French Grammar Basics and Beyond

Easy explanations in English of French Grammar

with more than 200 exercises, and solutions!
This grammar book is for students of the A1 levels (total beginners)
to B1 level (intermediate level).

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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond














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©ȱ2020ȱbyȱLearn French at Home.ȱAllȱrightsȱreserved.ȱ
NoȱpartȱofȱthisȱeȬbookȱmayȱbeȱreproducedȱinȱanyȱwriĴen,ȱelectronic,ȱrecording,ȱorȱphotocopyingȱwithȬ
outȱwriĴenȱpermissionȱofȱtheȱpublisherȱorȱauthors.ȱȱ
ȱ
Publishedȱby:ȱLearn French at Home
www.learnfrenchathome.comȱ
Authors:ȱCélineȱVanȱLoanȱandȱAnnickȱStevensonȱ
3rdȱedition.ȱ1stȱeditionȱpublishedȱinȱ2011.ȱ
ȱ
DateȱofȱPublication:ȱ2020.ȱ
ISBN:ȱ9798664830743ȱȱ
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Coverȱphoto:ȱȱ
Paris,ȱtheȱRodinȱMuseumȱ©ȱCélineȱVanȱLoanȱ
Backȱcoverȱphoto:ȱ
CélineȱVanȱLoanȱ©ȱMartyȱVanȱLoanȱ

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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond




AboutLearn French at Home
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4
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

ȱ
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FrenchȱGrammarȱ
BasicsȱandȱBeyondȱ
ȱ
ȱ

EasyȱExplanationsȱinȱEnglishȱofȱFrenchȱGrammarȱ
withȱ200ȱExercisesȱandȱSolutionsȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ

ȱ
CélineȱVanȱLoanȱ
andȱAnnickȱStevensonȱ
ȱ
ȱ

ȱȱȱAȱPublicationȱofȱLearnȱFrenchȱatȱHome

5
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

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6
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

By learning a new language I discover mine,

I analyse it more, I understand much beĴer
my own grammar.
ȱ
ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱȱȱȱȱȱNancyȱHustonȱ
isȱaȱCanadianȱnovelistȱwhoȱwritesȱȱ
primarilyȱinȱFrenchȱandȱtranslatesȱȱ
herȱownȱworksȱintoȱEnglishȱ

ȱȱ

7
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

TABLEOFCONTENTS

FOREWORD                          Page15

1.Bonjour !                           Page17
 EXERCISE                          Page18

2.Spellingandthealphabet                    Page19
 EXERCISES                         Page19

3.Être (tobe)                          Page20
–Tu andvous                         Page20
 –On andnous                         Page21
 –Les naƟonalités(NaƟonaliƟes)                  Page21
 –Quelques adjecƟfs (AfewadjecƟves)                Page21
 –ThemoreusualnegaƟveconstrucƟon(ne...pas)            Page22
 EXERCISES                         Page23
 –C'est vsIlest                         Page26
  EXERCISES                         Page28

4.L'heure et la fréquence(ExpressionsofƟmeandfrequency)      Page30
  EXERCISES                         Page32

5.WordsgenderanddeĮnite/indeĮnitearƟcles:le,la,les,un,une,des   Page33
  EXERCICES                         Page36

6.Avoir (tohave)                        Page38
  EXERCISES                         Page39
 –Il y a                            Page44
  EXERCISES                          Page44
 –Être et avoir                          Page46
  EXERCISES                          Page46
 



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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

7. Les adjecƟfs possessifs (Possessive adjecƟves): mon, ma, mes, etc. Page 49
EXERCISES Page 50

8. Les préposiƟons (PreposiƟons)

–I. En Page 51
–II. Pour, avec Page 52
 –III. PreposiƟons of place (dans, sur, etc.) Page 52
EXERCISES Page 54
–IV. "À" vs "de" Page 58
Les arƟcles parƟƟfs (ParƟƟve arƟcles): de, du, de la, des, etc.      Page 60
EXERCISES Page 62

9. Aller (to go) Page 64
 –Chez                            Page 64
EXERCISES Page 66

10. Faire (to do/to make) Page 68
EXERCISES Page 71

11. Regular verbs ending in "er" in the present tense Page 74
EXERCISES Page 76

12. Si vs Oui Page 79

EXERCISES Page 80

13. Les adjecƟfs (The adjecƟves) Page 81

–Placement of the adjecƟves Page 84
EXERCISES Page 85

14. Poser des quesƟons (InterrogaƟves)

 –EstͲce que, qu’estͲce que, que, quoi, quel…             Page 87
EXERCISES Page 89
AddiƟonal interrogaƟves
–Qui, comment, pourquoi, quand, où, combien... Page 91
EXERCISES Page 94

