1 Meeting People

MUST KNOW

In addition to être, to be in English can be avoir in French.

When you turn 21, you’ll be vingt et un ans.

The s in trois avions is pronounced like a z.

Men are chefs, women are cheffes.

In this first chapter, you will come across some of the most commonly used verbs and expressions in the French language. You will learn how to count, how to greet a stranger, and how to introduce someone to your friend. And as you accumulate this new vocabulary, you’ll be surprised at how many ideas you can express in such a short time.

Subject Pronouns

In order to refer to yourself and address others, it is essential both to know the proper pronouns and to conjugate the verb that goes with them. I, you, he, she, it, one, we, and they are the major personal pronouns in French and English, but there is one big difference: the word you. In French, there are two versions of you. When you are with your friends, relatives, peers, or children, the appropriate pronoun is tu. On the other hand, when you are speaking with an adult, a colleague, a person in a store, or a stranger, the appropriate pronoun is often vous. The subject pronouns are:

In French, the first person je drops the e when the verb begins with a vowel or before h.

J’ai des amis. (I have friends.) J’habite à Paris. (I live in Paris.) Note that the pronoun ils is also used as the subject pronoun when the subjects of a sentence are both masculine and feminine.

The subject pronoun on literally means one, but it often replaces nous, and can be translated as we. It can also refer to people in general: one, everyone, people, they. It all depends on the context.

The Verbs être and avoir

Two essential verbs are être (to be) and avoir (to have). They allow you to ask profound questions such as Qui suis-je? (Who am I?) By the time you have mastered être and avoir, you will have created a solid foundation for your studies of French.

Idiomatic Expressions with être and avoir

Idiomatic expressions with être and avoir are staples of the French language. Let’s take a look at idiomatic expressions with être.

Idiomatic Expressions with avoir

Idiomatic expressions cannot be translated literally. While in English we say “I am thirsty,” French uses a different verb, avoir, to express the same thought: j’ai soif.

Asking about or telling one’s age is another grammar construction using avoir.

—Quel âge avez-vous? —J’ai quinze ans. —How old are you? —I am fifteen.

When stating someone’s profession, you don’t use the indefinite article un or une unless an adjective is added. In this case the third-person subject pronoun is changed to ce or c’.

In 2019, the Immortals of the Académie française finally abandoned years of opposition to the feminization of job titles. Now it is common to hear traditionally male occupations in the feminine form like Madame la maire (mayor), la procureure (prosecutor), la juge (judge). The feminine of sapeur-pompier (fireman) is une sapeuse-pompière. However, many prefer to be called une pompière or une femme pompier. Un médecin (doctor) and une femme médecin are used since la médecine refers to the field, not the person. Some women, however, don’t want to become une écrivaine (writer) and prefer to remain un écrivain; others reject une autrice (writer) because of the mere sound of it. If in doubt, check with the person’s office and ask if she wishes to be called le chef or la cheffe. The debate is far from over.

Cardinal Numbers

Cardinal numbers are the numbers used for counting and designating quantity. Let’s explore basic counting in French from 1 to 60.

When the following numbers precede a vowel, we use a liaison. It alters the pronunciation to make it more pleasing to the ear.

When the numbers 5, 6, 8, and 10 precede a word beginning with a consonant, their final consonant is mute. Here are some examples:

Common Greetings and Expressions

Let’s take a look at some common words and phrases that will help you start—and finish—talking with a French speaker.

DIALOGUE Alice, je te présente Justin! Alice, meet Justin!

Alice runs into Loïc in the Monoprix supermarket. They chat about their weekend plans. Alice invites him to a picnic on l’Île aux Cygnes in Paris.

Founded in 1932, Monoprix is part of the French landscape. It is a major French retail chain offering a wide selection of food, clothing, household items, gifts, and hardware. And they are so widespread that you can find a Monoprix in every large town in France. With extended business hours, Monoprix can help you during those last-minute runs to buy some milk, a pair of yoga leggings, or a birthday gift for a friend.

As we’ve just read, Alice’s picnic is on l’Île aux Cygnes in Paris. You will come across the word cygnes as the swans glide slowly on ponds and lakes in many parks. And you will probably hear about Le lac des cygnes (Swan Lake), a ballet composed by Tchaikovsky in 1875, featured during the ballet or opera season, often in creative modern adaptations. And if you ever read Victor Hugo’s Notre-Dame de Paris, do not miss:

EXERCISES

EXERCISE 1.1

Conjugate the verb être in the following sentences.

1. Ils _______________ à Nice.

2. Tu _______________ le correspondant de Loïc.

3. Vous _______________ dans les Arènes de Lutèce.

4. Elle _______________ directrice.

5. Nous _______________ contents de visiter Paris.

6. Il _______________ professeur de français.

7. Je _______________ avec Christian dans le parc.

8. Elles _______________ américaines.

9. Je _______________ dans la classe.

10. Ils _______________ fans de football.

EXERCISE 1.2

Rewrite each sentence adding the adjective compétent (masculine), compétente (feminine), compétents (masculine plural), or compétentes (feminine plural) after the profession.

1. Il est infirmier.

2. Elle est dentiste.

3. Il est secrétaire de direction.

4. Ils sont coiffeurs.

5. Elles sont serveuses.

6. Elle est directrice de communication.

7. Il est serveur.

8. Elle est coach de vie.

9. Il est entraîneur sportif.

10. Elle est animatrice multimédia.

EXERCISE 1.3

Conjugate the verb avoir in the following sentences.

