📖LearnModule 7 · Lesson 3 of 30Independent User · CEFR B1, completedUnit 1 · Il faut que — the subjunctive opens
The six that refuse to behave
Module 7 of the free French course (CEFR B1, completed), lesson 3 of 30: Six verbs build their subjunctive from a stem of their own. On this page: 8 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's lesson 3.
The words
French
English
Say it
il faut que je sois à l'heure
I have to be on time
eel foh kuh zhuh swah ah LUHR
que tu fasses attention
that you pay attention
kuh tew fahs ah-tah(n)-SYOH(n)
que j'aie le temps
that I have the time
kuh zhay luh TAH(n)
que nous allions
that we go
kuh noo zah-LYOH(n)
que vous puissiez
that you can
kuh voo pwee-SYAY
qu'il sache
that he knows
keel SAHSH
irrégulier
irregular
ee-ray-gew-LYAY
par cœur
by heart
pahr KUHR
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.
Hear the words
Each word is read twice — say it back in the gap. Computer-generated voice; credits on the course page.
La règle · The rule
Six verbs build their subjunctive from a stem of their own, and they are the six you will use most: être (que je sois), avoir (que j'aie), aller (que j'aille), faire (que je fasse), pouvoir (que je puisse), savoir (que je sache).
Et aussi · And also
Learn them as whole phrases rather than as a table: il faut que je sois à l'heure (I have to be on time), il faut que tu fasses attention (you have to pay attention). The form is irregular; the sentence around it never is.
Attention · Watch out
The six irregulars are learned as phrases: que je sois, que j'aie, que j'aille, que je fasse, que je puisse, que je sache. Never que je suis after il faut que.
être, subjonctif — the table
je sois · tu sois · il/elle soit · nous soyons · vous soyez · ils/elles soient
faire, subjonctif — the table
je fasse · tu fasses · il/elle fasse · nous fassions · vous fassiez · ils/elles fassent
Do it now — on paper
Say all 8 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the French spelling alone — begin with il faut que je sois à l'heure.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the French.
Write out être, subjonctif and faire, subjonctif in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
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.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.