Saying what you have in French: j'ai and tu as

Level A1

Saying what you have in French: j'ai and tu as

Before reading together, you and a friend check who has a book and a chair. Choose the form of avoir (have) for the person, then name the object; use the same order to ask a question and add a quantity when needed. You will also recognize a sentence about needing a chair.

Objects, answers and two numbers

Here are the words you need, even if you have not studied the earlier lessons: livre is book, and chaise is chair. Say un livre (a book) and une chaise (a chair): the article follows the French noun's gender, not its owner's. Recall je (I), tu (you, one familiar person), il (he) and elle (she).

Oui means yes and non means no in answers to the questions here. The numbers are un (1) and deux (2); un has the feminine form une. Listen to each card and match un and deux to one or two objects in front of you.

Who has it? J'ai, tu as, il a, elle a

Avoir means have: j'ai is I have, tu as is you have, il a is he has, and elle a is she has. Keep the person word before the verb, as you do in these English statements. Tu addresses one person you use familiar language with, such as a friend; it does not stand for every use of English you. In these examples, il refers to Léo and elle to Ana.

Before ai, je becomes j': write j'ai as one joined expression, not je ai. Unlike the optional choice between I am and I'm, this change is required here. Said on their own, as and a sound alike. Listen to the first four examples to hear how the person and verb change.

The object does not choose the verb: J'ai un livre and J'ai une chaise both use ai. Un can mean a or one; here, compare one book, un livre, with two books, deux livres. For this pair, write an s on livres, but do not pronounce it: the number lets you hear the difference. Say J'ai deux livres; the person still speaking is I, so the verb stays ai.

J'ai ….

Ask a friend: Tu as un livre ?

Two friends check the supplies for reading together. The first asks whether the other has a book, without specifying exactly one; the answer adds that there are two. Then they check for a chair.

Compare Tu as un livre. (You have a book.) and Tu as un livre ? (Do you have a book?): the order stays the same, and your voice rises at the end of this simple question. Do not add a word for English do. Tu as une chaise ? means Do you have a chair? Oui or Non can be enough for a short answer; to add what you have, use Oui, j'ai… as in the dialogue. Take each role and listen for the question, then the answer.

Recognize a need: J'ai besoin de…

J'ai besoin d'une chaise means I need a chair, which is different from J'ai une chaise (I have a chair). Recognize j'ai besoin de… as one useful expression for needing something. In this example, de becomes d' before une, giving d'une chaise. You only need to understand this sentence here; you are not asked to build new sentences with it.

Your turn: check the objects

Before playing the examples, try these four messages in order: ask a friend whether they have a book; say you have two books; say that Léo has a book, using il; say that Ana has a chair, using elle. Check your answers against the four examples, then repeat them aloud.

Now imagine that your friend asks Tu as une chaise ? and you have no chair: answer Non. With a chair available, answer Oui, j'ai une chaise. In the Explorer, find a book or a chair and imagine having it for this activity, then say J'ai un livre or J'ai une chaise.

Keep these links together: j'ai for yourself, tu as for a friend, il a or elle a for another person; un livre or deux livres for the count; question intonation and oui/non to check what someone has.

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