When you want to know how someone is feeling, you can use these questions:

• Qu'est-ce que tu as? – What do you have?
• Qu'est-ce qui t'arrive? – What is happening to you?
• Qu'est-ce qui se passe? – What's going on?
• Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas? – What's wrong?

You can also ask directly:

• Tu es content aujourd'hui? – Are you happy today?
• Tu es triste aujourd'hui? – Are you sad today?

Use the verb être (to be) followed by a feeling word. Here are the main feelings:

To talk about feelings, you need the verb être. Here is how it works:

• Je suis content/contente – I am happy
• Tu es content/contente – You are happy
• Il est content – He is happy
• Elle est contente – She is happy

Look at the example from your textbook:

Alice: Je suis triste aujourd'hui. (I am sad today.) Marc: Oh non, pourquoi tu es triste? (Oh no, why are you sad?)

Notice how je suis and tu es change depending on who is speaking.

Let's look at Dialogue 2 from your textbook:

Baraka: Tu es triste aujourd'hui Zawadi! (Are you sad today, Zawadi!) Zawadi: Oui, ma mère est très malade. (Yes, my mother is very sick.) Baraka: Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas? (What's wrong?) Zawadi: Elle a mal au ventre. (She has a stomachache.)

In this dialogue:

• Baraka asks if Zawadi is sad using "Tu es triste?"
• Zawadi explains the situation
• Baraka asks "Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?" to find out more

Adjectives in French change their endings to match male and female speakers.

From Masculine to Feminine

Practice Exercise

Complete the blanks with es or suis:

• Alice: Je suis triste aujourd'hui. (I am sad today.)
• Marc: Oh non, pourquoi tu es triste? (Oh no, why are you sad?)

Sometimes we talk about physical feelings:

• J'ai faim – I am hungry
• J'ai soif – I am thirsty
• J'ai sommeil – I am sleepy
• J'ai froid – I am cold
• J'ai chaud – I am hot
• J'ai mal à la tête – I have a headache
• J'ai mal au ventre – I have a stomachache

Practice this conversation with a partner:

Girafe: Salut! Tu vas comment aujourd'hui? Lion: Je suis trop fatigué. Girafe: Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas? Lion: Je travaille beaucoup. Girafe: Je suis désolée!

• Use être (je suis, tu es, il/elle est) to say how you feel
• Change the adjective ending for girls (add -e or -euse)
• Use questions like "Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?" to ask about feelings
• Match the feeling word to whether you are male or female

In Tanzania, you can use these French expressions when visiting French-speaking tourists at national parks like Serengeti or Zanzibar. For example, if a French tourist asks "Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?" when you look tired, you can reply "Je suis fatigué" or "Je suis content de voir les animaux!" This helps in jobs like guiding tourists, working at hotels, or selling crafts in tourist areas.