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Master French c…
The three words that make most French learners shudder: “French verbs conjugation.” We get it.
French isn’t exactly known for its easy grammar and French verb conjugation rules can give even
the most seasoned language learners a headache. To help you out, we’ve created a French verb
conjugation list, complete with examples and bonus grammar tips. We focus on the most common
French verbs and their conjugations in four tenses: présent (present), passé composé (present
perfect), imparfait (imperfect), and futur simple (future).
When you get the hang of these and equip yourself with some basic French vocabulary, there’ll be
no stopping you!
Conjugating verbs correctly is integral to successful communication. Even if you’re a pro at French
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question words, nouns, and pronouns, it’s difficult to express oneself confidently if you’re not
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confident in your French verb conjugations.
To set you up, here are the 20 most common French verbs conjugations, examples of their use in
everyday life, and grammar tips.
1. Être (to be)
Example:
Grammar tip:
“Être” is one of the two most important French verbs to learn when you’re learning French. French
verbs conjugation rules (alongside “avoir” — to have). “Être” has irregular conjugations in just about
every tense. It also serves as an auxiliary verb in several compound tenses and moods in French
(e.g. passé composé).
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Tu as Tu as eu Tu avais Tu auras
Example:
Nous avons eu deux réunions hier. (We had two meetings yesterday.)
Grammar tip:
Like “être”, “avoir” is an essential French verb and has irregular conjugations. For the vast majority
of French verbs conjugation, “avoir” serves as the auxiliary verb in the compound tenses and
moods.
E.g. Ils ont déjà vu le film. (They have already seen the film.)
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Ils allaient au parc tous les jours. (They went to the park every day.)
Grammar tip:
Verbs whose auxiliary verb is “être” must show agreement of their past participles in gender
(masculine or feminine — add e) and number (singular or plural — add s).
E.g.
E.g.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Grammar tip:
“Parler” fits the normal pattern for French verbs ending in -er, so it is a ‘regular’ -er verb.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Je fais le gâteau pour son anniversaire. (I’m making the cake for her birthday.)
Note: Unlike in English where the present tense has three different forms (the present simple, the
present progressive, and the present emphatic), there is only one present tense in French. Le temps
présent in French is used to express both momentary action and progressive action. So, “je fais le
gâteau” could be translated as “I make the cake”, “I’m making the cake”, and “I do make the cake”.
Grammar tip:
“Faire” is found in many French idiomatic expressions and is the key to the causative construction
(“faire” + infinitive).
E.g.
Il fait froid. (It’s cold.) *Notice that in expressions about the weather, “faire” becomes
equivalent to “to be”.
Elle fait des économies pour un voyage au Japon. (She is saving for a trip to Japan.)
La pluie fait pousser l’herbe plus vite. (The rain makes the grass grow faster.) *causative
construction
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Ils ont pris ses bagages par accident ! (They took her luggage by accident!)
Grammar tip:
Like “avoir” and “faire”, the verb “prendre” is one of the most commonly used and comes up in a
wide variety of idiomatic expressions in French.
E.g.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Voulez-vous une salade avec votre repas ? (Do you want a salad with your meal?)
Grammar tip:
“Vouloir” can be used to express a want or a desire, or to politely request something. It can also be
used to give strong commands or to willingly agree to something, amongst other uses.
Polite request: Voulez-vous tenir ça pour moi ? (Would you please hold this for me?)
Strong command: Je veux qu’il finisse ses tâches avant de sortir. (I want him to finish his
chores before he goes out.)
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Nous savions que cela arriverait. (We knew this would happen.)
Grammar tip:
“Savoir” is an irregular French -ir verb, like ouvrir, devoir, falloir, pleuvoir, pouvoir, recevoir, tenir, venir,
voir or vouloir.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Peux-tu s’il te plaît préparer le dîner de ce soir ? (Can you please cook the dinner tonight?)
Grammar tip:
E.g.
Je suis vraiment désolé, mais je ne peux pas vous aider avec ça. (I’m really sorry, but I can’t help
you with this.)
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Grammar tip:
E.g.
Elle vient de terminer son devoir. (She has just finished her paper.)
11. Dire
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yousay/tell)
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Example:
Il a dit à tout le monde que nous allions nous marier. (He told everyone we were getting married.)
Grammar tip:
Most French irregular verbs can be organized into five patterns, but “dire” does not fit into any of
them. This means you have to learn its conjugation by heart.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
4. Parler (to
speak/talk)
Example:
5. Faire (to
do)
Non, elle ne lui a pas donné ses livres. (No, she didn’t give him her books.)
6. Prendre (to
take)
Grammar tip:
7. Vouloir (to
want) “Donner” is also used in many idiomatic expressions.
8. Savoir (to
know) E.g.
