French cheat sheet

Nouns and articles

French nouns have grammatical gender. Articles indicate gender and number, though sound alone does not always reveal them.

un livre / une table / des livres

Regular -er verbs

Present-tense endings change with the subject. Several written endings have the same pronunciation.

je parle / nous parlons / ils parlent

Negation

Standard written negation commonly places ne and pas around the finite verb. Informal speech often omits ne.

Je ne comprends pas.

Adjective agreement

Many adjectives change for gender and number. Position can depend on the adjective and the intended meaning.

un petit livre / une petite table

Partitive and quantity

Du, de la and de l’ commonly express an unspecified amount. Many quantity expressions and ordinary negatives use de, with constructions and contrasts that need context.

Je bois du lait. → Je ne bois pas de lait. — I drink milk. → I do not drink milk.

Passé composé

A form of avoir or être combines with a past participle. Auxiliary choice and participle agreement depend on the verb and construction.

J’ai fini. — I finished. Elle est arrivée. — She arrived.

Near future

A present form of aller plus an infinitive commonly expresses an intended or near-future action. The following main verb remains in its infinitive form.

Nous allons étudier. — We are going to study.

Question patterns

Intonation, est-ce que and inversion are common ways of forming questions, with different register preferences. A question word specifies the information requested.

Est-ce que tu viens ? — Are you coming? Où habites-tu ? — Where do you live?

Worked example: ongoing duration

Elle habite à Paris depuis deux ans uses the present because living there continues into the present. English commonly translates it with “has lived”.

Elle habite = she lives; à Paris = in Paris; depuis deux ans = for two years.

Common mistake: translating age word for word

French normally uses avoir to state age. The English expression with “be” is not a template for the French construction.

J’ai vingt ans. — I am twenty years old; literally, “I have twenty years”.

Check your understanding

Complete the plan: Nous ___ étudier. (aller)

Allons: “Nous allons étudier.”

Curriculum connections

Sources