5 1.5: Qu’est-ce que c’est ? Identifier les choses
In this section, you will learn how to:
- Ask what something is
- Identify what something is
Listen to the audio clips that follow on this page to hear the French pronunciation of vocabulary and examples presented.
On étudie !
How do we ask what or who is it in French?
- Let’s look at how these two people ask and answer “who is it?” and “what is it?”
- To practice, you can listen and repeat their dialogue.
Vocabulaire utile : un oiseau a bird.
| Questions | Réponses |
|---|---|
|
Qui est-ce ? |
C’est + personne (affirmatif) Ce n’est pas + personne (négatif) |
|
Qu’est-ce que c’est ? |
C’est + une chose (affirmatif) Ce n’est pas + une chose (négatif) |
Pour en savoir plus.
| Genre | Singulier | Pluriel (a, an) |
|---|---|---|
| masculin | un (a, an) | des (Ø, some) |
| féminin | une (a, an) | des (Ø, some) |
Pour en savoir plus.
Watch these videos to practice pronouncing and asking the question “Qu’est-ce que c’est ?”:
- How to pronounce Qu’est-ce que c’est ?
- Practice asking Qu’est-ce que c’est ?
| Question, réponse | Question, answer |
|---|---|
|
Qu’est-ce que c’est ? |
What is it? What is this, that? |
| Est-ce que c’est… ? | Is it…? |
|
C’est… (singulier) Ce sont… (pluriel) |
It’s… |
On pratique !
Activité A
You have two items listed each time and one image next to them. Which one does the image represent?
- Follow the example in the video below.
- To practice, you can listen and repeat their dialogue.
Modèle : une plante ou un insecte —> 
“This image” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
— Est-ce que c’est une plante ou un insecte ?
— C’est une plante.
Est-ce que c’est… ?
- un lapin ou un chien
un chien “This photo” by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC
- une tortue ou un singe
une tortue “This image” by Unknown Author is in the Public Domain, CC0
- un éléphant ou une baleine
une baleine “Sperm Whale” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- un crocodile ou un panda
un panda “Panda” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- une girafe ou un crocodile
un crocodile “Crocodile” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- un lapin ou un chat
un lapin “Rabbit” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- un chat ou un singe
un singe “This image” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- un chien ou un chat
un chat “This work” by Lohrelei, Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- une girafe ou une baleine
une girafe “Giraffe” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
- une tortue ou un éléphant
un éléphant “This image” by Pixabay is lin the Public Domain, CC0
Activité B
Qu’est-ce que c’est ? Look at the images below and answer with “c’est” or “ce sont”.
| Animaux | Animaux | Animaux |
|---|---|---|
|
1. “Dog” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 |
2. “Cat” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 |
3. “Lion” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 |
|
4. Elephant by Unknown Author is in the Public Domain, CC0 |
5. “Zebras” by Pixabay in the Public Domain, CC0 |
6. “Bears” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 |
Activité C
Match the answers with the questions.
| Questions | Réponses |
|---|---|
| 1. Qui est-ce ? | a. Non, c’est une femme. |
| 2. Comment tu t’appelles ? | b. C’est Marie |
| 3. Qui sont-elles ? | c. Ce sont mes amis Jacques et Patrick. |
| 4. Qui sont-ils ? | d. Oui, c’est moi. |
| 5. Qu’est-ce que c’est ? | e. Fabienne et Lisa. |
| 6. Est-ce que c’est un homme ? | f. Je m’appelle Jean. |
| 7. Est-ce que c’est Marie ? | g. C’est un éléphant. |
| 8. C’est toi ? | h. Non, c’est Issa. |
Activité D
Répondez. Answer these questions according to images.
- Qu’est-ce que c’est ? ________
“Pencil” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 - Qu’est-ce que c’est ? ________
“Coffee Cup” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 - Qu’est-ce que c’est ? ________
“This image” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0 - Qu’est-ce que c’est ? ________
“This image” by Pixabay is in the Public Domain, CC0
Activité E
Qu’est-ce que c’est ça ? You can do this activity with a variety of flashcards. It works best for large groups, like a whole class, but it can also work in small groups or even pairs.
- Find — or make — a set of flashcards with pictures on one side and the vocabulary word(s) on the other side.
- Each person should have one card at a time and be paired off with one other person.
- One of you will ask the other: Qu’est-ce que c’est ? while showing the picture side. The other will identify what it is by saying, C’est un(e)… For example, when you show someone a picture of a bear, you’ll say, Qu’est-ce que c’est ? and your partner will have to respond with C’est un ours (a bear). If they don’t know the answer, Je ne sais pas (I don’t know).
- Then have your partner ask you the same question about their picture.
- After you have finished the dialogue, you will exchange cards with your partner and go find a new partner to start the process all over again. You can continue this as long as you want. Just remember that the more you do it, the more you will remember the vocabulary, and you will never forget how to ask someone what something is again. Remember to take into consideration the gender and number of the objects (nouns) in your replies.
You can continue this as long as you want. Just remember that the more you do it, the more you will remember the vocabulary, and you will never forget how to ask someone what something is again. Remember to take into consideration the gender and number of the objects (nouns) in your replies.
On approfondit !
Use the following resources to type accents and/or search for words:
- Accents: ç, à, é, è, â, ê, î, ô, û, ù, ë, ï, ü
- Dictionnaire français-anglais
