Family (AQA GCSE French): Revision Notes
Family (La famille)
Introduction
Understanding family vocabulary is essential for describing relationships and talking about the people closest to you in French. This topic covers immediate family members, extended family, and the key structures needed to discuss family relationships.
Family relationships are one of the most common conversation topics in French, making this vocabulary particularly useful for everyday interactions and cultural exchanges.
Vocabulary table
The following table presents the core family vocabulary you'll need to master. Pay special attention to the gender of each noun, as this affects the articles and adjectives you'll use with them.
| French | English | Gender | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| la famille | family | feminine | Always feminine |
| le père | father | masculine | |
| la mère | mother | feminine | |
| le fils | son | masculine | |
| la fille | daughter | feminine | Also means "girl" |
| le frère | brother | masculine | |
| la sœur | sister | feminine | |
| les parents | parents | masculine plural | |
| le mari | husband | masculine | |
| la femme | wife | feminine | Also means "woman" |
| l'oncle | uncle | masculine | |
| la tante | aunt | feminine | |
| le beau-père | step-father/father-in-law | masculine | |
| la belle-mère | step-mother/mother-in-law | feminine | |
| le demi-frère | half brother | masculine | |
| la demi-sœur | half sister | feminine | |
| l'enfant unique | only child | masculine/feminine | |
| le partenaire | partner | masculine |
Words with Multiple Meanings:
- la fille can mean both "daughter" and "girl" - context will help you determine which meaning applies
- la femme means both "wife" and "woman" - again, context is key
- le beau-père and la belle-mère can refer to step-parents OR in-laws, depending on the situation
Question words for family discussions
When asking about family members, these question words are particularly useful for building natural conversations:
- Qui? - Who?
- Que/Qu'est-ce que? - What?
- Comment? - How? What?
- Où? - Where?
- Combien? - How much/How many?
- Quand? - When?
- Avec qui? - With whom?
- Pourquoi? - Why?
- À quelle heure? - At what time?
- Comment s'appelle tonne père? - What's your father's name?
Common Question Pattern: Notice how Comment s'appelle...? (What is... called?) is the standard way to ask for someone's name in French. This pattern works with any family member: "Comment s'appelle ta mère?" "Comment s'appelle tonne frère?"
Example sentences
Understanding family vocabulary in context helps you use these words naturally in conversation.
Present Tense Examples:
Ma famille est assez grande. - My family is quite big.
- Notice: ma famille (feminine agreement)
J'ai deux frères et une sœur. - I have two brothers and one sister.
- Uses the verb avoir (to have) for family members
Je m'entends avec mes parents car ils sont gentils. - I get on with my parents because they are kind.
- s'entendre avec = to get along with
- ils sont gentils (masculine plural agreement)
J'aime jouer au football avec mon oncle. - I like playing football with my uncle.
- Shows activity + family member structure
Qui prépare les repas? - Who prepares the meals?
- Example of question formation
Past Tense Examples:
Hier, je suis allé(e) en ville avec ma tante. - Yesterday I went to town with my aunt.
- allé (masculine) or allée (feminine) - agreement with subject
J'ai visité mes grands-parents le weekend dernier. - I visited my grandparents last weekend.
- Uses avoir as auxiliary verb with visiter
Grammar and pronunciation tips
Mastering the grammatical rules around family vocabulary is crucial for accurate communication.
Possessive Adjectives Agreement: Remember that possessive adjectives must agree with the gender and number of the noun they describe, NOT the person who owns it:
- mon père (my father) - masculine singular
- ma mère (my mother) - feminine singular
- mes frères (my brothers) - plural
This means a woman still says "mon père" because père is masculine!
Agreement rules
Understanding these agreement patterns will help you speak more accurately:
Key Agreement Rules:
- Famille is feminine, so use feminine agreements: "ma famille est grande"
- Adjectives must agree: gentils (masculine plural) when describing parents
- Past participles with être must agree with the subject: je suis allé (masculine) or je suis allée (feminine)
Pronunciation notes
These pronunciation tips will help you sound more natural when speaking about family:
- The 's' in frères is pronounced because it's plural
- Famille ends with the sound "mee"
- Silent letters: the 't' in parents is usually silent in casual speech
Translation exercise
Practice your understanding with these translation challenges:
Translation Practice:
French to English:
- Comment est ta famille?
- Qu'est-ce que vous faites ensemble?
English to French: 3. I have a big family with three sisters. 4. My uncle is very funny and kind.
Solutions:
- How is your family? / What is your family like?
- What do you do together?
- J'ai une grande famille avec trois sœurs.
- Mon oncle est très drôle et gentil.
Additional useful phrases
These phrases will help you describe family relationships and activities more naturally:
- Je m'occupe de mon petit frère. - I look after my little brother.
- Respecter - to respect
- S'occuper de - to look after
- S'entendre avec - to get on with
Verb Patterns: Notice how s'occuper de and s'entendre avec use different prepositions. These patterns are important to memorise as complete phrases rather than individual words.
Key Points to Remember:
- Famille is always feminine in French, so use "ma famille" and feminine agreement
- Possessive adjectives (mon, ma, mes) agree with the thing being possessed, not the person
- When using être in the past tense, remember to make the past participle agree with the subject
- Many family terms have both literal and extended meanings (belle-mère can mean step-mother or mother-in-law)
- Practice question words as they're essential for family conversations and descriptions
- Pay attention to pronunciation patterns, especially silent letters and plural endings