Understanding French Impersonal Verbs
French impersonal verbs are used with the impersonal pronoun "il" and don't refer to a specific person or thing. The "il" is a dummy subject that doesn't translate to "he" but rather to "it" or is often not translated at all.
Common types of impersonal verbs:
- Weather expressions: Il pleut, il neige, il fait beau
- Necessity/obligation: Il faut, il vaut mieux
- Existence: Il y a, il existe
- Time expressions: Il est tard, il est temps
- Impersonal judgments: Il est possible, il semble
These verbs are essential for expressing weather, necessity, existence, and general statements in French.
Examples
Il pleut beaucoup. (It's raining a lot.)
Weather expression - no specific subject
Il faut étudier. (It's necessary to study.)
Necessity expression - general obligation
Il y a trois chats. (There are three cats.)
Existence expression - "there is/are"
IL FAUT - Necessity and Obligation
Il faut expresses necessity, obligation, or what is needed. It's one of the most important impersonal verbs:
Examples
Il faut manger. (It's necessary to eat./One must eat.)
Il faut du temps. (It takes time./Time is needed.)
Il faut que tu viennes. (You must come./It's necessary that you come.)
Il ne faut pas fumer. (One must not smoke./Smoking is forbidden.)
IL FAUT + Infinitive
General necessity or obligation:
Il faut partir maintenant. (We/One must leave now.)
Il faut faire attention. (One must be careful.)
IL FAUT + Noun
What is needed:
Il faut de l'argent. (Money is needed.)
Il faut du courage. (Courage is needed.)
IL FAUT QUE + Subjunctive
Specific person obligation:
Il faut que je parte. (I must leave.)
Il faut qu'elle vienne. (She must come.)
Weather Expressions
French uses many impersonal verbs for weather:
Common Weather Expressions
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| il pleut | it's raining | Il pleut fort. (It's raining hard.) |
| il neige | it's snowing | Il neige beaucoup. (It's snowing a lot.) |
| il fait beau | it's nice weather | Il fait beau aujourd'hui. (It's nice today.) |
| il fait froid | it's cold | Il fait très froid. (It's very cold.) |
| il fait chaud | it's hot | Il fait trop chaud. (It's too hot.) |
| il y a du vent | it's windy | Il y a beaucoup de vent. (It's very windy.) |
FAIRE Weather Expressions
Il fait + adjective/noun:
Il fait soleil. (It's sunny.)
Il fait mauvais. (The weather is bad.)
Other Weather Verbs
Specific weather phenomena:
Il grêle. (It's hailing.)
Il tonne. (It's thundering.)
IL Y A - Existence and Presence
Il y a means "there is" or "there are" and indicates existence or presence:
Examples
Il y a un chat dans le jardin. (There is a cat in the garden.)
Il y a des problèmes. (There are problems.)
Il n'y a pas de pain. (There is no bread.)
Y a-t-il des questions? (Are there any questions?)
IL Y A for Time Expressions
Expressing "ago":
Il y a deux ans. (Two years ago.)
Il y a longtemps. (A long time ago.)
Negative and Interrogative
Questions and negations with il y a:
Il n'y a rien. (There is nothing.)
Qu'est-ce qu'il y a? (What's the matter?)
Time Expressions
Impersonal expressions for time:
Examples
Il est tard. (It's late.)
Il est tôt. (It's early.)
Il est temps de partir. (It's time to leave.)
Il est l'heure de manger. (It's time to eat.)
Clock Time
Telling time with impersonal il est:
Il est trois heures. (It's three o'clock.)
Il est midi. (It's noon.)
Impersonal Judgments and Opinions
Expressing general opinions and judgments:
Common Impersonal Judgments
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| il est possible | it's possible | Il est possible qu'il vienne. |
| il est important | it's important | Il est important de réussir. |
| il est difficile | it's difficult | Il est difficile de comprendre. |
| il est facile | it's easy | Il est facile d'apprendre. |
| il semble | it seems | Il semble qu'il soit malade. |
| il vaut mieux | it's better | Il vaut mieux attendre. |
IL EST + Adjective + DE + Infinitive
General statements about actions:
Il est nécessaire de travailler. (It's necessary to work.)
Il est interdit de fumer. (It's forbidden to smoke.)
IL EST + Adjective + QUE + Subjunctive
Specific person judgments:
Il est important que tu viennes. (It's important that you come.)
Il est possible qu'elle soit là. (It's possible that she's there.)
IL VAUT MIEUX - Preference and Advice
Il vaut mieux means "it's better" and gives advice or preference:
Examples
Il vaut mieux partir tôt. (It's better to leave early.)
Il vaut mieux ne pas y aller. (It's better not to go there.)
IL VAUT MIEUX QUE + Subjunctive
Specific advice for someone:
Il vaut mieux que tu restes. (It's better that you stay.)
Il vaut mieux qu'on attende. (It's better that we wait.)
Other Common Impersonal Verbs
Additional useful impersonal expressions:
Examples
Il suffit de... (It's enough to.../All you need to do is...)
Il arrive que... (It happens that...)
Il se peut que... (It's possible that...)
Il convient de... (It's appropriate to...)
IL SUFFIT DE
Expressing what's sufficient:
Il suffit de demander. (Just ask./All you need to do is ask.)
Il suffit d'une minute. (One minute is enough.)
IL ARRIVE QUE
Expressing occasional occurrence:
Il arrive qu'il soit en retard. (He's sometimes late.)
Il arrive que ça marche. (Sometimes it works.)
Tense Usage with Impersonal Verbs
Impersonal verbs can be used in different tenses:
Examples
Il a plu hier. (It rained yesterday.)
Il faudra partir. (It will be necessary to leave.)
Il y avait du monde. (There were people.)
Il ferait beau demain. (It would be nice tomorrow.)
Past Tenses
Impersonal verbs in past tenses:
Past Tense Examples
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| il a fallu | it was necessary | Il a fallu attendre. |
| il y a eu | there was/were | Il y a eu un accident. |
| il a plu | it rained | Il a plu toute la nuit. |
| il faisait beau | it was nice | Il faisait beau hier. |
Common Mistakes with Impersonal Verbs
Here are frequent errors students make:
1. Using personal pronouns: Saying "je faut" instead of "il faut"
2. Wrong agreement: Trying to make impersonal verbs agree
3. Missing "il": Dropping the impersonal subject
4. Confusion with personal verbs: Mixing impersonal and personal uses
Examples
❌ Je faut partir → ✅ Il faut partir
Wrong: using personal pronoun with impersonal verb
❌ Faut partir → ✅ Il faut partir
Wrong: missing impersonal subject "il"
❌ Il pleuvent → ✅ Il pleut
Wrong: impersonal verbs don't agree with anything
❌ Il y a trois ans que... → ✅ Il y a trois ans... (ago)
Wrong: confusing "ago" vs "for" time expressions