The Basics of Avoir Conjugation in French

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The verb avoir (to have) is one of the most commonly used verbs in French (after the French verb être). You’ll use avoir to express possession, speak in the past tense, and say common French expressions. Mastering la conjugaison d’avoir (avoir conjugation) is among the most important French grammar rules to improve your fluency. Use this guide to understand avoir in a variety of tenses and contexts.

Avoir conjugation in the present tense

Before diving into other French verb tenses, it’s necessary to learn how to conjugate avoir in the present tense. Knowing these basics can help you ask questions, express your age, and much more. Plus, you’ll use these conjugations in other tenses!

Here are a few example sentences using avoir in the present tense:

• J’ai trente ans. = I am (have) thirty years old.
• Il a deux frères et une sœur. = He has two brothers and one sister.
• Avez-vous l’heure ? = Do you have the time?

The expression il y a (there is/there are) is a fundamental present tense avoir conjugation to use in a variety of situations:

• Il y a un café à côté de chez moi. = There is a café next door to my house.
• Il y a des chaises dans la salle. = There are chairs in the room.

You can also use avoir as a transitive verb with a direct object:

• Tu as une nouvelle voiture. = You have a new car.

Conjugating avoir in the passé composé (past tense)

To conjugate avoir in the passé composé, use the present tense conjugation with the past participle eu (had). Use this tense to discuss sudden changes or other actions that were completed quickly and at specific times.

Here are some examples of when to use avoir in the passé composé:

• Hier, j’ai eu un accident de voiture. = Yesterday, I had a car accident.
• Elle a eu une bonne idée. = She had a good idea.
• Nous avons eu l’occasion de les voir après le spectacle. = We had the opportunity to see them after the show.

Using avoir as an auxiliary verb in the passé composé

The passé composé in French is used to express completed actions in the past, often referencing specific events. Knowing être and avoir conjugation is needed for auxiliary verbs, but avoir is much more common. Use the present tense avoir conjugations as the auxiliary/helping verb to form the passé composé:

• Tu as fait tes devoirs ? = Have you done your homework?
• Nous avons acheté une baguette. = We bought a baguette.
• Ils ont donné un cadeau à leur mère. = They gave a present to their mother.

Note that we do not always use a form of “have” in English in the past tense, but it is necessary in French.

Avoir conjugation in the imparfait (imperfect tense)

To talk more generally about the past, use the French imparfait. The imparfait conjugation of avoir can help you talk about things you used to have or other ongoing or repeated past events.

The expression il y a (there is/there are) is commonly used in the imperfect tense to describe general background information, especially when telling a story. Otherwise, use the imparfait to speak generally about the past.

• Il y avait un train tous les jours. = There was a train every day.
• Vous aviez des corvées quand vous étiez jeunes ? = Did you used to have chores when you were young?
• Tu avais quel âge l’été dernier ? = You were (had) what age last summer?

Conjugating avoir in the futur simple (future tense)

To speak with certainty about things in the future, use the futur simple. In English, we use the word “will” to conjugate in the future tense. In French, you simply need to use the avoir conjugations in the following chart.

Note that it is also common to use the expression il y aura (there will be), the future tense of il y a (there is/there are):

• Il y aura une tempête demain. = There will be a storm tomorrow.

Some other examples of the futur simple include:

• Elles auront un examen vendredi. = They will have a test Friday.
• J’aurai quarante ans cette année. = I will be (have) forty years old this year.

Conjugating avoir in the conditionnel (conditional mood)

The French conditional mood is used to express the English equivalent “would.” Although the conjugations look similar to those of the future tense, the conditional mood is used to express actions that would happen on the condition of something else happening first. It is often used with the imparfait to talk about these conditions.

Use the word si (if) and the imperfect to talk in the conditional mood:

• Si elle avait plus d’argent, elle aurait une nouvelle robe. = If she had more money, she would have a new dress.

You can also use the past tense of this formula, using avoir as the auxiliary verb (in the imperfect and conditional, respectively):

• Si j’avais su, j’aurais dit la vérité. = If I had known, I would have told the truth.

Common French expressions that use avoir

Many of these expressions don’t have the verb “to have” in English but use avoir in French.

Incorporating them into your conversations is a great way to sound more like a native speaker.

You can use a variety of tenses to express your meaning:

• Le rendez-vous aura lieu mercredi. = The meeting will take place Wednesday.
• Tu as tort ! J’ai raison. = You are wrong! I am right.
• Hier, il a eu la flemme. = Yesterday, he didn’t feel like doing anything.
• J’ai hâte de te voir ! = I am excited to see you!

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