FlexiLingoIn one line
Character takes
être, a passing state often takesavoir— and a feeling followed byquetriggers the subjunctive.
Nouns
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
le sentiment | /sɑ̃.ti.mɑ̃/ | feeling |
l'émotion (f.) | /e.mo.sjɔ̃/ | emotion |
l'humeur (f.) | /y.mœʁ/ | mood |
le caractère | /ka.ʁak.tɛʁ/ | character |
la joie | /ʒwa/ | joy |
le bonheur | /bɔ.nœʁ/ | happiness |
la tristesse | /tʁis.tɛs/ | sadness |
la colère | /kɔ.lɛʁ/ | anger |
la peur | /pœʁ/ | fear |
l'inquiétude (f.) | /ɛ̃.kje.tyd/ | worry |
le stress | /stʁɛs/ | stress |
la surprise | /syʁ.pʁiz/ | surprise |
la honte | /ɔ̃t/ | shame — aspirate h |
la fierté | /fjɛʁ.te/ | pride |
l'amour (m.) | /a.muʁ/ | love |
la haine | /ɛn/ | hatred — aspirate h |
l'espoir (m.) | /ɛs.pwaʁ/ | hope |
la déception | /de.sɛp.sjɔ̃/ | disappointment |
la confiance | /kɔ̃.fjɑ̃s/ | trust |
la patience | /pa.sjɑ̃s/ | patience |
Two of these mean the opposite of what an English speaker expects.
French Actually means English "same" word la déceptiondisappointment deception = la tromperiesensiblesensitive sensible = raisonnable
Je suis déçumeans "I'm disappointed", not "I've been deceived" — a much milder thing to say than it looks. AndElle est très sensiblesays she is easily hurt, not that she has good judgement. Saying it about a colleague in a meeting is not the compliment you intended.
Adjectives — passing states
| Masculine | Feminine | English |
|---|---|---|
content /kɔ̃.tɑ̃/ | contente /kɔ̃.tɑ̃t/ | pleased |
heureux /ø.ʁø/ | heureuse /ø.ʁøz/ | happy |
triste /tʁist/ | triste /tʁist/ | sad |
fatigué /fa.ti.ɡe/ | fatiguée /fa.ti.ɡe/ | tired |
en colère /ɑ̃ ko.lɛʁ/ | — | angry |
inquiet /ɛ̃.kjɛ/ | inquiète /ɛ̃.kjɛt/ | worried |
stressé /stʁɛ.se/ | stressée /stʁɛ.se/ | stressed |
surpris /syʁ.pʁi/ | surprise /syʁ.pʁiz/ | surprised |
déçu /de.sy/ | déçue /de.sy/ | disappointed |
soulagé /su.la.ʒe/ | soulagée /su.la.ʒe/ | relieved |
énervé /e.nɛʁ.ve/ | énervée /e.nɛʁ.ve/ | irritated |
de bonne humeur /də bɔ.n‿y.mœʁ/ | — | in a good mood |
de mauvaise humeur /də mo.vɛ.z‿y.mœʁ/ | — | in a bad mood |
Adjectives — character
| Masculine | Feminine | English |
|---|---|---|
gentil /ʒɑ̃.ti/ | gentille /ʒɑ̃.tij/ | kind |
sympathique /sɛ̃.pa.tik/ sympa /sɛ̃.pa/ | — | likeable, friendly |
généreux /ʒe.ne.ʁø/ | généreuse /ʒe.ne.ʁøz/ | generous |
honnête /ɔ.nɛt/ | honnête /ɔ.nɛt/ | honest |
sérieux /se.ʁjø/ | sérieuse /se.ʁjøz/ | serious, dependable |
travailleur /tʁa.va.jœʁ/ | travailleuse /tʁa.va.jøz/ | hard-working |
patient /pa.sjɑ̃/ | patiente /pa.sjɑ̃t/ | patient |
calme /kalm/ | calme /kalm/ | calm |
timide /ti.mid/ | timide /ti.mid/ | shy |
bavard /ba.vaʁ/ | bavarde /ba.vaʁd/ | talkative |
drôle /dʁol/ | drôle /dʁol/ | funny |
curieux /ky.ʁjø/ | curieuse /ky.ʁjøz/ | curious |
ambitieux /ɑ̃.bi.sjø/ | ambitieuse /ɑ̃.bi.sjøz/ | ambitious |
égoïste /e.ɡɔ.ist/ | égoïste /e.ɡɔ.ist/ | selfish |
paresseux /pa.ʁɛ.sø/ | paresseuse /pa.ʁɛ.søz/ | lazy |
têtu /tɛ.ty/ | têtue /tɛ.ty/ | stubborn |
méchant /me.ʃɑ̃/ | méchante /me.ʃɑ̃t/ | nasty |
optimiste /ɔp.ti.mist/ | optimiste /ɔp.ti.mist/ | optimistic |
pessimiste /pɛ.si.mist/ | pessimiste /pɛ.si.mist/ | pessimistic |
ouvert /u.vɛʁ/ | ouverte /u.vɛʁt/ | open, outgoing |
Verbs
| Verb | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
se sentir | /sə sɑ̃.tiʁ/ | to feel |
être content que + subjunctive | /ɛtʁ kɔ̃.tɑ̃ kə/ | to be glad that |
avoir peur de | /a.vwaʁ pœʁ də/ | to be afraid of |
s'inquiéter de | /sɛ̃.kje.te də/ | to worry about |
s'énerver | /se.nɛʁ.ve/ | to get annoyed |
