No. 3,337 in French
être
"Être" means "to be."
In a sentence
Je suis étudiant.
I am a student.
The word 'être' is conjugated as 'suis', the first person singular present tense form, and indicates a state of being or identity.
Nous étions heureux hier.
We were happy yesterday.
The word 'être' is conjugated as 'étions', the first person plural past tense form, and refers to a mood or condition in the past.
Cela doit être fatigant.
That must be tiring.
The word 'être' is used in the infinitive form to express the general concept of being or existing, combined with the auxiliary 'doit' to imply obligation or probability.
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