GRAMMAR

The student is expected to recognise and use the following grammatical items:
VERBS
Basic features: person and number, regular verbs, common irregular verbs
MOOD:

Indicative : Je fais mes devoirs

In French, the present tense, or the indicative is used to express all of the following:

Current actions and situations

Je suis fatigu.
I am tired.

Habitual actions

Il va l'cole tous les jours.

He goes to school every day.

Absolute and general truths

La terre est ronde.

The earth is round.

Actions which will occur immediately

J'arrive !
I'll be right there!

Conditions, such as in si clauses

Si je peux, j'irai avec toi.

If I can, I will go with you.
Si vous voulez.
If you like.
Note:
The present tense is not used after certain constructions that indicate an action that will
occur in the future, such as aprs que (after) and aussitt que (as soon as).

Imperative : Paul, fais tes devoirs!

The imperative, called l'impratif in French, is a verb mood which is used to

give an order

express a desire

make a request

offer advice

recommend something

Unlike all other French verb tenses and personal moods, the subject pronoun is not used
with the imperative:
Fermez la porte.
Close the door.
Mangeons maintenant.
Let's eat now.
Ayez la bont de m'attendre.
Please wait for me.
Veuillez m'excuser.
Please excuse me.
The above are called "affirmative commands," because they are telling someone to do
something.
"Negative commands," which tell someone not to do something, are made by placing ne in
front of the verb and the appropriate negative adverb after the verb:
Ne parle pas !
Don't speak!

Imperative : Paul, fais tes devoirs!

French imperative conjugations:

There are only three grammatical persons that can be used in the imperative: tu, nous,
and vous, and most of the conjugations are the same as the present tense - the only
difference is that the subject pronoun is not used in the imperative.
-ER verbs
The imperative conjugations for nous and vous are the same as the present indicative, and
the tu form of the imperative is the indicative minus the final s.
Parler
(tu) parle
(nous) parlons
(vous) parlez
Lever
(tu) lve
(nous) levons
(vous) levez
Aller
(tu) va
(nous) allons
(vous) allez
Verbs which are conjugated like -ER verbs (meaning that in the indicative the tu form
ends in -es), such as ouvrir and souffrir, follow the same rules as -ER verbs.
Ouvrir
(tu) ouvre
(nous) ouvrons
(vous) ouvrez

Imperative : Paul, fais tes devoirs!

-IR verbs and -RE verbs

The imperative conjugations for all regular and most* irregular -IR and -RE verbs are the
same as the present indicative conjugations.
Finir
(tu) finis
(nous) finissons
(vous) finissez
Attendre
(tu) attends
(nous) attendons
(vous) attendez
Faire
(tu) fais
(nous) faisons
(vous) faites

*Except for verbs conjugated like -ER verbs and the following four irregular imperative
verbs:
Avoir
tre
(tu) aie
(tu) sois
(nous) ayons
(nous) soyons
(vous) ayez
(vous) soyez

Savoir
Vouloir
(tu) sache
(tu) veuille
(nous) sachons
(nous) n/a
(vous) sachez
(vous) veuillez

Subjunctive: il faut que tu fasses tes devoirs... bien que je sois malade
The subjunctive is a simple French verb mood which indicates actions that are subjective.
The subjunctive mood is used to express actions or ideas which are subjective or
otherwise uncertain: will/wanting, emotion, doubt, possibility, necessity, judgment. It is
nearly always found in dependent clauses introduced by que or qui, and the subjects of
the dependent and main clauses are usually different.
Je veux que tu le fasses.
I want you to do it.
Il faut que nous partions.
It is necessary that we leave.
Je veux que Luc le voie.
I want Luc to see it.
C'est dommage qu'il ne vienne pas.
It's too bad that he's not coming.

