French › Level one lessons › Travel · Les voyages
Grammar review · From · De
The preposition de (
/də/ (duh)) means from:
- Il est de Paris. (He is from Paris.)
De becomes d' before a vowel, due to elision:
- Nous sommes d'Orléans. (We are from Orléans.)
The definite article is included with countries:
- Vous êtes de la Suisse ? (Are you from Switzerland?)
The contraction du ( /dy/ (dew)) is used in place of de le:
- Elles sont du Luxembourg. (They are from Luxembourg.)
Likewise, the contraction des ( /dɛ/ (deh)) is used in place of de les:
- Nous sommes des Pays-Bas. (We are from the Netherlands.)
De also has other translations, which depend on context. For example, it is used to indicate an amount:
- 5 kilos de pommes (5 kilograms of apples)
Grammar review · Possessive adjectives · Les adjectifs possessifs
Formation
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| First person | Second person | Third person | |||||||
| Singular | mon (m) ma (f) mes |
/mɔ̃/ /ma/ /me/ |
my | ton (m) ta (f) tes |
/tɔ̃/ /ta/ /te/ |
your (tu form) | son (m) sa (f) ses |
/sɔ̃/ /sa/ /sɛ/ |
his her its |
| Plural | notre nos |
/nɔtʁ/ /no/ |
our | votre vos |
/vɔtʁ/ /vo/ |
your (vous form) | leur leurs |
/lœʁ/ /lœʁ/ |
their |
Usage
Possessive adjectives are used to express possession of an object:
- C'est mon passeport. (It's my passport.)
In English the possessive adjective agrees with the subject (his sister, her brother). But in French, possessive adjectives act like all other adjectives: they must agree with the noun they modify.
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| Masculine noun le frère |
Feminine noun la sœur |
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| le frère de Marc Marc's brother |
son frère his brother |
la sœur de Marc Marc's sister |
sa sœur his sister |
| les frères de Marc Marc's brothers |
ses frères his brothers |
les sœurs de Marc Marc's sisters |
ses sœurs his sisters |
| le frère de Marie Marie's brother |
son frère her brother |
la sœur de Marie Marie's sister |
sa sœur her sister |
| les frères de Marie Marie's brothers |
ses frères her brothers |
les sœurs de Marie Marie's sisters |
ses sœurs her sisters |
Whether son, sa and ses translate to his or her is indicated by context:
- Oui, elle a son billet. (Yes, she has her ticket.)
Notre, votre, and leur modify singular nouns, regardless of gender; nos, vos, and leurs modify plural nouns:
- le chalet (m): C'est notre chalet. (It's our chalet.)
- la caravane: C'est notre caravane. (It's our caravan.)
Examples
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| Ton auberge de jeunesse est bruyante. | Your youth hostel is noisy. | auberge is feminine, but begins with a vowel | |||
| J’ai son billet. | I have his/her ticket. | le billet is masculine | |||
| Elle est la femme de mon ami. | She's my friend's wife. | l'ami is maculine | |||
Grammar · Regular -ir verbs · Les verbes en -ir
The second category of regular French verbs is -ir verbs.
Formation
To conjugate, drop the -ir to find the stem or root. Add endings to the root based on the subject and tense.
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| Pronoun | Ending | Verb | Pronunciation |
| je | -is | finis | /fi.ni/ |
| tu | -is | finis | /fi.ni/ |
| il/elle | -it | finit | /fi.ni/ |
| nous | -issons | finissons | /fi.ni.sɔ̃/ |
| vous | -issez | finissez | /fi.ni.se/ |
| ils/elles | -issent | finissent | /fi.nis/ |
Supplementary vocabulary · Example -ir verbs
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| abolir | /a.bɔ.liʁ/ |
to abolish | |||
| approfondir | /a.pʁɔ.fɔ̃.diʁ/ | to deepen, to consider more thoroughly | |||
| choisir | /ʃwaziʀ/ |
to choose | |||
| convertir | /kɔ̃.vɛʁ.tiʁ/ |
to convert | |||
| investir | /ɛ̃.vɛs.tiʁ/ |
to invest | |||
| obéir | /ɔ.be.iʁ/ |
to obey | Tout corps matériel obéit à la loi de gravitation universelle. | Any material body obeys the law of universal gravitation. | |
| polir | /pɔ.liʁ/ |
to polish, to refine | |||
| établir | /e.ta.bliʁ/ |
to establish, to prove | |||
