Kilo Lingo
French grammar Part of Chapter 4

CEFR A1-B1

6 min read

Test yourself (29 questions)

French Impersonal Verbs: il y a, il faut, il fait, il est

By Michael McGettrickUpdated 12 October 2026

French uses as a dummy subject in a few fixed phrases where English says there, one or it. The means nothing: it fills the subject slot, as it does in it's raining. Three of them are easy to mix up, so they get a colour each.

il y a (what exists)il fait (the weather)il est (the time)What do the colours mean?
PhraseJobExample
y athere is, are . - There's a cat.
you have to . - We have to go.
the weather . - It's nice out.
rain . - It's raining.
the time . - It's three o'clock.

Quick check

Now use it: three quick questions on the chart above. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Choose the phrase French needs: il y a for what exists, il fait for the weather, il est for the time.

  1. tard. (it's late)

  2. chaud. (it's hot)

  3. beaucoup de monde. (there are a lot of people)

il y a: there is / there are

The everyday way to say something exists. One form for one thing or many.

  • . - There's a cat in the garden.
  • . - There are three children.
  • . - There are a lot of people.

In the negative, , , and become : . - There's no bread.

To ask, you have three registers, as with any question:

CasualFormal
  1. Il y a un problème ?
  2. Est-ce qu’il y a un problème ?
  3. Y a-t-il un problème ?
RegisterFrenchEnglish
Casual ?Is there a problem?
Neutral ?Is there a problem?
Formal ?Is there a problem?

Only the verb inside it changes with the tense:

TenseFormExample
Present . - There's a concert.
Imparfait . - There was a concert.
. - There was a problem.
. - There'll be a concert.

il y a + a time: ago

y a in front of a length of time and it means ago, with a past tense:

  • . - I arrived two years ago.
  • . - She phoned an hour ago.

y a stays in the present here, because it counts back from now. For something still going on, French uses with the present: . - I've lived here for two years. The contrast is on the French depuis page.

il faut: one must / it's necessary

says something is necessary. The refers to nothing, so context tells you who has to.

Followed byFrenchEnglish
an infinitive .We have to go. / One must go.
an infinitive .You have to be patient.
a noun .We need bread.
me + a noun .I need a pen.

The tenses:

TenseFormEnglish
Present one must
Imparfait one had to
one had to (once)
one will have to
one should

With a named person it takes + the subjunctive: . - You have to leave. That has its own page, the subjunctive after il faut que.

il fait + weather

Most weather is + an adjective. Rain and snow have their own verbs, and sun and wind often take y a.

il y a (what exists)il fait (the weather)il est (the time)What do the colours mean?
Four panels: a grinning sun over an ice cream for sunny and hot; a grey cloud with rain falling on a red umbrella for rainy; a white cloud, snowflakes and a snowman for snowy and cold; a puffing cloud blowing wind and leaves at a bending tree for windy.

Hot is il fait chaud; rain and snow are verbs, il pleut and il neige; wind is il y a du vent.

FrenchEnglishPattern
.The weather is nice. + adj.
.It's hot. + adj.
.It's cold. + adj.
.The weather is bad. + adj.
.It's raining.its own verb
.It's snowing.its own verb
.It's sunny. y a + noun
.It's windy. y a + noun
  • - ? - What's the weather like?
  • , . - In summer it's hot.

il est + time

The clock takes , never y a or .

12369
3:00Il est trois heures.
  • . - It's three o'clock.
  • . - It's one o'clock. (One hour: heure in the singular.)
  • . - It's midday.
  • . - It's late.
  • ? - What time is it?

Watch the trap with y a: means three hours ago, not three o'clock.

c'est or il est?

Both translate as it is or he is, and English gives no clue which to use. What comes next decides it.

Next comesUseExample
, , + noun . - He's a friend.
a name, , Pierre. - It's Pierre.
a job, no article . - He's a doctor.
adj. for a person / Pierre ? . - He's tall.
adj. for a situation . - It's difficult.

