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Unit 7: Getting Around Town (En Ville)

Now that you can describe things and talk about food, let’s learn how to get around! This unit will teach you the essential verb “to go,” how to ask for and understand directions, and an easy way to talk about future plans. Time to explore!

Lesson 19: Going Places with aller (Aller quelque part)

Thoughts: The verb aller (to go) is absolutely vital! It’s one of the most common verbs in French, and it’s irregular. We’ll learn how to use it to say where you’re going, which involves some special little words called prepositions.

Casual Introduction: Imagine you want to tell someone “I’m going to the park” or “Are you going to school today?” You need the verb “to go.” In French, this is aller, and it’s a bit of a chameleon – its forms change quite a lot. But once you master it, you’ll be able to talk about going everywhere! We’ll also learn the French equivalents of “to the” or “at the.”

Grammar Spotlight: The Verb ALLER (To go)

Aller is one of the most important irregular verbs in French. Memorize its conjugation well!

ALLER - Present Tense Conjugation

Subject Pronoun ALLER Form Pronunciation English Equivalent
Je vais VAY I go / I am going
Tu vas VAH You go / You are going
Il / Elle / On va VAH He/She/One goes / is going
Nous allons Ah-LOHN (nasal) We go / We are going
Vous allez Ah-LAY You go / You are going
Ils / Elles vont VOHN (nasal) They go / They are going

Prepositions of Place with ALLER (à, au, à la, à l’, aux)

When you use aller to say where you’re going, you need a preposition meaning “to” or “at.” In French, this is usually à. However, à combines with the definite articles (le, la, l', les) to form contractions:

Summary Table of à + Definite Article:

Preposition + Article Contraction Usage Example
à + le au Masculine Singular au marché (to the market)
à + la à la Feminine Singular à la boulangerie (to the bakery)
à + l’ à l’ Vowel/H Singular à l’hôpital (to the hospital)
à + les aux Plural (masc. or fem.) aux magasins (to the stores)

Common Destinations & Places (Vocabulary)

French Place (with article) English Translation
la ville (f) the city / town
le parc (m) the park
la gare (f) the train station
la plage (f) the beach
le cinéma (m) the cinema / movie theater
le musée (m) the museum
le restaurant (m) the restaurant
le café (m) the café
la maison (f) the house / home
l’école (f) the school
l’hôpital (m) the hospital
la banque (f) the bank
le marché (m) the market
le supermarché (m) the supermarket
la poste (f) the post office

Example Sentences:

Exercises/Quiz:

  1. Conjugate aller for the following pronouns:
    • a) Je __
    • b) Nous __
    • c) Il __
    • d) Vous __
  2. Fill in the blank with the correct form of à + article (au, à la, à l’, aux):
    • a) Elle va __ gare. (train station - feminine)
    • b) Nous allons __ restaurant. (restaurant - masculine)
    • c) Tu vas __ école. (school - feminine, vowel)
    • d) Ils vont __ musées. (museums - plural)
  3. Translate into French:
    • a) I am going to the bank.
    • b) We are going to the park.
    • c) Are you (formal) going to the supermarket?

Solutions:

  1. a) vais, b) allons, c) va, d) allez
  2. a) à la, b) au, c) à l’, d) aux
  3. a) Je vais à la banque. b) Nous allons au parc. c) Vous allez au supermarché ?

Lesson 20: Asking for Directions (Demander son chemin)

Thoughts: Now that you know how to say you’re going somewhere, let’s learn how to find your way there! We’ll cover essential phrases for asking for and understanding simple directions.

Casual Introduction: You’re in a new town, and you want to find the post office. How do you ask? And once someone tells you, how do you understand “turn right” or “go straight”? This lesson gives you those practical phrases so you don’t get lost!

Asking for Directions

Giving Simple Directions (Key Phrases)

Prepositions of Place (Where is it?)

These prepositions tell you exactly where something is in relation to something else.

Example Dialogue: Asking for Directions

Vous: Pardon, Madame, pour aller à la gare, s’il vous plaît ? (Excuse me, Madam, to go to the train station, please?) Madame: La gare ? Bien sûr. Allez tout droit, puis tournez à gauche au feu. C’est en face du supermarché. (The station? Of course. Go straight ahead, then turn left at the traffic light. It’s opposite the supermarket.) Vous: Merci beaucoup ! (Thank you very much!) Madame: De rien ! (You’re welcome!)

