Word order in french questions

Задаем вопросы на французском или порядок слов в вопросительном предложении

Сегодняшняя статья будет носить обзорный характер. В ней не будет правил составления вопросительных предложений. Я лишь поясню, каким образом строится вопрос во французском предложении и почему один и тот же вопрос можно задать по-разному.

О принципах построения вопросительных предложений в английском языке вы также можете почитать на моем блоге.

Эта тема назрела не случайно – на большинство тем меня вдохновляют мои ученики (за что им спасибо).

Дело в том, что когда ко мне приходят студенты начального уровня или уже освоившие некоторые азы языка, у многих возникает один и тот же вопрос – так как же правильно составить вопрос на французском языке?

Или – «а разве так правильно, ведь в Поповой-Казаковой вопросительные предложения строятся на инверсии, а сложная инверсия обязательна, если подлежащее выражено существительным или именем собственным?»

Какой порядок слов все-таки выбрать, чтобы звучать грамотно и в тему в любой речевой ситуации? Об этом пойдет речь ниже.

Порядок слов в вопросительном предложении – три варианта построения вопросов

Итак, во французском языке один и тот же вопрос почти всегда можно задать тремя способами:

1. Используя прямой порядок слов. При этом мы даем понять, что это вопрос при помощи интонации. Tu viens aujourd’hui? – При придешь сегодня? В точности как в русском языке. Восходящая интонация и никакого волшебства!
2. Используя оборот est-ce que и прямой порядок слов. Est-ce que tu viens aujourd’hui? Перевод тот же, просто добавляется непереводимая конструкция est-ce que.
3. Используя простую или сложную инверсию. Viens-tu aujourd’hui?

Все три варианта переводятся одинаково. То есть если вы зададите вопрос любым из трех способов, это будет грамматически верно и вас точно поймут.

Но все-таки эти варианты имеются не случайно, потому разберем, в какой ситуации какой из них лучше использовать.

Также предлагаю другие полезные публикации на моем блоге:

• Как правильно назвать свой возраст по-французски — по ссылке.
• Как правильно произносится слово Plus и от чего зависит его произношение — в этом материале.
• Глаголы второй группы и список частотных глаголов вы найдете в этой статье.

Выбор типа вопроса в зависимости от ситуации

В любом языке можно условно выделить три языковых регистра:

• просторечный – он же неформальный или разговорный;
• нейтральный – стандартный язык, который является литературной нормой, общеупотребительный;
• высокий – формальный, официальный, книжный.

Проще всего проследить на примере лексических единиц:

• Погнали – поехали – пустились в путь: неформальный – нейтральный – высокий регистр соответственно.
• Болтать – разговаривать – беседовать.
• Папа – отец – батюшка.

Каждое слово в ряду имеет какую-либо стилистическую окраску.

Выбор варианта вопроса во французском языке тоже попадает под языковой регистр, который в данном случае выражается не через лексику, а через порядок слов.

В таблице ниже рассмотрим, в какой ситуации какой вариант использовать:

Языковой регистр	Примеры вопросов
Неформальный, разговорный стиль (Familier)	·       Tu t’appelles comment? ·       Tu vas où? ·       Ils rentrent quand?
Нейтральный (Standard)	·       Où est-ce que tu vas? ·       Comment est-ce que vous circulez en ville? ·       Quand est-ce qu’ils rentrent?
Формальный (Formel)	·       Comment t’appelles-tu? ·       Où allez-vous? ·       Quand rentrez-vous?

Теперь все должно встать на свои места:

• В разговоре со сверстниками, друзьями, в неформальной обстановке используем первый вариант. Обратите внимание, что вопросительное слово, если таковое имеется, часто выносится в конец фразы. Чаще всего применяется в разговоре на «ты».
• В стандартной ситуации, в том числе в разговоре с незнакомым человеком в неформальной обстановке – в магазине, в поликлинике, на кассе, на улице, в разговоре с малознакомыми людьми – употребляем второй вариант. Он же самый распространенный. Подходит для общения как на «ты», так и на «вы».
• На официальных встречах, при проведении интервью и переговоров на высшем уровне применяем третий вариант. Он же наименее распространённый. Чаще всего употребляется при общении на «вы», гораздо реже, но допустимо – на «ты».

По большому счету, в большинстве случаев хватает два варианта – неформальный и нейтральный. Так как редко мы пребываем в настолько официальной обстановке, что нужно прибегать к использованию высокого регистра языка. Это касается и родного языка.

Если вам на начальных этапах сложно запомнить все три варианта построения вопросов, запомните в первую очередь второй вариант – тот, что с est-ce que. Такие вопросы являются самыми распространенными, французы используют их в речи постоянно. И в любой из вышеперечисленных ситуаций вы будете звучать адекватно – как в компании друзей, так и на собеседовании.

Надеюсь теперь, вам, любители французского языка, станет понятно, почему каждый вопрос можно задать в трех вариантах и в какой ситуации каждый из вариантов будет наиболее подходящим.

Do you ever get this feeling when speaking French? You have all the words you need to make the perfect sentence, but they just don’t fit together. This is what happens when you’re not comfortable with the word order and need to learn about the specifics of the correct French sentence structures.

It may seem confusing at first, but bear with me for a moment and I trust that you’ll find it to be quite simple. Except for a few tricky exceptions, the structures are always the same and are often very similar to English. With all the tips and tricks from this article and a bit of practice, it will come naturally in no time!

In this guide, we’ll explain everything you need to know about the French sentence structure, from basic sentences for beginners to impressive complex statements for sophisticated talkers.

Table of Contents

1. Ordering Words in French
2. Simple Sentences with Subject, Verb, and Object
3. How to Build Complex Sentences
4. Asking Questions
5. Negative Sentences
6. Practical Cases
7. Le Mot De La Fin

1. Ordering Words in French

Rule #1: French is SVO

Like many other languages throughout the world, French is what we call an SVO language. This means that the default word order is: Subject – Verb – Object.

• {Je mange une pomme.} (“I eat an apple.”)

Rule #2: Don’t Skip the Subject

And unlike similarly rooted languages, such as Spanish or Italian, we don’t usually drop the subject of the sentence, even when it’s a pronoun.

• I speak French.
• (Yo) hablo Frances. (Spanish)
• (Io) parlo Francese. (Italian)
• Je parle Français.

Rule #3: Rules are Meant to be Broken

These are mainly the French word order rules of simple declarative sentences, but as soon as we enter imperative, interrogative, or negative sentences territory, it gets a bit wilder. I mean…it’s French we’re talking about.

And one more thing: Master Yoda is allowed to use OSV sentences and still sound cool, but it’s forbidden to the rest of us.

Le Français je parle. (“French I speak.”)

2. Simple Sentences with Subject, Verb, and Object

In the following sections, we’ll work with the most common type of sentences: declaratives.

A declarative sentence is used to make a statement. It declares or states something, and ends with a period. We can’t use declarative sentences to ask questions or give orders.

Let’s get back to our basic declarative sentence: Je parle Français. (“I speak French.”)

In this sentence, I’m stating that I speak French.

Like we mentioned before, there are mainly two things you need to know about declarative sentences and their basic word order in French:

1. The word order is Subject + Verb + Object.
2. We don’t drop the subject, even when it’s a pronoun.

To these basic rules, I would also add:

1. Verbs are conjugated. Their ending depends on the subject.

• Ils parlent Français. (“They speak French.”)
• Nous parlons Français. (“We speak French.”)

→ You can learn more about conjugation in our Complete Guide on French Conjugation. It’s freely available on FrenchPod101.com.

