French (1) : Etre dan Avoir

The French verbs avoir (to have), être (to be), and faire (to do/make) are the most important French verbs. They are used in some of the ways that we use them in English as well as in many expressions. Conjugations for all three of these verbs are irregular.

Subject                    -Avoir                         -Etre                          -Verb

j'                                  ai                                          
je                                                                 suis                             fais

tu                                 as                             es                                fais

il                                  a                              est                               fait

nous                          avons                        sommes                     faisons

vous                           avez                            êtes                           faites

ils                                ont                             sont                           font


Even though être is the French equivalent of "to be," there are certain expressions in which you have to use avoir or faire to translate "to be."

Avoir

Avoir is one of the most common French verbs. It is irregular in conjugation and literally means "to have." In addition, it is used in numerous idiomatic expressions and as an auxiliary verb.

To Have

Avoir means "to have" in most senses, including having in one's possession and currently experiencing.

J'ai deux stylos
I have two pens

Vous avez trois frères
You have three brothers (polite)

Tu as mal à la tête
You have a headache

Nous avons une idée
We have an idea

Auxiliary Verb

Avoir is the auxiliary for most French verbs in the compound tenses (exceptions):

J'ai déjà étudié
I have already studied.

J'aurai mangé avant ton arrivée
I will have eaten before you arrive

Si j'avais su, je t'aurais téléphoné
If I had known, I would have called you

Note: Auxilary verb

An auxiliary verb is the first verb in a compound tense. In French, it's eitheravoir or être, whose conjugation determines the subject, tense, and mood of the action in the main verb.

Examples:

J'ai vu Adi.
I saw Adi.

Il était venu à Paris.
He had come to Paris.

Auras-tu mangé avant d'arriver ?
Will you have eaten before arriving?

Also known as: Helping verb

TIPS

How To Memorize The French Verb Conjugations?

Concentrate on the most useful tenses (Présent, Imparfait, Passé Composé) get used to using them in context. Then once you've mastered them, move on to the rest.