Question 1

Why is there no word for "for" after attendons?

Accepted Answer

In English, we say "wait for" a train, but in French, the "for" is already built into the verb attendre. You just put the thing you are waiting for directly after the verb, like attendre le train (to wait for the train).

Question 2

How do you form the nous version of a regular -re verb like attendre?

Accepted Answer

To conjugate a regular -re verb for nous (we), you take the infinitive (the dictionary form) attendre, drop the -re at the end to get the stem attend-, and add the ending -ons. This gives you attendons.

Question 3

Why isn't there a word for "are" before attendons?

Accepted Answer

French doesn't have a separate "is/are doing" tense like English does. The simple present tense nous attendons translates to either "we wait" or "we are waiting" depending on the context. You never translate the "are" from "are waiting" into French here.

Question 4

Do you pronounce the "s" in nous here?

Accepted Answer

Usually, the "s" at the end of nous is silent. However, because attendons starts with a vowel, you must make a "liaison" (a spoken connection). You pronounce the "s" like a "z" sound blending into the next word: noo-zah-ton-dohn.

Nous attendons le train ici.

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