Subject –French 1 Sub Code -LFO 441

Book – Apprenons le français -1 By Mahitha Ranjit and Simran Batra

Course Objectives:.

- The aim of learning foreign language is to improve the ability to communicate and the
linguistic competence in that particular language.
- It also gives an insight into the country’s culture and society in a global context
- Students will demonstrate an awareness of the relevance of foreign languages to
professions and careers.
- Another important objective is to guide students in the development of their literacy skills
through the communicative acts of reading, writing, and creating discourse around texts
of all types.

1. INTRODUCTION TO FRENCH ( FRANCAIS )

French really is a beautiful language but sometimes it seems difficult to

English native speakers because of its complicated grammar.
Of course, French and English have similarities. They use the same roman
alphabet (with only a few different signs), the way of thinking and
constructing sentences have much in common. The order of words is quite
the same. We have the same use of pronouns and the tenses have lots in
common. Lots of words have the same origin. You’ll see a lot of words which
are the same or almost the same…

But it’s also true that French language presents some

important differences with English language.

- First of all, a specific pronunciation

- Then some important grammatical differences which may seem difficult at

first sight.
a. Every noun has a gender. Determinants and adjectives agree in gender
with them.
b. Verbs have a different conjugation for each grammatical person and
some of them are irregular.
c. Constructions of the sentences are sometimes different.

But there's nothing to be afraid of. We’ll tackle these differences and work
on them in each lesson in order to allow you to understand the French way
of speaking better.

THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE:-

French belongs to a group of languages identified as a "Romance language," although that's

not why it's called the language of love.

In linguistic terms, "Romance" and "Romanic" have nothing to do with love; they come
from the word "Roman" and simply mean "from Latin." Other terms sometimes used for
these languages are "Romanic," "Latin," or "Neo-Latin" languages. These languages
evolved from Vulgar Latin between the sixth and ninth centuries. Some other very
common Romance languages include Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Romanian. Other
Romance languages include Catalan, Moldavian, Rhaeto-Romanic, Sardinian and
Provençal. Because of their shared roots in Latin, these languages can have many words
that are similar to each other.

HOW POPOULAR FRENCH IS :-

With more than 77 million native speakers and 220 million total speakers, French ranks
in the top 10 of the most commonly spoken languages worldwide.

While French is spoken by a significant part of the population of about 60 countries, it is

only recognized as an official language by 29 countries. The countries that speak
French as an official language are Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon,
Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Guinea, Haiti, Ivory Coast, Luxembourg,
Madagascar, Mali, Monaco, Niger, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Senegal,
Seychelles, Switzerland, Togo and Vanuatu.
2. HISTORY AND CULTURE – LA FRANCE

La carte de la France

- LE DRAPEAU FRANCAIS ( FRENCH FLAG )- BLEU BLANC ROUGE

- LA CAPITALE DE LA FRANCE ( Capital OF France )- PARIS

- LA FETE NATIONALE ( National Day ) – LE 14th juillet

- L’hymne nationale ( national anthem ) – La Marseillaise

 - La monnaie ( currency ) – l’euro

- Les montagnes ( Mountain ranges )- les alpes , les Pyrénées , la jura , les Vosges

- les rivières ( The rivers ) – La siene , La Loire , La Garonne , Le Rhin , Le Rhône

- Les vins ( famous wines ) – le bordeaux , le bourgogne , le beaujolais

- Les fromages ( cheese ) - Traditionally, there are 350 to 450 distinct types of
French cheese grouped into eight categories 'eight cheese families'. There
are several types of cheese

Le brie, le camembert, le roquefort

- Les Parfums ( France is very famous for perfumes ) – Chanel , Christian Dior ,
Pacco Rabane

- Le monde francophone- French is the only language other than English spoken in
five continents . More than 150 million people speak French as their native
tongue and millions of others use it as a second language. These people make up
what is known as – LE MONDE FRANCOPHONE – THE FRENCH SPEAKING WORLD

- Les monuments ( some famous monuments ) –

Palais du Louvre , la tour Eiffel, l’arc de triomphe , la nôtre dame , sacre cœur

3. LES ALPHABETS

French is based on the Latin alphabet (also called the Roman alphabet), and there are
twenty-six (26) letters. Originally there were twenty-five (25) letters, with 'W' being
added by the mid-nineteenth century. Unlike the English, who call it a "double-u," the
French use "double-v" and pronounce it (doo-bluh-vay) after the 'V' which is pronounced
(vay). During the period from Old French to Modern French, the letter 'K' was added.
These two letters are used mostly with adopted foreign words. The French alphabet
used today is less than 200 years old.
The twenty-six letters are parted into :

 20 Consonants (Consonnes): B C D F G H J K L M N P Q R S T V W X Z
 6 Vowels (Voyelles): A E I O U Y

 The French “J” has a soft sound, like the sound in the middle of the English language
word “leisure.

 There are many French words that have a “nasal” sound which we do not have in
English.

 The French “R” should be rolled at the back of the throat, rather like the sound you
make when you gargle.

 The “H” is silent.

 In French the “U” is pronounced like the “ew” in the English work

 Liaison and elision are two pronunciation techniques that make the French language
sound so beautiful. The final consonant of a word is usually not pronounced.
Sometimes, however, we do pronounce this final consonant. les^amis (z) nous^arrivons
(z) sept^hommes (t) Liaison means to link one word with the word that follows it. We
link the final consonant sound of the first word with the beginning vowel sound of the
word that follows it to create a liaison.

 Elision on the other hand occurs when a vowel sound is dropped (usually e or i) at the
end of one word if the next word begins with a vowel sound. The vowel that is dropped
does not disappear. It is replaced by an apostrophe. The elision will most likely occur
with the final e of je, ne, de, que.
A N
aah (like opening your mouth for the en
dentist) O
B oh
beh P
C pay
say Q
D coo
day R
E err
euh S
F es
eff T
G tay
jay (like J in English) U
H oo
ash V
I vay
ee W
J dooble vay
jee (similar to G in English) X
K eex
kah Y
L ee-grayk
el Z
M zed
em

4. LES ACCENTS
ROLE OF ACCENTS

Five different kinds of accent marks are used in written French. In many cases, an accent
changes the sound of the letter to which it is added. In others, the accent has no effect on
pronunciation. Accents in French never indicate stress (which always falls on the last syllable).
The following table lists every French accent mark and the letters with which it can be
combined:
 ACCENTS LETTER USED PRONOUNCIATION
L’ACCENT AIGU ( THE ACUTE FOUND ON LETTER “e” Changes the sound to “ay”
ACCENT) é Example- éléphant

L’ACCENT GRAVE ( THE FOUND ON LETTERS “a , Changes sounds to “ ehh “

GRAVE ACCENT ) e,u) Example- fièvre: fever, là:
è, à, ù there, où: where

Can come on any vowel

L’ACCENT CIRCONFLEXE ( THE No change in the
CIRCUMFLEXE ACCENT ) â, ê, î, ô, û pronunciation
Example- gâteau: cake, être:
to be, île: island,

La cédille ( the cedilla ) This accents comes under

“c” It tells you to pronounce “c”
ç like “s”. It changes hard “k”
sound of “c” to soft sound of
“s”
Example- français
Le tréma
It is found when two vowels
found next to each other It is found when two vowels
ë, ï, ü, ÿ found next to each other and
the second vowel needs to be
pronounced separately
Eg- N o ë l
4. LES SALUTATIONS – GREETINGS IN FRENCH
1. SALUT – HI/BYE ( INFORMAL )
2. BONJOUR – HI / GOOD MORNING ( FORMAL)
3. BON SOIR – HI ( ONLY AFTER 19H00 )
4. BON APRES MIDI- GOOD AFTER NOON
5. BONNE SOIREE- GOOD EVEVING
6. BONNE NUIT- GOOD NIGHT
7. QUOI DE NEUF- WASSSUP/ WHAT’S NEW
8. PAS GRAND-CHOSE-NOT MUCH
9. MERCI BEAUCOUP-THANKS ALOT
10. DERIEN-WELCOME
11. MONSIEUR- MR
12. MADAME-MRS
13. MADEMOISELLE- MISS
14. A DEMAIN- SEE YOU TOMORRAOW
15. A BIENTOT- SEE YOU SOON
16. A PLUS TARD-SEE YOU LATER
17. A CE SOIR- SEE YOU IN THIS EVENING
18. A LA PROCHAINE- SEE YOU AROUND
19. S’IL VOUS PLAIT – PLEASE (FORMAL)
20. S’IL TE PLAIT-PLEASE (INFORMAL)
21. RIEN-NOTHING
22. AU REVOIR-BYE
23. ENCHANTE- NICE TO MEET YOU
24. BIENVENU- WELCOM ( PLACE )
25. OK-D’ACCORD
26. JE TE REMERCIE – I THANK YOU (INFORMAL)
27. JE VOUS REMERCIE- I THANK YOU (FORMAL)
28. JE T’EN PRIE-WELCOME (INFORMAL)
29. JE VOUS EN PRIE-WELCOME (FORMAL)
30. QUI-YES
31. NON-NO
32. JE SUIS DESOLE – I AM SORRY
 5. SE PRESENTER / PRESENTEZ – VOUS ( HOW TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF IN FRENCH )

