French conjugation
Overview of conjugation in French From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
French conjugation is the variation in the endings of French verbs (inflections) depending on the person (I, you, we, etc), tense (present, future, etc.) and mood (indicative, imperative, subjunctive, etc.). Most verbs are regular and can be entirely determined by their infinitive form (ex. parler), however irregular verbs require the knowledge of more than just the infinitive form, known as the principal parts, of which there are seven in French. With the knowledge of these seven principal parts of a verb, one can conjugate almost all French verbs. However, a handful of verbs, including être, are highly irregular and the seven principal parts are not sufficient to conjugate the verb fully.
French verbs are conventionally divided into three conjugations (conjugaisons) with the following grouping:
- 1st group: verbs ending in -er (except aller and its derivates)
- 2nd group: verbs ending in -ir, with the present participle ending in -issant
- 3rd group: verbs ending in -re (with the exception of irregular verbs)
- 1st section: verbs ending in -ir, with the present participle ending in -ant
- 2nd section: verbs ending in -oir
- 3rd section: verbs ending in -re
- aller and its derivates
The first two groups follow a regular conjugation, whereas the third group is more complex. The third group is considered a closed-class conjugation form,[1] meaning that most new verbs introduced to the French language are of the first group (téléviser, atomiser, radiographier), with the remaining ones being of the second group (alunir).
The verb aller and its derivates are the only verbs ending in -er belonging to the third group.
The verb forms of French are the finite forms which are combinations of grammatical moods in various tenses and the non-finite forms. The moods are: indicative (indicatif), subjunctive (subjonctif), conditional (conditionnel) and imperative (impératif). There are simple (one-word) tenses and those constructed with an auxiliary verb. It is the simple tenses that are subject to conjugation rules, since in the others it is the auxiliary verb that is conjugated as a simple verb. The finite forms are:
- Indicative
- Present (présent) which is simple
- Present perfect (passé composé): literally "compound past", formed with an auxiliary verb in the present
- Imperfect (imparfait), simple
- Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait): literally "more than perfect", formed with an auxiliary verb in the imperfect
- Simple past (passé simple) Conventionally used only in written language (especially in literature) or in extremely formal speech.
- Past perfect (passé antérieur): formed with an auxiliary verb in the simple past. It is somewhat rare.
- Simple future (futur simple)
- Future perfect (futur antérieur): formed with an auxiliary verb in the simple future
- Subjunctive
- Present, simple
- Past (passé): formed with an auxiliary verb in the subjunctive present
- Imperfect, simple. Somewhat rare.
- Pluperfect: formed with an auxiliary verb in the subjunctive imperfect. Somewhat rare.
- Imperative
- Present, simple
- Past: formed with an auxiliary verb in the present imperative. Very rarely used in contemporary French.
- 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. Rarely used.
The non-finite forms are:
- Past participle
- Present participle
- Gerundive: (constructed by preceding the present participle with the preposition en)
Both participles may be used as adjectives in which case they are inflected as adjectives. Used as an adjective the present participle is known as the verbal adjective. There are some cases where a form similar but not identical to the present participle is used for the verbal adjective.
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 appendix at the end of the article.
French verbs ending in -er, which constitute 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 (in the past participle and the je form of the simple past), and -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.
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple past | Imperfect | Future | Imperfect | Present | Present | ||
| je | parl-e | parl-ai | parl-ais | parler-ai | parl-e | parl-ass-e | parler-ais | |
| tu | parl-es | parl-as | parler-as | parl-es | parl-ass-es | parl-e | ||
| il/elle | parl-e | parl-a | parl-ait | parler-a | parl-e | parl-ât | parler-ait | |
| nous | parl-ons | parl-âmes | parl-ions | parler-ons | parl-ions | parl-ass-ions | parler-ions | parl-ons |
| vous | parl-ez | parl-âtes | parl-iez | parler-ez | parl-iez | parl-ass-iez | parler-iez | parl-ez |
| ils/elles | parl-ent | parl-èrent | parl-aient | parler-ont | parl-ent | parl-ass-ent | parler-aient | |
Present participle: parl-ant
Past participle: parl-é
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 ? », , "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 ! », , "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 déplac-e - nous déplaç-ons); similarly, in -ger verbs, the g becomes ge before such endings, to indicate that it is pronounced /ʒ/ (je mang-e - nous mange-ons).
