In the last episode of this series, I'll clarify the rules of agreement of the past participle with reflexive verbs in French. This rule is a little bit more advanced and requires some notions of grammar: you need to know how reflexive verbs work (see the links below for brush-up) and what direct/indirect objects and pronouns are. Some native French people don’t make the proper agreement of the past participle with reflexive verbs because the rule can be tricky - I sometimes find myself hesitating a lot too! Let’s see if YOU can get it right after my easy tips ? FYW 106 : "Je me lave, vous … Read More →
FYW 167 : French verbs – agreement of the past participle with ETRE (compound tenses, part 3)
Did you know that the past participles may need to take an extra "E" and/or "S" in some cases? That is when they are being used as adjectives, but also in some specific situations in compound tenses. In this episode, I’ll clarify the rules of agreement of the past participle with ETRE. In the next part dedicated to this series about compound tenses, we'll see the rules of agreements of the past participles with the auxiliary AVOIR. Previous episodes in the series: Episode 164: French verbs: past participles (compound tenses, part 1): frenchyourway.com.au/podcast164 Episode 165: … Read More →
FYW 140 : Past historic tense in French: why I don’t (and won’t) teach it
For intermediate and advanced students. I'll be reading a text in French - this text is included in the shownotes for you to follow! What’s the past historic tense? Also called "simple past" or "preterite", or "passé simple" in French, this tense is rarely used and even after years of teaching thousands of students, I have never taught it. I’ll explain when and where you can find this tense, why I find unnecessary to teach it and what you can do to just go around it easily! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode La pasteurisation La rage = rabies Text … Read More →
FYW 127 : Vocabulary booster: words derived from “recevoir”
In this episode, brush-up or increase your French vocabulary with these words derived from the verb "recevoir". By the way, do you know how to conjugate the verb "recevoir" in French? Test yourself and then listen to the episode to check your answer! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Recevoir: je reçois, tu reçois, il/elle/on reçoit, nous recevons, vous recevez, ils/elles reçoivent Past participle: reçu futur simple: je recevrai un receveur = (tax) collector ; recipient (organ) Un récipient = a container Un destinataire = recipient (mail, call) Un … Read More →
FYW 065 : Futur Simple vs Futur Proche
Discover some popular French expressions with body parts words. Can you guess what "having a hair on one’s tongue" mean? Or "not having one’s tongue in one’s pocket"? Find out now! Enrich your vocabulary and get a fun insight into French culture as well :-) Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode L’année prochaine, je vais étudier le français en France. = Next year, I’m going to study French in France Pour ma retraite, je vais acheter une maison au bord de la mer. = For my retirement I’m going to buy a house by the beach. Nous débiterons 200 dollars de votre … Read More →
FYW 058 : How to Conjugate French Verbs in –IR Without Losing Your Mind
French verbs are often the nightmare of students of French! Listen to these simple tips on How to Conjugate French Verbs in –IR such as “partir”, “finir”, “dormir”. We’ll cover all you need to know about them, the present and past participle forms. I’m sure these tips will help make French conjugation much easier (and less daunting) for you! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode La FIN = the end FINIR (FIN + IR) is to become the end, to get to the end, therefore to finish. Gros, grosse = big GROSSIR = to become big, to put on … Read More →
FYW 047 : Perfect or Imperfect ? (French verbs)
I received this question from one of my podcast listeners. Sinead gets confused between when to use the perfect or imperfect tenses in French (imparfait or passé composé). This is actually a headache for many students of French, so I’ve tried to make my explanations as simple as possible, with lots of examples. I also give you tips on how to reflect and practice using both French tenses properly. In the future, I will design a resource and courses to help you with French conjugations, French verbs. So if you are interested, sign up to my newsletter: … Read More →
FYW 028 : Le Cahier De Vacances – All About Holiday and Homework
In the Northern hemisphere, summer is coming to an end, holiday time is over. Children and students are going back to school soon (la rentrée) and you may now be listening to me on your commute rather than on the beach. Don’t worry! To help you transition smoothly, I’ll start the episode talking about holidays (the word “vacances in French”) and then we’ll move to duties and homework talk! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Nous sommes allés en vacances en France / Nous sommes allés en France pour les vacances = We went on holiday in France. Les grandes … Read More →
How to Conjugate French Verbs in –IR Without Losing Your Mind
Ah, French verbs! They’re the nightmare of most students of French! By popular demand, here are some of my best tips if you’re feeling lost with how to conjugate French verbs in –IR. Learn how to Conjugate _IR Verbs Easily Good news: you only need to learn the indicative present tense and the past participle forms! All other tenses can easily be made from them ; refer to my article “The 7 Most Common French Tenses Made Easy” (it includes a downloadable worksheet with exercises). 1. Learn the verb endings for the indicative present tense Verbs in –IR have their endings as follows: _s, … Read More →
The 7 Most Common French Tenses Made Easy (Recipes)
French verbs and their conjugation seem to be the most exasperating part of French grammar for students. There are quite a number of French tenses and moods (I will write about those in a future article) and it is very easy to feel overwhelmed. As a result, many students buy dictionaries specifically dedicated to French verbs. Honestly, if I were a French student, the mere sight of these dictionaries would discourage me! Do I have to learn all that??! Good news : the answer is NO. There is an easy way you can dramatically reduce the amount of memorisation (and headaches!) to learn the … Read More →