Depuis, pendant, and il y a all mean “for” or “ago” in English, but each one signals a different relationship between an action and time, and each requires a different French verb tense. This lesson explains the differences with clear examples.
When one French verb is followed by another in infinitive form, you often need à or de in between. Which one depends entirely on the main verb. This lesson covers the key verbs in each category, with tables and examples throughout.
The French futur antérieur (future perfect) is how you say what will have happened by a certain point in the future. If you know the futur simple and the passé composé, you already have all the pieces you need.
The French past conditional (le conditionnel passé) is how you talk about what would have happened if things had gone differently. If you already know the passé composé and the present conditional, you have everything you need to learn it
French verb tenses can seem overwhelming. Here’s an overview, all on one page, of what to expect when you’re learning the tenses and moods, plus which ones you should prioritize on your French learning journey.
The four core French verbs (être, avoir, aller, and faire) are the most important verbs to learn and will dramatically increase your French proficiency.
Using il est versus c’est is a subtle nuance of French that native speakers use effortlessly but can require conscious effort on non-native French learners’ parts. There are some consistent rules to using these French grammar structures, and we cover some notable exceptions, as well as when using either structure implies different meanings.
Pronouns ‘y’ and ‘en’ are commonly taught later than direct and indirect object pronouns in French, and they have multiple meanings. They replace something and have different placements in sentences compared to English.
Talking about time and dates in French can be challenging for English speakers due to the different verb tenses and idiomatic expressions. Learning the vocabulary words and sentence structures for expressing time in French is necessary for more advanced speakers, and may require some practice and time to learn.
French present participles are verb forms showing present circumstances or events that are in the midst of happening, as well as modifying nouns as another type of adjective. They are simple to form, with relatively few exceptions and nuances to remember, but they will expand your grammatical repertoire significantly.
Comparative and superlatives in French are generally simpler than in English, though there are a few irregular forms to use and an unusual structure in certain cases. However, if you remember the limited irregular forms and to use the appropriate gender and singular/plural endings, you will have mastered most of this grammar structure.
Pronouns replace nouns in sentences, and they are an easy way to avoid redundancy and construct more advanced sentences in French. They take different forms depending on what function in the sentence they are taking and which pronoun they are replacing. There are often distinct masculine/feminine and singular/plural forms.
