French I

Generally, the verbs descendre, monter, passer, rentrer, retourner, and sortir use être as their helping verb. They may, however, take avoir as their helping verb when they are used with a direct object. The meaning of these verbs differs according to the helping verb that is used:

descendre: with être, got off, went down; with avoir, took down

• Tu es descendu(e) du train. (You got off the train.)

• J'ai descendu l'escalier. (I went downstairs.)

• Il a descendu sa valise. (He took down his suitcase.)

monter: with être, went down; with avoir, took up

• Elles sont montées. (They went upstairs.)

• Nous avons monté nos affaires. (We took [brought] up our things.)

passer: with être, passed by; with avoir, spent

• Je suis passé(e) par la pâtisserie. (I passed by the pastry shop.)

• Il a passé un mois au Canada. (He spent a month in Canada.)

rentrer: with être, came in; with avoir, brought in

• Vous êtes rentré(e)(s) tôt. (You came home early.)

• Elle a rentré le chat. (She brought in the cat.)

retourner: with être, returned; with avoir, turned over

• Il est retourné à Paris. (He returned to Paris.)

• Ils ont retourné la chaise. (They turned over the table.)

sortir: with être, went out; with avoir, took out

• Elles sont sorties. (They went out.)

• Il a sorti son portefeuille. (He took out his wallet.)