1. Objects must agree with the subject. Their ending also varies.

• Il est Américain. (“He is American.”)
• Elle est Américaine. (“She is American.”)

/! The main exception to the S+V+O rule is the imperative mood, where the structure becomes: V+O.

• Vous parlez Français. (“You speak French.”) → Parlez Français. (“Speak French.”)
• Nous mangeons des pommes. (“We eat apples.”) → Mangeons des pommes. (“Let’s eat apples.”)

Elle mange des pommes. (“She eats apples.”)

3. How to Build Complex Sentences

Now that we have the basics covered, it’s time to add more ingredients into the mix and spice it up with adverbs, adjectives, and pronouns to gradually make our sentence more exciting!

1 – Adding Adjectives:

Adjectives describe nouns to make them more interesting. Let’s see where to place them in a sentence.

According to French word order, adjectives usually go AFTER the noun they describe.

• Une pomme verte (“A green apple”)

However, some of the most common adjectives go BEFORE the noun.

• Une grosse pomme (“A big apple”)

Put in a sentence, it looks like this:

• Il mange une pomme verte. (“He’s eating a green apple.”)

→ Learn more about adjectives with our full guide and massive list of the Top 100 French Adjectives.

2 – Adding Adverbs:

Adverbs work together with and describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs to modify their meaning or make a sentence more precise.

When the adverb modifies a verb, it usually comes AFTER this verb. The word order is: S + V + Adv.

• Je parle lentement. (“I speak slowly.”)

Then, if we have an object, it would be: S + V + O + Adv.

• Je parle Français couramment. (“I speak French fluently.”)

When the adverb modifies an adverb or adjective, it usually comes AFTER the verb and BEFORE the adverb or adjective. The word order is: S + V + Adv + Adv.

• Je parle très lentement. (“I speak very slowly.”)

When we get to this level of complexity, things start becoming a bit more flexible.

For instance, both sentences are correct:

• Je parle Français couramment. (“I speak French fluently.”)
• Je parle couramment Français. (“I speak French fluently.”)

However, it comes with exceptions, such as the very common bien (“well”) which is placed BEFORE the object.

• Je parle bien Français. (“I speak French well.”)
• Je parle vraiment bien Français. (“I speak French very well.”)
• Je parle Français bien.

→ Everything you need to know about adverbs you’ll find in our Complete Guide on French Adverbs, with a list of the most common adverbs you should know.

Not too confused with the colors, are you?

3 – Adding Pronouns

Brace yourself, this is where French language word order gets tough. Understanding the word order of pronouns in French isn’t always a walk in the park, and we’ll really just scratch the surface here. 

Subject pronouns don’t move:

• Nicolas mange une pomme. (“Nicolas eats an apple.”)
• Il mange une pomme. (“He eats an apple.”)

Same thing for stressed pronouns:

• Il mange une pomme avec ses amis. (“He eats an apple with his friends.”)
• Il mange une pomme avec eux. (“He eats an apple with them.”)

However, direct and indirect pronouns are not as well-behaved.

• Nicolas donne une pomme. (“He gives an apple.”)
• Nicolas la donne. (“He gives it.”)

• Il donne une pomme à ses amis. (“He gives an apple to his friends.”)
• Il leur donne une pomme. (“He gives them an apple.”)
• Il la leur donne. (“He gives it to them.”)

→ For more information about pronouns, you can go through our Extensive Guide on French Pronouns, with lots of examples and grammar points.

And what happens when we put everything together?

• Je leur parle Français très lentement. (“I speak French with them very slowly.”)
• Il leur donne gentiment une pomme verte. (“He gently gives them a green apple.”)

4 – Adding Prepositions

Prepositions are words that usually precede a noun or pronoun and express a relationship to another element of the sentence. Prepositional phrases often answer questions such as:

• Where? Il mange une pomme dans la cuisine. (“He eats an apple in the kitchen.”)
• When? Il mange une pomme après le dîner. (“He eats an apple after dinner.”)
• How?
  • Il mange une pomme avec eux. (“He eats an apple with them.”)
  • Il mange une pomme sans se presser. (“He eats an apple without rushing.”)
  • Il mange une pomme avec soin. (“He eats an apple with care.”)

Prepositions can be placed BEFORE or AFTER the verb. In some cases, you can freely choose, and in other situations, only one option will make sense.

• Après le dîner, je mange une pomme. (“After dinner, I eat an apple.”)
• Je mange une pomme après le dîner. (“I eat an apple after dinner.”)

• Il mange une pomme sans se presser. (“He eats an apple without rushing.”)
• Sans se presser, il mange une pomme. (“Without rushing, he eats an apple.”)

In these two examples, both versions are correct.

But sometimes, you need to know the verb for the preposition to be relevant:

• Je rentre à la maison. (“I go back home.”)

You would not say “Home, I go back,” and it would sound equally awkward in French.

• Je donne une pomme à mon ami. (“I give an apple to my friend.”)

Similarly, it wouldn’t make sense to mention the recipient before the action is stated.

To combine prepositions, you can simply apply the same logic when choosing where to place them:

• Après le dîner, je rentre à la maison sans me presser. (“After dinner, I go back home without rushing.”)
• Sans me presser, je mange une pomme avec eux dans la cuisine. (“Without rushing, I eat an apple with them in the kitchen.”)

These are not the words I ordered!

4. Asking Questions

The word order in French questions isn’t always SVO.

Questions can take several different forms in French, depending on whether you’re talking or writing, as well as how formal you want to be.

Let’s go back to our apple-eating example: Tu manges une pomme.

Here’s how to say: “Do you eat an apple?”

1. Tu manges une pomme ? (SVO)

2. Est-ce que tu manges une pomme ? (Est-ce que + SVO)

3. Manges–tu une pomme ? (VSO)

Now I guess the last one is confusing: Why do we suddenly invert the subject and verb?

This form is used only in writing or in very formal speech. Among friends, with random strangers, or in most business settings, you would stick to one of the first two options. I’d say both are equally common.

Now, what if we add some interrogative pronouns and adverbs?

Let’s see how to use words like: Quand (“When”), Qui (“Who”), Comment (“How”), Où (“Where?”).

“Where do you eat?”

1. Tu manges où ?

2. Où est-ce que tu manges ?

3. Où manges–tu ?

“When do you eat?”

1. Tu manges quand ?

2. Quand est-ce que tu manges ?

3. Quand manges–tu ?

5.  Negative Sentences

Luckily, this is the last case, because I’m seriously running out of colors!

In this section, we’ll have a look at the word order in negative sentences.

Negative structures are placed around the verb and before the preposition or object.

• Je ne mange pas de pommes. (“I don’t eat an apple.”)
• Je ne mange pas dans la cuisine. (“I don’t eat in the kitchen.”)
• Je ne mange pas vite. (“I don’t eat fast.”)

The same thing goes for other negative structures:

• Je ne mange plus dans la cuisine. (“I don’t eat in the kitchen anymore.”)
• Je ne mange jamais dans la cuisine. (“I never eat in the kitchen.”)

That’s how I learned negative sentences!

6. Practical Cases

Now, it’s time to practice everything we’ve been learning today! We’ll take it slow and do it step-by-step. At any time, feel free to go back through the article if you’re having doubts. 

Try to come up with the French translations for these sentences. You can use a conjugation table if you’re not sure how to deal with parler (“to speak”).

1. “We speak.” – _________________

2. “We speak French.” – _________________

3. “We speak French slowly.” – _________________

4. “We speak French slowly with her.” – _________________

5. “We speak with her in the kitchen.” – _________________

6. “After dinner, we speak with her in the kitchen.” – _________________

7. “We never speak with her in the kitchen.” – _________________

8. “Do you speak with her in the kitchen?” – _________________

“Where do I put these verbs again?”