se fâcher contre | /sə fɑ.ʃe kɔ̃tʁ/ | to get angry with |
pleurer | /plœ.ʁe/ | to cry |
rire | /ʁiʁ/ | to laugh |
sourire | /su.ʁiʁ/ | to smile |
aimer | /ɛ.me/ | to like, to love |
détester | /de.tɛs.te/ | to hate |
espérer | /ɛs.pe.ʁe/ | to hope |
regretter | /ʁə.ɡʁɛ.te/ | to regret |
avoir confiance en | /a.vwaʁ kɔ̃.fjɑ̃s ɑ̃/ | to have confidence in |
faire confiance à | /fɛʁ kɔ̃.fjɑ̃s a/ | to trust |
Set phrases
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
Je suis content(e) de… | /ʒə sɥi kɔ̃.tɑ̃ də/ | I'm glad to… |
Ça me fait plaisir. | /sa mə fɛ plɛ.ziʁ/ | that makes me happy |
Je suis désolé(e). | /ʒə sɥi de.zo.le/ | I'm sorry |
Ça m'énerve. | /sa me.nɛʁv/ | that annoys me |
J'en ai marre. | /ʒɑ̃.n‿e maʁ/ | I've had enough |
Ça va mieux. | /sa va mjø/ | I'm feeling better |
avoir le cafard | /a.vwaʁ lə ka.faʁ/ | to feel down |
avoir la pêche | /a.vwaʁ la pɛʃ/ | to be full of energy |
être de bonne humeur | /ɛtʁ də bɔn y.mœʁ/ | to be in a good mood |
Ne t'inquiète pas. | /nə tɛ̃.kjɛt pa/ | don't worry |
Ça m'est égal. | /sa mɛt e.ɡal/ | I don't mind |
Traps
| Trap | Explanation |
|---|---|
avoir peur, not être peur | And with no article: J'ai peur. |
sensible means sensitive, not sensible | Sensible is raisonnable. A very common false friend. |
sympathique means likeable | Not sympathetic. Its short form sympa never changes. |
content and heureux are different | content is a passing state, heureux runs deeper. |
| A feeling takes the subjunctive | Je suis content que tu sois là. See subjonctif-declencheurs. |
la honte and la haine have aspirate h | la honte, not l'honte. See h-aspire. |
espérer takes the indicative | J'espère qu'il viendra — the exception among feelings. |
Feelings and the subjunctive
why gladness triggers it too
The simple rule "doubt → subjunctive" does not cover this, because a feeling triggers the subjunctive even when nothing is in doubt:
Je suis content que tu sois là.— you are definitely there
The reason is that in this sentence, your being there is not the news — it is taken as given. The news is that I am pleased.
The subjunctive marks exactly that: this clause is not what I am asserting.
The feelings that take it:
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
être content que | /ɛtʁ kɔ̃.tɑ̃ kə/ | to be glad that |
être heureux que | /ɛtʁ ø.ʁø kə/ | to be happy that |
être triste que | /ɛtʁ tʁist kə/ | to be sad that |
être surpris que | /ɛtʁ syʁ.pʁi kə/ | to be surprised that |
être désolé que | /ɛtʁ de.zo.le kə/ | to be sorry that |
avoir peur que | /a.vwaʁ pœʁ kə/ | to be afraid that |
regretter que | /ʁə.ɡʁɛ.te kə/ | to regret that |
s'étonner que | /se.tɔ.ne kə/ | to be astonished that |
craindre que | /kʁɛ̃dʁ kə/ | to fear that |
And one exception: espérer que takes the indicative.
J'espère qu'il viendra.— notvienne
This exception is easy for you and the rule is not. English says "I hope he comes" with a plain indicative, exactly like French — so espérer que … viendra needs no effort at all.
The work is everywhere else. English also says "I'm glad you're here", "I'm sorry he's ill", "I'm afraid it's late" — all indicative, all requiring the subjunctive in French. There is nothing in the English sentence to warn you, which is why this has to be learnt as a list rather than felt.
The shortcut that avoids the whole problem: when both halves share a subject, use an infinitive instead.
Je suis content d'être là.— rather thanque je sois là
And that construction is the natural one in French anyway, so it is not a dodge.