As part of my new shorter & simpler HOW TO videos, 2 weeks ago we conjugated one of the 2 most important French verbs: AVOIR = TO HAVE.  Today, let’s focus on that 2nd very important verb: ÊTRE = TO BE.

 

Why is ÊTRE essential?

Not only is it a crucial verb that we constantly use but it’s also the base of a past tense called passé composé, which you could not conjugate at all without knowing the verb être in the present tense. It’s called un verbe auxiliaire, an auxiliary verb, l’auxiliaire être. Let’s conjugate it in the present tense with every single subject pronoun, and then, I’ll put it in a short sentence to give you context and more vocab at the same time. C’est parti!

 

Let’s conjugate ÊTRE

To be = Être

That’s called the infinitive, l’infinitif, which means it is not conjugated. Now let’s conjugate it, in the present tense.

I am = Je suis
I am a woman = Je suis une femme

You are = Tu es (casual)
You are so friendly = Tu es si gentil

She is = Elle est
She is an excellent writer = Elle est une excellente écrivaine

He is = Il est
He is always on time = Il est toujours à l’heure

We are  = on est
We are six people in this group = On est six personnes dans ce groupe*

On is the singular subject pronoun for we. Is it strange to think of we as singular? Think of a unit, think of a family. A family is made up of several people so it’s plural yet you say “my family IS” so it’s also singular. On is more used in spoken French, it’s the more casual way to say we.

We are = nous sommes
We are six people in this group = Nous sommes six personnes dans ce groupe*

Nous is the plural subject pronoun for we. It’s less used in spoken French than on, which  we just saw, and it’s the more formal, the more proper way to say we.

*Just to be sure you understand, the above 2 sentences mean the exact same thing and that is “We are six people in this group” The only difference is that “on” is more casual and “nous” is more “formal”

Same sentence as the one above, same meaning, only this time we sound more formal

On est six personnes dans ce groupe = Nous sommes six personnes dans ce groupe

You are = vous êtes (formal or you all)
You are American? = Vous êtes Américain?

They are = Elles sont (for an exclusively feminine group)
They are strong = Elles sont fortes

They are = Ils sont (for a masculine or a mixed group)
They are 30 minutes away from here = Ils sont à 30 minutes d’ici

 

One more time!

ÊTRE = TO BE

je suis = I am

tu es = you are (casual)

elle est = she is

il est = he is

on est = we are (singular + casual)

nous sommes = we are (plural + formal)

vous êtes = you are (formal or you all)

elles sont = they are (feminine)

ils sont = they are (masculine or mixed)

 

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Learn French online with Virginie

I have been working on my second French online course called PERFECT PRONUNCIATION since the beginning of this year and IT’S ALMOST READY! We’re just doing the last tweaks now before the official launch in a few days! Another course packed with video & audio files along with written material, to make it as fun, easy, and user friendly as possible for you! Come and learn French online with me!

 

New French Online Course + New Membership Format

We’re not just launching a new product, we’re also launching a new membership format for you to access my French online courses from $10 / month. See more details about the membership at the bottom of this page

In the PERFECT PRONUNCIATION course you will find 11 videos + 150 audio files + 92 pages PDF format to help & accompany you every step of the way throughout the course. In some parts of the videos, my face will appear close up and profile so you can easily see how I make these sounds with my mouth. The 150 audio files are composed of the 100 most popular French words and the 50 most common French phrases. They are recordings of my voice, speaking slowly enough so you can easily grasp every syllable. Your French language learning experience has never been so easy, fun, and fruitful. You can learn French online and benefit from the flexibility working at your own pace offers, while having me with you the whole time.

NB: if you are the proud owner of my previous French online course 600 WORDS, don’t worry, this is not a repeat as we are now exploring 1 letter words and up, whereas in 600 WORDS we began at 4 letter words and up.

 

How can you confidently express yourself in French?

