French grammar tip: The Subjunctive Mood in French
The subjunctive mood is used in French to express doubt, emotion, necessity, or uncertainty. For example, in ‘Il faut que tu viennes’ (You must come), ‘viennes’ is in the subjunctive…
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French grammar tip: The Subjunctive Mood in French The subjunctive mood is used in French to express doubt, emotion, necessity, or uncertainty. For example, in ‘Il faut que tu viennes’…
French grammar tip: Understanding Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive verbs in French are used when the subject and the object of the verb are the same. For example, ‘se laver’ means ‘to wash oneself’. Reflexive verbs often require…
French grammar tip: The Difference Between ‘Savoir’ and ‘Connaître’
‘Savoir’ means ‘to know’ in the sense of knowledge or information, while ‘connaître’ means ‘to know’ in terms of being familiar with someone or something. For example, ‘Je sais la…
French grammar tip: The Use of ‘Y’ in French
‘Y’ is a pronoun in French that often replaces a prepositional phrase indicating a place or a thing introduced by ‘à’. For instance, ‘Je vais à Paris’ becomes ‘J’y vais’…
French grammar tip: Understanding the Partitive Article
The partitive article (‘du’, ‘de la’, ‘de l’’) is used in French to express an unspecified quantity, similar to ‘some’ in English. For example, ‘du vin’ means ‘some wine’. L’article…
French grammar tip: Forming Questions with ‘Est-ce que’
‘Est-ce que’ is a common way to form questions in French. For example, ‘Est-ce que tu viens?’ means ‘Are you coming?’. It’s a versatile structure that can be used in…
French grammar tip: The Use of ‘De’ and ‘Du’
‘De’ is used to indicate possession or origin, like ‘le livre de Marie’ (Marie’s book). ‘Du’ is the contraction of ‘de le’ and is used with masculine singular nouns, such…
French grammar tip: The Role of Accents in French
Accents in French, like the acute (é) or grave (è), can change the meaning of words. For example, ‘é’ in ‘café’ is different from ‘è’ in ‘père’ (father). Accents are…
French grammar tip: Understanding French Negation
French negation typically involves two parts: ‘ne’ and ‘pas’. For example, ‘je ne sais pas’ means ‘I don’t know’. The ‘ne’ comes before the verb, and ‘pas’ follows it. La…
French grammar tip: The Difference Between ‘Bon’ and ‘Bien’
‘Bon’ means ‘good’ and is an adjective, while ‘bien’ means ‘well’ and is an adverb. Use ‘bon’ with nouns, as in ‘un bon repas’ (a good meal), and ‘bien’ with…
French grammar tip: Using ‘Avoir’ in Expressions
‘Avoir’ (to have) is used in many French expressions, such as ‘avoir faim’ (to be hungry) or ‘avoir raison’ (to be right). These are different from English, where ‘to be’…