15. Verbes pronominaux (ReŇexive verbs) Page 98

EXERCISES Page 100

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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

16. La négaƟon (ThenegaƟveforms) Page102

EXERCISES Page104

17. Quelqu'un,quelque chose,etc.(Someone,something,etc.) Page106

  EXERCISES Page108

18. Regularverbsendingin"ir" inthepresenttense Page109

EXERCISES Page111

19. Regularverbsendingin"re"and"oir"inthepresenttense Page113

EXERCISES Page115

20. Pouvoir (can/beableto),vouloir (towant),devoir (tohaveto/must) Page117

EXERCISES Page118

21. Falloir anddevoir (tohaveto) Page120

EXERCISES Page121

22. Voir (tosee),regarder (tolookat/towatchͿ Page122

EXERCISES Page123

23. Entendre (tohear),écouter (tolistento) Page124

 EXERCISES Page125

24. SenƟr,ressenƟr (bothverbsmean:tofeel) Page126

  EXERCISES Page127

25. Penser, croire (tothinkandtobelieve) Page128

  EXERCISE Page128

26. Savoir vsconnaître (bothverbsmean:toknow) Page129

EXERCISES Page131

27. Le passé composé:Themostusualpasttense Page132

EXERCISES Page136

28. L’imparfait:Theotherwidelyusedpasttense Page139

EXERCISES Page142

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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

29.Le passé composé vsl'imparfait                  Page145

 EXERCISES                         Page145

30.Verbes de mouvement:Visiter,retourner,rentrer,sorƟr,venir,etc.
 (Tovisit,togoback,tocomeback,togoout,tocome,etc.)      Page147
 EXERCISES                         Page150

31.Tu m'aimes ? Non, mais je t'aime bien ! (Tolove/tolike) Page152
  EXERCISES                         Page154

32.Manquer/rater (tomiss,tolack,tofail)              Page155
  EXERCISES                         Page157

33.Theverbpasser(Topass,tostopby,etc.)             Page159
  EXERCISES                         Page162

34.Les adverbes (Theadverbs)                   Page164
 –Placementoftheadverbs                    Page165
  EXERCISES                         Page166

35.La comparaison (Makingcomparisons)              Page167
 EXERCISES                         Page168
 –LesuperlaƟf(themost/theleast)                 Page170
 EXERCISES                         Page170

36.Être en train de,venir de,être sur le point de...
 (Inthemistofdoingsomething,etc.)               Page171
  EXERCISES                         Page172

37.Les pronoms directs et indirects (Directandindirectpronouns)     Page173
 EXERCISES                         Page175

38.Thepronouns"en"and"y"                   Page177
 EXERCISES                         Page178

39.Les préposiƟons exprimant la durée (PreposiƟonsofƟme)
 Depuis,ça fait,il y a,pendant,durant,pour,dans,en          Page179
 EXERCISES                         Page182


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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

40.An vsannée,jourvsjournée, etc.                Page185

  EXERCISES                         Page187

41.Le futur (Thefuture)                      Page188
 EXERCISES                         Page190

42.L'impéraƟf (TheimperaƟvetense)                Page192
  EXERCISES                         Page194

43.Le condiƟonnel (ThecondiƟonaltense:would,should,could) Page196
 EXERCISES                         Page198

44.La politesse (Afewpoliteforms)                 Page200
 EXERCISES                         Page201


SOLUTIONSOFTHEEXERCISES                   Page203


                              

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 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ

