To listen in French 🇫🇷

Opposites

Écouter (to listen) – Parler (to speak)

7 months ago

écouter info.

To help remember “écouter,” consider that it sounds similar to “eavesdropper” in English, which is someone who listens secretly. Since “écouter” involves listening, you can think of an eavesdropper who listens carefully to every sound. “Écouter” also starts with “éc,” similar to “ear” in English, which is the organ of listening, providing another memory link.

Other French words that mean the same thing or are related to “écouter” include:

1. Entendre – to hear
2. Prêter l’oreille – to lend an ear
3. Écoute – a noun form for “listening” or “hearing”

The verb “écouter” is indeed in the infinitive form. Here are the different conjugations for “écouter” in the indicative mood:

Present tense:
– J’écoute (I listen/I am listening)
– Tu écoutes (You listen/You are listening)
– Il/Elle écoute (He/She listens/He/She is listening)
– Nous écoutons (We listen/We are listening)
– Vous écoutez (You listen/You are listening – formal/plural)
– Ils/Elles écoutent (They listen/They are listening)

Imperfect tense (used for ongoing actions/states in the past):
– J’écoutais
– Tu écoutais
– Il/Elle écoutait
– Nous écoutions
– Vous écoutiez
– Ils/Elles écoutaient

Simple Past (passé simple, mostly used in literature):
– J’écoutai
– Tu écoutas
– Il/Elle écouta
– Nous écoutâmes
– Vous écoutâtes
– Ils/Elles écoutèrent

Future tense:
– J’écouterai (I will listen)
– Tu écouteras (You will listen)
– Il/Elle écoutera (He/She will listen)
– Nous écouterons (We will listen)
– Vous écouterez (You will listen – formal/plural)
– Ils/Elles écouteront (They will listen)

Conditional tense (used to express what would happen under certain conditions):
– J’écouterais
– Tu écouterais
– Il/Elle écouterait
– Nous écouterions
– Vous écouteriez
– Ils/Elles écouteraient

Examples of sentences using “écouter”:

1. Present: J’écoute de la musique classique pour me détendre. (I listen to classical music to relax.)
2. Imperfect: Quand j’étais petit, j’écoutais souvent les histoires de ma grand-mère. (When I was little, I would often listen to my grandmother’s stories.)
3. Future: Demain, j’écouterai le nouveau podcast sur l’histoire. (Tomorrow, I will listen to the new podcast on history.)
4. Conditional: Si j’avais le temps, j’écouterais plus de livres audio. (If I had the time, I would listen to more audiobooks.)

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