1. Unit 2 Labo-langue Direct object pronouns Ce que (what)
Verbs followed by an infinitive
The imperfect tense

2. Direct object pronouns
Unit 2: Labo-langue
Direct object pronouns
The words le, la and les mean ‘the’ when they are in front of a noun, but when they come before a verb they change meaning: le
it/him
le  l’
before verbs beginning with a vowel la
it/her
la  l’
les
them
Le film? Je l’adore. The film? I love it.
In French, direct object pronouns sit in front of the verb:
Je les déteste. I hate them.
When the verb is in the negative form, direct object pronouns come between ne and the verb: Je ne les aime pas. I don’t like them.
© Oxford University Press 2015

3. Ce que (what) Unit 2: Labo-langue
Ce que is an indefinite relative pronoun.
It can come before the noun has been introduced:
J’aime la pop. I like pop music. Ce que j’aime, c’est la pop. What I like is pop music.
Je n’aime pas lire les romans. I don’t like reading novels. Ce que je n’aime pas, c’est lire les romans. What I don’t like is reading novels.
© Oxford University Press 2015

4. Verbs followed by an infinitive
Unit 2: Labo-langue
Verbs followed by an infinitive
When verbs of preference (such as aimer, préférer, adorer and détester) are used to express an attitude towards an action (a verb), the second verb is always in the infinitive:
J’adore écouter le rock. I love to listen to rock I love listening to rock.
© Oxford University Press 2015

5. The imperfect tense Unit 2: Labo-langue
The imperfect tense is used for showing how something was in the past or what used to happen.
As you become more confident, you can use the perfect tense and the imperfect tense together to make your speaking and writing more complex, interesting and varied.
© Oxford University Press 2015