 |
|
| Share / Tweet / Pin Me! | |
Living with French Verbs
Believe it or not, life in France is so great that one verb just isn’t enough: "to live" may be equivalent to habiter or vivre, depending on what exactly you want to say.
Habiter
Habiter talks about where you live: to live in, inhabit, occupy.
| J’habite à Paris, J’habite Paris. | I live in Paris. | |
| Est-ce que tu habites (dans) un appartement ? | Do you live in an apartment? | |
| Elle aime habiter en banlieue, habiter la banlieue. | She likes living in the suburbs. | |
| Il habite en France. | He lives in France. | |
| Nous habitons en Europe. | We live in Europe. | |
| Personne n’habite ici. | No one lives here. |
Note that the preposition in front of anything other than a country or continent is entirely optional.
Habiter also has figurative meanings: to be haunted by, filled with, in the grip of.
| Nicole est habitée par la peur. | Nicole is in the grip of fear. | |
| Une profonde tristesse habite son âme. | A profound sadness fills his soul. |
Vivre
Vivre can also say where you live:
| Je vis à Nice. | I live in Nice. | |
| Est-ce qu’elle vit dans une maison ? | Does she live in a house? | |
| Nous vivons en Asie. | We live in Asia. |
but more typically expresses how you live:
| Ils vivent dans la misère. | They live in poverty. | |
| Nous vivons ensemble depuis un an. | We’ve lived together for a year. | |
| Ils réussissent à vivre en paix. | They manage to live in peace. |
Vivre can also indicate when or how long you live: to be alive, exist.
| Molière a vécu au XVIIe siècle. | Molière lived in the 17th century. | |
| J’espère vivre vieux. | I hope to live to a ripe old age. | |
| Le prématuré n’a vécu que trois jours. | The premature baby only lived for three days. |
Synonyms for habiter and vivre
- demeurer – to live, to stay, to remain
- loger – to live, to put up, to accommodate
- résider – to reside
- séjourner – to stay, to sojourn
Related lessons
Share / Tweet / Pin Me!
This free website is created with love and a great deal of work. If you love it, please consider making a 
The mountain of French verb conjugations you have to learn can be overwhelming – even just in the classroom where you have plenty of time to think about the correct response. Once you start talking to people in the real world, trying to figure out the appropriate verb conjugation can leave you speechless – literally. So what’s the solution? Learn, then practice, practice, practice!
Inverting subjects and verbs is easy enough – vous voyez => voyez-vous, but where do object, adverbial, and reflexive pronouns go? And what about negation? Take a look at this lesson to learn about all the possibilities.
Magnetic poetry is a fun little tool you can use to learn and practice French. 500 magnets with words and parts of words help you to express yourself in a unique and creative way.
