French Grammar Explained /
To be - How to use the verb "être"
Hey, you again!
Yes, it's me again. Do you know why I'm here?
I guess it means I'm ready to learn something new?
Indeed it does. Did you know it's a frequent phenomenon in most European languages that the forms of to be and to have are irregular?
No... I didn't know that.
Well, the same is true for French.
Uh oh, not irregular verbs... It's only my second topic and it's already getting difficult.
Don't you worry, it won't be that bad.
If I were you, I would pay extra attention to those two verbs as they will come up frequently as you learn.
The verbs être and avoir can often be referred to as auxiliary verbs (or auxiliaries).
→ An auxiliary is a word used with other verbs to help distinguish different tenses, aspects, moods, etc.
For instance, in the sentence:
I will go.
the auxiliary is will.
Here's the conjugation of être:
je | → | suis |
tu | → | es |
il/elle/on | → | est |
nous | → | sommes |
vous | → | êtes |
ils/elles | → | sont |
Okay, I guess I'll just have to learn it then.
Yes, that's the best way to do it. You'll use this so often that you won't even need to think about it!
Pronunciation tip
Pronouncing French words can be challenging. The most important tip here is to remember not to pronounce the final letters!
je suis ⇒ juh swee
tu es ⇒ t'ewe eh
il/elle est ⇒ eel/el eh
nous sommes ⇒ noo somm
vous êtes ⇒ voo zet
ils/elles sont ⇒ eel/el song