Summary of French Grammar

1. THE ALPHABET
a b c d e f g h i a b c d e effe g ache i j k l m n o p q r ji ka elle emme enne o p ku erre s t u v w x y z esse t u v double v iks i grec zde

2. THE NUMBERS
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 zro un deux trois quatre cinq six sept huit neuf dix 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 onze douze treize quatorze quinze seize dix-sept dix-huit dix-neuf vingt vingt et un 30 40 50 60 70 80 81 90 100 101 1,000 trente quarante cinquante soixante soixante-dix quatre-vingts quatre-vingt-un quatre-vingt-dix cent cent un mille

3. THE APOSTROPHE Certain one-syllable words ending in a vowel drop, or elide, the vowel when they come before words beginning with a vowel sound. This dropping of the vowel, or elision, is marked by an apostrophe. Common cases are: 3.1 The a of la:
je laime lheure lamande I like her (or it) the hour the almond

3.2 The vowel e in one-syllable words (le, je, se, me, que, etc.):
largent jhabite jai the money I live I have

3.3 The vowel i in si (if), when it comes before il (he) or ils (they):
sil vous plat please (lit., if it pleases you)

3.4 Moi and toi when they come before en are written m and t:
Donnez men. Give me some of it (of them).

3.5 A few words like:

aujourdhui entracte today interlude

4. THE DEFINITE ARTICLE 4.1 The forms of the definite article (the) are:

Singular Masculine Feminine

le garon la fille les garons les filles

Plural les les

le la
the boy the girl the boys the girls

Le and la become l before words beginning with a vowel sound. This contraction takes place before most words beginning with h (this h is called mute h). There are a few words where this contraction does not occur (this h is called aspirate h).
lami le hros lheure la hache the friend the hero the hour the ax

4.2 The definite article is used: a. before a noun used in a general sense, before titles, days of the week, parts of the body, etc.:
lavion le dimanche le Comte . . . Jaime les livres. Le fer est utile. Lavarice est un vice. Je vais me laver les mains. the airplane Sunday, Sundays Count . . . I like books. Iron is useful. Avarice is a vice. Im going to wash my hands.

b. with names of languages, unless preceded by en:

Le franais est difficile. Elle raconte lhistoire en franais. French is difficult. She tells the story in French.

Note: The article is usually omitted with the name of a language used immediately after the verb parler.
Elle parle franais. She speaks French.

4.3 Unlike English, the definite articles must be repeated before each noun they modify:
les portes et les fentres the doors and windows

5. THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE 5.1 The forms of the indefinite article (a/an) are: Singular Masculine Feminine
un homme une femme des hommes des femmes

Plural des des

un une
a man a woman

men; some men; a few men women; some women; a few women

As you can see, des is often used to mean some or a few. 5.2 The indefinite article is used: a. with an adjective:
Cest un bon mdecin. He is a good doctor.

b. but not before an unmodified statement of profession, nationality, rank, etc.:

Je suis mdecin. Elle est amricaine. Il est capitaine. I am a doctor. She is an American. He is a captain.

5.3 The indefinite articles are repeated before each noun:

un homme et une femme a man and a woman

6. THE POSSESSIVE Possession is shown in the following way: State the thing possessed + de (of) + the possessor:
le livre de Marie le stylo de llve Maries book (lit., the book of Marie) the pupils pen (lit., the pen of the pupil)

7. CONTRACTIONS 7.1 The preposition de (of) combines with the definite articles le and les as follows. There is no contraction with la or l. a. de + le = du:
le livre du professeur the teachers book

b. de + les = des:
les stylos des lves the pupils pens

7.2 The preposition (to) combines with the articles le and les as follows. There is no contraction with la or l. a. + le = au:
Il parle au garon. Hes talking to the boy.

b. + les = aux:
Il parle aux garons. Hes talking to the boys.

8. GENDER All nouns in French, even those that refer to objects, are either masculine or feminine. The gender of each noun must be learned with the noun. Nouns referring to males are masculine, and nouns referring to females are feminine.
le pre la mre le roi la reine father mother king queen

There are exceptions. Here are a few: la sentinelle (sentinel), even if male, and le professeur (teacher) if female or male. However, you will not often be able to figure out the gender of the noun based on its sex, such as when the noun is an inanimate object or an abstract concept. Nevertheless, there are some general rules that will help you to know the gender of a noun in such cases. 8.1 The following classes of nouns are generally masculine: a. Nouns ending in a consonant:
le parc le tarif le pont park rate, tariff bridge

Exceptions: Nouns ending in -ion and -son are generally feminine.

laction la raison la conversation action reason conversation

b. Nouns ending in any vowel except mute e:

le pari le menu le vlo bet, wager menu bicycle

Exceptions: Nouns ending inage. c. Nouns ending in -ment, -age and -ge (note that -age and -ge end in mute e):
le mnage le document le mange lusage household document riding school usage

d. Names of days, months, seasons, metals, colors, trees, shrubs:

le jeudi (le) septembre le printemps lor le plomb le bleu le chne lolivier le gent Thursday September spring gold lead blue oak olive tree broom (a shrub)

e. The names of parts of speech when used as nouns:

le nom le participe le verbe noun participle verb

f. Metric weights and measures.

le mtre le kilogramme le litre meter kilogram liter

Note the contrast with a non-metric measure: la livre (pound). g. The names of the cardinal points.
le nord le sud lest louest north south east west

8.2 The following classes of nouns are generally feminine: a. Nouns ending in -te, -son, -ion:
la dtente la conversation la raison dtente conversation reason

Exceptions:
le camion le million lavion truck million airplane

b. Names of qualities or states of being ending in: -nce, -esse, -eur, -ude:
la distance la gentillesse la largeur la douceur la gratitude distance niceness width sweetness gratitude

Exceptions:
le bonheur le malheur happiness unhappiness, misfortune

c. Most nouns ending in mute e:

la blague la voiture joke car

d. Names of moral qualities, sciences and the arts: la bont kindness lavarice greed lalgbre algebra la chimie chemistry la peinture painting la musique music Exceptions: lart (art) is masculine. e. Most names of fruits:
la pomme la cerise apple cherry

Exceptions:
le pamplemousse le raisin grapefruit grapes

f. Nouns ending in -t:

lactivit la gnrosit la proximit la priorit activity generosity proximity priority

9. THE PLURAL OF NOUNS 9.1 Most nouns add -s to form the plural: la ville the city les villes lle the island les les the cities the islands

9.2 Nouns ending in -s, -x, -z do not change: le fils the son les fils la voix the voice les voix le nez the nose les nez 9.3 Nouns ending in -au or -eu add -x: le chapeau the hat les chapeaux leau water les eaux le jeu the game les jeux

the sons the voices the noses

the hats waters the games

9.4 Nouns ending in -al and -ail form the plural with -aux: lhpital the hospital les hpitaux the hospitals le travail work les travaux works 9.5 Some irregular plurals: le ciel the sky lil the eye Madame Madam, Mrs., Ms. Mademoiselle Miss Monsieur Sir, Mr. le bonhomme the fellow 10. ADJECTIVES 10.1 Adjectives agree with the nouns they modify in gender and number; that is, they are masculine if the noun is masculine, plural if the noun is plural, etc.:
Marie et sa sur sont grandes. Pierre est grand. Marie and her sister are tall. Pierre is tall.

les cieux les yeux Mesdames

the heavens the eyes Madams

Mesdemoiselles Misses Messieurs Sirs les bonshommes the fellows

10.2 The following adjectives have two forms for the masculine singular: Masculine
Before a consonant beau nouveau vieux Before a vowel or mute h bel nouvel vieil belle nouvelle vieille beautiful, handsome new old

Feminine

un beau livre un bel arbre une belle femme

a beautiful book a beautiful tree a beautiful woman

10.3 The feminine of adjectives is normally formed by adding -e to the masculine singular:
un petit garon une petite fille a little boy a little girl

a. If the masculine singular already ends in -e, the adjective has the same form in the feminine:
un jeune homme une jeune femme a young man a young woman

b. Adjectives ending in -er in the masculine singular change the e to and then add -e: Masculine tranger Feminine trangre foreign

c. Most adjectives ending in -eux in the masculine singular change this ending to -euse: Masculine heureux srieux Feminine heureuse srieuse happy serious

d. Some adjectives double the final consonant of the masculine singular form and add -e: Masculine bon ancien gentil gros Feminine bonne ancienne gentille grosse good former, ancient nice fat

e. Adjectives ending in -eau in the masculine singular change the -au to -lle: Masculine beau nouveau Feminine belle nouvelle beautiful new

f. There are also a number of irregular feminines: Masculine actif blanc doux faux long vieux Feminine active blanche douce fausse longue vieille active white sweet, gentle, soft false long old

10.4 The plural of adjectives is regularly formed by adding -s to the singular: Singular Plural

Masculine un petit garon a little boy deux petits garons two little boys Feminine une petite fille a little girl deux petites filles two little girls

a. But if the the adjective ends in -s or -x in the masculine singular, the masculine plural stays the same:
un mauvais garon deux mauvais garons a bad boy two bad boys

b. Adjectives ending in -au add -x: un nouveau livre a new book des nouveaux livres new books

c. Adjectives ending in -al change to -aux: un homme loyal a loyal man des hommes loyaux loyal men 10.5 An adjective that modifies nouns of different gender is in the masculine plural:
Marie et Jean sont petits. Marie and Jean are little.