THE INTRODUCTION: NAME

1. Comment vous vous appelez? ( How do you call yourself –formal)

2. Comment tu t’appelles? ( How do you call yourself-informal)
3. Je m’appelle Alexia ( I am called Alexia / My name is
Alexia )

4. Quel est votre nom ? ( What is your name – formal)

5. Je suis Alexia ( My name is Alexia )

HOW ARE YOU ?

1. Comment allez-vous ? (formal)

2. Comment vas-tu ? (informal) ( HOW ARE YOU )
3. Comment ça va ? / Ça va ? (informal)

Replies :

- Ça va (très) bien- ( I am going very well )

- Je vais bien - ( I am going good )
- Oui, ça va. - ( yes , it goes )
- Très bien, merci - ( very well , thanks )
- Pas mal - ( not bad )
- pas si bien/pas très bien- ( not so well )
- Très mal- ( very bad )
- Et toi – And you ( f)
- Et vous- And you ( if )

AGE :

1. Vous avez quel age ? - Formal ( HOW OLD ARE YOU )

2. Tu as quel age ? – Informal

Reply:

J’ai dix-huit(18) ans or J’ai vingt(20) ans ( depends on your age )

PLACE : WHERE DO YOU LIVE ?

1. Vous habitez ou ? ( FORMAL)

2. Tu habites ou ? (INFORMAL)

Reply

- J’habite a Paris / J’habite a Delhi ( I live in Paris / I live in Delhi)

3. Vous venez d’ou ? ( Where do you come from )

Reply :

- Je viens de L’inde ( I am coming from India )

- Je viens de France ( I am coming from France )

PROFESSION :-

1. Que faites- vous dans ta vie ?( What you do in your life –Formal)
2. Que fais-tu dans ta vie ? (What you do in your life-Informal)
3. Quelle est votre profession ?(What is your profession )

Reply :

- Je suis étudiant (masculin) –I am student

- Je suis étudiante (féminine) – I am student

NATIONALITY :

1. Quelle est votre nationalité ? ( what is your nationality )

Reply :-

- Je suis indien ( masc)

- Je suis indienne ( fem )

( Note- In French nationality is different for masculine and feminine both )

TELEPHONE NUMBER

1. Quel est votre numéro de téléphone ? ( What is your telephone number)

- Mon numero de telephone est ( my telephone number is-----)

