tu fais
tu fais is the French way to say "you do".
This phrase is used to describe an action or activity.
Which one should you use?
tu fais is used when addressing one person in an informal setting. In contrast, vous faites is the correct form to use when addressing someone formally or when addressing a group of people.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase tu fais uses the informal second-person singular pronoun tu.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use tu fais to mean "you are doing". However, in French, the present tense tu fais covers both "you do" and "you are doing".
Did you know?
- French speakers use the verb faire to describe the weather, such as il fait beau, which literally means 'it does beautiful'.
- Using the informal tu in tu fais with a stranger can be perceived as an aggressive act of over-familiarity in some Francophone cultures.
- The verb faire is so central to French that it creates dozens of idiomatic expressions where 'doing' actually means 'making' or 'causing'. For example, faire le pont means 'to take a long weekend' by bridging a holiday and a weekend.
Examples in context
- Tu fais ça souvent ?Do you do that often?This sentence is useful for asking if someone performs an action frequently with tu fais.Tatoeba #6630942 by Aiji, translation #2647202 by CK
- Tu fais un bon travail.You do a nice job.This sentence is useful for stating that someone performs a nice job with tu fais.Tatoeba #6935924 by Aiji, translation #2954467 by CK
- Tu fais du bon travail.You do a good job.This sentence is useful for stating that someone performs a good job with tu fais.Tatoeba #13370686 by lbdx, translation #2954466 by CK
- Pouvez-vous faire cela pour moi ?Can you do that for me?
- Pourriez-vous effectuer cette tâche s'il vous plaît ?Could you perform this task, please?
- Êtes-vous en mesure de l'effectuer dans les délais requis ?Are you able to do it within the required deadline?
- Qu'est-ce que tu fais ce week-end ?What are you doing this weekend?
- Est-ce que tu peux le faire pour moi, s'il te plaît ?Can you do it for me, please?
- Qu'est-ce que tu fais ce soir ?What are you doing tonight?
- 71 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Chloé and Gabriel are talking about their hobbies.
- ChloéQu'est-ce que tu fais comme sport ?What sport do you do?
- GabrielJe joue au tennis.I play tennis.
- ChloéC'est super, tu fais ça depuis longtemps ?That's great, have you been doing that for a long time?
- GabrielOui, je joue depuis cinq ans.Yes, I have been playing for five years.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
