How to Form French Sentences: A Guide to French Sentence Construction
Learn about French sentence construction with this guide on how to form different types of sentences and the parts of a sentence in French.
When you learn a new language, you start by accumulating vocabulary, learning how to conjugate verbs and so on. But if you want to use it to communicate with others, you will also need to learn how to structure a sentence.
As a native speaker, you know how to build a sentence instinctively but as a language learner, it takes a bit more practice. The good news for speakers of English or Romance languages like Italian or Spanish, is that French sentence construction is similar in many ways to your own. However, there are also some differences that will take practice to master.
Read more to learn the basics of French sentence structure; that way, making sentences in French will be easy for you!
Types of French Sentences
In French, there are four main types of sentences: statements (positive or negative), questions, exclamations and commands. Here is our guide on how to build each one of these French sentences.
1. Statements
A. Positive statements
Statements, or declarative sentences, are the easiest way to approach French sentence construction. French, like English, follows the Subject-Verb-Complement structure sentence:
- Je mange une pommeI eat an apple
- Je is the subject and describes the person acting
- Mange is the verb and describes the action
- Une pomme is the direct object: it answers “What do I eat?” Other complements can describe where, when, why or how an action happens. Some circumstantial complements, such as à la maison, can move to the beginning of the sentence and be separated by a comma; direct objects cannot generally be moved in the same way.
- In French, adjectives are usually placed after the noun they describe. However, some exceptions follow the same rule as in English and are placed before the noun: petit(e), grand(e), bon(ne), méchant(e), mauvais(e), gentil(le), jeune, vieux/vieille, nouveau/nouvelle, joli(e), beau/belle.
B. Negative statements
A basic English negative sentence often uses not. The corresponding standard French construction uses two parts: ne…pas. Ne is placed after the subject. Before vowels (a, e, i, o, u) or a mute h, ne becomes n’. Pas is placed after the verb.
- Je ne mange pas de pommesI don’t eat apples
Other negative expressions include ne…jamais (never). Ne…que means “only” and expresses restriction rather than negation. To say “a few apples,” use quelques pommes; “ne… quelque” is not a negative construction.
- Je ne mange jamais de pommesI never eat apples
C. Adding conjunctions
Once you have mastered the basic sentence structure, you can build longer, more complex ones by coupling shorter sentences together. They are linked with conjunctions : Mais (But), Ou (Or), Et (And), Donc (So), Or (But), Ni (Nor), Car (Because), Puis (Then)…
For longer written pieces, see our list of French essay connectors that link ideas and paragraphs.
See also: A Quick and Easy Guide to French Conjunctions
- Je mange une pomme car j’ai faimI eat an apple because I’m hungry
2. Questions
There are three basic ways to formulate a question in French.
For ready-made examples, see these French questions and answers you’ll use every day.
A. Inversion
One of the most common ways to ask a question in French is to invert the subject and the verb in a sentence. Inversion can form yes/no questions and questions with a question word, such as Pourquoi manges-tu une pomme ?
| Manges-tu une pomme? | Are you eating an apple? |
B. Est-ce que… ?
Instead of inverting subject and verb, French speakers can use the question phrase Est-ce que at the beginning of the sentence and retain the sentence structure that follows. Without a question word before it, est-ce que… asks a yes/no question; it can also follow a question word, as in Pourquoi est-ce que tu manges une pomme ? It is considered more colloquial than an inversion question.
- Est-ce que tu manges une pomme ?Are you eating an apple?
C. Question words
When asking an open question, French uses question words much like in English: qui (who), que (what), pourquoi (why), comment (how), quand (when), où (where), combien (how many, how much), quel (which)… They are sometimes followed by Est-ce que…
See also: How to Ask Questions in French
3. Exclamations
Exclamations are used to express a strong emotion, such as surprise, indignation, etc. In many cases, they are similar in construction to declarative sentences and are marked by the intonation of the speaker or by an exclamation point when in writing.
- Cette pomme est délicieuse!This apple is delicious !
Exclamative words, such as quel/le, que or comme are used at the beginning of the sentence to emphasize a statement.
- Quelle pomme délicieuse!What a delicious apple !
4. Commands
Imperative sentences are used to express advice, an order or a prohibition. In the usual imperative construction, the subject pronoun is omitted. It is usually implied by the conjugation of the verb in the imperative form.
Since it is a direct demand, it is either tu (the singular and informal form of “you”), vous (plural or formal) or nous (we). The sentence ends either with an exclamation point to mark emphasis or with a period.
Sentence construction in spoken French
In French like in English, the spoken language tends to be more colloquial than what you would write in an essay. People tend to drop or shorten part of the sentence or on the contrary drag it on, which can make things a little trickier for a language learner. They do not always follow grammar rules to the letter.
For example, a question may only be marked by the intonation of the speaker rather than a change in the words’ order.
- Tu as mangé une pomme ?Did you eat an apple?
The subject may be repeated for emphasis.
When it comes to negative sentences, some speakers tend to drop the “ne”.
- J’ai pas mangé de pommes.I didn’t eat apples
See also: The Simple Guide to Informal French Grammar
Learning how to build a sentence in French fluently can seem tricky at first. Just like everything else, it comes more naturally with a lot of practice so take any opportunity you have to read, speak or watch movies in French.
Learn how to build good sentences in French by brushing up on your grammar! Check out the French Grammar Bundle below.
