs dans) dans la semaine during the week dans la journe during the day dans une semaine in one week Examples in French: dans les coulisses behind the scenes dans le doute when in doubt tre dans le ptrin to be in a jam dans mes projets in my plans dans le sens de la longueur lengthwise

y French Prepositions (de) - (from, of, about)

Definition: De is a very important and versatile preposition with many different meanings and uses in French. As a preposition, it can express or indicate all of the following: 1. Possession or belonging le livre de Carlos Carlos's book la bibliothque de l'universit the university library 2. Starting point or origin partir de Nice to leave from (out of) Nice Je suis de Bruxelles I'm from Brussels 3. Contents / description of something une tasse de th cup of tea un roman d'amour love story (story of/about love) 4. Defining feature le march de gros wholesale market une salle de classe classroom 5. Cause mourir de faim to die of / from hunger fatigu du voyage tired from the trip 6. Means / manner of doing something crire de la main gauche to write with one's left hand rpter de mmoire to recite from memory
y French Prepositions (depuis) - (since, for)

Definition: To express the duration of an event in French, depuis and pendant are used. Many English speakers tend to translate for as pour, but this is rarely correct when talking about time. Depuis means since or for. It is used with a verb in the present tense to talk about an action that began in the past and continues in the present. Depuis quand tudiez-vous le franais? How long have you studied French?

J'tudie le franais depuis 6 ans. I've studied French for 6 years. J'tudie le franais depuis 2000. I've studied French since 2000. Depuis can also be used to indicate an action that was occuring (in the imparfait) when it was interrupted by another action (in the pass compos). Depuis quand dormais-tu quand je suis arriv ? How long had you been sleeping when I arrived? Pendant means for, but it refers to an action in its entirety that has no relation to the present. It can be used for both the past and the future. Pendant combien de temps avez-vous tudi le franais ? How long did you study French? J'ai tudi le franais pendant 3 ans. I studied French for 3 years. Je vais habiter en France pendant 2 mois. I'm going to live in France for 2 months. Pendant also means during. J'ai vu un film pendant mon sjour. I saw a film during my stay. Pendant ce temps, il m'attendait. During this time, he waited for me.
y French Prepositions (en) - (in, on, to)

Definition: En is nearly always used directly in front of a noun, with no article. It can indicate all of the following: 1. Location il est en prison j'habite en banlieu he is in jail I live in the suburbs

2. Time en aot en 3 jours en semaine in August in three days during the week

3. Like or as I'm speaking to you as a Je te parle en friend ami Il agit en enfant He's acting like a kid 4. Means voyager en train rentrer en taxi to travel by train to return by taxi

5. Condition or appearance tre en bonne sant tre en guerre tre en pyjama 6. Transformation to translate into French to disguise oneself se dguiser en .... as.... transformer une salle to change a room into an office en bureau traduire en franais 7. Material un pull en laine une maison en bois wool sweater wooden house to be in good health to be at war to be in pajamas

y French Prepositions (pour) - (for)

Definition: Pour can be followed by a noun, pronoun, or infinitive. When it is followed by a noun or pronoun, it usually means for. It can indicate all of the following: 1. Purpose/Intention J'ai achet un cadeau pour toi. I bought you a gift. He did it for me. Il l'a fait pour moi.

2. Duration of future event Je vais y habiter pour un I'm going to live there for a year. an. Il parlera pour une heure. He will speak for an hour. 3. In favor of Il est pour la peine de la mort. J'ai vot pour Chirac. 4. Direction Il est parti pour Ottawa. Voici le train pour Rouen. 5. Point of view Pour nous, c'est une bonne ide. Il est tout pour moi. 6. Cause Je suis condamn pour vol. Ce magasin est ferm pour rparations. 7. In place of / In exchange for J'ai pay pour nous. Il doit signer pour moi. 8. Comparison/Relationship Un pour cent Il fait chaud pour l'automne. One per hundred It's hot for the fall. I paid for us. He has to sign for me. I was convicted of theft. This store is closed for repairs. For us, it's a good idea. He is everything to me. He left for Ottawa. Here's the train to Rouen. He is in favor of the death penalty. I voted for Chirac.

y French Prepositions (sans) (without)