FOREWORDȱ
ȱ

WhyȱaȱFrenchȱgrammarȱbookȱinȱEnglish?ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
ȱ
Whileȱ writingȱ thisȱ Frenchȱ grammarȱ book,ȱ Iȱ putȱ myselfȱ inȱ ourȱ studentsȇȱ shoesȱ whoȱ neededȱ toȱ
graspȱ theȱ complexitiesȱ ofȱ theȱ grammar.ȱ Manyȱ ofȱ themȱ cameȱ toȱ usȱ nervousȱ aboutȱ theȱ ideaȱ ofȱȱȱȱ
havingȱ toȱ learnȱ it.ȱ Frenchȱ grammarȱ shouldȱ notȱ beȱ aȱ stumblingȱ blockȱ toȱ learningȱ theȱ language,ȱ
andȱoneȱwayȱtoȱgetȱoverȱtheȱfearȱisȱtoȱteachȱitȱwithȱeasyȱandȱstraightforwardȱexplanations.ȱȱȱ
ȱ MostȱgrammarȱbooksȱareȱinȱFrench,ȱwhichȱ canȱbeȱquiteȱchallengingȱorȱdiscouraging.ȱThereȬ
fore,ȱ Iȱ wantedȱ toȱ writeȱ anȱ aĴractiveȱ andȱ accessibleȱ grammarȱ referenceȱ inȱ Englishȱ forȱ ourȱ stuȬ
dentsȱinȱorderȱtoȱfacilitateȱcomprehension.ȱȱ
ȱ Weȱincludedȱmostȱofȱtheȱanswersȱtoȱtheȱexercisesȱatȱtheȱendȱofȱbook.ȱWeȱcouldȱnotȱaddȱtheȱ
answersȱtoȱallȱtheȱquestions,ȱespeciallyȱtoȱ theȱonesȱthatȱaskȱtheȱstudentsȱtoȱanswerȱfreelyȱorȱtoȱ
translateȱsomeȱsentences.ȱȱ
ȱ Thisȱ Frenchȱ basicȱ grammarȱ bookȱ isȱ intendedȱ forȱ beginnerȱ toȱ intermediateȱ learnersȱ (Frenchȱ
levelsȱfromȱA1ȱtoȱB1).ȱTheȱobjectiveȱisȱforȱtheȱstudentsȱtoȱlearnȱandȱexerciseȱtheirȱunderstandingȱ
ofȱ theȱ basicȱ elementsȱ ofȱ theȱ languageȱ asȱ wellȱ asȱ someȱ culturalȱ aspects.ȱ Stepȱ byȱ step,ȱ togetherȱ
withȱaȱteacherȱorȱonȱtheirȱown,ȱFrenchȱlearnersȱcanȱconstructȱtheȱsentencesȱandȱgainȱplentyȱofȱ
practice.ȱȱ
ȱ
Aȱęrstȱeditionȱwasȱpublishedȱinȱ2011.ȱThisȱisȱaȱnewȱrevisedȱedition.ȱ
ȱ
CélineȱVanȱLoanȱ

15
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

1.Bonjour !

Bonjour, bonsoir...

WhenyouwalkintoabouƟqueorasmallshopinFrance,thepeopleintheplacewillacknowledgeyouby
sayingbonjour (allday)orbonsoir (aŌer6:00p.m.).Ofcourse,inreturnyoushoulddothesame.Ifyou
walkintoaplaceĮlledwithwomenonly,youcouldsayBonjourMesdames,inaplaceĮlledwithmenand
womenBonjourMesdamesetMessieurs(orsimplyMessieursͲdames).Ifyou’refacingonepersononly,it
iscustomarytosayBonjourMonsieurorBonjourMadame,ifyou’regreeƟngayoungerfemaleperson(18
yearsorless),youshouldsayBonjourMademoiselle.

Au revoir, bonne journée, bonne soirée, bonne nuit...

When you leave a shop or a restaurant during the day, you should always automaƟcally say au revoir
(goodbye)orbonne journée(haveagoodday!).Intheevening,youmustsaybonne soirée(goodeven-
ing).Andwhenyouleavesomeoneatnight,yousaybonne nuit(goodnight).

À bientôt, à plus tard !...
Hereisalistofcommonexpressionsyousaywhenyouleavepeople,andwhentousethem:


–À bientôt ! =Seeyousoon!Usedwhenyouaregoingtoseethatpersonagainonedaybutyou’renot
surewhen!Theequivalentof"seeyoulater."


–À samedi,à mercredi,à ce soir,à demain,à la semaine prochaine,àdemain soir,à midi,etc.=Seeyou

Saturday,Wednesday,tonight,tomorrow,nextweek,tomorrowevening,atlunchƟme,etc.Whenyou
areindicaƟngthespeciĮcdayandƟmewhenyouwillmeetagain,juststartthephrasewithà+anyspe-
ciĮcdayorƟme.


–À tout à l’heure ! =Seeyoulatertoday!Itissaidwhenyouaregoingtoseethatpersonagaininjusta

fewhourswithinthatsameday.Theyoungerkidsandadultsmayjustsayà tout’ andwillpronouncethet
attheendoftheword.


–À plus tard ! =Seeyoulater!Itisusedwhenyouareunsureifyou’regoingtoseethatpersonagainor

notbutmostlikelywill.Theyoungerkidsandadultsmayjustsayà plusandwillpronouncethesatthe
endoftheword.Intextmessages(sms),theysimplywrite:À+.


