2 – Me voici!
Grammaire: Le verbe “avoir”
The verb “to have”
1. Formation:
The verb avoir is irregular in the present tense.
| avoir ‘to have’ | ||||
| j’ai ‘I have’ | nous avons ‘we have’ | |||
| tu as ‘you (sg.) have’ | vous avez ‘you all have’ | |||
| il a ‘he has’ elle a ‘she has’ on a ‘one has’ |
ils ont ‘they have’ elles ont ‘they have’ |
Prononciation:
- Do you recognize the [e] sound from chapter 1?The “ai” spelling also makes the [e] sound.
- Listen carefully to the pronunciation of the -s in the plural pronouns nous, vous, and ils/elles:
- This -s is pronounced as a [z] to link with the vowel sound in the plural forms of avoir.
- This liaison, or linking, is especially important in distinguishing ils ont (they have) from the third person plural of être ils sont (they are).
2. Uses:
- Avoir conveys general ownership.
- It is also used when expressing age in French (unlike the English equivalent, which uses the verb ‘to be.).
| Tex, tu as des frères et des soeurs? | Tex, do you have brothers and sisters? | |
| Tex: Oui, j’ai une soeur et un frère. | Tex: Yes, I have a sister and a brother. | |
| Quel âge ont-ils? | How old are they? | |
| Tex: Ma soeur Rita a 30 ans et mon frère Trey a 16 ans. | Tex: My sister Rita is 30 and my brother Trey is 16. |
3. Focus on…
pronunciation and usage:
4. Test your knowledge:
Start with recalling the English translation (on the left), and then try recalling the French translation (on the right).
5. Listening Comprehension:
What do you understand?
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