“Where do I put these verbs again?”

[SPOILER] And here are the translations:

1. “We speak.” – Nous parlons
2. “We speak French.” – Nous parlons Français.
3. “We speak French slowly.” – Nous parlons Français lentement.
4. “We speak French slowly with her.” – Nous parlons Français lentement avec elle.
5. “We speak with her in the kitchen.” – Nous parlons Français avec elle dans la cuisine.
6. “After dinner, we speak with her in the kitchen.” – Après dîner, nous parlons avec dans la cuisine.
7. “We never speak with her in the kitchen.” – Nous ne parlons jamais avec elle dans la cuisine.
8. “Do you speak with her in the kitchen?” – Est-ce que tu parles avec elle dans la cuisine ?

7. Le Mot De La Fin

In this guide, you’ve learned a lot about French word order and the correct French sentence structures, from the basics to the most advanced parts such as French pronoun order.

Did we forget any important structure you would like to learn about? Do you feel ready to assemble ambitious sentences, using everything you’ve learned today?

As we’ve seen with the exercises, a good way to practice French word order is to start easy and slowly build up to complex sentences, one piece at a time.

Make sure to explore FrenchPod101.com, as we have plenty of free resources for you to practice your grammar and learn new words. Our vocabulary lists are also a great way to review the words and learn their pronunciation.
Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher, to get personal one-on-one coaching. Practice talking about word order in French with your private teacher so they can give you personalized feedback and advice, and help you with the pronunciation.

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

Вопросительное предложение во французском языке можно построить разными способами:

1. При помощи интонации: в этом случае порядок слов в предложении остается прямым, как в обычном повествовательном предложении, но фраза произносится с вопросительной интонацией. Подобный вид вопросительного предложения характерен для разговорной речи.
2. При помощи вопросительного оборота est-ce que: порядок слов в предложении — прямой, оборот ставится в начало предложения; если есть вопросительное слово, то после него. Это стандартный, нейтральный способ постановки вопроса.
3. При помощи инверсии: это обратный порядок слов в предложении, когда подлежащее становится после сказуемого. Применяется в возвышенной речи, в письменной речи. В устной речи желательно избегать этого вида вопросительного предложения.

NB! Прямой порядок слов: сначала идет подлежащее, за ним — сказуемое.

Инверсия = обратный порядок слов: сначала идет сказуемое, за ним — подлежащее.

Прямой порядок слов в вопросительном предложении

В вопросительном предложении прямой порядок слов встречается в следующих случаях:

• если вопрос выражается интонацией: Vous venez?
• если вопросительное предложение начинается с qui (кто) / qui est-ce qui (кто) / qu’est-ce qui (что) в функции подлежащего или quel (какой) в функции определения подлежащего: Qui a dit cela? Quel avion vient d’arriver?
• при обороте est-ce que (на русский язык обычно не переводится): Comment est-ce que vous lisez?
• в разговорной речи, если вопросительное слово ставится в конце предложения: Tu t’appelles comment?
• в разговорной речи, если в начале предложения стоит длинное вопросительное слово / оборот (comment, pourquoi, à quelle heure и т.п.): A quelle heure on arrive à Paris? Pourquoi tu ne viens pas avec moi?

Инверсия

Во всех остальных случаях вопросительное предложение характеризуется инверсией, т.е. обратным порядком слов. Инверсия бывает простой и сложной.

Простая инверсия

Простая инверсия делается, когда подлежащее выражено личным местоимением (это местоимения, которые обычно мы употребляем, когда спрягаем глагол, — tu, nous, ils и т.д.). В этом случае местоимение ставится после глагола, между глаголом и местоимением ставится дефис.

Перестановка местоимения je допускается лишь в некоторых односложных формах глаголов: ai-je? suis-je? dis-je? dois-je? vais-je? puis-je? С другими глаголами инверсия в форме «я» не делается — выбирается другой тип вопроса, обычно с оборотом Est-ce que.

Между глаголом (если он не оканчивается на t или d) и местоимением 3 лица единственного числа (il, elle, on) для благозвучия ставится буква t: Lit-il le journal? Pense-t-il à notre projet?

В отрицательно-вопросительном предложении частицы ne и pas окружают группу «глагол + местоимение-подлежащее»: N’est-il pas content?

В сложных временах инверсия делается между вспомогательным глаголом и местоимением-подлежащим: Ont-ils vu ce film? Ne les avez-vous pas rencontrés?

Сложная инверсия

Сложная инверсия делается, если подлежащее выражено существительным или местоимением (кроме личных — «я, ты, он …» или неопределенного on). В этом случае подлежащее остается на своем месте и кроме этого повторяется после сказуемого в виде личного безударного местоимения 3 лица соответствующего рода и числа (= «он, она, они»): Pierre est-il étudiant? Les nôtres sont-ils venus?

Примечание-наблюдение по поводу выбора между прямой и сложной инверсией в случае, когда подлежащее выражено существительным

Только сложная инверсия строится:

1) в общем вопросе (требующем ответа «да» / «нет»): Vos amis le savaient-ils?

2) в специальном вопросе, если в предложении имеется прямое дополнение: Où tes amis ont-ils vu ce film?

3) с pourquoi предпочтительнее сложная инверсия, и только она в сочетании со сложными временами: Pourquoi Paul est-il parti?

Напротив, нет сложной инверсии в предложениях с вопросительными словами:

1) qui: Qui est Marie Dupont par rapport à vous?

2) que: Que fait ton père?

3) quel est / quelle est / quels sont / quelles sont: Quelles sont tes nouvelles?

Общий вопрос (вопрос ко всему предложению)

Общий вопрос — это вопрос, который предполагает ответ «да» или «нет». Можно задать 4 способами. Возьмем утвердительное предложение «Tu vas au cinéma» (= «Ты идешь в кино») и поставим его в вопросительную форму разными способами:

1) При помощи изменения интонации на вопросительную. Порядок слов в предложении не меняется: Tu vas au cinéma? — Ты идешь в кино?

2) При помощи вопросительного оборота est-ce que с сохранением прямого порядка слов после него:

Est-ce que tu vas au cinéma? — Ты идешь в кино?

3) При помощи инверсии: Vas-tu au cinéma? — Ты идешь в кино?

4) При помощи оборота n’est-ce pas (= «не так ли»?), который ставится в конце фразы: Tu vas au cinéma, n’est-ce pas? — Ты идешь в кино, не так ли / да / нет?

Слова «ли» и «разве», употребляемые в общем вопросе в русском языке, на французский не переводятся:

Он идет в кино? = Идет ли он в кино? = Разве он идет в кино? = Est-ce qu’il va au cinéma?

Специальный вопрос

Предполагает употребление специальных вопросительных слов:

где?	où…?	Où habites-tu? – Где ты живешь?
куда?	Où vas-tu? – Куда ты идешь?
откуда?	d’où…?	D’où viens-tu? – Откуда ты идешь?
когда?	quand…?	Quand reviens-tu? – Когда ты вернешься?
во сколько?	à quelle heure…?	A quelle heure reviens-tu? – Во сколько ты вернешься?
как?	comment…?	Comment cet enfant lit-il? – Как читает этот ребенок?
почему? зачем?	pourquoi…?	Pourquoi est-ce que tu es en retard? – Почему ты опаздываешь?

