Lessons

Expressions with AVOIR – soif

by

j’ai soif (zhay* SWAHF)** = I am thirsty

In English, we use the phrase “I am thirsty” to let someone know we need a drink. In this sentence “am,” the being word, is used. To make the same statement in French, avoir (the having word) is used. The French phrase for “I am thirsty,” j’ai soif, uses the having verb avoir. Even though this phrase literally means “I have thirst,” we would translate it as “I am thirsty,” because that is how we would say it in English.

This is what the different forms of this phrase look like in the
present tense.

j’ai soif
-I am thirsty		 nous avons soif
-we are thirsty
tu as soif
-you are thirsty		 vous avez soif
-you are thirsty
il a soif
-he is thirsty		 ils ont soif
-they are thirsty
elle a soif
-she is thirsty		 elles ont soif
-they are thirsty

For more work with AVOIR, download Nallenart’s Avoir Workpages.

Read more

Les adjectifs – French Adjectives

by

French adjectives must change their forms depending on whether the nouns they describe are masculine or feminine, singular or plural. Usually the feminine form adds “e” to the masculine adjective. This can change the pronunciation of the adjective by causing the final consonant to be pronounced. The dog is small.Le chien est petit. (puh-TEE)The mouse … Read more

ÉCRIRE = to write

by

Écrire means to write. It is related to the English words scribe, script, and scripture. j’écris (zhay-KREE)* = I writetu écris (tyoo ay-KREE) = you writeil écrit (eel ay-KREE) = he writeselle écrit (el ay-KREE) = she writesnous écrivons (noo-zay-kree-VOH) = we writevous écrivez (voo-zay-kree-VAY) = you writeils écrivent (eel-zay-KREEV) = they writeelles écrivent (el-zay-KREEV) … Read more

DIRE = to say, to tell

by

Dire is an irregular verb meaning to say or to tell. The French word dire is from the Latin word dicere (to say) and is related to the English words dictate, diction, and dictionary. Note the irregular vous form! je dis (zhuh DEE)* = I saytu dis (tyoo DEE) = you sayil dit (eel DEE) … Read more

Lire = to read

by

Lire is an irregular verb meaning to read. The English words literature and literary are related to lire. je lis (zhuh LEE) = I read, I am reading, I do readtu lis (tyoo LEE) = you read, you are reading, you do readil lit (eel LEE) = he reads, he is reading, he does readelle … Read more

Dormir

by

Dormir means “to sleep.” Our English words dormitory and dormant are related to dormir. Write out and memorize the present tense of dormir. je dors (zhuh DOHR) = I sleep, I am sleeping, I do sleeptu dors (tyoo DOHR) = you sleep, you are sleeping, you do sleepil dort (eel DOHR) = he sleeps, he … Read more

More -IR Verbs

by

Here are some more -IR verbs. réfléchir (ray-flay-SHEER) = to think, to reflectchoisir (shwah-ZEER) = to choosebâtir (ba-TEER) = to buildpunir (pyoo-NEER) = to punishgrandir (grahn-DEER) = to growréussir (ray-yoo-SEER) = to succeed Club Mimi is sponsored by Nallenart. Sponsored by Nallenart. For more information about L’Art de lire and other products, visit our website: … Read more

-IR Verbs

by

Finir means to finish. Other verbs have similar endings. This group of verbs, -IR verbs, is the second major verb group, after -ER verbs. je finis (zhuh fee-NEE) = I finish, I am finishing, I do finishtu finis (tyoo fee-NEE) = you finish, you are finishing, you do finishil finit (eel fee-NEE) = he finishes, … Read more

Expressions with avoir

by

Avoir (to have) is used in many common expressions in French. Some of these are quite different from English, so you must memorize them. 1. avoir chaud (a-VWAHR shoh)*- to be hot2. avoir froid (a-VWAHR frwah)- to be cold3. avoir mal (a-VWAHR mal)- to be sick4. avoir faim (a-VWAHR fay)- to be hungry5. avoir soif … Read more

Quelle est la date?

by

To ask, “What is the date today?” say:Quelle est la date aujourd’hui? To answer, we say:Aujourd’hui, c’est le jour numéro mois.eg.: Aujourd’hui c’est le lundi 6 février.Today is Monday, February 6. Another possibility:Aujourd’hui, c’est jour, le numéro mois.eg.: Aujourd’hui c’est mercredi, le 14 mars.Today is Wednesday, March 14. Sponsored by Nallenart. For more information about … Read more