French: A Self-Teaching Guide

by Suzanne A. Hershfield-Haims

Overview

Learn to speak French like a native with this essential guide

Now you can teach yourself how to speak, write, and read French in just 15 easy-to-follow lessons. Perfect for students, travelers, and Francophiles, this new and revised edition of French: A Self-Teaching Guide helps you master the language at your own pace by taking the mystery out of grammar, common usage, and pronunciation with updated lessons and plenty of self-tests. Focusing on the most frequently used words in the language, this fascinating volume shows you how to enrich your French vocabulary by over 2,000 words—without having to resort to monotonous memorization exercises.More than just a language guide, French: A Self-Teaching Guide provides intriguing information on French culture, local customs, and current trends. It also features a special computer section, which includes a drawing of computer parts accompanied by their names—in French and English. Packed with review tests to measure progress, special drills to reinforce new material, and exercises to help you practice your newfound skills, this is the ideal companion for anyone who has ever wanted to learn French—or brush up on their skills—the easy way.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780471369585
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	06/15/2000
Series:	Wiley Self-Teaching Guides , #174
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	7.54(w) x 9.24(h) x 0.66(d)

About the Author

SUZANNE A. HERSHFIELD-HAIMS, Ph.D., is a French native and an independent language consultant. She has extensive experience teaching French and has trained foreign language teachers and developed many French language study programs for univeristies. She earned her Ph.D. in French and African Literature from Syracuse University.

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Changes in the Second Edition xv

Pronunciation Guide xvii

Lesson 1 Basic Expressions 1

Grammar I Definite Articles Gender of Nouns 3

Grammar II Indefinite Articles 5

Grammar III Subject Pronouns and the Verbs être and avoir The Interrogative 6

Lesson 2 Au Restaurant (At the Restaurant) 9

Grammar I Regular Verbs in the Present Indicative Tense 12

Grammar II Present Indicative of Regular Verbs Ending in -ir and -re 14

Grammar III the Negative Form of être and avoir 16

Lesson 3 Au Grand Magasin (At the Department Store) 18

Grammar I Adjective-Noun Agreement Descriptive Adjectives 22

Grammar II the Partitive Constructions: du, de la, des, and de L’ Numbers 25

Grammar III Present Indicative of aller Question Words 27

Lesson 4 À L’aéroport (At the Airport) 30

Grammar I Present Indicative of faire 33

Grammar II Quelle heure est-il? (What time is it?) More Numbers 35

Grammar III Present Indicative of Irregular Verbs: pouvoir and vouloir 38

Lesson 5 La Famille (The Family) 40

Grammar I Present Indicative of Stem-Changing Verbs: manger, commencer, acheter, and payer 45

Grammar II Present Indicative of connaître and savoir The Difference between connaître and savoir 47

Grammar III Negative Constructions 49

Answers Lessons 1–5 52

Review Exam Lessons 1–5 63

Answers Review Exam 66

Lesson 6 À L’hôtel (At the Hotel) 67

Grammar I Idiomatic Expressions with avoir 70

Grammar II Verbs Used with à and de 71

Grammar III Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns 73

Lesson 7 Une Fête D’anniversaire (A Birthday Party) 76

Grammar I Possessive Adjectives 80

Grammar II Possessive Pronouns 82

Grammar III Direct Object Nouns and Pronouns 84

Grammar IV the Imperative Form of être and avoir, and General Rules for other Verbs 86

Lesson 8 L’épicerie Du Coin (The Corner Grocery Store) 89

Grammar I Passé composé of Regular and Irregular Verbs with avoir 94

Grammar II Passé Composé of Regular and Irregular Verbs with être 95

Grammar III Idiomatic Expressions with avoir, falloir, and valoir 97

Lesson 9 À La Banque (At the Bank) 100

Grammar I Indirect Object Nouns and Pronouns 105

Grammar II Reflexive Constructions 107

Grammar III Reflexive Verbs 108

Lesson 10 À La Gare (At the Railroad Station) 111

Grammar I The Imperfect Indicative (imparfait) 116

Grammar II Comparing the imparfait and passé composé 118

Grammar III the Days of the Week, Months of the Year, Dates, and Ordinal Numbers 1–100 119

Answers Lessons 6-10 123

Review Exam Lessons 6–10 135

Answers Review Exam 138

Lesson 11 LES Parties DU CORPS (Parts of the Body) 140

Grammar I Comparisons of Inequality 145

Grammar II Comparisons of Equality Superlatives 146

Grammar III Future Indicative of Regular and Irregular Verbs 149

Lesson 12 À La Pharmacie (At the Drugstore) 151

Grammar I Present Subjunctive of Regular Verbs 155

Grammar II Present Subjunctive of Stem-changing Verbs: essayer, appeler, commencer, and manger 157

Grammar III Present Subjunctive with Impersonal Expressions: Il faut, il vaut mieux, Etc. 159

Lesson 13 La Voiture (The Automobile) 161

Grammar I Present Subjunctive of Irregular Verbs 166

Grammar II Comparing the Indicative and the Subjunctive 167

Grammar III Review of the Subjunctive and Impersonal Expressions 170

Lesson 14 L’ordinateur Et Les Périphériques

(The Computer and the Peripherals) 172

Grammar I Immediate Past: venir de with the Infinitive 179

Grammar II Immediate Future: aller with the Infinitive 179

Grammar III Impersonal Expressions 180

Lesson 15 Mots Apparentés Et Faux Amis

(Cognates and False Friends) 183

French Nouns with English Endings 184

French Adjectives with English Endings 184

French Verbs with English Endings 184

French Adverbs with English Endings 185

French Faux Amis 185

Grammar I Conditional Form of Regular Verbs 187

Grammar II Comparing the Future and the Conditional of Irregular Verbs 188

Grammar III Formation and Usage of Adverbs 190

Answers Lessons 11–15 193

Review Exam Lessons 11–15 205

Answers Review Exam 210

Appendixes 213

Appendix A Regular Verbs 213

Appendix B Irregular Verbs 215

Appendix C Verbs with Spelling Changes 227

French–English Vocabulary 233