67-67-67-67-69

Les nombres

0 Zero [zay-ro]
1 Un [uh]
2 Deux [duhr]
3 Trois [twa]
4 Quatre [katr]
5 Cinq [sank]
6 Six [sees]
7 Sept [set]
8 Huit [weet]
9 Neuf [nurf]
10 Dix [dees]
11 Onze [onz]
12 Douze [dooz]
13 Treize [trez]
14 quatorze [katorz]
15 Quinze [kanz]
16 Seize [sez]
17 dix-sept [dee-set]
18 dix-huit [dees-weet]
19 dix-neuf [dees-nurf]
20 Vingt [van]
21 vingt et un [vant-ay-uh]
22 vingt-deux [van-duhr]
23 vingt-trois [van-twa]
24 vingt-quatre [van-katr]
25 vingt-cinq [van-sank]
26 vingt-six [van-sees]
27 vingt-sept [van-set]
28 vingt-huit [van-weet]
29 vingt-neuf [van-nurf]
30 Trente [tront]
31 Trente et un [tront ay-uh]
32 Trente-deux [tront-durh)
33 Trente-trois [tront-twa)
34 Trente-quatre [tront-katr)
35 Trente-cinq [tront-sank)
36 Trente-six [tront-sees)
37 Trente-sept [tront-set)
38 Trente-huit [tront-weet)
39 Trente-neuf [tront-nurf)
40 quarante [karont]
41 quarante et un [karont-ay-uh]
42 quarante-deux [karont-deux]
43 quarante-trois [karont-twa]
44 quarante-quatre [karont-katr]
45 quarante-cinq [karont-sank]
46 quarante-six [karont-sees]
47 quarante-sept [karont-set]
48 quarante-huit [karont-weet]
49 quarante-neuf [karont-nurf]
50 cinquante [sank-ont]
51 cinquante et un [sank-ont-ay-uh]
52 cinquante-deux [sank-ont-deux]
53 cinquante-trois [sank-ont-twa]
54 cinquante-quatre [sank-ont-katr]
55 cinquante-cinq [sank-ont-sank]
56 cinquante-six [sank-ont-sees]
57 cinquante-sept [sank-ont-set]
58 cinquante-huit [sank-ont-weet]
59 cinquante-neuf [sank-ont-nurf]
60 soixante [swa-sont]
61 soixante et un [swa-sont-ay-un]
62 soixante-deux [swa-sont-dur]
63 soixante-trois [swa-sont-twa]
64 soixante-quatre [swa-sont-katr]
65 soixante-cinq [swa-sont-sank]
66 soixante-six [swa-sont-sees]
67 soixante-sept [swa-sont-set]
68 soixante-huit [swa-sont-weet]
69 soixante-neuf [swa-sont-nurf]
70 soixante-dix [swa-sont-dees]
71 soixante-et-onze [swa-sont-ay-onz]
72 soixante-douze [swa-sont-dooz]
73 soixante-treize [swa-sont-trez]
74 soixante-quatorze [swa-sont-katorz]
75 soixante-quinze [swa-sont-kanz]
76 soixante-seize [swa-sont-sez]
77 soixante-dix-sept [swa-sont-dee-set]
78 soixante-dix-huit [swa-sont-dees-weet]
79 soixante-dix-neuf [swa-sont-dees-nurf]
80 quatre-vingts [kat-ra-van]
81 quatre-vingt-un [kat-ra-vant-uh]
82 quatre-vingt-deux [kat-ra-van-dur]
83 quatre-vingt-trois [kat-ra-van-twa]
84 quatre-vingt-quatre [kat-ra-van-katr]
85 quatre-vingt-cinq [kat-ra-van-sank]
86 quatre-vingt-six [kat-ra-van-sees]
87 quatre-vingt-sept [kat-ra-van-set]
88 quatre-vingt-huit [kat-ra-van-weet]
89 quatre-vingt-neuf [kat-ra-van-nurf]
90 quatre-vingt-dix [kat-ra-van-dees]
91 quatre-vingt-onze [kat-ra-van-onz]
92 quatre-vingt-douze [kat-ra-van-dooz]
93 quatre-vingt-treize [kat-ra-van- trez]
94 quatre-vingt-quatorze [kat-ra-van-katorz]
95 quatre-vingt-quinze [kat-ra-van- kanz]
96 quatre-vingt-seize [kat-ra-van- sez]
97 quatre-vingt-dix-sept [kat-ra-van- dee-set]
98 quatre-vingt-dix-huit [kat-ra-van- dees-weet]
99 quatre-vingt-dix-neuf [kat-ra-van- dees-nurf]
100 Cent [son]
 LES ARTICLES

French articles are sometimes confusing for language students because they have to
agree with the nouns they modify and because they don't always correspond to articles
in other languages. As a general rule, if you have a noun in French, there is virtually
always an article in front of it, unless you use some other type of determiner such as
a possessive adjective (mon, ton, etc.) or a demonstrative adjective (ce, cette, etc).

French has two different kinds of articles:

1. Definite articles ( les articles définis)

2. Indefinite articles ( les articles indéfinis )

LES ARTICLES DEFINIS

The French definite article corresponds to "the" in English. There are four forms of the
French definite article:

1. le masculine singular
2. la feminine singular
3. l' m or f in front of a vowel or h muet
4. les m or f plural

Which definite article to use depends on three things: the noun's gender, number, and
first letter:

 If the noun is plural, use les

 If it's a singular noun starting with a vowel or h muet, use l'

 If it's singular and starts with a consonant or h aspiré, use le for a masculine noun
and la for a feminine noun
 The definite article indicates a specific noun.

