Pour aller à… ? (Directions & Imperative)

THE IMPERATIVE MOOD: used for commands, instructions, advice, and invitations

FORMATION for -ER verbs: take the PRESENT TENSE form and DROP the subject pronoun. ALSO drop the final -S in the TU form: Parle (speak) ! · Parlons (let's speak) ! · Parlez (speak (to you plural or formal)) !

FORMATION for -RE verbs: Vends (sell) ! · Vendons (let's sell) ! · Vendez (sell) ! (keep the -s in the tu form)

EXCEPTION to the -S removal: before Y and EN, the -S is kept for pronunciation (liaison): Vas-y (go ahead) ! (Go!) · Parles-en (talk about it) ! (Talk about it!): the S becomes /z/.

FORMATION for -IR verbs: Finis (finish) ! · Finissons (let's finish) ! · Finissez (finish) ! (keep the -S in tu form).

IRREGULAR IMPERATIVES (avoir): aie (have (imperative)) · ayons (let's have) · ayez (have (imperative pl.))

PRONOMINAL VERBS in imperative: pronoun comes AFTER with hyphen: Lève-toi (get up) ! (Get up!) · Asseyez-vous (sit down) ! (Sit down!) · Ne te lève pas (don't get up) ! (Don't get up!): note: te comes back BEFORE in negative.

POLITENESS: use s'il te plaît (please (informal)) (informal) or s'il vous plaît (please (formal)) (formal) to soften commands: Parle plus lentement, s'il te plaît (Speak more slowly, please. (informal)). Or rephrase: Tu peux parler plus lentement? (can you speak more slowly?) ?

• Allez tout droit. (aller → allez) — Go straight ahead.
• Tournez à droite / à gauche. (tourner → tournez) — Turn right / left.
• Prenez la première rue à droite. (prendre → prenez) — Take the first street on the right.
• Continuez jusqu'au carrefour. — Continue to the crossroads.
• Traversez le pont. C'est en face de la poste. — Cross the bridge. It's opposite the post office.

ASKING FOR DIRECTIONS: essential polite phrases

OPENING POLITELY: Excusez-moi, Monsieur/Madame (Excuse me, Sir/Madam): always start with an apology in French. Pardon ? (sorry?) is also used

ASKING: Pour aller à la gare, s'il vous plaît ? (how do I get to the station, please?): literally 'To go to the station, please?' This is the most natural form

GIVING DIRECTIONS: key vocabulary: continuez tout droit (go straight ahead) (go straight ahead), tournez à gauche (turn left) (turn left), tournez à droite (turn right) (turn right), prenez la première rue (take the first street), traversez (cross (imperative)) (cross), au bout de la rue (at the end of the street) (at the end of the street), au coin de (at the corner of) (at the corner of), en face de (opposite) (opposite), à côté de (next to) (next to)

DISTANCES: c'est à 5 minutes à pied (it's 5 minutes on foot) (it's 5 minutes on foot), c'est à 2 km d'ici (it's 2 km from here) (it's 2km from here), c'est loin/près d'ici (it's far/near from here) ? (is it far/near from here?)

• - Excusez-moi, pour aller à la gare, s'il vous plaît ? — Excuse me, how do I get to the station, please?
• - Allez tout droit, puis tournez à gauche au feu. C'est à cinq minutes. — Go straight ahead, then turn left at the traffic light. It's five minutes away.
• - C'est loin d'ici ? - Non, c'est à deux minutes à pied, à côté de la boulangerie. — Is it far?: No, it's two minutes on foot, next to the bakery.