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Lesson 13

Building Sentences with Être and Avoir

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Bonjour ! Welcome to your third lesson in this module.

In our last session, we focused on memorizing the conjugations of être (to be) and avoir (to have). You now have the building blocks. Today, we'll put them into action to achieve our learning outcome: Construct simple sentences using 'être' and 'avoir'.

This is an exciting step because you'll move from just knowing verb forms to expressing complete ideas. We will cover how to use these verbs to describe people, state possession, and express feelings like hunger or age. Mastering these simple sentence structures is the foundation for all future conversations, including the professional interactions you're aiming for.

Let's start with a quick recap of the conjugations you learned.

French Verbs Avoir and Être Conjugation Table
A quick reference for the present tense conjugations of 'avoir' and 'être' that we covered in the last lesson.

1. The Basic Sentence: Describing and Possessing

The simplest French sentence follows a familiar pattern: Subject + Verb + Complement. Today, our verbs will be the correct forms of être or avoir.

Using être to Describe

We use être to describe identity, characteristics, nationality, or a state of being. The formula is: Subject + être + Adjective/Noun.

  • Je suis + [your characteristic]: Je suis calme. (I am calm.)
  • Il/Elle est + [a description]: Il est le manager. (He is the manager.)
  • Vous êtes + [a state]: Vous êtes en ligne. (You are online.)

The following resource provides excellent examples of how to use être to describe people's height and personality.

Describing people in French using 'avoir' and 'être'

The article 'Describing people in French' from BBC Bitesize shows how to use 'être' to build descriptive sentences. It also introduces useful vocabulary.

Read the sections 'Video Transcript' (just the first part about 'être'), 'Describing people’s height', and 'Describing personalities'. Notice how the adjectives change to agree with the person being described (e.g., 'grand' vs. 'grande').

Using avoir to Show Possession

We use avoir to talk about things we have. The formula is: Subject + avoir + Noun.

  • J'ai + [a thing]: J'ai une question. (I have a question.)
  • Nous avons + [a thing]: Nous avons votre dossier. (We have your file.)
  • Elles ont + [a thing]: Elles ont un ordinateur. (They have a computer.)

The same BBC article also explains how avoir is used to describe physical features like hair and eyes.

Describing people in French using 'avoir' and 'être'

Now, let's look at how to use 'avoir' for descriptions. Return to the same BBC Bitesize article.

Read the sections 'Describing hair' and 'Describing eye colour'. Pay attention to the structure: J'ai les cheveux... (I have ... hair) and J'ai les yeux... (I have ... eyes).

Test your understanding!

Construct a simple sentence for each prompt using the information you've learned.

  1. Say "I am happy." (Use content for masculine, contente for feminine).
  2. Say "You (formal) have a message." (a message = un message).
  3. Say "She has brown hair." (brown hair = les cheveux bruns).
  4. Say "We are a team." (a team = une équipe).
Show answer
  1. Je suis content / contente.
  2. Vous avez un message.
  3. Elle a les cheveux bruns.
  4. Nous sommes une équipe.

2. When Avoir Means "To Be"

This is a very important concept in French. For certain states and feelings, French uses avoir where English uses "to be". This is a common point of confusion for learners, but your knowledge of Arabic gives you an advantage in at least one case!

  • Age: In French, you say J'ai 30 ans (literally "I have 30 years"). This is just like in Arabic: عندي 30 سنة. You do not use être.
  • Feelings: For hunger, thirst, heat, cold, and fear, French also uses avoir. For example, J'ai faim (I have hunger). This is different from Arabic, where you would say أنا جائع (I am hungry).

This next reading explains these essential expressions clearly.

How to Use French Verbs “Être” and “Avoir” [+ Practice]

The article 'How to Use French Verbs “Être” and “Avoir”' from Kwiziq is excellent for understanding these special uses. Please read the section explaining expressions where French 'avoir' corresponds to English 'to be'.

Read the section titled 'When the French Verb "Avoir" Means “To Be” in English'. Focus on the expressions for age (avoir...ans), hunger/thirst (avoir faim/soif), cold/hot (avoir froid/chaud), being right/wrong (avoir raison/tort), and fear (avoir peur).

Here is a summary of these crucial expressions:

  • avoir ... ans: to be ... years old (Il a 25 ans.)
  • avoir faim: to be hungry (Nous avons faim.)
  • avoir soif: to be thirsty (Tu as soif ?)
  • avoir chaud: to be hot (J'ai chaud.)
  • avoir froid: to be cold (Elle a froid.)
  • avoir raison: to be right (Vous avez raison.)
  • avoir peur: to be afraid (Ils ont peur.)

3. Expanding Your Sentences

Now that you have the basic structures, let's add a few more common phrases that use être and avoir. These will be very useful in everyday conversation.

  • avoir besoin de... - to need...
  • être d'accord - to agree
  • il y a... - there is / there are

The same Kwiziq article introduces these.

How to Use French Verbs “Être” and “Avoir” [+ Practice]

Let's return to the Kwiziq article to learn a few more powerful expressions.

Read the sections 'Idiomatic Expressions with French verb “avoir”' and 'Idiomatic Expressions with the French Verb “Être”'. For now, focus only on avoir besoin de and être d'accord.

These phrases are immediately useful, especially in a professional context:

  • J'ai besoin de votre nom, s'il vous plaît. (I need your name, please.)
  • Je suis d'accord avec vous. (I agree with you.)
  • Il y a un problème avec la connexion. (There is a problem with the connection.)

Let's do some active practice. The following video will test your ability to form these simple sentences.

Être & Avoir (French Essentials Lesson 10)

In this video segment from 'Learn French With Alexa', the instructor will prompt you to translate simple sentences. Try to say the French sentence aloud before she does.

Watch from 05:40 to 08:58 to practice sentences with 'avoir'. Then, watch from 11:21 to 13:08 to practice with 'être'. This is a great way to check your understanding and pronunciation.

Conclusion

Félicitations (Congratulations)! You have successfully made the leap from knowing verb parts to building complete sentences. This is a huge milestone in your French learning journey.

Key Takeaways:

  • You can form basic sentences with the structure: Subject + être/avoir + Complement.
  • Être is used for identity, descriptions, and states of being (e.g., Je suis fatigué, Elle est marocaine).
  • Avoir is used for possession (e.g., J'ai un frère) and for key expressions like age, hunger, and thirst (e.g., J'ai faim, Il a 20 ans).
  • Common phrases like J'ai besoin de... and Je suis d'accord give you powerful communication tools.

You now have a solid base. In our next lesson, we will greatly expand the number of actions you can talk about by learning how to conjugate regular -er verbs. This will open up a whole new world of sentence possibilities.

À bientôt