11. POSITION OF ADJECTIVES 11.1 Adjectives usually follow the noun:

un livre franais un homme intressant une ide excellente a French book an interesting man an excellent idea

11.2 There are some common adjectives, however, that usually precede the nouns they modify. These are often known as the BAGS adjectives because they are the adjectives that deal with Beauty, Age, Good (and Bad), and Size. beau bon court gentil gros jeune beautiful good short nice, pleasant big, fat young joli long mauvais nouveau petit vieux pretty long bad new small, little old

11.3 The following common adjectives differ in meaning depending on whether they come before or after the noun:

Before the Noun ancien grand brave cher pauvre propre mme former great worthy dear (beloved) poor (wretched) own same

After the Noun ancient tall brave expensive poor (impoverished) clean himself, herself, itself, very

12. COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES 12.1 Most adjectives form the comparative with plus (more) and moins (less), using que where English uses than. To express as . . . as, use aussi and que. difficile plus difficile (que) moins difficile (que) aussi difficile (que) difficult more difficult (than) less difficult (than) as difficult (as)

Note that the adjective still has to agree with the noun it is modifying.
Jeanne est plus grande que Robert. Jeanne is taller than Robert.

12.2 To express the superlative of something, use le (la, les) + plus + adjective to express superiority (the most, -est) and le (la, les) + moins + adjective to express inferiority (the least). la plus belle the most beautiful la moins belle the least beautiful le plus joli the prettiest le moins joli the least pretty

12.3 Certain common adjectives have irregular forms in comparison: bon meilleur le meilleur good better the best mauvais plus mauvais, pire le plus mauvais, le pire bad worse the worst

13. POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES 13.1. Possessive adjectives agree in gender and number with the thing possessed: Before Singular Nouns Masculine mon ton son notre votre leur Feminine ma ta sa notre votre leur Before Plural Nouns Masculine and Feminine mes tes ses nos vos leurs my your (fam.) his, her, its our your their

mon chien sa mre ma robe votre livre leurs crayons

my dog his (or her) mother my dress your book their pencils

13.2 Notice that these adjectives agree in gender not with the possessor as in English, but with the noun they modify. For example, son could mean his, her, or its.
Jean parle son pre. Marie parle son pre. Jean is talking to his father. Marie is talking to her father.

13.3 Possessive adjectives are repeated before each noun they modify:
mon pre et ma mre leurs livres et leurs stylos my father and mother their books and pens

13.4 Before a feminine word beginning with a vowel or mute h, the forms mon, ton, and son are used instead of ma, ta, and sa.
son histoire son cole his/her story, his/her history his/her school

13.5 In speaking of parts of the body, the definite article is usually used instead of the possessive adjective (except where it might be ambiguous):
Elle lve la main. She raises her hand.

14. DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES 14.1 The demonstrative adjective in French stands for both this and that (plural these and those). Demonstrative adjectives agree with the nouns they modify in gender and number: a. Masculine singular: ce or cet ce: before a consonant cet: before a vowel or mute h

ce livre cet arbre cet homme

this (that) book this (that) tree this (that) man

b. Feminine singular: cette

cette femme this (that) woman

c. Plural: ces
ces hommes ces femmes these (those) men these (those) women

14.2 Demonstrative adjectives must be repeated before each noun:

cet homme et cette femme this man and this woman

14.3 When it is necessary to distinguish between this and that, -ci and -l are added to the noun.
Donnez-moi ce livre-ci. Voulez-vous cette robe-l? Jaime ce livre-ci mais je naime pas ce livre-l. Give me this book. Do you want that dress (over there)? I like this book but I dont like that book.

15. DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS A demonstrative pronoun replaces a demonstrative adjective and its noun. Like demonstrative adjectives, they agree in gender and number with the nouns they are replacing. Masculine singular Feminine singular Masculine plural Feminine plural celui celle ceux celles this one, that one, the one this one, that one, the one these, those, the ones these, those, the ones

As with demonstrative adjectives, -ci and -l can be added to the pronoun to make a distinction between the two nouns.
Prfrez-vous celui-ci ou celui-l? Jaime celui-ci. Donne-moi celle de ton frre. Ceux qui sont sur cette tagre sont en solde. Do you prefer this one or that one? I like this one. Give me your brothers. (calculator [la calculatrice], for example). Those that are on this shelf are on sale.

16. Y AND EN Y and en are two important adverbial pronouns in French. 16.1 Y a. Y is a pronoun meaning there which always refers to things or places. It usually replaces + noun but may also replace other prepositions such as dans (in), sur (on), or chez (at) + noun. It can be used to replace a location when the location has already been referenced and in English it commonly also means to it/them, in it/them, on it/them. Sometimes the equivalent is not expressed in English. It is placed before the verb.
Elle va Paris au printemps. Elle y va. Shes going to Paris in the spring. Shes going there.

b. Y also forms part of the very common and useful expression il y a, which means there is or there are:
Il y a un train 10 heures. Il y a trois chats. Il ny a pas de chats. There is a train at 10 a.m. There are three cats. There are no cats.

16.2 En En is a pronoun that generally means some. It is used to replace the partitive article (or de) + a noun. For more on partitives, see section 24. When en replaces a quantity, the quantity expression remains. Also note that in an inversion, en comes before the verb.
Nous buvons du th. Nous en buvons. Je mange beaucoup de fromage. Jen mange beaucoup. Je voudrais une livre et demie de champignons. Jen voudrais une livre et demie. Vous en voulez un kilo. En voulez-vous un kilo? We drink tea. We drink some. I eat a lot of cheese. I eat a lot of it. I would like a pound and a half of mushrooms I would like a pound and a half. You want a kilo. Do you want a kilo?

17. PERSONAL PRONOUNS The forms of the pronouns depend on how they are used in a sentence: 17.1 Subject pronouns: je/j tu il elle on nous I you (infml.) he, it she, it we, one, people, you, they we

vous ils elles

Je suis heureuse. Nous allons au cinma.

you they they

I am happy. Were going to the movie theater.

a. Vous and tu Vous is the pronoun normally used in talking to several people; the plural form of you. It is also used in talking to someone you dont know very well or someone who is older than you (vous is more polite or formal and shows respect). Tu is the familiar form that is used only when addressing people you know very well (a member of ones family or a close friend; also a child, pet, etc.). b. Il, elle, ils, and elles are used as pronouns referring to things as well as to persons. They agree with the nouns they refer to in gender and number:
O est le livre? Il est sur la table. O est la lettre? Elle est sur la table. O sont les livres et les lettres? Ils sont sur la table. Wheres the book? Its on the table. Wheres the letter? Its on the table. Where are the books and letters? Theyre on the table.

Notice that ils is used when referring to multiple nouns of different genders (les livres [m.] et les lettres [ f. ]). This applies to people as well as to things. For example, if you are talking about a group of three girls and one boy, you would use ils.

Les trois filles et le garon, ils regardent la tlvision.

The three girls and the boy, theyre watching television.

17.2 Direct object pronouns The direct object pronoun takes the place of the direct object in a sentence. Direct object pronouns must agree in gender and number with the noun they replace. They come before the verb. me/m te/t le/l la/l nous vous les
Je te comprends. Jaime la robe. Je laime.

me you (infml.) him, it her, it us you them

I understand you (infml.). I like the dress. I like it.

