Être and avoir

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Use être for identity and location

Être means to be. Its present forms are je suis, tu es, il/elle/on est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils/elles sont. Unlike English, French usually omits the indefinite article before an unmodified profession: je suis professeur.

Use être for location too: nous sommes à Paris. Keep the subject pronoun in ordinary statements; suis étudiant on its own is not the standard full sentence.

Use avoir for having and age

Avoir means to have. Learn j’ai, tu as, il/elle/on a, nous avons, vous avez, ils/elles ont. Je becomes j’ before ai.

French expresses age with avoir: j’ai trente ans, literally I have thirty years. Do not translate English I am thirty word for word. Avoir also appears in expressions such as avoir faim and avoir soif.

Compare whole expressions

Je suis fatigué means I am tired for a masculine speaker; fatiguée is the feminine written form. J’ai faim means I am hungry, and j’ai soif means I am thirsty. The English word am does not always correspond to être.

On is a third-person singular subject often used for we in everyday conversation: on est à Paris. Nous sommes is also correct. Keep the verb singular with on even when it refers to several people.

Lesson vocabulary

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Practice questions

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Independent practice

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