–À une prochaine ! =SeeyounextƟme!Sameasabove.



–À un de ces quatre ! =Seeyouoneofthesedays!Youuseitwhenyouarenotsurewhenyouwillsee

someoneagain.

Les bises (kissesonthecheek)

UnƟl recently, each Ɵme you encountered someone you know, you had to be prepared to give two to
four bises to the other person. However, since the social distancing imposed during the Covid-19 pan-
demic,thishabitisevolving,andwhoknowswhatwillhappeninthefuture?

17
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

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18
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

2.Spellingandthealphabet


ItisimportanttoĮrstlearnthealphabettothepointwhereyoucaneasilyspellyourcontactdetails.
Theexerciseshavetobedoneorallywithyourteacher.

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19
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

3.Être(tobe)


Theverbêtreisanirregularverb.Studyandmemorizethewayitisconjugatedaccordingtothediīer-
entsubjectpronouns:

Firstlet’slearnwhatthesubjectpronounsare:

Je =I
Tu =You(thefamiliarform)
Il =He
Elle =She
On =One/We(moreinformalthanusingnous)
Nous =We
Vous =You(pluralform)
Ils =They(masculine)
Elles =They(feminine)

Note:Amixedgroupofmalesandfemalesisreferredtoasmasculine,evenifthereare10womenand
onlyoneman.Youwillhavetouseils.


Tuandvous

Therearetwodiīerentwordstoexpress"you"inFrench:tu andvous.

Tu is the familiar "you." It expresses a certain closeness and informality. Use tu when speaking to a
friend,acolleague,arelaƟveorachild.
Example:
SalutJean,tuescontentd’êtreenvacances?=Hi,Jean,areyouhappytobeonholidays?

Vousistheformalformof"you."ItisusedwhenonehastoexpressrespectorinformalsituaƟons.
Example:
BonjourMonsieurDesbois,vousêtesicipourquelquessemaines?=GoodmorningMrDesbois,youare
hereforafewweeks?

TheconjugaƟonofêtre

Jesuis. =Iam.Tues. =Youare.Il/elle/onest. =He/she/oneis(or:weare;seenextpage).
Noussommes. =Weare.Vousêtes. =Youare.Ils/ellessont. =Theyare.C’est=Thisis.




20
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

Onandnous

Thereare2waystoexpress"we"=onornous.Onismorecasualthannous.TheFrenchhaveatenden-
cyofusing"on"morethan"nous"intheeverydaylanguage.Itisconjugatedatthe3rdpersonjustlikeil
orelle.
Example:
Avecmescopains,on estallésaucinémahier.=Withmyfriends,wewenttothemoviesyesterday.

Onalsomeans"one"or"everyone."Itisusedwhenexpressingfacts,generaliƟesorobligaƟons.
Examples:
EnFrance,on boitunapériƟfavantlerepas.=inFrance,one(we)drinksanaperiƟfbeforethemeal.
On doitavoirunvisadetravailpourtravaillerenFrance.=One(we)musthaveaworkvisatoworkin
France.


Les naƟonalités(NaƟonaliƟes)

Nounsand adjecƟvesofnaƟonalityagreewiththegenderandthe plural(feminine/masculine,singu-
lar/plural);ifthesubjectisfeminine,youneedtoaddanetothenaƟonalityandifthesubjectisplural,
youneedtoaddan"s."
Examples:
Elleestfrançaise.=SheisFrench.
Ilestanglais.=HeisEnglish.
Noussommesaméricaines. =WeareAmerican(females).
Ellessontanglaises. =TheyareEnglish(females).
Ilssontanglais.=TheyareEnglish(males).


Quelques adjecƟfs(AfewadjecƟves)

AnadjecƟveisawordthatdescribesanounorapronoun.InFrench,anadjecƟveisusuallyplacedaŌer
thenoun,exceptfortheshorterones.JustlikenaƟonaliƟes,theymustagreewiththegenderandthe
plural*.
ExamplesofadjecƟves:
peƟt =small/short
grand =tall
content =happy
drôle =funny
triste =sad
méchant =mean
marié =married
faƟgué =Ɵred
*Inmostcases,thefeminineformoftheadjecƟveisformedbyaddingan"e."

21
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

Thepluralisformedbyaddingan"s."
Examples:
Monmariestgrand.=Myhusbandistall.
Mafemmeestgrande.=Mywifeistall.
Mesenfantssontgrands.=Mychildrenaretall.
MesĮllessontgrandes.=Mydaughtersaretall.

