French Language Lessons

by Wikibooks

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. Introduction to Studying French 2. Reading French - Lire le franais

Lessons
1. Leon 1 : Se r!senter Lesson 1: Introducing "ourself 2. Leon 2 : #ra$$aire de base Lesson 2: %asic #ra$$ar &. Leon & : 'oyager Lesson &: (ra)elling *. Leon * : 'erbes Lesson *: 'erbs +. Leon + : R!cr!ation Lesson +: Recreation ,. Leon , : Le ass! Lesson ,: -ast (ense .. Leon . : La fa$ille Lesson .: Fa$ily /. Leon / : L0!cole Lesson /: School 1. Leon 1 : La nourriture et les boissons Lesson 1: Food and 2rink 13.Leon 13 : Faire des courses Lesson 13: Sho ing 11.Leon 11 : La $aison Lesson 11: (he 4ouse 12.Leon 12 : Le cor s

Lesson 12: (he %ody 1&.Leon 1& : La culture Lesson 1&: 5ulture

Introduction to Studying French

About French
French is a Ro$ance language6 descended fro$ Latin and closely related to -ortuguese6 S anish6 Italian6 and Ro$anian. It is the nati)e tongue of o)er .. $illion eo le and has an additional ,/ $illion non-nati)e s eakers. In $edie)al ti$es and until the 11th century6 it 7as often the language used in di lo$acy6 culture6 ad$inistration6 royal courts across 8uro e and also in trade6 thus a ro riately beco$ing the lingua franca of its ti$e. In $odern ter$s6 it is still significantly used as a di lo$atic language6 being an official language of the 9nited :ations6 the ;ly$ ic #a$es6 and the 8uro ean 9nion. It is s oken in France6 %elgiu$6 S7it<erland6 Lu=e$burg6 (unisia6 >orocco6 Senegal6 4aiti6 the I)ory 5oast6 >adagascar6 the 5ongo6 ?lgeria6 :iger6 >ali6 %urkina Faso6 (ogo6 #abon6 the Seychelles6 %urundi6 5had6 R7anda6 2@ibouti6 5a$eroon6 >auritius6 and 5anada A$ostly in the ro)ince of Bu!bec6 7here it is the ri$ary language6 but it is also used in other arts of the country - notably :e7 %runs7ick6 7hich is the only bilingual ro)ince. ?ll consu$er roduct ackages in 5anada are reCuired by la7 to ha)e both 8nglish and French labelsD. French-s eaking eo le ha)e $ade incursions u on the %ritish Isles $any ti$es in the ast6 $ost noticeably in the :or$an In)asion of 13,,. For this reason6 although 8nglish is a #er$anic language6 at least a third of the 8nglish le=icon is deri)ed fro$ French.

Advice on Studying French

French tends to ha)e a bad re utation a$ongst 8nglish s eakers as hard to learn. While it is true that it oses certain difficulties to nati)e 8nglish-s eakers6 it $ay be noted that 8nglish is also considered to be 0difficult06 and yet 7e learnt it 7ithout the benefit of already kno7ing a language. Learning any ne7 language reCuires so$e co$$it$ent6 generally long-ter$. Re$e$ber that6 like any skill6 it reCuires a certain a$ount of effort. ?nd if you do not ractice your French regularly6 it is highly likely that you 7ill begin to forget it. (ry to $ake it a art of your scheduleE e)en if it0s not daily6 at least $ake it regular. Re$e$ber that you are learning a ne7 skill. (ry to $aster the si$ le stuff before $o)ing on to the $ore co$ le=. We all ha)e to add and subtract before 7e can do calculus. French is a co$ lete language. While this course can teach you to read and 7rite in French6 this is only half of the skills that $ake u fluency. ? 7ritten docu$ent cannot teach $uch about listening to and s eaking French. "ou $ust train all of these skills6 and they 7ill reinforce one another. For listening and s eaking6 finding a nati)e s eaker to hel you once you ha)e so$e skill 7ill hel you 7ith these skills.

(he )ery best 7ay to learn French is to get a$nesia in France or another French-s eaking country. (his allo7s you to start 7ith a clean slate6 as babies do. 4o7e)er6 $ost of us are un7illing to take that ste . (he ne=t best thing is i$$ersion. If you are serious about learning French6 a eriod of i$$ersion A7here you go to li)e in a Franco hone cultureD is a good idea once you are $oderately studied. >ost countries are in the relati)e )icinity of a French-s eaking country. If you can0t tra)el to a French-s eaking country6 then try listening to French-language rogra$s on the radio6 ('6 or the Internet. Rent or buy French-language $o)ies. -ay attention to ronunciation. #rab a French s eaker you $eet and talk to hi$ or her in French. Listen6 s eak6 and ractice. Read French ne7s a ers and $aga<ines. ?gain6 an e=cellent source is #oogle0s ne7s age6 7hich links to French-language ne7s stories6 7hich 7ill enrich your )ocabulary.

Reading French - Lire le franais

The French alphabet
letter Aa #b Cc $d %e Ff &g 'h Ii () *+ Ll ,m -n .o pronunciation like a in father like b in babyG before e and i: like c in center before a, o, or u: like c in cat like d in dog a ro=. like oo in bookGG like f in fog before e and i: like s in measure before a, o, or u: like g in get aspirated h: see note belo7G non-aspirated h: not ronouncedGGG like ea in team like s in measure like + in kite like l in lemon like m in minute like n in note closed: a ro=. like u in nut name in French in I!A transcription" FaF FbeF FseF FdeF FHF FfF FeF FaF FiF FiF FkaF FlF F$F FnF FoF

open: like o in nose !p /0 Rr Ss Tt 3u 4v 56 78 9y like p in penG like + in kite F eF FkyF see 'u' for details

force air through the back of your throat FF @ust as if you 7ere gargling like s in sister at begining of 7ord or 7ith t7o s1s or like 2 in amazing if only one s like t in top Say the 8nglish letter e6 but $ake your li s say "oo". like v in violin 2e ending on the deri)ation of the 7ord6 like v as in violin, or w in 6ater either FksF in socks6 or Fg<F in exit like ea in leak FsF FteF FyF F)eF FdublH)eF FiksF FigrHkF F<dF

:2 like 2 in zebra ?udio: ;## A131I%D

Final consonants and the liaison

In French6 certain consonants are silent 7hen they are the final letter of a 7ord. (he letters p Aas in 0cou 0D6 s Aas in 0h!ros0D6 t Aas in 0chat0D and x Aas in 0 aresseu=0D6 are ne)er ronounced at the end of a 7ord.

b and p
9nlike 8nglish6 7hen you ronounce the letters 0b0 and 0 0 in French6 little to no air should be e= ended fro$ your $outh. In ter$s of honetics6 the difference in the French 0b0 and 0 0 and their 8nglish counter arts is one of as iration Athis is not related to the si$ilarly na$ed conce t of 0h0 as ir! belo76 but is a slight e=tra uff of air acco$ anies the sto D. Fortunately6 in 8nglish both as irated and unas irated )ariants Aallo honesD actually e=ist6 but only in s ecific en)iron$ents. If you0re a nati)e s eaker6 say the 7ord 0 it0 and then the 7ord 0s it0 out loud. 2id you notice the e=tra uff of air in the first 7ord that doesn0t co$e 7ith the secondJ (he 0 0 in 0 it0 is as irated K LME the 0 0 in 0s it0 is not Alike the 0 0 in any osition in FrenchD. %7%RCIS% ; 1. #et a loose iece of rinter a er or notebook a er. 2. 4old the iece of a er about one inch Aor a cou le of centi$etersD in front of your face.

&. Say the 7ords baby6 and puppy like you nor$ally 7ould in 8nglish. :otice ho7 the a er $o)ed 7hen you said the 0b0 and the 0 0 res ecti)ely. *. :o76 7ithout $aking the iece of a er $o)e6 say the 7ords belle Athe fe$inine for$ of beautiful in French6 ronounced like the 8nglish 0bell.0D6 and papa6 Athe French eCui)alent of N2adND.

If the a er $o)ed6 your ronunciation is slightly off. 5oncentrate6 and try it again. If the a er didn0t $o)e6 congratulationsO "ou ronounced the 7ords correctlyO

Aspirated vs< non-aspirated h

In French6 the letter h can be as irated6 (h aspir)6 or not as irated6 (h non aspir)6 de ending on 7hich language the 7ord 7as borro7ed fro$. What do these ter$s $eanJ

Ex.: the 7ord h=ros6 (hero) has an as irated h6 because 7hen the definite article le is laced before it6 the result is le hros6 and both 7ords $ust be ronounced se arately. 4o7e)er6 the fe$inine for$ of hros6 h=ro>ne is a non-as irated h. (herefore6 7hen you ut the definite artcle in front of it6 it beco$es l'hrone6 and is ronounced as one 7ord.

