French Conversation: everyday and work French

01

The present tense toolkit

In simple words

A verb is the action word, like a little engine in every sentence. In French the end of the verb changes depending on who is doing the action. Learn the endings once and you can build hundreds of sentences.

Before this course: French for Beginners (Canada's 2nd Official Language), course 6.5. You already know greetings, tu and vous, numbers 1 to 10, ordering food and asking directions. Here we turn those phrases into real sentences.

Key facts

Most French verbs end in -er (parler, travailler, habiter, manger). Others end in -ir (finir) or -re (vendre).
Regular -er endings in the present: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. The endings -e, -es and -ent are silent.
Regular -ir (like finir) endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent.
Regular -re (like vendre) endings: -s, -s, - (nothing), -ons, -ez, -ent.
The most useful irregular verbs must be learned by heart.

	parler (to speak)	finir (to finish)	vendre (to sell)
je	parle	finis	vends
tu	parles	finis	vends
il / elle / on	parle	finit	vend
nous	parlons	finissons	vendons
vous	parlez	finissez	vendez
ils / elles	parlent	finissent	vendent

	être (to be)	avoir (to have)	aller (to go)	faire (to do, make)
je	suis	ai	vais	fais
tu	es	as	vas	fais
il / elle / on	est	a	va	fait
nous	sommes	avons	allons	faisons
vous	êtes	avez	allez	faites
ils / elles	sont	ont	vont	font

	pouvoir (can)	vouloir (to want)
je	peux	veux
tu	peux	veux
il / elle / on	peut	veut
nous	pouvons	voulons
vous	pouvez	voulez
ils / elles	peuvent	veulent

je becomes j' before a vowel or a silent h: j'habite, j'ai.
on (one, we) is very common in spoken French and uses the same verb form as il: on travaille = we work.
Remember from course 6.5: use vous with strangers, customers and at work until someone invites you to use tu.

Example (dialogue)

A: "Vous travaillez ici?" (Do you work here?)
B: "Oui, je travaille à l'entrepôt. Et vous?"
A: "Je suis nouveau. Je veux apprendre vite."
B: "Vous pouvez poser des questions. On est une bonne équipe."

Step by step

Copy the parler, finir and vendre table onto a sheet of paper.
Underline the endings only: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent for parler.
Choose five -er verbs you use every day (for example travailler, habiter, manger, regarder, étudier) and write all six forms of one of them.
Learn être, avoir, aller and faire one verb per day. Say each row out loud.
Write five true sentences about yourself, such as "J'habite à Toronto." and "Je fais mes devoirs."
Check: you can say the six forms of parler and the "je" and "vous" forms of être, avoir, aller and faire without looking.

Watch on YouTube

Être and avoir (French Essentials lesson 10)Learn French With Alexa · YouTube · youtube.com

Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.

LESSON 01The present tense toolkit

LESSON 01 / ANIMATED LESSON / AI VOICE00:00 / 01:00

Voice

Read the video script

[Host] "One verb, six endings. That is the whole secret of the French present tense."
[Text on screen: je parle / nous parlons / vous parlez] "For -er verbs: je parle, nous parlons, vous parlez."
[Text on screen: je suis, j'ai, je vais, je fais] "Four verbs to learn by heart: je suis, j'ai, je vais, je fais."
[Host] "Say them out loud every day. Soon your mouth will know them before your brain does."

Try it now

Write the full present tense of travailler and finir. Then write five sentences about your day using être, avoir, aller, faire and one -er verb.

ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude

Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.

For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.

I'm learning "French Conversation: everyday and work French" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "The present tense toolkit".

What the lesson teaches:
- Most French verbs end in -er (parler, travailler, habiter, manger). Others end in -ir (finir) or -re (vendre).
- Regular -er endings in the present: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. The endings -e, -es and -ent are silent.
- Regular -ir (like finir) endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent.
- Regular -re (like vendre) endings: -s, -s, - (nothing), -ons, -ez, -ent.
- The most useful irregular verbs must be learned by heart.
- parler (to speak) - finir (to finish) - vendre (to sell)
- je - parle - finis - vends

The exercise I'm working on:
Write the full present tense of travailler and finir. Then write five sentences about your day using être, avoir, aller, faire and one -er verb.

I'm stuck. Please:
1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example.
2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step.
3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.

I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "The present tense toolkit" from the course "French Conversation: everyday and work French".

Here's what the lesson says:
A verb is the action word, like a little engine in every sentence. In French the end of the verb changes depending on who is doing the action. Learn the endings once and you can build hundreds of sentences.

The activity:
Write the full present tense of travailler and finir. Then write five sentences about your day using être, avoir, aller, faire and one -er verb.

Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words.
Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.

Open Claude

Sources

Language Portal of Canada (Government of Canada), language resources and writing tools: nos-langues.canada.ca/en/
Charter of the French Language, s.1 (LégisQuébec): www.legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/document/cs/c-11

My notes

I learned this

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