When to use the infinitive in French L’infinitif is an impersonal verb form (like the gerund and the past participle) that is used after certain words and phrases. In addition to following a verb, the infinitive often follows the prepositions à and de. Example: avoir l’intention + de + infinitif → J’ai l’intention d’apprendre à jouer au tennis.
What is an infinitive structure in French?
The infinitive is the basic, unconjugated form of a verb. In French, there are three main groups of infinitive endings: -er such as manger (to eat). -ir such as finir (to finish). -re such as vendre (to sell)
What are the 3 types of infinitives in French?
Reminder: The French infinitive verb form is classed into 3 groups: verbs ending in -er, verbs ending in -ir, and a third group of verbs (comprendre, naître, etc.)
How do you write an infinitive?
The infinitive form of a verb is written with the following formula: “to + verb”. For example, “to talk”, “to find” or “to fight”. An important point to note is the role of the word “to” in this. “To” can be used as a preposition, but in this case it's actually a part of the verb itself.
What is an example of a infinitive?
Examples include, “to walk,” “to read,” or “to eat.” Infinitives can act as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. As a noun, they might act as the subject of the sentence. For example, “To travel is the only thing on her mind.” As an adjective, they'll modify a noun.
Is faire an infinitive in French?
Faire + infinitive forms a unit that is not separated by nouns or pronouns. When there is one object, it is a direct object. Direct object nouns follow the infinitive and direct object pronouns precede faire: Il fait venir le médecin.
How do you use Aller infinitive?
The verb 'aller' needs to be conjugated in the present tense and followed by the infinitive of the thing you are going to do. So, 'je vais écrire' is correct here and the pattern is 'tu vas écrire', 'il va écrire' and so on.
What are 5 examples of infinitive phrases?
Infinitive phrases often include modifiers; here are some examples:To study advanced math Adjective modifying “math”To eat a giant sandwich Adjective modifying “sandwich”To play guitar beautifully Adverb modifying “to play”To leave the party quietly Adverb modifying “to leave”
What are the 5 types of infinitives?
Here's a discussion of the five types of infinitives.Subject. An infinitive can constitute the subject of a sentence. ... Direct Object. In the sentence “We all want to see,” “to see” is the direct object, the noun (or noun substitute) that receives the action of the verb. ... Subject Complement. ... Adjective. ... Adverb.
What is simple infinitive?
simple. An infinitive can be a to -infinitive or a bare infinitive (without to ). There is no difference in meaning between them; some structures require a to -infinitive, while others call for a bare infinitive: I ought to call them. ( to -infinitive)
Can you start a sentence with an infinitive?
You can begin a sentence with a to-infinitive; the "to" is not a preposition (it never is, with a verb), and a to-infinitive or an infinitive phrase can be the subject of a verb. However, for most situations, using a gerund is better and more natural.
How do you find the infinitive in a sentence?
To identify an infinitive phrase in a sentence: First, find the word to. Second, if the word after to is a verb, then it is an infinitive. Third, if the infinitive is in the middle of the sentence, then the infinitive phrase starts at to and ends at the end of the sentence.
How do you identify an infinitive verb in French?
The infinitive is the basic, unconjugated form of a verb, sometimes called the name of the verb. In English, the infinitive is the word "to" followed by a verb: "to talk," "to see," "to return." The French infinitive is a single word with one of the following endings: -er, -ir, or -re: parler, voir, rendre.
What are IR verbs in French?
vir1: -ir verbs (regular) present tense. Verbs with infinitives ending in -ir form a second group of regular verbs in French, often called 'second conjugation' verbs. To conjugate these verbs, drop the -ir from the infinitive and add the second conjugation present tense endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent.
What are imparfait verbs in French?
The imperfect tense (l'imparfait), one of several past tenses in French, is used to describe states of being and habitual actions in the past. It also has several idiomatic uses. To the stem, add the endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, and -aient.
What are ER verbs in French?
Most Common -er VerbsFrenchEnglishdemanderto ask, to requesttrouverto find, to discoverpasserto pass, to go pastresterto stay, to remain16 more rows
What is l’infinitif in French?
L’infinitif (the infinitive) is the base form of the verb: it is a non-conjugated form that, like the participles, does not express a tense, person or number. The French infinitives can be grouped by their endings: -er (parler), -ir (finir), -re (prendre) or -oir (voir). In French there are several phrases, words and structures that are followed by the infinitive.
What is an infinitive verb?
L’infinitif is an impersonal verb form (like the gerund and the past participle) that is used after certain words and phrases. In addition to following a verb, the infinitive often follows the prepositions à and de.