To conjugate all regular verbs ending -ER, -IR, and -RE, as well as some irregular* ones,
take the 3rd person plural ils form of the present tense of the verb, drop the -ent
ending to find the stem, and add the subjunctive endings:
Parler

Choisir

Rendre

Partir

Sortir

Mettre

ils

parlent

choissens

rendents

partent

sortent

mettent

stem

parl-

choisiss-

rend-

part-

sort-

mett-

Subjunctive endings:
que je

-e

parle

choisisse

rende

parte

sorte

mette

que tu

-es

parles

choisisses

rendes

partes

sortes

mettes

quil/elle/
on

-e

parle

choisisse

rende

parte

sorte

mette

que nous

-ions

parlions

choisission rendions
s

partions

sortions

mettions

que vous

-iez

parliez

choisissiez

rendiez

partiez

sortiez

mettiez

... qu' ils/

elles

-ent

parlent

choisissent rendent

partent

sortent

mettent

Subjunctive: il faut que tu fasses tes devoirs... bien que je sois malade

Five verbs have irregular subjunctive stems but take the same endings as above:

Faire
(fass-)

Pouvoir
(puiss-)

Savoir
(sach-)

Aller
(aill/all-)

Vouloir
(veuill/
voul-)

que je (j)

fasse

puisse

sache

aille

veuille

que tu

fasses

puisses

saches

ailles

veuilles

quil/elle/on

fasse

puisse

sache

aille

veuille

que nous

fassions

puissions

sachions

allions

voulions

que vous

fassiez

puissiez

sachiez

alliez

vouliez

quils/elles

fassent

puissent

sachent

aillent

veuillent

Conditional: je ferais mes devoirs si javais le temps...

The French conditional describes events that are not guaranteed to occur; often they are
dependent on certain conditions. While the French conditional mood has a full set of
conjugations, the English equivalent is just the modal verb "would" + main verb.
The French conditional is mainly used in if ... then, to express what would happen if a
condition were met*
Il mangerait s'il avait faim.
He would eat if he were hungry.
Si nous tudiions, nous serions plus intelligents.
If we studied, (then) we would be smarter.
*Note that the conditional is in the result (then) part of the clause, not the clause that
follows si (if).

The verb vouloir is used in the conditional to express a polite request:

Je voudrais une pomme.
I would like an apple.
Je voudrais y aller avec vous.
I would like to go with you.

However, you can't say "si vous voudriez" to mean "if you would like," because the
French conditional can never be used after si.
The verb aimer is used to express a polite desire, sometimes one that cannot be fulfilled:
J'aimerais bien le voir!
I would really like to see it!
J'aimerais y aller, mais je dois travailler.
I would like to go, but I have to work.

Conditional : je ferais mes devoirs si javais le temps...

There is only one set of endings for all verbs, and most of them - even many which are
irregular in the present tense - use their infinitives as the root. There are only about two
dozen stem-changing or irregular verbs which have irregular conditional stems but take
the same endings:
Acheter > achter- similar verbs: achever, amener, emmener, lever, promener
Acqurir > acquerr- similar verbs: conqurir, s'enqurir
Appeler > appeller- similar verbs: peler, rappeler, renouveler
Aller > irAvoir > aurCourir > courr- similar verbs: concourir, discourir, parcourir, more
Devoir > devrEnvoyer > enverrEssayer > essaier- similar verbs: balayer, effrayer, payer
Essuyer > essuier- similar verbs: appuyer, ennuyer
tre > serFaire > ferFalloir > faudrJeter > jetter- similar verbs: feuilleter, hoqueter, projeter, rejeter
Nettoyer > nettoier- similar verbs: employer, noyer, tutoyer, more
Pleuvoir > pleuvrPouvoir > pourrSavoir > saurTenir > tiendr- similar verbs: maintenir, obtenir, soutenir, more
Valoir > vaudrVenir > viendr- similar verbs: devenir, parvenir, revenir, more
Voir > verr- similar verb: revoir
Vouloir > voudr-

Conditional : je ferais mes devoirs si javais le temps...

To conjugate an -ER or -IR verb in the conditional, add the appropriate endings to the
infinitive.
For -RE verbs, remove the final -e and then add the conditional endings.
For irregular verbs, add the endings to the irregular conditional stem.
For example, here are the conditional conjugations for the regular verbs parler (to speak),
finir (to finish), and vendre (to sell) and the irregular verb aller (to go):

Pronou
n

Conditional
Ending

Parler
(parler-)

Finir
(finir-)

Vendre
(vendr-)

Aller
(ir-)

Je

-ais

parlerais

finirais

vendrais

irais

Tu

-ais

parlerais

finirais

vendrais

irais

Il

-ait

parlerait

finirait

vendrait

irait

Nous

-ions

parlerions

finirions

vendrions

irions

Vous

-iez

parleriez

finiriez

vendriez

iriez

Ils

-aient

parleraient

finiraient

vendraient

iraient

Participles: Present- (tout) en faisant mes devoirs jcoutais ma musique prfre

Past: nous avons fait nos devoirs...

