Describe people: 'être' 3rd person plural and regular plural adjectives | French

Starter quiz

Which pronoun has the [e] sound?
- 'je' ✓
Choose the correct verb.
- Je suis
- Tu es
- Il est
- Nous sommes ✓
- Vous êtes
Choose the correct verb.
- Je suis
- Tu es
- Elle est
- Nous sommes
- Vous êtes ✓
Fill in the gap with 'je' or 'nous': ______ sommes grands.
- 'Nous' ✓
Fill in the gap with 'tu' or 'vous': ______ es malade.
- 'Tu' ✓
Match the nouns and the adjectives.
- deux voitures
  
  ⇔
  
  rapides ✓
- un vélo
  
  ⇔
  
  cher ✓
- une maison
  
  ⇔
  
  moderne ✓
- trois gommes
  
  ⇔
  
  bleues ✓

Exit quiz

Match the pronoun and the verb.
- je
  
  ⇔
  
  suis ✓
- tu
  
  ⇔
  
  es ✓
- il, elle
  
  ⇔
  
  est ✓
- nous
  
  ⇔
  
  sommes ✓
- vous
  
  ⇔
  
  êtes ✓
- ils, elles
  
  ⇔
  
  sont ✓
Which images show 'ils sont'?
Add the correct adjective ending: Il y a une fille amusant_.
- 'e' ✓
Add the correct adjective ending: Il y a trois filles amusant__.
- 'es' ✓
Which sentences describe the photo?
- Il y a deux parents, deux frères et une sœur.
- Il y a deux parents, un frère et deux sœurs. ✓
- Elles sont tristes.
- Ils sont contents. ✓
- Les sœurs sont grandes.
Translate: They (m) are young and short.
- 'Ils sont jeunes et petits.' ✓

Worksheet

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Lesson Details

Key learning points

'Nous sommes' and 'vous êtes' are the 1st and 2nd persons plural of the verb 'être', to be, being.
'Ils sont' and 'elles sont' are the third person plural of the verb 'être', to be, being.
Adjectives often add -e in the feminine form, this is regular adjective gender agreement.
Adjectives often add -s as the regular marker in the plural form.
Describing a photograph is a useful exercise to consolidate key grammar and vocabulary.

Common misconception

There is just one way of referring to 'they' in French, as in English.

There is both a masculine and feminine form of the pronoun 'they'. Use 'ils' when referring to a group of boys or a group of boys and girls, and use 'elles' when referring to a group of girls.

Keywords

être - irregular French verb meaning to be, being
Ils sont - part of the verb être meaning they are (m, m/f)
Elles sont - part of the verb être meaning they are (f)
Adjective agreement - when the ending of an adjective matches the noun it describes in gender and number