Understanding Passé Composé: Être vs Avoir

Importance of Auxiliary Verbs

• Passé Composé is a past tense in French formed with:
  • Auxiliary Verb (Être or Avoir)
  • Past Participle
• Auxiliary verbs help indicate the tense of the main verb.

Auxiliary Verbs in French

• Two auxiliary verbs used:
  • Être (to be)
  • Avoir (to have)
• Example: "You played" in French uses "Avoir" as auxiliary.

Conjugation Requirement

• It is crucial to learn how to conjugate Être and Avoir in different tenses to properly form past tenses.

When to Use Être

1. Reflexive Verbs
2. Movement Verbs
   • Movement verbs include 16 specific verbs.
   • Use the acronym DR MRS VANDERTRAMP to remember these verbs.
     • Example: Devenir (to become) -> Je suis devenu

Examples of Movement Verbs

• Revenir (to come back): Je suis revenu
• Monter (to go up): Je suis monté
• Mourir (to die): Je suis mort
• Partir (to leave): Je suis parti

Agreement in Gender and Number

• Past participles agree in gender and number:
  • Example: Elle est tombée (feminine, singular)

Reflexive Verbs and Être

• Reflexive verbs use Être.
• Example: Je me suis lavé (I washed myself)
  • Reflexive pronouns indicate reflexive action.

Exceptions Using Both Être and Avoir

• Some verbs use both Être and Avoir depending on context:
  • Laver (to wash):
    • Reflexive: Je me suis lavé
    • With direct object: J'ai lavé ma voiture (I washed my car)
• Descendre (to go down):
  • Without direct object: Je suis descendu
  • With direct object: J'ai descendu les poubelles (I took the bins down)

Key Takeaway

• Most verbs in past use Avoir unless they are reflexive or movement verbs.
• Focus on learning the 16 movement verbs and reflexive verbs.

Additional Resources

• More detailed explanations and examples are available through additional videos and courses.
• Consider enrolling in French courses for in-depth learning.

Remember to watch related videos for more examples and detailed explanations.

Au revoir!