faire
/fɛʁ/
The French phrase for 'to do' is faire.
faire is used for both 'to do' and 'to make'. Depending on the context, other verbs can be more precise: Réaliser is used for achievements or accomplishments, Effectuer is common in professional or technical contexts for tasks and Exécuter emphasizes the execution of a specific action. To express spending time doing a particular activity, you can use the construction Passer + time + à + Infinitive.
How does it change in a sentence?
The third-person singular present indicative form of faire is fait, which means 'does' or 'makes'.
How do you pronounce it?
/fɛʁ/
Did you know?
- The French verb faire is used in the idiom faire l'andouille, which means to act like a fool. An andouille is actually a type of sausage.
- In French, you use faire to describe the weather, such as saying Il fait beau for 'it is beautiful'.
- The English word 'factory' and the French word faire share the same ancestor, the Latin 'facere'.
Examples in context
- On va faire ça.We're going to do that.This sentence is useful for using faire with 'that'.Tatoeba #11599974 by Aiji, translation #3310785 by CK
- Je vais le faire.I am going to do it.This sentence is useful for using faire with 'it'.Tatoeba #1291347 by sacredceltic, translation #254788 by CK
- J'ai dû le faire.I had to do it.Tatoeba #2431375 by sacredceltic, translation #2331777 by CK
- Je vais faire mes devoirs ce soir.I am going to do my homework tonight.
- Elle fait du sport tous les jours.She does sports every day.
- Il a réalisé son rêve d'ouvrir son propre restaurant.He achieved his dream of opening his own restaurant.
- Elle doit effectuer une présentation importante demain matin.She has to perform an important presentation tomorrow morning.
- Ils doivent exécuter les ordres à la lettre.They have to execute the orders exactly.
- On va se taper une bonne pizza ce soir.We're gonna have a good pizza tonight.
- Il aime faire du jogging tous les matins.He likes to go jogging every morning.
- 4515 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing chores at home.
- NathanQu'est-ce que tu vas faire ?What are you going to do?
- ManonJe vais faire la cuisine.I am going to do the cooking.
- NathanEst-ce que je peux faire la vaisselle ?Can I do the dishes?
- ManonOui, Nathan, c'est gentil.Yes, Nathan, that is kind.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry faire, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries faire, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
