You can greet people and exchange names — now let's talk about where people are from! In this lesson you'll learn the verb 'être' (to be), which is one of the most important verbs in French. You'll use it to talk about nationalities, cities, and countries. By the end of this lesson you'll be able to say 'I'm French, I'm from Paris' — or substitute any nationality and city you like. Allons-y !
Learning tips
- The verb 'être' (to be) is irregular — its forms don't follow a predictable pattern, so they need to be memorised. The good news is that you'll use it in almost every conversation, so it gets drilled naturally.
- French nationality adjectives agree in gender: 'français' (masculine) vs 'française' (feminine). Adding a silent 'e' to make the feminine form is a very common pattern you'll see throughout the language.
- The contraction 'd'où' (from where) is formed by dropping the 'e' of 'de' before the vowel 'o' in 'où'. This kind of vowel elision is automatic in French.
- When stating your origin, use 'je suis de + city' and 'je suis + nationality'. The structure is simple: être + location or être + adjective.
- Don't confuse 'où' (where) and 'ou' (or) — they look almost identical but the accent changes everything. 'D'où viens-tu ?' = Where do you come from? 'Café ou thé ?' = Coffee or tea?
Warm-up & Active Recall
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| je m'appelle | my name is |
| tu t'appelles | your name is |
| il s'appelle | his name is |
| elle s'appelle | her name is |
| enchanté | nice to meet you (male speaker) |
| enchantée | nice to meet you (female speaker) |
| je | I |
| tu | you (informal) |
| il | he |
| elle | she |
Dialog
Camille and Lucas discuss where various people are from. Notice how 'je suis de + city' gives your hometown and 'je suis + nationality' gives your nationality. Lucas says he's from Lyon but lives ('j'habite') in Paris — a useful distinction. The word 'mais' means 'but', a connector you'll use all the time. When Camille asks about a third person, she uses 'd'où elle est ?' — an informal version of the more formal 'd'où est-elle ?'. Both are correct; the informal order (subject before verb) is extremely common in spoken French. 'C'est une grande ville !' introduces adjective placement — in French, 'grande' (big/great) comes before the noun 'ville', which is one of the exceptions to the usual rule of adjectives following nouns.
Vocabulary
Active words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| d'où | /du/ | from where | A contraction of 'de' + 'où'. Used in questions about origin: 'd'où tu es ?' = where are you from? |
| je suis | /ʒə sɥi/ | I am | First-person singular of être. The most used phrase in French — 'je suis' opens dozens of sentences. |
| tu es | /ty ɛ/ | you are (informal singular) | Second-person singular informal. 'Tu es' is the casual form; 'vous êtes' is the formal/plural equivalent. |
| il est | /il ɛ/ | he is | Third-person masculine singular of être. The 'l' in 'il' is often barely pronounced in fast speech. |
| elle est | /ɛl ɛ/ | she is | Third-person feminine singular of être. Sounds like /ɛl ɛ/ — the 'st' ending of 'est' is silent. |
| français | /fʁɑ̃.sɛ/ | French (masculine) | Nationality adjective — used for a man or in general reference. Always lowercase in French, unlike English. |
| française | /fʁɑ̃.sɛz/ | French (feminine) | The feminine form — add 'e' to make the nationality adjective feminine. The 'e' makes the final 's' audible: /fʁɑ̃.sɛz/. |
| le pays | /lə pe.i/ | the country | Masculine noun. 'De quel pays ?' = from which country? Learn with the article: le pays. |
| la ville | /la vil/ | the city / town | Feminine noun. 'Une grande ville' = a big city. Learn with the article: la ville. |
| ici | /i.si/ | here | A simple location word. 'Je suis d'ici' = I'm from here. 'Là-bas' (passive vocab) means 'over there'. |
Passive words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| américain | /a.me.ʁi.kɛ̃/ | ||
| anglais | /ɑ̃.ɡlɛ/ | ||
| allemand | /al.mɑ̃/ | ||
| espagnol | /ɛs.pa.ɲɔl/ | ||
| là-bas | /la ba/ | ||
| le monde | /lə mɔ̃d/ |
Useful chunks
| Word | Translation |
|---|---|
| je suis de | I'm from (city/country) |
| d'où tu es ? | where are you from? |
Grammar: Present tense of être for origin and nationality
| Pronom | être |
|---|---|
| je | suis |
| tu | es |
| il/elle | est |
| nous | sommes |
| vous | êtes |
| ils/elles | sont |
This lesson focuses on the present tense of 'être' (to be), one of the most important verbs in French. Unlike regular French verbs, 'être' is completely irregular and must be memorised. Here are the forms:
| Pronoun | être |
|---|---|
| je | suis |
| tu | es |
| il/elle | est |
| nous | sommes |
| vous | êtes |
| ils/elles | sont |
For this lesson, concentrate on the first three rows: je suis, tu es, il/elle est. You'll use 'être' to state nationalities ('je suis français'), origins ('je suis de Paris'), and general identities. Unlike English, French nationality adjectives are not capitalised ('je suis français', not 'je suis Français'). They also agree in gender: add a silent 'e' for feminine ('française', 'américaine', 'allemande'). The masculine form is the base, and this gender agreement pattern appears throughout French adjectives.
Exercises
Fill in the Blanks
Complete each sentence with the correct French word.
- Je français.(conjugate être — first person singular)
- Elle de Paris.(conjugate être — third person feminine singular)
- D' tu es ?(the question word for 'from where' — two-letter word with accent)
- Il est (Germany nationality, masc.).(German nationality adjective — masculine form)
- Je suis de Lyon. C'est une .(Lyon is a 'what'? — the French word for city, feminine noun)
Grammar Application
Apply the être conjugation and nationality gender rules to complete each item.
- Conjugue : Tu (être) américain ?(conjugate être for tu)
- Masculin ou féminin ? français (une femme parle)(français → feminine form: add the correct ending for a woman)
- Conjugue : Nous (être) de Paris.(conjugate être for nous)
- Conjugue : Ils (être) espagnols.(conjugate être for ils)
- Complète : Elle est (France, fém.).(French nationality — feminine form for a woman from France)
Translate into French
Translate each English sentence into French using être and the vocabulary from this lesson.
- I am French.
- Where are you from?
- She is from Paris.
- He is German.
- I'm from here.
Build Your Own Sentence
Write 2–3 French sentences introducing yourself: your nationality, where you're from, and where you live now (even if it's a fictional Paris!). Use 'je suis', 'je suis de', and 'j'habite'.
Takeaway
The verb 'être' (to be) is irregular but essential — memorise je suis, tu es, il/elle est, and remember that French nationality adjectives are lowercase and change form to match the speaker's gender.