Lessons · Vocabulary · Grammar · Appendices · Texts
Grammar · Object pronouns
editDirect objects
editWhile the subject of a sentence initiates an action (the verb), the direct object is the one that is affected by the action. A direct object pronoun is used to refer to the direct object of a previous sentence:
Pierre voit le cambrioleur. | Pierre sees the burglar. | ||||
Pierre le voit. | Pierre sees him. |
The following table shows the various types of direct object pronouns:
French | me, m' | te, t' | le, l' | la, l' | nous | vous | les |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
English | me1 | you1 | him, it | her, it | us1 | you1 | them |
Notes:
- 1 me, te, nous, and vous are also used as indirect objects to mean to me, to you, to us, and to you respectively.
- The pronoun form with an apostrophe is used before a vowel.
- The direct object pronoun for nous and vous is the same as the subject.
- When the direct object comes before a verb in a perfect tense, a tense that uses a past participle, the direct object must agree in gender and number with the past participle. For example, in the phrase Je les ai eus, or I had them, the past participle would be spelled eus if the direct object, les, was referring to a masculine object, and eues if les is referring to a feminine object.
Indirect objects
editAn indirect object is an object that would be asked for with To whom...? or From whom...?. It is called indirect because it occurs usually together with a direct object which is affected directly by the action:
Il donne du pain à Pierre. | He gives some bread to Pierre. | ||||
Il lui donne du pain. | He gives bread to him. |
The following table shows the various types of indirect object pronouns:
French | me, m' | te, t' | lui | nous | vous | leur |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
English | to me1 | to you1 | to him, to her | to us1 | to you1 | to them |
Notes:
- 1 me, te, nous, and vous are also used as direct objects to mean me, you, us, and you respectively.
- The pronoun form with an apostrophe is used before a vowel.
- The indirect object pronoun for nous and vous is the same as the subject.
- The indirect object pronouns do not agree with the past participle like the direct object pronouns do. When me, te, nous, and vous are used in a perfect tense, the writer must decide whether they are used as direct or indirect object pronouns. This is done by looking at the verb and seeing what type of action is being performed.
The bread is given by the man (direct). Pierre gets the given bread (indirect).
Dialogue · At the bakery · À la boulangerie
editVocabulary
editQue voulez-vous ?, Que désirez-vous ? | What would you like? | ||||
Je voudrais… | I would like… | ||||
C'est tout ? or Est-ce que c'est tout ? | (Is) that all? | ||||
Ça fait deux euros. | That will be two euros. | ||||
acheter | to buy |
Example :
- Vendeur : Bonjour madame. Est-ce que je peux vous aider ?
- Cliente : Oui, je voudrais un sac.
- Vendeur : De quelle couleur svp ?
- Cliente : Je voudrais le sac bleu.
- Vendeur : Bien. Regardez celui-ci, il est beau.
- Cliente : Oui j'adore merci.
Vocabulary · Going shopping
editfaire des courses faire du shopping |
to go shopping | Elle va aller faire des courses. | She's going to go shopping. | ||
faire le marché | to go grocery shopping | Je vais faire le marché. | I'm going to go grocery shopping. | ||
faire du lèche-vitrine | to go window shopping | Laurent fait du lèche-vitrine. | Marc does window shopping. | ||
porter | Fr-porter.ogg (help·info) | to wear, to carry | Il va porter mes courses. Il porte son manteau. |
He's going to carry my groceries. He wears his jacket. | |
demander | /dǝ.mɑ̃.de/ (help·info) | to ask (for) | Il me demande de l'aider. | He asks me to help him. | |
demander le prix | to ask for the price | Il demande au vendeur le prix. | He's asking the seller for the price. | ||
payer | /pe.je/ (help·info) | to pay | Je vais payer mes courses. | I'm going to pay my groceries. | |
vendre | /vɑ̃dʁ(ə)/ (help·info) | to sell | Je vais vendre ces vieux jouets. | I'm going to sell those old toys. | |
acheter | /aʃte/ (help·info) | to buy | Je vais acheter cette bague. | I'm going to buy this ring. | |
acheté | /aʃəte/ (help·info) | have bought | Je l'ai acheté, c'est à moi. | I've bought it, it's mine. | |
Buying goods | |||||
le(la) vendeur(euse) | Fr-vendeur.ogg (help·info) Fr-vendeuse.ogg (help·info) |
salesperson | Je vais demander au vendeur. | I'm going to ask the selesperson. | |
(plus/moins) cher(ère) | /ʃɛʁ/ (help·info) | (more/less) expensive | C'est cher. | It's expensive. | |
la vitrine | /vit.ʁin/ (help·info) | display window | La vitrine est claire. | The display window is clear. | |
le prix | /pʁi/ (help·info) | price | Quel en est le prix ? | What is it's price? | |
la caisse | /kɛs/ (help·info) | cash register checkout counter |
Je vais passer a la caisse. | I'm going to go to the checkout counter. | |
coûter | /ku.te/ (help·info) | to cost | Ça va me coûter très cher. | It's going to cost me a lot. | |
C’est combien ? Combien ça coûte ? |
How much is it? | lit: It's how much? lit:How much it/that costs? |
Combien coute cette bague ? | How much is this ring? | |
Combien coûte [nom] ? | How much does [noun] cost? | lit: How much costs [noun]? | Combien coute cette vitrine ? | How much does this display window cost? |
Grammar · -e…er verbs
edit-e…er are regular -er verbs, but also are stem changing. The stem change applies to all forms except nous and vous. The stem change involves adding a grave accent ( ` ) over the e in the stem.
