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### Expressing purpose with "pour"

In English, we often just use "to" followed by a verb to explain our goals or intentions (for example, "I study *to pass*"). In French, you must use **pour** followed by an infinitive verb. You can think of it as meaning "in order to".

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### Answering "pourquoi"

The French word for "why", **pourquoi**, literally translates to "for what" (**pour** + **quoi**). Because of this, using **pour** to state your purpose is a very natural way to answer a "why" question.

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### Self-improvement and health

You will often use this structure to talk about self-improvement goals, like improving your health (**améliorer sa santé**) or resting (**se reposer**). 

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When you use a reflexive verb like **se reposer** after **pour**, remember that you still need to change the reflexive pronoun to match the person doing the action (for example, using **me** when talking about yourself).

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Expressing purpose (pour)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular 'to be' and indefinite articles (je suis un...)

Singular definite articles (le, la, l')

Identifying vs. describing (c'est vs. il est)

Feminine adjective agreement (+e)

Plural pronouns and 'to be' (nous sommes, vous êtes)

Formal and informal you (tu vs. vous)

Plural nouns and indefinite articles (des... -s)

Plural definite articles (les)

Plural adjective agreement (+s)

Stressed pronouns (moi, toi, lui)

The verb "to have" singular (j'ai, tu as, il a)

The verb "to have" plural (nous avons, vous avez, ils ont)

There is / there are (il y a)

Basic verbal negation (ne... pas)

Negating "there is" (il n'y a pas de)

Regular -er verbs singular (je parle, tu parles, il parle)

Regular -er verbs plural (nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent)

The verb "to be called" (s'appeler)

Yes/no questions with intonation (Tu parles ?)

Yes/no questions with "Est-ce que" (Est-ce que tu parles ?)

Informal questions (qui, que, quoi)

Standard questions (est-ce que)

Singular possessives (mon, ton, son)

Plural possessives (notre, votre, leur)

Demonstrative adjectives (ce, cet, cette, ces)

Adjective placement

Numbers 1 to 20

Numbers 21 to 100

Age and physical states (avoir)

The verb to go (aller)

The preposition to/at (à, au, aux)

Question word for location (où)

Prepositions for cities and countries (à, en, au, aux)

The verb to come (venir)

The preposition from/of (de, du, des)

Question word for origin (d'où)

The verb to do/make (faire)

Days of the week (lundi, mardi)

Telling time (il est... heure)

Question words for time (quand, à quelle heure)

The verb to take or have (prendre)

The verb to drink (boire)

Partitive articles (du, de la, de l')

Zero quantity (pas de)

Expressions of quantity (un peu de, beaucoup de)

Asking how much or how many (combien, combien de)

Very vs. a lot (très, beaucoup)

The verb to want (vouloir)

Polite requests (je voudrais)

The verb to be able to (pouvoir)

Obligation (devoir)

General obligation (il faut)

Why and because (pourquoi, parce que)

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous)

Daily routine verbs (se lever, s'habiller)

Adverbs of frequency (parfois, rarement)

Never (ne... jamais)

Regular -ir verbs (choisir, finir)

Regular -re verbs (attendre, répondre)

Irregular -ir verbs (sortir, partir, dormir)

Informal 'we' (on)

The imperative mood

Direct object pronouns (le, la, les, l')

The near future (aller + infinitive)

The recent past (venir de + infinitive)

The passé composé with avoir

Irregular past participles (eu, été, fait, pris, vu)

The passé composé with être

The negative passé composé (ne ... pas)

Saying goodbye

Please, sorry and thank you

Which / what (quel)

The indefinite adjective (tout, tous)

Irregular feminine adjectives (-euse, -ve)

Double consonant adjectives (-enne, -ette)

Feminine adjective endings (-ère, -trice)

Irregular plurals (-x)

Plurals ending in -al (-aux)

Present tense stem changes (e to è)

Accent stem changes (é to è)

Double consonant verbs (appeler, jeter)

Verbs ending in -yer (payer, envoyer)

Irregular communication verbs (dire, lire)

Irregular action verbs (écrire, mettre)

Knowing facts vs. familiarity (savoir, connaître)

Question	Answer
to succeed	réussir
the exam (m)	l'examen
I have to study to pass my exam.	Je dois étudier pour réussir mon examen.
the exercise (m)	l'exercice
The student must do this exercise to succeed.	L'étudiant doit faire cet exercice pour réussir.
to practice	pratiquer
the language	la langue
You have to speak to practice a language.	Il faut parler pour pratiquer une langue.
Why are you reading this book?	Pourquoi est-ce que tu lis ce livre ?
I am reading this book to practice my French.	Je lis ce livre pour pratiquer mon français.
to run	courir
We are going to the park to run together.	Nous allons au parc pour courir ensemble.
to improve	améliorer
the health	la santé
Do you have to do sports to improve your health?	Est-ce qu'il faut faire du sport pour améliorer sa santé ?
Yes, and you have to eat vegetables to be healthy.	Oui, et il faut manger des légumes pour être en bonne santé.
the grade	la note
I work a lot to get a perfect grade.	Je travaille beaucoup pour avoir une note parfaite.
I have a bad grade on this exam.	J'ai une mauvaise note à cet examen.
He is tired because he works very late.	Il est fatigué parce qu'il travaille très tard.
to rest	se reposer
You have to go home to rest.	Il faut rentrer à la maison pour se reposer.
I am staying here to rest and improve my sleep.	Je reste ici pour me reposer et améliorer mon sommeil.
He runs to improve his health.	Il court pour améliorer sa santé.
I do an exercise to practice a language.	Je fais un exercice pour pratiquer une langue.
by, through / out of (motive)	par
I start with an easy exercise.	Je commence par un exercice facile.
I look through the window.	Je regarde par la fenêtre.
because of	à cause de
I am late because of the bus.	Je suis en retard à cause du bus.
She is staying home because of the fever.	Elle reste à la maison à cause de la fièvre.
thanks to	grâce à
I pass the exam thanks to my teacher.	Je réussis l'examen grâce à mon professeur.
Thanks to you, I am finishing my work.	Grâce à toi, je finis mon travail.
the reason	la raison
What is the reason for this delay?	Quelle est la raison de ce retard ?
There is a good reason.	Il y a une bonne raison.
the heart	le cœur
The doctor listens to my heart.	Le médecin écoute mon cœur.
He runs for the health of his heart.	Il court pour la santé de son cœur.

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