Lesson 2: Être – To Be

By /

1. Lesson Overview

Today, you will learn one of the most important verbs in French: être.

The verb être means:

to be

You will use être to describe yourself and other people.

For example:

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis sportif.

Elle est intelligente.

Il est gentil.

You will also learn the French subject pronouns and how the verb être changes depending on who you are talking about.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

  • understand what the verb être means;
  • identify French subject pronouns;
  • conjugate être in the present tense;
  • say who you are;
  • describe yourself using Je suis…;
  • describe another person using Il est… / Elle est…;
  • use simple adjectives to describe personality and characteristics;
  • recognize basic adjective agreement.

2. Learning objectives

By the end of the lesson, I can:

Knowledge

☐ Explain what être means.

☐ Identify the French subject pronouns.

☐ Recall the forms of être.

Understanding

☐ Understand why the verb changes depending on the subject.

☐ Understand simple sentences using être.

Application

☐ Use Je suis… to describe myself.

☐ Use Il est… and Elle est… to describe someone else.

☐ Use simple adjectives correctly.

Communication

☐ Write simple French sentences describing myself.

3. What is a Verb?

Before learning être, let’s understand what a verb is.

Definition

A verb is a word that tells us about an action, state or condition.

In English:

I am a student.

I play football.

She is happy.

The words am, play and is are verbs.

In French, you will also use verbs to create sentences.

Today, you are learning:

ÊTRE = TO BE

4. What does Être mean?

Être

English: to be

We use être to say things such as:

I am…

You are…

He is…

She is…

For example:

Je suis élève.

= I am a student.

Je suis sympathique.

= I am friendly.

Elle est sportive.

= She is sporty.

5. What is a subject pronoun?

Before you use être, you need to know who is doing the action or who we are talking about.

This is called the subject.

A subject pronoun is a word that replaces a person’s name or noun.

In English:

I

You

He

She

We

You

They

French has subject pronouns too.

6. French subject pronouns

FrenchEnglish
JeI
TuYou – singular/informal
IlHe
ElleShe
NousWe
VousYou – formal or plural
IlsThey – masculine/mixed
EllesThey – feminine

For now, pay particular attention to:

Je = I

Tu = You

Il = He

Elle = She

Nous = We

Vous = You

Ils / Elles = They

7. Être – Present tense

Now let’s learn the forms of être.

ÊTRE – TO BE

SubjectÊtreEnglish
JesuisI am
TuesYou are
IlestHe is
ElleestShe is
NoussommesWe are
VousêtesYou are
IlssontThey are
EllessontThey are

Most important for today:

Je suis = I am

Tu es = You are

Il est = He is

Elle est = She is

8. Look carefully

Notice something important.

The verb être does not stay the same.

We do not say:

❌ Je être

❌ Tu être

❌ Elle être

Instead, the verb changes:

Je suis

Tu es

Elle est

Nous sommes

Vous êtes

Ils sont

This is called conjugation.

9. What is Conjugation?

Definition

Conjugation means changing a verb so that it matches the subject.

For example:

English

I am

You are

He is

The verb changes.

French does the same thing:

Je suis

Tu es

Il est

Nous sommes

So remember:

Subject + correct form of the verb

10. The most important structure today

For describing yourself, use:

Je suis + adjective.

Examples:

Je suis sympathique.

= I am friendly.

Je suis gentil.

= I am kind.

Je suis sportif.

= I am sporty.

Je suis intelligent.

= I am intelligent.

11. Describing yourself

You already know:

Je m’appelle…

Today, you can add:

Je suis…

For example:

Bonjour !

Je m’appelle Emma.

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis sportive.

Au revoir !

You are now giving someone more information about your identity.

12. Personality vocabulary

Here are some adjectives you can use with être.

FrenchEnglish
sympathiquefriendly
gentil / gentillekind
intelligent / intelligenteintelligent
sportif / sportivesporty
créatif / créativecreative
drôlefunny
timideshy
sérieux / sérieuseserious
calmecalm
courageux / courageusecourageous
heureux / heureusehappy
curieux / curieusecurious

You do not need to memorize all of them today.

