French grammar · Beginner (A1)
Être and avoir: to be and to have
The two most important French verbs: their present tense forms and the everyday phrases where French uses avoir but English uses “to be”.
The present tense
(to be) and (to have) are irregular: they don't follow a pattern, so learn them by heart. You'll use them in almost every sentence, and they also help build the past tense.
Remember (not je ai): becomes j' before a vowel.
| Person | (to be) | (to have) |
|---|---|---|
| I | ||
| you (informal) | ||
| he / she / we () | / / | / / |
| we | ||
| you (polite or plural) | ||
| they | / | / |
- Je suis fatigué.I'm tired. (said by a man)
- Nous sommes à Paris.We're in Paris.
- Vous avez une chambre pour ce soir ?Do you have a room for tonight?
Avoir where English says “to be”
For age and several everyday feelings, French says “to have” instead of “to be”. You don't say je suis trente, you say : literally “I have thirty years”.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| avoir … ans | to be … years old |
| to be hungry | |
| to be thirsty | |
| / | to be hot / to be cold |
| to be afraid | |
| / | to be right / to be wrong |
- J'ai vingt-cinq ans.I'm twenty-five.
- Tu as faim ?Are you hungry?
- Vous avez raison.You're right.
Il y a and c'est
means both “there is” and “there are”. It comes from and never changes for the plural. In the negative, it becomes .
(it is, this is) comes from . Use it to point at or describe something: (This is my brother).
- Il y a un café au coin de la rue.There's a café on the corner.
- Il y a beaucoup de monde.There are a lot of people.
- Il n'y a pas de bus le dimanche.There are no buses on Sundays.