Putting It Together
French Grammar 2
Chapter 10 · Putting It Together
🧩 Putting It Together — Tout ensemble
Nine chapters have given you the present tense piece by piece: the map of verbs, the regular groups, the two key verbs, the irregulars, the reflexives, negation, questions, and verbs that go with the infinitive. This chapter assembles them. First, one verb in every form it can take; then an eight-step procedure that builds any present-tense sentence; then an error clinic from the typical mistakes of the course; and finally the recap.
One verb in every form
The verb parler takes every form that a present-tense sentence can have:
| Form | Example |
|---|---|
| affirmative | Je parle français. |
| negative | Je ne parle pas français. |
| other negative pairs | Je ne parle jamais français. · Personne ne parle français. |
| question: intonation | Tu parles français ? |
| question: est-ce que | Est-ce que tu parles français ? |
| question: inversion | Parles-tu français ? · Parle-t-il français ? |
| question word | Avec qui parles-tu ? · Tu parles quand ? |
| imperative | Parle ! · Parlons ! · Parlez ! · Ne parle pas ! |
| with a modal | Je veux parler. · Je ne peux pas parler. · Je vais parler. |
| with à and de | Je commence à parler. · Je finis de parler. |
| recent past | Je viens de parler. |
The eight-step procedure
When you build a sentence, run through these steps in order. After a few weeks it becomes a habit:
| Step | Question | Where you learned it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Who is the subject? tu or vous? on or nous? | French Grammar 2 1 |
| 2 | Which group: -er, finir, partir, attendre? Is it irregular (être, avoir, aller, faire, pouvoir…)? | French Grammar 2 2, 3, 4 and 5 |
| 3 | Does the stem need a spelling change (mangeons, commençons, achète, appelle, paie)? | French Grammar 2 2 |
| 4 | Is it reflexive? Choose me, te, se, nous, vous, se. | French Grammar 2 6 |
| 5 | Is it negative? Wrap ne … pas / jamais / rien / plus; change un, des, du to de. | French Grammar 2 7 and French Grammar 1 6 |
| 6 | Is it a question? Choose intonation, est-ce que or inversion; add the question word and any preposition. | French Grammar 2 8 |
| 7 | Is a second verb needed? Direct infinitive, à or de? Or is it a command? | French Grammar 2 9 |
| 8 | Check the noun phrases of the sentence: gender, number, article, adjective. | French Grammar 1 10 |
🔧 Error Clinic
These are the typical mistakes of the course. Cover the right-hand column and correct each one.
| Error | Correct | Rule and chapter |
|---|---|---|
| Mes frères travaille à Paris. | Mes frères travaillent à Paris. | the verb agrees with its subject (French Grammar 2 1) |
| nous mangons | nous mangeons | -ger keeps the e (French Grammar 2 2) |
| j'achette | j'achète | acheter takes è (French Grammar 2 2) |
| il finis | il finit | -it in the third person (French Grammar 2 3) |
| il vends | il vend | no ending for il in -re verbs (French Grammar 2 3) |
| Je suis faim. | J'ai faim. | avoir for hunger, age, cold (French Grammar 2 4) |
| Elle est un médecin. | Elle est médecin. / C'est un médecin. | c'est or il est (French Grammar 2 4) |
| je peus · ils prendent | je peux · ils prennent | irregular stems (French Grammar 2 5) |
| Je se lave les mains. | Je me lave les mains. | the pronoun matches the subject (French Grammar 2 6) |
| Je ne mange pas des légumes. | Je ne mange pas de légumes. | de after a negative (French Grammar 2 7) |
| Qui parles-tu avec ? | Avec qui parles-tu ? | preposition before the question word (French Grammar 2 8) |
| Je commence de pleuvoir. · Je vais de partir. | Il commence à pleuvoir. · Je vais partir. | à, de or nothing before an infinitive (French Grammar 2 9) |
| Parles ! | Parle ! | no -s in the tu imperative of -er verbs (French Grammar 2 9) |
🗣️ In Use — En situation
One last set of exchanges that uses the whole present tense. Read them aloud and run the eight steps on each verb.
① A day in the family
② Plans
③ Don't!
✏️ Try It Yourself — Exercices
Build each sentence with the eight steps, then click to check.
1. Say "My brothers never get up early."
Show answer
Mes frères ne se lèvent jamais tôt. (reflexive se, è in lèvent, -ent plural, ne … jamais.)
2. Ask "Where do your parents live?" in the formal way.
Show answer
Où habitent tes parents ? (question word + verb + noun subject; the full inversion Où tes parents habitent-ils ? is also possible but heavier.)
3. Say "She is a doctor and she is twenty-five." Which verbs?
Show answer
Elle est médecin et elle a vingt-cinq ans. (être without an article, avoir for age.)
4. Say "We don't eat meat any more."
Show answer
Nous ne mangeons plus de viande. (mangeons, ne … plus, de after the negative.)
5. Say "Why are you leaving?" (vous, neutral).
Show answer
Pourquoi est-ce que vous partez ? (or formal Pourquoi partez-vous ?).
6. Say "I have to finish working, then I'm going to sleep."
Show answer
Je dois finir de travailler, puis je vais dormir. (devoir + infinitive, finir de, near future.)
7. Give the command "Don't wait, eat!" to vous (use attendre and manger).
Show answer
N'attendez pas, mangez ! (negative imperative with ne … pas, then the positive one.)
8. Correct: Ils sont faim · il y a pas de problème · tu parles pas français (careful writing).
Show answer
Ils ont faim · Il n'y a pas de problème · Tu ne parles pas français.
🏁 Course Complete — Terminé !
You have finished French Grammar 2. Here is what these ten chapters gave you.
| Chapters | What you can now do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Read the verb map: stem and ending, the three groups, tu against vous, and on. |
| 2–3 | Conjugate the regular -er, -ir and -re verbs, with their spelling changes. |
| 4–5 | Use être and avoir and their idioms, and conjugate fourteen irregular verbs in patterns. |
| 6 | Use reflexive and pronominal verbs and place the pronoun. |
| 7–8 | Negate sentences with ne … pas / jamais / rien / plus and ask questions in three registers. |
| 9 | Combine verbs with the infinitive (à, de, direct), use aller and venir de, and give commands. |
| 10 | Build a present-tense sentence in eight steps and correct typical mistakes. |