Start with:

sympathique

gentil / gentille

sportif / sportive

intelligent / intelligente

créatif / créative

drôle

13. Masculine and Feminine adjectives

French adjectives can change depending on whether we are describing a male or female person.

For example:

Masculine

Il est sportif.

Feminine

Elle est sportive.

Another example:

Masculine

Il est intelligent.

Feminine

Elle est intelligente.

Another:

Masculine

Il est créatif.

Feminine

Elle est créative.

14. Adjective agreement

This is called adjective agreement.

The adjective must agree with the person we are describing.

Look at:

Il est sportif.

Elle est sportive.

The ending changes.

Remember:

Il → masculine adjective

Elle → feminine adjective

For example:

Il est gentil.

Elle est gentille.

15. Some adjectives stay the same

Not every adjective changes.

For example:

Il est sympathique.

Elle est sympathique.

And:

Il est drôle.

Elle est drôle.

And:

Il est timide.

Elle est timide.

So don’t assume that every adjective needs a different ending.

16. Let’s build sentences

You can now build simple sentences.

Step 1 – Choose a subject

Je

Step 2 – Add the correct form of être

Je suis

Step 3 – Add an adjective

Je suis sympathique.

Another example

Elle + est + sportive

Elle est sportive.

Another example

Il + est + gentil

Il est gentil.

17. Sentence builder

Use this structure:

SUBJECT
   ↓
VERB ÊTRE
   ↓
ADJECTIVE

Je
+
suis
+
sympathique

↓

Je suis sympathique.

Try another:

Elle
+
est
+
sportive

↓

Elle est sportive.

18. Activity 1 – Être detective

Look at each sentence.

Identify the form of être.

1.

Je suis sympathique.

What is the verb?

suis

2.

Elle est sportive.

What is the verb?

est

3.

Tu es gentil.

What is the verb?

es

4.

Nous sommes amis.

What is the verb?

sommes

19. Activity 2 – Choose the correct form

Choose the correct form of être.

1.

Je ______ sympathique.

A. es
B. suis
C. est

Answer:

suis

2.

Tu ______ sportif.

A. suis
B. es
C. est

Answer:

es

3.

Elle ______ intelligente.

A. suis
B. es
C. est

Answer:

est

4.

Nous ______ amis.

A. sont
B. êtes
C. sommes

Answer:

sommes

20. Activity 3 – Who Am I?

I will give you a sentence.

You identify the person.

Example:

Elle est sportive.

Who are we describing?

She

Example:

Il est gentil.

Who are we describing?

He

Example:

Je suis créatif.

Who are we describing?

I / myself

21. Activity 4 – Super Me!

Now you are going to create your own French superhero identity.

Draw yourself as a superhero.

Give yourself a superhero name.

Then write six sentences using:

Je suis…

For example:

Je suis courageux.

Je suis intelligent.

Je suis sportif.

Je suis drôle.

Je suis créatif.

Je suis sympathique.

You can decorate your superhero character and add symbols or drawings to represent your qualities.

22. Activity 5 – Describe a character

Choose a character from your imagination.

Draw the character.

Then write:

Il est __________________.

or

Elle est __________________.

For example:

Elle est intelligente.

Elle est courageuse.

Elle est sportive.

Or:

Il est gentil.

Il est drôle.

Il est créatif.

23. Activity 6 – My Identity

Now connect today’s lesson with Lesson 1.

You already learned:

Je m’appelle…

Today you learned:

Je suis…

Put them together.

Example:

Bonjour !

Je m’appelle Alex.

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis sportif.

Ça va bien.

Au revoir !

You have now created a short description of your identity in French.

24. Mini writing task

Write three sentences about yourself.

Use:

Je m’appelle __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Example:

Je m’appelle Maya.

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis créative.

25. Challenge

If you are ready, write five sentences.

Bonjour !

