Louisiana French/Verbs

[Note: This page is a merger of two other pages, so please excuse any temporary inconsistencies as things are ironed out.]

This chapter will introduce regular verb conjugations and common irregular verb conjugations with a simplified set of subject pronouns. For more on Louisiana French pronouns, click here, and for more on verbs, click here or here.

In the table below are the subject pronouns we'll be using in this chapter. Note that some pronouns have several pronunciations. Here we list a "typical" one for each.

Again, for a more detailed look at Louisiana French subject pronouns, click here.

Regular verbs are those verbs that follow a predictable conjugation pattern. If you (1) know a verb is regular and (2) know the pattern, you can conjugate it no problem. To begin, find the verb's stem by removing its -er, -ir, or -re ending and replace it with the corresponding conjugation (which in some cases will mean leaving it as it is). Once you know the pattern, you will not have to worry about any of the funny business you can expect from the irregular verbs. Below are the conjugations of three typical regular verbs in Louisiana French, one from each group:

One of the most important and frequently used verbs in French is être ("to be"), pronounced /ɛt(r)/. It is an irregular verb, meaning it does not follow the typical pattern that other -re verbs do. In fact, its conjugation is the most unusual of all French verbs. Along with its meaning of "to be", être is also used to tell time, and occasionally serves as an auxiliary verb, as we will see later.

In general, French does not like what is called vowel hiatus (where two vowels are pronounced side-by-side), and this is especially true for Louisiana French. Être is the first verb we have seen so far that exhibits French's two strategies to resolving hiatus: elision and liaison.

Elision is a process in which vowel sounds are cut out of certain words. Here, the vowels of je, tu, and ça elide (are cut out) and replaced with apostrophes before the vowel sounds (and in the case of je, the consonant sound) of their conjugations, leaving us with j’sus (also spelled chu), t’es, and c’est.

Liaison (represented in the IPA as /‿/) is the pronunciation of a linking consonant between two words which is used to avoid vowel hiatus. Take the word vous, for example. By itself, the final ⟨s⟩ is silent, and the word is pronounced /vu/ ("vou"). But before a vowel sound (for example, the /ɛ/ of the word êtes), the ⟨s⟩ reappears as a /z/ sound so that the two vowel sounds do not clash together. So vous êtes is pronounced /vu.zɛt/ ("vou-zèt"). In être’s conjugation, liaison also takes place between il est, alle est, and on est (/il‿e, al‿e, ɔ̃‿e/), where the final consonant sounds of il, alle, and on would otherwise be silent (/i, a, ɔ̃/).

Another incredibly important irregular verb is avoir ("to have"), pronounced /a(v)war/ and sometimes spelled a’oir or aoir. In addition to its usual meaning, it is used as an auxiliary verb for almost every verb in Louisiana French, making it an essential component of the past tense. It is also used in certain expressions where English would use "to be".

Make sure to properly distinguish ils sont ("they are"), pronounced /i.sɔ̃/, and ils ont ("they have"), pronounced /i‿zɔ̃/.

Yet another essential irregular verb is aller ("to go"). This verb can be used to form the future tense for every verb in the language, though there are some with separate future tense forms that one might encounter.

Note that the spellings y and a are used here to indicate a lack of liaison before the word va. These could just as well be spelled il and alle.

The verb faire ("to do, make") is the fourth and final member of what is sometimes called the "Big Four" group of core irregular verbs in French. It is notably used in a variety of idiomatic expressions, for example, faire (par) exprès ("to do on purpose") and faire grief ("to cause sorrow, to be painful").

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In the previous unit we learned a number of useful irregular verbs, including être ("to be"), avoir ("to have"), aller ("to go"), and venir ("to come"). Aside from their usual meanings, we can use these verbs as "helpers" to move beyond the present tense and talk about things that happened in the past and that will happen in the future.

To say that something has just happened, we use the following structure:

• subject + present tense of venir + de (d’) + infinitive

De is shortened to d’ when the following infinitive begins with a vowel sound.

As a reminder, the table below shows how to conjugate venir in the present tense. For a more complete conjugation, click here.

To say that something is happening (right now), we use:

• subject (+ present tense of être) + après (aprés) + infinitive

The verb être here is optional and commonly dropped, and après is sometimes spelled aprés as to more closely match its typical Louisiana pronunciation. Notably, this construction is not found in International French.

Here is how to conjugate être in the present tense. For a more complete conjugation, click here.

To say that something was happening, we use the following structure:

• subject + imperfect tense of être + après (aprés) + infinitive

The formula differs from the present progressive in that the imperfect tense of être is used instead of the present tense. The être component here is now obligatory.

Typically, you will encounter this construction when a past action interrupts some other event, for example:

Here is how to conjugate être in the imperfect tense. For a more complete conjugation, click here.

Despite their different spellings, all these forms are pronounced the same way: /e.te, -ɛ/ ("été" or "étè").

To say that something is about to happen or is fixin' to happen, we use the following structure:

• subject + present tense of être + en train de (d’) + infinitive

Additionally, by putting être in the imperfect tense, we can also talk about what was going to happen.

• subject + imperfect tense of être + en train de (d’) + infinitive

Note that this construction is also used in International French, but means something different:

To say that something will happen, we can use the structure below. It should be noted, though, that this is not the only way to express the future tense. There is also a one-word form (the "simple future") that you may encounter in some situations.

• subject + present tense of aller + infinitive

When you are forming negative statements, the word pas goes between the conjugated form of aller and the infinitive, like this:

• subject + present tense of aller + pas + infinitive

Here is how to conjugate aller in the present tense. For a more complete conjugation, click here.

There are two formulas we can use to say that something will be happening, combining the future and the progressive. Here is one of them:

• subject + present tense of aller + être après + infinitive

The second way to form the future progressive follows this formula:

• subject + simple future tense of être + après + infinitive

We have not touched on the simple future tense in this chapter. Below is être’s conjugation in this tense. It employs an irregular stem (ser-) which looks completely different from both the infinitive and the present tense forms. What's more, it takes future tense endings.

We use the imperative mood to tell or ask someone to do (or not do) something, like when we give a command or make a request.

Forming the imperative is simple: just use the first-person singular (je) form of the verb when addressing one person. For example:

• (je) mange ("(I) eat") → mange! ("(you, sg.) eat!")

• (je) lâche ("(I) let go") → lâche pas la patate! ("don't give up!", literally: "don't let go of the potato!")

If addressing more than one person, use the second-person plural (vous) form. For example:

• (vous) mangez ("(y'all) eat") → mangez pas! ("don't eat (y'all)!")

If you are including yourself in the command or request, use allons ("let's go") plus the infinitive. For example:

• allons manger! ("let's eat!") or allons danser! ("let's dance!")