17.3 Indirect object pronouns An indirect object is the person to whom or for whom an action is done. It is linked to the verb by the preposition and receives the action of the verb indirectly. It comes before the verb. Indirect object pronouns look similar to the direct object pronouns except in the third persons singular and plural. The word to is always included in the definition.

me/m te/t lui nous vous leur

Je parle ma fille. Je lui parle.

to me to you (infml.) to him, to her to us to you to them

I speak to my daughter. I speak to her.

17.4 Disjunctive (stressed) pronouns These pronouns are emphatic and call attention to a person or to what that person is doing or saying. They are used: to emphasize a subject pronoun, after prepositions, in comparisons, after cest or ce sont, in response to questions (when used alone), and in certain expressions, such as Moi non plus (Neither do/am I, Me neither) and Moi aussi (Me too, So do/am I). moi toi soi lui elle I, me you (infml.) himself, herself, oneself, itself he, him she, her

nous vous eux elles

Moi, jai six ans! Je viens avec toi. Elle est plus intelligente que toi. Cest toi sur la photo? -Qui est l? -Moi.

we, us you they, them (m.) they, them (f.)

Im six! (lit., Me, Im six!) Im coming with you. She is smarter than you. Its you in the picture? -Whos there? -Me.

17.5 Reflexive pronouns In a reflexive verb, the person or thing does the action to himself, herself or itself. In other words, the one who does the action also receives it. For example: I dress myself. Reflexive pronouns normally precede the verb to turn that verb into a reflexive one. me te se nous vous se
Je lave la voiture. Je me lave. Jappelle Paul. Je mappelle Paul.

myself yourself (infml.) himself, herself, itself, oneself ourselves yourself, yourselves themselves
I wash the car. I wash myself, I get washed. Im calling Paul. My name is Paul. (I am called Paul.)

Note that many reflexive verbs in French are not reflexive in English. Reflexive pronouns in the affirmative imperative follow the verb and are connected to it with a hyphen. After the verb, toi is used instead of te.
Tu tamuses. Amuse-toi bien! You are having fun. Have fun!

18. POSITION OF PRONOUNS Apart from disjunctive pronouns (see 17.4 above), personal pronouns, as well as y and en, generally precede the verb except in affirmative commands and requests. Pronouns do precede the verb in negative commands and requests. 18.1 When there are multiple pronouns before a verb, they are placed in the following order: me te se nous vous le la l les

subject pronoun

lui leur

en

verb

Il me le donne. Il le lui donne. Je ly ai vu. Je leur en parlerai. Il y en a trois.

He gives it to me. He gives it to him (to her, to it). I saw him (her, it) there. Ill speak to them about it. There are three of them.

18.2 In affirmative commands and requests (positive imperative), pronouns are placed after the verb and connected by hyphens. The direct object pronoun precedes the indirect: me (moi) te (toi) lui nous vous leur
Give it to him. Give them some. Go away./Get out of here. Give me the book. Give it to me. Show me apples. Show me some. Write him the letter. Write it to him.

positive imperative form of verb

le la les

en

Donnez-le-lui. Donnez-leur-en. Allez-vous-en. Donnez-moi le livre. Donnez-le-moi. Montrez-moi des pommes. Montrez-men. crivez-lui la lettre. crivez-la-lui.

Note that when moi or toi are used with en, they become m and t and precede en.
Va ten. Go away./Get out of here.

18.3 The pronoun objects precede voici and voil:

O est le livre? Le voici. Les voil. Wheres the book? Here it is. There they are.

19. RELATIVE PRONOUNS Relative pronouns link the dependent part of a sentence to the main clause. For example, in the sentence, This is the book that I

read, that is the relative pronoun that connects the main clause (This is the book) with the dependent clause (that I read). Although we sometimes omit the relative pronoun in English (Youre eating the dessert [that] I made), it must be used in French. Relative pronouns can be the subject or direct object of the verb, or the object of a preposition, in the dependent clause. 19.1. As the subject of a verb (can be used for both persons and things): qui
Lhomme qui est l . . . Voici la dent qui me fait mal.

who, which, that

The man who is there . . . Heres the tooth that hurts me.

19.2. As the object of a verb (can be used for both persons and things): que/qu
Lhomme que tu vois . . . Voici la dent que le dentiste va marracher.

whom, which, that

The man whom you see . . . Heres the tooth that the dentist is going to pull out.

19.3 As the object of a preposition: a. For a person qui

Cest la femme pour qui je travaille. La dame qui vous parlez sappelle Sophie.

whom
Shes the woman for whom I work. The woman to whom you are speaking is named Sophie.

b. For a thing lequel (m. sg.) laquelle (f. sg.) lesquels (m. pl.) lesquelles (f. pl.)

which

Voici la maison dans laquelle nous habitons.

Here is the house in which we live.

As you can see, the relative pronoun lequel and its forms agree in gender and number with the nouns to which they refer. 19.4 Sometimes the word o (where) is used as a relative pronoun. It can be used with both places and time.
Connaisez-vous lendroit o il habite? Le jour o je suis partie en vacances . . . Do you know the place where he lives? The day (that, when) I left for vacation . . .

19.5 The relative pronoun dont can take on two meanings: a. dont (whose) Dont can take on the possessive meaning of whose.
Cest le mari dont la femme est actrice. Thats the husband whose wife is an actress.

b. dont (of whom, of which) Dont is used with verbs or expressions that use the preposition de, such as parler de (to talk about), avoir besoin de (to need), se souvenir de (to remember), etc.

Jai besoin du stylo./Voici le stylo dont jai besoin. Les enfants dont je parle sont mes enfants.

I need the pen./Heres the pen I need (lit., of which I have need). The children of whom I am talking are my children.

20. INDEFINITE RELATIVE PRONOUNS ce qui ce que

what

Ce qui and ce que are only used for things (not people) that do not have a prior reference in the sentence. Ce qui is used as the subject of the dependent clause and ce que is used as the direct object of the dependent clause.
Je vois ce qui est sur la table. Je comprends ce que tu dis. I see what is on the table. I understand what you are saying./ I understand that which you are saying.

21. INDEFINITE PRONOUNS Indefinite pronouns refer to no one or nothing in particular. Some indefinite pronouns in French include: quelque chose quelquun chacun un/une autre plusieurs on something someone each (one) another several one, people, they, you

ne . . . rien ne . . . personne nimporte quoi/qui/o

Quelquun ta tlphon. Chacun ses gots. Pendant lt, on peut nager. Il fait nimporte quoi pour gagner de largent.

nothing no one anything/anyone/anywhere

Somebody called you. To each his own. During the summer, you can swim/ one can swim/people can swim. He does anything to make money.

22. NOUNS USED AS INDIRECT OBJECTS A noun used as an indirect object is always preceded by the preposition :
Je donne un livre la jeune fille. Im giving the girl a book.

23. REPETITION OF PREPOSITIONS The prepositions and de must be repeated before each of their objects:
Je parle au deput et son secrtaire. Voici les cahiers de Jean et ceux de Marie. Im speaking to the deputy and his secretary. Here are Jeans and Maries notebooks.

24. THE PARTITIVE 24.1 When a noun is used in such a way as to express or imply an unspecified quantity, it is preceded by the partitive article. The partitive very often translates the English some or any. In French, du, de l, de la, and des are the partitive articles.

The partitive is formed in the following way: Masculine singular Feminine singular Masculine and feminine singular Masculine and feminine plural
Jai de largent. Il a des amis.

de + le = du de + la = de la de + l = de l de + les = des
I have some money. He has some friends.

In many cases, however, the partitive article is used where we dont use some or any in English:
A-t-il des amis ici? Does he have friends here?

24.2 De (or d) is used, instead of the partitive article, when: a. an expression of quantity is used:
Jai beaucoup dargent. Combien de livres avez-vous? a cote plus/moins de dix euros. I have a lot of money. How many books do you have? That costs more/less than ten euros.

Exceptions: bien (much, many) and la plupart (most, the majority):

bien des hommes la plupart des hommes many men most men

b. the noun is preceded by an adjective:

Jai achet de belles cravates. I bought some nice ties.

24.3 The negative of the partitive is pas de/d + noun.

Il na pas damis. Mon ami na pas dargent. He has no friends. My friend hasnt any money.