| refroidir | /fʁwa.diʁ/ | to cool, to cool off | |||
| affaiblir | /a.fe.bliʁ/ |
to weaken | L’âge affaiblit la mémoire. Les débauches affaiblissent le corps. |
Age weakens the memory. Debauchery weaken the body. |
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Vocabulary
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| l'aéroport (m) | /a.e.ʁɔ.pɔʁ/ |
airport | |||
| le billet | /bi.jɛ/ |
ticket | for train, airplane | ||
| la poste | /pɔst/ |
post office | |||
| la station | /sta.sjɔ̃/ |
station | |||
| le métro | /met.ʁɔ/ |
subway, underground | |||
| les bagages | /ba.ɡaʒ/ |
baggage | |||
| le ticket | /ti.kɛ/ |
ticket | for bus, métro | ||
| la valise | /va.liz/ |
suitcase | |||
| Vehicles | |||||
| l'auto (f) | /o.to/ |
car | |||
| l'avion (m) | /a.vjɔ̃/ |
airplane | |||
| l'autobus (m) | /o.to.bys/ |
bus | |||
| le bateau | /bato/ |
boat | |||
| le train | /tʁɛ̃/ |
train | |||
| le taxi | /tak.si/ |
taxi | |||
| la voiture | /vwa.tyʁ/ |
car | |||
| Hotels | |||||
| la chambre | /ʃɑ̃bʁ/ |
room | |||
| la chambre de libre | free room | ||||
Grammar · To take · Prendre
Prendre is an irregular -re verb, and is conjugated differently.
Formation
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Present indicative verb
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| prendre ( /pʁɑ̃.dʁə/ (prah(n)-druh)) |
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| je | prends | /pʁɑ̃/ (prah(n)) |
I | take | nous | prenons | /pʁə.nɔ̃/ (pruh-noh(n)) |
we | take |
| tu | prends | /pʁɑ̃/ (prah(n)) |
you | take | vous | prenez | /pʁǝ.ne/ (pruh-nay) |
you | take |
| il | prend | /pʁɑ̃/ (prah(n)) |
he | takes | ils | prennent | /pʁɛn/ (prehn) |
they | take |
| elle | prend | she | takes | elles | prennent | ||||
| on | prend | one | takes | ||||||
Examples
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| Prends ma main. | Take my hand. | ||||
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| apprendre | /a.pʁɑ̃dʁ/ |
to learn | |||
| comprendre | /kɔ̃.pʁɑ̃dʁ/ |
to comprehend/understand | |||
| méprendre | /me.pʁɑ̃dʁ/ | to make a mistake | |||
| surprendre | /syʁ.pʁɑ̃dʁ/ |
to surprise | |||
Supplementary vocabulary · Related expressions
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| prendre | /pʁɑ̃.dʁə/ (prah(n)-druh) | to have something to eat, to buy | |||
| prendre en compte | to take into account | ||||
| prendre fin | to come to an end | ||||
| prendre conscience (de) | to become aware (of) | ||||
| prendre position | to make a stand (of) | ||||
| prendre des mesures | to take steps (to initiate a course of action) | ||||
| prendre des kilos | to gain weight | ||||
| prendre part (à) | to take part (in) | prendre part au vote | take part in the vote | ||
| prendre la parole | to start talking | ||||
| prendre le pas sur | to surpass | ||||
| prendre rendez-vous | to make an appointment | ||||
| prendre un verre | to have a drink | On va prendre un verre en ville. | We’re going to have a drink in town. | ||
| prendre un café | to have a coffee | ||||
Vocabulary · Directions
Sometimes when you go out, you may get lost, or come across someone who is lost. This should help you ask for and give directions.
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| Pardonnez-moi/Excusez-moi, mademoiselle/madame/monsieur. |
Excuse me, Miss/Mrs/Mr. | ||||
| Je suis perdu. | I am lost. | ||||
| Je cherche… | I'm looking for… | ||||
| la poste | /pɔst/ |
the post office | |||
| la gare | /ɡaʁ/ |
the train station | |||
| le supermarché | /sy.pɛʁ.maʁ.ʃe/ | the supermarket | |||
| le stade | /stad/ |
the football stadium | |||
| le camping | /kɑ̃.piɳ/ | the camping grounds | |||
| la plage | /plaːɡə/, [ˈpʰlæːjə] |
the beach | |||
| le parc | /paʁk/ |
the park | |||
| Vous prenez… | You take… | ||||
| la première rue | the first street | ||||
| à gauche | |
to the left | |||
| à droite | to the right | ||||
| tout droit | straight ahead | ||||
| Merci beaucoup! | Thanks so much! | ||||
| De rien. | /də ʁjɛ̃/ |
You're welcome / No worries. | |||