Look at these sentences in Le Passé Simple:
La princesse vécut dans un château splendide pendant de nombreuses années.The princess lived in a splendid castle for many years.
Alors, Cendrillon vit le château splendide du Prince.Then, Cinderella saw the Prince's splendid castle.
The reason we're teaching voir and vivre together in Le Passé Simple is that they are very easy to mix up!
Have a look:
| VOIR | VIVRE |
| je vis | je vécus |
| tu vis | tu vécus |
| il / elle / on vit | il / elle / on vécut |
| nous vîmes | nous vécûmes |
| vous vîtes | vous vécûtes |
| ils / elles virent | ils / elles vécurent |
Note how the first three persons of voir in Le Passé Simple (vis, vis, vit) are exactly the same as vivre in Le Présent, whereas vivre in Le Passé Simple is actually completely different (vécus, vécus, vécut)!
Here, only the context and your own knowledge can help you know which is which!
Want to make sure your French sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Braimap today »