(he only 7ay to tell if the h at the beginning of a 7ord is as irated is to look it u in the dictionary. So$e dictionaries 7ill lace an asterisk AGD in front of the entry 7ord in the French-8nglish section if the h is as irated. ;ther dictionaries 7ill include it in the ronunciation guide after the key 7ord by lacing a A0D before the ronunciation. In short6 the 7ords $ust be $e$ori<ed. 4ere is a table of so$e basic h 7ords that are as irated and not as irated: aspirated h=ros6 hero (le hros) ha>r6 to hate (!e hais or !'has...) huit6 eight (le huit no"embre) %7%RCIS% ? 1. #rab an 8nglish-French-8nglish dictionary6 and find at least ten as irated h 7ords6 and ten nonas irated h 7ords 2. >ake a colu$n of the t7o categories of h-7ord. &. Look at it e)ery day and $e$ori<e the colu$ns. non-aspirated h=ro>ne6 heroine (l'hrone) habiter6 to li)e (!'habite...) harmonie6 har$ony (l'harmonie)

Accents
(here are fi)e different kinds of accent $arks used in 7ritten French. (hey are: accent letters e8amples

used acute accent (accent aigu) grave accent (accent gra"e) ! only P6 Q6 R =l= hant: elephant fi@)re: fe"er6 lA6 there oB: #here gCteau: cake, Dtre: to be6 Ele: island6 chF$age: unemployment6 dG: ast artici le of de"oir :oHl: $hristmas6 $a>s: corn6 aigIe: acute(fem)G

circumfle8 S6 T6 U6 (accent circonflexe) V6 W diaeresis (trma) X6 Y6 Z6 [GG

cedilla only franais: %rench (cdille) :ote : ?s of the s elling refor$ of 11136 the diaresis indicating gu is not a digra h on 7ords finishing in gu& is no7 laced on the u in standard A?I? Nacad!$ie franaiseN FrenchD : aigZe and not aiguX6 cigZe and not ciguX6 a$bigZe and not a$biguX AacuteAfe$D6 coniu$6 a$biguousD. Since this refor$ is relati)ely recent and not kno7n in )ulgar surrounding6 both s ellings can be used interchangeably Ayou $ight e)en get a oint knocked off if you 7rite NaigZeN in a te=t6 it ha ened to $eOD

:ote : (he letter [ is only used in )ery rare 7ords6 $ost old to7n na$es : L04a[-LesRoses A-aris surburbD. -ronounced like Y.

Acute accentJ accent aigu

(he acute accent (%rench, accent aigu) is the $ost co$$on accent used in 7ritten French. It is only used 7ith the letter e and is al7ays ronounced FayF. ;ne use of the accent aigu is to for$ the ast artici le or regular -er )erbs. infinitive ai$er6 to lo"e past participle ai$=6 lo"ed

regarder6 to #atch regard=6 #atched ?nother thing to note is if you are unsure of ho7 to translate certain 7ords into 8nglish fro$ French6 and the 7ord begins 7ith 6 re lace that 7ith the letter s and you 7ill occasionally get the 8nglish 7ord6 or an a ro=i$ation thereof:

%8<K

=table --\ stable Afor horsesD =cole --\ scole --\ school il =tudie --\ il studie --\ he studies

?nd to co$bine 7hat you already kno7 about the accent aigu6 here is one last e=a$ le: =trangl! (from trangler) --\ strangl! --\ strangled

-#K (his 7ill not 7ork 7ith every 7ord that begins 7ith .

&rave accentJ accent grave

A and B

In the case of the letters ' and (6 the grave accent (%r. accent grave), is used to gra hically distinguish one 7ord fro$ another. 6ithout accent grave a A&rd ers. sing of avoir6 to ha"eD la Adefinite article for fe$inine nounsD ou Acon@unction6 orD @ 6ith accent grave A A re osition6 to, at, et al.D lA AthereD oB A#hereD

9nlike ' and (6 ) is not used to distinguish 7ords fro$ one another. (he ) used for ronunciation. In careful s eech6 an unaccented e is ronounced FeuhF6 and in ra id s eech is so$eti$es not ronounced at all. (he ) is ronounced like the letter e in pet.

Leon ; K Se pr=senter - Lesson ;K Introducing 9ourself

2ialogue 1 (7o good friends]>arie and ^ean]are $eeting:

*arie: Salut ^ean. _a )a J +ean: _a )a bien6 $erci. 8t toi6 a )a J *arie: -as $al. +ean: Buoi de neuf J *arie: -as grand-chose. *arie: ?u re)oir ^ean. +ean: ?u re)oir6 Q de$ain.

4ocabulary ;
?udio: ;## A&+&IbD bon@our6 salut 5o$$ent alle<-)ousJ Afor$alD6co$$ent a )aJFa )a J Ainfor$alD a )a bien $erci et toi J et )ous J as $al bien hello Afor$alD6 hi Ainfor$alD ho7 are youJ I0$ doing 7ell Alit. I0$ going 7ellD thank you and youJ Ainfor$alD and youJ Afor$alD not bad good

as si bienF as trPs bien co$$e ci6 co$$e a 2!sol!AeD Cuoi de neuf J as grand-chose au re)oir Q de$ain ?u re)oir6 Q de$ain.

not so 7ell so-so I0$ sorry. 7hat0s u Aabout youDJ Alit. 7hat0s ne7D not $uch Alit. not big-thingD bye Alit. 7ith reseeing6 akin to #er$an auf WiedersehenD see you to$orro7 Alit. at to$orro7D %ye6 see you to$orro7

$ialogue ?
?udio: ;gg A,+ IbD (7o eo le]>onsieur %ernard and >onsieur La$bert]are $eeting for the first ti$e:

*onsieur ,ernard : %on@our. 5o$$ent )ous a ele<-)ous J *onsieur -ambert : ^e $0a elle ^ean--aul La$bert. 8t )ous J *onsieur ,ernard : >oi6 @e suis >arc %ernard. 8nchant!. *onsieur -ambert : 8nchant!.

4ocabulary ?
?udio: ;gg A++IbD %on@our 5o$$ent )ous a ele<-)ousJFBuel est )otre no$J (u t0a elles co$$entJ ^e $0a elle... 'ous >oi ^e ^e suis... 8nchant!AeD. 4elloE #ood day What is your na$eJ Afor$alD Alit. ho7 are you calledD What is your na$eJ Ainfor$alD >y na$e is... Alit. I a$ called...D "ou Afor$alD >e I I a$... :ice to $eet you Alit. enchantedD

Vous vs< tu
It is i$ ortant to kno7 7hen to use N)ousN and 7hen to use NtuN in French.

N'ousN is a lural for$ of NyouN. (his is so$e7hat eCui)alent to Ny0allN6 NyouseN6 Nyou guysN6 Nall of youN6 e=ce t that it is $uch $ore for$al than all but the latter e=a$ le. N'ousN is also used to refer to single indi)iduals to sho7 res ect6 to be olite or to be neutral. It is used in occasions 7hen talking to so$eone 7ho is i$ ortant6 so$eone 7ho is older than you are6 or so$eone you are unfa$iliar 7ith. :ote the con)ersation bet7een >. %ernard and >. La$bert abo)e as an e=a$ le of this use. 5on)ersely6 NtuN is the singular and infor$al for$ of N)ousN AyouD in French. It is co$$only used 7hen referring to a friend and a fa$ily $e$ber6 and also used bet7een children or 7hen addressing a child. If it is used 7hen s eaking to a stranger6 it signals disres ect. ?s a rule of thu$b6 use NtuN only 7hen you 7ould call that erson by his first na$e6 other7ise use N)ousN. French eo le 7ill $ake it kno7n 7hen they 7ould like you to refer to the$ by NtuN.

The French alphabet

(he French al habet is: a b c d e f g h i ) + l m n o p 0 r s t u v 6 8 y 2 ?n a ro=i$ate ronounciation is: ah bay say day euh eff )hay ash ee 2hee +ah el em enn oh pay +u air ess tay ue vay dubl-vay ee+s ee-greh+ 2edh ?udio: ;## A131I%D In addition6 French uses se)eral accents 7hich are 7orth understanding. (hese are: Q6 P6 R6 Agra)e accentsD and ! Aacute accentD 7hich only a lies to e. ? circu$fle= a lies to all )o7els as 7ell: S6 T6 U6 V6 W. ?nd also a tr!$a AFrench for diaerasisD for )o7els: `6 X6 Y6 a6 Z6 [ and co$bined letters: b and c

$escribing yourself
:o7 that you ha)e successfully said hello and ho7 are you to your artner6 it 7ould be a good idea to tell the$ a little about yourself. When stating your nationality or @ob6 it is not necessary to say that you are 0unAeD0 7hate)er-it-is6 only that6 for e=a$ le6 N^e suis ?ustralienneN. (his is an e=ce tion to the nor$al rule. -lease use the (he :ations of the World ? and its gender. endi= to find out 7hat your country is called in French6

-lease note that there is both a $asculine and fe$inine for$ of saying your nationality - for $ales and fe$ales res ecti)ely. (o say 7here you li)e no76 you use the )erb habiter - Nto li)e Aso$e7hereDN and you for$ it using the first erson N^eN for$ AIF$eD resent tense - "+e habite" - 7hich truncates to "+'habite". "ou then choose the right gender for the 7ord NinN6 en6 or au=.

