French conjugation

Moods and tenses

There are seven different moods in French conjugation: indicative (indicatif), subjunctive (subjonctif), conditional (conditionnel), imperative (impératif), infinitive (infinitif), participle (participe), and gerund (gérondif). The infinitive, participle, and gerundive are not verbal moods.

Tenses are described under the mood to which they belong, and they are grouped as follows. Other tenses are constructed through the use of an auxiliary verb:

Indicative

Present (présent)

Present perfect (passé composé): literally "compound past", formed with an auxiliary verb in the present

Imperfect (imparfait)

Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait): literally "more than perfect", formed with an auxiliary verb in the imperfect

Simple past (passé simple)

Past perfect (passé antérieur): formed with an auxiliary verb in the simple past

Simple future (futur simple)

Future perfect (futur antérieur): formed with an auxiliary verb in the simple future

Subjunctive

Present

Past (passé): formed with an auxiliary verb in the subjunctive present

Imperfect

Pluperfect: formed with an auxiliary verb in the subjunctive imperfect

Imperative

Present

Past: formed with an auxiliary verb in the present imperative

Conditional

Present

Past (form 1): formed with an auxiliary verb in the present conditional

Past (form 2): formed with an auxiliary verb in the imperfect subjunctive

Infinitive

Present

Past: formed with an auxiliary verb in the present infinitive

Participle

Present

Past

Gerund: (constructed by preceding the present participle with the preposition en)

Auxiliary verbs

There are two auxiliary verbs in French: avoir (to have) and être (to be), used to conjugate compound tenses according to these rules:

Transitive verbs (direct or indirect) in the active voice are conjugated with the verb avoir.

Intransitive verbs are conjugated with either avoir or être (see French verbs#Temporal auxiliary verbs).

Reflexive verbs (or "pronominal verbs") are conjugated with être.

être is used to form the passive voice. être is itself conjugated according to the tense and mood, and this may require the use of avoir as an additional auxiliary verb, e.g. Il a été mangé (It was eaten).

Compound tenses are conjugated with an auxiliary followed by the past participle, ex: j'ai fait (I did), je suis tombé (I fell). When être is used, the participle is inflected according to the gender and number of the subject. The participle is inflected with the use of the verb avoir according to the direct object, but only if the direct object precedes the participle, ex:

il a marché, elle a marché, nous avons marché (he walked, she walked, we walked)

il est tombé, elle est tombée, nous sommes tombés, elles sont tombées (he fell, she fell, we fell, they (fem.) fell)

Il a acheté une voiture. Voilà la voiture qu'il a achetée. (He bought a car. Here is the car he bought)

As stand-alone verbs, the conjugation of the two auxiliaries is listed in the table below:

Avoir

This verb has different stems for different tenses. These are imperfect av- /av/; present subjunctive ai- /ɛ/; future and conditional aur- /oʁ/; simple past and past subjunctive e- (not pronounced: eus, eusse are pronounced as bare inflections /y, ys/). Although the stem changes, the inflections of these tenses are as a regular -oir verb.

In the present, not only are there stem changes, but the inflections are irregular as well:

* Notice that the imperative form uses the subjunctive conjugation.

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: avoir /avwaʁ/

Present participle: ayant /ejɑ̃/

Gerundive: en ayant /ɑ̃n‿ejɑ̃/

Verbal adjective: ayant(s) /ejɑ̃/, ayante(s) /ejɑ̃t/

Past participle: eu(e)(s) /y/

Auxiliary verb: avoir

Être

This verb has different stems for different tenses. These are all pronounced differently: imperfect ét- /et/; present subjunctive soi- /swa/; future and conditional ser- /səʁ/; simple past and past subjunctive in f- /f/. The inflections of these tenses are as a regular -oir verb (that is, as an -re verb but with the vowel u /y/ in the f- forms). For example, subjunctive soyons, soyez is pronounced with the y sound (/swajɔ̃, swaje/) of other -re and -oir verbs.