С вопросительными словами возможны три варианта построения фраз:

1 вариант	2 вариант	3 вариант
? слово + инверсия Quand reviens-tu? – Когда ты вернешься?	? слово + est-ce que + прямой порядок слов Quand est-ce que tu reviens? – Когда ты вернешься?	прямой порядок слов + ? слово Tu reviens quand? – Когда ты вернешься? ? слово + прямой порядок слов (обычно с длинными вопросительными словами) Pourquoi tu n’es pas venu? — Почему ты не пришел?

Вопрос к подлежащему

	1 вариант	2 вариант	примеры
к одушевленному подлежащему (кто?)	Qui + глагол в 3 л. ед.ч.	Qui est-ce qui + глагол в 3 л. ед.ч.	Qui habite rue Rivoli? Qui est-ce qui habite rue Rivoli? Кто живет на улице Риволи?
к неодушевленному подлежащему (что?)	Qu’est-ce qui + прямой порядок слов	Qu’est-ce qui se passe? – Что происходит?

Вопрос к прямому дополнению (дополнению без предлога)

	1 вариант	2 вариант	пример
к одушевленному дополнению (кого?)	Qui + инверсия	Qui est-ce que + прямой порядок слов	Qui Serge rencontre-t-il? Qui est-ce que Serge rencontre? — Кого встречает Серж?
к неодушевленному дополнению (что?)	Que + простая инверсия, даже если подлежащее выражено существительным ! Перед словом, начинающимся с гласной буквы или h que сокращается до qu’.	Qu’est-ce que + прямой порядок слов	Que prépare Marie? Qu’est-ce que Marie prépare? –Что готовит Мари? Qu’as-tu fait? — Что ты сделал?

Вопрос к косвенному дополнению (дополнению с предлогом)

	1 вариант	2 вариант	примеры
одуш. дополнение	Предлог + qui + est-ce que + прямой порядок слов	Предлог + qui + инверсия	1.Avec qui est-ce que tu pars? 2. Avec qui pars-tu? – С кем ты уезжаешь?
неодуш. дополнение	Предлог + quoi + est-ce que + прямой порядок слов	Предлог + quoi + инверсия	1.De quoi est-ce que vos amis parlent? 2. De quoi vos amis parlent-ils? – О чем говорят ваши друзья?

 Вопрос к определению

		к подлежащему	к дополнению
какой?	quel (м.р. ед.ч.) quelle (ж.р.ед.ч.) quels (м.р. мн.ч.) quelles (ж.р. мн.ч.) + существительное или lequel (м.р. ед.ч.) laquelle (ж.р.ед.ч.) lesquels (м.р. мн.ч.) lesquelles (ж.р. мн.ч.),  употребленные самостоятельно, без существительного. ! Перед вопросительным словом может при необходимости ставиться предлог. В этом случае не забудьте про слитные артикли для составных форм местоимений: auquel, duquel  и т.д.	+ прямой порядок слов Quel parc est beau? – Какой парк красивый? Lequel de ces exercice est oral? — Какое из этих упражнений устное?	1)    + est-ce que + прямой порядок слов Quel livre est-ce que tu lis? — Какую книгу ты читаешь? Lesquels est-ce que tu as lus? — Какие ты прочитал? De quel film est-ce que vous parlez? — О каком фильме вы говорите? 2)     + инверсия Quel livre lis-tu? – Какую книгу ты читаешь? A quelles filles a-t-il souri? — Каким девочкам он улыбался? Il y avait trois candidats. Pour lequel as-tu voté? — Было три кандидата. За какого ты голосовал?
сколько?	combien de (d’) + существительное	+ прямой порядок слов Combien d’étudiants travaillent ici? – Сколько студентов здесь занимается?	1)    + est-ce que + прямой порядок слов 2)    + инверсия Combien de livres est-ce que tu lis? Combien de livres lis-tu? – Сколько книг ты читаешь?

Вопрос к именной части сказуемого

	к существительному	к прилагательному
какой? / каков?	quel / quelle / quels / quelles + глагол être Quelle est la différence entre un dessert et un désert? — Какова разница между …? Quel sera le but du club? — Какая будет цель у клуба?	comment + глагол  (чаще всего être) Comment est ta maison? — Каков твой дом?

Вопросительно-отрицательная форма, или вопрос в отрицании

Отрицательная форма в вопросительном предложении строится по основным правилам: две отрицательные частицы (чаще ne и pas) окружают глагол:

Il ne vient pas?

Est-ce qu’il ne vient pas?

Если отрицание должно построится в инверсии, то внутрь отрицательной конструкции попадает глагол и подлежащее-местоимение:

Ne vient-il pas?

Reading time:  6 minutes

Difficulty: Beginner

Questions are an essential part of any conversation, and being able to properly formulate a question in French is an extremely important part of your learning. Especially if you are naturally curious, asking questions in French is something you should want to learn more. In this article, we will look into the different ways that you can ask your questions using the French language.

There are five ways in which questions are phrased in French. These are the following:

1. By turning a statement into a question
2. By using est-ce que
3. By changing the order of the words in the sentence
4. By using n’est-ce pas or non; and
5. By using question words

Get your free copy of The Most Common Questions in French

I. TURNING A STATEMENT INTO A QUESTION

The easiest way to ask a question in French is simply to take any statement and make it a question by changing the pitch of your voice. In writing, this can be done by adding a question mark at the end of the sentence. This type of asking questions is deemed informal but is still widely acceptable in regular, everyday type of conversations. This method of asking questions is also commonly used in English, and like in French, the expected reply is either a yes or a no. For example, “You are a dancer?” “She told you I’m not interested?” “You saw the movie?” All of which are regular statements-turned-questions. Some examples in French: 

• Il est arrivé. — He arrived.
• Il est arrivé?   — He arrived?
• C’est vrai. —  That’s true.
• C’est vrai?  —  Is that true?
• Vous aimez la France. —  You like France.
•  Vous aimez la France?   —  Do you like France?

II. USING EST-CE QUE

Another simple way to ask a question in French is to add est-ce que in the beginning of a sentence. Est-ce que literally means “is it that” in English, and is inserted before a regular statement to turn it into a question. The rest of the sentence structure stays the same.

For example:

• Tu connais Ingrid.  — You know Ingrid.
• Est-ce que tu connais Ingrid?  — Do you know Ingrid?
• Est-ce  qu’il est arrivé? — Has he arrived?

Extra tip in using est-ce que:

You can put any question words right before it in a sentence to further create an even more specific question (not just a yes or no question).

Here is the structure:

Question word + est-ce que + regular statement.

More details and examples will be given on this when we discuss the question words later.

III. CHANGING THE ORDER OF THE WORDS TO FORM A QUESTION (INVERSION)

Inversion, or changing up the structure of a sentence, is the more formal way of asking questions in French. Normally, the subject is followed by the verb, but for the inverted questions, the verb is placed before the subject and then joined by a hyphen.

For example: 

• Vous aimez la France.        You like France.
• Kindly note that in this sentence, the subject precedes the verb.
• Aimez-vous la France?       Do you like France?

The subject and verb switch places and are linked by the hyphen.

• Just like in using est-ce que, you can also add a question word before the inverted question to further specify your query.
• In cases where the tenses consist of two or more words, the part of the verb which comes from avoir or être is the one to be used in the inversion and placed before the pronoun.

Example:

As-tu vu mon sac?                          Have you seen my bag?

Est-elle restée longtemps?          Did she stay long?

• For verbs that end with a vowel, when used beside the pronoun il or elle, t is inserted between the verb and pronoun, making it easier to say.

Example: Aime-t-il les chiens? (Does he like dogs?)

IV.  USING N’EST-CE PAS PAS  OR NON

In cases where you are very sure that the person you are talking to will agree with you, you can add ne c’est pas at the end of the sentence. It is just similar to the English usage of “isn’t it?” or “right?” at the end of a question.