Je vais à la banque.
I'm going to the bank.
 Voici le livre que j'ai lu.
Here is the book I read.

 The definite article is also used in French to indicate the general sense of a noun.
This can be confusing, as definite articles are not used in this way in English.

J'aime la glace.
I like ice cream.

C'est la vie!
That's life!

LES ARTICLES INDEFINIS

The singular indefinite articles in French correspond to "a," "an," or "one" in English,
while the plural corresponds to "some." There are three forms of the French indefinite
article.

1. un masculine
2. une feminine
3. des m or f plural

Note that the plural indefinite article is the same for all nouns, whereas the singular has
different forms for masculine and feminine.

MEANING AND USAGE OF THE FRENCH INDEFINITE ARTICLE

The indefinite article usually refers to an unspecified person or thing.

J'ai trouvé un livre.

I found a book.

Il veut une pomme.

He wants an apple.

The indefinite article can also refer to just one of something:

Il y a un étudiant dans la salle.

There is one student in the room.

J'ai une sœur.

I have one sister.
The plural indefinite article means "some":

J'ai acheté des pommes.

I bought some apples.

Veux-tu acheter des livres ?

Do you want to buy some books?

When referring to a person's profession or religion, the indefinite is not used in French,
although it is used in English.

Je suis professeur.
I am a teacher.

Il va être médecin.
He's going to be a doctor.

LES JOURS DE LA SEMAINE

( THE DAYS OF THE WEEK )

IL YA SEPT JOURS DANS LA SEMAINE ( THERE ARE SEVEN DAYS IN THE

WEEK )

MONDAY LUNDI
TUESDAY MARDI
WEDNESDAY MERCREDI
THURSDAY JEUDI
FRIDAY VENDREDI
SATURDAY SAMEDI
SUNDAY DIMANCHE

A FEW THINGS TO REMEMBER WHEN USING DAYS OF THE WEEK IN FRENCH :

The first day of the week is LUNDI, not Sunday.

Don’t capitalize days of the week in French.

Days of the week in French are always masculine

HOW DO WE ASK AND SAY WHAT DAY IT IS ?

QUEL JOUR SOMMES-NOUS ? WHAT DAY IS-IT ?

NOUS SOMMES LUNDI IT IS MONDAY
NOUS SOMMES JEUDI IT IS THURSDAY

LES MOIS DE L’ANNEE

IL YA DOUZE MOIS DE L’ANNEE

JANVIER JANUARY

FÉVRIER FEBURARY

MARS MARCH

AVRIL APRIL

MAI MAY

JUIN JUNE

JUILLET JULY
AOÛT AUGUST

SEPTEMBRE SEPTEMBER

OCTOBRE OCTOBER

NOVEMBRE NOVEMBER

DÉCEMBRE DECEMBER

LES SAISONS ( THE SEASONS )

IL YA QUATRE SAISONS –

1. L’ÉTÉ – SUMMER
IL FAIT CHAUD ( IT’S HOT)

2. L’HIVER-WINTER
IL FAIT FROID ( IT’S COLD )

3. LE PRINTEMPS- SPRING

4. L’AUTOMNE-AUTUMN

LA FAMILLE / LES RELATIONS ( THE FAMILY / THE RELATIONS )

ma famille – my family
les parents – parents
le mari – husband
la femme – woman / wife
le père – father
le papa – dad / papa
la mère – mother
la maman – mom / mama
la fille – daughter
le fils – son
la sœur – sister
le frère – brother
le demi-frère – half-brother
la demi-sœur – half-sister

le grand-père – grandfather
le papi / le pépé – grandpa / grandad
la grand-mère – grandmother
la mamie / la mémé – grandma / granny
les grands-parents – grandparents
le petit-fils – grandson
la petite-fille – grand daughter
les petits-enfants – grandchildren

l’oncle – uncle
la tante – aunt
le neveu / les neveux – nephew / nephews
la nièce / les nièces – niece / neices
le cousin / la cousine – cousin (male) / cousin (female)

le beau-père – father-in-law
la belle-mère – mother-in-law
le beau-fils – son-in-law
la belle-fille – daughter-in-law
l’aîné(e) – oldest, eldest
le / la cadet(te) – youngest / younger
les gosses – kids
l’enfant – child
Le parrain – godfather
La marraine – godmother