Je m’appelle __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Je suis __________________.

Au revoir !

26. Common beginner mistakes

Mistake 1

❌ Je est sympathique.

✅ Je suis sympathique.

Remember:

Je → suis

Mistake 2

❌ Je es sportif.

✅ Je suis sportif.

Remember:

Tu → es

Je → suis

Mistake 3

❌ Elle suis sportive.

✅ Elle est sportive.

Remember:

Elle → est

Mistake 4

❌ Il est sportive.

✅ Il est sportif.

For now, remember:

Il → masculine adjective

Elle → feminine adjective

Mistake 5

❌ Je être sympathique.

✅ Je suis sympathique.

Remember that être is the infinitive form.

When you use it in a sentence, you must conjugate it.

27. Grammar reminder

ÊTRE = TO BE

SubjectVerb
Jesuis
Tues
Ilest
Elleest
Noussommes
Vousêtes
Ilssont
Ellessont

Key structure:

Subject + être + adjective

Examples:

Je suis sympathique.

Tu es gentil.

Il est sportif.

Elle est intelligente.

28. Board plan

Keep the board visually simple.

🇫🇷 UNIT 1 – BONJOUR !

LESSON 2 – ÊTRE

ÊTRE = TO BE

Je → suis
Tu → es
Il → est
Elle → est
Nous → sommes
Vous → êtes
Ils → sont
Elles → sont

DESCRIBE YOURSELF:

Je suis sympathique.
Je suis sportif.
Je suis intelligent.
Je suis créatif.

DESCRIBE SOMEONE:

Il est gentil.
Elle est sportive.

29. Learning check

Complete the sentences.

1.

Je ______ sympathique.

2.

Tu ______ sportif.

3.

Il ______ gentil.

4.

Elle ______ intelligente.

5.

Nous ______ amis.

6.

Vous ______ élèves.

7.

Ils ______ sportifs.

8.

Elles ______ créatives.

Answers

  1. suis
  1. es
  1. est
  1. est
  1. sommes
  1. êtes
  1. sont
  1. sont

30. Exit ticket

Before leaving the lesson, write three things in the chat:

1. Your name

Je m’appelle __________.

2. One quality

Je suis __________.

3. Another quality

Je suis __________.

For example:

Je m’appelle David.

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis sportif.

31. Homework

Super Me – My French Identity

Create a drawing of yourself.

Write five sentences using Je suis…

For example:

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis intelligent(e).

Je suis sportif/sportive.

Je suis créatif/créative.

Je suis drôle.

Also include:

Je m’appelle __________.

32. Success criteria

Today I can…

I can…
Explain what être means.☐
Identify French subject pronouns.☐
Use Je suis correctly.☐
Use Tu es correctly.☐
Use Il est / Elle est correctly.☐
Use simple adjectives to describe myself.☐
Describe another person.☐
Understand basic adjective agreement.☐

33. Closing

“Excellent work today, everyone!”

“Today you learned one of the most important verbs in French: être, which means to be.”

“You also learned that the verb changes depending on the person.”

“Remember our most important sentence today:”

Je suis…

“You can now use Je suis to describe yourself and your identity.”

“You also know how to use Il est and Elle est to describe other people.”

“Keep practising your être forms because we will use them again and again throughout this unit.”

Très bien ! Excellent travail ! 🇫🇷

Au revoir et à bientôt !

Lesson 2 Takeaway

You should leave Lesson 2 confidently knowing:

Être = to be

Je suis = I am

Tu es = You are

Il est = He is

Elle est = She is

Nous sommes = We are

Vous êtes = You are

Ils/Elles sont = They are

And you can now say:

Je m’appelle ________.

Je suis sympathique.

Je suis sportif/sportive.

Je suis intelligent(e).

Je suis créatif/créative.

This provides the foundation for Lesson 3, where you will use French to talk about your age, nationality and where you live.

Must Read

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

error: Ctrl + C is easy. Creating the content? That's where the magic happens. Be original. Your future self will thank you.
Scroll to Top