3.5 Getting into Gear Language Lesson

3.5 Getting into Gear
Language & Culture Lessons
To break through the beginner status of speaking a new language, you need to get your head around identifying the
proper tense. Analogies galore combined with French vocabulary will get you into the driver’s seat in this lesson. Be sure
to check it out; if only for the comparison between a verb and a gear shift…
Language Lesson
Getting into Gear!
You can imagine a verb being a bit like a three-gear car. When you first get into the car, the gears are not engaged, the
car is in neutral. For example, “to be”, « être », and “to have”, « avoir », as we have seen previously, refer to the verb
in its neutral state. In grammar this is known as the verb being in the infinitive.
In neutral, a car is stationary. You are not actually moving forward or backward. Putting a verb in the present engages
the car into first gear. So “to be”, « être », becomes “I am”, « Je suis », in the present tense.
There are more variations in French tenses than in English ones.
We have already looked at how pronouns work with a verb, and how the verb changes to suit the person, for
example, “you ”, “he”, “she”, “we”, or “they” (refer to Language and Culture Lessons 1.9 and 1.10). In summary, verbs
change to reflect both the subject (who) as well as the tense (present, past, or future).
This Lesson focuses exclusively on learning all about the present tense before you speed on ahead with the future,
and reverse into the past.
General Patterns of Action Words
In English, an action word in the infinitive or neutral form is defined by a “to” in front of it. In French, we know that
an action word is still neutral and not “in gear” yet by the ending of the verb. These endings are: er, re, oir and ir.
Verb ending in « er »
Verb ending in « re »
Verb ending in « oir »
Verb ending in « ir »
to eat
to be
to have
to come
manger
être
avoir
venir
In French, verbs are referred to as regular or irregular. This means, in effect, that some endings are easy to anticipate
and a pattern begins to form which is recognized as the present, future or past (regular verbs). Others are in a group
on their own and have random endings (irregular verbs).
In the case of verbs, it often makes more sense in English to say “I am waiting”, “I am giving”, rather than “I wait”, or
“I give”. Bear this in mind as you look through the following examples.
Pay special attention to the pronunciation as you listen to the audio track. Some endings are silent, and others are
surprising!
How Endings Change for Verbs in the Present Tense
Donner = To give
Je donne
I give, I am giving
Tu donnes
You give, you are giving (singular)
Il donne
He gives, he is giving
Elle donne
She gives, she is giving
Nous donnons
We give, we are giving
Vous donnez
You give, you are giving (plural)
Ils donnent
They give, they are giving (masculine)
Elles donnent
They give, they are giving (feminine)
Il donne du poulet
He gives, he is giving
Attendre = To wait
J'attends
I wait, I am waiting
Tu attends
You wait, you are waiting (sing.)
Il attend
He waits, he is waiting
Elle attend
She waits, she is waiting
Nous attendons
We wait, we are waiting
Vous attendez
You wait, you are waiting (pl.)
Ils attendent
They wait, they are waiting (masculine)
Elles attendent
They wait, they are waiting (feminine)
Croire = To believe
Je crois
I believe
Tu crois
You believe (sing.)
Il croit
He believes
Elle croit
She believes
Nous croyons
We believe
Vous croyez
You believe (pl.)
Ils croient
They believe (masculine)
Elles croient
They believe (feminine)
Finir = To finish
Je finis
I finish, I am finishing
Tu finis
You finish, you are finishing (sing.)
Il finit
He finishes, he is finishing
Elle finit
She finishes, she is finishing
Nous finissons
We finish, we are finishing
Vous finissez
You finish, you are finishing (pl.)
Ils finissent
They finish, they are finishing (masculine)
Elles finissent
They finish, they are finishing (feminine)
In summary
● There are 4 main endings to verbs in the neutral form: er, re, oir and ir.
● The type of ending of verbs in the neutral form gives a general indication of the patterns formed in the present
tense.
● There are both regular and irregular patterns to verbs in the present tense.
Using the Present Tense
Using the general pattern of endings as explained above, let’s look at the following examples in the context of
broader sentences.
In most sentences, at least two actions are described, sometimes more. This means that more than one verb is often
used, as in “I am going to work”. The first verb here is “I am going” in the present tense. The second verb is “to
work”, in the infinitive, or neutral form.
Je donne du pain à Marie.
I am giving some bread to Mary.
Ils vont travailler aujourd'hui.
They are going to work today.
J'ai faim et je mange cette viande avec plaisir !
I am hungry and I am eating this meat with pleasure!
Elle écrit un livre.
She is writing a book.
Nous allons donner du fromage à Marie.
We are going to give some cheese to Mary.
Vous partez tôt aujourd'hui !
You are leaving early today! (pl.)
Je finis mon travail de la journée.
I am finishing my work for the day.
Pouvez-vous écrire cette liste ?
Can you write this list?
Je prends le temps de penser.
I am taking the time (of) to think.
Ils vont travailler
aujourd'hui.
They are going to
work today.
Elle écrit un
livre.
J'ai faim et je mange cette viande
avec plaisir !
She is writing a
book.
I am hungry and I am eating this
meat with pleasure!
Action Replay
There are 4 main endings to verbs in the neutral form : er, re, oir and ir.
The type of ending of verbs in the neutral form gives a general indication of the patterns formed in the present
tense.
There are both regular and irregular patterns to verbs in the present tense.
Discover new French Words!
Aujourd'hui
Today
Maintenant
Now
En ce moment
At the moment
Aussi
Also
Avec
With
Et
And
Tout
All, every
Peut-être
Maybe
Chez
At (someone's place)
Dormir
To sleep
Nous dormons
We are sleeping
Ce soir
Tonight
Culture
Vélib’
Vélib’ is Paris' famous self service bike hire system available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For a very small price it
allows you to travel around the city at your own speed while enjoying all the great sites that Paris has to offer.
Vélib
Vélib’ is the association of two French words: vélo (bike) and liberté (freedom). The system currently has over 20,000
bikes and 1450 stations throughout Paris. It translates into one station every 300 meters.
Using Vélib couldn’t be easier: go to any Vélib’ stand and pick up a bicycle using your bank card. When you are done
using the bicycle, you can drop it off at any Vélib’ station. This is what is so great about the Vélib’ - you don’t have to
drop the bicycle at the same stand that you took it from. What's more is that you only pay for the time you used it.
Paris à vélo (Bicycle in Paris)
As at December 2009, many other cities in France are using a public bicycle rental program: Marseilles, Lyon,
Strasbourg, Toulouse, Montpellier; and soon Bordeaux and Lille. They’re not called Vélib’ but they are very similar in
terms of use and access.
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