In the simple present, not only are there stem changes, but the inflections are irregular as well:

* The imperative form uses the subjunctive conjugation.

The non-finite forms use the stem êt- /ɛt/ (before a consonant)/ét- /et/ (before a vowel):

Infinitive: être

Present participle: étant

Gerundive: en étant

Verbal adjective: étant(e)(s)

Past participle: été

Auxiliary verb: avoir

First group verbs (-er verbs)

French verbs ending in -er, which comprise the largest class, inflect somewhat differently from other verbs. Between the stem and the inflectional endings that are common across most verbs, there may be a vowel, which in the case of the -er verbs is a silent -e- (in the simple present singular), -é or -ai /e/ (in the past participle and the je form of the simple past), and -a- /a/ (in the rest of simple past singular and in the past subjunctive). In addition, the orthographic -t found in the -ir and -re verbs in the singular of the simple present and past is not found in this conjugation, so that the final consonants are -Ø, -s, -Ø rather than -s, -s, -t.

Parler

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: parl-er /paʁle/

Present participle: parl-ant /paʁlɑ̃/

Gerundive: en parl-ant /ɑ̃ paʁlɑ̃/

Verbal adjective: parl-ant(s) /paʁlɑ̃/, parl-ante(s) /paʁlɑ̃t/

Past participle: parl-é(e)(s) /paʁle/

Auxiliary verb: avoir (arriver, entrer, monter, passer, rester, rentrer, retourner, and tomber use être)

Exceptional contexts:

When the first-person singular present tense form of the indicative or subjunctive is found in inversion, the writer must change the final e to either é (traditional usage) or è (rectified modern usage), in order to link the two words : « Parlè-je ? », /paʁlɛʒ/, "Am I speaking?" (This is a very rare construction, however.)

When the second-person singular form of the imperative is followed by its object y or en, a final s is added: « Parles-en ! », [paʁlzɑ̃], "Talk about it!"

Exceptional verbs:

The verb aller, though it ends in -er is completely irregular and belongs to the third group.

In -cer verbs, the c becomes a ç before endings that start with a or o, to indicate that it is still pronounced /s/ (je déplace - nous déplaçons); similarly, in -ger verbs, the g becomes ge before such endings, to indicate that it is pronounced /ʒ/ (je mange - nous mangeons).

In -oyer and -uyer verbs, the y becomes an i before endings that start with a silent e (nous envoyons - j'envoie); in -ayer verbs, the writer may or may not change the y to an i before such endings (je paye - je paie). Additionally, the future and conditional forms of envoyer start with enverr- rather than envoyer-; and similarly with renvoyer.

In -é.er verbs, the é becomes an è before silent endings, and optionally in the future and conditional tenses.

In -e.er verbs other than most -eler and -eter verbs, the e becomes an è before endings that start with a silent e (including the future and conditional endings). For example: peler (to peel) -> je pèle (present) / je pèlerai (futur) / je pèlerais (conditional).

In most -eler and -eter verbs, the writer must either change the e to an è before endings that start with a silent e, or change the l or t to ll or tt. In the rest of these verbs, only one or the other form is allowed. For example: appeler (to call) -> j'appelle (present) / j'appellerai (futur) / j'appellerais (conditional).

The verbal adjective of following verbs is irregular: adhérer - adhérent(e)(s); coïncider - coïncident(e)(s); confluer - confluent(e)(s); affluer - affluent(e)(s); converger - convergent(e)(s); déterger - détergent(e)(s); différer - différent(e)(s); exceller - excellent(e)(s); diverger - divergent(e)(s); négliger, négligent(e)(s); précéder - précédent(e)(s); violer - violent(e)(s); influer - influent(e)(s); communiquer - communicant(e)(s); suffoquer - suffocant(e)(s); provoquer - provocant(e)(s); naviguer - navigant(e)(s); déléguer - délégant(e)(s); fatiguer - fatigant(e)(s); intriguer - intrigant(e)(s).