The French present participle is the verb form that ends in -ant. It is far less common
than its English counterpart, which ends in -ing. The French present participle may be an
adjective, gerund, noun, or verb. Before getting into specific uses of the present
participle, there are four things that French students need to know in order to avoid very
common mistakes:
1. The French present participle can never be used to talk about what someone is
doing. The construction "je suis mangeant" (the literal translation of "I am eating")
simply does not exist in French - you must use the present tense: je mange. To
emphasize the ongoing nature of an activity, you can use the French expression
tre en train de: je suis en train de manger - "I'm eating (right now).

2. The French present participle cannot be used after another verb. "J'aime lisant"
does not exist; to say "I like reading," you must use the infinitive: j'aime lire.

3. The English usage of the present participle as a noun indicating an activity, as in

"Seeing is believing," is another case in which the French translation requires the
infinitive: Voir, c'est croire. Sometimes you can just use a noun; to translate
"Reading is fun," you have two options: Lire est un plaisir, La lecture est un plaisir.

4. As a verb or gerund, the present participle is invariable, except in the case of

pronominal verbs, which keep the appropriate reflexive pronoun in front of the
present participle: me coiffant (doing my hair), en nous levant (upon [us] getting
up), etc.
The formation of the French present participle is very simple. For regular and all but three
irregular verbs, the French present participle is formed by dropping -ons from the nous
form of the present tense and adding -ant. The three exceptions are avoir, tre, and
savoir.
Remember that for pronominal verbs, you must keep the appropriate reflexive pronoun in
front of the present participle: me coiffant (doing my hair), en nous levant (upon [us]
getting up), etc.
Verb

Parler

Finir

Rendre

Voir

Avoir

tre

Savoir

N o u s Parlons
Form

Finissons

Rendons

Voyons

Avons

Sommes

Savons

P r e s e n t Parlant
Participle

Finissant

Rendant

Voyant

Ayant

Etant

Sachant*

*Savoir and a number of other verbs have two different spellings for the present
participle, depending on how they are used - some examples:

Infinitive: Present- (en) parlant, (en) jouant

Past-aprs avoir fait la vaisselle nous sommes sortis

The infinitive is the basic, unconjugated form of a verb, sometimes called the name of the
verb. In English the infinitive is the word "to" followed by a verb: to talk, to see, to return.
The French infinitive is a single word with one of the following endings: -er, -ir, or -re:
parler, voir, rendre. We usually learn French verbs in the infinitive, since that is what you
start with in order to conjugate them.
The French infinitive can be used several different ways without any conjugation. Note
that it is often translated as the English present participle.
1. As a noun - the subject or object of a sentence
Voir, c'est croire.
Seeing is believing.
2. After a preposition (see verbs with prepositions)
Il essaie de te parler.
It's hard to believe.
3. After a conjugated verb (see lesson on dual-verb constructions)
Nous voulons manger.
We want to eat.
4. In place of the imperative for impersonal commands (as in instructions or warnings)
Mettre toujours la ceinture de scurit.
Always wear (your) seatbelt.
5. In place of the subjunctive when the main clause has
- the same subject as the subordinate clause
J'ai peur que je ne russisse pas. > J'ai peur de ne pas russir. I'm afraid of not
succeeding.
Il est content qu'il le fasse. > Il est content de le faire. He's happy to be doing it.
- an impersonal subject (if the subject is implied)
Il faut que vous travailliez. > Il faut travailler. It's necessary to work (for you to work).
Il est bon que tu y ailles. > Il est bon d'y aller. It's good to go (for you to go).

VOICE:

Active: les Franais ont gagn la bataille

Passive: la bataille a t gagne par les Franais

On: ici on parle franais

SIMPLE TENSES:

Present: The French present tense, called le prsent or le prsent de l'indicatif, is

quite similar in usage to the English present tense.
je donne-je finis- je vends

Imperfect: je donnais/je finissais/ je vendais

The French imperfect is a descriptive past tense which indicates an ongoing state of being
or a repeated or incomplete action. The beginning and end of the state of being or action
are not indicated, and the imperfect is very often translated in English as "was" or "was
___-ing." The imperfect can indicate any of the following:

Habitual actions or states of being: Quand j'tais petit, nous allions la plage
chaque semaine. (When I was young, we used to go to the beach every week.)

