être de retour (to be back)
Je serai de retour à neuf heures.
I shall be back at nine o‘clock.
être en retard (to be late)
J’espère que le train ne sera pas en retard.
I hope the train won’t be late.
être sur le point de (to be about to)
Nous étions sur le point de sortir.
We were about to leave.
être en train de (to be in the act of)
Nous sommes en train de le décider.
We are (in the act of) deciding it.
être enrhumé (to have a cold)
Marie est enrhumée et ne pourra pas nous accompagner.
Mary has a cold and will not be able to accompany us.
Note also:
Ce n’est pas la peine.
It is not worth the effort.
The verb être is also used to tell time in French. Its usage in expressions of time is discussed on page 88.
Faire (to make, do)
In addition to being one of the most common verbs in the language, faire (to do, make) is also used in a variety of idiomatic expressions. Most expressions of weather in French use faire.
Quel temps fait-il?
Il fait chaud.
[What weather makes it?]
[It makes warm.]
How is the weather?
It’s warm.
Il fait beau (temps).
Il fait froid.
[It makes good (weather).]
[It makes cold.]
The weather is fine.
It’s cold.
Il fait mauvais (temps).
Il fait du vent.
[It makes bad (weather).]
[It makes some wind.]
The weather is bad.
It’s windy.
Il fait doux.
Il fait du soleil.
[It makes mild.]
[It makes some sun.]
It’s mild.
It’s sunny.
Other common expressions using the verb faire:
Cela ne fait rien.
Cela ne me fait rien.
That doesn’t matter.
I don’t care.
faire un voyage (to take a trip)
J‘aimerais faire un voyage.
I would like to take a trip.
faire une promenade (to take a walk)
Nous faisons une promenade.
We take a walk.
faire des emplettes (to go shopping)
Je dois faire des emplettes cet après-midi.
I must go shopping this afternoon.
faire mal (to hurt, be painful)
Est-ce que cela vous fait mal?
Does that hurt you ?
Falloir (to be necessary)
The verb falloir (to be necessary) is used only in the third person singular form, and usually occurs either in the present (il faut) or future (il faudra) tenses. It is generally followed by an infinitive, and is translated as “one must,” “one should,” “one ought,” “it is necessary,” or, in the future, as “one will have to,” “it will be necessary,” etc. The verb devoir discussed on page 82, expresses a similar idea.
Il faut étudier pour apprendre.
It is necessary to (one must) study in order to learn.
Il faudra passer au moins quinze jours en Provence.
It will be necessary to spend at least two weeks in Provence.
Penser (to think)
“To think of, or about” a person or thing is expressed by penser à, but if we mean “to have an opinion of” we must use penser de.
À quoi pensez-vous ?
Je pense à mes amis.
What are you thinking about?
I am thinking of my friends.
À qui pensez-vous?
Que pensez-vous de mes amis?
Whom are you thinking about?
What do you think of my friends?
Savoir (to know) and Connaître (to meet, be acquainted with)
In English, we use the same verb, “to know,” for both knowing facts and knowing people. In French, however, these ideas are separated. Savoir means to know facts, to have information, to know how to. Connaître means to know or be acquainted with persons and places.
Savez-vous ce qu’il a dit?
Do you know what he said?
Je voudrais savoir tout ce qui s’est passé.
I would like to know everything that happened.
Est-ce qu’elle sait nager?
Does she know how to swim?
Je connais ce monsieur mais je ne sais pas son nom.
I know that gentleman but I don’t know his name.
Connaissez-vous Bruxelles?
Are you acquainted with Brussels?
Note the expression faire la connaissance (de) which means to meet, make the acquaintance (of).
Enchanté de faire votre connaissance, madame.
I am delighted to meet you, madam.
Valoir (to be worth)
Valoir (to be worth) is used in the third person singular in a number of expressions.
Il ne vaut pas la peine d’y aller.
It’s not worth while going there.
Il vaudra mieux se taire.
It will be better to keep quiet.
Venir (to come)
The present tense of venir + de and infinitive means “to have just” + past participle.
Nous venons d’arriver.
II vient de partir.
We have just arrived.
He has just left.
Vouloir (to want, wish)
Vouloir may translate “ to want,” “wish,” “be willing,” and is also used in a number of important expressions.
vouloir dire (to mean)
Que veut dire ce mot?
Que voulez-vous dire?
What does this word mean?
What do you mean?
Voulez-vous (bien) and voudriez-vous (bien) very often are used to express a polite command, and may be used as a substitute for the imperative or command form, as explained on page 36. Veuillez plus infinitive may also be so used, but is not so common.
Veuillez fermer les fenetres s’il commence à pleuvoir.
Please close the windows if it begins to rain.
Telling Time
In French the verb être (to be) is used idiomatically in expressions of time. Study the following examples:
Quelle heure est-il?
Il est trois heures (précises).
[What hour is it?]
[It is three o‘clock (exact).]
What time is it?
It is exactly three o’clock.
Il est deux heures cinq.
Il est cinq heures moins dix.
[It is two hours five.]
[It is five hours less ten.]
It is five (minutes) past two.
It is ten (minutes) to five.
Il est quatre heures et demie.
Il est six heures et quart.
[It is four hours and a half.]
[It is six hours and a quarter.]
It is half past four.
It is quarter past six.
Il est six heures moins le quart.
Il est midi.
[It is six hours less the quarter.]
It is noon.
It is a quarter to six.
Il est minuit.
It is midnight.