Formation
editacheter /aʃte/ ahsh-tay | to buy |
---|---|
j'achète /a.ʃɛt/ (ah-sheht) | I buy |
tu achètes /a.ʃɛt/ (ah-sheht) | you buy |
il achète /a.ʃɛt/ (ah-sheht) | he buys |
nous achetons /a.ʃ(.ə)tɔ̃/ (ahsh-toh(n)) | we buy |
vous achetez /a.ʃ(.ə)te/ (ahsh-tay) | you buy |
ils achètent /a.ʃɛt/ (ah-sheht) | they buy |
acheté /aʃ(.ə).te/ ah-shuh-tay, Fr-acheter.ogg | bought |
Supplementary vocabulary · Other -e…er verbs
editpeser | /pǝ.ze/ (help·info) | to weigh | Je pèse 80 kilos. | I weigh 80 kilos. | |
mener | [[:Media:Fr-mener.ogg|]] (help·info) | to lead, to take charge | Le bus va nous mener au château. | The bus will lead us to the castle. | |
emmener | /ɑ̃məne/ (help·info) | to take off, take away or out | |||
amener | /am(ə)ne/ (help·info) | to bring (a person) | Elle m'a amené en voiture à la gare. | She gave me a lift to the station. | |
ramener | /ʁamne/ (help·info) | to take back, bring back, restore | |||
lever | [[:Media:Fr-lever.ogg|]] (help·info) | to raise, to lift | |||
soulever | /sul(ə)ve/ (help·info) | to raise |
Supplementary examples
edit This section is a stub. You can help Wikibooks by expanding it. |
Il faut peser les abricots. | You must weigh the apricots. | ||||
Louis va mener ce cours. | Louis will lead this lesson. | ||||
L'équipe bleue mène 2 à 0. | The blue team is leading 2-0. |
Dialogue · At the market · Au marché
editVocabulary
editQu'est-ce que vous avez... ? | What do you have? | ||||
Un grand choix | A large range | ||||
Des cerises | Some cherries | ||||
Elles coûtent deux euros le kilo | They (feminine) cost two euros per kilo | ||||
Il faut | It is necessary to, one must, you need to | ||||
vendre | /vɑ̃dʁ(ə)/ (help·info) | to sell | |||
payer | /pe.je/ (help·info) | to pay |
Vocabulary · Stores · Les magasins
editle magasin | /ma.ɡa.zɛ̃/ (help·info) | shop, store | |||
le centre commercial | mall, shopping centre | ||||
le grand magasin | department store | ||||
le rayon | /ʁɛ.jɔ̃/ (help·info) | department | |||
la boutique | /butik/ (help·info) | small store | |||
la pharmacie | /faʁ.ma.si/ (help·info) | pharmacy, chemist | |||
le marché | /maʁ.ʃe/ (help·info) | outdoor market | |||
Foods stores | |||||
le supermarché | supermarket | ||||
l'hypermarché (m) | hypermarket, big supermarket | ||||
la boucherie | Fr-boucherie.ogg (help·info) | butcher shop 1 | |||
la boulangerie le dépôt de pain |
/bu.lɑ̃ʒ.ʁi/ (help·info) | bakery a place that sells bread 2 |
|||
la charcuterie | /ʃaʁkytəˈʁi/ (help·info) | delicatessen3 | |||
la crémerie | dairy store | ||||
la pâtisserie | Fr-pâtisserie.ogg (help·info) | pastry shop, pâtisserie | |||
la poissonnerie | /pwa.sɔn.ʁi/ (help·info) | seafood store, fishmonger | |||
l'épicerie (f) | grocery4 |
- French butchers do not sell pork, pork products, nor horsemeat. For these products, go to a charcuterie. However, a lot of boucheries are also charcuteries, and are called boucherie-charcuterie
- In France, bakeries only sell fresh bread; e.g. the bread is baked on site. Places where they sell bread that is not fresh are called dépôt de pain.