How can you easily speak French with a PERFECT PRONUNCIATION?

 

That’s actually quite easy! We simply need to be thorough. Together we’ll cover every possible sound: vowels, consonants, nasals, digraphs, trigraphs, liaisons, apostrophes, consonants at the end of words, you name it. We’ll even go through 6 typical pronunciation mistakes I always hear as a French teacher, so you don’t have to make them!

 

Combine knowledge with confidence…

For you to be able to have a pleasant and efficient conversation with a French person, one thing is key… can you guess what it is? Confidence! How well do you think you will communicate in French if you don’t feel confident about your accent? If you are scared that people won’t understand you? Or even worse if you think someone might make fun of you? Without a minimum of confidence there is no room for communication. Yet if you feel confident, you can afford to make a few mistakes here and there because people will still understand you. What prevents a conversation from happening isn’t just a lack of knowledge, it’s also a lack of confidence. You need to have both to make it work, not to mention, to make it fun!

 

Put on your French Face!

Together we’ll retrain your mouth muscles. It sounds hard, it’s really not. Just like anything else new you decide to learn, it takes practice and repetition. If you know what to do with your lips, your tongue, your teeth, and your cheeks, which I will tell you of course, then magically it becomes a lot easier. Making the right shape with your mouth will help you tremendously. Don’t be shy, go for it, put on your French face!

 

I will teach you…

 

1- How to pronounce every letter of the alphabet

We’ll go through the entire alphabet and every possible sound with each of the 26 letters with words to give you context, every time. 26 letters does not mean 26 sounds as one letter can have different sounds. This means there will be more than 26 sounds. I will break it all down for you so you encounter every possible sound French vowels and consonants can make.

 

2- How to pronounce every digraph & trigraph

We’ll play with digraphs and trigraphs. No these are not swear words, they might sound intimidating but they’re very easy. A digraph represents a combination of 2 letters making 1 sound. For instance when you say chocolat, the first 2 letters c h make 1 sound sh, chocolat. 2 letters, 1 sound. A trigraph represents a combination of 3 letters making 1 sound. For instance, when you want to say I’m hungry, you say j’ai faim, the last 3 letters a i m make 1 sound in, faim. This section also covers nasal sounds of course.

 

3- How to make every French sentence flow

We’ll explain how to make French flow in your mouth via liaisons, apostrophes, and whether or not to pronounce consonants at the end of words.

 

4- How to pronounce the 100 most popular French words

We’ll learn how to pronounce and how to use the 100 most commonly used words in the French language. This is not a repeat of my 600 words course as here we begin with 1 letter words, which means we cover words such as du, au, à, en, le, de, etc. all these crucial little words you need to build sentences and that are very often mispronounced or misused, which does not help communication.

 

5- How to pronounce the 50 most popular French phrases

We’ll discover 50 key sentences that you are bound to hear and use countless times on your next visit to France.

 

6- How to avoid the pronunciation mistakes everyone makes

I’ll use my years of teaching experience and share with you the most typical pronunciation mistakes that all my students have made over and over. We’ll explore the ones that keep coming back so that you can simply avoid them once and for all!

 

Become a monthly member!

As I briefly mentioned above, we’re only a few days away from releasing our 2nd French Online Course called Perfect Pronunciation, which will transform your French language learning experience. We’ll also offer you a new way to learn French online and gain access to the French Truly Online School! Actually, more than 1 new way, you’ll have 3 plans to choose from so come and learn French online with me!

 

Whichever you pick, FOCUS at $10, HORIZON at $15, or IMMERSION at $99, you will always be free to either upgrade or downgrade, stay or leave.

 

 

Not a membership kind of person? Don’t worry! Every course can still be bought separately at the normal price and be yours for ever. Whichever format you choose, your French language learning experience has never been so easy, fun, and fruitful. You can learn French online and benefit from the flexibility working at your own pace offers, while having me with you the whole time.