What are past participles followed by in French?
Adjectives and past participles that act as adjectives are also followed by the infinitive in French.
Where do you find an infinitive?
However, in sentences where there are two verbs (but not in a row, of course!) the infinitive is placed after the main conjugated verb and after the eventual preposition following it. Example:
What is the past infinitive?
If you’re wanting to talk about an action that happens before the action that the main verb is describing, then you’ll be using the past infinitive. The past infinitive is formed in the following way: auxiliary verb ( être or avoir) + past participle.
When to use subjunctive or infinitive?
When you want to express uncertainty or something subjective, then the subjunctive is your friend. Here are the two instances in which infinitives are used instead of the subjunctive. When the Main Clause and the Subordinate Clause of a sentence have the same subject. Example:
Where are the negative components placed in a sentence?
On another note, if there is negation in a sentence then the negative components are placed around the conjugated verb and come before an eventual preposition.
Is the French infinitive simple?
The French Infinitive isn’t quite as straightforward as some may think. We totally understand, and with that in mind we put together this super easy guide to help you out!
Is "infinitive" a noun?
Whether it’s playing the part of the subject or the object within a sentence, the infinitive can appear as a noun. If translated into English this noun form corresponds to the present participle.
Is the negation before the infinitive?
Note: In negative sentences, the negation is before the infinitive.
What is an infinitive verb in French?
In French, infinitive verbs always end in either er, re, or ir. The infinitive form of a verb in French translates roughly as 'to + verb' in English. To take some examples from the above dialogue: jouer (zhoo-ay, to play) prendre (prahn-druh, to take/pick up/grab) finir (fee-neer, to finish) Lesson. Quiz.
Where do infinitives go in conjugated verbs?
Infinitives are often placed directly after a conjugated verb, similar to how one would use an infinitive in English. For instance, Elise told Victor: j'aime regarder les films (I like to watch movies), with regarder (ruh-gahr-day) being the infinitive. Here are some other examples of an infinitive following a verb:
What is the replacement for subjunctive tense?
As a Replacement for the Subjunctive Tense. Infinitive verbs are also used to replace the subjunctive verb tense, as long as one of two conditions are met: The main clause and the subordinate clause have the same subject.
When to use the infinitive "fail faire les devoirs"?
When there's an impersonal subject and the subject is implied. For example, you could use the infinitive to say il faut faire les devoirs (it's necessary to do your homework) instead of il faut que tu fasses les devoirs (it's necessary for you to do your homework).
What does "J'aime étudier le français" mean?
J'aime étudier le français. (I like to study French.)
Is "infinitive" a noun?
On rare occasions, an infinitive verb can also be a noun, as either the subject or object in a given sentence. For example: Apprendre le français est facile. (Learning French is easy.) Voir, c'est croire. (Seeing is believing.) Where to Put an Infinitive Verb.
Do negative adverbs go before the infinitive?
Negative adverbs go before the infinitive too. For instance, you may see ne pas fumer (no smoking) signs in France. When using both an object pronoun and a negative adverb, the negative adverb precedes both the pronoun and the infinitive, as in ne pas l'ouvrir (do not open it). Lesson Summary.
What is the infinitive in French?
French infinitive. The infinitive ( l'infinitif) is the basic form of a verb that you find when you look it up in a dictionary. It is a non-finite (or "in-finite", hence "infinitive") verb form, which means that it has no expressed or implied subject and shows no tense.
When is a French preposition followed by a verb?
When any French preposition (except en and après) is followed by a verb, that verb is in the infinitive. In English, prepositions except "to" take the -ing form of the verb. For example: Il faut manger avant d'étudier. You must eat before studying. Vous ne pouvez pas sortir sans manger. You can't go out without eating.
Is "do" an infinitive?
In English, "do" and "write" are infinitives, although we usually precede them with "to" (e.g., "to do", "to write") to make it clear that we are talking about the infinitive. Additionally, many constructions in English use the infinitive preceded by "to". For example:
What are infinitives like?
Infinitives are like rough diamonds. They are pure. They are found in big dictionaries.
How many groups of infinitives are there in French?
In a nutshell you have 3 groups with 4 different infinitives in French.
Do you remove anything in the future tense?
Note that for some tenses, you don’t remove anything but you add the endings to your infinitives like for the future tense.
Is a sentence a verb?
A sentence has a subject and a verb. A complex sentence has different parts with a verb in each one. And if you still wonder how to distinguish a verb from an infinitive, remember that a verb is conjugated and possesses many variations when an infinitive has a unique shape.
