How to Make Negative Sentences with Irregular Verbs in the Present Tense

When you want to make negative sentences in French, especially with irregular verbs, there are some important rules to follow.

1. Common Irregular Verbs

First, let’s remember some of the common irregular verbs:

• Avoir (to have)
• Être (to be)
• Aller (to go)
• Faire (to do/make)

2. Basic Negation

In French, to make a sentence negative, you place ne before the verb and pas after it. Here’s how it looks with our irregular verbs:

• Avoir: Je n’ai pas (I do not have)
• Être: Je ne suis pas (I am not)
• Aller: Je ne vais pas (I do not go)
• Faire: Je ne fais pas (I do not do/make)

3. Examples

Let’s use these verbs in some sentences:

• Avoir:

  • Affirmative: J’ai un livre. (I have a book.)
  • Negative: Je n’ai pas de livre. (I do not have a book.)

• Être:

  • Affirmative: Elle est contente. (She is happy.)
  • Negative: Elle n’est pas contente. (She is not happy.)

• Aller:

  • Affirmative: Nous allons au parc. (We are going to the park.)
  • Negative: Nous n’allons pas au parc. (We are not going to the park.)

• Faire:

  • Affirmative: Ils font du sport. (They do sports.)
  • Negative: Ils ne font pas de sport. (They do not do sports.)

4. Subject Pronouns

Make sure to use the right subject pronoun:

• Je: I
• Tu: You (singular, informal)
• Il/Elle: He/She
• Nous: We
• Vous: You (plural/formal)
• Ils/Elles: They (m./f.)

Conclusion

By using the correct subject pronoun with the right negative structure, you can easily make negative sentences with irregular verbs in the present tense in French. Keep practicing these structures to improve your speaking skills!