1.

Être (to be)

The undisputed most common verb in the French language. Take note of how often you use the verb “to
be” and its conjugations (am, are, is) in English, and you’ll see why être is so common in French.
Furthermore, even though this verb means “to be” by itself, it can also be used as a support verb for
compound verb tenses.

And even though être is irregular, once you have it memorized, it’s infinitely useful.

Check out these examples in the present tense:

Je suis un homme. (I am a man.)

Tu es une femme. (You are a woman.)

Il est professeur. (He is a professor.)

Elle est professeure. (She is a professor.)

Nous sommes étudiants. (We are students.)

Vous êtes professeurs. (You are professors.)

Ils sont étudiants. (They are students.)

Elles sont étudiantes. (They are students.)

2. Avoir (to have)

The second most common French verb, avoir (to have), is also irregular. As with être, this verb is used to
make compound verb tenses. But for now, let’s not worry about that.

On to conjugation:

J‘ai un chat. (I have a cat.)

Tu as un chien. (You have a dog.)

Il/elle a un livre. (He/she has a book.)

Nous avons des stylos. (We have some pens.)

Vous avez des crayons. (You have some pencils.)

Ils/elles ont des livres. (They have some books.)

3. Aller (to go)

It’s a bird, it’s a plane! No, it’s another irregular verb. In any case, aller is an extremely useful verb to
know, and it means “to go.” Like être and avoir, aller can be used in compound verbs, most notably in the
future tense.

Check out these examples:

Je vais au magasin. (I’m going to the store.)

Tu vas à l’école. (You’re going to school.)

Il/elle va chez moi. (He/she is going to my place.)

Nous allons à l’université. (We’re going to the university.)

Vous allez à la discothèque. (You’re going to the dance club.)

Ils/elles vont à la banque. (They’re going to the bank.)

4. Pouvoir (to be able to)

While also an irregular verb, pouvoir carries the same meaning as “can” in English. It’s a very common
verb, and it’s commonly used in the conditional form in order to make requests and ask for things in
restaurants, at hotels and in stores.

Check out its conjugation:

Je peux parler français. (I can speak French.)

Tu peux parler anglais. (You can speak English.)

Il/elle peut lire. (He/she can read.)

Nous pouvons aller. (We can go.)

Vous pouvez demander. (You can ask.)

Ils/elles peuvent manger. (They can eat.)

5. Vouloir (to want)

In a lot of ways, the conjugation of vouloir is much like the conjugation of pouvoir. It means “to want” in
English, and once again, this verb is used to make requests and ask for things when it’s conjugated into
the conditional tense.

Check out this verb in action:

Je veux un livre. (I want a book.)

Tu veux un stylo. (You want a pen.)

Il/elle veut des crayons. (He/she wants some pencils.)

Nous voulons un chat. (We want a cat.)

Vous voulez un chien. (You want a dog.)

Ils/elles veulent un café. (They want a coffee.)

6. Faire (to do)

What we would do without the verb “to do”? Not much, I guess. Faire is the French verb meaning “to
do” or “to make,” and like the others on this list, it’s common not only in vocabulary but also in its
grammatical function. For example, it can be used in imperative or command phrases such as Faites vos
devoirs ! (Do your homework!). And you guessed it, this verb is also irregular.

Check it out:

Je fais mes devoirs. (I’m doing my homework.)

Tu fais la lessive. (You’re doing the laundry.)

Il/elle fait un gâteau. (He/she makes a cake.)

Nous faisons des biscuits. (We’re making cookies.)

Vous faites une tasse de café. (You’re making a cup of coffee.)

Ils/elles font leur travail. (They’re doing their work.)

7. Parler (to speak)

At long last: a regular verb! The verb parler (to speak) is a regular verb and it follows the regular -er
ending conjugation pattern, which involves dropping the -er ending and adding other endings. This verb
is also very common in French, as it’s often used to ask the question Parlez-vous français (Do you speak
French?). And because it’s regular, you can learn these endings and use them with other verbs that end
in -er.

Je parle français. (I speak French.)

Tu parles anglais. (You speak English.)

Il/elle parle espagnol. (He/she speaks Spanish.)

Nous parlons hollandais. (We speak Dutch.)

Quelle langue parlez-vous ? (Which language do you speak?)

Ils/elles parlent allemand. (They speak German.)

8. Demander (to ask)

And what do we have here? Another regular verb! As with the verb parler, demander is a regular -er verb
that means “to ask.” Don’t get confused, though: Even though demander can be used to mean “to ask,”
the fixed expression poser une question means “to ask a question.” By the way, poser is also a regular -er
verb. Lucky you!

Check out the conjugation for demander:

Je demande de l’aide. (I ask for help.)

Tu me demandes pourquoi. (You ask me why.)

Il/elle demande un stylo. (He/she asks for a pen.)

Nous demandons un café et un thé. (We ask for a coffee and a tea.)

Vous demandez que le professor explique le test. (You ask the professor to explain the test.)
Ils/elles demandent quelque chose à manger. (They ask for something to eat.)

9. Savoir (to know)

Ready for another situation where French and English translations don’t quite match? Well, look no
further. Much in the same way there’s a distinction between demander (to ask) and poser (to ask [a
question]), savoir (to know) has a friend also: connaître (to know). The distinction is complex, so for now,
let’s just say that savoir means “to know something” like a fact or a skill.

In any case, savoir is irregular. Check it out:

Je sais parler français. (I know how to speak French.)

Tu sais que j’aime les langues. (You know that I like languages.)

Il/elle sait parler anglais. (She knows how to speak English.)

Nous savons tout. (We know everything.)

Que savez-vous ? (What do you know?)

Ils/elles savent. (They know.)

10. Venir (to come)

Last but not least, we have the verb venir (to come), and where would this list be without the final verb
being an irregular one?

Check out its conjugation.

Je viens de Paris. (I come from Paris.)

Tu viens de Toronto. (You come from Toronto.)

Il/elle vient à midi. (He/she is coming at noon.)

Nous venons de Tokyo. (We come from Tokyo.)

D’où venez-vous ? (Where do you come from?)

Ils/elles viennent à minuit. (They’re coming at midnight.)

Want more common French verbs? Check out the next 15 most common verbs below:

Dire means “to say,” and is an irregular verb.

Devoir means “to have to/must,” and is an irregular verb.

Donner means “to give,” and is a regular -er verb.

Falloir means “to need to/to be necessary,” and is an irregular verb.

Trouver means “to find,” and is a regular -er verb.

Manger means “to eat,” and is a regular -er verb.

Rendre means “to return/to give back,” and is a regular -re verb.

Mettre means “to put,” and is an irregular verb.

Rester means “to stay,” and is a regular -er verb.

Tenir means “to hold,” and is an irregular verb.

Prendre means “to take,” and is an irregular verb.

Passer means “to pass,” and is a regular -er verb.

Comprendre means “to understand,” and is an irregular verb (conjugated like prendre).

Sortir/partir are two verbs that mean “to leave,” and they’re both irregular verbs