LES PRONOMS SUJET ( THE SUBJECT PRONOUNS)

 A pronoun replaces a noun in order to avoid repetition. Subject pronouns are
subjects of verbs. In French, a subject pronoun is immediately or almost
immediately followed by its verb. The use of subject pronouns is mandatory
in French; always use a subject pronoun to construct sentences in the
absence of a noun subject. Here are the French subject pronouns:

PERSON SINGULAR PLURAL

1st person Je ( I ) Nous ( we )

2nd person Tu( You) Vous ( you / you all )

3rd person il ( he /it ) Ils ( they –masc.)

elle(she / it ) Ells ( they-fem )
on ( one/ we )

LES VERBES / LE PRESENT

( THE VERBS / THE PRESENT TENSE )

AUXILIARY VERBS / HELPING VERBS :

1. Etre / Avoir

Interesting facts and advantages of learning well from the start of etre (to be) and avoir
(to have):

 Two the most important verbs in almost any language

 Because of that, you will be able to express all the basic things concerning yourself
 Etre and avoir are essential in constructing the other tenses and structures in the
French language (past, future, conditional, perfect)
 Two irregular verbs, which means they conjugate differently from other verbs
 In both verbs, the second ( tu ) and the third( il/elle ) person singular are pronounced in
the same way (although they are written a bit differently)

ÊTRE ( TO BE )

 I am = Je suis
 You are = Tu es
 He is = Il est
 She is = Elle est
 We are = Nous sommes
 You are = Vous êtes
 They are = Ils sont
 They are =Elles sont

Some examples :

Je suis avec ma soeur –I am with my sister

Tu es ici – You are here !
Il est petit-He is small
Elle est belle-She is beautiful
Nous sommes dans la classe-We are in the class
Vous êtes avec tes enfants ?- You are with your kids
Ils / Elles sont méchants –They are naughty

AVOIR ( TO HAVE )

 I have = J'ai
 You have = Tu as
 He has = Il a
 She has = Elle a
 We have = Nous avons
 You have = Vous avez
 They have = Ils ont
 They have = Elles ont
Some examples :

J’ai un chien – I have a dog

Tu as deux livres-You have two books
Il/Elle a un chat- He or She has a cat
Nous avons une belle maison-We have a beautiful house
Vous avez une question-You have a question
Ils/Elles ont peu-They have fear

The Present Tense

In French verbs are divided into two categories:

1. Regular verbs / les verbes réguliers

2. Irregular verbs / les verbes irréguliers

Regular verbs

Regular verbs follow a pattern you can quickly learn.

Once you know the endings of the three different kinds of regular verbs, you can easily
conjugate the large majority of French verbs which is why learning these regular
patterns should be your number one priority.

French regular verbs come in three flavors:

 Verbs ending with ER

 Verbs ending with IR
 Verbs ending with RE

Now let’s see what pattern these verbs follow!

Regular verbs ending with ER

If you know how to conjugate ER verbs, you will be able to conjugate most French verbs
in the present tense.

Pretty awesome, right?

To conjugate these verbs, drop the -er from the infinitive to form the stem.
Next, add the –er endings to the stem. Different tenses have different
endings.

The endings given below (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent) are for forming the
present tense. The endings (-e, -es, -e, and -ent) are all silent. The only
endings that are pronounced are the nous (-ons) and the vous (-ez) endings.

Few examples :

PARLER ( TO SPEAK )

Pronoun Ending Example

Je- Parle I speak

Tu Parles You speak ( informal)

Il/elle/on Parle He/She/it speaks

Nous Parlons We speak

Vous Parlez You all speak ( formal/Informal)

Ils/elles Parlent They speak

AIMER ( TO LOVE / TO LIKE )

J’- Aime I love

Tu Aimes You love( informal)

Il/elle/on Aime He/She/it loves

Nous Aimons We love

Vous Aimez You all love ( formal/Informal)

Ils/elles Aiment They love

Some important Er ending regular verbs :

aimer to like, to love

arriver to arrive, to happen

chanter to sing

chercher to look for

commencer* to begin

danser to dance

demander to ask for

dépenser to spend (money)

détester to hate

donner to give

écouter to listen to

étudier** to study

fermer to close
goûter to taste

jouer to play

laver to wash

manger* to eat

nager* to swim

parler to talk, to speak

passer to pass, spend (time)

penser to think

porter to wear, to carry

regarder to watch, to look at

rêver to dream

sembler to seem

skier* to ski

travailler to work

trouver to find

visiter to visit (a place)

voler to fly, to steal

Regular verbs ending with IR

To conjugate these verbs, drop the ir from the infinitive to form the stem
and add is , is , it , issons , issez , issent .

