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Year 9 - French

Historical figures: 'avoir' and 'être' imperfect

Ongoing past events: imperfect tense

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils re-examine être and avoir in the imperfect tense in singular form, and add aller and faire in the imperfect what people used to do. The imperfect is then contrasted with the perfect tense to distinguish between ongoing vs specific events. The verb 'voir' is introduced.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to use the imperfect tense in the singular forms to describe historical figures from the past.

Key Notes

  • [eu] is pronounced as in 'deux' and open [eu/œu] is pronounced as in 'cœur'.
  • When [eu/œu] is followed by a pronounced consonant, it is an open sound.
  • The imperfect tense is used to talk about things that used to happen regularly in the past.
  • To form it, take the 'nous' form of the present tense, remove -ons, add -ais (1st/2nd persons) or -ait (3rd persons).
  • Use 'être' in the imperfect tense with an adjective to mean 'was'. The stem for 'être' in the imperfect tense is -ét.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • imperfect tense: tense used to describe how things were or used to be in the past, or to say what was happening
  • être: 'to be, being'

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • To form the imperfect tense with all verbs, take the 'nous' form of the present tense, remove -ons and add the appropriate endings.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

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

[eu] is pronounced as in 'deux' and open [eu/œu] is pronounced as in 'cœur'. When [eu/œu] is followed by a pronounced consonant, it is an open sound.

2. Define this key language word and use it in context. 'imperfect tense'

tense used to describe how things were or used to be in the past, or to say what was happening. Say or write it in a short sentence so you use the word actively.

3. Correct this common language-learning mistake.

Mistake: To form the imperfect tense with all verbs, take the 'nous' form of the present tense, remove -ons and add the appropriate endings. Correction: The verb 'être' is an exception to the rule. Use the stem -ét before adding the endings.

More Lessons In This Unit

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