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Guía · Unidad 5 · A1
Home and Family
il y a and possessive adjectives
- 1
Il y a: there is, there are
One phrase for “there is” and “there are” — the rooms of a Paris flat, and what isn't there.
Abrir lección- Il y a means both there is and there are — it never changes.
- Negative: il n'y a pas de (or d' before a vowel): Il n'y a pas d'ascenseur.
- Questions: Est-ce qu'il y a… ? or just Il y a… ? with a rising voice.
- Rooms: le salon, la cuisine, la chambre, la salle de bains, les toilettes — la chambre is always a bedroom.
- Un deux-pièces counts the living room and bedrooms only; le premier étage is one floor up, as in Britain.
- 2
Mon, ma, mes: my, your, our
Possessives that agree with the thing, not the owner — and an invitation to Sunday lunch.
Abrir lección- Possessives agree with the thing owned, never the owner: mon frère, ma sœur, mes parents.
- Before a feminine noun starting with a vowel, use mon: mon amie, mon adresse.
- ton / ta / tes with tu; votre / vos with vous.
- notre / nos — our, also with on: On adore notre quartier.
- Chez + person: at someone's home — chez mes parents, chez moi.
- 3
La famille: Sunday lunch
Mother, father, grandmother and the rest — meeting Marcos's family over a long French lunch.
Abrir lección- Family pairs: père / mère, frère / sœur, fils / fille, grand-père / grand-mère, oncle / tante, mari / femme.
- Fille is also girl, femme also woman; fils is said “feess”.
- Mixed groups take the masculine plural: les parents, les grands-parents, les enfants.
- No word for siblings: frères et sœurs.
- Introduce people with Voici… or Je vous présente…
- With a friend's parents: vous, madame / monsieur — and Faites comme chez vous ! means Make yourselves at home!
- 4
Son, sa, ses: his, her, their
Why “sa voiture” can be his car or hers — plus leur, and how to say whose something is.
Abrir lección- Son, sa, ses agree with the thing owned, so they mean his or her: sa voiture — his car or her car.
- Before a feminine noun starting with a vowel: son — son amie, son écharpe.
- Leur + one thing, leurs + several: leur jardin, leurs enfants.
- No 's: de + owner — le chien de Marcos.
- À qui est… ? asks whose; answer être à: Il est à Marina. C'est à moi !