- 'Charcuteries' sell things besides pork products, including pâté, salami, cold meats, salads, quiches and pizzas.
- An alternative to an 'épicerie' is an alimentation générale (a general foodstore).
Grammar · -yer verbs
edit-yer verbs are irregular -er verbs. When y is part of the last syllable, it changes to i in order to keep the ay sound. In the present indicative of -yer verbs, this affects all forms except nous and vous. Some -yer verbs, such as payer, may optionally retain the y.
Formation
editIn the present indicative, payerto pay is conjugated as follows:
payer /pe.je/ | to pay |
---|---|
je paye (ou paie) /pɛj/ | I pay |
tu payes (ou paies) /pɛj/ | you pay |
il paye (ou paie) /pɛj/ | he pays |
nous payons /pe.jɔ̃/ | we pay |
vous payez /pe.je/ | you pay |
ils payent (ou paient) /pɛj/ | they pay |
payé /pe.je/ | paid |
Supplementary vocabulary · Other -yer verbs
editappuyer | /a.pɥi.je/ (help·info) | to press, to push, to rest (on) | |||
employer | [[:Media:Fr-employer.ogg|]] (help·info) | to employ | |||
ennuyer | Fr-ennuyer.ogg (help·info) | to bore | |||
essayer de | /e.se.je/ (help·info) | to try | J'ai essayé d'apprendre les mots. | I tried to learn the words. | |
essuyer | [esɥi'je] (help·info) | to wipe | |||
nettoyer | /ne.twa.je/ (help·info) | to clean | |||
noyer | Fr-noyer.ogg (help·info) | to drown, to water down | J'ai noyé mon chien dans le fleuve. | I drowned my dog in the river. | |
tutoyer | /ty.twa.je/ (help·info) | to address using tu |
Supplementary examples
edit This section is a stub. You can help Wikibooks by expanding it. |
Il va me payer 3 euros. | He is going to pay me 3 euros. | ||||
Payez la cassière. | Pay the cashier. | ||||
J'ai payé une amende. | I paid a fine. | ||||
Il faut noyer le vin avec de l'eau. | You must water down the wine. |
Grammar · Irregular past participles
editMany of the verbs you have learned so far have irregular past participles.
- avoir: euhad /y/
- croire: crubelieved /kʁy/
- être: étébeen /e.te/
- faire: faitdone /fɛ/
- prendre: pristaken /pʁi/
- voir: vuseen /vy/
Examples
edit This section is a stub. You can help Wikibooks by expanding it. |
J’ai vu ce film. | I’ve seen this film. | ||||
Il a été blessé dans l'accident. | He was injured in the accident. | ||||
Elle a fait du shopping ce matin. | She went shopping this morning. | ||||
Ils ont pris une photo de la maison. | They have taken a photo of the house. |
Supplementary vocabulary · Clothing · Les vêtements
editles vêtements habillés (dress clothes) | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
la chemise | /ʃǝ.miz/ (help·info) | button down shirt | |||
la cravate | /kʁa.vat/ (help·info) | tie | |||
le pantalon | /pɑ̃.ta.lɔ̃/ (help·info) | pants | |||
le costume le complet |
Fr-costume.ogg (help·info) /kɔ̃.plɛ/ (help·info) |
suit | |||
le manteau | /mɑ̃to/ (help·info) | coat | |||
le tailleur | /ta.jœʁ/ (help·info) | woman's suit | |||
la robe | /ʁɔb/ (help·info) | dress | |||
le chemisier | blouse | ||||
la jupe | /ʒyp/ (help·info) | skirt | |||
les vêtements sport (casual clothes) | |||||
la casquette | /kas.kɛt/ (help·info) | cap | |||
le tee-shirt | Fr-tee-shirt.ogg (help·info) | t-shirt | |||
le pull(-over) | /pyl/ (help·info) | a pullover, a sweater | Il fait froid; je vais mettre mon pull. | It's cold; I'm going to wear my sweater. | |
le sweat-shirt | Fr-sweat-shirt.ogg (help·info) | sweatshirt | |||
le blouson | Fr-blouson.ogg (help·info) | jacket | |||
le jean | jeans | ||||
les chaussettes les bas les bas-culottes les bas-culottes diaphanes |
/ʃɔ.sɛt/ (help·info) /bɑ/ (help·info) |
socks stockings pantyhose sheer pantyhose |
|||
les chaussures | |||||
les chaussures | /ʃɔ.syʁ/ (help·info) | shoes | |||
la paire de chaussures | pair of shoes | ||||
les baskets | /bas.kɛt/ (help·info) | basketball shoes, trainers | |||
les sandales | /sɑ̃dal/ (help·info) | sandals |
Text
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Exercises
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French : Lessons · Vocabulary · Grammar · Appendices · Texts