Non works the same way. It literally means “no?” and is also added at the end of the sentence. Hein is also similar. It is used just like “eh?” in English, and is often used in informal conversations.

Some examples: 

Vous aimez la France, n’est-ce pas?         You like France, don’t you?

Il est arrivé, n’est-ce pas?                          He arrived, didn’t he?

Vous aimez la France, non?                       You like France, right?

Vous aimez la France, hein?                      You like France, eh?

V. USING QUESTION WORDS

The fifth and last method of asking questions is to use interrogative words. The question words may be placed in the beginning or at the end of the sentence. It can also appear right before est-ce que, or before the inverted subject and verb.

Examples: When did you arrive?

Quand est-ce que tu es arrivé?

Quand es-tu arrivé?

Quand t’es arrivé?

T’es arrivé quand? 

Here is a list of  the most commonly used question words in French.

A/ Combien

• combien + verb?                how much?, how many?
• combien de + noun?        how much?, how many? 

Examples:

combien coûte cet ordinateur?                 How much does this computer cost?

C’est combien, ce pantalon?                      How much are these trousers?

Tu en veux combien?                                 How many do you want?

Combien de personnes vas-tu inviter?      How many people are you going to invite?

B/ Comment?  (  How? )

Examples:

Comment allez-vous? or comment vas-tu?           How are you?

Comment tu t’appelles?                                            What is your name?

C/ Où? Where?

Some French learners often confuse ou (no accent) and où (with accent). The first one means ‘or’ while the second means ‘where’.

Example:
Où allez-vous? (where are you going?)

D/ Pourquoi? Why?

Example:
Pourquoi est-ce qu’il ne vient pas avec nous? Why isn’t he coming with us?

E/ Quand? When?

Example:
Quand est-ce que tu pars en vacances? When are you going on holiday?

F/ Qui? Que? and Quoi? 

These are pronouns which could mean who, whom, what and whose depending on how you use them: to refer to a person or thing, the subject or object, or if it follows a preposition. This is by far the most complicated of all question words, and it would be advisable if you could learn pronouns as well to get a better grasp of this topic.

Here are the basic rules:

1. Qui – can be used when talking about people, and is similar to “who” (subject) or “whom” (object) in English.

Who? Whom?	Referring to people	Meaning	Examples	Meaning
Subject	qui? qui est-ce qui?	Who?	Qui vient? Qui est-ce qui vient?	Who’s coming?
Object	qui? qui est-ce que?	who? whom?	Qui vois-tu? Qui est-ce que tu vois?	Who/Whom can you see?
After preposition	qui? qui est-ce que?	who? whom?	De qui est-ce qu’il parle? Pour qui est ce livre? À qui avez-vous écrit?	Who’s he talking about? Who’s this book for? Who did you write to?, To whom did you write?

Table source: Collins Easy Learning French Grammar

2. À qui is used to mean “whose?” Example:  À qui est ce sac? (Whose is this bag?)

3. Que and quoi are used when talking about things and could mean “what?” The difference is, you use quoi when it follows a preposition.

What	Referring to things	Meaning	Examples	Meaning
Subject	qu’est-ce qui?	what	Qu’est-ce qui se passe? Qu’est-ce qui t’inquiète?	What’s happening? What’s worrying you?
Object	qu’est-ce que?	what	Qu’est-ce que vous faites? Que faites-vous?	What are you doing?
After preposition	quoi?	what	À quoi penses-tu? De quoi parlez-vous	What are you thinking about? What are you talking about?

Table source: Collins Easy Learning French Grammar

4.Quel, quels, quelle, or quelles?

Quel can mean who? Which? Or what? It can be used together with a noun, or as a noun substitute (pronoun). On the other hand, que and quoi can never be used together with a noun. 

The forms of quel are the following:

quel (masculine singular)

quels (masculine plural)

quelle (feminine singular)

quelles (feminine plural)

Examples:

Quel est ton chanteur préféré?	Who’s your favorite singer?
Quel vin recommandez-vous?	Which wine do you recommend?
Quelle est ta couleur préféré?	What’s your favorite color?
Quelle heure est-il?	What time is it?
Quels sont tes chanteurs préférées?	Who are your favorite singers?
Vous jouez de quels instruments?	What instruments do you play?
Quelles sont tes couleurs préférées?	What are your favorite colors?
Quelles chaussures te plaisent le plus?	Which shoes do you like best?

Examples source: Collins Easy Learning French Grammar  

G/ lequel? laquelle? lesquels? and lesquelles? 

Lequel is used to mean “which one?”and here are its different forms:

lequel (masculine singular)          which one?

lequels (masculine plural)             which one?

laquelle (feminine singular)         which ones?

lesquelles (feminine plural)          which ones?

Example:

Laquelle de ces valises est à Fred?  Which of these cases is Fred’s?

Now that you have this guide, you’ll know how to ask questions in French. If you need clarification on this topic, do not hesitate to contact us in the comment section.

P.S. You would be doing me a HUGE FAVOR by sharing it via Twitter or Facebook.

Understanding questions in French fast is the key to a successful conversation.

In this free French lesson, I’ll explain the 4 ways of asking questions in French and give you lists of common French question words (aka interrogative expressions…)

1 – How To Ask Questions in French?

We have basically 4 ways of asking questions in French:

1. To ask a question in a relaxed, everyday conversation, we just raise our voice.
   Vous parlez français ?
2. To insist on the fact that you’re asking a question, you may use “est-ce que”.
   Est-ce que vous parlez français ?
3. When we write, or in formal situations, we tend to use “inversion”, a French concept where you invert the subject and the verb.
   Parlez-vous français ?
4. When you’re pretty sure the answer is yes, you may use the tag expressions “n’est-ce pas ?” or “non ?”

Now let’s study the different ways of asking questions in French in details.

Questions in French: the Modern “Everyday” Way

This is the most common construction, mostly used in spoken French, and it’s also the simplest – hence it’s popularity.

You just raise your intonation towards the end of the sentence!
Vous parlez français ? = Do you speak French?

If you use an interrogative expression (like when, why, where…) It goes all the way at the end of your sentence.

1. Tu vas en France quand ?
   When are you going to France?
2. Tu voyages avec qui ?
   With whom do you travel?

Questions in French: “Est-ce que”

“Est-ce que” is nowadays mostly used to ask questions that can be answered by “oui” or “non”, and with “qu’est-ce que” (what do you…).

“Est-ce que” is pronounced [S keu] and it takes elision, so when followed by a vowel or an h, it becomes “est-ce qu’il(s)” [S kil], “est-ce qu’elle(s)” [S kel] etc…

“Est-ce que” means nothing by itself (watch out! It doesn’t always translate as ‘is’), it’s like the inverted question mark Spanish uses before the question: it warns you that a question is coming

1. Est-ce que tu vas souvent à Londres ?
   Do you often go to London?
2. Est-ce que tu peux venir chez moi ?
   Can you come to my house?
3. Est-ce qu’elle est française ?
   Is she French?
4. Qu’est-ce que tu fais ?
   What are you doing?

Questions in French: Inversion

Inversion is the most formal way of asking a question in French yet it’s still very much used, especially when using an interrogative expression.

In inversion, you pretty much invert the subject verb order, placing the verb first.
Pourquoi vas-tu à Paris ? = Why are you going to Paris?
Avec qui voyagez-vous ? = With whom are you traveling?

If you are studying French to pass exams, it is essential you know how to form your questions using inversion.

However, if you are learning French to communicate, you should be able to understand a question asked using inversion, but I wouldn’t worry about using it right away.

