Exprimer ses goûts et ses préférences en français for JSS 1

Goûts et préférences

Performance Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. Décrire en détail ce qu’ils aiment et n’aiment pas, etc.
2. Identifier les goûts et préférences
3. La négation (ne …pas).

Meaning of Tastes and Preferences

In French, “les goûts” refers to tastes, which represent the things a person enjoys, appreciates, or dislikes. “Les préférences” refers to preferences, which represent the choices a person makes when choosing one thing over another.

Expressing tastes and preferences is a fundamental part of daily communication. It allows individuals to share their interests, hobbies, food choices, and feelings about various subjects with others.

Verbs Used to Express Tastes and Preferences

To express what is liked, loved, preferred, or disliked, French speakers use specific verbs. These verbs are regular “-er” verbs in the present indicative tense.

The four primary verbs used to express tastes and preferences are:

1. Aimer: This verb means “to like” or “to love”.
2. Adorer: This verb means “to adore” or “to love very much”. It expresses a stronger positive feeling than “aimer”.
3. Préférer: This verb means “to prefer”. It is used when choosing one item over another.
4. Détester: This verb means “to hate” or “to detest”. It expresses a strong negative feeling.

Conjugation of the Verbs in the Present Tense

The table below shows how to conjugate these four verbs in the present tense with different subject pronouns:

Observe that when “Je” is followed by a verb starting with a vowel (like aimer and adorer), it becomes “J'” to make pronunciation smoother. This is called elision.

Vocabulary for Expressing Likes and Dislikes

To describe tastes and preferences in detail, learners must combine the verbs of taste with nouns representing different categories such as foods, sports, fruits, and animals.

1. Les Nourritures (Foods)

Common food items in French include:

1. Le riz (rice)
2. Le fufu (fufu)
3. Le pain (bread)
4. Le poulet (chicken)
5. Le poisson (fish)

2. Les Sports (Sports)

Common sports in French include:

1. Le football (football)
2. Le basket-ball (basketball)
3. Le tennis (tennis)
4. La natation (swimming)
5. L’athlétisme (athletics)

3. Les Fruits (Fruits)

Common fruits in French include:

1. La mangue (mango)
2. L’orange (orange)
3. La banane (banana)
4. L’ananas (pineapple)
5. La papaye (papaya)

4. Les Animaux (Animals)

Common animals in French include:

1. Le chien (dog)
2. Le chat (cat)
3. Le lion (lion)
4. Le cheval (horse)
5. L’oiseau (bird)

Observe the illustration below showing different items that people commonly like or dislike.

Expressing What is Liked (Affirmative Sentences)

To express positive tastes, a subject pronoun, a verb of taste, and a noun with its definite article (le, la, l’, les) are used.

Examples of affirmative sentences include:

1. J’aime le riz. (I like rice.)
2. J’adore la mangue. (I adore mango.)
3. Il préfère le football. (He prefers football.)
4. Nous aimons le chat. (We like the cat.)
5. Elles adorent la natation. (They adore swimming.)

La Négation (ne … pas)

In French, to make a sentence negative or to express what is not liked, the negative structure “ne … pas” is used.

The basic rule for forming a negative sentence in French is to place “ne” before the conjugated verb and “pas” immediately after the conjugated verb.

The structure of a negative sentence is:

Subject + ne + Verb + pas + Object

If the verb begins with a vowel or a silent ‘h’, “ne” changes to “n'” to avoid a clash of vowel sounds.

The structure with a vowel-starting verb is:

Subject + n’ + Verb (starting with a vowel) + pas + Object

Observe the diagram below showing how the negative structure wraps around the verb.

Examples of turning affirmative sentences into negative sentences include:

1. Affirmative: J’aime le poisson. (I like fish.)
   Negative: Je n’aime pas le poisson. (I do not like fish.)
2. Affirmative: Tu aimes le chien. (You like the dog.)
   Negative: Tu n’aimes pas le chien. (You do not like the dog.)
3. Affirmative: Il préfère le tennis. (He prefers tennis.)
   Negative: Il ne préfère pas le tennis. (He does not prefer tennis.)
4. Affirmative: Nous détestons le fufu. (We hate fufu.)
   Negative: Nous ne détestons pas le fufu. (We do not hate fufu.)

