How to Say "Are" in French - How To Say Guide

sont

The English phrase 'are' is translated into French as sont.

In French, sont is a present tense form of the verb 'to be'. It is used with plural subjects or the pronoun 'you'.

Which one should you use?

The form êtes is used specifically for the second-person 'you'.

The form êtes is the second-person plural form of the verb 'être', used for the second-person singular or plural 'you' when being polite or formal.

French uses être as an auxiliary verb for certain verbs of motion, like aller 'to go'. This means you say 'I am gone' where English would say 'I went'.
The word être can function as a noun meaning 'a being'. For example, un être humain translates to 'a human being'.
In very informal spoken French, you might hear people skip the 'ne' in a negation, making a sentence like 'ils sont pas' instead of the grammatically correct 'ils ne sont pas'.

Ils sont là ?
Are they here?
Tatoeba #5240676 by Iriep, translation #2244919 by CK
Ils le sont ?
They are?
Tatoeba #9020374 by Micsmithel, translation #1102965 by jamessilver
À qui sont-ils ?
Whose are they?
Tatoeba #1997568 by sacredceltic, translation #1886547 by CK
Vous êtes un excellent candidat pour ce poste.
You are an excellent candidate for this position.
Êtes-vous disponibles pour une réunion demain matin ?
Are you available for a meeting tomorrow morning?
Vous êtes invités à assister à la cérémonie officielle.
You are invited to attend the official ceremony.
Tu es génial !
You are awesome!
Es-tu prêt pour la fête ce soir ?
Are you ready for the party tonight?
Tu es là-bas, n'est-ce pas ?
You are over there, aren't you?
6115 more sentences on Tatoeba

Emma and Nathan are looking at their friends in a park.

Sources

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