25. NEGATION 25.1 A sentence is made negative by placing ne before the verb and pas after it:
Je sais. Je ne sais pas. Je ne lai pas vu. I know. I dont know. I havent seen it.

When placed before a vowel or mute h, ne becomes n. Also note that multiple object pronouns are placed before the verb in negative sentences (and negative commands), following the same order as discussed in 18.1:
Vous le leur donnez. Vous ne le leur donnez pas. Ne le leur donnez pas. You give it to them. You dont give it to them. Dont give it to them.

25.2 Other negative expressions include: ne . . . gure ne . . . point ne . . . rien ne . . . nul, nulle ne . . . jamais ne . . . personne ne . . . plus ne . . . ni . . . ni ne . . . que ne . . . aucun, aucune hardly not (at all) (literary) nothing no one, no never nobody no longer neither . . . nor only no one, none

Il ne travaille jamais le vendredi. Je ne mange rien le matin. Il ny a ni chauffage ni eau chaude.

He never works on Fridays. I eat nothing in the morning. There is neither heat nor hot water.

25.3 Although both oui and si mean yes, si is used to contradict a negative statement:
Vous buvez du vin? Oui. Vous ne buvez pas de vin? Si. You drink wine? Yes. You dont drink wine? Yes, I do.

26. QUESTIONS In spoken French, questions are often formed simply by raising your voice to indicate that the sentence is a question. There is no change in sentence form.
Vous tes libre? Are you free?/Youre free?

There are several other ways to ask a question in French: 26.1 Questions with pronoun subjects: There are two ways of asking a question with a pronoun subject: a. Place the pronoun after the verb:
Parlez-vous franais? Do you speak French?

b. Place est-ce que (is it that) before the sentence:

Est-ce que je parle trop vite? Est-ce que vous parlez franais? Am I talking too fast? Do you speak French?

26.2 Questions with noun subjects: When a question begins with a noun, the pronoun is repeated after the verb. The letter t is inserted between the subject pro-

noun and the verb in the 3rd person singular form when the verb ends with ane and after the verb a (has).
Votre frre parle-t-il franais? Votre sur a-t-elle quitt la maison? Does your brother speak French? Has your sister left the house?

26.3 Questions introduced by interrogative words: The common interrogative words are: combien quand comment o pourquoi que qui how many/how much when how where why what who/whom

a. In questions which begin with an interrogative word, the order is usually interrogative word + verb + pronoun subject:
Comment allez-vous payer? Que dsirez-vous? How are you going to pay? What would you like?

b. However, in everyday, informal speech, French speakers will often simply place the question word at the end of the sentence and raise their voice to indicate that it is a question.
Vous allez o? Where are you going?

c. A question word can also be used with est-ce que:

Comment est-ce que vous allez payer? How are you going to pay?

27. ADVERBS Adverbs are usually placed after verbs in the present and other simple tenses. In the pass compos and other compound tenses, adverbs of quality (bien), quantity (beaucoup), and frequency (toujours) are placed between the auxiliary verb and the past participle. For more on verbs, see sections 2834.
Il marche lentement. On a bien mang dans ce restaurant. He walks slowly. We ate well in this restaurant.

27.1 Most adverbs are formed from the adjectives by adding -ment to the feminine form. If the adjective ends in e in the masculine form, just add -ment to the adjective. froid certain naturel facile cold certain natural easy froidement certainement naturellement facilement coldly certainly naturally easily

27.2 Adjectives that end in -ent and -ant add -emment or -amment to form the adverbs. intelligent constant intelligent constant intelligemment constamment intelligently constantly

27.3 However, there are many adverbs which must be learned separately. See 27.58 for some lists of common adverbs. vite quickly mal badly

27.4 Adverbs are compared like adjectives (see section 12):

loin bien mal far well badly plus loin mieux pire farther better worse le plus loin le mieux le pire the farthest the best the worst

27.5 Some common adverbs of place include: ici l ct de ct devant derrire dessus dessous dedans dehors partout nulle part loin prs o here there at the side aside before, in front of behind on top underneath inside outside everywhere nowhere far near where

y ailleurs l-haut l-bas

there elsewhere up there over there

27.6 Some common adverbs of time: aujourdhui demain hier avant-hier aprs-demain maintenant alors avant autrefois tt bientt tard souvent ne . . . jamais toujours today tomorrow yesterday the day before yesterday the day after tomorrow now then before once, formerly early soon late often never always, ever

longtemps encore ne . . . plus nouveau 27.7 Adverbs of manner: bien mal ainsi de mme autrement ensemble fort volontiers surtout exprs

long, for a long time still, yet no longer, no more again

well ill, badly thus, so similarly otherwise together much, very willingly above all, especially on purpose, expressly

27.8 Adverbs of quantity or degree: beaucoup assez ne . . . gure peu much, many enough not much, scarcely little

plus ne . . . plus moins encore bien trop tellement

more no more less more much, many too, too much, too many so much, so many

28. AUXILIARY OR HELPING VERBS In French, the auxiliary verbs are avoir (to have) and tre (to be), although they are both also used as main verbs. Auxiliary verbs are used with other verbs to help express tenses or moods of verbs.
Elle est americaine. Elle est alle chez le mdecin. Nous avons le livre. Nous avons lu le livre. She is American. She went to the doctors. We have the book. We read the book.

Avoir and tre are conjugated in the present indicative as follows: avoir je/j tu il/elle/on nous vous ils/elles ai as a avons avez ont tre suis es est sommes tes sont

29. THE INFINITIVE French verbs are divided into three groups depending on their ending in the infinitive form or the form they appear in the dictionary. The infinitive is expressed in English with to: to do, to be, to have, to want, etc. Group First Conjugation (I) Verb Ending: -er Example: parler (to speak) finir (to finish) vendre (to sell)

Second Conjugation (II) -ir Third Conjugation (III) 30. PARTICIPLES 30.1 The present participle: -re

The present participle indicates an action closely related to the action of the main verb of the sentence. a. It is formed by adding -ant to the stem of the verb at the first person plural. nous finissons nous allons nous buvons finissant allant buvant finishing going drinking

Some verbs have irregular present participles, such as tre (tant) and avoir (ayant).

b. The present participle can be used as an adjective or verb. When used as an adjective, it must agree with the noun it is modifying. However, the present participle is most commonly used with en. In this sense, it describes two actions taking place simultaneously or how something is done.
une histoire intressante Sachant cela, je ne fume plus. Il dne en regardant la tlvision. Cest en apprenant ces verbes par cur que vous les saurez. an interesting story Knowing this, I dont smoke anymore. He is having dinner while watching the television. Its by memorizing these verbs that youll know them.

30.2 The past participle: a. The past participle of regular verbs is formed the following ways: Infinitive I II III parler finir vendre Past Participle parl- fin-i vend-u

b. However, many past participles are irregular and have to be memorized. For example:

Infinitive avoir (to have) tre (to be) savoir (to know) faire (to do) pouvoir (can, to be able) vouloir (to want)

Past Participle eu t su fait pu voulu

c. Agreement (in gender and number): When a verb is conjugated with avoir, there is usually no agreement:
Jai couru. Ils ont vendu la maison. I ran. They sold the house.

However, if a direct object pronoun precedes the verb, the past participle must agree in gender and number with direct object pronoun:
La pice que jai vue hier tait mauvaise. Avez-vous vu le livre quil a achet? Avez-vous donn la chemise Charles? Non, je lai donne Claire. The play I saw yesterday was bad. Have you seen the book he bought? Did you give the shirt to Charles? No, I gave it to Claire.

When using tre to conjugate verbs, such as with reflexive (se laver) and intransitive verbs expressing movement (aller, venir), the past participle agrees with the subject:
Marie est arrive hier. Jean et Pierre se sont levs. Ils sont arrivs. Nous sommes rentrs trs tard. Elle sest lave. Marie arrived yesterday. Jean and Pierre got up. They arrived. We came back very late. She washed herself.