- In -oyer and -uyer verbs, the y becomes an i before endings that start with a silent e (nous envoy-ons - j'envoi-e); in -ayer verbs, the writer may or may not change the y to an i before such endings (je pa-ye - je pa-ie). 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 p-èle (present) / je p-èlerai (futur) / je p-èlerais (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'appel-le (present) / j'appel-lerai (futur) / j'appel-lerais (conditional).
- The verbal adjective of following verbs is irregular: adhérer - adhérent; coïncider - coïncident; confluer - confluent; affluer - affluent; converger - convergent; déterger - détergent; différer - différent; exceller - excellent; diverger - divergent; négliger - négligent; précéder - précédent; violer - violent; influer - influent; communiquer - communicant; suffoquer - suffocant; provoquer - provocant; naviguer - navigant; déléguer - délégant; fatiguer - fatigant; intriguer - intrigant.
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 present participle, a suffix -iss- appears between the root and the inflectional endings. In the simple present singular, this suffix has disappeared and the endings are -is, -is, -it.
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple Past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | chois-is | chois-iss-ais | choisir-ai | chois-iss-e | choisir-ais | |||
| tu | choisir-as | chois-iss-es | chois-is | |||||
| il/elle | chois-it | chois-iss-ait | choisir-a | chois-iss-e | chois-ît | choisir-ait | ||
| nous | chois-iss-ons | chois-îmes | chois-iss-ions | choisir-ons | chois-iss-ions | choisir-ions | chois-iss-ons | |
| vous | chois-iss-ez | chois-îtes | chois-iss-iez | choisir-ez | chois-iss-iez | choisir-iez | chois-iss-ez | |
| ils/elles | chois-iss-ent | chois-irent | chois-iss-aient | choisir-ont | chois-iss-ent | choisir-aient | ||
Present participle: chois-iss-ant
Past participle: chois-i
Auxiliary verb: avoir (partir uses être)
Most verbs of the third group end in -re. A few end in -ir and three end in -er. Most can be described with seven principal parts. No verbs has 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.
| Principal part | How to get the stem | "Inherited" (regular) value of stem | Key |
|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | Remove ending -er, -ir, -oir, -re | — | INF |
| First singular present indicative | Remove ending -s, -e | Infinitive stem (INF) | 1S |
| First plural present indicative | Remove ending -ons | Infinitive stem (INF) | 1P |
| Third plural present indicative | Remove ending -ent | First plural present stem (1P) | 3P |
| (First singular) future | Remove ending -ai | Full infinitive (minus any -e) | FUT |
| (Masculine singular) past participle | Full word | Infinitive stem (INF), plus -i (plus -u if ends -re) | PP |
| (First singular) simple past | Remove ending -s, -ai | Past participle (PP) (minus any -s or -t) | PAST |
The following table shows how the conjugation of an irregular verb is constructed from its principal parts. Note that a few verbs construct the present indicative (especially the singular) differently.
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | 1S+s | PAST+s | 1P+ais | FUT+ai | 3P+e | PAST+sse | FUT+ais | |
| tu | FUT+as | 3P+es | PAST+sses | 1S+s / 1S+t2 | ||||
| il/elle | 1S+t1 | PAST+t | 1P+ait | FUT+a | 3P+e | PAST+ˆt | FUT+ait | |
| nous | 1P+ons | PAST+ˆmes | 1P+ions | FUT+ons | 1P+ions | PAST+ssions | FUT+ions | 1P+ons |
| vous | 1P+ez | PAST+ˆtes | 1P+iez | FUT+ez | 1P+iez | PAST+ssiez | FUT+iez | 1P+ez |
| ils/elles | 3P+ent | PAST+rent | 1P+aient | FUT+ont | 3P+ent | PAST+ssent | FUT+aient | |
1 The -t is regularly dropped when directly following a d or t (e.g. il vend "he sells", not *il vendt).
2 +t if ends with vowel, else +s.