The modern everyday way to ask questions is much easier, if you ask me!

There is more to say about asking question with inversion since the construct can be quite complex.

Inversion, the various French question words etc.. are explained in depth and then illustrated by a level-adapted ongoing novel with audio – in my intermediate level French audiobook method – À Moi Paris L3.

Questions in French: N’est-ce pas?

Grammar makes it a question, so I have to list it here. But it’s only used as a tag question, when you are almost sure the answer is “yes”.
Tu es français, n’est-ce pas ? = You are French, right /aren’t you?

Instead of using “n’est-ce pas ?”, you could also just ask no in French: non ?

Vous aimez la France, non ? = You like France, don’t you?

And now let’s see what question words are used to ask specific informations.

2 – French Question Words

Interrogative expressions – or interrogative adverbs, and sometimes interrogative adjectives – are French question words used to ask for a particular piece of information.

They combine with prepositions to form more complex French questions and this is usually the part that holds students of French back when asking a question.

You can gain a lot of speed (and therefore confidence) by knowing these French question words by heart!

Most Common French Interrogative Expressions

You probably already know these French question words:

1. Comment = how
2. Où = where
3. Quand = when
4. Pourquoi = why – Note: to answer, use: parce que (parce qu’il-s, parce qu’elle-s)
5. Combien = how many (de + noun)
6. Qui = who, whom
7. À quelle heure = at what time

Interrogative Expressions Combined with Prepositions

Basic French question words combine with prepositions (from, of, about, to, until, for…) to create more complex interrogative expressions.

Some usually confuse students, so make sure you understand these constructs.

I am going to list the most common ones below, but there are more.

1. Jusqu’où = up to where, how far
2. D’où = from where
3. Jusqu’à quand = until when
4. Depuis quand = since when
5. Pour quand = for when
6. Jusqu’à quelle heure = until what time
7. Depuis quelle heure = since what time
8. Pour quelle heure = for what time
9. Pour combien de = for how much/many
10. Avec combien de = with how much/many
11. Combien de temps = how long
12. Pendant combien de temps = for how long
13. Depuis combien de temps = since how long
14. Que or qu’ = what + verb… as in what are you doing ? Que fais-tu, qu’est-ce que tu fais ?
15. quoi = what (used mostly in Street French: tu fais quoi ? = What are you doing?)
16. À quoi = usually used with a verb that is followed by à = penser à = À quoi tu penses ?
17. De quoi = usually used with a verb that is followed by de = parler de = De quoi tu parles ?
18. Avec quoi = with what
19. Avec qui = with whom
20. De qui =of, from, about whom
21. À qui = to whom
22. Pour qui = for whom
23. Chez qui = at whose place
24. Quel = which/what + masculine singular noun
25. quels = which/what + masculine plural noun
26. quelle = = which/what + feminine singular noun
27. quelles = which/what + feminine plural noun
    all pronounced “kel”
28. Pour quel = for which
29. Avec quel = with which
30. Chez quell (ami) = At which (friend’s) place
31. De quel = of which / about which
32. À quel = at which / in which
33. Dans quel = in which / inside which

3 – Watch Out for Prepositions!

In spoken English, it is common to put a preposition at the end of the sentence. Example: Who does she work for?

It is not so in French: you HAVE TO group the preposition with the interrogative expression, in other
words, the preposition becomes part of your interrogative expression.

1. Elle travaille pour qui ?
2. Pour qui est-ce qu’elle travaille ?
3. Pour qui travaille-t-elle ?

You can never say in French: “qui elle travaille pour ?”.

4 – The Secrets to a Successful French Conversation

Asking questions fast, and being able to understand them fast as well, is an essential part of French conversation. Most students can’t answer questions fast enough because they are surprised by the word order used in French to ask a question.

You expected: “comment vous appelez-vous ? ” – which is featured in so many learning method to ask “what’s your name”, but is rather formal – and were asked “vous vous appelez comment ?” – same question, but asked in a much more casual way, or “c’est quoi votre nom ?” even more casual.

And that’s were you freeze in “surprise”. You expected one variation and got another one, which you often try to translate word by word. That’s the mistake: in most situations, you don’t need to translate the question. You need to understand it’s a question, and grab the essential parts to be able to, within the context of that particular conversation, guess the rest and answer fast.

So I dedicated a whole audiobook to this subject: secrets of French conversation. 1 hour of audio, plenty of exercises switching between the different ways of asking questions and everything you could possibly want to know about asking questions in French!

I hope this lesson helps. If you’d like to stay informed of new free lesson release, please subscribe to my newsletter.

Much like English, French often makes it clear that a question is being asked by beginning the sentences with a «question word» like Que («what»), or by using a word order that is not standard for direct statements.

These are the question words, or interrogatives:

Qui? = Who?
Que?/Quoi? = What?
Quand? = When?
Où? = Where?
Pourquoi? = Why?
Comment? = How?
Combien? = How many?/ How much?
Quel/ Quelle/ Quels/ Quelles? = Which?

These words are so important to memorize!! You really can’t have a conversation without them, can you?

Notice that Quel/ Quelle/ Quels/ Quelles (Which) agree in gender and number with the noun(s) they are asking about.

Examples:

Quelle fleur tu veux? (Which flower do you want?)
Quel chien tu préfères? (Which dog do you prefer?)

French does not use any auxiliary verb (such as «do») to form questions — the exact same word forms are used in sentences, just the word order is different when forming a question.

In French, it is possible to make a question without using a question word:

*As in English, by raising your tone at the end, without changing the words in anyway.
Il est professeur? (He’s a teacher?)
*Using «est-ce que…»
Est-ce qu’il est professeur? (He’s a teacher?)
*Using the subject-verb inversion.
Est-il professeur? (Is he a teacher?)

With the question words, there are three manners to make a question depending on the register you want to use:

Speaking French is more than just learning vocabulary words from flash cards. Words are just atoms, the building blocks of a language. They have to be put into context and strung together to form a sentence that is imparted with meaning.

Your French classes will teach you a lot about how to conjugate a verb, have your nouns and adjectives agree and what words and phrases will help you find the bathroom. What they might not teach you (but should) is sentence structure.

How are sentences put together in French? Does one use the dative, nominative, accusative and interrogative cases the same way as in English?

Setting aside that pesky grammatical gender agreement required to speak French properly, where and how do adjectives and adverbial phrases fit in a properly constructed sentence?

As an overview of these topics, Superprof presents this chart, one that you might consider printing and clipping and carrying with you to your French lessons or your French tutoring sessions.

Type of Sentence	Form	Sample	Translation
Simple Declarative	S+V+O	La professeur aime ses éleves.	The teacher loves her students.
Negation	S+’ne’+V+’pas’+O	Je ne veux pas aller au cinéma.	I don’t want to go to the cinema.
Interrogative sentences	1. Preface sentence with ‘est-ce-que’ 2. Reverse: V+S+O (formal)	Est-ce-que tu as fait tes devoirs? Pourrez-vous me dire ou est la bibliothèque?	Have you done your homework? Could you tell me where the library is?
Imperative sentence	V+O	Ouvre(z) la porte!	Open the door!
Simple declarative with adjective	S+V+Adj (adj must ‘agree’ with subject!)	La fille est belle. Le chien est beau.	The girl is pretty. The dog is pretty.
Adverbial pronoun	S+’y’+V	On y va!	Let’s go!
Relative clauses	‘que’ for objects ‘qui’ for people	Le livre que tu m’as donné… L’homme qui chante…	The book you gave me… The man who is singing…

Now, let’s examine each of these constructions in-depth…

But before you dive in, we’ve added a French playlist to enhance your reading experience while learning about French sentence structure. The playlist features a variety of French music, ranging from classic chansons to modern pop hits. Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced French learner, immersing yourself in the language through music can be a great way to improve your listening skills and vocabulary. So sit back, relax, and let the music transport you to the streets of Paris as you dive into the fascinating world of the French language.