31. THE INDICATIVE Note that the following points describe regular conjugations. There, however, are a number of verbs with irregular present (and other) tense conjugations. For more information on irregular verbs, please see the verb charts at the end of this summary. 31.1 Present tense (prsent) For regular verbs, the present tense is formed by taking the -er, -ir, or -re off the infinitive and adding the following endings: -er verbs -e -es -e -ons -ez -ent -ir verbs -is -is -it -issons -issez -issent -re verbs -s -s - (no ending added) -ons -ez -ent

parler (to speak) parle parles parle parlons parlez parlent

finir (to finish) finis finis finit finissons finissez finissent

vendre (to sell) vends vends vend vendons vendez vendent

This tense has several English translations:

je parle ils finissent I speak, I am speaking, I do speak they finish, they are finishing, they do finish

31.2 The imperfect tense (imparfait) is formed by dropping the -ons of the present nous form and adding -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. The imperfect expresses a continued or habitual action in the past. It also indicates an action that was happening when something else happened:
Je me levais sept heures. Il dormait quand Jean est entr. Il parlait souvent de cela. I used to get up at seven oclock. He was sleeping when Jean entered. He often spoke about that.

31.3 The future tense (futur simple) is formed by adding the endings -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont to the full infinitive (or the irregular future stem) of the verb. It indicates a future action:
Je me lverai tt. Il arrivera demain. Je le vendrai demain. Ill get up early. Hell arrive tomorrow. Ill sell it tomorrow.

31.4 The simple past tense (pass simple), or past definite, is used only in formal written French. It expresses an action begun and ended in the past. It is formed by adding to the root the endings -ai, -as, -a, -mes, -tes, -rent for -er verbs; the endings -is, -is, -it, -mes, -tes, -irent for -ir verbs; and for all other verbs either these last or -us, -us, -ut, -mes, -tes, -urent.
Le roi fut tu. Les soldats entrrent dans la ville. The king was killed. The soldiers entered the city.

31.5 The past tense (pass compos) is formed by adding the past participle to the present indicative of avoir or tre. Most verbs use avoir to form the pass compos. Intransitive verbs that express movement and reflexive verbs use tre. Some common intransitive verbs that use tre include:
aller (to go) venir (to come) monter (to go up) descendre (to go down) arriver (to arrive) partir (to leave) sortir (to go out) natre (to be born) mourir (to die) entrer (to enter) rester (to stay) retourner (to go back) revenir (to come back) tomber (to fall)

The pass compos is used to indicate a past action which has been completed.
Je me suis lev tt. Il ne ma rien dit. Jai fini mon travail. Lavez-vous vu? Ils sont arrivs. I got up early. He didnt tell me anything. I finished my work/I have finished my work. Have you seen him?/Did you see him? They arrived.

31.6 The pluperfect or past perfect tense (plus-que-parfait) is formed by adding the past participle to the imperfect of avoir or tre. It translates the English past perfect, and it refers to an action that happened before another point of reference in the past.
Il lavait fait. Lorsque je suis revenu, il tait parti. He had done it. When I came back, he had gone.

31.7 The past anterior tense (pass antrieur) is formed by adding the past participle to the simple past of avoir or tre. It is used for an event that happened just before another event. It is used mostly in literary style.
Ds quil eut dn, il sortit. Quand il eut fini, il se leva. As soon as he had eaten, he went out. When he had finished, he got up.

31.8 The future perfect tense (futur antrieur) is formed by adding the past participle to the future of avoir or tre. It translates the English future perfect and indicates an action that will happen before another point of reference in the future:
Il aura bientt fini. He will soon have finished.

Sometimes it indicates probability:

Il le lui aura sans doute dit. Il aura t malade. Je me serai tromp. No doubt he must have told him. He probably was sick. I must have been mistaken.

32. THE CONDITIONAL The conditional is used to express hypothetical states or actions. Sometimes it expresses probability or conjecture. 32.1 The conditional is formed by adding the endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient to the infinitive. It translates the English would or should:

Je le prendrais si jtais votre place. Je ne ferais jamais une chose pareille.

I would take it if I were you. I would never do such a thing.

Verbs that are irregular in the future tense have the same irregular stems in the conditional, such as aller (ir-) or tre (ser-). 32.2 The conditional perfect is formed by adding the past participle to the conditional of avoir or tre. It translates the English would have:
Si javais su, je ny serais jamais all. Si javais eu assez dargent, je laurais achet. If I had known, I would never have gone there. If I had had the money, I would have bought it.

33. THE IMPERATIVE The imperative (limpratif) is used to give a command or a directive and to make requests. For information on reflexive verbs and the use of pronouns in the imperative, see 17.5 and 18.2. 33.1 The imperative of most verbs is formed like the tu, nous and vous forms of the present indicative tense (without the corresponding subject pronouns). In the verbs of the first conjugation (-er verbs), however, the second person singular (tu) loses the final s: donner (to give)
Donne. ( infml.) Give. Donnez. Donnons. Give.

finir (to finish)

Finis. (infml.) Finish. Finissez. Finish.

vendre (to sell)

Vends. (infml.) Sell. Vendez. Sell. Lets sell.

Lets give. Finissons.

Lets finish. Vendons.

Traversons le pont. Choisissez un chapeau. Attends une minute.

Lets cross the bridge. Choose a hat. Wait a minute.

33.2 Imperatives of tre and avoir: tre (to be) Sois. (infml.) Soyez. Soyons.
Sois lheure. Ayons plus de patience.

avoir (to have) Be. Be. Lets be. Aie. ( infml.) Ayez. Ayons.
Be on time. Lets be more patient.

Have. Have. Lets have.

For other verbs that have irregular imperative forms, see the verb charts at the end of this summary. 33.3 The negative form of the imperative: The negative form of the imperative is formed in the same way as in the present indicative by placing ne before the verb and pas after.
Ne dansez pas! Ne parle pas! Dont dance! Dont speak!

34. VERBS FOLLOWED BY THE INFINITIVE 34.1 Many verbs can be followed by the infinitive without a preceding preposition:
Je vais parler Jean. Jaime parler franais. Je ne sais pas danser. Il faut acheter des clous. I am going to talk to Jean. I like to speak French. I dont know how to dance. We have to buy nails.

34.2 There are a good amount of verbs, however, that require the preposition before the infinitive:
Japprends parler franais. Je laiderai le faire. Il commence sinquiter. I am learning to speak French. Ill help him do it. He is starting to get worried.

34.3 Some verbs must be followed by de plus the infinitive:

Il leur a demand de fermer la porte. Elle a dcid de faire un voyage. He asked them to shut the door. She decided to take a trip.

35. THE SUBJUNCTIVE The indicative makes a simple statement; the subjunctive indicates a certain attitude or mood toward the statementuncertainty, desire, emotion, etc. The subjunctive is used in subordinate clauses when the statement is unreal, doubtful, indefinite, subject to some condition, or is affected by will or emotion. The verbs in the subjunctive are generally used in a dependent clause introduced by the word que/qu (that). When the independent part of the sentence contains any of the above emotions, uncertainties or other subjunctive conditions, the verb in the dependent clause is in the subjunctive. Only two subjunctive tenses are used in everyday French: the present and past. The imperfect and pluperfect mostly appear in literature. 35.1 Present Subjunctive: a. Drop the -ent of the third person plural present indicative and add -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent. For irregular stems in the present subjunctive, see the verb charts following the summary.

parler (to speak) je parle tu parles il parle nous parlions vous parliez ils parlent

finir (to finish) je finisse tu finisses il finisse nous finissions vous finissiez ils finissent

vendre (to sell) je vende tu vendes il vende nous vendions vous vendiez ils vendent

Je veux que tu viennes avec moi.

I want you to come with me.

b. The irregular verbs avoir and tre: avoir (to have) jaie tu aies il ait nous ayons vous ayez ils aient 35.2 Imperfect Subjunctive: As noted above, the imperfect and the pluperfect subjunctive are not used today in conversational French. They do, however, appear in literature. tre (to be) je sois tu sois il soit nous soyons vous soyez ils soient

To form the imperfect subjunctive, drop the ending of the first person singular of the past definite (simple past) and add -sse, -sses, -t, -ssions, -ssiez, -ssent, putting a circumflex () over the last vowel of the third person singular: donner (to give) je donnasse tu donnasses il donnt finir (to finish) je finisse tu finisses il fint vendre (to sell) je vendisse tu vendisses il vendt nous vendissions vous vendissiez ils vendissent

nous donnassions nous finissions vous donnassiez ils donnassent vous finissiez ils finissent

35.3 Past Subjunctive: The past subjunctive is used when the action in the subordinate clause has taken place before the action in the main clause. Add the past participle to the present subjunctive of avoir (or tre): avoir (+ donner [to give]) jaie donn tu aies donn etc.
Il est dommage quil nait pas obtenu plus de voix.

tre (+ aller [to go]) je sois all tu sois all etc.

