À vs de
As if the myriad possible translations of à and de aren't enough, these two French prepositions also have complementary and contrasting uses. Mistakes and Difficulties
Improve your French by learning how to avoid common French mistakes.
As if the myriad possible translations of à and de aren't enough, these two French prepositions also have complementary and contrasting uses. B1 French Lessons and Practice - Intermediate French • prepositions
Adjectives with Prepositions
When describing someone as capable of doing or determined to do something, a preposition is required between the adjective and verb. In French, the choice of preposition depends on the adjective that precedes it, not the verb that follows. Adverbial Pronouns / Pronominal Adverbs
As you might guess from their name, adverbial pronouns are caught between two worlds: they are pronouns in the sense that they replace nouns, and at the same time they are adverbs representing a place, a quantity, or the object of a proposition. French has two adverbial pronouns: en and y. adverbs • B1 French Lessons and Practice - Intermediate French • pronouns • word order
Adverbs of Quantity
Adverbs of quantity express how much, how many, or to what extent. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French • adverbs
Agreement
Grammatical agreement is a vast topic - and one of the banes of French students. While in English we have a few pronouns and adjectives that indicate gender and number (e.g., he/him/his and she/her/hers), in French, agreement is found in 5 of the 8 parts of speech. adjectives • articles • nouns • pronouns
Agreement with Direct Objects
Most French verbs are conjugated with avoir as their auxiliary verb in compound tenses and moods, and therefore do not require agreement with their subjects. But avoir verbs do need agreement in a very specific construction: the past participle must agree with the direct object when it precedes the verb. agreement • B2 French Lessons and Practice - Upper-Intermediate French • word order
Agreement with Pronominal Verbs
All pronominal verbs are être verbs in compound tenses and moods like the passé composé, which means that the past participles must agree with their subjects - at least in theory. In fact, it's not quite so straightforward. agreement • B2 French Lessons and Practice - Upper-Intermediate French
Agreement with Subjects
The three French verb constructions which include some form of être plus a past participle usually require grammatical agreement of the past participle with the subject. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French • adjectives • agreement
AI and AIS
The letter combination ai has two different pronunciations for verbs, though this is a matter of some debate. B1 French Lessons and Practice - Intermediate French
An/jour/matin/soir vs année/journée/matinée/soirée
B1 French Lessons and Practice - Intermediate French • suffixes • synonyms
Après vs Derrière
The prepositions après and derrière have somewhat similar meanings, which of course means that students sometimes get them confused. Learn the difference between après and derrière to put all of this confusion behind you. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French • prepositions
Auxiliary Verbs
Auxiliary verbs are also known as helping verbs, because they help form compound conjugations. The key thing to remember about compound conjugations is that it's the auxiliary verb which conjugates for the required tense or mood; the main verb is always a past participle. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French • conjugation lessons • lesson plans • tenses moods voices
Avant vs Devant
The prepositions avant and devant have somewhat similar meanings, which of course means that students sometimes get them confused. Learn the difference between avant and devant to get in front of any potential confusion. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French • prepositions
C’est vs Il est
The French expressions c'est and il est can be tricky because they are synonymous but not interchangeable. Which one to use depends less on meaning than it does on grammar. A2 French Lessons and Practice - Low-Intermediate French
Ce que and Ce qui – Indefinite Relative Pronouns
The indefinite relative pronouns ce que and ce qui both mean "what" or "that." 
