elle est
elle est is the French way to say 'she is'.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the third-person singular feminine pronoun elle (she) and the third-person singular present tense of the verb être (to be), which is est (is).
Which one should you use?
Use elle est specifically for female subjects, whereas il est is used for male subjects.
How does it change in a sentence?
Because elle is a feminine pronoun, any adjective that follows elle est must also be in its feminine form.
Did you know?
- In French, the phrase elle est can be used to refer to a thing or a concept if the noun it replaces is grammatically feminine, even if the object has no biological gender.
- When describing a woman's profession using elle est, French speakers typically omit the article 'a', saying elle est médecin instead of 'she is a doctor'.
- By simply flipping the word order to est-elle, the phrase changes from a statement into a formal question.
Examples in context
- Elle est super intelligente.She is super intelligent.
- Elle est jeune.She is young.
- Elle est intelligente et talentueuse.She is intelligent and talented.
- Elle est heureuse.She is happy.
- Elle est très belle.She is very beautiful.
- Elle est assez intelligente.She is quite intelligent.
- Regarde-la, elle est talentueuse.Look at her, she is talented.
- Tu vois, elle est belle.You see, she is beautiful.
- Elle est très gentille.She is very kind.
- Elle est française.She is French.
- Elle est en retard.She is late.
Example conversation
Hugo and Léa are waiting for their friend at a cafe.
- HugoOù est Marie ?Where is Marie?
- LéaElle est déjà là, en terrasse.She is already there, on the terrace.
- HugoAh, je ne la vois pas.Ah, I don't see her.
- LéaElle est juste devant nous.She is right in front of us.