Its a shame he didnt get more votes.

35.4 Pluperfect Subjunctive (see note in 35.2 on the imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive): Add the past participle to the imperfect subjunctive of avoir (or tre): avoir (+ donner) jeusse donn etc. 35.5 Infinitive vs. subjunctive In order for the subjunctive to be used, the subjects of the independent or main clause and the dependent or subordinate clause must be different. If they are the same, the infinitive is used. Subjunctive Infinitive Je veux que tu sois l. Je veux tre l. I want you to be there. I want to be there. tre (+ aller) je fusse all etc.

35.6 Uses of the subjunctive: a. After verbs of command, request, permission, etc.:
Je tiens ce que vous y alliez. I insist on your going there.

b. After expressions of approval and disapproval, necessity, etc.:

Il nest que juste que vous le lui disiez. Il faut que vous fassiez cela. Its only fair that you tell him that. You have to do that.

c. After verbs of emotion (desire, regret, fear, joy, etc.):

Je voudrais bien que vous veniez avec nous. Je regrette que vous ne puissiez pas venir. Id like you to come with us. Im sorry you cant come.

d. After expressions of doubt, uncertainty, denial:

Je doute que jy aille. Il est possible quil ne puisse pas venir. I doubt that Ill go there. Its possible that he may not be able to come.

e. In relative clauses after expression like il faut:

Il me faut quelquun qui fasse cela. I need someone to do that.

f. In adverbial clauses after certain conjunctions denoting purpose, time, concessions, etc.:
Je viendrai moins quil ne pleuve. Asseyez-vous en attendant que ce soit prt. Ill come unless it rains. Sit down until its ready.

g. In utterances expressing a wish or command:

Quils sen aillent! Dieu vous bnisse! Vive la France! Let them go away! God bless you! Long live France!

36. FORMS OF THE REGULAR VERBS A. CLASSES I, II, III

Infinitive
parlant parl parl + e es e ons ez ent fin + is is it issons issez issent vend + s s ons ez ent vend + e es e ions iez ent jai + vendu tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont finiss + e es e ions iez ent jai + fini tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + fini que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient que jaie + vendu que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient parl + e es e ions iez ent jai + parl tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + parl que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient parl + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles

Present Indicative

Present Past (pass Subjunctive* compos)

Past Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

-er ending parler (to speak)

-ir ending finir (to finish)

finissant fini

finiss + ais ais ait ions iez aient vend + ais ais ait ions iez aient

-re ending vendre (to sell)

vendant vendu

* Like the past subjunctive, the present subjunctive verb is generally preceded by que or qu + the appropriate pronoun, as in Il faut que je parte

and Je veux quil quitte la maison.

Past Perfect
parle parlons parlez finis finissons finissez parler + ai as a ons ez ont finir + ai as a ons ez ont jaurai + fini tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront finir + ais ais ait ions iez aient jaurais + fini tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient jaurai + parl tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront parler + ais ais ait ions iez aient jaurais + parl tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Future

Future Perfect Conditional Imperative

Conditional Perfect

javais + parl tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

javais + fini tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

vends vendons vendez

javais + vendu tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

vendr + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + vendu tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

vendr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + vendu tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Infinitive
plaant 3 plac place places place plaons placez placent mange manges mange mangeons mangez mangent mange manges mange mangions mangiez mangent jai + mang tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + mang que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient place places place placions placiez placent jai + plac tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + plac que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient

Pres. & Past Participles

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Past (pass compos)

Past Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative
plaais plaais plaait placions placiez plaaient mangeais mangeais mangeait mangions mangiez mangeaient

placer1 (to place)

B. VERBS ENDING IN -CER AND -GER

manger2 (to eat)

mangeant mang

Similarly conjugated: commencer, lancer, etc.

Similarly conjugated: plonger, ranger, arranger, etc.

All spelling changes in verb forms will be italicized in this section.

Past Perfect

Future

Future Perfect Conditional

Conditional Perfect

Imperative
place plaons placez

javais + plac tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

placer + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + plac tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

placer + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + plac tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

mange mangeons mangez

javais + mang tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

manger + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + mang tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

manger + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + mang tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Infinitive
achetant achet achte achtes achte achetons achetez achtent appelle appelles appelle appelons appelez appellent paie paies paie payons payez paient prfre** prfres prfre prfrons prfrez prfrent prfre prfres prfre prfrions prfriez prfrent jai + prfr tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont paie paies paie payions payiez paient jai + pay tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + pay que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient que tu aies que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient appelle appelles appelle appelions appeliez appellent jai + appel tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + appel que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient appel + ais ais ait ions iez aient pay + ais ais ait ions iez aient prfr + ais ais ait ions iez aient achte achtes achtes achetions achetiez achtent jai + achet tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + achet que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient achet + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Past (pass compos)

Past Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

acheter1 (to buy)

appeler2 (to call) appelant appel

payer3 (to pay) payant pay

prfrer4 (to prefer) prfrant prfr

C. VERBS ENDING IN -ER WITH CHANGES IN THE STEM

Verbs like acheter: mener, amener, emmener, se promener, lever, se lever, lever Verbs like appeler: se rappeler, jeter 3 Verbs like payer: essayer, employer, ennuyer, essuyer, nettoyer (See note below.) 4 Verbs like prfrer: esprer, rpter, clbrer, considrer, suggrer, protger Verbs ending in -ayer may use i or y in the present (except for nous and vous forms), the future, and the conditional, as in payer, essayer. Verbs ending in -oyer, -uyer change y to i (as in essuyer, ennuyer, employer, nettoyer). These changes are indicated by the use of italics. ** Note the change from to in the je, tu, il/elle/on, and ils forms of verbs like prffer.

Past Perfect
achte achetons achetez achter + ai as a ons ez ont appelle appelons appelez appeller + ai as a ons ez ont jaurai + appel tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront appeller + ais ais ait ions iez aient jaurais + appel tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient jaurai + achet tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront achter + ais ais ait ions iez aient jaurais + achet tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Future

Future Perfect Conditional Imperative

Conditional Perfect

javais + achet tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

javais + appel tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

paie payons payez

javais + pay tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

paier/payer + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + pay tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

paier/payer + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + pay tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

prfre prfrons prfrez

javais + prfr tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

prfrer + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + prfr tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

prfr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + prfr tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Infinitive
recevant reu reoit recevons recevez reoivent reoivent ils ont receviez vous avez recevions nous avons reoive il a reois reoives tu as reois reoive jai + reu que tu aies quil ait

Pres. & Past Participles

que jaie + reu

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Past (pass compos)

Past Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative
recev + ais ais ait ions

recevoir1

D. VERBS ENDING IN -OIR

(to receive)

que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient

iez aient

Verbs like recevoir: devoir (dois, doive, d).

Past Perfect

Future

Future Perfect Conditional

Conditional Perfect

Imperative
reois recevons recevez

javais + reu tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

recevr + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + reu tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

recevr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + reu tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Infinitive
craignant craint crains crains craint craignons craignez craignent teins teins teint teignons teignez teignent teigne teignes teigne teignions teigniez teignent jai + teint tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + teint que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient craigne craignes craigne craignions craigniez craignent jai + craint tu as il a nous avons vous avez ils ont que jaie + craint que tu aies quil ait que nous ayons que vous ayez quils aient

Pres. & Past Participles

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Past (pass compos)

Past Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative
craign + ais ais ait ions iez aient teign + ais ais ait ions iez aient

E. VERBS ENDING IN -NDRE

craindre1 (to fear)

teindre2 (to extinguish)

teignant teint

Verbs like craindre: plaindre (to pity). The reflexive form, se plaindre, means to complain, and in the compound tenses is conjugated with tre.

Verbs like teindre: peindre (to paint); teindre (to dye).