Definition: Sans is the French equivalent of without. It can express Lack He left without me. Il est parti sans moi. It's hard without money. Sans argent, c'est difficile. Elle est venue sans tre invite. She came uninvited. Condition Sans mes amis, je serais triste. If it weren't for my friends, I'd be sad. The equivalent of an adverb: sans + noun a homeless man un homme sans abri une femme sans prjugs an unbiased woman
y French Prepositions (sur) - (on)

Definition: Sur usually means on: un livre sur la table sur ma route Sur can also indicate: Direction tourner sur la gauche revenir sur Paris Position sur le stade, le march sur la chausse, le boulevard, l'avenue

a book on the table on my way

to turn to the left to return to Paris

at the stadium, market in the road, boulevard, avenue it's snowing all over il neige sur tout le Canada Canada Approximate time arriver sur les six to arrive around 3 o'clock heures elle va sur ses 60 ans she's going on 60 over a period / the course of sur une priode d'un a year an

Proportion / ratio trois fois sur quatre un enfant sur cinq une semaine sur deux Subject / topic un article sur les roses une causerie sur l'galit

three times out of four one child in five every other week an article on roses a talk on / about equality

y French Prepositions (sur) - (on)

Definition: Sur usually means on: un livre sur la table sur ma route Sur can also indicate: Direction tourner sur la gauche revenir sur Paris Position sur le stade, le march sur la chausse, le boulevard, l'avenue

a book on the table on my way

to turn to the left to return to Paris

at the stadium, market in the road, boulevard, avenue it's snowing all over il neige sur tout le Canada Canada Approximate time arriver sur les six to arrive around 3 o'clock heures elle va sur ses 60 ans she's going on 60 sur une priode d'un over a period / the course of a year an Proportion / ratio three times out of four trois fois sur quatre one child in five un enfant sur cinq every other week une semaine sur deux Subject / topic an article on roses un article sur les roses une causerie sur l'galit a talk on / about equality

y French Prepositions (vers & envers) - (toward)

Definition: Vers and envers both mean toward, but in difference circumstances. Vers means toward or around in time and space We're going toward Nous allons vers Rouen. Rouen. Tournez vers la droite. Turn to(ward) the right. I was around (near) J'tais vers Provence. Provence. Nous allons vers midi. We're going around noon. J'y vais vers la fin de la I'm going around the end of the day. journe. Envers means toward in a figurative sense He is cruel toward his Il est cruel envers ses dogs. chiens. His attitude toward Son attitude envers les children... enfants... Ses penses envers His thoughts on money... l'argent...

Definition: French verb tenses & conjugation is discussed in the present tense, past tense, future tense, imperfect tense, imperative tense, and past perfect tense.

PRESENT TENSE The French present tense, called le prsent or le prsent de l'indicatif, is quite similar in usage to the English present tense. Present tense is used to express: 1. Current actions and situations Nous allons au march. We are going to the market. Je suis fatigu. I am tired.

2. Habitual actions Il va l'cole tous les jours. He goes to school every day. Je visite des muses le samedi. I visit museums on Saturdays. 3. Absolute and general truths La terre est ronde. The earth is round. L'ducation est importante. Education is important. 4. Actions which will occur immediately J'arrive ! I'll be right there! Il part tout de suite. e is leaving right away. 5. Conditions in si clauses Si je peux, j'irai avec toi. If I can, I will go with you.

COMPOUND PAST TENSE Le pass compos is the most common French past tense, often used in conjunction with the imparfait. The pass compos is used to express: 1. An action or state of being completed in the past As-tu tudi ce weekend ? Did you study this weekend? Ils ont dj mang. They have already eaten. 2. An action repeated a specific number of times in the past Nous avons visit Paris plusieurs fois. We've visited Paris several times. Hier, j'ai mang cinq fois. I ate five times yesterday.

3. A series of actions completed in the past Samedi, il a vu sa mre, a parl au mdicin et a trouv un chat. Saturday he saw his mother, talked to the doctor, and found a cat.