Leon ? K &rammaire de base - Lesson ?K #asic &rammar

&rammarK &ender of -ouns L &rammaireK &enre des -oms

In French6 all nouns ha)e a grammatical gender6 that is6 they are $asculine or fe$inine for the ur oses of gra$$ar only. >ost nouns that e= ress entities 7ith gender A eo le and ani$alsD use both a fe$inine for$ and a $asculine for$6 for e=a$ le6 the t7o 7ords for NactorN in French are acteur AmD and actrice AfD. (he nouns that e= ress entities 7ithout gender Ae.g.6 ob@ects and abstract conce tsD ha)e only one for$. (his for$ can be $asculine or fe$inine. For e=a$ le6 la "oiture Athe carD can only be fe$inineE l'ordinateur Athe co$ uterD can only be $asculine. (here are so$e nouns that e= ress entities 7ith gender for 7hich there is only one for$6 7hich is used regardless of the actual gender of the entity6 for e=a$ le6 the 7ord for ersonE personneE is al7ays fe$inine6 e)en if the erson is $ale6 and the 7ord for teacherE professeurE is al7ays $asculine e)en if the teacher is fe$ale. 8=a$ les: ?udio: ;gg A11& IbD >asculine le che)al le chien le li)re the horse the dog the book

le bruit the noise So$e endings that are usually used 7ith $asculine nouns are: -age le fro$age the cheese -r -t -is$e le the teacher rofesseur le chat the cat

le ca italis$ ca italis$e Fe$inine la colo$be the do)e la che$ise la $aison the shirt the house

la libert! liberty So$e endings that are usually used 7ith fe$inine nouns are: -ie -ion -iteFla the bakery boulangerie la nation the nation la fraternit! brotherhood

it! -nneF- la fille $$eFldindienne lle -nce la balance the girl the Indian the scales

9nfortunately6 there are $any e=ce tions in French 7hich can only be learnt. (here are e)en 7ords that are s elt the sa$e6 but ha)e a different $eaning 7hen $asculine or fe$inineE for e=a$ le6 un li"re AmD $eans a book6 but une li"re AfD $eans a oundO So$e 7ords that a ear to be $asculine Alike la photoD are in fact fe$inine6 and )ice )ersa. (hen there are so$e that @ust don0t $ake senseE la foi is fe$inine and $eans a belief6 7hereas le foie $eans li)er. (o hel o)erco$e this hurdle 7hich $any beginners find )ery difficult6 be sure to 6rite vocabulary lists 6ith the genders and learn the genders along 7ith the 7ords.

&rammarK $efinite and Indefinite Articles

The $efinite Article
In 8nglish6 the definite article is al7ays ethef. In French6 the definite article is changed de ending on the noun0s: 1. #ender 2. -lurality &. First letter of the 7ord (here are three definite articles and an abbre)iation. NLeN is used for $asculine nouns6 NLaN is used for fe$inine nouns6 NLesN is used for lural nouns Aboth $asculine or fe$inineD6 and NL0 N is used 7hen the noun begins 7ith a )o7el or silent NhN Aboth $asculine or fe$inineD. It is si$ilar to english6 7here NaN changes to NanN before a )o7el. ?udio: ;gg A./IbD singular fe$inine $asculine la la fille le le fils the daughter the son

singular6 starting 7ith a ld ldenfant the child )o7el sound les filles lural les les fils the daughters the sons

les the children enfants :ote: 9nlike 8nglish6 the definate article is used to talk about so$ething in a general sense6 a general state$ent or feeling about an idea or thing.

The Indefinite Article

In 8nglish6 the indefinite articles are NaN and NanN. NSo$eN is used as a lural article in 8nglish. ?gain6 indefinite articles in French take different for$s de ending on gender and lurality. (he articles N9nN and NuneN literally $ean NoneN in French. ?udio: ;gg A++IbD singular lural

fe$inine une une fille a daughter $asculine un un fils des a son des filles so$e daughters

des filsG so$e sons :ote : Ndes filsN does $ean Nso$e sonsN but is an ho$ogra h: it can also $ean Nso$e threadsN. :ote : des is used in French before lural nouns 7hen no article is used in 8nglish. For e=a$ le6 In the sentence . see people 6 people 7ould be des gens and not si$ ly gens. Re$e$ber that if you are $aking a state$ent about eo le in general6 such as . like people6 les gens 7ould be used.

&rammarK Sub)ect pronouns

French has si= different ty es of ronouns: the 1st6 2nd6 and &rd erson singular and the 1st6 2nd6 and &rd erson lural. ?udio: ;gg A,1IbD 1st erson 2nd erson &rd erson singular @e lural lural singular lural nous )ous singular tu I 7e you you

il6 elle6 he6 she6 one on

ils6 they A$asculineD6 they elles Afe$inineD When referring to $ore than one erson in the 2nd erson6 e)ousf $ust be used. When referring to a single erson6 e)ousf or etuf $ay be used de ending on the situationE see notes in lesson 1. In addition to the nuances bet7een "ous and tu6 as discussed in lesson 16 French ronouns carry $eanings that do not e=ist in 8nglish ronouns. (he French third erson NonN has se)eral $eanings6 but $ost closely $atches the no7 archaic 8nglish NoneN. While in 8nglish6 N;ne $ust be )ery careful in French gra$$arN sounds old-fashioned6 the French eCui)alent N;n doit faire beaucou attention Q la gra$$aire franaiseN is Cuite acce table. ?lso6 7hile the third erson lural NtheyN has no gender in 8nglish6 the French eCui)alents NilsN and NellesN do. 4o7e)er6 7hen ronounced6 they nor$ally sound the sa$e as NilN and NelleN6 so distinguishing the difference reCuires understanding of the )arious con@ugations of the )erbs follo7ing the ronoun. ?lso6 if a grou of eo le consists of both $ales and fe$ales6 the $ale for$ is used6 e)en if there is only one $ale in a grou of thousands of fe$ales.

In e)eryday language6 eonf is used6 instead of enousf6 to e= ress e7efE the )erb is al7ays used in the &rd erson singular. For e=a$ le6 to say NWe AareD $eeting at . o0clockN6 you could say either e/n se rencontre au cinma ' sept heures.0 AcolloCuialD or e1ous nous rencontrons au cinma ' sept heures.0 Afor$alD.

&rammarK Con)ugation
French )erbs con)ugate6 7hich $eans they take different sha es de ending on the sub@ect. 8nglish )erbs only ha)e one con@ugationE that is the third erson singular AI see6 you see6 heFshe sees6 7e see6 they seeD. (he only e=ce tion is the )erb Nto beN6 7hich is the only e=a$ le of 8nglish )erb con@ugationE AI a$E Athou artDE you areE heFshe isE 7e areE they areED. >ost French )erbs 7ill con@ugate into $any different for$s.

The verb Dtre

2tre can be translated to eto bef in 8nglish. 4ere6 7e 7ill look at the con@ugations in the resent tense6 or present indicative. (here is one con@ugation for each of the si= sub@ect ronouns.

Mtre ?udio: ;gg A13&IbD French %nglish ;st )e suis person ?nd tu es person I a$ French %nglish nous 7e are sommes

you you areAfa$ili vous Dtes areA olite arD or luralD they are

Nrd ilOelleOo heFsheFon ilsOelles person n est e is sont

%8amples
^e suis a)ocat. (u es Q la banCue. Il est beau. I a$ AaD la7yer. "ou are at the bank. 4e is handso$e.

(ry to learn all these con@ugations. (hey 7ill beco$e )ery useful in for$ing tenses.

&rammarK The verb avoir

N?)oirN can be translated as Nto ha)eN.

Avoir ?udio: ;gg A133IbD French ;st person )1ai ?nd person tu as %nglish I ha)e you ha)e avoir - to ha)e French %nglish nous avons 7e ha)e vous ave2 you ha)e A oliteD

Nrd person ilOelleOon a heFsheFone has ilsOelles ont they ha)e

%8amples
^0ai deu= stylos. (u as trois frPres. Il a une id!e. I ha)e t7o ens. "ou ha)e three brothers. 4e has an idea.

Leon N K 4oyager - Lesson NK Travelling

Ad)ectives - Les ad)ectifs
^ust like articles6 French ad@ecti)es also ha)e to $atch the nouns that they $odify in gender and lurality.

Regular Formation
>ost ad@ecti)e changes occur in the follo7ing $anner:

Fe$inine: add an -e to the $asculine for$ un garon int!ressant --\ une fille int!ressante un a$i a$usant --\ une a$ie a$usante un ca$ion lent --\ une )oiture lente -lural: add an -s to the $asculine for$ un garon int!ressant --\ des garons int!ressants une fille int!ressante --\ des filles int!ressantes

!ronunciation
#enerally6 the final consonant is ronounced only 7hen it co$es before an -e. >ost ad@ecti)es6 such as those abo)e6 are affected by this rule.

