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Verb drill

Nettoyer, laver, rincer: cleaning verbs with a French drill

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Clean a table, wash a shirt and rinse a cup. Learn the three verbs with picture cards, spelling patterns and twelve short present-tense gaps.

In short

Nettoyer means cleaning in general; laver means washing, usually with water; rincer means rinsing, for example to remove soap. A cup can go through all three: you clean it by washing it, then rinse it.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn

An adult rinses a plain white cup beneath running water at a French kitchen sink, a sponge and unlabelled soap bottle nearby, wide scene.
The cup gives rincer a concrete action. Illustration: Atelier

nettoyerto clean

Focus: removing dirt; the broad task

nettoyer + object

Je nettoie la table après le repas.
I clean the table after the meal.

laverto wash

Focus: washing the object

laver + object

Elle lave les tasses avec une éponge.
She washes the cups with a sponge.

rincerto rinse

Focus: running water over something, often to remove soap or residue

rincer + object

Il rince les tasses pour enlever le savon.
He rinses the cups to remove the soap.

Six everyday objects: learn the names

Study first: three useful present-tense forms
Subjectnettoyerlaverrincer
jenettoielaverince
nousnettoyonslavonsrinçons
ils / ellesnettoientlaventrincent

In nettoyer, y becomes i before a silent ending: je nettoie, ils nettoient. Keep y in nous nettoyons and vous nettoyez. In nous rinçons, the cedilla keeps the soft sound before o. Before e, ordinary c already has that sound: je rince, vous rincez.

Je me lave les mains avant de manger.

I wash my hands before eating.

For your own hands, use se laver les mains: the reflexive pronoun identifies whose hands they are. For someone else’s shirt or the dishes, use plain laver. Faire la vaisselle means doing the washing-up; faire la lessive means doing the laundry.

What is the difference between nettoyer, laver and rincer?

1 · Six forms: type only the verb

  • je · nettoyer
  • nous · nettoyer
  • elles · nettoyer
  • nous · rincer
  • vous · rincer
  • elle · laver

2 · Six household sentences

  1. Après le repas, je la table. (nettoyer)
  2. Nous les assiettes avec une éponge. (laver)
  3. Nous les verres pour enlever le savon. (rincer)
  4. Elles la cuisine ensemble. (nettoyer)
  5. Vous vous les mains avant de manger. (se laver)
  6. Tu cette tasse avant de la ranger. (rincer)

Question 1No account needed
Which action specifically removes soap with water?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

rincer. Rincer names the rinsing stage; ranger means putting away and plier means folding.

Question 2No account needed
Which expression means doing the laundry?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

faire la lessive. Faire la lessive concerns clothes; faire la vaisselle concerns dishes.

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