The verb "être," which means "to be" in French, is a verb you'll find yourself using all the time in day-to-day life! Be sure to read through this article, as we'll go over all you need to know, including how to conjugate the verb, how to pronounce it in French, and a look at some of the most often used sentences that include the verb Être.
Along with the verb avoir (to have), the verb être (to be) is one of the most important French verbs. This irregular verb is so important to learn because it is used in everyday conversations, in idiomatic expressions, as well as with compound tenses (a tense that has two parts - an auxiliary (être or avoir) and a past participle, which will be covered in other articles).
The verb être is one of the first verbs language learners typically learn, as it is used to convey a ton of information about a person.
French has six "persons", three are singular (je - I, tu - you, il/elle/on - he/she/it) and three plural (nous- we, vous - you and they - ils and elles).
Below you will find how to conjugate the verb Être in the present tense:
|
Singular |
Plural |
|
Je suis - I am |
Nous sommes - We are |
|
Tu es - You are |
Vous êtes - You are |
|
Il/elle/on* est - He/she/it is |
Ils/elles sont - They are |
*On
Note that in French, depending on the context, the subject pronoun "on" can mean one, we, people. This is a commonly used in every-day speech with French people usually favoring it over "nous" which is considered more formal.
When to Use "C'est" and "Ce Sont":
The expressions "c'est" and "ce sont" are used for introducing or identifying something, whether singular or plural.
"C'est" is employed when the noun is preceded by a modifier or an adjective. For instance, if we say "il est anglais" (he is English), we use "il" as the subject pronoun. However, if we want to add an adjective, such as "c'est un avocat anglais" (he's an English lawyer), we use "c'est" to introduce the noun and the accompanying adjective.
Similarly, "ce sont" is utilized when introducing or identifying plural nouns or adjectives. For example, "ce sont de gentils chiens" (they are nice dogs), we need to use "ce sont" to introduce the plural noun "chiens" (dogs) along with the adjective "gentils" (nice).
Must-Know Expressions with Être:
Learning some key expressions with être can help you sound more natural in French conversations. Here are a few must-know examples:
- Être en retard - To be late
- Être en avance - To be early
- Être d'accord - To agree
- Être en colère - To be angry
- Être heureux/heureuse - To be happy
- Être triste - To be sad
- Être amoureux/amoureuse - To be in love
- Être fatigué/fatiguée - To be tired
- Être occupé/occupée - To be busy
- Être calme - To be calm
- Être fier/fière - To be proud
- Être malade - To be sick
- Être en vacances - To be on vacation
- Être en train de - To be currently doing something
- Être sur le point de - To be about to do something
