Module 4 of the free French course (CEFR A2, completed), lesson 3 of 30: Most verbs take avoir; the going-coming club takes être. On this page: 6 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's lesson 3.
| French | English | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| je suis allé au parc | I went to the park (m) | zhuh swee zah-lay oh PAHRK |
| je suis allée au parc | I went to the park (f) | zhuh swee zah-lay oh PAHRK |
| j'ai mangé une pomme | I ate an apple | zhay mah(n)-zhay ewn POHM |
| nous sommes arrivés | we arrived | noo sum zah-ree-VAY |
| le choix | the choice | luh SHWAH |
| l'aidefeminine — the article elides to l' | the help | led |
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
Each word is read twice — say it back in the gap. Computer-generated voice; credits on the course page.
Most verbs take avoir; the going-coming club takes être. J'ai mangé (avoir) but je suis allé (être). When in doubt, avoir is the safe bet — the être club is small and you now know its core.
The club so far: aller, venir, arriver, partir, rester. Module 5 rounds it out.
When in doubt, avoir is the safe bet — but the être club is fixed: aller, venir, arriver, partir and rester always take être.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The French Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.
New lessons and French workbook news, first
One email when the numbers change. Double opt-in, no spam, unsubscribe anytime.