French Verb Faire: Essential Guide to Faire in French

What is faire?

Faire means "to do" or "to make" in French and is crucial for daily conversations. It's used for activities, creating things, and many idiomatic expressions.

Present Tense (Présent)

je fais - I do/make tu fais - you do/make (informal) il/elle/on fait - he/she/one does/makes nous faisons - we do/make vous faites - you do/make (formal/plural) ils/elles font - they do/make

Example Sentences:

1. "Je fais du sport" (I do sports/exercise)

• Uses "fais" because "je" (I) is performing the action

2. "Ils font la cuisine" (They are cooking)

• Uses "font" because "ils" (they) are performing the action

3. "Tu fais tes devoirs?" (Are you doing your homework?)

• Uses "fais" because "tu" refers to the person being asked about their action

Past Tense (Passé Composé)

j'ai fait - I did/have done/made tu as fait - you did/have done/made il/elle/on a fait - he/she/one did/has done/made nous avons fait - we did/have done/made vous avez fait - you did/have done/made ils/elles ont fait - they did/have done/made

Example Sentences:

1. "J'ai fait un gâteau" (I made a cake)

• Uses "ai fait" to describe a completed action

2. "Nous avons fait les courses" (We did the shopping)

• Uses "avons fait" for a completed action in the past

Imperfect Past (Imparfait)

je faisais - I was doing/used to do tu faisais - you were doing/used to do il/elle/on faisait - he/she/one was doing/used to do nous faisions - we were doing/used to do vous faisiez - you were doing/used to do ils/elles faisaient - they were doing/used to do

Example Sentences:

1. "Je faisais du piano quand j'étais petit" (I used to play piano when I was little)

• Uses "faisais" for a habitual past action

2. "Ils faisaient toujours la fête le weekend" (They always used to party on weekends)

• Uses "faisaient" to express a repeated action in the past

Future Simple (Futur Simple)

je ferai - I will do/make tu feras - you will do/make il/elle/on fera - he/she/one will do/make nous ferons - we will do/make vous ferez - you will do/make ils/elles feront - they will do/make

Example Sentences:

1. "Je ferai attention" (I will be careful)

• Uses "ferai" to indicate a future action

2. "Nous ferons un voyage" (We will take a trip)

• Uses "ferons" to express a planned future action

Common Uses of Faire

1. Activities: "Elle fait de la danse" (She does dancing)

2. Weather: "Il fait beau" (It's nice weather)

3. Creating/Making: "Je fais un dessin" (I'm making a drawing)

4. Measurements: "La table fait deux mètres" (The table is two meters)

Common Expressions with Faire

• faire attention - to pay attention
• faire la vaisselle - to do the dishes
• faire les courses - to go shopping
• faire du sport - to do sports/exercise
• faire la cuisine - to cook
• faire la sieste - to take a nap

Key Tips

• Faire is irregular, following its own unique pattern
• Remember that "font" (they do) is quite different from other forms
• Many everyday activities use faire + de/du/de la/des
• Weather expressions almost always use faire