French Sentence Structure: Understanding the Basics

French is a beautiful language, but it can be challenging to master its sentence structure, especially if you are a beginner. However, understanding the rules for forming proper sentences is essential for effective communication in French. In this article, we’ll explore the basics of French sentence structure and provide some useful tips to help you improve your French language skills.

Basic French Sentences and Word Order

In French, as in English, a sentence consists of a subject, verb, and object. The basic word order in French sentences is subject-verb-object (SVO). For example, «Je mange une pomme» means «I am eating an apple.» The subject «je» (I) comes first, followed by the verb «mange» (am eating), and then the object «une pomme» (an apple).

French Sentence Starters and Construction

To construct sentences in French, it’s essential to have a good grasp of sentence starters and construction. Some common sentence starters in French include «Je suis» (I am), «Il y a» (There is), «C’est» (It is), and «Il faut» (It’s necessary).

When constructing sentences, it’s important to pay attention to gender and number agreement. For example, if you want to say «I like the cat,» you would say «J’aime le chat» (not «J’aime la chat»). Similarly, if you want to say «I like the cats,» you would say «J’aime les chats» (not «J’aime le chats»).

French Time Phrases and Directional Words

Time phrases and directional words are also essential components of French sentence structure. Some common time phrases in French include «aujourd’hui» (today), «demain» (tomorrow), and «hier» (yesterday). Directional words such as «à droite» (to the right) and «à gauche» (to the left) are also important for giving directions.

Other Important French Sentence Structure Elements

French also has several conjunctions that are important for linking ideas and constructing more complex sentences. Some common French conjunctions include «et» (and), «mais» (but), and «ou» (or).

Si clauses are another important element of French sentence structure. These clauses are used to express hypothetical situations and typically begin with «si» (if). For example, «Si j’avais de l’argent, j’achèterais une voiture» means «If I had money, I would buy a car.»

With french sentence structure, remember to pay attention to gender and number agreement, use common sentence starters, and include directional words and time phrases to enhance your French language skills. In addition, understanding the grammar rules of French sentence structure is essential for effective communication in the language.

The Simple Declarative Sentence

The most common type of sentence in English and in French is the declarative sentence; a simple expression stating a fact:

As in English, the declarative form in French is the core around which more complicated sentences can be built.

Basic French sentences with nouns

When you learn a language, you start with basic sentences with the most common word order.

In French, this is SVO — Subject + Verb + Object. As for most Romance languages — and, indeed, English — the subject (who is doing the action?) generally comes at the beginning of the sentence.

There follows the verb, and then the direct object (what is he/she doing?). The sentences above are all examples of the SVO construct.

We now expand on that basic sentence structure by adding an indirect object (for/to/with whom is he doing it?):

Subject + Verb + Direct Object + Indirect Object

In each of these examples, the subject is doing something with the direct object for, to or with the indirect object.

Until now, we’ve only shown simple sentences using action verbs: somebody or something doing something. What about sentences that use a compound verb?

In English, these ‘helper’ verbs are to be, to have and to do. In French, only the first two, être and avoir, are used in compound structures with being être used less frequently.

Nevertheless, the structure remains the same: the verb that indicates what is happening stays in second place:

The only time a direct object might come after an indirect object is if there is additional information attached to it, such as a relative clause:

Naturally, you could structure the sentence in such a way that the direct object comes before the indirect:

However, that makes the sentence meaning ambiguous: He promised the candies to his sister, but who exactly did he give them to?

French being an exceedingly precise language, it is always best to follow the proper sentence structure in order to convey your intended meaning.

It might take a bit of practice, but your language skills will be all the richer for it!

Word order with pronouns

As in many other languages, French words are put into a different order if some or all of them are pronouns.

Let’s take the sentence:

Subject pronouns stay at the beginning of the sentence:

Sometimes, in French, it is much more convenient to describe an object in a sentence by using a pronoun.

Consider the sentence above: She shows her drawing to her mum. How can that sentence be made less cumbersome?

Elle lui montre son dessin.	‘lui’ takes the place of ‘maman’ even though, generally, ‘lui’ represents a male.
Elle le montre à sa maman.	‘le’ takes the place of the picture. In this sentence, the gender matches; dessin is masculine.
Elle le lui montre.	here, you have a combination of the two representations above, with ‘le’ meaning ‘dessin’ and ‘lui’ in for ‘maman’.

Let us now suppose you are that dear mum, telling a jealous mother about how your daughter creates artwork for you. You would say:

Because of its first-person singular designation, “me” ranks higher than “le” — a mere article. Therefore, you would place ‘me’ before ‘le’ in such sentences.

Object pronouns come BEFORE the verb but AFTER the subject. In what order they come depends on the pronoun:

Subject + ‘me’, ‘te’, ‘se’, ‘nous’, ‘vous’ + ‘le’, ‘la’, ‘les’ + ‘lui’, ‘leur’ + (adverbial pronoun “y”) + ‘en’ + Verb.

Examples:

Elle nous les montre. She shows them to us. Note that ‘montre’ agrees with ‘elle’ — third person singular.

You might also phrase it as a question:

Elle vous les montre? Does she show them to you? Either way, the order listed above remains.

‘En’ is an indefinite plural pronoun that, in this sentence’s case, represents the drawings. ‘en’ is always placed just before the verb:

Elle montre des dessins à sa maman. -> Elle lui en montre. She shows some drawings to her mum. > She shows her them.

Learn more about French grammar rules.

Negative Sentences

The French negative words are: ne…pas and ne…point (the latter is archaic or regional).

“Ne” comes immediately after the subject.
“Pas” comes immediately after the verb.

Negation is pretty straightforward in French, however you should be aware of using ‘any’ properly.

The equivalent of the English “no” or “not…any” is “ne…aucun”:

Marie ne montre aucun dessin à sa mère. Marie doesn’t show any drawing to her mother.

Or: Marie shows no drawings to her mother.

Adding Adjectives, Adverbial Phrases

Adverbs and adverbial phrases

The adverbial phrase or complément circonstanciel can come at the beginning, the end or the middle of the sentence. They are emphasised if they are put at the beginning or the end; it is more colloquial to only put single-word adverbs in the middle.

Such phrases may denote a time:

Or a place:

However, if you are using a complément circonstanciel construction to denote a place where an activity has happened, you cannot put that location in the middle of the sentence:

You’ll note that, as we do not know who the ‘lui’ in question is, it might represent a male or a female — hence both pronouns.  

Adverbial pronouns

The adverbial pronoun “y” (directional) comes after most other pronouns but before the plural pronoun “en”. It is generally used to denote a progressive action, or one that is about to take place. However, ‘y’ can only be used if the listener knows what the speaker is talking about:

If the listener knows where Marie is headed, the speaker could say: Marie y va — Marie is going.

Another example:

Contrast that with the much simpler: Nous y allons. We’re going — the usage is contingent on it being known where we are going!

Caution! You should never say:

Marie y va à l’école or Nous y allons au bois — it suggests the listener both knows and doesn’t know the destination.

Find French lessons that may interest you here.

Adjectives and their placement in the sentence.

Unlike in English, Adjectives are generally placed right after the noun:

Whereas an English speaker would say: ‘the red balloon’, in French, the proper order is: ‘le ballon rouge’. Here are some more examples:

• The hungry lion = le lion affamé.
• The sleepy child = l’enfant somnolent(e).
• The playful cat = le chat (la chatte) ludique.
• A good book = un bon livre.

