Verbs & Actions
What happens in the story?
The heart of every sentence
Verbs bring stories to life. They tell what characters do, want, can, and must. Fortunately, most French verbs follow three predictable patterns.
The irregular verbs we cover are so frequent that you'll encounter them in almost every paragraph. With this knowledge, you can follow the main thread of any story.
Chapter
7
The 3 Regular Patterns
Recognize the pattern, understand hundreds of verbs
About 90% of all French verbs are -er verbs, and they all follow the same pattern! The -ir and -re groups are smaller but still regular.
-ER verbs (90% of all verbs!)
This is by far the largest group. Look at the endings:
parler = to speak/talk
je
parle
(I speak)
tu
parles
(you speak)
il/elle
parle
(he/she speaks)
nous
parlons
(we speak)
vous
parlez
(you (pl.) speak)
ils/elles
parlent
(they speak)
Common -ER verbs
aimer
→
to love/like
J'aime le chocolat
-
I like chocolate
arriver
→
to arrive
Le train arrive
-
The train arrives
chercher
→
to look for
Je cherche mes clés
-
I'm looking for my keys
commencer
→
to begin
Le film commence
-
The film begins
donner
→
to give
Elle donne un cadeau
-
She gives a gift
écouter
→
to listen
J'écoute la musique
-
I listen to music
étudier
→
to study
Nous étudions le français
-
We study French
habiter
→
to live
J'habite à Paris
-
I live in Paris
jouer
→
to play
Les enfants jouent
-
The children play
manger
→
to eat
Nous mangeons ensemble
-
We eat together
marcher
→
to walk
Il marche vite
-
He walks fast
montrer
→
to show
Je montre la photo
-
I show the photo
penser
→
to think
Je pense que oui
-
I think so
porter
→
to wear/carry
Elle porte une robe
-
She wears a dress
regarder
→
to watch/look
Je regarde la télé
-
I watch TV
rester
→
to stay
Je reste ici
-
I stay here
travailler
→
to work
Il travaille beaucoup
-
He works a lot
trouver
→
to find
Tu trouves tout?
-
Do you find everything?
-IR verbs (second group)
These verbs add -iss- in plural forms:
finir = to finish
je
finis
(I finish)
tu
finis
(you finish)
il/elle
finit
(he/she finishes)
nous
finissons
(we finish)
vous
finissez
(you (pl.) finish)
ils/elles
finissent
(they finish)
Common -IR verbs
choisir
→
to choose
Je choisis le rouge
-
I choose red
finir
→
to finish
Il finit son travail
-
He finishes his work
grandir
→
to grow
Les enfants grandissent
-
The children grow
grossir
→
to gain weight
Je grossis en hiver
-
I gain weight in winter
maigrir
→
to lose weight
Elle maigrit
-
She loses weight
obéir
→
to obey
Le chien obéit
-
The dog obeys
réfléchir
→
to think/reflect
Je réfléchis
-
I'm thinking
réussir
→
to succeed
Tu réussis toujours
-
You always succeed
rougir
→
to blush
Elle rougit
-
She blushes
vieillir
→
to age
Nous vieillissons
-
We age
-RE verbs (smallest group)
The third group - fewer verbs but still important:
Common -RE verbs
Chapter
8
The Essential Irregulars
These verbs are everywhere
These verbs are irregular but so frequent that you must know them by heart. They appear in almost every conversation and story.
FAIRE (to do/make)
Important expressions with FAIRE
ALLER (to go)
VENIR (to come)
je
viens
(I come)
Je viens de Paris
I come from Paris
tu
viens
(you come)
Tu viens avec nous?
Are you coming with us?
il/elle
vient
(he/she comes)
Elle vient demain
She comes tomorrow
nous
venons
(we come)
Nous venons d'arriver
We just arrived
vous
venez
(you (pl.) come)
Venez ici!
Come here!
ils/elles
viennent
(they come)
Ils viennent souvent
They come often
Modal verbs - Want, Can, Must
Use these verbs with an infinitive: je peux manger (I can eat)
VOULOIR (to want)
je veux
→
I want
Je veux un café
-
I want a coffee
tu veux
→
you want
Tu veux venir?
-
Do you want to come?
il/elle veut
→
he/she wants
Elle veut partir
-
She wants to leave
nous voulons
→
we want
Nous voulons manger
-
We want to eat
vous voulez
→
you (pl.) want
Vous voulez boire?
-
Do you want to drink?
ils/elles veulent
→
they want
Ils veulent savoir
-
They want to know
POUVOIR (can/to be able)
je peux
→
I can
Je peux t'aider
-
I can help you
tu peux
→
you can
Tu peux répéter?
