French Grammar: The Verbs [JOUER] vs. [FAIRE]
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Identify:
French Grammar: The Verbs [JOUER] vs. [FAIRE]
la grammaire française: les verbes [jouer] vs. [faire]
The verbs JOUER and FAIRE are both used to describe hobbies, including playing or doing sports. JOUER literally means to play. FAIRE means to do / to make. There are some general rules that govern whether to use JOUER or FAIRE when talking about sports or games.
Study:
The verbs JOUER and FAIRE are both used to describe hobbies, including playing or doing sports. JOUER literally means to play. FAIRE means to do / to make. There are some general rules that govern whether to use JOUER or FAIRE when talking about sports or games.
JOUER is most often used to discuss playing games (such as chess, dominos, cards, Monopoly, etc.), team sports, or sports in which there is at least one opponent. More specifically, JOUER is used to talk about sports that use a ball, bat, club, and/or a stick. JOUER is a regular -ER verb.
When used to discuss games or sports, we must use the construction JOUER+au (when the game or sport is a masculine singular noun) or JOUER+aux (when the game or sport is a masculine plural noun).
JOUER+au(x) is used to talk about the following sports and games:
jouer au base-ball : to play baseball
jouer au basket(ball) : to play basketball
jouer au billard : to play pool
jouer aux cartes : to play cards
jouer aux dames : to play checkers
jouer aux dominos : to play dominos
jouer aux échecs : to play chess
jouer au foot(ball) : to play soccer
jouer au football américain : to play football
jouer au frisbee : to play frisbee
jouer au golf : to play golf
jouer au hockey : to play hockey
jouer au ping-pong : to play ping-pong
jouer au rugby : to play rugby
jouer au tennis : to play tennis
jouer au volley(ball) : to play volleyball
NOTE: JOUER is also used to talk about playing musical instruments. Use JOUER+du when the instrument that follows is masculine and singular; use JOUER+de la when the instrument that follows is feminine and singular; use JOUER+de l’ when the instrument that follows is singular (masculine OR feminine) and begins with a vowel or vowel sound.
JOUER+du/de la/de l’ is used to talk about playing musical instruments such as:
jouer de la batterie : to play the drums
jouer de la clarinette : to play the clarinet
jouer du clavier : to play the keyboard
jouer du cor d’harmonie : to play the French horn
jouer de la flûte : to play the flute
jouer de la guitare (électrique) : to play the (electric) guitar
jouer du hautbois : to play the oboe
jouer de l’orgue : to play the organ
jouer du piano : to play the piano
jouer du piccolo : to play the piccolo
jouer du trombone : to play the trombone
jouer de la trompette : to play the trumpet
jouer du tuba : to play the tuba
jouer du violon : to play the violin
jouer du violoncelle : to play the cello
We can also use the verb FAIRE with sports and other activities. However, FAIRE is usually used to talk about sports and other activities that you can do by yourself, rather than with a team or against an opponent. These sports and activities generally do not involve the use of a ball, bat, club, and/or a stick. Use FAIRE+du when the sport/activity that follows is masculine and singular; use FAIRE+de la when the sport/activity that follows is feminine and singular; use FAIRE+de l’ when the sport/activity that follows is singular (masculine OR feminine) and begins with a vowel or vowel sound. FAIRE is an irregular verb.
Here are some of the sports and activities that are discussed with FAIRE+du/de la/de l’. Note that for some of these expressions, there is also a specific verb for that activity (indicated in parentheses and in italics):
faire du bateau : to go boating
faire de la boxe (boxer) : to box
faire du cheval : to go horseback riding
faire du cyclisme (rouler) : to go cycling / to bike
faire de l’escalade : to go rock climbing
faire du golf : to play golf
faire du jogging : to go jogging
faire de la lutte (lutter) : to wrestle
faire de la musculation : to lift weights
faire de la natation (nager) : to swim
faire du patinage (patiner) : to skate
faire du patinage sur glace : to ice skate
faire du patinage à roulettes : to roller skate
faire de la plongée : to go scuba diving
faire de la randonnée : to go hiking
faire du ski (skier) : to ski
faire du ski de descente / faire du ski de piste : to downhill ski
faire du ski de randonnée / faire du ski du fond : to cross-country ski
faire du ski nautique : to water ski
faire du snowboard : to snowboard
faire du sport : to play sports
faire du tir à l’arc : to do archery
faire du vélo : to bike
faire de la voile : to go sailing
faire du yoga : to do yoga
Adapt:
Tu joues au foot?
Do you (informal) play soccer?
Non, je joue au volley.
No, I play volleyball.
Les étudiants jouent aux cartes?
Are the students playing cards?
Non, les étudiants jouent aux échecs.
No, the students are playing chess.
Vos enfants font du sport?
Do your (formal) children play sports?
Oui, mon fils fait de la lutte et ma fille joue au tennis.
Yes, my son wrestles and my daughter plays tennis.
Elle joue d’un instrument?
Does she play an instrument?
Oui, elle joue du piano et de la guitare.
Yes, she plays the piano and the guitar.