Do you know of the BAGS group? It denotes constructions wherein the adjective comes before the noun:

Adjectives used with verbs expressing a state come after the verb:

Note that adjectives should always agree with the noun they are qualifying in gender and number.

Dependent and relative clauses

Most dependent or relative clauses come right after the main clause, at the end of the sentence.

Relative clauses

Relative clauses are introduced by the relative pronoun “que” if the noun is an object and «qui» if the noun is human.

These clauses are usually placed at the end of the sentence and come right after the noun they are qualifying — meaning that these nouns are sometimes moved from their usual place in the sentence.

An exception is if the qualifying noun is the subject, then the relative clause is moved forward. If it is very long it can be put between commas.

Conjunctive clauses

Conjunctive phrases are clauses that are the object of a verb. The verb in question generally deals with thoughts and emotions and the expression of them. They are either infinitive clauses or are introduced with the conjunction “que”.

Check for French lessons for beginners here on Superprof.

The French Interrogative Sentence

French has several ways to build an interrogative. Here are some tips to improve your French dialogue:

Est-ce-que

Putting “est-ce-que” at the beginning of a sentence is the easiest way to formulate a question in French. You can use the usual word order following it.

It is considered inelegant to preface your questions in this manner. During your French lessons, your teacher might insist you use reversal instead.

Reversing subject and predicate

The more elegant phrasing is to reverse the subject and predicate, putting the verb at the beginning of the sentence and hyphenating the subject-verb group:

If the subject of the sentence is not the person you are addressing, it stays at the beginning of the sentence, and an additional subject “il” is added:

Question words

For questions that cannot be answered by yes or no, French uses question words. They come at the beginning of the sentence, and are followed by the inverted subject-verb group (also more idiomatically, they can also come at the end of a basic sentence).

Check for French conversation classes London here on Superprof.

Here is a list of French words for asking questions:

• Qui: who. Qui es-tu? Who are you?
• Que: what. Que fais-tu? What are you doing?
• Quoi: in rare cases, replaces “que”: Quoi faire?
• Où: where. Où vas-tu? Where are you going?
• Comment: how. Comment vas-tu? How are you?
• Pourquoi: why. Pourquoi manges-tu ces frites? Why are you eating those chips?
• Combien: how much. Combien coûte cette baguette? How much does this baguette cost?
• Quel/quelle/quels/quelles: which. Should agree with the noun it is qualifying: Quels cinémas jouent-ils le nouveau Star Wars? (Which cinema is showing the new Star Wars?) “Quel” can be combined with adverbial prepositions: Dans quel château Edmond Dantès était-il emprisonné? (In what castle was Edmond Dantès imprisoned?) Après quelle date peut-on manger des huîtres? (After what date can you eat oysters?)

Indirect questions

Indirect questions are questions that are related rather than asked. They are introduced by the usual question words:

Ils se demandent quels cinémas montrent le nouveau Star Wars. They are asking themselves which cinemas are showing the new Star Wars film. 
Elle demande comment il va. She asks how he’s doing.

My Superprof tutor taught me the correct word order during our French lessons online!

The French Conditional Sentence

The language of Voltaire uses the pair of French words “si… alors” to express a condition over two clauses, though in some French phrases, “alors” is left off. It is considered more colloquial.

Si tu veux apprendre la langue, alors il faut bien apprendre ton vocabulaire français.
If you want to learn the language, so you will have to learn your French vocabulary.

“Si tu ne m’aimes pas je t’aime, et si je t’aime prends gare à toi!”
If you don’t love me, I love you; and if I love you: take care! (from the opera “Carmen”, by Bizet)

Check for French lessons for kids here on Superprof.

Don’t forget to do the grammar exercises in your French grammar textbooks and from your online French course to help you learn all about French sentence structure, learn French expressions and how to conjugate French verbs.

Find French classes Edinburgh on Superprof.

Сегодня обсудим порядок слов во французском предложении. Чаще всего это прямой порядок, но бывает и обратный, в результате которого меняется суть сказанного.

Порядок слов во французском предложении

Порядок слов во французском предложении или ordre des mots — фиксированный. Чаще всего порядок слов во французском языке — прямой (подлежащее + сказуемое + дополнение).

Бывает и обратный порядок слов (инверсия). Изменение порядка слов меняет часто и смысл фразы (Anne aime Paule. — Анна любит Поля. Paule aime Anne. — Поль любит Анну.)

Порядок слов во французском языке в повествовательном предложении

Порядок слов во французском языке в повествовательном предложении имеет чаще всего такую схему:

• Подлежащее + сказуемое + дополнение;
• Подлежащее + глагол-связка + именная часть сказуемого: Il est professeur. — Он преподаватель. То есть в обоих случаях будет прямой порядок слов.

Дополнение чаще всего стоит после сказуемого: Je regarde le film. — Я смотрю фильм.

Дополнение, которое выражено личным безударным местоимением, будет стоять перед сказуемым: Je lui parle. — Я с ним говорю.

Чаще всего прямое дополнение стоит перед косвенным:

• J’ai dit cela à ma femme. — Я сказал это своей жене.

Обстоятельство чаще стоит после сказуемого. Обстоятельство места и времени может занимать разные позиции во фразе: Je suis allée hier à 8 heures. — Я пошла вчера в 8 часов.

Определение следует за словом, к которому оно относится. Это определение может быть выражено относительным прилагательным, отглагольным прилагательным, существительным (Anne aime les sports d’hiver. — Анна любит зимний спорт.)

Порядок слов в вопросительном предложении во французском

Порядок слов во французском предложении может быть прямой или обратный, т.е. встречается и инверсия.

Прямой порядок слов остаётся:

• Подлежащее + сказуемое: когда вопрос выражается с помощью интонации (Tu aimes les pommes? — Ты любишь яблоки?), когда вопрос задаётся с помощью вопросительного оборота est-ce que (Est-ce que tu es content? — Ты доволен?). « Est-ce que » переводится на русский как «разве».

Инверсия бывает простой и сложной:

• Простая инверсия используется, когда подлежащее выражено безударным местоимением: Aimes-tu ce film? — Ты любишь этот фильм?
• Сложная инверсия используется, когда подлежащее выражается с помощью существительного или самостоятельного местоимения: Votre femme est-elle jeune? — Ваша жена молода?

Случается, что вопрос строится с помощью вопросительного слова и тогда используется прямой, либо обратный порядок слов.

Прямой порядок используется, когда подлежащее выражено с помощью вопросительного местоимения « qui » или будет использоваться наречие « combien de »: Combien de pommes il y a sur cette table? — Сколько яблок на этом столе?

Используется инверсия, когда дополнение выражено с помощью вопросительного местоимения « qui/que », а также сопровождается словами « quel », « combien de »: Que fais-tu? — Что ты делаешь?

Используется также инверсия, когда вопрос строится с помощью вопросительных слов « pourquoi », « comment »,  « quand », « où »…: Pouquoi es-tu parti? — Почему ты уехал?

Порядок слов в побудительном и отрицательном предложениях

В побудительном предложении на первом месте будет стоять глагол, затем будет использоваться дополнение, обстоятельство: Fais ce devoir aujourd’hui. — Сделай это задание сегодня.

В отрицательном предложении местоимение-дополнение будет стоять перед глаголом: Ne me le racontez pas. — Не рассказывайте мне этого.

Источник: https://sloovo.com/ru/biblioteka.php?type=obuchenie&language=FR&category=spravochnik&url=poryadok-slov-vo-francuzskom-predlojenii