As part of my new shorter
& simpler how to learn french online,
I’ve decided to fully & clearly conjugate for you all the absolutely
crucial basic French verbs, in the present tense, in 2 steps:
Step 1: just the verb, the whole verb conjugated with
each subject.
Step 2: that same conjugated verb but this time in a
sentence to give you context.
So far we’ve conjugated avoir, être, et aller, fell free to go
back to these latest videos if you need a little review, and this
week we are going to conjugate another super important verb… FAIRE = TO DO / TO
MAKE.
Why must you know FAIRE?
Think of how many times you use the verbs to do or to make in
English!
Well, in French we say this even more! Why? Because we use faire
in countless expressions and sayings, which in English are not translated by to
do or to make.
Let’s conjugate faire in the present tense with every single
subject pronoun, and then, I’ll put it in a short sentence USING these
expressions so YOU can learn and use them. C’est parti!
Let’s conjugate FAIRE
To do / to make = Faire
That’s called the infinitive, l’infinitif, which means it is not
conjugated. Now let’s conjugate it, in the present tense.
I do / I make = Je fais
I hike in the countryside with my dogs = Je fais de la randonnée
avec mes chiens
So, to hike = faire de la randonnée
You do / you make = Tu fais (casual)
You always pack your bags at the last moment = Tu fais toujours tes valises au
dernier moment
So, to pack one’s bags = faire ses valises
She does / she makes = Elle fait
Elle fait pipi avant de voyager car elle déteste les toilettes
publiques = She pees before traveling because she hates public
bathrooms
So, to
pee = faire pipi
He does / he makes = il fait
He’s sulking because she didn’t kiss him = Il fait la tête parce qu’elle ne l’a
pas embrassé
So, to sulk = faire la tête
We do / we make = on fait
On is the singular subject pronoun for we. Is it strange to think of we as
singular? Think of a unit, think of a couple. A couple is made up of 2 people
so it’s plural yet you say “a couple IS” so it’s also singular. On is more used
in spoken French, it’s the more casual way to say we.
We get into trouble every time our parents go out of town = On
fait des bêtises chaque fois que nos parents s’absentent
So, to get into trouble = faire des bêtises
We do / we make = nous faisons
Nous is the plural subject pronoun for we. It’s less used in spoken French than
on, which we just saw, and it’s the more formal, the more proper way
to say we.
*Just to be sure you understand, the above 2 sentences mean the
exact same thing and that is “We are not going on vacation this year” The only
difference is that “on” is more casual and “nous” is more “formal”
We get into trouble every time our parents go out of town = Nous
faisons des bêtises chaque fois que nos parents s’absentent
Same sentence as the one above, same meaning, only this time,
we, sound more formal.
On fait des bêtises chaque fois que nos parents s’absentent =
Nous faisons des bêtises chaque fois que nos parents s’absentent
You do / you make = vous faites (formal
or you all)
Why are you pretending to listen to me? = Pourquoi faites-vous semblant de
m’écouter?
So, to pretend = faire semblant
They do / they make = Elles font (for
an exclusively feminine group)
They ride their bikes every weekend = Elles font du vélo chaque week-end
So, to ride one’s bike = faire du vélo
They do / they make = Ils font (for a
masculine or a mixed group)
They party all night long and I can’t sleep = Ils font la fête toute la nuit et
je ne peux pas dormir
So, to party = faire la fête
Et voilà! So! What did I tell
you? We use faire like in English when we want to express to do or to make but
also for lots of expressions, which in English are not translated by to do or
to make. That’s why it’s doubly important to know how to conjugate this verb
without hesitation.You can easily do french language courses from
our provided platform.
One more time!
FAIRE = TO DO, TO MAKE
je fais = I do / I make
tu fais = you do / you make (casual)
elle fait = she does / she makes
il fait = he does / he makes
on fait = we do / we make (singular + casual)
nous faisons = we do / we make (plural + formal)
vous faites = you do / you make (formal or you all)
elles font = they do / they make (feminine)
ils font = they do / they make (masculine or mixed)
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