WithsomeadjecƟves,thefeminineformisirregular.
Examples:
beaubecomesbelle=handsome,beauƟful
mignonbecomesmignonne=cute
genƟlbecomesgenƟlle=nice
grosbecomesgrosse=big,fat.

You'lllearnmoreabouttheadjecƟvesonpage81.


ThemoreusualnegaƟveconstrucƟon(ne... pas)

InordertomakeasentencenegaƟve,youneedtoaddneandpasaroundtheverb.
Example:
Je ne suispasgrande.=Iamnottall.
Note:ineverydayspeechtheFrenchwilloŌendropthene:Jesuispasgrande.

You'lllearnmoreaboutthenegaƟveformsonpage102.


22
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

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25
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

C’est vsIl est



To introduce or present something or a person, the French will use either c’est (this is), il/elle est
(he/it/sheis).

Thepluralofc’est isce sont=theseare.
Thepluralofil/elle estisils/elles sont=theyare.

ThenegaƟveformofc'est is=ce n'est pas (singular);ce ne sont pas (plural)=thesearen't.
ThenegaƟveformofil/elle estisils/elles ne sont pas=theyaren't.

Thechoicebetweenc’estorilestisnotalwaysstraighƞorward.MostoftheƟme,c’estorcesontarefol-
lowedbyanoun(c’estunevoitureallemande=it’saGermancar;c’estunlivre=it’sabook;c’estJulien=
it’sJulien).
Note:Il/elleisusuallyfollowedwithanadjecƟve(seebelow).

Inordertomakesurethatit’sclear,let’sunderstandinwhichsituaƟonsweuseoneortheother:


C’est isused:

1)ToidenƟfyorintroduceapersonorathing
Examples:
ඤQu’estͲcequec’est?=Whatisit?
C’estunarbreexoƟque.=ItisanexoƟctree(idenƟfyingsomething).
ඤQuiestͲce?=Whoisit?
C’estCharles,monami.=ThisisCharles,myfriend(introducingsomeone).
ඤQuisontͲils?=Whoarethey?
Ce sontdesAméricains.=TheyareAmericans.

2)Toannounceoneself(forexampleonthetelephone)
Examples:
Allo,c’estCarole!=Hello,thisisCarole!
EstͲcequec’estCarl?=IsitCarl?
ඤNon,ce n’est pasCarl!=No,itisnotCarl!

3)Tomakeageneralstatement
Examples:
Lesvacances,c’est bien!=Holidays,they’regreat!
Letravail,c’est diĸcile!=Work,it’sdiĸcult!



26
 French Grammar Basics and Beyond

Note:IfyouhaveapossessiveadjecƟvesuchasmon,ma,mes,thenyouwouldalwaysusec’est:
C’estmon chien.=Thisismydog.
C’estma voiture.=Thisismycar.


Il/elle estisused:

1)TodescribesomethingorsomeoneinparƟcular.

Note:il/elleisusuallyfollowedbyanadjecƟve.
Examples:
Carine?Elle estgrande,blondeetintelligente.=Carine?Sheistall,blondhairandintelligent.
Il estsympa,leprofesseur.=Heisnice,theteacher.

2) When talking about someone’s profession, naƟonality, religion or family status. In this case, you
don’taddanarƟcle(takeouttheun,une,des,le,la,les).
Examples:
Carla?Elle est informaƟcienne.=Carlaisacomputerspecialist.
Elle estfrançaise.=SheisFrench.
Elle estcélibataire.=Sheissingle.
Il estcatholique.=He'scatholic.

BUTyouwilladdanarƟcleifyouaddadescripƟveadjecƟve:
Elle est une informaƟcienneintelligente.=Sheisanintelligentcomputerspecialist.
Il est un écrivaincélèbre.=Heisafamouswriter.

Note:InFrench,whenthenaƟonalityisasubstanƟve,westartitwithacapitalleƩer,butwedon’tdo
itwhenitisanadjecƟve.WhenspeakingaboutaFrenchmanoraFrenchwoman,youjustsay:unFranͲ
çais,uneFrançaise.Youdon’tneedtospecify un homme françaisorune femme française.
Examples:
L’hommequiaobtenucetravailestfrançais.=ThemanwhogotthatjobisFrench.
C’estunFrançaisquiaobtenucetravail.=ItisaFrenchmanwhogotthatjob.
CeƩefemmequifaitlapizzacesoirestitalienne.=ThiswomanwhomakesthepizzatonightisItalian.
Cesoir,lapizzaestpréparéeparuneItalienne.=Tonight,thepizzaispreparedbyanItalianwoman.

27
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