French/Lessons/Family
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| Lessons |
|---|
| Level One |
| 1.01 Basic Grammar |
| 1.02 To Be |
| 1.03 Description |
| 1.04 Family |
| 1.05 Recreation |
| 1.06 The House |
| 1.07 Weather |
| 1.08 Travel |
| 1.09 Art |
| 1.10 Science |
| Test • Planning |
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| Learning the French Language • Downloadable and Print Versions
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[edit] G: The verb avoir
"Avoir" can be translated as "to have".
[edit] Formation
| Singular | Plural | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| first person | j'ai | jay | I have | nouszavons | noozahvohn | we have |
| second person | tu as | too ah | you have | vouszavez | voozahvay | you have |
| third person | il a | eel ah | he has | ilszont | eelzohnt | they have (masc. or mixed) |
| elle a | ell ah | she has | ||||
| onna | ohnah | one has | elleszont | ellzohnt | they have (fem.) | |
[edit] Examples
| J'ai deux stylos. | I have two pens. |
| Tu as trois frères. | You have three brothers. |
| Il a une idée. | He has an idea. |
[edit] Expressing Age
Avoir is used to express age.
- Tu as quel âge? - How old are you? [lit: You have what age?]
- J'ai trente ans. - I'm thirty (years old). [lit: I have thirty years]
[edit] There is/are - Il y a
The expression il y a means there is or there are.
- Il y a un livre. - There is a book.
- Il y a des livres. - There are books.
[edit] V: The Family
French Vocabulary • Family •  audio (info •1245 kb • help) The Family  La Famille |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate Family | Extended Family | ||
| ma famille | my family | ma famille éloignée | my extended family |
| les parents | parents | les grand-parents | grandparents |
| la mère | mother | la grand-mère | grandmother |
| le père | father | le grand-père | grandfather |
| la femme | wife | les petits-enfants | grandchildren |
| le mari | husband | le petit-fils | grandson |
| la soeur | sister | la petite-fille | granddaughter |
| le frère | brother | l'oncle, tonton | uncle |
| l'enfant | child (m or f) | la tante, tati | aunt |
| les enfants | children | le neveu | nephew |
| la fille | daughter | la nièce | niece |
| le fils | son | le/la cousin(e) | cousin (m or f) |
| Step Family | |||
| la belle-mère | stepmother | la demi-soeur | half sister |
| le beau-père | stepfather | le demi-frère | half brother |
To speak about more complex family relations, such as "my grandmother's cousin", you must use the de mon/ma/mes form - "le cousin de ma grandmère".
[edit] G: Direct Object Pronouns le, la, and les
le, la, and les are called direct object pronouns, because they are pronouns that are, you guessed it, used as direct objects. A direct object is a noun that is acted upon by a verb.
- Il lance la balle. - He throws the ball.
In the above sentence la balle is the direct object.
You have learned earlier that names and regular nouns can be replaced by the subject or nominative pronouns "I, you, he..." (je, tu, il...). Similary, direct objects, such as "la balle", can be replaced by pronouns. These are a different set of pronouns (accusative). As in English, you would say "She gave him," and not "Her gave he." He/she are subjects used in the nominative case, while him/her are direct objects used in the accusative case.
- le - replaces a masculine singular direct object
- la - replaces a feminine singular direct object
- l' - replaces le and la if they come before a vowel
- les - replaces plural direct objects, both masculine and feminine
The direct object pronouns come before the verb they are linked to.
- Il la lance. - He throws it.
- Il les lance. - He throws them.
Le, la, and les can replace either people or inanimate objects.
Level One Lessons  1.01 Basic Grammar |
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