---
# System prepended metadata

title: The French language basics
tags: [French]

---

# Intro

This is an introduction to French.
I made the for myself but i'm sharing it for everyone who wants a sheetsheet for french.
If you want anything added or I made a mistake.
Contact me in the channel you found this document, or comment in the documtent.

# Basic French verbs:
## Avoir - to have
J'ai (I have)
Tu as (You have)
Il/elle/on a (He/she/one has)
Nous avons (We have)
Vous avez (You have)
Ils/elles ont (They have)
## Être - to be
Je suis (I am)
Tu es (You are)
Il/elle/on est (He/she/one is)
Nous sommes (We are)
Vous êtes (You are)
Ils/elles sont (They are)
## Aller - to go
Je vais (I go)
Tu vas (You go)
Il/elle/on va (He/she/one goes)
Nous allons (We go)
Vous allez (You go)
Ils/elles vont (They go)
## Faire - to do/make
Je fais (I do/make)
Tu fais (You do/make)
Il/elle/on fait (He/she/one does/makes)
Nous faisons (We do/make)
Vous faites (You do/make)
Ils/elles font (They do/make)
## Dire - to say/tell
je dis
tu dis
il/elle dit
nous disons
vous dites
ils/elles disent
## Vouloir - to want
je veux
tu veux
il/elle veut
nous voulons
vous voulez
ils/elles veulent
## Pouvoir - to be able to
je peux
tu peux
il/elle peut
nous pouvons
vous pouvez
ils/elles peuvent
## Devoir - must/have to
je dois
tu dois
il/elle doit
nous devons
vous devez
ils/elles doivent
## Savoir - to know (facts, information)
je sais
tu sais
il/elle sait
nous savons
vous savez
ils/elles savent
## Venir - to come
je viens
tu viens
il/elle vient
nous venons
vous venez
ils/elles viennent
# Past Tense (Passé Composé):

The Passé Composé is one of the most commonly used past tenses in the French language. It is used to describe actions that were completed in the past. To form the Passé Composé, you generally need two components: an auxiliary verb (either "avoir" or "être") and the past participle of the main verb. Here's a step-by-step explanation of how to create the Passé Composé:

## Step 1: Choose the Correct Auxiliary Verb

The choice between "avoir" and "être" as the auxiliary verb depends on the main verb and its meaning.

Avoir is used with most verbs, especially when the action is transitive (it has a direct object), e.g., "J'ai mangé" (I ate).

Être is used with a specific group of verbs that describe motion, changes of state, or are reflexive (where the subject performs the action on itself), e.g., "Je suis allé(e)" (I went).

![](https://hackmd.io/_uploads/ByPLzV1C3.png)
Or just remember this list:
* Devenir - to become
* Revenir - to come back
* Monter - to go up, climb
* Rester - to stay, remain
* Sortir - to go out
* Venir - to come
* Aller - to go
* Naître - to be born
* Descendre - to go down, descend
* Entrer - to enter
* Retourner - to return (to a place)
* Tomber - to fall
* Rentrer - to return (home)
* Arriver - to arrive
* Mourir - to die
* Partir - to leave, depart


## Step 2: Conjugate the Auxiliary Verb

You need to conjugate the auxiliary verb ("avoir" or "être") according to the subject of the sentence. For example, with "avoir":

J'ai (I have)
Tu as (You have)
Il/elle/on a (He/she/one has)
Nous avons (We have)
Vous avez (You have)
Ils/elles ont (They have)
With "être":

Je suis (I am)
Tu es (You are)
Il/elle/on est (He/she/one is)
Nous sommes (We are)
Vous êtes (You are)
Ils/elles sont (They are)

## Step 3: Add the Past Participle

The past participle of the main verb is the form of the verb that indicates it happened in the past. The past participle is different for each verb, and many verbs are irregular. To find the past participle of a regular -er verb (e.g., "manger," which means "to eat"), you typically remove the -er ending and add -é. For example:

Manger (to eat) -> Mangé (eaten)
For regular -ir and -re verbs, you follow similar patterns to form the past participle. Irregular verbs, however, have unique past participles that you must memorize.