Present participle: 1P-ant
Past participle: PP
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.)
| INF | Meaning | FUT | Present Indicative | PP | PAST | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1S | 1P | 3P | ||||||
| chois-ir 4 | to choose | choisir-ai | choisi-s | choisiss-ons | choisiss-ent | choisi | choisi-s | 5 |
| haïr | to hate | haïr-ai | hai-s / haï-s1 | haïss-ons | haïss-ent | haï | haï-s | 5 |
| part-ir 4 | to leave | partir-ai | par-s | part-ons | part-ent | parti | parti-s | 5 |
| vêt-ir 4 | to dress | vêtir-ai | vêt-s, vêt2 | vêt-ons | vêt-ent | vêtu | vêti-s | 5 |
| requér-ir | to require, demand | requerr-ai | requier-s | requér-ons | requièr-ent | requis | requi-s | |
| ven-ir 4 | to come | viendr-ai | vien-s | ven-ons | vienn-ent | venu | vin-s | 5 |
| mour-ir | to die | mourr-ai | meur-s | mour-ons | meur-ent | mort | mouru-s | |
| cour-ir | to run | courr-ai | cour-s | cour-ons | cour-ent | couru | couru-s | |
| ouvr-ir 4 | to open | ouvrir-ai | ouvr-e, ouvr-es, ouvr-e | ouvr-ons | ouvr-ent | ouvert | ouvri-s | 5 |
| cueill-ir | to gather | cueiller-ai | cueill-e, cueill-es, cueill-e | cueill-ons | cueill-ent | cueilli | cueilli-s | 5 |
| asse-oir | to sit | assiér-ai; assoir-ai | assied-s, assied;2 assoi-s | assey-ons; assoy-ons | assey-ent; assoi-ent | assis | assi-s | 5 |
| envoy-er 4 | to send | enverr-ai | envoi-e3 | envoy-ons3 | envoi-ent3 | envoyé | envoy-ai | 5 |
| voir 4 | to see | verr-ai | voi-s | voy-ons | voi-ent3 | vu | vi-s | |
| recev-oir 4 | to receive | recevr-ai | reçoi-s | recev-ons | reçoiv-ent | reçu | reçu-s | |
| dev-oir | to owe, must | devr-ai | doi-s | dev-ons | doiv-ent | dû | du-s | |
| mouv-oir | to move | mouvr-ai | meu-s | mouv-ons | meuv-ent | mû | mu-s | |
| émouv-oir 4 | to move, affect | émouvr-ai | émeu-s | émouv-ons | émeuv-ent | ému | ému-s | |
| choir 4 | to fall | choir-ai; cherr-ai | choi-s | choy-ons | choi-ent3 | chu | chu-s | |
| pleuv-oir | to rain | pleuvr-a | pleu-t | (stem) pleuv- | (stem) pleuv- | plu | plu-t | 5 |
| vend-re 4 | to sell | vendr-ai | vend-s, vend2 | vend-ons | vend-ent | vendu | vendi-s | 5 |
| batt-re | to beat | battr-ai | bat-s, bat2 | batt-ons | batt-ent | battu | batti-s | 5 |
| romp-re | to break | rompr-ai | romp-s | romp-ons | romp-ent | rompu | rompi-s | 5 |
| vainc-re 4 | to conquer | vaincr-ai | vainc-s, vainc | vainqu-ons | vainqu-ent | vaincu | vainqui-s | 5 |
| craind-re 4 | to fear | craindr-ai | crain-s | craign-ons | craign-ent | craint | craign-is | |
| condui-re 4 | to lead | conduir-ai | condui-s | conduis-ons | conduis-ent | conduit | conduisi-s | |
| trai-re 4 | to milk | trair-ai | trai-s | tray-ons3 | trai-ent3 | trai-t | tray-ai | 5 |
| prend-re 4 | to take | prendr-ai | prend-s, prend2 | pren-ons | prenn-ent | pris | pri-s | |
| mett-re 4 | to put | mettr-ai | met-s, met2 | mett-ons | mett-ent | mis | mi-s | |
| écri-re 4 | to write | écrir-ai | écri-s | écriv-ons | écriv-ent | écrit | écrivi-s | |
| boi-re | to drink | boir-ai | boi-s | buv-ons | boiv-ent | bu | bu-s | |
| di-re 4 | to say, tell | dir-ai | di-s | dis-ons, dites | dis-ent | dit | di-s | |
| li-re | to read | lir-ai | li-s | lis-ons | lis-ent | lu | lu-s | |
| suffi-re 4 | to suffice | suffir-ai | suffi-s | suffis-ons | suffis-ent | suffi | suffi-s | |