1. Caroline _______________ froid en Sibérie.

2. Le professeur _______________ le temps de visiter le musée d’Art moderne.

3. Marc _______________ très soif, il demande un smoothie glacé.

4. Ils _______________ faim, ils mangent une pizza.

5. Elle _______________ raison.

6. Vous _______________ besoin de contacter Luca.

7. On _______________ le temps de regarder le film.

8. Vous _______________ tort!

9. Dans le désert, nous _______________ chaud.

10. Je _______________ encore faim. Une autre pizza, s’il vous plaît!

EXERCISE 1.4

Complete with the appropriate subject pronoun. There may be more than one answer.

1. _______________ avons une Peugeot 508 bleue.

2. _______________ suis brésilien.

3. _______________ sommes chinois.

4. _______________ ont de la chance.

5. _______________ a un dictionnaire français-anglais.

6. _______________ es content de visiter le musée du Louvre.

7. _______________ ont un correspondant anglais.

8. _______________ êtes dans le parc André-Citroën.

9. _______________ avons un iPad.

10. _______________ sont devant la tour Eiffel.

EXERCISE 1.5

Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Elle a un dictionnaire.

2. Tu as froid.

3. Nous sommes américains.

4. Vous avez une bicyclette.

5. J’ai froid.

6. Je suis française.

7. Ils ont faim.

8. Tu as le temps de visiter le musée d’Orsay.

9. Il est espagnol.

10. Nous avons un chat persan.

EXERCISE 1.6

Complete each sentence with the verb avoir or être, depending on the meaning.

1. Tu _______________ une caméra.

2. Vous _______________ français.

3. On _______________ le temps.

4. Ils _______________ chaud.

5. Je _______________ un ami à Toulouse.

6. Nous _______________ à Nice.

7. Elle _______________ un appartement à La Rochelle.

8. Je _______________ besoin d’un nouveau dictionnaire.

9. Elle _______________ une agence de voyages.

10. Vous _______________ fatigué?

EXERCISE 1.7

Translate the following sentences into French using vous when necessary.

1. You have an apartment in La Rochelle.

2. We agree with Loïc.

3. They are on vacation in Nice.

4. My friend Adrien is very funny.

5. I am fifteen years old.

6. Anas is very hungry. He eats a croissant.

7. You have a black car.

8. We are lucky to be in Paris.

9. She is American, and he is Spanish.

10. I have a headache.

EXERCISE 1.8

Spell out the numbers in parentheses. Pay attention to the gender of the nouns.

1. Mon ami Pierre a (1) _______________ voiture.

2. Paris a (20) _______________ arrondissements.

3. Elle mange (2) _______________ pains au chocolat.

4. Le professeur a (33) _______________ élèves.

5. Étienne a (3) _______________ paires de baskets.

6. Il a (1) _______________ amie à Lyon.

7. Les (11) _______________ joueurs de football arrivent au Parc des Princes.

8. Sara a (4) _______________ chats et (5) _______________ chiens.

9. (15) _______________ plus (36) _______________ font 51.

10. Le guide parle à un groupe de (28) _______________ touristes coréens.

LE COIN DES CRÉATEURS

L’INVENTAIRE

Create a list of ten sentences with the verbs avoir or être using words you have learned in this chapter or words you already knew before you started. Example:

Zoé a un chat

Elle est sur une île à Paris

Elle est contente d’être à Paris

Son chat Mistigris a faim

Mais il est au régime

Il est de mauvaise humeur

Il a envie de manger le croissant de Zoé

…

…

À votre tour! (Your turn!)

Je suis un étudiant américain….

or

Il a un cousin à Paris…

NOTE CULTURELLE

PARIS—ISLANDS IN THE SEINE

At 482 miles, the Seine is France’s fifth-longest river. Originating in Source-Seine, 19 miles northwest of the city of Dijon, it flows through Paris, dividing the city into the Right and Left Banks, before
continuing to its ultimate destination of Le Havre and the English Channel. In Paris, the Seine is also home to three islands, two of them natural and one artificial: the Île de la Cité, the Île Saint-Louis, and the Île aux Cygnes.

The Île de la Cité is the oldest part of Paris. It was the center of Lutèce, as it was known in the Roman Empire. In the Christian era, it became the home of Notre-Dame Cathedral, on which construction began in AD 1160. The Île is truly the heart of Paris and of France itself, since all distances are measured from Paris Point Zero, a spot directly in front of the cathedral’s front door. Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel Notre-Dame de Paris, aka The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, made the cathedral internationally famous.

The Île Saint-Louis, the smaller of the Seine’s two natural islands, is connected to Paris by four bridges and to the Île de la Cité by one, the Pont Saint-Louis. It consists of two natural islets—the larger Île Notre-Dame and the smaller Île aux Vaches, once used for grazing cattle and stocking wood for the city—joined together in 1614. It is named for Louis IX (Saint Louis), king of France from 1226 to 1270. Now an elegant, mostly residential neighborhood, it is a great place for a stroll, perhaps topped off with a cornet de glace (ice-cream cone) from Berthillon, a destination for ice-cream lovers from around the world.

The Île aux Cygnes, or Swan’s Island, is a small artificial island that was built in 1827 to serve as a reinforcement point for the construction of three Parisian bridges. It connects the Pont de Bir-Hakeim to the Pont de Grenelle and is traversed by the Pont Rouelle. There are no residents on the island, but it is a popular place for visitors, and its main walkway, the Allée des Cygnes, is much appreciated by walkers, joggers, and runners alike. At the end of the walkway, at the southern point, stands the island’s most notable feature: a replica of the Statue of Liberty. One-fourth the size of the original, it was a gift to the city from the American community of Paris in 1889 to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution.