SHORT GRAMMAR SUMMARY (from Yrs 7-9)
Nouns in French are either masculine or feminine.
This is how the language has developed from Latin, just accept it!
“A, an” is translated by “un” (before a masculine noun) or “une” (before a feminine noun)
“The” is translated by “le” (before a masculine noun) or “la” (before a feminine noun) or “les” if the noun is plural.
Most plural nouns add an “s” like in English, but some add an “x” instead.
“Some” is translated by “du” (before a masc. noun) or “de la” (before a fem. noun) or “des” before a plural noun.
“Some” and “Of the” look the same in French! You tell from the context.
There are 2 words for “you”: “Vous” which is formal and plural, and “tu” which is for family, friends, younger people
but is always singular.
Adjectives
(describing words) also become feminine or plural, as they have to describe exactly the noun they go
with. Most adjectives in French go after the noun, but a few common ones go in front, like in English.
My, your, his, her etc. are also adjectives and have feminine and plural versions. The key thing to remember here is
that they describe the noun they go with, NOT who owns them. Here is the grid:
Masculine
Mon
Ton
Son
Son
Notre
Votre
Leur
Feminine
Ma
Ta
Sa
Sa
Notre
Votre
Leur
Plural
Mes
Tes
Ses
Ses
Nos
Vos
Leurs
English
My
Your
His
Her
Our
your
Their
“To the/at the” is expressed by “au” before a masculine noun, usually a place, “à la before a feminine noun, and
“aux” before a plural noun. This is also needed for flavours of food.
The negative needs 2 words, “ne” and “pas” which go around the verb. Sometimes after the negative, if for example
you haven’t got any (object), you have to say “I haven’t any OF (object)” = eg “Je n’ai pas DE frères”
Please and thank you : “S’il vous plaît” and “S’il te plaît” both mean please, depending on whether you are using
“vous” or “tu”. “Merci beaucoup” means “thank you very much”.
There is no ‘s in French to show possession. You have to say “the something of somebody”, using “de” = “of”.
Questions.
Some have a question word, eg où, qui, comment , quand, etc, but otherwise you can do 3 things to ask
a question: Simply put a question mark at the end of the statement and raise your voice; reverse the verb; start with
“Est-ce que” which means “Is it that….?” Here is an example:
Tu aimes le fromage? Aimes-tu le fromage? Est-ce que tu aimes le fromage ? All mean “Do you like cheese ? ”
Difference between “Qu’est-ce que” and “Quel/quelle”. They both can mean
What ? Use “Qu’est-ce
que” when there is a verb following. “Qu’est-ce que” is just a longer version of “Que”. Use “Quel/quelle” if there is a
noun. Here is an example :
“Qu’est-ce que tu fais ?” = what are you doing ? “Quel livre aimes-tu ? ” = what/which book do you like ?
“On” is used to mean “you” in general, “we”, “they”, “people”. Use the verb ending that goes with “il/elle”.
The near future, exactly the same as in English: “I am going to see….” Use part of the verb “aller” and then the
infinitive, eg “Je vais voir ce film”. We will learn other tenses this year.
Verbs (doing words) have different endings, depending on who is doing the action. There are 3 main types of verbs,
classified according to their infinitives. Refer to your Yr 9 verb booklet for more details. Here is a quick summary:
---------er
Je parle
Tu parles
Il/elle parle
Nous parlons
Vous parlez
Ils/elles parlent
(silent)
-----ir, -----re
Je ----------s
Tu ----------s
Il/elle --------t (or d)
Nous ----------ons
Vous ----------ez
Ils/elles -----ent
(silent)
Avoir = to have
J’ai
Tu as
Il/elle a
Nous avons
Vous avez
Ils/elles ont
Etre = to be
Je suis
Tu es
Il/elle est
Nous sommes
Vous êtes
Ils/elles sont
Aller = to go
Je vais
Tu vas
Il/elle va
Nous allons
Vous allez
Ils/elles vont
Reflexive verbs: same idea but as they “reflect” back on the person, they need the extra personal pronoun. Here is an
example:
Je me lave, tu te laves, il/elle se lave, nous nous lavons, vous vous lavez, ils/elles se lavent
Most importantly, there is only 1 verb in the present tense. To say “I eat” and “I am eating” is the same “Je mange”.