9. Pouvoir (to
Donner l’exemple (to set an example)
be able to)
10. Venir (to Donner l’heure à quelqu’un (to tell someone the time)
come)
17. Habiter
(to live)
18. Regarder
(to look,
watch)
https://preply.com/en/blog/french-verbs-conjugation/#:~:text=We focus on the most,and futur simple (future). 13/24
20/09/2022, 23:44 Most Widely Used French Verbs and Their Conjugation
watch)
19. Utiliser (to Let’s get you talking. Choose from 32,000+ tutors in Find your
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
20. Essayer
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
(to try)
Let’s start
Je pense J’ai pensé Je pensais Je penserai
conjugating!
Example:
Grammar tip:
“Penser à” means “to think about” as “to have someone on your mind”:
Tu penses à elle, n’est-ce pas ? (You are thinking of her, aren’t you?)
Penser de means “to think about” in the sense of “having an opinion on”:
Que pensez-vous de cet hôtel ? (What do you think about this hotel?)
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Elle les aidera à déménager. (She will help them move apartments.)
Grammar tip:
“Aider” is a first group verb, so it follows the regular conjugation pattern of the first group verbs
that end in -er:
You first remove the -er from the end of the infinitive form of the verb (aider becomes aid). Then,
you add the appropriate endings (e.g. in present tense it’s: e, es, e, ons, ez, ent).
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Ils aimaient jouer ensemble quand ils étaient enfants. (They used to love playing together when
they were children.)
Grammar tip:
You can use aimer to express that you love, or are fond of someone or something.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Vous devez boire plus d’eau. (You need to drink more water.)
Grammar tip:
It’s easy to confuse “devoir” with “falloir”, which also implies an obligation or necessity. Devoir
indicates something that a person is obliged to do, while falloir expresses something that needs to
be done. Don’t worry if you’re confused, this is a difficult difference to understand!
E.g.
Je dois lui dire ça. Je ne peux pas mentir ! (I have to tell him this. I can’t lie!)
Il faut que je parte. Je vais être en retard ! (I must leave. I’ll be late!)
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Elle habitera en Allemagne l’année prochaine. (She will live in Germany next year.)
Grammar tip:
“Habiter” is often followed by a preposition (such as à, en, aux etc.) , but it technically doesn’t
require one.
J’habite Londres.
J’habite à Londres.
However, nowadays it’s much more common to place a preposition after the verb “habiter” than
not.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Ses parents regardaient la télé tous les soirs quand on n’était pas là. (His parents watched TV
every night when we were away.)
Grammar tip:
The French verb “regarder” is active (to watch, to look), while “voir” is more passive (to see, to view,
to witness). We use “regarder” when there’s an intention behind the action, and “voir” when we’re
just perceiving or witnessing our surroundings.
La semaine dernière, j’ai regardé les oiseaux dans la forêt. (Last week, I watched the birds in the
forest.)
La semaine dernière, j‘ai vu beaucoup d’oiseaux dans la forêt. (Last week, I saw many birds in the
forest.)
Meaning: Last week, when I was in the forest, I saw a lot of birds. I didn’t focus on them, it wasn’t
my intention to see them, I just became aware that they were there.
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Présent Passé composé (Present Imparfait Futur simple
(Present) perfect) (Imperfect) (Future)
Example:
Avez-vous déjà utilisé cet ordinateur ? (Have you used this computer before?)
Grammar tip:
“Utiliser” is a regular -er verb. It uses the same infinitive endings as the majority of French verbs
(e.g. “aimer”, “aider”, “parler”).
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Présent (Present) Passé composé Imparfait Futur simple (Future)
(Present perfect) (Imperfect)
Example:
Ils ont essayé de se rendre au Panama, mais leur vol était surbooké. (They tried to fly to Panama,
but their flight was overbooked.)
Grammar tip:
Usually, with French verbs that end in -yer such as “nettoyer” (to clean), the -y changes to -i before -
e, -es and -ent. However, with the verb “essayer”, the -y can, but doesn’t have to change into an -i. So
j’essaye and j’essaie, for example, are both correct. This is also the case with some other -ayer
verbs such as “payer” (to pay).
But you just made an important step! With this French verb conjugation list, you’re ready to start
parler le français.
To look up any other French verbs conjugations, check out Reverso Conjugation.
To memorise French verb conjugations, the popular French learning Youtuber behind
MyFrenchStory recommends speaking the conjugations out loud and spelling the endings, which is
how French children learn conjugations at school. You can learn more about that technique and
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MyFrenchStory here.
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Finally, to practice what you learned and use French verbs in real-life contexts, book a 1-on-1
lesson with a French teacher and take your French-speaking to the next level.
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Article by:
Ilma Ibrisevic
3 articles
Ilma Ibrisevic is a freelance content creator and a passionate traveler. Endlessly curious
about the world, she’s been captivated by other cultures and languages ever since she can
remember. She loves writing stories that help others learn and grow. She’s also
passionate about yoga, meditation, and well-being. Ilma speaks fluent English,
Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, knows French and a bit of German and Spanish.
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