Vivre as a verb of state

Chesca M.A1Kwiziq community member

Vivre as a verb of state

Bonjour,

Why isn't vivre considered as a verb of state unlike naître and the others?

Merci :) 

Asked 3 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Chesca,

It depends,  'vivre' is one of those verbs which can be a verb of state or not,  depending on what it means.

In this lesson, it is more in the sense of 'habiter' and then it is not a verb of state.

On vit mieux ici qu'aïlleurs You live better here than elsewhere 

Pour vivre heureux, vivons cachés =  In order to be happy, have secrets 

In these examples 'vivre' means to exist/to be and it is a verb of state.

J'aimerais vivre en France  = I'd like to live in France 

Vivre = habiter and isn't a verb of state.

 

These are mainly the verbs être, paraître, demeurer, devenir, avoir l'air, sembler etc. 

Verbes d'état

hope this helps!

 

Anne D.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

Cécile, my head is beginning to spin.

In a reply at the start of the thread, you said "It [heureux] is in fact not an adverb but an adjective /attribute used with a verb of state (vivre)" but in this answer you’ve said vivre isn’t a verb of state. Can it function like one?

CécileNative French expert teacher in Kwiziq

Hi Anne, 

Thanks for pointing this out, my head must have been spinning that day too! I have altered my answer for a better explanation I hope ...

Vivre as a verb of state

Bonjour,

Why isn't vivre considered as a verb of state unlike naître and the others?

Merci :) 

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