Bonjour chers amis!
I’m pretty sure many of you are already familiar with the worldwide-known French mantra “Je t’aime“ (I love you). The verb employed in this sentence is aimer (to love/to like). In addition to expressing romantic feelings, aimer can also help you formulate your interests in French. But first, let’s learn how to conjugate this verb in the simple present:
j’aime| tu aimes| il/elle/on aime | nous aimons | vous aimez | ils/elles aiment
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Download the mp3 files of this verb as a Zip folder Aimer-Present-Simple |
In order to say what you enjoy doing in French, you can use this formula:
subject + aimer (conjugated form) + verb (infinitive)
It’s pretty easy. Just follow these examples:
| 1. J’aime danser la salsa. (I like dancing salsa) |
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| 2. Marina aime cuisiner les week-ends. (Marina likes cooking on weekends) |
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| 3. Edouard aime aller à des concerts. (Edward likes going to concerts) |
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Note: As you can see from the above examples, all the verbs that follow the verb aimer are in the infinitive form.
A Few “Question-Answer” Dialogues to Practice
| 1. | Q: Est-ce que tu aimes parler le français? Do you like speaking French?
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| A: Oui, j’aime parler le francais? Yes, I like speaking French.
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| 2. | Q: Est-ce que vous aimez nager? Do you like swimming?/em>
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| A: Oui, nous aimons nager. Yes, we like swimming.
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| 3. | Q: Qu’est-ce que tu aimes faire quand il fait beau? What do you like doing when it’s nice?
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| A: Quand il fait beau, j’aime m’amuser avec mes amis. I like to play with my friends.
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Note: There are, obviously, several other ways of expressing what you like in French. Verbs such as adorer and préférer can are oftentimes used instead of aimer. And If time allows it, I will devote another lesson to these other verbs in the future. But remember that almost all of them follow the same rules as aimer. Simply make sure to use an infinitive AFTER these verbs. For example:
a) Nous adorons voyager pendant l’été. We enjoy (very much) traveling during summertime.
b) Elles préfèrent visiter un musée quand elle a le temps.. She prefers visiting a museum when she has time.
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