Verbs with Irregular Past Participles:

* Être (to be) - été

E.g : J'ai été (I was)

* J'ai eu (I had)
* Faire (to do/make) - fait
* Prendre (to take) - pris
* Mettre (to put) - mis
* Voir (to see) - vu
* Pouvoir (to be able to) - pu
* Vouloir (to want) - voulu
* Devoir (must/have to) - dû
* Savoir (to know, facts/information) - su
* 

There are more but those are the most common


## Step 4: Combine the Auxiliary Verb and Past Participle

Now, combine the conjugated auxiliary verb with the past participle of the main verb. Here are some examples:

J'ai mangé (I ate) - "avoir" + past participle of "manger."
Elle est allée (She went) - "être" + past participle of "aller."
Remember that with "être" verbs, the past participle must agree in gender and number with the subject. In the example "Elle est allée," "allée" agrees with the feminine singular subject "Elle."

The Passé Composé is a versatile tense used for various past actions, and mastering it involves learning the past participles of common verbs and understanding which verbs use "avoir" and which use "être" as the auxiliary.



# Future Tense (Futur Simple):

The Futur Simple (Simple Future) is a tense used to express actions that will happen in the future. It is relatively straightforward to form in French. To create the Futur Simple, follow these steps:

## Step 1: Take the Infinitive Form of the Verb

Start with the infinitive form of the verb. 
For regular -er verbs like "parler" (to speak), you remove the -er ending to get the root: "parl-." 
For regular -ir verbs like "finir" (to finish), remove the -ir ending to get the root: "fin-." 
For regular -re verbs like "vendre" (to sell), remove the -re ending to get the root: "vend-."

## Step 2: Add the Appropriate Endings

Next, add the appropriate endings to the verb root, depending on the subject. The endings for the Futur Simple are the same for all three regular verb groups (-er, -ir, -re), but there are some irregular verbs with unique endings.

Here are the endings for regular verbs:

Je -ai
Tu -as
Il/elle/on -a
Nous -ons
Vous -ez
Ils/elles -ont

## Step 3: Combine the Root and Endings

Now, combine the root and the appropriate ending to create the future tense conjugation. Here are examples for regular verbs:

Parler (to speak):

Je parlerai (I will speak)
Tu parleras (You will speak)
Il/elle/on parlera (He/she/one will speak)
Nous parlerons (We will speak)
Vous parlerez (You will speak)
Ils/elles parleront (They will speak)
Finir (to finish):

Je finirai (I will finish)
Tu finiras (You will finish)
Il/elle/on finira (He/she/one will finish)
Nous finirons (We will finish)
Vous finirez (You will finish)
Ils/elles finiront (They will finish)
Vendre (to sell):

Je vendrai (I will sell)
Tu vendras (You will sell)
Il/elle/on vendra (He/she/one will sell)
Nous vendrons (We will sell)
Vous vendrez (You will sell)
Ils/elles vendront (They will sell)

Keep in mind that there are many irregular verbs in the Futur Simple that don't follow this regular pattern, so it's essential to learn them individually. However, the regular verbs are a good starting point for understanding the formation of the Futur Simple tense in French.

## Irregular verbs: 
* Avoir (to have): aur-
* Être (to be): ser-
* Faire (to do/make): fer-
* Pouvoir (to be able to): pourr-
* Vouloir (to want): voudr-
* Devoir (must/have to): devr-
* Aller (to go): ir-
* Venir (to come): viendr-
* Recevoir (to receive): recevr-
* Savoir (to know, facts/information): saur-
* Envoyer (to send): enverr-
* Tenir (to hold): tiendr-
* Voir (to see): verr-
* Courir (to run): courr-
* Mourir (to die): mourr-
* Boire (to drink): boir-
* ...

