Français I – Leçon 2A Structures

Present tense of regular –er verbs

In English, verbs are words that express actions or states of being.

You have already learned one verb in French: être (to be).

Être is an irregular verb because it does not follow a pattern.

There are also regular verbs in French. Regular verbs follow a

pattern. The most common regular verbs in French end with –er.

These are called “regular -er verbs”

To form “regular –er verbs,” you have to remove the –er from the verb,

and add new endings to the stem to match the subject pronouns. This is

called “conjugating.”

[Look at the example on the next slide. The verb is parler (to talk). Notice how the spelling changes depending on the subject pronoun.]

Parler = to speak

Je parle (I speak) nous parlons (we speak)

Tu parles (you speak) vous parlez (you speak)

Il parle (he speaks) ils parlent (they speak)

Elle parle (she speaks) elles parlent (they speak)

On parle (one speaks)

Other regular –er verbs will be conjugated the same way. Remove the –er and add the new endings that match the subject pronouns.

adorer = to loveJ’adore (I love) nous adorons (we love)

Tu adores (you love) vous adorez (you love)

Il adore (he loves) ils adorent (they love)

Elle adore (she loves) elles adorent (they love)

On adore (one loves)

Common –er verbsAdorer = to love

Aimer = to like, to love

Aimer mieux = to prefer (to like better)

arriver = to arrive

chercher = to look for

commencer = to begin

dessiner = to draw

détester = to hate

donner = to give

étudier = to study

habiter (à/en) = to live in

manger = to eat

oublier = to forget

partager = to share

penser (que/qu’…) = to think (that)

regarder = to look at

rencontrer = to meet

retrouver = to meet up with; to find (again)

travailler = to work

jouer = to play

danser = to dance

chanter = to sing

voyager = to travel

Other rules of –er verbs…

• Verbs ending in –ger (manger, voyager) and –cer (commencer) have a spelling change in the nous form.

manger nous mangeonscommencer nous commençons

• Je becomes J’ when it appears before a verb that begins with a vowel sound. – J’adore -J’habite

Forming Questions

There are several ways to ask a question in French.

1. Intonation• The simplest way to ask a question is to use

the same wording as a statement, but changing the tone of your voice. This is called intonation.

• In writing, you add a question mark at the end of the statement.

• This method is informal.

Vous habitez à Paris? Tu aimes le pizza?(You live in Paris?) (You like pizza?)

2. Est-ce que…• A second way is to place the phrase Est-ce que…

directly before a statement. • If the next word begins with a vowel sound, use

Est-ce qu’…• Questions w/ est-ce que are formal.

Est-ce que vous habitez à Las Vegas? (Do you live in Las Vegas?)

Est-ce qu’il aime le pizza? (Does he like pizza?)

3. Tag question• Place a tag question at the end of a statement. • This can be formal or informal.

On commence à 2h, d’accord? (We’re starting at 2:00, OK?)

Nous mangeons à midi, n’est-ce pas?(We eat at noon, don’t we?)

4. Inversion

• Invert the order of the subject pronoun and the verb and hyphenate them.

• If the verb ends in a vowel and the subject pronoun is il, elle, or on, -t- is inserted between the verb and the pronoun.

• Inversion is considered formal.

Parlez-vous français? Mange-t-il à midi?(Do you speak French?) (Does he eat at noon?)

Expressing Negation

Ne…pas

• To make a sentence negative, place ne before the conjugated verb and pas after it.

• If the verb has a vowel sound, place n’ before it instead of ne.

Je ne danse pas bien. Je n’aime pas les maths.

Expressions of agreement and disagreement

• Use these expressions to respond to a statement or a question that requires a yes or no answer.

Oui = yesBien sûr = of course

Moi/toi non plus = me/you neither(mais) non = no (but of course not)

Pas du tout = not at allPeut-être = maybe, perhaps