The present tense of être is used so often in French, it is important that you get to know these phrases. to be = êtreI am = je suisyou are (singular) = tu eshe is = il estshe is = elle estit is = il est or elle estwe are = nous sommesyou are (plural) … Read more
Available as an instant downloadable file, Avoir Workpages provides an assortment of reproducible exercises at different levels to provide your students with extra practice for this essential verb. Many of the pages provided are taken from Nallenart’s popular French curriculum for homeschool and classroom, L’Art de LIRE. Avoir Workpages C$9.95 View sample pages. Sponsored by … Read more
Aller (a-LAY) means to go in French. Aller is an irregular verb, which means it doesn’t follow a particular pattern when it is conjugated. Take some time to memorize this important verb! I go = je vaisyou go = tu vashe goes = il vashe goes = elle vawe go = nous allonsyou go = … Read more
Lire is an irregular verb meaning to read. The English words literature and literary are related to lire. je lis (zhuh LEE)* = I read tu lis (tyoo LEE) = you read il lit (eel LEE) = he reads elle lit (el LEE) = she reads nous lisons (noo lee-ZOH) = we read vous lisez … Read more
avoir peur de = to be afraid of The French phrase avoir peur de is another example of a French expression that uses avoir, to have, where English uses to be. Eg.: Robert a peur des araignées. = Robert is afraid of spiders. See if you can translate the following sentences. J’ai peur de ton … Read more
j’ai faim (zhay* FEH)** = I am hungry In English, we use the phrase “I am hungry” to let someone know we need food. 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 hungry,” j’ai faim, … Read more
French uses the verb avoir to tell how old someone is.
How old are you?
Quel âge as-tu? (kel ahzh* ah tyoo)**
I am ten years old.
J’ai dix ans. (zhay* deez ah)**
Read the question, then answer in French.
Quel âge as-tu?
J’ai…
* zh sounds like “g” in beige or “s” in measure.
** Please keep in mind that these pronunciation guides give only a
crude approximation of the actual French sounds.
For more work with AVOIR, download Nallenart’s Avoir Workpages.
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.
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 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