Bescherelle French Verbs Guide

Vocabulary terms and definitions extracted from the Bescherelle guide, focusing on French verb categorization, groups, and grammatical agreement rules.

Bescherelle

A threefold reference tool comprising a dictionary of spelling and meaning, eighty-two conjugation tables, and grammatical notes for twelve thousand French verbs.

Conjugated

The state of a verb when variables such as person, tense, mood, aspect, and voice are applied.

Stem

The part of the verb that remains constant throughout conjugation, identified by removing the infinitive ending.

Ending

The variable part of the conjugated verb that is added to the constant stem.

Reflexive verb

A verb conjugated with a personal pronoun pertaining to the person of the subject, such as "je me lève."

Reciprocal verb

A verb usage indicating a mutual action between multiple subjects, such as "ils se battent."

First group

Verbs ending in -er in the infinitive and in -e in the first person of the present indicative, such as "aimer."

Second group

Verbs ending in -ir that have an indicative ending in -is and a present participle ending in -issant, such as "finir."

Third group

An extinct conjugation containing approximately 350 verbs with many exceptions, including "aller," verbs in -oir, -re, and -ir verbs not ending in -issant.

Impersonal verbs

Verbs always conjugated in the singular third person, regardless of whether their subject is plural, such as "il tombait de gros flocons."

Collective nouns

Nouns such as "foule" or "multitude" where the verb can be singular or plural depending on whether emphasis is on the entirety or individuals.

Quantitative adverbs

Adverbs like "beaucoup" or "la plupart" that usually require a plural verb.

Plus d'un

A quantitative phrase that is paradoxically followed by a singular verb.

Moins de deux

A quantitative phrase followed by a plural verb.

L'un et l'autre

A pronoun that often takes a plural verb, although the singular form is technically correct.

Past participle without auxiliary

The form of the verb that agrees with the noun or pronoun to which it refers in the same way as an adjective.

Auxiliary verb Être

Used for passive voice, all reflexive verbs, and certain intransitive verbs; the past participle always agrees with the subject (except in certain reflexive cases).

Auxiliary verb Avoir

Used for active voice compound tenses where the past participle only agrees if a direct object precedes the verb.

Essentially reflexive verb

A verb like "s'évanouir" or "se repentir" where the past participle agrees with the subject when conjugated with être.

En

An adverbial pronoun often relating to "de cela"; when used as a direct object, the past participle generally remains invariable.

Verbs of perception

Verbs like "vu," "entendu," or "senti" followed by an infinitive; agreement depends on whether the preceding noun is the subject of that infinitive.

Diaeresis

A grammatical mark used throughout the conjugation of "haïr" (except for three singular persons in present indicative and one in imperative) which excludes the need for a circumflex.

Vowel alternation

A modification of the verb stem between different persons (e.g., "je reçois" vs "nous recevons") derived from Latin tonic accent placement.

Gésir

A defective verb meaning "to be lying," primarily used for sick or deceased persons or for destroyed objects.