How to Use the Verb êTre (to Be)

Did you know that out of thousands of French verbs, only a few are used on a regular basis?

This means that you don’t actually need to master lots of French verbs to be a good French speaker.

All you need to do is master the most common French verbs.

In fact, once you know the most common French verbs, you’ll intuitively know how to conjugate most of the verbs you encounter, because most
French verbs follow patterns.

In this first edition of the French Verbs in Action series, you’ll learn how to use the verb être (to be).

Contents
1 Common expressions and idioms with être
1.1 Être à côté de la plaque
1.2 Être à l’aise
1.3 Être mal à l’aise
1.4 Ne pas être dans son assiette
1.5 Ça m’est égal
1.6 ça y est
1.7 c’est-à-dire
1.8 c’est ça
1.9 c’est dans la poche
1.10 c’est parti
1.11 c’est la vie
1.12 c’est pas grave
1.13 c’est pas tes oignons
1.14 impossible n’est pas français
1.15 Ainsi soit-il
2 Example sentences using the verb être (to be)

Common expressions and idioms with être

As the most common French verb, être can be found in many expressions and idioms.
Here are the most frequent ones:

Être à côté de la plaque

Literally to be near the target
What it means: to be completely wrong about something

English counterpart: to be wide of the mark

Il n’est pas coupable, je suis à côté de la plaque.

He is not guilty, I am completely mistaken.

Être à l’aise
Literally: to be at the pleasure
What it means: you use this expression to say someone feels comfortable or seems to be comfortable with something.

English counterpart: to feel at ease

Les jeunes sont très à l’aise avec la technologie car ils ont grandi avec.
Young people are very comfortable with technology, because they grew up with it.

Être mal à l’aise

Literally: to be bad at the pleasure
What it means: this is the contrary of “être à l’aise”, you use it to say you feel uncomfortable.
You could use it as a question if you see someone who seems uncomfortable.

English counterpart: to feel ill at ease, to be uncomfortable

Je suis mal à l’aise avec lui, c’est pour ça que je l’évite.

I feel uncomfortable with him, that’s why I avoid him.

Ne pas être dans son assiette

Literally: to not be in one’s plate”
What this means: this expression means you don’t feel well. It’s almost always used in its negative form.

English counterpart:

Qu’est-ce qui se passe ? Je sais pas, je suis pas dans mon assiette aujourd’hui.
What’s going on? I don’t know, I don’t feel well today.

Ça m’est égal
Literally “it’s equal to me”. This can either mean all options are good for you, or you don’t care about something.

C’est pas ma faute tu sais. ça m’est égal !

It’s not my fault you know. I don’t care!
Vous préférez de la viande ou du poisson? ça m’est égal.
Do you prefer meat or fish? It’s all the same to me.

ça y est
This is used exactly like “that’s it” in English.

ça y est, j’ai trouvé une idée de cadeau.

That’s it, I found a gift idea.

c’est-à-dire
Literally “that is to say”. You use “c’est-à-dire” to explain something in detail or to ask for clarifications. It can also mean “in other words”.
The best English equivalent would be “which means”.

It’s often written “cad” or c.a.d.

c’est ça
Literally “that’s it”, “c’est ça” is used to confirm someone is right. It’s the counterpart. It’s commonly proceeded by “bien”, “c’est bien ça”.

Tu n’y as jamais été en fait. C’est ça?

You never went there actually, right?

c’est dans la poche

Literally “it’s in the pocket”. You use this expression to say something is easy.

Alors tes examens ?

So your exams? (how did they go).

C’est dans la poche.

I am sure to pass.

c’est parti
“C’est parti”, literally “it’s gone” is the counterpart of “we are off”, or “let’s go”.

Tout le monde est prêt ? Allez, c’est parti !

Everyone is ready? Ok, let’s go !

c’est la vie
You probably know this expression, because it’s very common in English too. It has the same meaning in both languages. You use to downplay
an incident.

J’ai raté mon examen, c’est la vie…

I failed my exam, oh well…

c’est pas grave

This is one of the most common expressions using the verb “être” (to be). You use to say something isn’t a big deal, something doesn’t really
matter.
T’as perdu ton ordinateur? Oui, c’est pas grave, j’en achèterai un autre.
Did you lose your computer? Yes, it’s not a big deal, I will buy a new one.

c’est pas tes oignons

Literally “it’s not your onions”. This is the counterpart of “it’s none of your business”.

Tu fais quoi ici? C’est pas tes oignons !

What are you doing here? It’s none of your business!

impossible n’est pas français

Literally “impossible is not French”. It’s believed to be a quote from Napoléon. It’s commonly used to say that everything is possible.

Il n’y arrivera pas, c’est impossible. Impossible n’est pas français !

He won’t succeed, it’s impossible. Nothing is impossible!

Ainsi soit-il
“Ainsi soit-il” is a formal French expression meaning “so be it”.

Example sentences using the verb être (to be)

“être” is mostly used to describe a state of being.

That’s the verb you use to describe the way something or someone feels.
Aysa est jolie
Aysa is pretty

Il est absent, mais il reviendra bientôt

He is not here, but he will come back soon

Note that there are differences between the use of être and to be. For example, in French you would say “j’ai faim” (literally: I have hunger)
instead of “je suis faim” (lit: I am hunger) to say you are hungry.

If you really want to describe the state of being hungry, you need to say “je suis affamé”, but this isn’t an exact translation, because “affamé” is
closer to “starved” than “hungry”.