How do you know when to use avoir or a helping verb?
Whichever verb it is, the auxiliary is consistent for all compound conjugations: avoir verbs always take avoir as their auxiliary verb for all compound tenses and moods, while être verbs always take être.
Do you always use avoir in passé composé?
Avoir (to have) is the most common helping verb. If you ever find yourself in the middle of a conversation wondering whether to use avoir or être to conjugate in the passé composé, choose avoir. It’s the most common helping verb and is likely to be the one you need.
What verbs do you use avoir with?
We use avoir as a main verb in the following cases:
- to express ownership or possession. Example: Il a une voiture. He has a car.
- to describe a condition or state that refers to a noun. Example: J’ai le temps. I have the time. Tu as une soeur. You have a sister.
- to talk about age. Example: J’ai 23 ans. I am 23 years old.
What are the verbs that use avoir in passé composé?
To form the passé composé of verbs using avoir, conjugate avoir in the present tense (j’ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont) and add the past participle of the verb expressing the action.
How do you know which helping verb to use in French?
Auxiliary verbs, ‘avoir’ or ‘être,’ are the first verbs in a compound tense. The auxiliary verb stands in front of the main verb in a compound tense to indicate mood and tense. In French, it’s either avoir or être. Conjugation of the auxiliary, or helping, verb determines the subject, tense and mood of the main verb.
What is a French helping verb?
An auxiliary verb, or helping verb, is a conjugated verb used in front of another verb in compound tenses in order to indicate the mood and tense of the verb. In French, the auxiliary verb is either avoir or être.
Does Devenir use être or avoir?
In these cases you would use avoir to form the passé composé because the verb now has a direct object. Verbs that indicate a change of state (devenir = to become) also use être when forming the passé composé. All reflexive verbs require the use of être when forming the passé composé.
How do you use avoir in a sentence?
Have a listen to these examples:
- J’ai un chien. I have a dog.
- Tu as une sœur. You have a sister.
- Il a les yeux bleus. He has blue eyes.
- Nous avons deux chats. We have two cats.
- Vous avez les mêmes yeux. You have the same eyes.
- Ils ont un bébé. They have a baby.
How do you use auxiliary verbs in French?
Auxiliary verbs are most commonly used when forming the perfect and pluperfect in French and they come from avoir and être. They are called auxiliaries because they support the main verb you want to write in a past tense. You will either use them in their present or imperfect tense form, and add on a past participle.
What are the irregular verbs in French?
Common Irregular French Verbs
- aller – to go. Je vais. Tu vas. Il/Elle va.
- avoir – to have. J’ai. Tu as.
- dire – to say, to tell. Je dis. Tu dis.
- être – to be. Je suis. Tu es.
- faire – to make, to do. Je fais. Tu fais.
- pouvoir – to be able to do. Je peux. Tu peux.
- savoir – to know, to know how to. Je sais. Tu sais.
- voir – to see. Je vois. Tu vois.
How do you conjugate être and avoir in French?
They are être (eh-truh), which means ‘to be,’ and avoir (ah-vwar), which means ‘to have.’ To form the compound tense, you first conjugate the appropriate auxiliary verb (either être or avoir) in the present tense, then place the past participle of the verb after the conjugated auxiliary verb.
How do you conjugate auxiliary verbs in French?
In French, there are two auxiliary verbs. They are être (eh-truh), which means ‘to be,’ and avoir (ah-vwar), which means ‘to have.’. To form the compound tense, you first conjugate the appropriate auxiliary verb (either être or avoir) in the present tense, then place the past participle of the verb after the conjugated auxiliary verb.
What type of verb is avoir an auxiliary verb?
Generally speaking, most verbs use avoir an an auxiliary verb in the compound tenses: all transitive verbs (verbs that are followed by a direct object)
What is être used for in French?
Être is used as the auxiliary verb in French for 17 very specific verbs. They are as follows: Here are some examples of être being used as an auxiliary verb in context. Let’s take a conversation between Marc and Christelle, two friends discussing a party that happened last weekend.