Second group verbs (-ir verbs / gerund ending in -issant)

The -ir verbs differ from the -er verbs in the following points:

The vowel of the inflections is always -i-, for example -isse in the past subjunctive rather than the -asse of the -er verbs.

A few of the singular inflections themselves change, though this is purely orthographic and does not affect the pronunciation: in the simple present and past, these are -s, -s, -t rather than -Ø, -s, -Ø. (The change in pronunciation is due to the change of vowel from e, ai, a to -i-.)

In the simple present, imperfect, the present subjunctive, and the gerund, a suffix -iss- /is/ appears between the root and the inflectional endings. In the simple present singular, this suffix has disappeared and the endings are -is, -is, -it.

choisir

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: chois-ir /ʃwaziʁ/

Present participle: chois-issant /ʃwazisɑ̃/

Gerundive: en chois-issant /ɑ̃ ʃwazisɑ̃/

Verbal adjective: chois-issant(s) /ʃwazisɑ̃/, chois-issante(s) /ʃwazisɑ̃t/

Past participle: chois-i(e)(s) /ʃwazi/

Auxiliary verb: avoir (partir uses être)

haïr

The verb haïr loses its diaeresis in the singular of the simple present tense (the i loses its trema, reflecting the pronunciation of the initial syllable as a single vowel /ɛ/ rather than the hiatus /ai/): je hais, tu hais, il/elle hait but nous haïssons, vous haïssez, ils/elles haïssent /ʒə ɛ, ty ɛ, il ɛ, nu aisɔ̃, vu aise, il ais/. Hais is as usual used for the imperative. In all other forms, the root is /ai/ (imperfect and present & past subjunctive /ais/-, future and conditional /aiʁ/-). Another conjugation is used in Quebec French that keeps the two syllables stem with the hiatus /ai/, and therefore the diaeresis for all the paradigm: J'haïs, tu haïs, il/elle haït, nous haïssons, vous haïssez, ils/elles haïssent. Note that the h of haïr is mute in Quebec French, hence the elision for j'haïs /ʒai/ compared to European French je hais /ʒə.ɛ/.

First sub-conjugation: Verbs with seven principal parts

Most irregular French verbs can be described with seven principal parts. In reality, few if any verbs have separate stems for all seven parts; instead, they tend to "inherit" the same stem as another part. Note that the endings for these verbs are basically the same as for regular -ir verbs; in fact, regular -ir verbs can be fit into this scheme by treating the -iss- variants as different principal parts.

The following table shows how the paradigm of an irregular verb is constructed from its principal parts. Note that a few verbs construct the present indicative (especially the singular) differently.

¹ The -t is regularly dropped when directly following a d or t (e.g. il vend "he sells", not *il vendt).

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: (full infinitive, with suffix)

Present participle: 1P-ant

Gerundive: en 1P-ant

Verbal adjective: 1P-ant(e)(s)

Past participle: PP(e)(s)

The following table gives principal parts for a number of irregular verbs. There are a number of fair-sized groups of verbs that are conjugated alike; these are listed first. There are some additional irregularities in the present indicative, which are listed below. Nearly all irregularities affect the singular, and are purely issues of spelling. (Stems that are irregular in the sense of being unpredictable by the above rules are given in boldface.)

¹ Only in Quebec French

² The ending -t is regularly dropped when directly following a d or t (e.g. il vend "he sells", not *il vendt).

³ Alternation of "-ai-" and -oi- before consonant or unstressed e, "-ay-" and -oy- before other vowels is automatic in all verbs.

The following table shows an example paradigm of one of these verbs, recevoir "to receive".

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: recevoir

Present participle: recevant

Gerundive: en recevant

Verbal adjective: recevant(e)(s)

Past participle: reçu(e)(s)

Verbs with eleven principal parts

Nine verbs also have an irregular subjunctive stem, used at least for the singular and third plural of the present subjunctive. These verbs can be said to have 11 principal parts, because the subjunctive stem may or may not be used for the first and second plural present subjunctive, the imperative and/or the present participle, in ways that vary from verb to verb.