Some Useful Expressions
Here are some useful idiomatic expressions which have not appeared in the main body of this little grammar, and which are often neglected by phrase books.
Quelle est la date?
What is the date?
C‘est aujourd’hui le premier août (le deux août).
Today is August 1 (August 2).
à l’américaine
in the American fashion
à la française
in the French fashion
à peu pres
about, approximately
À quoi
bon ?
What’s the use?
au lieu de
instead of
c‘est-à-dire
that is to say
d’abord
at first
d‘ordinaire
usually, generally
en effet
as a matter of fact
en tout cas
at any rate
encore une fois
once more
entendu
all right, fine, O.K.
bien entendu
of course
N’importe.
It doesn’t matter.
par exemple
for example
par ici
this way, through here
par là
that way, through there
pas du tout
not at all
quant à (lui)
as for (him)
sans doute
without doubt, no doubt
Service compris?
Is the tip included?
de temps en temps
from time to time
tout à coup
suddenly
tout à fait
completely, entirely
tout à l’heure
a little while ago, in a little while
tout droit
straight ahead
tout le monde
everybody
toute la semaine
the whole week, all week
toutes les semaines
every week
Vocabulary Tips
Cognates14
Many words in English and French are exactly the same in both languages. Many others have only minor changes in spelling, and are easily recognized. Study the following vocabulary hints and word lists. They will help you increase your vocabulary by many hundreds of words.
Adjectives
The suffixes -able, -ible, -al, -ant, -ent are usually the same in both languages.
Study the following French suffixes and their usual English equivalents: -eux (-euse)=-ous; -eur=-or; -el=-al; -ique=-ic.
Nouns
The following suffixes are generally the same in French and English: -ion, -tion, -age, -ice, -ent, -ence.
attention
distraction
courage
fonction
million
passage
opinion
question
village
caprice
accident
différence
justice
instrument
patience
service
moment
silence
Study the following French suffixes and their usual English equivalents: -eur=-or, -er; -té=-ty; -ie=-y; -ique=-ic; -re=-er.
Verbs
As mentioned on page 30, the great majority of all French verbs belong to the ist conjugation (-er). Notice how we may derive the meaning of many of these verbs by observing the following changes in the ending:
The -er ending drops in English. aider consulter insister passer profiter
The French -er becomes -e. arriver décider désirer préparer refuser
The French -er becomes -ate. communiquer hésiter indiquer séparer
False Cognates
Now that we have called attention to the many similarities in French-English vocabulary, we must also point out that there are many pitfalls in words that look and sound alike. Sometimes these words mean entirely different things, other times the French word has other meanings more important than its exact English equivalent. Some of the most common of these faux amis (false friends) are given below.
French
Eng. meaning
actuel
present (les conditions actuelles, present conditions)
actuellement
at the present time
addition
bill or check in a restaurant, as well as addition
assister à
to attend, be present at
attendre
to wait (for)
blesser
to wound
chance
(good) luck or fortune (Bonne chance! Good luck!; Vous avez de la chance, You are lucky)
client
customer as well as client
commander
correspondance
connection, transfer place; for example, in the Paris subway (métro)
dame
lady
défendre
to forbid, prohibit, as well as to defend. A number of public signs begin with Défense de ... (Défense de fumer, No smoking)
demander
to ask (for)
déranger
usually to disturb, upset
embrasser
to kiss, as well as to embrace
enchanté
delighted, pleased, as well as enchanted
enfant
child
figure
face
formidable
wonderful, marvelous
friction
massage, rubdown, as well as friction
front
forehead as well as front
glace
ice, ice cream, mirror
histoire
story as well as history
intoxication
(food) poisoning
large
wide, broad
lecture
reading
librairie
bookstore
magasin
shop, store
monnaie
change, small cash
nature
nature, but note these expressions: nature morte, still life; omelette nature, plain omelet
note
hotel bill, school grade, as well as note, memo
parent
relative as well as parent
patron
usually boss, owner
pension
boarding-house, room and board, as well as pension
phrase
sentence
pièce
room, or play, drama
place
usually seat, job, plaza
prune
plum
regarder
to look at
remarquer
usually to notice
rester
to remain
robe
dress
rose
as an adjective, usually pink; as a noun, rose
société
society, but in commercial language has the sense of company
sympathique
nice, likable, pleasant, applied to persons
tarif
rates, scale of charges, as well as tariff
tour
tour, excursion, and turn (C‘est mon tour, It’s my turn), when masculine. As a feminine noun, tower (la Tour Eiffel).
type
type, but also a colloquial term for fellow, guy, character
wagon
railroad car (wagon-lit, sleeping car; wagonrestaurant, diner)
Vocabulary Building with Cognates
When you study a foreign language, building a vocabulary is often one of the most difficult and laborious tasks. It can mean a great deal of tedious memorization and time-consuming study. Yet an English-speaker is in a fortunate position for learning foreign vocabulary, and his work can be considerably lightened. English is composite in origin, and in its word-trove are to be found thousands of forms that are borrowed from other languages. If you have already studied a foreign language, you probably remember the pleasure you felt when you came upon a word that was like its English counterpart; it immediately became easy to remember and use, since it was linked to something familiar, and it probably stayed in your memory longer than other words.
This wor
d list is based upon a useful principle that until the present has not been widely used—the seeking out of vocabulary resemblances and making full use of them. It would seem to be obvious that the easiest way to obtain a French vocabulary would be to study words that English shares with French. Yet, surprisingly enough, until this present list, there has been no systematic compilation of the words that form the common ground between English and French.