FINIR ( TO FINISH )
Pronoun Ending

Je Finis I finish

Tu Finis You finish

Il/elle/on Finit He / She / It finishes

Nous Finissons We finish

Vous Finissez You finish ( formal / informal )

Ils/elles Finissent They finish

Some important IR ending regular verbs :

agir to act

choisir to choose

finir to finish

grossir to gain weight, get fat

maigrir to lose weight, get thin

nourrir to feed, nourish

punir to punish

réfléchir to reflect, think

remplir to to fill

réussir to succeed

rougir to blush, turn red

vieillir to grow old

Regular verbs ending with RE –

To conjugate these verbs, drop the re from the infinitive to form the stem
and add s , s, -, ons , ez , ent

VENDRE ( TO SELL )

Pronoun Ending

Je Vends I sell

Tu Vends You sell

Il/elle/on Vend He / She / It sells

Nous Vendons We sell

Vous Vendez You sell ( formal / informal )

Ils/elles Vendent They sell

Some important RE ending regular verbs :

attendre to wait (for)

entendre to hear

perdre to lose

rendre to give back, return

répondre to answer

vendre to sell
Some important irregular verbs :

Irregular verbs follow no specific rules for verb conjugation like regular verbs, so you
must memorize each one.

1. Je vais
Tu vas
Il/Elle va
Nous allons
Vous allez
Ils/Elles vont

2. dire – to say, to tell

Je dis
Tu dis
Il/Elle dit
Nous disons
Vous dites
Ils/Elles disent

3. faire – to make, to do
Je fais
Tu fais
Il/Elle fait
Nous faisons
Vous faites
Ils/Elles – font

4. pouvoir – to be able to do
Je peux
Tu peux
Il/Elle peut
Nous pouvons
Vous pouvez
Ils/Elles peuvent

5. savoir – to know, to know how to

Je sais
Tu sais
Il/Elle sait
Nous savons
Vous savez
Ils/Elles savent
 6. voir – to see
Je vois
Tu vois
Il/Elle voit
Nous voyons
Vous voyez
Ils/Elles voient

7. vouloir – to want to
Je veux
Tu veux
Il/Elle veut
Nous voulons
Vous voulez
Ils/Elles veulent

8. Venir – to come
Je viens
Tu viens
Il/Elle vient
Nous venons
Vous venez
Ils/Elles viennent

Few more – Devoir ( have to / should ) , lire ( to read ) , ecrire ( to write ) , boire ( to drink )

LES HEURES ( TIME IN FRENCH )

Time

Consider the following questions and answers you'll need to be on top of the time.

 Quelle heure est‐il? (What time is it?) Il est … (It is …)

 À quelle heure … ? (At what time … ?) À … (At …)

Consult Table 9 to tell time correctly in French.

To express and understand time properly remember the following:
 To express time after the hour, the number of minutes is added. Et(and) is used
only with quart (quarter) and demi(e) (half).
 Moins (less, minus) is used to express time before the hour.
 Moins le is used before quart to express 15 minutes after the hour.
 Because midi (noon) and minuit (midnight) are masculine, to say half past, use et
demi, as in the following: J'arrive ` midi et demi. (I'm arriving at half past noon.)
 In public announcements, such as timetables, the official twenty‐four‐hour
system is commonly used, with midnight as the zero hour:
o 16 h is 4:00 p.m.
o 21 h 45 is 9:45 p.m.

- Expected Learning Outcome:

- One of the most important benefits of learning French or any foreign language is that
fluency in second language increase the chances of employment .As in this new age of
start-ups companies are increasingly breaking into new markets, so speaking a foreign
language is always an asset .
- Learning a foreign language improves not only the ability to solve problems and to think
logically, it also makes you experiment with new words and phrases.
- Demonstrate an understanding of diversity of the Francophone world.
- Identify skills and strengths that they will continue to polish for their experiences in
professional work.