| plaire-to please, enjoy |
|
manquer-to miss, be lacking |
| plais |
pleh |
plaisons |
pleh-zohn |
|
manque |
mawnk |
manquons |
mawn-kohn |
| plais |
pleh |
plaisez |
pleh-zay |
|
manques |
mawnk |
manquez |
mawn-kay |
| plaît |
pleh |
plaisent |
plehzz |
|
manque |
mawnk |
manquent |
mawnk |
The past participle of plaire is plu. To say that someone likes something, you have to switch the subject and object around, so that literally it translates to "something or someone pleases." As a reflexive verb, se plaire means to enjoy being somewhere. Faire plaisir à can also be used to mean "to delight or to like."
Cette chienne plaît à Dominique. Dominique likes this dog. (Literally: This dog is pleasing to Dominique.)
Ça t'a plu? Did you like it?
Ils se plaisent à Londres. They enjoy being in London.
Cela me fait plaisir de vous revoir. I am happy to see you again.
Manquer has several meanings: to miss, to lack, or to regret the absence (miss). The last meaning uses inverted word order just like plaire. Manquer à means "to fail to do."
Elle a manqué le train. She missed the train.
Vous manquez de courage. You lack courage.
Tu me manques. I miss you. (Literally: You are missing to me)
Ils ont mangué à les devoirs. They failed to do the homework.
Pluperfect
This compound tense is used for flashbacks or anything that had happened before the time of the narration. It's formed with the imperfect tense of avoir or être and the past participle of the main verb. This tense is comparable to the passé composé.
| Imperfect of avoir or être |
|
|
| avais |
avions |
|
étais |
étions |
|
|
| avais |
aviez |
|
étais |
étiez |
|
+ past participle |
| avait |
avaient |
|
était |
étaient |
|
|
Je n'avais pas fini mon travail quand il est arrivé. I had not finished my work when he arrived.
Vous aviez faim parce que vouz n'aviez pas du tout mangé. You were hungry because you hadn't eaten at all.
Indefinite Pronouns
Indefinite pronouns refer to no one or nothing in particular, such as someone or something.
someone/body |
quelqu'un |
|
somewhere |
quelque part |
something |
quelque chose (de + adjective) |
|
not one, none |
aucun...ne |
some (masc) |
quelques-uns |
|
some (fem) |
quelques-unes |
another |
un(e) autre |
|
anything |
n'importe quoi |
several |
plusieurs |
|
anyone |
n'importe qui |
some...others |
certains...d'autres |
|
anywhere |
n'importe où |
each |
chacun |
|
nowhere |
ne...nulle part |
Do not confuse chacun with chaque (each, every). Chacun is a pronoun and replaces a noun, while chaque is an adjective that describes a noun.
