Zurück zum Pfad

Leitfaden · Einheit 2 · A1

First Words

Gender, articles, greetings, and numbers

  1. 1

    Le, la, un, une: every noun has a gender

    Masculine and feminine nouns, and the little words for “the”, “a” and “some”.

    • Every noun is masculine or feminine — learn each one with its article.
    • the: le, la, l', les · a: un, une · some (plural): des.
    • Le and la become l' before a vowel or silent h: l'ami, l'eau.
    • Useful clues: -tion, -ette are usually feminine; -age, -eau, -ment usually masculine — but la plage, l'eau.
    • The plural -s is silent, so listen to the article: le “luh”, les “lay”.
    Lektion öffnen
  2. 2

    Petit, petite: adjectives that agree

    Make adjectives match their nouns — and meet the few that go in front.

    • Most adjectives follow the noun and agree: -e for feminine, -s for plural — une amie contente, des amis contents.
    • An adjective ending in -e stays the same in the feminine: drôle, calme.
    • An added -e often makes the last consonant heard: petit → petite.
    • BAGS adjectives go first: beau, joli, jeune, vieux, nouveau, bon, mauvais, grand, petit.
    • Irregular feminines: belle, bonne, vieille, nouvelle, délicieuse, gentille.
    • Bel, nouvel, vieil before a masculine vowel: un bel appartement.
    Lektion öffnen
  3. 3

    Numbers: un to vingt

    Count from zero to twenty, say your age and give a phone number the French way.

    • 0–10: zéro, un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix.
    • 11–16 are single words: onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize; then dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt.
    • Un → une before a feminine noun: une bouteille.
    • Six, huit, dix go quiet before a consonant and link with a z before a vowel: six‿euros.
    • Age: J'ai vingt ans. Prices: Ça fait six euros.
    • Phone numbers are read in pairs: zéro six, douze, quinze…
    Lektion öffnen
  4. 4

    Bonjour, merci — and a welcome dinner

    The polite words France runs on, then Marina's welcome dinner at Marcos's flat.

    • Bonjour before everything — in shops, at counters, with strangers.
    • Bonsoir mainly to arrive in the evening, bonne soirée to leave; bonne nuit only at bedtime.
    • Au revoir with anyone, salut with friends, à bientôt for see you soon.
    • S'il vous plaît with vous, s'il te plaît with tu.
    • Merci (beaucoup) — de rien.
    • Excusez-moi to get attention; pardon to apologise — or to ask someone to repeat.
    Lektion öffnen
Wiederholung der Einheit