Être is one of the most common verbs in French; in any French class, it will be the first one you will learn. Here are some basic things you need to know about it.
French
English
Il est grand.
He is tall.
Usage in the Sentence
Rule 1: Just like aller and avoir, être can be used both in sentences and in grammatic constructions. When used on its own, it means "to be" and can identify things and people:
French
English
C'est mon soeur.
This is my sister.
or indicate dates and times:
French
English
Aujourd’hui on est le 15 octombre.
Today is October 15.
or be used with adjectives to describe something:
French
English
Je suis petit.
I'm small.
Conjugation
Be careful, the verb être is very common but irregular.
| je | suis |
| tu | es |
| il, elle, on | est |
| nous | sommes |
| vous | êtes |
| ils, elles | sont |
| je | suis |
| tu | es |
| il, elle, on | est |
| nous | sommes |
| vous | êtes |
| ils, elles | sont |
Usage in Grammatical Constructions
Rule 2: Être is also used as an auxiliary verb in compound tenses conjugations with certain groups of verbs. For example, with all reflexive verbs (les verbes pronominaux):
French
English
Je me suis lavé.
I washed (myself).
In passive sentences:
French
English
Elle est respectée de tous ses collègues.
She is respected by all her colleagues.
And with several verbs of movement and their derivatives when they are used without a direct object, such as aller (to go), venir (to come), or retourner (to return).
French
English
Il est venu hier.
He came yesterday.
Quiz
1/4
Je _ monté.
0
correct answers.