>asculine -ronuciation: intressan6 amusan6 len

Fe$inine -ronunciation: intressant6 amusant6 lent

For $ore ad)anced rules6 see the to ic: French ?d@ecti)es: 2escribing :ouns in French

4ocabularyK -ationalities
4ere is a list of nationalities: ?udio: ;gg A&33IbD ,asculine alle$and a$!ricain anglais australien belge bir$an canadien chinois cor!en es agnol franais indien indon!sien italien @a onais $alaisien $auricien n!erlandais hili in ortugais su!dois suisse thaYlandais Feminine alle$ande a$!ricaine anglaise australienne belge bir$ane canadienne chinoise cor!enne es agnole franaise indienne indon!sienne italienne @a onaise $alaisienne $auricienne n!erlandaise hili ine ortugaise su!doise suisse thaYlandaise %nglish #er$an ?$erican 8nglish ?ustralian %elgian %ur$ese 5anadian 5hinese Iorean S anish French Indian Indonesian Italian ^a anese >alaysian >auritian 2utch Fili ino -ortuguese S7edish S7iss (hai 'ene<uelan

ca$bodgien ca$bodgienne 5a$bodian

singa ourien singa ourienne Singa orean

)!n!<u!lien )!n!<u!liene

)ietna$ien )ietna$ienne 'ietna$ese :ationalities are not ca itali<ed as often in French as they are in 8nglish. If you are referring to a erson6 as in an ?rab erson or a 5hinese erson6 the French eCui)alent is un 3rabe or un $hinois.

4o7e)er6 if you are referring to the ?rabic language or 5hinese language6 the French 7ould not ca itali<e: l'arabeE le chinois. If the nationality is used as an ad@ecti)e6 it is nor$ally left unca itali<edE un li)re chinois6 un ta is arabe.

&rammar - -egation
In order to say that one did not do so$ething6 the ne ... pas construction $ust be used. (he ne is laced before the )erb6 7hile the pas is laced after. %8amples Il est a)ocat. Il n0est as a)ocat. :ous faisons nos de)oirs. 4e is KaM la7yer. 4e is not KaM la7yer. We are doing our ho$e7ork.

:ous ne faisons as nos de)oirs. We are not doing our ho$e7ork. ^e @oue du iano. ^e ne @oue as du iano. 'ous )ende< )otre )oiture. 'ous ne )ende< as )otre )oiture. I lay the iano. I do not lay the iano. "ou sell your car. "ou do not sell your car.

When negating 7ith the indefinite article Aun6 uneD6 the indefinite article changes to de. %8amples Il est belge. Il n0est as belge. :ous lisons un li)re. 4e is %elgian. 4e is not %elgian. We read a book.

:ous ne lisons as de li)re. We do not read a book. ^e $ange une cerise. I eat a cherry.

^e ne $ange as de cerise. I do not eat a cherry.

When negating in the pass compos6 the ne ... pas Ain this case6 n'... pasD are laced around the au=illary a"oir. For $ore6 see :egati)e 8= ressions

4ocabularyK Traveling
?udio: ;gg AIbD il y a there is6 there are lda!ro ort A$.D air ort ldautobus A$.D bus lda)ion A$.D les bagages le billet le $!tro la oste le ta=i le ticket le train la )alise la )oiture aircraft6 air lane baggage ticket Afor train6 air laneD sub7ay6 underground ost office ta=i ticket Afor bus6 $!troD train suitcase car

4ocabularyK Colors
?udio: ;gg AIbD ,asculine Feminine blanc gris noir rouge orange @aune )ert bleu )iolet $arron blanche grise noire rouge orange @aune )erte bleue )iolette $arron gray black red orange yello7 green blue )iolet bro7n %nglish 7hite

Ae)erything but hairD brun rose safran brune rose safranne bro7n Ae=ce t for hair g 2ark 4airedD ink saffron

4ocabularyK -umbers
?udio: ;gg AIbD un deu= trois Cuatre cinC si= se t huit neuf di= on<e dou<e trei<e Cuator<e Cuin<e sei<e di=-se t di=-huit di=-neuf )ingt )ingt et un )ingt Kdeu= - neufM trente trente et un 1 2 & * + , . / 1 13 11 12 1& 1* 1+ 1, 1. 1/ 11 23 21 22-21 &3 &1 une dou<aine Aone do<enD une di<aine Aone tenD une unit! Aa unityD

trente Kdeu= - neufM Cuarante cinCuante soi=ante soi=ante-di= soi=ante-et-on<e soi=ante-Kdou<e - di=-neufM Cuatre-)ingts Cuatre-)ingt-un Cuatre-)ingt-Kdeu= - neufM Cuatre-)ingt-di= Cuatre-)ingt-Kon<e - di=neufM cent Kdeu= - neufM cent $ille AunD $illion

&2-&1 *3 +3 ,3 .3 .1 .2-.1 /3 /1 /2-/1 13 11-11 133 233-133 1.333 1.333.333 un $illier Aone thousandD une centaine Aone hundredD

AunD $illiard 1.333.333.333 Things of note about numbersK

For .3-.16 it builds u on Nsoi=anteN but ast that it builds u on a co$bination of ter$s for /311 ;nly the first A216&16*16+16etcD ha)e Net unNE but ast this it is si$ ly both 7ords consecuti)ly A)ingt-si=6 trente-trois6 etcD For 133-1116 it looks $uch like this list already sa)e that NcentN is added before the rest of the nu$berE this continues u to 1333 and on7ard.

4ocabularyK Time
?udio: ;gg AIbD In French6 eil estf is used to e= ress the ti$eE though it 7ould literally translate as ehe isf6 it is actually6 in this case6 eCui)alent to eit isf Aun ersonal NilND. 9nlike in 8nglish6 it is al7ays i$ ortant to use eheuresf AehoursfD 7hen referring to the ti$e. In 8nglish6 it is ;I to say6 eItds nine6f but this 7ouldndt $ake sense in French. Buelle heure est-il J Il est une heure. Il est trois heures. Il est di= heures. What ti$e is itJ It is one odclock. It is three odclock. It is ten odclock.

Il est $idi. Il est $inuit. Il est Cuatre heures cinC. Il est Cuatre heures et Cuart. Il est Cuatre heures Cuin<e. Il est Cuatre heures et de$ie. Il est Cuatre heures trente. Il est cinC heures $oins )ingt Il est Cuatre heures Cuarante.

It is noon. It is $idnight. It is fi)e ast four. It is a Cuarter ast four. It is four fifteen. It is half ast four. It is four thirty. It is t7enty to fi)e It is four forty.

4ocabularyK $ays
Buel @our so$$es-nous au@ourddhui J :ous so$$es... lundi $ardi $ercredi @eudi )endredi sa$edi di$anche a)ant-hier hier au@ourddhui de$ain a rPs-de$ain :otes:

What day is itJ It is... >onday (uesday Wednesday (hursday Friday Saturday Sunday the day before yesterday yesterday today to$orro7 the day after to$orro7

4hat day is it today5 is eCui)alent to 6uel !our sommes-nous 5. 6uel !our sommes-nous 5 can be ans7ered 7ith 1ous sommes...6 $'est... or /n est... Alast t7o are less for$alD. 1ous sommes... is not used 7ith hier6 au!ourd7hui6 or demain. $'tait A astD or $'est A resentFfutureD $ust be used accordingly.

Leon P K 4erbes - Lesson PK 4erbs

&rammar - Regular 4erbs
French has three different ty es of regular )erbs: -er6 -ir6 and -re )erbs. (o con@ugate6 dro the -er6 -ir6 or -re to find the Nste$N or NrootN. ?dd endings to the root based on the sub@ect and tense6 as de$onstrated belo7 for the resent tense. 5on@ugations for !ouer Ato layD6 finir Ato finishD6 and attendre Ato 7aitD are sho7n as e=a$ les. -er verbsQ )ouer - to lay pronoun ending verb @e tu ilFelle nous )ous ilsFelles -e -es -e -ons -e< -ent @oue @oues @oue @ouons @oue2 @ouent -ir verbsQ finir - to finish pronoun ending @e tu ilFelle nous )ous ilsFelles -is -is -it -isse< verb finis finis finit finisse2 -re verbsQ attendre h to 7ait pronoun ending @e (!') tu ilFelle nous )ous -s -s -ons -e< verb attends attends attend attendons attende2

-issons finissons -issent finissent

ilsFelles -ent attendent :ote: In all con@ugations6 !e changes to ! 0 7hen follo7ed by a )o7el. 8=a$ le: ^0attends. ?lso6 as a rule of thu$b: NhN is considered a )o7elE as in N^0habite...N.