Other Expressions of Tastes and Preferences

Apart from the basic verbs, there are other expressions used to show different levels of tastes and preferences.

Common alternative expressions include:

1. Je n’aime pas du tout… (I do not like… at all): Used to show strong dislike without using the verb détester. Example: Je n’aime pas du tout le chat. (I do not like the cat at all.)
2. Mon [noun] préféré est… / Ma [noun] préférée est… (My preferred [noun] is…): Used to highlight a top choice. Example: Mon sport préféré est le football. (My preferred sport is football.) / Ma nourriture préférée est le riz. (My preferred food is rice.)
3. Je préfère [X] à [Y] (I prefer X to Y): Used to make a direct comparison between two things. Example: Je préfère le riz au fufu. (I prefer rice to fufu.)

Dialogue: Expressing Tastes and Preferences

Read the dialogue below between two JSS 1 students, Olu and Chidi, discussing what they like and dislike.

Olu: Salut Chidi! Tu aimes le football?

Chidi: Oui, j’adore le football! C’est mon sport préféré. Et toi?

Olu: Moi, je n’aime pas le football. Je préfère le basket-ball.

Chidi: Ah bon! Et qu’est-ce que tu aimes manger?

Olu: J’aime le riz et le poulet. Mais je déteste le fufu. Et toi?

Chidi: J’aime le fufu, mais je n’aime pas du tout le poisson.

English Translation of the Dialogue

Olu: Hi Chidi! Do you like football?

Chidi: Yes, I adore football! It is my preferred sport. And you?

Olu: Me, I do not like football. I prefer basketball.

Chidi: Oh really! And what do you like to eat?

Olu: I like rice and chicken. But I hate fufu. And you?

Chidi: I like fufu, but I do not like fish at all.

How to Write About Tastes and Preferences

To write a short paragraph describing personal tastes and preferences, a structured approach can be followed.

The procedure involves the following steps:

1. Start with an introductory sentence stating that everyone has tastes and preferences. (Example: Tout le monde a des goûts et des préférences.)
2. State two things that are liked or adored using J’aime or J’adore. (Example: J’aime la mangue et j’adore le football.)
3. State one preference using Je préfère. (Example: Je préfère le riz au fufu.)
4. State two things that are not liked or are hated using Je n’aime pas or Je déteste. (Example: Je n’aime pas le chat et je déteste le poisson.)
5. Conclude with a simple closing statement. (Example: Voilà mes goûts!)

Summary of Key Sentence Structures

The main sentence patterns for expressing tastes and preferences are:

1. Expressing Love/Strong Like: J’adore + [noun with article] (e.g., J’adore l’orange).
2. Expressing Like: J’aime + [noun with article] (e.g., J’aime le chien).
3. Expressing Preference: Je préfère + [noun with article] (e.g., Je préfère le tennis).
4. Expressing Dislike: Je n’aime pas + [noun with article] (e.g., Je n’aime pas la papaye).
5. Expressing Hate: Je déteste + [noun with article] (e.g., Je déteste le lion).

Class Exercises

Exercise 1: Vocabulary and Verbs

Answer the following questions in complete French sentences:

1. Nommez trois verbes qui décrivent vos goûts et préférences.
2. Nommez deux sports que vous aimez.
3. Nommez deux fruits que vous n’aimez pas.
4. Nommez un animal que vous détestez.

Exercise 2: Sentence Transformation (La négation)

Change the following affirmative sentences into negative sentences using “ne … pas” or “n’ … pas”:

1. J’aime le riz.
2. Il adore le chat.
3. Nous préférons le football.
4. Vous aimez l’orange.
5. Elles détestent le fufu.

Exercise 3: Fill in the Blanks

Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets:

1. Je __ (aimer) la mangue.
2. Nous __ (préférer) le basket-ball.
3. Tu ne __ pas (détester) le chien.
4. Ils __ (adorer) le poulet.
5. Elle n’__ pas (aimer) le poisson.