French grammar made easy – a quick how to
So, is grammar difficult for you?
If you feel that the more difficult tenses are used more often in conversation, and that your brain doesn’t jump that quickly, to use them right, then this is for you.
Read the article to see how to apply the French grammar better in your conversation, and listen to the podcast for a quick taste of a French verb.
Photo credit: A.G. photographe
What verbs should you learn?
This varies for everyone, but there are a few verbs that are the most used and you should know:
1 – Avoir
2 – Être
3 – Faire
4 – Aller
5 – Pouvoir
6 – Prendre
7 – Voir
8 – Finir
9 – Vouloir
10 – Manger
Once you have these under your belt, to know which other verbs you should learn, write a one-page intro about yourself, as if you just met a new friend.
Underline the verbs you use and BAM! Those are the next verbs that you should learn.
What tenses should you learn?
First, learn présent, futur proche, passé composé.
Then go further to futur simple, imparfait.
And, finally, plus-que-parfait, conditionnel, subjonctif.
The sentence formation
The little words are the hardest part of the French grammar.
Start by making very short, very simple sentences, using what you’re learning from the books.
Yes, you need a conversation partner for that, and a French language coach would be ideal, as they can correct you in the most efficient way.
When you can make fluid conversation with short, simple sentences, you can start expanding slowly and gradually.
For this phase, you definitely need a French language coach. Not a nice friend or an exchange language partner. You need your own guidance to grow from here.
Francophones who are not trained to correct you will rarely be able to help you to quickly enrich your conversation. There’s a special skill they need to have, of correcting just enough (not leave mistakes build up), but not too much (knowing how to avoid overwhelming you).
Bonne chance ! : )
Got a minute?
Let’s practice together with today’s episode from the Daily Minute with J’Ouellette® podcast:
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Immerse yourself as you FINALLY reach your dream of becoming bilingual, learn to speak Parisian French and BREAK your language barrier!
Let me guess.
Do you constantly have the feeling that you can’t hear what the French say and you don’t know how to read all the French words because they are written so much differently than they sound?
Learn 3 secrets that will help you be self sufficient in the way you pronounce French words – even if you don’t know what they mean – so that you can read that sophisticated menu in your favorite French restaurant.
…and now, please SHARE this article with your friends. They’ll love you for it! : )
À la prochaine,
Llyane
Photo credit: Tatyana Markovtsev, A.G. photographe