The article is the tell: . but . Both mean he's a doctor. is the classic slip; it is always .

il manque, il reste

Two more, where the real subject comes after the verb:

  • . - Three people are missing.
  • . - There are two cakes left.

il vaut mieux, il vaut la peine de, il s'agit de

Three fixed phrases that turn up everywhere once you notice them.

PhraseMeansExample
it's better to .
it's worth .
it's about , .
  • . - It's worth trying. is the everyday stand-in for here.
  • . - It's not worth crying. The never drops, even in the negative.
  • two choices (leaving early beats leaving late); asks whether the effort is worth it at all.
  • only ever has the dummy : is wrong.

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
. .the time takes
. .for weather,
. . after a negation
. .no after
. . before + noun

What to do next

  1. Describe today's weather in two sentences: one with , one with y a.
  2. Say the time with , then what you have to do with .
  3. The partitives and de page covers the in 'y a .

Practise: test yourself

Complete the story

0/5

Choose il y a, il fait, il est or il faut for each gap.

A cold Monday morning

sept heures. froid et du vent. Dans la maison, du pain et du café. manger vite : le bus part à huit heures.

Gap 1 of 5

Pick the right one

0/6

Choose the phrase French needs: il y a for what exists, il fait for the weather, il est for the time.

  1. tard. (it's late)

  2. chaud. (it's hot)

  3. beaucoup de monde. (there are a lot of people)

  4. beau aujourd'hui. (the weather is nice)

  5. un problème. (there is a problem)

  6. six heures. (it's six o'clock)

Pick the right one

0/5

c'est or il est?

  1. un ami. (he's a friend)

  2. Pierre ? grand. (he's tall)

  3. mon livre. (it's my book)

  4. Mon père ? médecin. (he's a doctor)

  5. Qui est là ? moi. (it's me)

Spot the mistake

0/4

Tap the mistake.

Pick the right one

0/4

Vaut mieux (it's better to) or vaut la peine (it's worth)? Both use valoir, but they make different claims.

  1. Il partir tôt pour éviter d'attendre. (it's better to)

  2. Ça de lire ce livre. (it's worth)

  3. Il rester à la maison : il pleut. (it's better to)

  4. Ça d'essayer. (it's worth)

Pick the picture

0/5

Which picture shows the weather?

  1. Il pleut.

  2. Il fait chaud.

  3. Il neige.

  4. Il fait froid.

  5. Il y a du vent.

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French · Free printables

Practice worksheets and infographics

Practice worksheets with answer keys built in, plus infographic and listicle formats. Open any one to view, print or save.

Infographics

  1. Key points infographic
  2. Table 1
  3. il y a: there is / there are
  4. il y a: there is / there are
  5. il faut: one must / it's necessary
  6. il faut: one must / it's necessary
  7. il fait + weather
  8. c'est or il est?
  9. il vaut mieux, il vaut la peine de, il s'agit de
  10. Mistakes English speakers make

Other formats

  1. Listicle

More grammar on this course

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between y a and in French?
y a means there is or there are: y a (there's a cat in the garden), y a (there are three children). means it is, above all for the time: (it's three o'clock), (it's late). y a means three hours ago, not three o'clock.
How does work in French?
means it is necessary, you have to, one must. Follow it with an infinitive ( , we have to go) or a noun ( , we need bread). The refers to nothing; context tells you who has to. In the negative, means must not: , you mustn't forget. Past: . Future: .
How do you say 'ago' in French?
With y a before the length of time: y a (I arrived two years ago), a y a minutes (he called ten minutes ago). The verb is in a past tense, and y a itself does not change. For something still going on, use : .
How do you talk about the weather in French?
Mostly with + an adjective: (it's nice), (it's hot), (it's cold). Rain and snow have their own verbs: , . Sun and wind often take y a: y a , y a ( and are common too). Not : means he or it is cold to the touch.
What does mean in French?
It's worth (doing): (it's worth reading this book), (it's worth trying). always comes before the infinitive, and often replaces in speech. (it's better to) is built on the same verb, , but compares an action with an alternative; judges whether the effort is worth it at all.