-
Can you repeat?
il/elle peut
→
he/she can
Il ne peut pas venir
-
He can't come
nous pouvons
→
we can
Nous pouvons essayer
-
We can try
vous pouvez
→
you (pl.) can
Vous pouvez entrer
-
You can enter
ils/elles peuvent
→
they can
Elles peuvent comprendre
-
They can understand
DEVOIR (must/have to)
je dois
→
I must
Je dois partir
-
I must leave
tu dois
→
you must
Tu dois étudier
-
You must study
il/elle doit
→
he/she must
Elle doit travailler
-
She must work
nous devons
→
we must
Nous devons attendre
-
We must wait
vous devez
→
you (pl.) must
Vous devez comprendre
-
You must understand
ils/elles doivent
→
they must
Ils doivent payer
-
They must pay
Other essential irregular verbs
Chapter
9
Questions & Negations
Essential for dialogues
In stories, characters ask questions and deny things. These words help you understand dialogues.
Question words
Qui?
→
Who?
(For people)
Qui est-ce?
-
Who is it?
Que/Qu'est-ce que?
→
What?
(For things)
Qu'est-ce que tu fais?
-
What are you doing?
Où?
→
Where?
(Place)
Où habites-tu?
-
Where do you live?
Quand?
→
When?
(Time)
Quand pars-tu?
-
When do you leave?
Comment?
→
How?
(Manner)
Comment vas-tu?
-
How are you?
Pourquoi?
→
Why?
(Reason)
Pourquoi ris-tu?
-
Why are you laughing?
Combien?
→
How much/many?
(Quantity)
Combien ça coûte?
-
How much does it cost?
Quel/Quelle?
→
Which/What?
(Choice)
Quel âge as-tu?
-
How old are you?
Lequel/Laquelle?
→
Which one?
(Specific choice)
Lequel préfères-tu?
-
Which one do you prefer?
Making questions - Three ways
Intonation
Voorbeeld
Tu parles français?
Vertaling
Do you speak French?
Uitleg
Just rise tone - informal
Est-ce que
Voorbeeld
Est-ce que tu parles français?
Vertaling
Do you speak French?
Uitleg
Add est-ce que - neutral
Inversion
Voorbeeld
Parles-tu français?
Vertaling
Do you speak French?
Uitleg
Verb-subject - formal
Negations with NE...PAS
Place NE before the verb and PAS after:
Positief
Je parle français
Negatief
Je ne parle pas français
Positief
C'est facile
Negatief
Ce n'est pas facile
Positief
J'aime ça
Negatief
Je n'aime pas ça
Positief
Je comprends
Negatief
Je ne comprends pas
Positief
J'ai faim
Negatief
Je n'ai pas faim
Positief
Je veux y aller
Negatief
Je ne veux pas y aller
Other negative words
These replace PAS in ne...pas:
ne...rien
→
nothing
Je ne vois rien
-
I see nothing
ne...personne
→
nobody
Il n'y a personne
-
There's nobody
ne...jamais
→
never
Je ne mange jamais de viande
-
I never eat meat
ne...plus
→
no longer
Il ne travaille plus
-
He no longer works
ne...pas encore
→
not yet
Ce n'est pas encore prêt
-
It's not ready yet
ne...que
→
only
Je n'ai que 5 euros
-
I only have 5 euros
ne...ni...ni
→
neither...nor
Je n'ai ni faim ni soif
-
I'm neither hungry nor thirsty
Common responses to questions
Bien sûr!
→
Of course!
(Affirmative)
Certainement
→
Certainly
(Formal affirmative)
D'accord
→
Okay/Agreed
(Agreement)
Pas du tout
→
Not at all
(Strong negative)
Ça m'est égal
→
I don't mind
(Indifference)
Je ne sais pas
→
I don't know
(Unknown)
Ça dépend
→
It depends
(Uncertain)
Peut-être
→
Maybe
(Possibility)
Probablement
→
Probably
(Likely)
Malheureusement
→
Unfortunately
(Regret)
Heureusement
→
Fortunately
(Relief)
Words that structure dialogues
Alors
→
So/Well
(Starting response)
Donc
→
Therefore/So
(Conclusion)
Mais
→
But
(Contrast)
Cependant
→
However
(Formal contrast)
Quand même
→
Still/Anyway
(Nevertheless)
En fait
→
Actually
(Correction)
Au fait
→
By the way
(Topic change)
Eh bien
→
Well
(Starting)
Voilà
→
There you go
(Presenting)
Tiens
→
Hey/Look
(Getting attention)
Écoute
→
Listen
(Getting attention)