FUTURE TENSE Le futur is used for upcoming events. It is usually translated as will. Ils mangeront sur l'avion They will eat on the plane. J'irai au magasin demain I will go to the store tomorrow. After aprs que (after), aussitt que (as soon as), ds que (as soon as), esprer que (to hope that), lorsque (when), quand (when), and une fois que (once), when the action of the verb is in the future, the future tense is used in French, whereas in English the present tense is used. Je vous tlphonerai ds que je pourrai. I'll call you as soon as I can. Quand il arrivera, nous mangerons. When he arrives, we will eat.

Je le ferai si j'ai le temps I will do it if I have time. Si j'ai le temps, je le ferai If I have time, I will do it.

Definition: The Verbs lists in English and French follow regular patterns, called conjugations. A conjugation is made up of six different forms, which indicate various numbers and persons. A number can be either singular or plural, depending on whether we are talking about just one person, or several people. A person can be first ('je' in the singular, and 'nous' in the plural), second ('tu' in the singular, and 'vous' in the plural), or third ('il, elle, on' in the singular, and 'ils, elles' in the plural).

REGULAR VERBS (PRESENT REGULAR) Definition: -ER verbs, -IR verbs, and -RE verbs are regular verbs. Regular verbs that end in these letters are all conjugated the same way in all of the tenses. Once you learn how to conjugate one regular verb in each category, you can conjugate the majority of French verbs.

Verbs with (-ER)

Comparative Example:

VERB: to play SINGULAR 1 Person: I play 2 Person: you play 3 Person: he, she, it plays PLURAL 1 Person: we play 2 Person: you play 3 Person: they play

VERB: jouer SINGULAR 1 Person: je joue 2 Person: tu joues 3 Person: il, elle, on joue PLURAL 1 Person: nous jouons 2 Person: vous jouez 3 Person: ils, elles jouent

At the top of the table is the infinitive, jouer, which means 'to play'. Regular French verbs ending in -er belong to the first conjugation. Every verb form begins with a pronoun, that is, 'je' meaning 'I', 'tu' meaning 'you' (singular), 'il' meaning 'he' or 'it', 'elle' meaning 'she', 'nous' meaning 'we', 'vous' meaning 'you' (plural) and 'ils' or 'elles' meaning 'they'. The difference between 'il' and 'elle' is the same as 'he' and 'she' in English. 'They' is expressed by 'ils' if you are referring to a masculine plural noun, and 'elles' if you are referring to a feminine plural noun. If there is a mixture of masculine and feminine nouns, French uses 'ils', the masculine form. English concept of 'it' doesn't really apply to French, because all nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. Each verb form is made up of the stem of the verb ('jou-) and a person ending. Note that all the person endings of the verb are different (unlike in English, where all but one of the verb forms were the same). First conjugation verbs are recognized by the infinitive ending in (-er). It is worth noting that the present tense expresses an action which is going on at the time mentioned. In English, we have three ways of expressing the present tense. For Example: The dog chases the cat, is chasing the cat, does chase the cat. In French there is only the one form to express all these shades of meaning. For Example:

'Je jouer' means 'I play', 'I am playing', and 'I do play'.

How to Form a Regular (-er) Verb in French. To form a verb correctly in French, you need to know the number and person that you are talking about, the stem of the verb, and the ending. To find the number and person that you need, substitute one of the personal pronouns ('I', 'you', 'he', 'she', 'it', 'we', 'you', 'they') for the subject of the verb. For example: In the sentence 'the girl likes the rabbits', 'the girl' can be replaced by 'she', in other words, 'she likes rabbits'. (If we use the pronoun 'they', in other words, 'they likes rabbits', the sentence doesn't make sense, because we are using a plural pronoun instead of a singular). Next, we need to find the stem of the verb. In French, the stem of verbs ending in -er, such as jouer, is found by taking the infinitive (jouer), and removing the -er from the end, leaving jou-. Likewise, the stem of the verb aimer (to like) is aim-.
Verbs with (-IR)

Conjugation Example:

VERB: accomplir SINGULAR 1 Person: je accomplis 2 Person: je accomplis 3 Person: il, elle accomplit PLURAL 1 Person: nous accomplissons 2 Person: vous accomplissez 3 Person: ils, elles accomplissent Verbs of this type:
y y y