Physical and emotional descriptions: time, weather, age, feelingsIl tait midi et
il faisait beau. (It was noon and the weather was nice.)

Actions or states of an unspecified duration: Il esprait te voir avant ton dpart.

(He was hoping to see you before you left.)

Background information in conjunction with the pass compose: J'tais au

march et j'ai achet des pommes. (I was at the market and I bought some apples.)

Wishes or suggestions: Ah ! Si j'tais riche ! (Oh, if only I were rich!)

Conditions in si clauses: Si j'avais de l'argent, j'irais avec toi. ( If I had some

money, I would go with you.)

The expressions tre en train de and venir de in the past: J'tais en train de
faire la vaisselle. (I was (in the process of) doing the dishes.)

Here are the imperfect endings and conjugations for the regular verbs and the irregular
verb tre (to be):

Pronoun

Ending

Parler
(parl-)

Finir
(finiss-)

Etudier
(etudi-)

Manger
(mange-)

Etre
(t-)

Je (j)

-ais

parlais

finissais

etudiais

mangeais

etais

Tu

-ais

parlais

finissais

etudiais

mangeais

etais

Il

-ait

parlait

finissait

etudiait

mangeait

etait

Nous

-ions

parlions

finissions

etudions

mangions

etions

Vous

-iez

parliez

finissiez

etudiiez

mangeiez

etiez

Ils

-aient

parlaient

finissaient

etudaient

mangeaien
t

etaient

Future: je donnerai/je finirai/ je vendrai

The French future tense talks about upcoming events. While the French future tense has a
full set of conjugations, the English equivalent is just the modal verb "will" + main verb.
J'irai au magasin demain
I will go to the store tomorrow.
The French future tense can also be used in si clauses, to express what will happen if a
condition is met:
Si j'ai le temps, je le ferai.
If I have time, I will do it.
There are some differences between the French and English future tenses.
1. When the action of the verb after certain constructions* will take place in the future,
the future tense is used in French, whereas in English the present tense is used.
*aprs que (after), aussitt que (as soon as), ds que (as soon as), esprer que (to hope
that), lorsque (when), quand (when), une fois que (once):
Quand il arrivera, nous mangerons. When he arrives, we will eat.
2. In journalism and other factual narration, the future is often used in French even
though the events are in the past.
N en Martinique, Aim Csaire tudiera Paris et redcouvrira l'Afrique Born in
Martinique, Aim Csaire studied in Paris and rediscovered Africa.
3. In French, the future can also be used for polite orders and requests, in place of the
vous form of the imperative:
Vous fermerez la porte, s'il vous plat. Close the door, please.
Irregular Verbs:
Irregular verbs which have irregular future stems but take the same endings:*
Acheter >achter-

Acqurir >acquerrAppeler >appellerAller >irAvoir >aurCourir >courrDevoir >devr-

Future : je donnerai/je finirai/ je vendrai

Envoyer >enverrEssayer >essaierEssuyer > essuiertre >serFaire > ferFalloir >faudrNettoyer >nettoierPouvoir >pourrSavoir >saurVenir >viendrVoir >verrVouloir >voudrTo conjugate an -ER or -IR verb in the future tense, add the appropriate endings to the
infinitive.
For -RE verbs, remove the final -e and then add the future endings.
For irregular verbs, add the endings to the irregular future stem.

Pronoun

Future Ending

Parler
(parler-)

Finir
(finir-)

Vendre
(vendr-)

Aller
(ir-)

Je

-ai

parlerai

finirair

vendrai

irai

Tu

-as

parleras

finiras

vendras

iras

Il

-a

parlera

finira

vendra

ira

Nous

-ons

parlerons

finirons

vendrons

irons

Vous

-ez

parlerez

finirez

vendrez

irez

Ils

-ont

pareleront

finiront

vendront

iront

Conditional: je donnerais/je finirais/ je vendrais

The conditional verb form is used:

to express future-in-the-past, as in he said he would leave;

to express a potential or hypothetical event, often accompanied by an if ... clause

with a past verb: I'd be very upset if he couldn't come;

for pragmatic functions such as to express politeness (I'd like ...) or conjecture (I'd
say ...).

There are a few uses of the conditional in French whose parallels don't use would in
English. And conversely some uses of would in English aren't usually translated by a
conditional in French. We'll look at those later.

