French · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 6 of 12
My home
Chez moi
Name the rooms and furniture of a French home, say where things are with sur, sous and dans, and describe them with colours.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Name rooms and furniture
- Say where things are
- Describe things with adjectives that agree with the noun
Listen
Julien is showing his new flat in Nice to his friend Manon. Then he can't find his keys. They're friends, so they use tu. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Manon
Il est très joli, ton appartement.
Your flat is really nice.
Julien
Merci. Voici le salon, et la chambre est à côté.
Thanks. This is the living room, and the bedroom is next to it.
Manon
Et la cuisine ?
And the kitchen?
Julien
Elle est là, derrière la porte blanche. Oh… où sont mes clés ?
It's there, behind the white door. Oh… where are my keys?
Manon
Sur la table, à côté de la lampe ?
On the table, next to the lamp?
Julien
Non…
No…
Manon
Et là, sous la chaise ? Il y a un sac noir.
And there, under the chair? There's a black bag.
Julien
Ah oui, c'est mon sac. Voilà mes clés, dans le sac.
Oh yes, that's my bag. Here are my keys, in the bag.
Understand
Where is it? sur, sous, dans…
These little words, called prepositions, say where something is. Put them before the noun with its article: (on the table).
After and , remember that + becomes , and + becomes : . and de l' don't change.
Things are “he” or “she” in French, following their gender: becomes , becomes . So
| French | English |
|---|---|
| on | |
| under | |
| in | |
| in front of | |
| behind | |
| next to | |
| opposite | |
| between |
- Les clés sont dans le sac.The keys are in the bag.
- La lampe est à côté du canapé.The lamp is next to the sofa.
- La chambre est en face de la cuisine.The bedroom is opposite the kitchen.
Colours and agreement
Colours come after the noun: (a black bag). Like most describing words (adjectives), they change to match the noun: add -e for a feminine noun and -s for a plural one.
The plural s is silent. The feminine e is silent too, but it makes you hear the consonant before it: sounds like “vair”, like “vairt”. Colours that already end in -e, like , don't change for feminine nouns. is irregular: .
| English | masculine | feminine |
|---|---|---|
| black | ||
| white | ||
| green | ||
| blue | ||
| grey | ||
| red | ||
| yellow |
- une porte blanchea white door
- des chaises vertesgreen chairs
Before or after the noun?
Most adjectives, including all colours, go after the noun: . A few short, very common ones go before it: (big), (small), (pretty), (good), (beautiful), (young), (new) and (old). They agree in the same way: . , and have special feminine forms: , , .
Adjectives also agree after : , but . That's why Manon says : is masculine.
- un petit appartementa small flat
- une grande chambre blanchea big white bedroom
- Les chaises sont vertes.The chairs are green.
More in the grammar: Adjectives: agreement and position · Subject pronouns: je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils, elles · The French alphabet and pronunciation
New words
- l'appartementflat, apartment · masculine:
- joli / joliepretty, nice
- le salonliving room
- la chambrebedroom
- à côténext door, next to it
- la cuisinekitchen
- la portedoor
- la clékey
- la tabletable
- la lampelamp
- la chaisechair
- le sacbag
- le canapésofa
Practise
1.Which is correct for “a white door”?
2.Complete the sentence: “The keys are on the table.”
The keys are on the table.
3.Complete with , or de l'.
The bedroom is next to the living room.
4.Your friend asks Which answer is correct?
5.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.There's a black bag under the chair.
6.Match the prepositions with their meanings.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
Où sont mes clés ?
Where are my keys?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.