&rammar - Irregular 4erbs

&rammar - Faire
(he )erb faire is translated to to do or to make. It is irregularly con@ugated Ait does not count as a regular -re )erbD as follo7s: French ;st person )e fais ?nd person tu fais %nglish I do you do faire - to do6 to $ake French %nglish nous faisons 7e do vous faites you do A oliteD

Nrd person ilOelle fait heFsheFit does ilsOelles font they do

&rammar - Avoir
(he )erb a"oir translates to to ha"e. It is not a regular -ir )erbE it is irregularly con@ugated. French ;st person )1ai ?nd person tu as %nglish I ha)e you ha)e avoir - to ha)e French %nglish nous avons 7e ha)e vous ave2 you ha)e A oliteD

Nrd person ilOelle a heFsheFit has ilsOelles ont they ha)e For a list of all irregular )erbs6 see Irregular 'erb 5on@ugations

Leon R K R=cr=ation - Lesson RK Recreation

%8ample $ialog
4ere is a short dialog about eo le lanningFdoing leisure acti)ities. %esides the ne7 )ocabulary you should also ha)e a look at ho7 the )erbs are con@ugated de ending on the sub@ect of the sentence.

+ean-8aul 9 Bu0est-ce Cue )ous faites J *arc et 8aul 9 :ous @ouons au tennis. *arie 9 ^e finis $es de)oirs. *ichel 9 ^0attends $on a$i. 8ierre 9 ^e )ais au arc. $hristophe 9 ^e )iens du stade.

4ocabulary for $ialog

Bu0est-ce Cue )ous faUtesJ What are you doingJ faire @ouer finir A$esD de)oirs attendre A$onD a$iAeD aller le arc )enir le stade to do to lay to finish A$yD ho$e7ork to 7ait AforD A$yD friend to go ark to co$e stadiu$

&rammar - S and $e
(he re osition ' can indicate a destination6 a location6 a characteristic6 $easure$ent6 a oint in ti$e6 ur ose6 and se)eral other things 7hich 7ill be co)ered later. When le follo7s '6 the ' and le co$bine into au. Si$ilarly6 ' and les co$bine into aux. (he re osition de can indicate an origin6 contents6 ossession6 cause6 $anner6 and se)eral other things 7hich 7ill be co)ered later. When le follo7s de6 the de and le co$bine into du. Si$ilarly6 de and les co$bine into des.

&rammar - Aller
(he )erb aller is translated to to go. It is irregularly con@ugated Ait does not count as a regular -er )erbD as follo7s: aller @e tu il )ais )as )a

nous allons )ous alle< ils )ont

3ller is used 7ith the re osition '. 8=a$ le: +e "ais au stade.

&rammar - 4enir
(he )erb "enir is translated to to come. It is irregularly con@ugated Ait does not count as a regular -ir )erbD as follo7s: venir @e tu il )iens )iens )ient

nous )enons )ous )ene< ils )iennent When it $eans to come from6 "enir is used 7ith the re osition de. 8=a$ le: 1ous "enons du stade. "ou can also use "enir 7ith a )erb to state that you ha)e recently acco$ lished an action. 8=a$ le: +e "iens de finir mes de"oirs AI0)e @ust finished $y ho$e7orkD.

4ocabulary - !laces
la bibliothPCue library Acaution: a librairie is a booksho D le arc la iscine la lage le restaurant le stade le th!Stre ark s7i$$ing ool beach restaurant stadiu$ theater

salle de concert concert hall

&rammar - (ouer
(he )erb !ouer is a regular -er )erb $eaning to play. It can be used to refer to both s orts and instru$ents. When referring to s orts6 use !ouer '6 but 7hen referring to instru$ents6 use !ouer de... ?s al7ays6 !ouer $ust be con@ugated rather than left in the infiniti)e.

)ouer A" au baseball au basket au football au football a$!ricain au golf au tennis au )olley au= cartes au= da$es au= !checs )ouer de" du iano de la batterie du )iolon de la guitare iano dru$s Asingular in FrenchD )iolin guitar baseball basketball soccerE football ?$erican football golf tennis )olleyball cards checkersF draughts chess

de la clarinette clarinet

Leon T K Le pass= - Lesson TK !ast Tense

&rammar - !ast Tense
8ass compos6 pass simple6 imparfait and plus-:ue-parfait are the four $ost co$$on ast tenses in French6 though pass simple is used in 7riting only.

!ass= compos=
It is a co$ ound tense--it has t7o arts. (he first is the auxiliary "erb6 the second is the past participle. 8)ery )erb has one ast artici le that does not change Athere are so$e e=ce tions6 as one 7ill learn laterD. (here are t7o au=iliary )erbs: a"oir and ;tre. ;ne $ust only con@ugate the ro er au=iliary6 and then $erely add on the ast artici le. (o find the ast artici le6 the ste$ of the infiniti)e $ust be deter$ined. (o do so6 dro the -er6 -ir6 -oir or -re6 as usual. (hen6 add an ending as sho7n in the follo7ing table:

6ord %8ample 4erb Remove %nding Add %nding %8ample !< !art @ouer finir )ouloir attendre -er -ir -oir -re -! -i -u -u @ou! fini )oulu attendu

4o7e)er6 the )erbs a"oir6 ;tre6 and faire ha)e irregular ast artici les. verb !< !art< a)oir eu Ttre !t! faire fait >ost )erbs for$ the pass compos 7ith a"oir6 ho7e)er there are a s$all nu$ber of )erbs that are al7ays con@ugated 7ith ;tre. (he $ost co$$on are: verb aller )enir arri)er artir rester e8ample ^e suis all! au cin!$a. ^e suis )enu en france. Le train est arri)!. 8lle est artie tra)ailler. ^e suis rest! Q la $aison. I 7ent to the cine$a. I ca$e to France. (he train has arri)ed. She left to go to 7ork. I stayed ho$e. 4e returned to the restaurant.

retourner Il est retourn! au restaurant. to$ber naUtre

^e suis to$b! dans la iscine. I fell into the ool. ^e suis n! en octobre. I 7as born in october.

$ourir asser $onter

Il est $ort en 111..

4e died in 111..

Il est ass! de)ant la $aison. It ha ened in front of the house. ^e suis $ont! au so$$et. I cli$bed to the to . 4e got out of the train. I 7ent out 7ith $y friends. I entered $y roo$. 4e ca$e back early fro$ school.

descendre Il est descendu du train. sortir entrer rentre ^e suis sorti a)ec $es a$ies. ^e suis entr! dans $a cha$bre. Il est rentr! tVt de l0!cole.

AI reco$$end adding this6 and don0t kno7 ho7 to ut in the circu$fle=D. ?lso6 refle=i)e or rono$ial )erbs $ust be con@ugated 7ith Ttre under $ost circu$stances. For e=a$ le6 the )erb Nse reflechirN is con@ugated in the first erson singular by @e $e suis reflechi. (he )erbs that take Ttre can be easily re$ebered by the ?crony$ >RS. R2 '?:28R(R?>-:

>:$ont! R:rest! S:sorti R:re)enu 2:de)enu ':)enu ?:arri)! ::n! 2:descendu 8:entr! R:rentr! (:to$b! R:retourn! ?:all! >:$ort -: arti

'o6everJ .ne must +no6 that these verbs ta+e their con)ugated avoir 6hen they are immediately follo6ed by a direct ob)ect

For %8ampleK

^e suis descendu 7ith the direct ob@ect N$es baggagesN beco$es: ^0ai descendu $es baggages

Another e8ampleK

^e suis $ont! 7ith the direct ob@ect N$es baggagesN beco$es: ^0ai $ont! $es baggages

9et another e8ample but 6ith ils instead of (eK

Ils sont sortis 7ith direct ob@ect Nleur ass ortN beco$es: Ils ont sorti leur ass ort

!ass= simple
9nlike 8nglish6 there is a literary ast tense6 used 7hen 7riting for$ally. (his ast tense is na$ed the pass simple. It is relati)ely si$ le to redict 7hen to use this tenseE for e)ery occurrence of the pass compos in con)ersational French6 one si$ ly uses the pass simple in literary French. (o con@ugate in this tense6 one finds the ste$ and a ends the follo7ing6 as according to the table: Sub)ect ^e (u Add %nding Con)ugated 4erb -ai -as dansai dansas dansa dansS$es dansStes dansPrent

Il F 8lle F ;n -a :ous 'ous Ils F 8lles -S$es -Stes -Prent

It should be noted that Ttre6 along 7ith a fe7 other )erbs are consistent in their irregularities in the ass! si$ le as 7ell.