How to form the conditional in French

The conditional is easy to form if you know the future tense form of the verb in question:
The conditional is formed by adding the imperfect tense endings to the future stem of
the verb.

Verb

Future Stem

Conditional Form

English Translation

Donner
To give

Donner-

Je donnerais
Tu donnerais
Il donnerait
Nous donnerions
Vous donneriez
Ils donneraient

Id give you
Youd give etc

Past historic: je donnai/ je finis/je vendis

The past historic, usually called the pass simple in French is a past tense essentially used
in written narratives of a classical style. It has the following features:

it conveys past, completed actions that are slightly "detached" from the present
(actions are usually understood as occurring in sequence) i.e. if there are two
verbs written in the past historic that represent actions, the action of the first verb
is usually assumed to have occurred before the action of the second verb

it generally has very distinctive and unusual forms compared to other tenses of
French

it is an explicitly taught tense: native French speakers generally don't "naturally"

acquire the past historic

Common past historic forms:

The past historic endings of a given verb are based on a "theme vowel", generally as
follows:
-a for -er verbs
-i for regular -ir and -re verbs and some irregular verbs
-u for some irregular verbs, especially those whose past participle ends with a u vowel
the past historic ending is generally made up of the theme vowel plus the endings -s, -s, t, -mes, tes, -rent, though with some complications in the case of -er verbs
Donner

Vendre

Je

Donnai

Vendis

Tu

Donnas

Vendis

Il/Elle

Donna

Vendit

Nous

Donnames

Vendimes

Vous

Donnates

Vendites

Ils

Donnerent

Vendirent

COMPOUND TENSES:
Perfect: jai donn jai fini jai vendu

Pluperfect: javais donn javais fini javais vendu

The French pluperfect is used to indicate an action in the past that occurred before
another action in the past. The latter can be either mentioned in the same sentence or
implied.
Il n'avait pas mang (avant de faire ses devoirs).
He hadn't eaten (before doing his homework).
J'ai fait du shopping ce matin ; j'avais dj fait la lessive.
I went shopping this morning; I had already done the laundry.

AIMER (auxiliary verb is avoir)

j'

avais aim

nous

avions aim

tu

avais aim

vous

aviez aim

il/ elle

avait aim

ils/elles avaient aim

DEVENIR (tre verb)

j'

tais devenu(e)

nous

tions devenu(e)s

tu

tais devenu(e)

vous

tiez devenu(e)(s)

il

tait devenu

ils

taient devenus

elle

tait devenue

elles

taient devenues

SE LAVER (pronominal verb)

je

m'tais lav(e)

nous

nous tions lav(e)s

tu

t'tais lav(e)

vous

vous tiez lav(e)(s)

il

s'tait lav

ils

s'taient lavs

elle

s'tait lave

elles

s'taient laves

Future perfect: jaurai donn jaurai fini jaurai vendu

The French future perfect is most commonly used like the English future perfect: to
describe an action that will have happened or will be finished by a specific point in the
future.
J'aurai mang midi.
I will have eaten at noon.
Quand tu arriveras, il l'aura dj fait.
When you arrive, he will already have done it.
Elle lui aura parl demain.
She will have talked to him (by) tomorrow.
There are a few uses of the French future perfect that don't correspond to the English
future perfect:
In subordinate clauses that begin with the conjunctions aussitt que, ds que, lorsque,
quand, une fois que, and aprs que, the future perfect is used to express a future action
which will be completed before the action in the main clause.
Quand je serai descendu, tu pourras me le montrer.
When I have come down, you can show it to me.
Nous le ferons aussitt qu'elle sera arrive.
We'll do it as soon as she arrives / has arrived
The future perfect can make simple assumptions regarding past events, where the English
modal verb "must" would be used in conjunction with the past perfect:
Pierre n'est pas ici ; il aura oubli.
Pierre isn't here; he must have forgotten.

