grammar: what tense am I? Flashcards
What does
j’ai
mean?
I have
Just like in English, “J’ai” can be used to form the past tense:
je joue I play
j’ai joué I have played
how is “j’ai joué” pronounced?
“j’ai joué” is pronounced
zhay zhoo-ay
the ending “é” is like “ed” in English
It is called the past participle.
What would “arrivé” mean?
arrived
HOWEVER, you cannot use the word arrivé alone.
In English, you can say “I arrived” or “I have arrived”
In French “have” is NOT OPTIONAL.
What would “sauté” mean?
jumped
What would “plié” mean?
bended ( usually known as “bent”)
What tense:
je saute
je saute – present tense — I jump
What tense:
j’ai sauté
j’ai sauté – past tense — I jumped
What tense:
j’ai chanté
j’ai chanté – past tense — I sang
What tense:
j’écoute
j’écoute – present tense — I listen
What tense:
j’ai écouté
j’ai écouté – past tense — I listened
What tense:
je n’ai pas écouté
je n’ai pas écouté – past tense — I did NOT listen
Some verbs use “u” instead of “é”
What do you think “perdu” means?
perdu=lost
Here is another past participle:
vu
Present tense is je vois. What does it mean?
vu = (have) seen (like “view”)
What tense:
j’ai perdu le garçon
j’ai perdu le garçon = past tense = I lost the boy
What tense:
je perds le garçon
je perds le garçon = present tense = I lose the boy
What tense:
je te vois
je te vois = present tense = I see you
What tense:
je t’ai vu
je t’ai vu = past tense = I saw you
What tense:
je ne t’ai pas vu
je ne t’ai pas vu = past tense = I didn’t see you
What tense:
je t’ai vu dans la voiture
je t’ai vu dans la voiture = past tense
= I saw you in the car
REVIEW:
What is the verb after “j’ai” called?
a past participle
REVIEW:
What are two common forms for past participles?
(i.e., what endings)
é OR u
REVIEW:
What word is missing:
j’_____ chanté
j’ai chanté
translate:
on a trouvé un mur
we found a wall (past tense)
translate:
il a vendu un perroquet
he sold a parrot (past tense)
translate:
il a acheté un perroquet
he bought a parrot (past tense)
translate:
il l’a acheté dans une animalerie
he bought it at a pet store (past tense)
translate:
il me l’a donné
he gave it to me (past tense)
translate:
vous m’avez bien aidé
you helped me a lot (past tense)
REVIEW:
participles can end with which 3 vowels?
é, u, i
REVIEW
participles require which helping verb?
have OR is
j’ai, tu as, il a
je suis, tu es, il est
Here is a different past tense:
les animaux qui vivaient ici
What is important to notice about the ending of the verb?
AI - pronounced “ay”
les animaux qui vivaient ici
“vivaient” means “used to live” or “were living”
this is called the “imperfect”
How many words are needed for the imperfect past?
just one – with a AI in the ending
“était” is an example of the imperfect.
It simply means “was”.
Translate:
Les enfants étaient émerveillés.
The children were amazed.
translate:
Ce zoo était célebré
The zoo was famous
“venir” means “come”.
Translate:
On venait de tres loin
They used to come from far away.
Translate:
Les animaux étaient traités avec respect.
The animals were treated with respect.
“avoir” means “to have”.
What does “avait” mean?
used to have
OR was having
j’avais plus de modeles
I used to have a lot of models
When you use “avait” as a helper verb with a participle, you get “had” instead of “have”.
On avait oublié le zoo.
People had forgotten the zoo.
Translate:
Il était le préferé des enfants.
He was the children’s favorite.
Translate:
je l’avais peint une fois
I had painted him once.
Translate:
Il était l’âme de ce zoo.
He was the soul/spirit of the zoo.
“vouloir” means “to want”.
What is
Je voulais que chacun vive
I wanted each one to live.
“vais/vas/va” means “go”, like in vas-y!
What do you think “va à marcher” means?
(past, present, or future?)
va à marcher = is going to walk/march
vais abandonner
I am going to abandon
TENSE REVIEW
je marchais
imperfect – I was marching, or I used to march
TENSE REVIEW
je marche
present – I march
TENSE REVIEW
j’ai marché
past (perfect) – I marched or I have marched
TENSE REVIEW
je vais marché
future – I am going to march
translate:
c’est moi qui vais abandonner ce zoo
It’s me that will abandon this zoo
translate:
vous n’allez pas l’abandonner
You will not abandon it
translate:
demander quand tu vas reapparaitre
ask when you will reappear
translate:
je suis passé de l’autre côté
I got to the other side
suis + participle
translate:
le mur qu’on a trouvé
the wall we found
translate:
je vais avoir besoin de vous
I’m going to need you
translate:
voilà ce qu’on va faire
Here’s what we’re gonna do
translate:
on a tous gardé le secret
Everybody kept the secret
translate:
je ne sais pas ce qu’ils nous cachent tous
I don’t know what they’re all hiding from us
A NEW TENSE
méritera ….hmmmm….
This is the “real” future tense.
You use the infinitive (mériter) and add endings.
The participle of “to be” is
été
What is it in ENGLISH?
Hint: think “I have….”
I have been
So how do you say “I have been” in French?
j’ai été
Translate:
j’ai été hereuse
I have been happy
Translate:
je n’ai jamais été si hereuse
I have never been so happy
How are these different:
elle est
elle était
elle a été
elle va êtreelle est = She is
elle était = She was
elle a été = She has been
elle va être = She will be
What does “a” mean in “il y a”
“a” = have
“avoir” is the infinitive form of “a”
what is “il va y avoir”
There will be
There’s gonna be
Translate:
il va y avoir une naissance
There will be a birth
The participle of “avoir” is “eu”
How is it pronounced
“euh” (yeah, sort of)
What is “eu” in English? (Remember, use the helper verb in English to figure it out)
“eu” = “had”
I have had…
So “I have had” is what in French?
j’ai eu
Translate:
j’ai eu envie de ….
I wanted to
What about
“il y a eu un zoo”
There was a zoo
What about
“il y avait un zoo”
What tense do you think “avait” is?
“avait” is imperfect past.
When to use “il y a eu” vs. “il y avait” is tricky.
We’ll deal with it later.
:)
