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Chapter 7 of 10

Talking About Your Likes, Dislikes, and Daily Life

Build vocabulary and phrases to talk about what you like, dislike, and do every day, while reinforcing clear pronunciation.

15 min readen

New Words and Phrases: Likes, Dislikes, and Daily Life

In this step, you will learn useful French words and phrases to say what you like, what you do not like, and to talk about simple daily activities.

WordPronunciationTranslationExample
j’aimezh-EMI like / I loveJ’aime la musique.(I like music.)
je n’aime paszhuh NEM pahI don’t likeJe n’aime pas le café.(I don’t like coffee.)
travaillertrah-vah-YAYto workJe travaille tous les jours.(I work every day.)
étudieray-tuud-YAYto studyJ’étudie le français.(I study French.)
regarder la téléruh-gar-DAY lah tay-LAYto watch TVLe soir, je regarde la télé.(In the evening, I watch TV.)
faire du sportfehr du sporto do sports / to exerciseJ’aime faire du sport le week-end.(I like to exercise on the weekend.)
le matinluh mah-TANin the morningLe matin, j’étudie.(In the morning, I study.)
le soirluh SWARin the eveningLe soir, je suis à la maison.(In the evening, I am at home.)

Language Pattern: Saying What You Like, Don’t Like, and Do Every Day

In this step, you will see how to use simple present tense patterns to talk about likes, dislikes, and daily activities.

1. Expressing likes and dislikes

In French, a very common pattern is:

  • J’aime + noun / verb
  • French: "J’aime la musique."
  • English: "I like music."
  • French: "J’aime faire du sport."
  • English: "I like to exercise."

To say “I don’t like”, you use:

  • Je n’aime pas + noun / verb

The pattern is: je + n’ + aime + pas.

  • French: "Je n’aime pas le café."

English: "I don’t like coffee."

  • French: "Je n’aime pas regarder la télé."

English: "I don’t like to watch TV."

Note: In fast, casual speech, French people often drop the "ne" and say "J’aime pas", but for now, practice the full form "Je n’aime pas".

2. Using common daily verbs with "je"

You already see the pattern je + verb in the present tense:

  • French: "Je travaille."

English: "I work."

  • French: "J’étudie."

English: "I study."

  • French: "Je regarde la télé."

English: "I watch TV."

Notice two things:

  1. Je becomes J’ before a vowel sound:
  • "Je étudie" → "J’étudie"
  • "Je aime" → "J’aime"
  1. The verb form stays simple and does not change for different times of day. You add a time expression:
  • French: "Le matin, je travaille."

English: "In the morning, I work."

  • French: "Le soir, je regarde la télé."

English: "In the evening, I watch TV."

3. Building a mini daily routine

You can combine time expressions, likes/dislikes, and activities:

  • French: "Le matin, j’étudie. L’après-midi, je travaille. Le soir, je regarde la télé."

English: "In the morning, I study. In the afternoon, I work. In the evening, I watch TV."

  • French: "J’aime faire du sport le matin, mais je n’aime pas travailler le soir."

English: "I like to exercise in the morning, but I don’t like to work in the evening."

Practice Dialogue: Talking About Your Day and Your Likes

In this dialogue, two friends talk about their daily routine and what they like or don’t like doing. Read and listen for the patterns with “j’aime”, “je n’aime pas”, and daily activities.

Two friends are talking after class about their daily life and what they like to do.

Person A

Bonjour ! Comment ça va aujourd’hui ?

Hello! How are you today?

Person B

Ça va bien, merci. Et toi ?

I’m fine, thanks. And you?

Person A

Ça va. Dis-moi, qu’est-ce que tu fais le matin ?

I’m okay. Tell me, what do you do in the morning?

Person B

Le matin, j’étudie le français et je travaille un peu.

In the morning, I study French and I work a little.

Person A

Ah bon ! Moi, je travaille beaucoup le matin, et le soir je regarde la télé.

Oh really! Me, I work a lot in the morning, and in the evening I watch TV.

Person B

Moi, je n’aime pas regarder la télé. J’aime faire du sport le soir.

Me, I don’t like to watch TV. I like to exercise in the evening.

Person A

Intéressant ! J’aime faire du sport aussi, mais le week-end.

Interesting! I like to exercise too, but on the weekend.

Person B

Super ! Alors, samedi, on fait du sport ensemble ?

Great! So, on Saturday, shall we exercise together?

Check Your Understanding: Likes, Dislikes, and Daily Activities

Answer this question to check your understanding of how to say what you like or don’t like, and to talk about daily activities.

How would you best say in French: “I don’t like to watch TV in the evening”?

  1. Je n’aime pas regarder la télé le soir.
  2. J’aime regarder la télé le soir.
  3. Je n’aime pas travailler le soir.
  4. Je regarde la télé le matin.
Show Answer

Answer: A) Je n’aime pas regarder la télé le soir.

Option 1 is correct because it uses the full negative pattern "Je n’aime pas" (I don’t like) with the verb "regarder la télé" (to watch TV) and the time expression "le soir" (in the evening). The other options change the meaning: option 2 says “I like to watch TV in the evening”, option 3 talks about working in the evening, and option 4 talks about watching TV in the morning.

Key Terms

le soir
in the evening; time expression for evening activities.
j’aime
I like / I love; used with a noun or verb to express liking something.
le matin
in the morning; time expression placed usually at the beginning or end of the sentence.
étudier
to study; used for school, university, or language study.
travailler
to work; a common verb for talking about your job or tasks.
faire du sport
to do sports / to exercise; general expression for physical activity.
je n’aime pas
I don’t like; full negative form with "ne" and "pas" around the verb "aime".
regarder la télé
to watch TV; literally “to watch the TV”.