Future perfect : jaurai donn jaurai fini jaurai vendu

Like all French compound conjugations, the future perfect may be subject to grammatical
agreement:

When the auxiliary verb is tre, the past participle must agree with the subject

When the auxiliary verb is avoir, the past participle may have to agree with its
direct object

AIMER (auxiliary verb is avoir)

j'

aurai aim

nous

aurons aim

tu

auras aim

vous

aurez aim

il,elle aura aim

ils, elles auront aim

DEVENIR (tre verb)

je

serai devenu(e)

nous

serons devenu(e)s

tu

seras devenu(e)

vous

serez devenu(e)(s)

il

sera devenu

ils

seront devenus

elle

sera devenue

elles

seront devenues

SE LAVER (pronominal verb)

je

me serai lav(e)

nous

nous serons lav(e)s

tu

te seras lav(e)

vous

vous serez lav(e)(s)

il

se sera lav

ils

se seront lavs

elle

se sera lave

elles

se seront laves

Conditional perfect: jaurais donn jaurais fini jaurais vendu

The French conditional perfect, or past conditional, is usually used just like the English
conditional perfect: to express action that would have occurred if in the past
circumstances had been different.
The conditional perfect is often used for the result clause in si clauses with the unmet
condition in the past perfect:
Si je l'avais vu, je l'aurais achet.
If I had seen it, I would have bought it.
The conditional perfect can also be used in a sentence where the unmet condition is only
implied:
ta place, je l'aurais dit.
In your place, I would have said it.
Use the conditional perfect to express an unrealized desire in the past:
J'aurais aim te voir, mais j'ai d travailler.
I would have liked to see you, but I had to work.
The conditional perfect can also report an uncertain / unverified fact, especially in the
news:
Il y aurait eu un accident dans le mtro.
An accident in the subway has been reported.

Conditional perfect : jaurais donn jaurais fini jaurais vendu

Like all French compound conjugations, the conditional perfect may be subject to
grammatical agreement:

When the auxiliary verb is tre, the past participle must agree with the subject

When the auxiliary verb is avoir, the past participle may have to agree with its
direct object

AIMER (auxiliary verb is avoir)

j'

aurais aim

nous

aurions aim

tu

aurais aim

vous

auriez aim

il,elle aurait aim

ils,elles

auraient aim

DEVENIR (tre verb)

je

serais devenu(e)

nous

serions devenu(e)s

tu

serais devenu(e)

vous

seriez devenu(e)(s)

il

serait devenu

elle

serait devenue

ils

seraient devenus
elles

seraient devenues

SE LAVER (pronominal verb)

je

me serais lav(e)

nous

nous serions lav(e)s

tu

te serais lav(e)

vous

vous seriez lav(e)(s)

il

se serait lav

ils

se seraient lavs

elle

se serait lave

elles

se seraient laves

FUTUR PROCHE:
Je vais voir cette exposition
Definition: A verb construction used to express something that is going to happen soon,
an upcoming event which is going to occur in the near future.

Present tense of aller + infinitive of action verb

Je vais voir Luc.
I'm going to see Luc.
Il va arriver.
He's going to arrive.
Nous allons manger.
We're going to eat.

PASSE RECENT:
Je viens de rencontrer Marc
Definition: A verb construction used to express something that just happened.

Present tense of venir + the preposition de + infinitive of action verb

Je viens de voir Luc.
I just saw Luc.
Il vient d'arriver.
He just arrived.
Nous venons de manger.
We just ate.

REFLEXIVE:
Se lever elle se lve de bonne heure / elle sest leve tard
These verbs need a reflexive pronoun in addition to a subject pronoun, because the
subject(s) performing the action of the verb are the same as the object(s) being acted
upon.
These are the French reflexive pronouns:
me / m'

me, myself

te / t' / toi you, yourself

se / s'

him(self), her(self), it(self), them(selves)

nous

us, ourselves

vous

you, yourself, yourselves

Me, te, and se change to m', t', and s', respectively, in front of a vowel or mute H.

Te changes to toi in the imperative.

Like object pronouns, reflexive pronouns are placed directly in front of the verb in nearly
all tenses and moods:
Nous nous parlons.
We're talking to each other.
Ils ne s'habillent pas.
They aren't getting dressed.

In the imperative, the reflexive pronoun is attached to the end of the verb with a hyphen.
Lve-toi !
Get up!
Aidons-nous.
Let's help each other

Reflexive pronouns always have to agree with their subjects, in all tenses and moods including the infinitive and the present participle.
Je me lverai.
I will get up.
RECIPROCAL:

Scrire ils se sont crit

While reflexive verbs tell you that one or more subjects are acting upon themselves,
reciprocal verbs indicate that there are two or more subjects acting on one another.
Here are the most common French reciprocal verbs:

s'adorer

to adore (one another)

s'aimer

s'apercevoir

se comprendre

se connatre

se dtester

se dire

se disputer

s'crire

s'embrasser

se parler

se promettre

se quitter

se regarder

se rencontrer

se sourire

se tlphoner

se voir

to love
to see
to understand
to know
to hate

to tell
to argue

to write to
to kiss
to talk to
to promise
to leave
to look at
to meet

to smile at
to call

to see

Nous nous adorons !

We adore one another!
Elles se voient le lundi.
They see each other on Mondays.

RECIPROCAL :
French Idiomatic Pronominal Verbs:
Idiomatic pronominal verbs are verbs that take on a different meaning when used with a
reflexive pronoun.
Here are the most common French idiomatic pronominal verbs:

s'en aller to go away (to go)

s'amuser to have a good time (to amuse)

s'appeler to be named (to call)

s'approprier to appropriate (to suit, adapt to)

s'arrter to stop (oneself) (to stop [s.o. or s.t. else])

s'attendre () to expect (to wait for)

se demander to wonder (to ask)

se dbrouiller to manage, get by (to disentangle)

se dpcher to hurry (to send quickly)

se diriger vers to head toward (to run, be in charge of)

se douter to suspect (to doubt)

s'clipser to slip away/out (to eclipse, overshadow)

s'loigner to move (oneself) away (to move s.t.else away)

s'endormir to fall asleep (to put to sleep)

s'ennuyer to be bored (to bother)

s'entendre to get along (to hear)

se fcher to get angry (to make angry)

se figurer to imagine, picture (to represent, to appear)

s'habituer to get used to (to get in the habit of)

s'inquiter to worry (to alarm)

s'installer to settle in (to a home)

se mettre to begin to (to place, put)

(to install)

se perdre to get lost (to lose)

se plaindre to complain (to pity, begrudge)

se refuser de to deny oneself (the opportunity)o (to refuse)

se rendre to go to (to return)

se rendre compte de

se runir to meet, get together (to gather, collect)

se servir to use, make use of (to serve)

se tromper to be mistaken (to deceive)

se trouver to be located (to find)

to realize (to account for)

PASSIVE:
Se vendre le pain se vend la boulangerie. / cela ne se dit pas
Verbs in pronominal form only sen aller, se moquer, de,
Se souvenir de
The passive voice is formed with the conjugated verb tre + the past participle.
The past participle has to agree with the subject, not the agent, in gender and number,
just like tre verbs in the pass compos (more about agreement):
Le livre est crit par des lycens.
The book is written by high schoolers.
La vaisselle est faite par Henri.
The dishes are done by Henri.

MODAL VERBS:

Devoir: tu dois manger, tu devais attendre, elle a d partir,

il aurait d payer

Pouvoir: il peut jouer aujourdhui, tu pouvais aider, nous aurions pu le faire

Savoir: ils ne savent pas jouer, elle ne savait pas conduire, elle ne saurait pas
lire

Vouloir: nous voulons sortir, je voudrais du caf, il aurait, voulu y aller

IMPERSONAL VERBS:
Il faut travailler, il pleut, il fait chaud, il arrive des choses bizarres, il est interdit de
fumer...
CAUSATIVE FAIRE:
Jai fait construire un garage, elle sest fait couper les cheveux
Laisser + infinitive:
Il laisse partir sa femme
VERBS OF SENSE/PERCEPTION+ infinitive:
Elle entend marcher dans la chambre, je vois venir Jean-Pierre
AGREEMENTS:
Subject + verb beaucoup denfants sont partis,
Cest nous qui le ferons
The rules for the agreement of past participles in compound verb forms using tre and
avoir
ADVERB:

Formation: lentement (Note: vite is complete)

Position: il parle couramment, il a dj vu ce film

Degree: comparative and superlative of adverbs with plus, le plus, moins, le

moins and aussi / including bien, mieux, le mieux

Negation: e.g. ne pas / ne plus / ne jamais / ne rien / ne personne / ne ...

aucun(e) / ne ... nul(le), je ne vois pas, je nai pas vu, je ne regrette rien,
personne ne viendra, qui ne risque rien na rien

NOUNS

Gender: le soleil / la terre

Number: lhomme / les hommes, une femme / des femmes

Common exceptions: un animal / des animaux

Apposition: Louis XIV, roi de France, Paris, ville lumire

Nominal phrases: une omelette au fromage, un sac de bl / un sac bl

ARTICLES

Definite article: le la les le pre / la mre / les parents and l(lair, leau)

Indefinite article: un une des un pre / une mre / des parents

Partitive article: du, de la, de l, des and de

De replacing the partitive after a negative: il na pas dargent, pas de problmes

article after an expression of quantity: un kilo de poires, tant de fautes
adjective preceding a plural noun de bons amis, dautres livres

Omission of the article: il est ingnieur, elle est avocate including expressions
such as avoir faim, faire peur , sortir tte nue

ADJECTIVES

Feminine and plural forms: petit, grand, beau, nouveau, vieux of common regular
and irregular adjectives

Position: une petite maison, le drapeau franais, ma chambre propre / ma propre

chambre

Demonstrative: ce cet cette ces, ce garon, cet homme, cette cole, ces coles

Possessive: mon ma mes, ton ta tes, son sa ses etc. son cahier, sa chaise, notre
chien, nos amis

Interrogative: quel quels, quelle, quelles, quel ge as-tu? quels sont vos passetemps?

Exclamatory: quel, quels, quelle, quelles/ quelle horreur! quels beaux chteaux!

Numerals cardinal: un, deux, trois...ordinal le premier mai, la premire fois...

PRONOUNS

Subject: je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils, elles
Je mange, il voit, nous gardons.

Object: me, te, nous, vous, le, la, les

Je les mange, il nous voit, nous en gardons.

Indirect object: me, te, nous, vous, lui, leur, y, en

Nous lui tlphonons, vous leur crivez?

Agreements preceding direct object agreement after a direct object:

Pronoun: Les fleurs? Oui, il les a achetes...

Preceding direct object agreement after the relative pronoun
que, les fleurs que papa a achetes...
Preceding direct object agreement after a question
quelles fleurs a-t-il achetes?

Reflexive: me, te, se, nous, vous, se

Je me lave, tu te laves, il/elle se lave, nous nous lavons.

Disjunctive: moi, toi, lui, elle, nous, vous, eux, elles

Sans lui, rien nest possible.

Possessive: le mien, la mienne, les miens, les miennes...

Cest le ntre! non, cest le leur!.

Demonstrative: celui, ceux, celle, celles

Tu voudrais cette robe? Oui, celle-ci (or celle gauche).

Interrogative definite: lequel, lesquels, laquelle, lesquelles

lequel de ces deux chiots prfres-tu?

Interrogative indefinite: qui / qui est-ce qui / quest-ce que / quest-ce qui / que
/ quoi
Qui est l? quest-ce qui est arriv? de quoi as-tu besoin?

Relative (definite): qui / que / dont / lequel and contractions like auquel, duquel
Le chat qui miaule, le livre que mes parents adorent, le foot que
Papa adore
Le prix dont tu as envie, la date dont tu as parl, la table sous
Laquelle...
Les peintures auxquelles tu penses...

Relative (indefinite): ce qui / ce que / ce dont / ce quoi

Il voit ce qui se passe, je sais ce que tu fais

Indefinite pronouns: quelquun / personne / rien / aucun(e) / nul(lle) / on / tout

Quelquun frappe la porte / tout ce qui brille nest pas

PREPOSITIONS

Time: aprs minuit, avant six heures

Location/Direction: devant la clture, derrire la maison, vers le sud

Linking verb + infinitive: jessaie de faire ces maths, il invite Louise danser

CONJUCTIONS
Parce que, car, et, donc, mais, malgr, pourtant etc.
SENTENCE AND PHRASE TYPES

Statements: Il va au concert

Questions: est-ce quil va au thtre? va-t-elle au march? tu vas au concert?

(rising intonation) Pierre va-t-il au cinma?

Exclamations: Mon Dieu! Zut! a alors!

Time phrases:

Depuis- il attend depuis une heure

Pendant-elle a habit Sydney pendant huit ans

Pour- ils seront Paris pour une semain

Si clauses:

Present/Future: sil fait beau, nous sortirons ensemble

Imperfect/Conditional: sil faisait beau, nous sortirions ensemble

Pluperfect/Conditional perfect: sil avait fait beau, nous serions sortis ensemble

Implied future: quand il neigera, nous ferons du ski, aussitt quil sera arriv, nous te
tlphonerons