Chapter 8 of 16 · Explore the French path
Verbs and stories · Chapter 8 of 16
Say what you have, and where you are going
Meet avoir, the verb for have, which French also uses for hunger and age. Then the words for going somewhere, for saying something is there, and for where it is.
≈ 3 min of reading · Practise at your own pace
What’s in this chapter
- avoir
ah-vwahr “to have” is the second verb worth recognising on sight. - French has states rather than being them: j'ai faim
zhay fa(n) “I am hungry” — literally, I have hunger. - After the negation, a / some flatten to plain de
duh. - One French present covers both English presents, and an order drops the person word.
avoir — to have
French uses this verb for hunger and age, where English uses to be.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| j'ai | I have |
| tu as | you have |
| il a | he has / she has |
a
Two words squeezed into one
These pairs are never written separately. Read each squeezed form as two words.
Going, there-is, and the small words of place
These four turn up in almost every scene: someone goes somewhere, something is there, and a small word says where.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| je vais | I go · you go |
| il y a | there is; there are — the same for one thing or many |
| dans | in; into |
| avec | with |
English has two presents — “I go”, “I am going” — and French has one. There is no French word for “am” here; looking for one is the mistake to avoid.
Come with me!
Viens avec moi !
vya(n) ah-vek mwah
An order drops the person word: just viens. moi
Have, go, and there is
- J'ai faim.
French has this state rather than being it.
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“zhay fa(n).” — I am hungry. - Il y a du vent.
Three words, one meaning — and a squeeze.
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“eel yah dew vah(n).” — There is wind. - Je n'ai pas de maison.
What happens to une inside the sandwich?
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“zhuh neh pah duh meh-zoh(n).” — I do not have a house.