There are more but those are the most common

# Being Polite (extra)
In French, the word "Vous" is the formal form of addressing someone, equivalent to "You" in English when addressing someone with respect or in a formal setting.
It is used when you want to show politeness, respect, or maintain a level of formality in your conversation.

So went you go to the bakery:
The baker may ask: Et pour **vous**, madame/monsieur ? (And for you, madam/sir

You must say: 
"**Je voudrais** trois pains au chocolat" (here you ask)
And not:
"**Je veux** trois pains au chocolat" (here you demand)

# Conditional tense (extra)
The conditional tense in French is used to express actions that are not guaranteed to happen but are dependent on certain conditions. It's often used to convey politeness, requests, wishes, or hypothetical situations. The conditional tense is relatively straightforward to form, especially for regular verbs.

Formation of the Conditional Tense for Regular Verbs:

For regular -er and -ir verbs, and most -re verbs, the conditional tense is formed by adding specific endings to the infinitive (base) form of the verb. Here's how it works:

For -er verbs (e.g., "parler" - to speak):

Take the infinitive form: parler.
Remove the -er ending to get the verb stem: parl-.
Add the conditional endings:
Je parlerais (I would speak)
Tu parlerais (You would speak)
Il/elle/on parlerait (He/she/one would speak)
Nous parlerions (We would speak)
Vous parleriez (You would speak)
Ils/elles parleraient (They would speak)
For -ir verbs (e.g., "finir" - to finish):

Take the infinitive form: finir.
Remove the -ir ending to get the verb stem: fin-.
Add the conditional endings:
Je finirais (I would finish)
Tu finirais (You would finish)
Il/elle/on finirait (He/she/one would finish)
Nous finirions (We would finish)
Vous finiriez (You would finish)
Ils/elles finiraient (They would finish)
Usage of the Conditional Tense:

Politeness and Requests: The conditional tense is commonly used to make polite requests or express what you would like or prefer.

Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît. (I would like a coffee, please.)
Wishes and Desires: It's used to express wishes or desires that may or may not come true.

J'aimerais voyager autour du monde. (I would like to travel around the world.)
Hypothetical Scenarios: The conditional is used to talk about hypothetical situations or things that would happen under certain conditions.

Si j'avais de l'argent, j'achèterais une maison. (If I had money, I would buy a house.)
Softening Statements: In some cases, it's used to soften statements or make them less direct.

Je voudrais dire que... (I would like to say that...)

# Negative


|   French    |        Example         |    English    |
|:-----------:|:----------------------:|:-------------:|
| Ne ... pas  |   Je ne l'aime pas.    |      Not      |
| ne ... plus |   Je ne l'aime plus.   |  Not anymore  |
| ne ... rien |    Il ne vit rien.     |    Nothing    |
|  ne ... ne  | Je ne fume ni ne bois. | Don't ... nor |
|   Jamais    |  N'abandonne jamais.   |     Never     |


# Vocabulary

## Greeting


|   French    |               Example               |     English      |
|:-----------:|:-----------------------------------:|:----------------:|
|    temps    |      Ton **temps** est passé.       |       time       |
|   Bonjour   |    **Bonjour**, comment ça va ?     | Good day / Hello |
|   Bonsoir   |        **Bonsoir**, madame.         |   Good evening   |
|    Salut    | Salut ! Comment ça va aujourd'hui ? |        Hi        |
|  Au revoir  |        Bien sûr, au revoir !        |    au revoir     |
| Excusez-moi | **Excusez-moi**, je suis en retard. |    Excuse me     |
|  Bienvenue  |        Bienvenue en enfer !         |      Welkom      |
| l'appareil  |        Qui est a l'appareil         | The phone/device |


