In French there is no possessive s. For example, you can’t say my mother’s uncle in French. Instead, you say the uncle of my mother, l’oncle de ma mère. This is a hard rule for English speakers to remember since adding an s to show possession makes things very easy for us.
For example:
John’s bike (le vélo de John)
my friend’s brother (le frère de mon ami)
In French you use de to say who something belongs to. You’ll need to practice indicating possession the French way to talk about your family members’ birthdays or les anniversaires de membres de ta famille.
Do you remember how to say birthday in French?
anniversaire
Read each English expression below. Then, select the correct expression to say a family member’s birthday in French.
Which one?
my father’s birthday
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
his brother’s birthday
L’anniversaire de son frère means the birthday of his brother.
L’anniversaire de son frère means the birthday of his brother.
L’anniversaire de son frère means the birthday of his brother.
your grandmother’s birthday
L’anniversaire de ta grand-mère means the birthday of your grandmother.
L’anniversaire de ta grand-mère means the birthday of your grandmother.
L’anniversaire de ta grand-mère means the birthday of your grandmother.
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Now, listen closely to the French expression. Then select the correct English translation.
- my father’s birthday
- my brother’s birthday
- my mother’s birthday
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
The answer is literally, the birthday of my father.
- my grandfather’s birthday
- my mother’s birthday
- my grandmother’s birthday
L’anniversaire de ma grand-mère means the birthday of my grandmother.
L’anniversaire de ma grand-mère means the birthday of my grandmother.
L’anniversaire de ma grand-mère means the birthday of my grandmother.
- his brother’s birthday
- my uncle’s birthday
- my stepbrother’s birthday
L’anniversiare de mon beau-frère means the birthday of my stepbrother.
L’anniversiare de mon beau-frère means the birthday of my stepbrother.
L’anniversiare de mon beau-frère means the birthday of my stepbrother.
Summary
Questions answered correctly:
Questions answered incorrectly:
Question
What is the l’anniversaire de la mère de ton oncle?
Your grandmother’s birthday!