Present tense: regular, irregular and reflexive verbs
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Apuntes de la lección
Regular model patterns
- Parler: je parle, tu parles, il/elle parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils/elles parlent. Finir: je finis, tu finis, il/elle finit, nous finissons, vous finissez, ils/elles finissent.
- Vendre: je vends, tu vends, il/elle vend, nous vendons, vous vendez, ils/elles vendent. These are model classes, not rules for every verb with the same final letters: partir and prendre differ; aller is irregular.
Present model patterns
Key irregular verbs
- Être: suis, es, est, sommes, êtes, sont. Avoir: ai, as, a, avons, avez, ont. Aller: vais, vas, va, allons, allez, vont. Faire: fais, fais, fait, faisons, faites, font. Each list follows je, tu, il/elle, nous, vous, ils/elles.
- Prendre: je prends, nous prenons, ils prennent. Pouvoir: je peux, nous pouvons; vouloir: je veux, nous voulons; devoir: je dois, nous devons; savoir: je sais. Learn the subject with each form.
Irregular forms by subject
Modal-style infinitive constructions
- Je peux aller, je veux lire and nous devons travailler keep the second verb in the infinitive. The first verb carries the conjugated present form matching the subject.
- Je sais nager means I know how to swim. Savoir and connaître have different constructions; these examples do not imply every use of savoir, devoir or pouvoir must have a following infinitive.
Conjugated verb plus infinitive
Reflexive and pronominal forms
- Se lever gives je me lève, tu te lèves, il/elle se lève, nous nous levons, vous vous levez, ils/elles se lèvent. Both the pronoun and verb match the subject; the stem vowel changes in the indicated forms.
- Je m’appelle elides me before appelle. Pronominal constructions are not always translated literally as doing something to oneself: s’appeler naturally supplies a name.
Match pronoun and verb
Standard written negatives
- Je ne parle pas means I do not speak / I am not speaking; je ne mange jamais de viande means I never eat meat; je ne vois rien means I see nothing; je ne joue plus means I no longer play.
- In je ne me lève pas, ne comes before the reflexive pronoun and pas after the conjugated verb. Spoken French often omits ne; the complete written forms are practised here.
Standard negative statements
Question construction and address
- Où habites-tu ? uses inversion and a hyphen; Où est-ce que tu habites ? uses est-ce que. Tu addresses one person familiarly, while vous may address a group or one person formally.
- Tu habites où ? is common in familiar speech. Inversion itself is a standard construction rather than an inherently informal register. Learn où/where, quand/when, comment/how, pourquoi/why, qui/who and combien/how much or many.
Ask where someone lives
Present and continuing duration
- Je mange can express I eat or I am eating. J’habite ici depuis cinq ans means I have lived here for five years and still do: this continuing situation uses present habite.
- Depuis cinq ans introduces a duration (for five years); depuis 2021 a starting point (since 2021). Depuis does not always require the present: a different past reference frame can use the imperfect.
Read the time context
Recent past or place of origin
- Present venir plus de/d’ plus an infinitive expresses recent past: je viens de manger, il vient d’arriver. The conjugated verb is present but the whole construction describes something just completed.
- Je viens de Paris instead gives a place of origin. Check what follows de rather than assuming every occurrence of venir de expresses recent past.
What follows venir de?
Spelling and model limits
- Manger takes nous mangeons, retaining e to preserve the soft g sound before ons. This is a spelling adjustment within the -er group; parler gives nous parlons.
- Finir gives nous finissons while partir gives nous partons. Prendre has nous prenons and ils prennent. Endings and stems must follow the actual verb’s pattern, not just its last two infinitive letters.
Avoid invented universal patterns
Diapositivas
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Preguntas de práctica
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1.What is the je present-tense form of parler?
Easy- Aje parle
- Bje parles
- Cje parlons
- Dje parlez
2.What is the tu present-tense form of finir?
Easy- Atu finit
- Btu finissons
- Ctu finissez
- Dtu finis
3.What is the il present-tense form of vendre?
Easy- Ail vendons
- Bil vendent
- Cil vend
- Dil vends
4.What is the nous present-tense form of finir?
Easy- Anous finissez
- Bnous finissons
- Cnous finons
- Dnous finis
5.What is the vous present-tense form of être?
Easy- Avous êtes
- Bvous êtez
- Cvous est
- Dvous sommes
6.What is the nous present-tense form of aller?
Easy- Anous allez
- Bnous vons
- Cnous vais
- Dnous allons
7.What is the ils present-tense form of faire?
Easy- Ails fais
- Bils faites
- Cils font
- Dils faisent
8.What is the vous present-tense form of faire?
Easy- Avous font
- Bvous faites
- Cvous faisez
- Dvous faisons
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