## Thank
|        French         |                Example                 |    English    |
|:---------------------:|:--------------------------------------:|:-------------:|
|         Merci         |   **Merci** beaucoup pour ton aide.    |   Thank you   |
|          Oui          |      **Oui**, j'aimerais un café.      |      Yes      |
|          Non          | **Non**, je ne peux pas venir ce soir. |      No       |
| S'il vous plaît (SVP) |     Un café, **s'il vous plaît**.      |    Please     |
|        De rien        |                De rien!                | You're Welkom |


## Place/Location
|     French     |                                     Example                                     |       English       |
|:--------------:|:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------:|:-------------------:|
|   Où est...    |                               Où est la banque ?                                |     Where is...     |
|  Droit/droite  |                         Tournez à droite au carrefour.                          |        Right        |
|     Gauche     |                          Mon bras gauche est ankylosé.                          |        Left         |
|   Tout droit   |                    Allez tout droit jusqu'au bout de la rue.                    |   Straight ahead    |
| l'intersection | L'intersection de deux de ces couleurs produit du cyan, du magenta ou du jaune. | At the intersection |
|    Le coin     |                           Le musée est dans le coin.                            |     The corner      |
|     La rue     |                            Ne traverse pas la rue !                             |     The street      |
|   Le chemin    |                               Montrez le chemin.                                |  The path/the way   |
|  Le carrefour  |                      L'accident a eu lieu à un carrefour.                       |   The crossroads    |
|   En face de   |                      Il y a une banque en face de la gare.                      |     In front of     |
|   Près d'ici   |                       Hier un bateau a coulé près d'ici.                        |      Near here      |
|   Loin d'ici   |                Je veux un bateau qui m'emmènera très loin d'ici.                |    Far from here    |
|      Dans      |                              Montons dans le bus.                               |         In          |
|      Sur       |                               Assis sur le banc.                                |         On          |
|      Sous      |                           Peux-tu nager sous l'eau ?                            |        Under        |
|     Devant     |                             Il est devant la porte.                             |     In front of     |
|    Derrière    |                         Fermez la porte derrière vous.                          |       Behind        |
|   À côté de    |                      Le vélo à côté de la porte est à moi.                      |       Next to       |
|    Près de     |                               Regardez de près !                                |        Near         |
|    Loin de     |                      Le restaurant était loin de la gare.                       |      Far from       |
| À l'intérieur  |                             Ils sont à l'intérieur.                             |       Inside        |
| À l'extérieur  |                           J'attendrai à l'extérieur.                            |       Outside       |
|     Entre      |                         Veuillez lire entre les lignes.                         |       Between       |
|   Autour de    |                         J'adore tourner autour de lui.                          |    Among/around     |
| Tourner (verb) |                           Veuillez tourner à droite.                            |       To turn       |
|  Puis/Ensuite  |                  Puis continue tout droit jusqu'à voir la mer.                  |        Then         |
| Arriver (verb) |                            Tu es arrivé à la morgue                             |      To arrive      |


## Time
|   French    |               Example                |  English  |
|:-----------:|:------------------------------------:|:---------:|
| Aujourd'hui | Aujourd'hui, il fait beau en France. |   Today   |
|   Demain    |        On se voit **demain**.        | Tomorrow  |
|    Hier     | Hier, j'ai rencontré un ami à Paris. | Yesterday |
| maintenant  |         Il neige maintenant.         |    Now    |
|    heure    |         l dormit une heure.          |   hour    |
|   minute    |          Juste une minute.           |  minute   |
|   souvent   |   Nous jouons souvent aux échecs.    |   often   |
|   jamais    |          Je ne bois jamais.          |   Never   |