Imperfect - Imparfait
(he i$ arfait is used to Nset the toneN of a ast situation. ?n e=a$ le in 8nglish being: NWe 7ere singing 7hen 2ad ca$e ho$e.N It tells 7hat 7as going on 7hen a articular action or e)ent occured. In French6 the abo)e e=a$ le 7ould be: N:ous chantions Cuand a a est rentr!.N In order to con@ugate the i$ erfect6

take the 1st erson lural of the )erb you 7ant to con@ugate:

)ouer (to play)

singular ;st person @e @oue

plural nous jouons ils @ouent

?nd person tu @oues )ous @oue< Nrd person il @oue

Re$o)e the -ons ending to find the ste$6 and add these endings: attendre (nous attendons attendais attendais attendait attendions attendie< attendaient

sub)ect ending )ouer (nous jouons finir (nous finissons )e tu nous vous

-ais -ais -ions -ie<

@ouais @ouais @ouait @ouions @ouie< @ouaient

finissais finissais finissait finissions finissie< finissaient

ilOelleOon -ait

ilsOellesO -aient

:ote: (he only )erb that has an irregular ste$ Aone not deri)ed fro$ the nous for$ of the resent idicati)eD is Ttre. (he i$ erfect ending are added to !tiii. 8)ery other )erb uses the nous for$ of the resent indicati)e as its root. :ote: For $ore infor$ation6 see I$ erfect AFrenchD

!lus-0ue-parfait
(he plus-:ue-parfait is used 7hen there are t7o occurrences in the ast and one 7ants to sy$bolise that one occurrence ha ened before the other. In 8nglish6 this is used in a hrase like NI had gi"en hi$ the toy before he 7ent to slee .N In this e=a$ le6 there are t7o ast tenses6 but they occur at different ti$es. (he plus-:ue-parfait can be used to indicate the occurrence of one before the other. 8ssentially6 the ast before the ast. In French6 the plus-:ue-parfait is for$ed by con@ugating the au=iliary )erb in the imparfait and adding the ast artici le. So to con@ugate !e mange AI eatD in the plus-:ue-parfait6 one finds the a ro riate au=iliary )erb Aa"oirD6 con@ugates it Aa"aisD and finds the ast artici le of manger AmangD. So6 the con@ugation of +e mange in the plus-:ue-parfait beco$es !'a"ais mang or6 in 8nglish6 . had eaten.

%8amples
^0ai arl! franais. ^e arlais franais. :ous a)ons r!ussi l0e=a$en. I s oke French (on one particular occasion). I s oke French (during a period of time, and . don't speak %rench any more). We assed the test.

Il a !t! $on a$i.

4e 7as $y friend (and he is not my friend any more)

Il !tait $on a$i lorsCue... 4e 7as $y friend 7hen . . . Ils ont fait leurs de)oirs. Il est )enu. Il )int le lende$ain. Il )enait tous les @ours. Il !tait d!@Q )enu. (hey did their ho$e7ork. 4e ca$e (and . don't need to say #hen) 4e ca$e the day after. 4e ca$eFused to co$e e)ery day. 4e had already co$e.

It should be noted that these e=a$ les are $aking use of all the ossible ast tensesE not @ust the lusCue- arfait.

&rammar - .b)ect !ronouns

$irect .b)ects
While the sub@ect of a sentence initiates an action Athe )erbD6 the direct ob@ect is the one that is affected by the action. ? direct ob@ect ronoun is used to refer to the direct ob@ect of a re)ious sentence: -ierre $ange du pain. -ierre le $ange. -ierre eats some bread. -ierre eats it.

(he follo7ing table sho7s the )arious ty es of direct ob@ect ronouns: $eF $0 $e teF t0 leF l0 laF l0 nous you he6 it she6 it us

)ous les :otes:

you the$

(he ronoun for$ 7ith an a ostro he is used before a )o7el. (he direct ob@ect ronoun for nous and "ous is the sa$e as the sub@ect. When the direct ob@ect co$es before a )erb in a erfect tense6 a tense that uses a ast artici le6 the direct ob@ect $ust agree in gender and lurality 7ith the ast artici le. For e=a$ le6 in te hrase +e les ai eus6 or . had them6 the ast artici le 7ould be s elled eus if the direct ob@ect6 les6 7as referring to a $asculine ob@ect6 and eues if les is referring to a fe$inine ob@ect.

Indirect .b)ects
?n indirect ob@ect is an ob@ect that 7ould be asked for 7ith =o #hom...5 or %rom #hom...5. It is called indirect because it occurs usually together 7ith a direct ob@ect 7hich is affected directly by the action: L0ho$$e donne du ain ' 8ierre. Il lui donne du ain. (he $an gi)es so$e bread to 8ierre. 4e gi)es bread to him.

(he follo7ing table sho7s the )arious ty es of direct ob@ect ronouns: $eF $0 $e teF t0 lui nous )ous leur :otes:

you he6 she6 it us you the$

(he ronoun for$ 7ith an a ostro he is used before a )o7el. (he direct ob@ect ronoun for nous and )ous is the sa$e as the sub@ect. le AindirectD.

(he bread is gi"en by the $an AdirectD. -ierre gets the gi"en a

Leon U K La famille - Lesson UK Family

4ocabulary - The Family
les arents le Pre la $Pre le frPre la soeur les enfants le fils la fille les grand- arents le grand- Pre la grand-$Pre les etits-enfants le etit-fils la etite-fille l0oncle la tante le ne)eu la niPce le cousin la cousine le $ari la fe$$e $a fa$ille !loign!e arents father $other brother sister children son daughter grand arents grandfather grand$other grandchildren grandson granddaughter uncle aunt ne he7 niece cousin A$D cousin AfD husband 7ife $y e=tended fa$ily

Leon V K L1=cole - Lesson VK School

4ocabulary - School
le rofesseur l0!tudiant l0!tudiante le stylo le crayon la calculatrice le u itre le tableau la craie le li)re le bouCuin le cahier le a ier teacher student A$D student AfD en encil calculator desk chalkboard chalk book book notebook a er

la feuille de a ier sheet of a er l0!cole AfD le collPge le lyc!e l0uni)ersit! AfD la facAult!D la bibliothPCue la bourse l0e=a$en A$D les de)oirs la classe intelligentAeD stu ide :ote:

school high school Agrades ,-1D high school Agrades 13-12D uni)ersity uni)ersity library scholarshi test ho$e7ork class intelligent stu id

(he 7ord professeur is considered $asculine at all ti$es6 e)en if the teacher is fe$ale. (he only case 7hen N rofesseurN can be receded by fe$inine deter$inant is either 7hen contracting it in colloCuial language Nla rofN6 or 7hen adding a fe7 7ords before : N$ada$eF$ade$oiselle laFle rofesseurN.

The Sub)unctive ,ood - Le sub)onctif

(he sub@uncti)e $ood is rarely used in 8nglish. It is used in French6 7e con@ugate the )erb differently to e= ress:

doubt A^e doute Cue...D e$otion A^e croisKbelie)eM Cue...D desire A^e )eu=K7antM Cue...D other 0sub@ecti)e0 e= ression. AIl faut Cue...D

?n e=a$ le e= ression that uses the sub@uncti)e: +e "eux :ue tu viennes. $eaning NI 7ant you to co$eN Aliterally: NI 7ant that you co$eND. ?nother co$$on e=a$ le is the NIl faut Cue...N hrase6 $eaning NIt is nesesary thatN. (he con@ugation of the resent sub@uncti)e Athe resent tense in the sub@uncti)e $oodD is not that difficult. Si$ ly re$o)e the 0ent0 fro$ the 0ilsFelles0 for$ of the )erb and add the a ro riate endings. ,A-&%R - IlsF8lles $angent - Ste$ mang Bue @e $ange Bue tu $anges Bue ilFelleFon $ange Bue nous $angions Bue )ous $angie2 Bue ilsFelles $angent (he ending are the sa$e for $ost irregular )erbs as 7ell as 0ir0 and 0re0 )erbs. FI-IR - IlsF8lles finissent - Ste$ finiss1 Bue @e finisse Bue tu finisses Bue ilFelleFon finisse Bue nous finissions Bue )ous finissie2 Bue ilsFelles finissent 9nfortunately there are $any )erbs 7hich are irregular in the sub@uncti)e $ood. ;ur good friends Dtre and avoir are irregular in the resent sub@uncti)e as 7ell. (hese are i$ ortant because in the ast sub@uncti)e Athe ass! co$ os! in sub@uncti)eD 7hat is needed is the au=iliary )erbs in the sub@uncti)e. %TR% Bue @e sois Bue tu sois Bu0ilFelleFon soit Bue nous soyons Bue )ous soye2 Bu0ilsFelles soient

A4.IR Bue @0aie Bue tu aies Bu0ilFelleFon ait Bue nous ayons Bue )ous aye2 Bu0ilsFelles aient

.ther irregular verbs in the sub)unctive

ALL%R Bue @e aille Bue tu ailles Bu0ilFelleFon aille Bue nous allions Bue )ous allie2 Bu0ilsFelles allient FAIR% Bue @e fasse Bue tu fasses Bu0ilFelleFon fasse Bue nous fassions Bue )ous fassie2 Bu0ilsFelles fassent

!hrases
8resent

Il faut Cue )ous fassies )otres de)oirs. Il faut Cue )ous allie< Q l0!cole. Il faut !couter la rof. - It0s nesesary to listen to the teacher

-(o $ake a general state$ent using NIl faut Cue...N that does not ha)e a sub@ect6 you $ay use the infini)e.

