*NOTES* Flashcards
devoir
To specify “must” rather than “should,” add a word like absolument or vraiment.
pouvoir
‘Peut’ is one of a handful of verbs that can be negated with just ‘ne’ (without ‘pas’)
si vous voulez
“Si vous voudriez” is an incorrect phrase. “Si” cannot be followed by the conditional - you can only say si vous voulez.
pour vs. pendant
Explanation: The French preposition ‘pour’ translates as ‘for,’ but when referring to time, you can only use it to talk about the future–‘Pendant’ must be used for past tense.
BAGS
Certain adjectives are placed before the noun, some which you can memorize with the acronym "BAGS": Beauty Age Good/bad Size
To Return - Intransitive French Verbs
- Revenir means to return to where the speaker is: “to come back.”
- Retourner means to return somewhere that the speaker is not: “to go back.” Note that retourner can also be a transitive verb.
- Rentrer means to return home, regardless of where the speaker is right now: “to go home,” “to come home.”
‘des’ vs ‘de’
When a plural noun is preceded by an adjective, ‘des’ is replaced by ‘de’. However, one keeps ‘des’ if the group ‘adj. + noun’ is considered a compound noun:
des petites filles (young girls)
de petites filles (small girls)
dont
Referring to either people or things, dont replaces de + an object in a relative clause. Some expressions in French automatically have de attached to it, hence the usage of dont is required here. For example, parler de (to speak of), avoir besoin de (to need), and avoir peur de (to fear).
dont (eg.s)
Le livre dont nous parlons est Les Misérables. The book (that) we're talking about is Les Misérables. (parler de)
J’ai rencontré une femme dont le mari est agent du FBI.
I met a woman whose husband is an FBI agent.
(rencontre de)
Voici les clés dont j’ai besoin!
Here are the keys (that) I need!
DR AND MRS VANDERTRAMP
Mnemonic for memorizing which past-tense verbs take 'être' rather than 'avoir.' Another way to memorize these verbs is DR & MRS VANDERTRAMP: Devenir Revenir & Monter Rester Sortir
Venir Aller Naître Descendre Entrer Rentrer Tomber Retourner Arriver Mourir Partir et Passer par
Past Tense
The imperfect [je mangeais] translates to the English imperfect [I was eating] while the passé composé [j’ai mangé] literally translates to the English present perfect [I have eaten] but can also be translated as the English simple past [I ate] or the emphatic past [I did eat].