## Objects
|        French         |                   Example                    |            English            |
|:---------------------:|:--------------------------------------------:|:-----------------------------:|
|        Le Pain        | J'aime manger **le pain** au petit-déjeuner. |           The bread           |
|       La Chaise       |    Cette **chaise** est très confortable.    |           The chair           |
|       Le Nuage        |   Les **nuages** dans le ciel sont blancs.   |          The clouds           |
|       La Table        |     La **table** est mise pour le dîner.     |           The table           |
|      La Voiture       |   Ma **voiture** est en panne aujourd'hui.   |            The car            |
|       La Maison       |     Notre **maison** a un grand jardin.      |           The house           |
|     L'Ordinateur      |      Mon **ordinateur** est très lent.       |         the computer          |
|     Le Téléphone      |      J'ai perdu **le téléphone** hier.       |           the phone           |
|       Le Livre        |       Ce livre est intéressant à lire.       |           The book            |
|       Le Stylo        |      Je cherche mon stylo pour écrire.       |            The pen            |
|       La Porte        |        Ferme **la porte** en sortant.        |           The Door            |
|       Le Soleil       |      Le **soleil** brille aujourd'hui.       |            The Sun            |
|      La Fenêtre       |    Ouvre **la fenêtre** pour l'air frais.    |          The Window           |
|     La Télévision     |  J'aime regarder **la télévision** le soir.  |      The Television (TV)      |
|      Le Journal       |    Je lis **le journal** tous les matins.    |         The Newspaper         |
|        Le Sac         | J'ai besoin de **le sac** pour mes affaires. |            The Bag            |
|        La Clé         |        As-tu **la clé** de la porte ?        |            The Key            |
|        Le Vélo        |      Je vais au travail en **le vélo**.      |           The Bike            |
| Le Téléphone portable |  Mon **téléphone portable** est en charge.   | The Mobile Phone (Cell Phone) |
|       La Montre       |      Regarde l'heure sur **la montre**.      |           The Watch           |

## Adjectives


| French   (masculine) / (feminine) | Example |  English  |
|:---------------------------------:|:-------:|:---------:|
|           Petit/Petite            |   Non, c'est pas mon nouveau petit ami.      |   small   |
|           Grand/Grande            |   Quel grand chien !      |   Tall    |
|           Rouge /Rouge            | J'ai un vélo rouge.        |    Red    |
|            Bleu /Bleue            |  Sa bicyclette est bleue.       |   blue    |
|           Jaune /Jaune            |   Il y a une rose jaune ici.      |  Yellow   |
|            Vert/Verte             |     J'ai peint la barrière en vert.    |   Green   |
|            Beau/Belle             |     Elle est très belle.    | beautiful |
|         Heureux/Heureuse          |  Hier, j'étais heureux.       |   happy   |
|          Triste  /Triste          |   Quand je me suis réveillé j'étais triste.      |    sad    |


## ICT

|              French               | Example |          English           |
|:---------------------------------:|:-------:|:--------------------------:|
|           Le Ordinateur           |         |          Computer          |
|           Le Télévision           |         |             TV             |
|             Le Souris             |         |           Mouse            |
|           (Le) L'Écran            |         |           Screen           |
|          La Informatique          |         | The Information Technology |
|         La Programmation          |         |      The Programming       |
|    Le Langage de programmation    |         |  The Programming language  |
|           Le Algorithme           |         |       The Algorithm        |
|          Le Développeur           |         |       The Developer        |
|       le Développement web        |         |    The Web development     |
|        La Base de données         |         |        The Database        |
|             Le Réseau             |         |        The Network         |
|     Le Système d'exploitation     |         |    The Operating system    |
|            Le Logiciel            |         |        The Software        |
|     Le Matériel informatique      |         |        The Hardware        |
|            Le Pare-feu            |         |        The Firewall        |
|     La Sécurité informatique      |         |   The Computer security    |
|            Le Internet            |         |        The Internet        |
|         Le Navigateur web         |         |      The Web browser       |
|            Le Serveur             |         |         The Server         |
|          Le Programmeur           |         |       The Programmer       |
| (La) l'Interface utilisateur (UI) |         |  The User Interface (UI)   |
|            Le Débogage            |         |       The Debugging        |
|         La Cybersécurité          |         |     The Cybersecurity      |

# More coming soon