Author: Thumb & Four Fingers

Imperfect Tense (French)

Imperfect

Past Perfect The “perfect” or composite past – Le temps parfait ou Passé Composé
The most commonly used past tense in the modern French language.
It is used to express an action that has been completed at the time of speech, or at some (possibly unknown) time in the past.
The Passé Composé (Past Tense) is formed with a helper (also called “auxiliary”) verb followed by the past participle of the main verb. The helper verb is always either AVOIR or ÊTRE, depending on which main verb you’re using. With reflexive verbs, the helper verb is always going to be ÊTRE.

Passé composé
Forming the negative in the passé composé

Passé composé of Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive Verbs in Passé Composé (Past Tense)

Verb Tenses
Elements of Grammar

Personal Pronouns (French)

French Personal Pronouns Les pronoms
change according to the grammatical person that they represent:
Subject
Direct Object
Indirect Object
Reflexive
Stressed

As Opposed to Impersonal Pronouns

Soi Indefinite Personal Pronoun

Specific Pronouns Les pronoms
Personal Pronouns

y and en
y to refer to a place to which one is going
en to refer to a place from which one is coming
A and en with means of transportation
en when talking about riding in enclosed conveyance
a to discuss means of transporation requiring standing or straddling
(a cheval, a ski, a bicyclette)

Relative Pronouns
qui and que

Personal Pronouns

Personal Subject Pronouns

Interrogative Pronouns

Demonstrative Pronouns

Stressed Pronouns

Imperative and Personal Pronouns

Direct Object Pronouns

Indirect Object Pronouns

Reflexive Pronouns

Negative Pronouns

On third-person singular pronoun

Pronouns and Questions

The position of en with personal pronouns
LES PRONOMS University of Houston

Pronouns
Nouns
Elements of Grammar

La Tour Eiffel

Eiffel Tower
La Tour Eiffel (9:30 to 11:00pm)
The Eiffel Tower’s Voice: Stefania Rousselle (Arts: New York Times)
Surprisingly, it may be difficult to spot the Eiffel Tower from most streets of Paris. A great perch for viewing the Paris skyline is from the front balcony of the Pompideu Center. Another great view of the Tower is from beneath it.
Our favorite moment at the Eiffel Tower was jogging early in the morning before dawn. This area along the Seine is open, with an iscolated even dangerous feeling.
The rest of the time, this area is mobbed by tourism The neighborhood atop Butte Montmartre is even more congested but to us more acceptable because of it’s artistic, bohemian aire and its spiritual proximity to the Basilica Sacré-Cœur. And far in the distance you will spot the tiny Eiffel Tower.

Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923)
also designed the inner framework of the Statue of Liberty

Participles (French)

Participles
Words formed from a verb and used as an adjective or a noun

Present Participles
En and present participle
Cause and occasion: en + present participle (en vieillissant, je commence à comprendre)

Past Participles
Past participles inding in -i, -is, it and -rt Past participles inding in -i, -is, it and -rt
Past participles ending in -u (do not reflect or correspond to a single category of infinitives)
Past participles ending in -é (correspond to infinitives ending in -er)

Agreement of Past Participles
-Agreement with preceding direct objects (reflexive verbs conjugated with avoir)
-Agreement with subjects (nonrelexive verbs conjugated with être)

determine past participle of verb for compound tenses
(passé composé, the pluperfect , the past conditional)

Moi Mots
Verbs
Elements of Grammar

Time (French Expressions)

Expressions of Time

Mettre and expressions of time
How long it takes to complete an activity Le temps qu’on met

en avance, à l’heure, en retard
en avance (early)
a l’heure (on time)
en retard (late)
en deux minutes (in two minutes)

il y a une heure, tout a l’heure, dans une heure
Il y a une heure (very recent past or very near future)
tout à l’heure (the past)
dans une heure (the future)
tout de suite

pendant, depuis, pour
pendant (duration)
depuis (significance for a forward-looking project)
pour (point of departure)

French Expressions
Elements of Grammar