Posts belonging to Category 'grammaire'

Comparatifs et superlatifs 2

Regardez la vidéo et faites les exercices proposés. Voici un petit rappel: Comparatifs / Superlatifs Adjectifs courts (1 syllabe) ex : big tall + er / + est great I’m taller than / I’m the tallest Adjectifs en -y ex : happy crazy craz + ier / + iest (attention, -y est remplacé par -i) [...]

Comparatifs et superlatifs 1

Regardez la vidéo et essayez de repérer comparatifs et superlatifs et leur structure. Demain vous pourrez réviser vos connaissances sur le sujet avec une vidéo plus “grammaticale”. Vous pouvez aussi établir le classement des plus belles langues du monde si ça vous amuse. En attendant, un petit rappel: Comparatifs : old – older than big [...]

Ago

Paul shows how to use the word ‘ago’. It can only be used for the past. Sometimes it’s easier to use ago with the past than to use the present perfect, which is complicated for French speakers. Remember that being understood is the most important part of learning a language. I moved here 20 years [...]

Negative short forms

isn’t = is not wasn’t = was not aren’t = are not weren’t = were not don’t = do not doesn’t = does not didn’t = did not haven’t = have not hasn’t = has not hadn’t = had not can’t = cannot (written as one word) couldn’t =could not won’t = will not wouldn’t [...]

This, that, these, those

I’ve noticed that even some advanced learners still have some problems with these determiners. The simplest explanation is ‘this’ is close to me, and ‘that’ is further away. ‘These’ and ‘those’ are the plural forms. Share on Facebook

Drilling: to come(venir)

Don’t forget the ‘big three‘! Get into the habit of practising changing a verb into each of the three times, past, present, and future. You can start by translating – when you get good the French part will disappear. Don’t learn lists, though, test yourself randomly, like this: Je viens – I come Il viendra [...]

Causative with Passive & Gerunds

I enjoy talking during movies (verb)+(gerund) She makes me shut up – elle me fait taire (causative) Passive: I am made to shut up (on me fait taire) with gerund: I am not accustomed to being made to shut up Share on Facebook

like, such as, for example, e.g.

We use these words when supporting what we have said with examples. As a general rule, only use ‘e.g.’ when writing. It is the abbreviation of ‘exempli gratia’ from Latin. ‘Like’ means ‘similar to’ as in this sentence: ‘She loves chocolate and hates turnip, just like me‘ (Elle adore le chocolat et déteste le navet, [...]

Time Prepositions

Il vaut mieux apprendre quelques exemples par coeur, parce que c’est difficile d’établir des règles. Les prépositions employées pour l’heure, les temps, les dates sont: on, in, at faites ce petit exercice: 1. I always get up _______ 6 O’clock 2. My appointment is _________ Monday 3. Most people take their holidays _______ July or [...]

conditionals: review

If I were you, I’d (=I would) get more rest si j’étais toi, je me reposerais davantage Practice: answer the questions in the comments section of this post Share on Facebook

Answer these questions: third conditional practice

This question is in the third conditional: If + past + I would + infinitive If I worked in a chocolate factory, I would hate eating chocolate. Si je travaillais dans une chocolaterie, je détesterais manger du chocolat What would you do if you won ten million Euros on the lottery? Que feriez-vous si vous [...]

Being (verb to be)

In the sentence, “He is being nice”, the word ‘being’ is the present participle In the sentence “Being ill is really unpleasant”, the word ‘being’ is a gerund. A gerund looks like a verb, but acts like a noun. We can follow the verb ‘like’ with either an infinitive or a gerund: I like to [...]