Past Perfect

Future

Future Perfect Conditional

Conditional Perfect

Imperative
crains craignons craignez

javais + craint tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

craindr + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + craint tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

craindr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + craint tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

teint teignons teignez

javais + teint tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient

teindr + ai as a ons ez ont

jaurai + teint tu auras il aura nous aurons vous aurez ils auront

teindr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

jaurais + teint tu aurais il aurait nous aurions vous auriez ils auraient

Past (pass compos)

que je sois all(e) que tu sois all(e) quil soit all quelle soit alle que nous soyons all(e)s que vous soyez all(e)(s) quils soient alls quelles soient alles elles taient alles ils taient alls vous tiez all(e)(s) nous tions all(e)s elle tait alle elle sera alle nous serons all(e)s vous serez all(e)(s) ils seront alls elles seront alles il tait all il sera all tu tais all(e) tu seras all(e) jtais all(e) je serai all(e)

Past subjunctive

Past Perfect

Future Perfect

Conditional Perfect
je serais all(e) tu serais all(e) il serait all elle serait alle nous serions all(e)s vous seriez all(e)(s) ils seraient alls elles seraient alles

je suis all(e)

tu es all(e)

il est all

elle est alle

nous sommes all(e)s

vous tes all(e)(s)

ils sont alls

F. COMPOUND TENSES OF VERBS CONJUGATED WITH TRE

elles sont alles

Past (pass compos)

que je me sois lev(e) que tu te sois lev(e) quil se soit lev quelle se soit leve que nous nous soyons lev(e)s que vous vous soyez lev(e)(s) quils se soient levs quelles se soient leves ils staient levs elles staient leves lev(e)(s) vous vous tiez lev(e)s lev(e)s vous vous serez lev(e)(s) ils se seront levs elles se seront leves nous nous tions elle stait leve elle se sera leve nous nous serons il stait lev il se sera lev tu ttais lev(e) tu te seras lev(e) je mtais lev(e) je me serai lev(e)

Past subjunctive

Past Perfect

Future Perfect

Conditional Perfect
je me serais lev(e) tu te serais lev(e) il se serait lev elle se serait leve nous nous serions lev(e)s vous vous seriez lev(e)(s) ils se seraient levs elles se seraient leves

je me suis lev(e)

tu tes lev(e)

il sest lev

elle sest leve

nous nous sommes

lev(e)s

vous vous tes

lev(e)(s)

ils se sont levs

G. COMPOUND TENSES OF REFLEXIVE VERBS (ALL REFLEXIVE VERBS ARE CONJUGATED WITH TRE)

elles se sont leves

Past Definite1
finis finis finit finmes fintes finirent perdis perdis perdit perdmes perdtes perdirent eus parl eus parl eut parl emes parl etes parl eurent parl eus fini eus fini eut fini emes fini etes fini eurent fini eus perdu eus perdu eut perdu emes perdu etes perdu eurent perdu parlasse parlasses parlt parlassions parlassiez parlassent finisse finisses fint finissions finissiez finissent

Past Anterior2

Imperfect Subjunctive3
perdisse perdisses perdt perdissions perdissiez perdissent

parlai parlas parla parlmes parltes parlrent

H. INFREQUENTLY USED AND LITERARY TENSES (CLASSES I, II, III)

Used in formal narrative only. In informal conversation and writing, use the past tense (jai parl, etc.). Used in literary style only, after quand, lorsque, aprs que, and ds que for an event that happened just before another event. Example: Aprs quil eut dn, il sortit. (As soon as he had eaten, he went out.) 3 That I spoke, that I might speak, etc. This tense is infrequently found in ordinary conversation, but is used fairly often in literary works. All other regular verbs use either -er, -ir, or -re endings, depending on the conjugation to which they belong. The past definite forms of irregular verbs must be memorized.

Past Perfect Subjunctive4

que jeusse parl que tu eusses parl quil et parl que nous eussions parl que vous eussiez parl quils eussent parl

que jeusse fini que tu eusses fini quil et perdu que nous eussions fini que vous eussiez fini quils eussent fini

que jeusse perdu que tu eusses perdu quil et fini que nous eussions perdu que vous eussiez perdu quils eussent perdu

That I had spoken, that I might have spoken, etc. A predominantly literary tense.

Infinitive acquiers acqurons acqurez acquiers acquiers acquiert acqurons acqurez acquirent va allons allez vais vas va allons allez vont aille ailles aille allions alliez aillent all + ais ais ait ions iez aient ir + ai as a ons ez ont ir + ais ais ait ions iez aient acquire acquires acquire acqurions acquriez acquirent acqur + ais ais ait ions iez aient acquerr + ai as a ons ez ont acquerr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

acqurir acqurant avoir acquis (to acquire)

aller tre (to go)

allant all(e)(s)

37. FREQUENTLY USED IRREGULAR VERBS The correct auxiliary verb is indicated in italics below each verb. For compound tenses, use the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb + past participle.

(s)asseoir tre (to sit [down])

asseyant assis(e)(s)

assieds-toi asseyons-nous asseyez-vous

assieds assieds assied asseyons asseyez asseyent

asseye asseyes asseye asseyions asseyiez asseyent

assey + ais ais ait ions iez aient

asseyer + ai or as assir a or ons assoir ez ont

asseyer + ais or ais assir ait or ions assoir iez aient

Infinitive avoir avoir (to have) ayant eu

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

Imperative aie ayons ayez

ai as a avons avez ont

aie aies ait ayons ayez aient

av + ais ais ait ions iez aient

aur + ai as a ons ez ont

aur + ais ais ait ions iez aient

battre avoir (to beat)

battant battu

bats battons battez

bats bats bat battons battez battent

batte battes batte battions battiez battent

batt + ais ais ait ions iez aient

battr + ai as a ons ez ont

battr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

There is a variant form of the conjugation of sasseoir based on the present participle assoyant and first person singular assois, but it is rather archaic and is rarely used. There are also two variant forms for the future stem: assir- and assoir-. Assir- is the form most frequently used.

Infinitive boire avoir (to drink) bois buvons buvez buvant bu bois bois boit buvons buvez boivent conclus concluons concluez conclus conclus conclut concluons concluez concluent conclue conclues conclue concluions concluiez concluent conclu + ais ais ait ions iez aient conclur + ai as a ons ez ont conclur + ais ais ait ions iez aient boive boives boive buvions buviez boivent buv + ais ais ait ions iez aient boir + ai as a ons ez ont boir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

conclure concluant avoir conclu (to conclude)

conduire avoir (to drive, to lead)

conduisant conduit

conduis conduisons conduisez connatr + ai as a ons ez ont connatr + ais ais connais ait ions connaissons iez connaissez aient

conduis conduis conduit conduisons conduisez conduisent connais connais connat connaissons connaissez connaissent connaisse connaisses connaisse connaissions connaissiez connaissent connaiss + ais ais ait ions iez aient

conduise conduises conduise conduisions conduisiez conduisent

conduis + ais ais ait ions iez aient

conduir + ai as a ons ez ont

conduir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

connatre avoir (to know)

connaissant connu

Infinitive courir avoir (to run) cours courons courez courant couru cours cours court courons courez courent crois croyons croyez crois crois croit croyons croyez croient croie croies croie croyions croyiez croient croy + ais ais ait ions iez aient croir + ai as a ons ez ont croir + ais ais ait ions iez aient coure coures coure courions couriez courent cour + ais ais ait ions iez aient courr + ai as a ons ez ont courr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

croire avoir (to believe)

croyant cru

cueillir avoir (to gather, to pick)

cueillant cueilli

cueille cueillons cueillez

cueille cueilles cueille cueillons cueillez cueillent dois dois doit devons devez doivent doive doives doive devions deviez doivent dev + ais ais ait ions iez aient

cueille cueilles cueille cueillions cueilliez cueillent

cueill + ais ais ait ions iez aient

cueiller + ai as a ons ez ont devr + ai as a ons ez ont

cueiller + ais ais ait ions iez aient devr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

devoir avoir (to owe, ought)

devant d

not used

Infinitive dire avoir (to say, to tell) dis disons dites disant dit dis dis dit disons dites disent dors dormons dormez dors dors dort dormons dormez dorment dorme dormes dorme dormions dormiez dorment dorm + ais ais ait ions iez aient dormir + ai as a ons ez ont dormir + ais ais ait ions iez aient dise dises dise disions disiez disent dis + ais ais ait ions iez aient dir + ai as a ons ez ont dir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

dormir avoir (to sleep)

dormant dormi

crire avoir (to write)