VERB: btir SINGULAR 1 Person: je btis 2 Person: tu btis 3 Person: il, elle btit PLURAL 1 Person: nous btissons 2 Person: vous btissez 3 Person: ils, elles btissent

accomplir - to accomplish btir - to build choisir - to choose

y y y y y y y y y y

embellir - to make beautiful envahir - to invade finir - to finish grandir - to grow up obir - to obey punir - to punish remplir - to fill runir - to reunite russir - to succeed saisir - to seize
Verbs with (-RE)

Conjugation Example:

VERB: entendre SINGULAR 1 Person: je entends 2 Person: tu entends 3 Person: il, elle entend PLURAL 1 Person: nous entendons 2 Person: vous entendez 3 Person: ils, elles entendent Verbs of this type:
y y y y y y y y y y y y y y y

VERB: vendre SINGULAR 1 Person: je vends 2 Person: tu vends 3 Person: il, elle vend PLURAL 1 Person: nous vendons 2 Person: vous vendez 3 Person: ils, elles vendent

attendre - to wait dfendre - to defend descendre - to descend entendre - to hear tendre - to stretch; to spread out fendre - to split fondre - to melt pendre - to hang pondre - to lay an egg perdre - to lose rendre - to render rpandre - to spread rpondre - to answer tendre - to tighten vendre - to sell

IRREGULAR VERBS (PRESENT REGULAR) A number of verbs in French are irregular, in other words, their present tenses don't conform to the usual pattern of regular -er verbs. Following are the most popular irregular verbs in French language.
y y

French Irregular Verbs A number of verbs in French are irregular, in other words, their present tenses don't conform to the usual pattern of regular -er verbs. The following is a list of the most popular French irregular verbs: VERB 1: (tre - to be) SINGULAR I am je suis you are tu es he, she, it is il/elle est PLURAL nous sommes we are you are vous tes they are ils/elles sont VERB 2: (avoir - to have) SINGULAR I have je ai you have tu as he, she, it has il/elle a PLURAL nous avouns we have you have vous avez ils/elles ont they have
y

VERB 3: (aller - to go) SINGULAR I go je vais you go tu vas he, she, it goes il/elle va PLURAL nous allons we go vous allez you go ils/elles vont they go

VERB 4: (faire - to do, make) SINGULAR I make je fais you make tu fais he, she, it makes il/elle fait PLURAL nous faisons we make vous faites you make ils/elles font they make
y

VERB 5: (prende - to take) VERB 6: (mettre - to put) SINGULAR SINGULAR I take I put je prends je mets you take you put tu prends tu mets he, she, it he, she, it il/elle prend il/elle met takes puts

PLURAL nous prenons we take vous prenez you take ils/elles they take prennent

PLURAL nous mettons we put vous mettez you put ils/elles they put mettent

The French tonic accent is quite different than its English counterpart. In English, each word has one stressed syllable, meaning that one syllable of the word is pronounced more emphatically. In addition, individual words can be stressed in order to show particular emphasis on them. In French, each syllable of a word and each word is pronounced with the same emphasis, except for the final syllable of each rhythmic group. In order to emphasize a specific word in French, you must use either the accent affectif or the accent tonique. There are two different ways to use the French accent tonique. The word that might be said louder in English in order to show emphasis is in bold. 1. Put the word to be emphasized at the beginning or end of the sentence

Carlos, je l'aime bien. Je l'aime bien, Carlos. Moi, je n'en sais rien. Je n'en sais rien, moi. Chantal, elle n'a rien dit. Chantal n'a rien dit, elle. Je lui ai donn le livre, elle.

I like Carlos a lot. I don't know anything about it Chantal didn't say anything I gave the book her

Note: When emphasizing people, stressed pronouns are used. 2. Use the construction c'est... que/qui

C'est Carlos que j'aime. C'est moi qui les aime. C'est un collier qui a t vol. C'est votre rponse qui n'est pas juste.

I like Carlos a lot. I like them. A necklace was stolen. Your response is not correct.

3. Use both of these constructions together for very strong emphasis

Carlos, c'est lui qui l'a fait ! Accent Marks

It's Carlos, he's the one who did it! / Carlos that did it!

There are five different kinds of accent marks used in written French. They are: Accent Letters used acute accent (accent aigu) grave accent (accent grave) circumflex (accent circonflexe) diaeresis (trma) cedilla (cdille) only , , , , , , , , , only