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Year 9 - French

Work experience: modals 3rd person plural

Future plans and work experience: 2-verb phrases with 'aller', modals, 'il faut'

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils talk about future intentions using aller with infinitive. They also practise this two-verb structure with modal verbs in all persons, as well as intonation, est-ce que questions and negation with two-verb structures. Pupils also use 'il faut,il ne faut pas' with infinitive.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to use present tense modal verbs in all forms and with negation to talk about work experience.

Key Notes

  • For third person plural forms of modal verbs 'vouloir', 'devoir', 'pouvoir' and 'savoir', add -ent to the stem.
  • The stems of 'devoir' and 'pouvoir' are their singular stems 'doi' and 'peu' plus 'v'; 'doiv-' and 'peuv-'.
  • The stem of 'vouloir' is singular stem 'veu' plus 'l'; 'veul-'.
  • The stem of 'savoir' is 'sav', the same as its other plural 'nous' and 'vous' forms.
  • To make a sentence with two or more verbs negative, add 'ne … pas' around the first verb.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • 3rd person plural: form of pronouns and verbs used to refer to 'they'
  • negation: two elements, e.g. 'ne … pas', around the main verb expressing negative meaning

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • All modal verbs follow the same pattern in the 3rd person plural.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain what you can now say or understand in this lesson.

For third person plural forms of modal verbs 'vouloir', 'devoir', 'pouvoir' and 'savoir', add -ent to the stem. The stems of 'devoir' and 'pouvoir' are their singular stems 'doi' and 'peu' plus 'v'; 'doiv-' and 'peuv-'.

2. Define this key language word and use it in context. '3rd person plural'

form of pronouns and verbs used to refer to 'they'. Say or write it in a short sentence so you use the word actively.

3. Correct this common language-learning mistake.

Mistake: All modal verbs follow the same pattern in the 3rd person plural. Correction: 'Devoir' and 'pouvoir' are formed the same way, 'vouloir' is the same with the addition of an 'l' instead of a 'v' and 'savoir' is different; it follows the same pattern as the 'nous'/'vous' forms.

More Lessons In This Unit

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