^e crois Cue tu aies lu le li)re. AI belie)e that you ha)e read the bookD

-(his state$ent is in the -ass! Sub@onctif. :otice ho7 the Nhel ing )erbN is con@ugated in the sub@onctif6 but the -ass! 5o$ os! artici le is used for the )erb. -Lu is the ast artici le for Lire6 to read.

:ote: For $ore infor$atiion see the to ic.

Leon W K La nourriture et les boissons - Lesson WK Food and $rin+

4ocabulary - Food and $rin+
&eneral
la cuisine le restaurant a)oir fai$ a)oir soif $anger boire rendre )ouloir le re as le d!@euner kitchen restaurant to be hungry to be thirsty to eat to drink to take to 7ant the $eal lunch

la salle Q $anger dining roo$

le etit-d!@euner breakfast le dUner dinner 5anadian and %elgian French has an off-by-one beha)iour 7ith $eals : breakfast is called d!euner6 lunch is called d>ner and dinner is souper.

Fruits and 4egetables

les fruits la banane la cerise le citron la fraise l0orange AfD la o$$e le raisin les l=gumes fruits banana cherry le$on stra7berry orange a le gra e vegetables

la carotte les ! inards l0oignon A$D les etits ois la to$ate

carrot s inach onion eas to$ato

la o$$e de terre otato

,eat and Seafood

la viande l0agneau A$D la dinde le @a$bon le orc le oulet le boeuf la saucisse les fruits de mer m pl" La coCuille Saint^acCuesAfD le poisson les anchois A$ lD le sau$on l0anguille AfD sal$on eel la$b turkey ha$ ork chicken beef sausage shellfishJ seafood scallo fish ancho)ies meat

$airy !roducts
les produits laitiers - dairy roducts le beurre le fro$age le lait le yaourtFle yoghurt butter cheese $ilk yogurt

$rin+s
les boissons - drin+s la biPre le caf! la li$onade l0eau AfD le @us le @us d0orange le @us de raisin le @us de to$ate le th! le )in beer coffee le$onade 7ater @uice orange @uice le @uice gra e @uice to$ato @uice tea 7ine

le chocolat chaud hot chocolate

le @us de o$$e a

$esserts
le dessert - dessert le bonbon candy le chocolat chocolate le gSteau la glace la tarte cake ice crea$ ie

la $ousse $ousse

.ther Foods
la confiture les frites la $outarde le ain le oi)re le ri< @a$ NFrench friesN $ustard bread e rice er

la $ayonnaise $ayonnaise

le sel le sucre

salt sugar

Silver6areJ %tc<
l0assiette AfD le bol le couteau la cuillPre la ser)iette la tasse le )erre late bo7l knife s oon na kin cu glass

la fourchette fork

&rammar - ,anger
(he )erb manger is translated to to eat. It is a regular -er )erb that is stem changing. Ste$ changing )erbs ha)e slight changes in the ste$6 but use endings e$ loyed in con@ugating other regular )erbs. For manger and all other regular -ger )erbs6 the ste$ change is adding an e after the g. (his only a lies in the nous for$. In this case6 the change is $ade to reser)e the soft g ronunciation rather than the hard g that 7ould be resent if the e 7ere not included. manger - to eat @e tu il $ange $anges $ange

nous mangeons )ous $ange< ils $angent

&rammar - #oire
(he )erb boire is translated to to drink. It is irregularly con@ugated Ait does not count as a regular -re )erbD as follo7s: boire - to drink @e bois

tu il

bois boit

nous bu)ons )ous bu)e< ils boi)ent (he irregular ast artici le for boire is bu.

&rammar - 4ouloir
(he )erb "ouloir is translated to to #ant. It is irregularly con@ugated Ait does not count as a regular -ir )erbD as follo7s: vouloir - to 7ant @e tu il )eu= )eu= )eut

nous )oulons )ous )oule< ils )eulent

&rammar - !artitive Article

(he artiti)e article de indicates6 a$ong other things6 the 7ord some. ?s learnt earlier6 de and le contract Aco$bineD into du6 as de and les contract into des. ?lso6 instead of du or de la6 de l' is used in front of )o7els. When s eaking about food6 the artiti)e article is used at so$e ti$es 7hile the definite article Ale, la, lesD is used at other ti$es6 and the indefinite article Aun, uneD in yet another set of situations. When s eaking about references6 use the definite article: ^0ai$e la glace. I like ice crea$.

:ous r!f!rons le steak. We refer steak. 'ous ai$e< les frites "ou like French fries. When s eaking about eating or drinking an ite$6 there are s ecific situations for the use of each article. $ef< art< ^0ai $ang! la tarte. Ind< art< specificO6hole items I ate the A7holeD ie. +no6n 0uantity

^0ai $ang! une tarte. I ate a ie.

!art< art<

un+no6n 0uantity

^0ai $ang! de la tarte. I ate so$e ie. In the negati)e construction6 certain rules a ly. ?s one has learnt in a re)ious lesson6 un or une changes to de A$eaning6 in this conte=t6 anyD in a negati)e construction. Si$ilarly6 du6 de la6 or des change to de in negati)e constructions. :ous a)ons $ang! une tarte. :ous a)ons $ang! de la tarte. :ous n0a)ons as $ang! de tarte. We ate a ie. We ate so$e ie.

:ous n0a)ons as $ang! de tarte. We did not eat a ieF We did not eat any ie. We did not eat so$e ieF We did not eat any ie. :ote : :o7 you should understand better ho7 that NBuoi de neufJNA7hat0s ne7JD encountered in the )ery first lesson 7as constructed... NBuoi de lus beauJON A7hat is there rettierJD

&rammar - %n X 9
:ote ho7 7e say +e "eux du pain to say 0I 7ant so$e bread0 J %ut 7hat ha ens 7hen 7e 7ant to say 0I 7ant so$e0 7ithout s ecifying 7hat 7e 7antJ In these cases6 7e use the ronoun 0en0. ?s 7ell6 0en0 can $ean 0of it0 7hen 0it0 is not s ecified. For instance6 instead of saying +'ai besoin de l'argent6 if the idea of $oney has already been raised6 7e can @ust say 0^0en ai besoin0. (his is because 7hat en does is re lace du6 de la or des 7hen there is nothing after it. Like 7ith 0$e06 0te0 and other ronouns6 en A$eaning 0so$e0D co$es before the )erb. (u @oue du ianoJ :on6 @e n0en @oue as 'ous rene< du oissonJ ;ui6 @0en rends. 'ous a)e< co$$and! de l0eauJ ;ui6 nous en a)ons co$$and!. 2o you lay ianoJ :o6 I don0t lay it. ?re you ha)ing fishJ "es6 I0$ ha)ing so$e. 2id you order so$e 7aterJ "es6 7e ordered so$e.

(he other ronoun that 7orks like this is 0y0. ^ust as en re laces du6 de la6 and des 7hen there is no noun s ecified6 0y0 re laces au6 '6 and aux 7hen there is no noun s ecified. It $ostly $eans there. (u )as Q l0!coleJ ;ui6 @0y )ais. 'ous Ttes all!es au nou)eau caf!J :on6 nous n0y so$$es as all!es. Ils @ouent au footJ ;ui6 ils y @ouent. 8lle ense au= garons. ;ui6 @0y ense aussi. For $ore detailed infor$ation6 see French -ronouns 2o you go to schoolJ "es6 I go there. 2id you go to the ne7 cafeJ :o6 7e didn0t go there. 2o they lay footballFsoccerJ "es6 they lay it. She thinks about boys. "es6 I think about it Athe$D as 7ell.

Leon ;Y K Faire des courses - Lesson ;YK Shopping

4ocabulary - Shopping
French faire des coursesQ faire du shopping to go sho faire du l@che-vitrine acheter payer vendre le magasin le supermarch= le hypermarch= le grand magasin la boucherie la boulangerie le d=pFt de pain la charcuterie l1=picerie le march= la pCtisserie to buy to ay to sell sho E store su er$arket hy er$arketE big su er$arket de art$ent store butcher sho 1 bakery 2 a lace that sells bread 2 delicatessen & grocery * outdoor $arket astry sho %nglish ing ing to go 7indo7 sho

la pharmacie har$acyE che$ist 1. French butchers do not sell ork6 ork roducts6 nor horse$eat. For these roducts6 go to a charcuterie. 2. In France6 bakeries only sell fresh bread. -laces 7here they sell bread that is not fresh are called dp!t de pain. &. 0"harcuteries# sell things besides ork roducts6 including Ste6 sala$i6 cold $eats6 salads6 Cuiches and i<<as. *. ?n alternati)e to an 0picerie# is an alimentation gnrale Aa general foodstoreD.