The following table shows how the paradigm of an 11-principal-part irregular verb is constructed from its principal parts. Note that these verbs are generally the most irregular verbs in French, and many of them construct the present indicative (especially the singular) in an idiosyncratic fashion. The verb aller also constructs its past participle and simple past differently, according to the endings for -er verbs.

Non-finite forms:

Infinitive: (full infinitive, with suffix)

Present participle: 1P-ant or SUBJ-ant

Gerundive: en 1P-ant or en SUBJ-ant

Verbal adjective: 1P-ant(e)(s) or SUBJ-ant(e)(s)

Past participle: PP(e)(s)

The following table gives the principal parts for the 11-principal-part verbs. (Stems that are irregular in the sense of being unpredictable by the above rules are given in boldface.)

Aller

The verb aller means "to go" and is sufficiently irregular that it merits listing its conjugation in full. It is the only verb with the first group ending "er" to have an irregular conjugation. It belongs to none of the three sections of the third group, and is often categorized on its own. The verb has different stems for different tenses. These are all pronounced differently: past all- /al/ (simple past, imperfect, past subjunctive); present subjunctive aill- /aj/; conditional and future ir- /iʁ/. The inflections of these tenses are completely regular, and pronounced as in any other -er verb. However, in the simple present, not only are there stem changes, but the inflections are irregular as well:

The non-finite forms are all based on all- /al/:

Infinitive: aller

Present participle: allant

Gerundive: en allant

Verbal adjective: allant(e)(s)

Past participle: allé(e)(s)

Auxiliary verb: être

¹ In Classical French and even in certain dialects (like in Cajun and some Quebec dialects) je vas is used.

Inflectional endings of the three verb groups

1. In an interrogative sentence, the final e is written é (traditional spelling) or è (rectified spelling), and is pronounced as an open è [ɛ]. Additionally, the e in je becomes silent. For example: je marche /ʒə.maʁʃ/ (I walk), marchè-je? /maʁʃɛʒ/ (do I walk?)

2. The following verbs have the ending -ont: ils sont (they are), ils ont (they have), ils font (they do), ils vont (they go).

2.1. Only the verb être has irregular endings here: nous sommes (we are), que je soi-s (that I be), que tu soi-s (that you be).

2.2. The following verbs (and their derivatives) have the ending -es: vous êtes (you are), vous faites (you do), vous dites (you tell).

2.3. Only the verbs être and avoir take a final t: qu'il/elle/on soi-t (that it/he/she/we be), qu'il/elle/on ai-t (that it/he/she/we have).

3. Only in je/tu peux (I/you can), je/tu veux (I/you want), and je/tu vaux (I am/you are 'worth').

4. Verbs in -dre have a final d for the 3rd singular person, except for those ending in -indre and -soudre which take a final t. The verbs vaincre (defeat) and convaincre (convince) are conjugated as vainc and convainc, respectively, in 3rd singular person.

5. The only verbs having this ending are: assaillir (assail), couvrir (cover), cueillir (pluck), défaillir (default), offrir (offer), ouvrir (open), souffrir (suffer), tressaillir (shiver), and in the imperative only, avoir (have), savoir (know), and vouloir (want).

6. Except for je vins (I came), je tins (I held), etc..., que je vinsse (that I come), que je tinsse (that I hold), etc...

The first-person plural in modern spoken French

The ending of the first-person plural -ons, along with the pronoun nous of the first-person plural, is rarely used in modern spoken French. They are replaced by the pronoun on, which uses the third-person singular form of the verb. For example, nous chantons ("we sing" or "we are singing"), is likely to be replaced by on chante in almost all contexts except in very careful language. This almost leads to a loss of a verb form in Modern French. However, the verb ending -ons can still be found in the imperative: Chantons ! ("Let's sing!"), which can also be replaced in some contexts by: On chante !