A1 · être, avoir and there is
Age, hunger, fear — all with avoir
Where English says «be», French says «have».
A small group of states takes avoir in French where English takes «to be». Age belongs to it, and hunger, thirst, cold, heat and fear. «I am hungry» is j'ai faim, «I am cold» is j'ai froid, «I am afraid» is j'ai peur, «I am right» is j'ai raison.
These phrases take no article: avoir faim, not avoir la faim. The noun here is not a thing but a state, and French treats it as one.
They are intensified with très, also without an article: J'ai très faim. English says «very hungry» and the word order matches, which makes this the easy half.
Die Form
| to be … years old | avoir … ans |
| to be hungry, thirsty | avoir faim, soif |
| to be hot, cold | avoir chaud, froid |
| to be afraid | avoir peur |
| to be right, to be wrong | avoir raison, tort |
| to need | avoir besoin de |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
Age takes avoir and ans; ans can never be left out.
Elle a trente ans.She is thirty.
These phrases take no article.
J’ai soif.I am thirsty.
They are intensified with très, not with beaucoup.
Nous avons très froid.We are very cold.
avoir besoin de means «to need» and always takes de.
J’ai besoin d’aide.I need help.
Woran man es erkennt
- ans
- faim
- soif
- peur
- très
Beispielsätze
Quel âge as-tu ? — J’ai vingt-deux ans.How old are you? — I am twenty-two.
Les enfants ont faim.The children are hungry.
Tu as froid ? Ferme la fenêtre.Are you cold? Shut the window.
Vous avez raison, c’est trop cher.You are right, it is too expensive.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
Age is where this goes wrong most often, and it goes wrong twice. Je suis vingt ans uses the wrong verb, and J'ai vingt leaves out the word for years. English says «I am twenty» and drops «years old» as often as not; French changes the verb *and* insists on ans.
In French you have your age, your hunger and your fear.
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