&rammar - Acheter
(he )erb acheter translates to to buy. It is a regular -er )erb6 but6 like manger6 it is ste$ changing. 9nlike manger6 the ste$ change a lies to all for$s except nous and "ous. (he ste$ change6 7hich a lies in all )erbs 7ith an e in the second-to-last syllable6 in)ol)es adding a gra)e accent A j D o)er the e in the ste$6 as sho7n in the follo7ing table: French ;st person )1ach@te %nglish I buy acheter - to buy French nous achetons %nglish 7e buy

?nd person tu ach@tes Nrd person ilOelle ach@te KeditM

you buy heFsheFit buys

vous achete2

you buy A oliteD

ilsOelles ach@tent they buy

&rammar - !ayer
(he )erb payer translates to to pay. It is a regular -er )erb6 but6 it is also ste$ changing. Like acheter6 the ste$ change a lies to all for$s except nous and "ous. (he ste$ change6 7hich a lies in all )erbs ending in -yer6 in)ol)es changing the y to an i6 as sho7n in the follo7ing table: French ;st person )e paie ?nd person tu paies %nglish I ay you ay payer - to ay French %nglish nous payons vous paye2 7e ay you ay A oliteD

Nrd person ilOelle paie heFsheFit ay ilsOelles paient they ay

&rammar - 4endre
(he )erb "endre is a regular -re )erb: French ;st person )e vends ?nd person tu vends Nrd person ilOelle vend %nglish I sell you sell heFsheFit sells vendre - to sell French %nglish nous vendons vous vende2 7e sell you sell A oliteD

ilsOelles vendent they sell

!ractise Conversations
Let0s ractise so$e of these 7ords and )erbs in so$e e)eryday sho ;< $ la boulangerie At the ba+ery" %ernard Ale boulangerD : ,on!our madame 5a$ille Ala clienteD : ,on!our monsieur %ernard : 6u'est-ce :ue "ous "oule< 5 5a$ille : +e "oudrais acheter une baguette, s'il "ous pla>t %ernard : $'est tout 5 5a$ille : 1on, !e "oudrais deux croissants aussi ing talk:

%ernard : =r)s bien - ?a fait deux euros, s'il "ous pla>t 5a$ille : *erci beaucoup 9seful )ocabulary here: NBu0est-ce Cue )ous )oule< JN - What 7ould you likeJ N^e )oudrais...N - I 7ould like . . . N50est tout JN - Is that allJ N_a fait deu= eurosN - (hat0ll be t7o euros Re$e$ber your )erb - acheter Ato buyD. :ote of a french$an : NBu0est-ce Cue )ous )oule< JN is a little abru t. We use $ostly NBue )oule<-)ous JN or NBue d!sire<)ous JN. Sa$e for N50est tout JN6 7e use $ost of the ti$e N5e sera tout JN Afuture tenseD or N8t a)ec ceci JN Aand 7ith thisJD. ?< %u march At the mar+et" >arie Ala $archandeD : ,on!our monsieur 5l!$ent Ale clientD : ,on!our madame 5l!$ent : 6u'est-ce :ue "ous a"e< ' vendre 5 >arie : +'ai un grand choix de fruits et lgumes 5l!$ent : =r)s bien. @st-ce :ue "ous a"e< des cerises 5 >arie : /ui... elles coAtent deux euros le kilo 5l!$ent : ,on, !e "oudrais trois kilos, s'il "ous pla>t >arie : =r)s bien, monsieur. 3lors, pour trois kilos il faut pa&er six euros, s'il "ous pla>t. 9seful )ocabulary here: NBu0est-ce Cue )ous a)e<... JN - What do you ha)eJ N9n grand choi=N - ? large range N2es cerisesN - So$e cherries N8lles coWtent deu= euros le kiloN - (hey Afe$inineD cost t7o euros er kilo NIl fautN - ;ne $ustF"ou need to Re$e$ber your )erbs - vendre Ato sellD and payer Ato ayD.

Leon ;; K La maison - Lesson ;;K The 'ouse

4ocabulary - the 'ousehold
French La $aison L0a arte$entA$D La iPce Le lafond Le sol La ca)e Le grenier La cuisine La salle Q $anger La salle de bain La cha$bre Q coucher Les toilettes AfD Ano singularD La orte La fenTtre Le toit Le $ur L0escalier A$D L0!tage A$D Le rideau La chaise La table L0ar$oire AfD Le lit Le ta is %nglish 4ouseF4o$e FlatF? art$ent Roo$ 5eiling #round %ase$ent ?ttic Iitchen 2ining roo$ %athroo$ %edroo$ Water-closet 2oor Windo7 Roof Wall Stair Le)el 5urtain 5hair (able 5u board %ed 5ar et

4ocabulary - 'ouse6or+
le m=nage the house7ork

faire la cuisine faire la lessi)eFle linge faire le @ardin faire le lit faire le $!nage faire la )aiselle faire les carreau= faire les courses faire le re assage $ettre le cou)ert r! arer un re as

to do the cooking to do the laundry to do the gardening to $ake the bed to do the house7ork to do the dishes to do the 7indo7s to do the sho ingFerrands to do the ironing to set the table to re are a $eal

Future and Conditional Tenses

(here are three )ersions of the futur tense in French6 the futur simple the futur compos6 and the futur antrieurAfuture erfectD. (he futur compos is for$ed by inserting the resent for$ of aller before the infiniti)e6 e.g. elle "a russir Ashe 7ill ass6 or she is going to assD is the futur co$ os! of elle russit (o con@ugate a )erb in the futur si$ le6 one takes the infiniti)e and a ends the follo7ing6 as according to the table: Sub)ect ^e (u Add %nding Con)ugated 4erb -ai -as r!ussirai r!ussiras r!ussira r!ussirons r!ussire< r!ussiront

Il F 8lle F ;n -a :ous 'ous Ils F 8lles -ons -e< -ont

(o con@ugate a )erb in the 5onditional6 one takes the infiniti)e and a ends the follo7ing6 as according to the table: Sub)ect ^e Add %nding Con)ugated 4erb -ais r!ussirais

(u

-ais

r!ussirais r!ussirait r!ussirions r!ussirie< r!ussiraient

Il F 8lle F ;n -ait :ous 'ous Ils F 8lles -ions -ie< -aient

%8ercises
(ry to describe your house or bedrooo$ using the )ocabulary. 2on0t forget re ositions. "ou $ay also 7ish to talk about 7hat house7ork you do.

Leon ;? K Le corps - Lesson ;?K The #ody

#ody parts
4ere is the )ocabulary to s eak about body arts : French La tTte Le cor s Le bras La @a$be La oitrine Le )entre L0! aule AfD Le coude Le oignet La $ain Le doigt 4ead %ody ?r$ Leg 5hest %elly Shoulder 8lbo7 Wrist 4and Finger %nglish

Le genou Le ied L0orteil A$D L0oeil A$D A l. les yeu=D La bouche La dent Le ne< L0oreille AfD Le cou La langue Les che)eu= L0ongle A$D Le ou$on L0esto$ac A$D Le coeur Le foie L0instestin A$D L0os A$D Le crSne Le $uscle Le cer)eau La rate L0ut!rus Le no$bril

Inee Foot (oe 8ye >outh (ooth :ose 8ar :eck (ongue 4air :ail Lung Sto$ach 4eart Li)er Intestine %one Skull >uscle %rain S leen Wo$b :a)el6 belly button

#ody position
?nd here is the )ocabulary for body ositions : French 2ebout ?ssis 5ouch! k genou= %nglish Standing Seating Laying do7n Ineeling

?ccrou i

SCuatted

Common sentencies
When you 0catch a cold0 you 0attra es un rhu$e0. When you0re sick6 tu es malade. When you 7ish to say that arts of your body are sore6 you say N^0ai $al Q Kbody artM ...N. 8=a$ le: ^0ai $al Q la tete. AI ha)e a headacheDE ^0ai $al au= dents A>y teeth hurtD.

%8ercises

-oint to different arts of the body and recite its na$e in French par cBur.

Leon ;N K La culture - Lesson ;NK Culture

4ocabulary - Culture
French Life
la religion le $usul$an 5hr!tien L0Isla$ l0ath!e A$.D Le -Pre noXl lr 1* @une la langue le fro$age 04e=agone religion >usli$ 5hristian Isla$ athiest Santa 5lause %astille 2ay language cheese France AbordersD

l0agglo$!ration Af.D urban area

-e6s and Current %vents

un Cuotidien a daily ne7s a er

un hebdo$adaire a 7eekly $aga<ine l0actualit! les nou)elles les faits di)ers la une ne7s6 current e)ents ne7s local ne7s ite$s the front age

se tenir infor$!AeD to stay infor$ed

French Social !roblems

le ca$brioleur un )oleur l0incendie Af.D le )analis$e la cri$inalit! burglar a thief fire )andalis$ cri$e

l0acte de terroris$e A$.D terroris$

Les loisirs - Leisure Activites

le cin!$a la $usiCue le baladeur une sortie un s ectacle le th!Stre le re os le )acancier la danse allu$erF!teindre la t!l!)ision leAlaD t!l!s ectateurAtriceD le s ort cine$a $usic 7alk$an going out a sho7 the theater rest a )acationer dance to turn onFturn off tele)ision tele)ision )ie7er s ort