Mission: say who you are and what you have
Être and avoir. The two verbs behind most first sentences: to be and to have.
FrenchA1 · About meAbout 5 min: 2 reading, 3 practiceUpdated
- Say all six present forms of être and avoir
- Choose être or avoir for a simple sentence
- Write j'ai, not je ai
About me: lesson 2 of 6
- A1 · About me
- Mission: introduce yourself to your new neighbour 5 min
- Mission: say who you are and what you have 5 min
- Mission: describe your family and your town 5 min
- Mission: tell a new colleague where you live and work 5 min
- Mission: say no politely to a street survey 5 min
- Mission: show a colleague photos of your family 6 min
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Level Level A1 (around the DELF A1 exam). Real French: chatting with your new flatmate about yourself and your family.
What it is
Your mission: your new flatmate Antoine is helping you unpack and asks, « Tu es d'où ? Tu as des frères et sœurs ? ». Say two things about who you are, two things you have, and how old you are.
Être (to be) and avoir (to have) are irregular: learn them by heart.
| être | avoir | |
|---|---|---|
| je / j' | suis | ai |
| tu | es | as |
| il / elle / on | est | a |
| nous | sommes | avons |
| vous | êtes | avez |
| ils / elles | sont | ont |
Real French: in fast speech tu as often shrinks to t'as (T'as quel âge ?) and je suis to j'suis. You will hear it everywhere; in writing, keep tu as and je suis.
Être describes who or what someone is: Je suis professeur. Elle est française. Avoir says what someone has, and also gives your age: J'ai un frère. Il a vingt ans.
Quick check
Tap an answer to check it.
Which is the nous form of avoir?
- That is nous with être
- That is ils / elles
Show answer
avons. nous avons.
Why it matters
You need one of these two verbs in almost every sentence about yourself, so getting them right early makes every later lesson easier. Many other forms, such as the past tense, are built with them too.
Worked example
Choosing the verb, as you and Antoine might say it:
- She is Italian → Elle est italienne. (who she is: être)
- We have a cat → Nous avons un chat. (what we have: avoir)
- They are 12 → Ils ont douze ans. (age: avoir)
- You (polite) are tired → Vous êtes fatigué. (how you are: être)
Common mistake
Writing je ai. Before a vowel sound, je becomes j': j'ai, j'habite. The same happens with le/la → l': l'ami.
Key terms
- être
- to be
- avoir
- to have (also used for age)
- j'
- je before a vowel sound
Practise the key terms
Tap a card to turn it over. 3 cards.
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| être | to be |
| avoir | to have (also used for age) |
| j' | je before a vowel sound |
Practice
Recognition drill
Pick the right answer, as fast as you can.
All pairs
Tap a card to turn it over. 8 cards.
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| suis | je |
| es | tu |
| sommes | nous |
| êtes | vous |
| sont | ils / elles |
| avons | nous |
| avez | vous |
| ont | ils / elles |
Quick quiz
Tap an answer to check it.
« Marie … vingt-deux ans. »
- Used être for age; French uses avoir
- That is the je form
Show answer
a. Age uses avoir: elle a vingt-deux ans.
« Nous … étudiants. »
- Avoir says what you have; to say what you are, use être
- That is the vous form
Show answer
sommes. Saying what you are uses être: nous sommes.
Which is written correctly?
- Forgot to shorten je before a vowel
- The apostrophe is needed
Show answer
j'ai. je + ai → j'ai.
Practise speaking
Studyfern has no voice tools of its own. To practise out loud, copy this prompt into a voice-capable AI assistant and talk with it.
Mission role-play. You are Antoine, my friendly new flatmate, chatting while we unpack, at level A1. Speak slowly and clearly. Use only these words and phrases, plus very simple everyday words: je suis, tu es, il est, elle est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils sont, j'ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont. Say a short English sentence that needs être or avoir (for example: she is tired, we have a dog, I am 20 years old), and wait for me to say it in French. Do 8 sentences, mixing people. After each answer, tell me what kind of mistake I made, if any, and let me try again, then tell me one thing to improve. When I have said eight sentences with être and avoir, say « Mission accomplie ! » and give me one tip. Keep every reply under 2 sentences. If I need a name or a town, I will make one up. Explain corrections in English.
Listen too. Listen to native speakers before and after: see the free listening and shadowing links.
Good to know. AI feedback on pronunciation is hit and miss, so check yourself against native recordings. Many assistants turn your speech into text first, so a vowel or liaison you got wrong may be silently “heard” as the right word. Don't share personal details: use a made-up name and town.
New to this? Read Practising speaking with an AI.
In short
- être: je suis, tu es, il/elle est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils/elles sont.
- avoir: j'ai, tu as, il/elle a, nous avons, vous avez, ils/elles ont.
- Être for who or what you are; avoir for what you have, and for age.
- je → j' before a vowel sound.
Mastery check
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Check yourself
Answer in your head first, then open the answer. Nothing is saved.
What is « tu » with être?
Show answer
tu es.
Complete: « Ils … un appartement à Nice. »
Show answer
ont (avoir: what they have).
Why is it « j'ai » and not « je ai »?
Show answer
Je becomes j' before a vowel sound.
Further reading
- TV5MONDE, Apprendre le français, free exercises and clips: listen for je suis, il est, j'ai and il y a in everyday speech.
Finished? Mark it done to fill in your leaf on the French map.