Vocabulary Box: Asking for Directions

French Phrase English Translation Notes
tout droit straight ahead / straight on  
à droite to the right  
à gauche to the left  
tourner to turn Verb used for directions
sur on / on top of Preposition of place
sous under Preposition of place
dans in Preposition of place
devant in front of Preposition of place
derrière behind Preposition of place
à côté de next to Preposition of place (remember de changes to du/de la/d'/des if followed by article)
en face de opposite / across from Preposition of place
un feu (m) a traffic light Lit. a fire, but used for traffic lights
une porte (f) a door  
une chaise (f) a chair  
un chat (m) a cat  
un livre (m) a book  
un argent (m) money  
un bus (m) a bus  
un train (m) a train  

Exercises/Quiz:

  1. Translate these directional phrases into French:
    • a) Go straight ahead.
    • b) Turn right.
    • c) Turn left.
  2. Fill in the blank with the correct preposition of place (sur, sous, dans, devant, derrière):
    • a) Le téléphone est __ la table. (on)
    • b) Le chien est __ le lit (bed - masculine). (under)
    • c) Je suis __ ma voiture. (in)
    • d) La banque est __ la poste. (in front of)
    • e) Le parc est __ la maison. (behind)
  3. Translate into French (using pour aller):
    • a) Excuse me, to go to the park, please?
    • b) Where is the hospital, please?

Solutions:

  1. a) Allez tout droit. b) Tournez à droite. c) Tournez à gauche.
  2. a) sur, b) sous, c) dans, d) devant, e) derrière
  3. a) Pardon, Monsieur/Madame, pour aller au parc, s’il vous plaît ? b) Où est l’hôpital, s’il vous plaît ?

Lesson 21: The Near Future: What You’re Going to Do (Le futur proche)

Thoughts: You’ve learned how to talk about the present. Now, let’s talk about what’s coming up next! The futur proche is incredibly easy and useful, like saying “I’m going to do something” in English.

Casual Introduction: Have you ever said, “I’m going to eat dinner soon,” or “They’re going to visit us tomorrow”? French has a super simple way to express these “going to do something” ideas. It’s called the futur proche (near future), and it literally uses the verb aller (to go) plus another verb in its basic, unconjugated form. It’s one of the easiest ways to talk about the future!

Grammar Spotlight: The Futur Proche (Near Future)

The futur proche is used for actions that will happen soon, in the near future. It’s very common in spoken French.

Structure: Conjugated ALLER + Infinitive Verb

  1. Take the conjugated form of aller (from Lesson 19) that matches your subject.
  2. Add the infinitive (the “to do” form, like parler, finir, attendre) of the action verb. Do not conjugate the second verb!

Example:

ALLER + INFINITIVE Examples:

Subject Pronoun Aller Form Infinitive Verb Futur Proche Sentence English Translation
Je vais parler Je vais parler. I am going to speak.
Tu vas finir Tu vas finir. You are going to finish.
Il / Elle / On va manger Il va manger. He is going to eat.
Nous allons attendre Nous allons attendre. We are going to wait.
Vous allez choisir Vous allez choisir. You are going to choose.
Ils / Elles vont regarder Ils vont regarder. They are going to watch.

Czech Connection: This is very similar to the English “going to” construction. While Czech uses a different future tense system (e.g., budu jíst - I will eat), the futur proche offers a simple, direct way to express immediate future plans, much like you might casually say “chystám se jíst” (I am getting ready to eat) in Czech.

Common Time Expressions for the Future

You can use these with the futur proche to specify when something will happen.

Example Sentences:

Exercises/Quiz:

  1. Form sentences in the futur proche:
    • a) Je (aller) + (manger)
    • b) Tu (aller) + (finir)
    • c) Nous (aller) + (regarder)
    • d) Elles (aller) + (travailler)
  2. Translate into French using the futur proche:
    • a) I am going to study tonight.
    • b) We are going to go to the cinema tomorrow.
    • c) He is going to buy a book.
    • d) Are you (formal) going to eat soon?

Solutions:

  1. a) Je vais manger. b) Tu vas finir. c) Nous allons regarder. d) Elles vont travailler.
  2. a) Je vais étudier ce soir. b) Nous allons aller au cinéma demain. c) Il va acheter un livre. d) Vous allez manger bientôt ?

Key Takeaways for Unit 7: Getting Around Town

You’ve learned to navigate French-speaking environments, give simple directions, and talk about your immediate plans. Your ability to communicate in French is truly expanding! Keep practicing these essential verbs and structures.