crivant crit

cris crivons crivezs

cris cris crit crivons crivez crivent

crive crives crive crivions criviez crivent

criv + ais ais ait ions iez aient

crir + ai as a ons ez ont

crir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

envoyer avoir (to send)

envoyant envoy

envoie envoyons envoyez

envoie envoies envoie envoyons envoyez envoient

envoie envoies envoie envoyions envoyiez envoient

envoy + ais ais ait ions iez aient

enverr + ai as a ons ez ont

enverr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Infinitive tre avoir (to be) sois soyons soyez not used tant t suis es est sommes tes sont not used not used not used faillir + ai as a ons ez ont faillir + ais ais ait ions iez aient sois sois soit soyons soyez soient t + ais ais ait ions iez aient ser + ai as a ons ez ont ser + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

faillir avoir (to fail)

faillant failli

faire avoir (to do, to make)

faisant fait

fais faisons faites

fais fais fait faisons faites font il faut il faille il fallait il faudra

fasse fasses fasse fassions fassiez fassent

fais + ais ais ait ions iez aient

fer + ai as a ons ez ont

fer + ais ais ait ions iez aient il faudrait

falloir no pres. part. avoir fallu (to be necessary, must [used only with il])

not used

Used in such expressions as Il a failli tomber (He nearly fell [lit., he failed to fall]).

Infinitive fuir avoir (to flee) fuis fuyons fuyez fuyant fui fuis fuis fuit fuyons fuyez fuient has hassons hassez hais hais hait hassons hassez hassent hasse hasses hasse hassions hassiez hassent hass + ais ais ait ions iez aient har + ai as a ons ez ont har + ais ais ait ions iez aient fuie fuies fuie fuyions fuyiez fuient fuy + ais ais ait ions iez aient fuir + ai as a ons ez ont fuir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

har avoir (to hate)

hassant ha

lire avoir (to read)

lisant lu

lis lisons lisez

lis lis lit lisons lisez lisent

lise lises lise lisions lisiez lisent

lis + ais ais ait ions iez aient

lir + ai as a ons ez ont

lir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

mettre avoir (to put, to place)

mettant mis

mets mettons mettez

mets mets met mettons mettez mettent

mette mettes mette mettions mettiez mettent

mett + ais ais ait ions iez aient

mettr + ai as a ons ez ont

mettr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Infinitive mourir tre meurs mourons mourez mourant mort(e)(s) meurs meurs meurt mourons mourez meurent meus mouvons mouvez meus meus meut mouvons mouvez meuvent meuve meuves meuve mouvions mouviez meuvent mouv + ais ais ait ions iez aient mouvr + ai as a ons ez ont mouvr + ais ais ait ions iez aient meure meures meure mourions mouriez meurent mour + ais ais ait ions iez aient mourr + ai as a ons ez ont mourr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

mouvoir avoir (to move)

mouvant m

natre naissant tre n(e)(s) (to be born)

nais naissons naissez

nais nais nat naissons naissez naissent

naisse naisses naisse naissions naissiez naissent

naiss + ais ais ait ions iez aient

natr + ai as a ons ez ont

natr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

ouvrir avoir (to open)

ouvrant ouvert

ouvre ouvrons ouvrez

ouvre ouvres ouvre ouvrons ouvrez ouvrent

ouvre ouvres ouvre ouvrions ouvriez ouvrent

ouvr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

ouvrir + ai as a ons ez ont

ouvrir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Mouvoir is seldom used except in compounds like mouvoir (to move [emotionally]).

Infinitive partir tre (to leave, to depart) pars partons partez partant parti(e)(s) pars pars part partons partez partent plais plaisons plaisez il pleuvrait not used plais plais plat plaisons plaisez plaisent il pleut il pleuve il pleuvait il pleuvra plaise plaises plaise plaisions plaisiez plaisent plais + ais ais ait ions iez aient plair + ai as a ons ez ont plair + ais ais ait ions iez aient parte partes parte partions partiez partent part + ais ais ait ions iez aient partir + ai as a ons ez ont partir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

plaire plaisant avoir plu (to please, to be pleasing to) pleuvoir avoir (to rain [used only with il]) pouvoir avoir (to be able to, can) pouvant pu peux (puis) peux peut pouvons pouvez peuvent puisse puisses puisse puissions puissiez puissent pouv + ais ais ait ions iez aient pleuvant

pourr + ai as a ons ez ont

pourr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

not used

The interrogative of pouvoir in the first person singular is always Puis-je?

Infinitive prendre avoir (to take) prends prenons prenez prenant pris prends prends prend prenons prenez prennent rsous rsolvons rsolvez rsous rsous rsout rsolvons rsolvez rsolvent rsolve rsolves rsolve rsolvions rsolviez rsolvent rsolv + ais ais ait ions iez aient rsoudr + ai as a ons ez ont rsoudr + ais ais ait ions iez aient prenne prennes prenne prenions preniez prennent pren + ais ais ait ions iez aient prendr + ai as a ons ez ont prendr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

rsoudre avoir (to resolve)

rsolvant rsolu

rire avoir (to laugh)

riant ri

ris rions riez

ris ris rit rions riez rient

rie ries rie riions riiez rient

ri + ais ais ait ions iez aient

rir + ai as a ons ez ont

rir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

savoir avoir (to know)

sachant su

sache sachons sachez

sais sais sait savons savez savent

sache saches sache sachions sachiez sachent

sav + ais ais ait ions iez aient

saur + ai as a ons ez ont

saur + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Infinitive suffire avoir (to be enough, to suffice) suffis suffisons suffisez suivant suivi suffisant suffi suffis suffis suffit suffisons suffisez suffisent suis suivons suivez suis suis suit suivons suivez suivent suive suives suive suivions suiviez suivent suiv + ais ais ait ions iez aient suivr + ai as a ons ez ont suivr + ais ais ait ions iez aient suffise suffises suffise suffisions suffisiez suffisent suffis + ais ais ait ions iez aient suffir + ai as a ons ez ont suffir + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

suivre avoir (to follow)

(se) taire taisant tre tu(e)(s) (to be quiet, to say nothing) tenant tenu

tais-toi taisons-nous taisez-vous

tais tais tait taisons taisez taisent

taise taises taise taisions taisiez taisent

tais + ais ais ait ions iez aient

tair + ai as a ons ez ont

tair + ais ais ait ions iez aient

tenir avoir (to hold, to keep)

tiens tenons tenez

tiens tiens tient tenons tenez tiennent

tienne tiennes tienne tenions teniez tiennent

ten + ais ais ait ions iez aient

tiendr + ai as a ons ez ont

tiendr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Infinitive vaincre vainquant avoir vaincu (to conquer) vaincs vainquons vainquez vaincs vaincs vainc vainquons vainquez vainquent vaux valons valez vaux vaux vaut valons valez valent vaille vailles vaille valions valiez vaillent val + ais ais ait ions iez aient vaudr + ai as a ons ez ont vaudr + ais ais ait ions iez aient vainque vainques vainque vainquions vainquiez vainquent vainqu + ais ais ait ions iez aient vaincr + ai as a ons ez ont vaincr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional Imperative

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

valoir avoir (to be worth)

valant valu

venir tre (to come)

venant venu(e)(s)

viens venons venez

viens viens vient venons venez viennent

vienne viennes vienne venions veniez viennent

ven + ais ais ait ions iez aient

viendr + ai as a ons ez ont

viendr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

vivre avoir (to live)

vivant vcu

vis vivons vivez

vis vis vit vivons vivez vivent

vive vives vive vivions viviez vivent

viv + ais ais ait ions iez aient

vivr + ai as a ons ez ont

vivr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

The imperative of valoir is not often used.

Infinitive voir avoir (to see) voyant vu vois

Pres. & Past Participles Future Conditional

Present Indicative

Present Subjunctive

Imperfect Indicative

Imperative

vois vois voit voyons voyez voient

voie voies voie voyions voyiez voient

voy + ais ais ait ions iez aient

verr + ai as a ons ez ont

verr + ais ais ait ions iez aient

voyons voyez

vouloir avoir (to want)

voulant voulu

veuille veuillons veuillez

veux veux veut voulons voulez veulent

veuille veuilles veuille voulions vouliez veuillent

voul + ais ais ait ions iez aient

voudr + ai as a ons ez ont

voudr + ais ais ait ions iez aient