Être - Present
French: Cambridge International GCSE, topic 8.2.1
Present Passive Voice
To form the passive, use the present tense of 'être' followed by a past participle. The passive is usually only used in the 'il/elle' and the 'ils/elles' forms.
1) Present tense of 'être'
- This tense is only usually used with the il/elle/on or ils/elles form of 'être'.
- Il/elle/on est - he/she/one is.
- Ils/elles sont - they are.
2) Add past participle
- La police est avertie - The police are warned.
- Les livres sont lus - the books are read.
- Les tartes sont faites - the tarts are made.
Examples of passive sentences
- Le livre est lu par de nombreuses personnes.
- The book is read by many people.
- La tarte aux pommes est mangée par moi.
- The apple pie is eaten by me.
- Les touristes sont vus comme une source d'espoir pour la population locale.
- Tourists are seen as a source of hope by the local people.
- Les pièces sont écrites par William Shakespeare.
- The plays are written by William Shakespeare.
Test yourself on Être - Present
Complete the following sentence:
La peinture [...] par 1 million de gens chaque année.How do you say 'cricket is played in the summer'?