General Grammar

Mrs Vandertramp

It is ideal to write the words 'Mrs Vandertramp' on the top of a test because of its simple yet ingenious usefulness. 'Mrs Vandertramp' is a way of remembering the verbs that take etre in the passe compose. To form a verb in the perfect, one would write it like so:

Subject (Je, Tu..)  +  helping verb (etre/avoir)  +  past participle

Eg. Je suis venu a la fete = I came to the party

I used etre in the example because the verb 'venir' is the v in 'Mrs Vandertramp'. Every verb in the french language (apart from the verbs that make up 'Mrs Vandertramp') would use avoir to form the perfect tense.

Here are the 14 verbs that make up 'Mrs Vandertramp':

Monter Retourner Sortir Venir Aller Naitre Descendre Entrer Rentrer Tomber Rester Arriver Mortir Partir

It takes almost 5 minutes to learn and it is a great way to be on top of grammer, even in GCSE, as it can be useful when revising for an aural exam, or creative writing. But remember, if the action is done by a female, add an 'e' on to the verb, and if the action is plural, add an…