| plai-re 4 | to please | plair-ai | plai-s, plaît | plais-ons | plais-ent | plu | plu-s | 5 |
| croi-re | to believe | croir-ai | croi-s | croy-ons3 | croi-ent3 | cru | cru-s | |
| brui-re | to make a low noise | bruir-ai | brui-t | (stem) bruiss- | bruiss-ent | brui | brui-t | |
| maudi-re | to curse | maudir-ai | maudi-t | maudiss-ons | maudiss-ent | maudit | maudi-t | 5 |
| ri-re 4 | to laugh | rir-ai | ri-s | ri-ons | ri-ent | ri | ri-s | |
| conclu-re 4 | to conclude | conclur-ai | conclu-s | conclu-ons | conclu-ent | conclu | conclu-s | |
| viv-re 4 | to live | vivr-ai | vi-s | viv-ons | viv-ent | vécu | vécu-s | |
| suiv-re 4 | to follow | suivr-ai | sui-s | suiv-ons | suiv-ent | suivi | suivi-s | |
| connaît-re 4 | to know | connaîtr-ai | connai-s, connaît | connaiss-ons | connaiss-ent | connu | connu-s | 5 |
| naît-re | to be born | naîtr-ai | nai-s, naît | naiss-ons | naiss-ent | né | naqui-s | 5 |
| coud-re | to sew | coudr-ai | coud-s, coud2 | cous-ons | cous-ent | cousu | cousi-s | |
| moud-re | to grind, mill | moudr-ai | moud-s, moud2 | moul-ons | moul-ent | moulu | moulu-s | |
| résoud-re | to solve, resolve | résoudr-ai | résou-s | résolv-ons | résolv-ent | résolu | résolu-s | |
| absoud-re | to solve, absolve | absoudr-ai | absou-s | absolv-ons | absolv-ent | absous, absoute | absolu-s | 5 |
| clo-re | to close | clor-ai | clo-s, clôt | clos-ons | clos-ent | clos | – | 5 |
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.
4 See following table for similar verbs.
5 See following table for notes.
| choisir | Note: How a regular -ir verb would be represented by its principal parts
There are about 300 verbs in -ir |
| haïr | Note: The same as a regular -ir verb but in Sing. pres. indic. the diaeresis drops out |
| partir | Note: Sing. pres. indic. stem drops last consonant of basic stem: je pars, dors, mens, sors, sens, sers /ʒ(ə) paʁ, dɔʁ, mɑ̃, sɔʁ, sɑ̃, sɛʁ/
Similarly conjugated verbs: se départir "divest", repartir "leave again", dormir "sleep", s'endormir "fall asleep", se rendormir "fall back asleep", mentir "lie (tell lies)", démentir "contradict", sentir "feel", consentir "agree", pressentir "foresee", ressentir "feel", servir "serve", desservir "clear away", resservir "serve again", sortir "go out", ressortir "come back" |
| vêtir | Note: The same as partir, except for the past participle
Similar: dévêtir "undress", revêtir "cover" |
| venir | Note simple past plural vînmes, vîntes, vinrent /vɛ̃m, vɛ̃t, vɛ̃ʁ/
Similar: revenir "return", devenir "become", se souvenir "remember", parvenir "reach", prévenir "tell beforehand"; tenir "hold", retenir "memorize", contretenir "talk", soutenir "sustain", maintenir "maintain", appartenir "belong", etc. |
| ouvrir | Note: Sing. pres. indic. uses endings -e -es -e, as with -er verbs
Similar: couvrir "cover", découvrir "discover", offrir "offer", souffrir "suffer" |
| cueillir | Note: Like ouvrir except the future; sing. pres. indic. uses endings -e -es -e, as with -er verbs |
| asseoir | Notice that there are two sets of conjugations. |
| envoyer | Note: 1st group verb
Similar: renvoyer "resend" |
| voir | Similar: revoir "see again", prévoir "foresee" |
| recevoir | Similar: Other verbs in -cevoir, e.g. apercevoir "perceive", concevoir "conceive", décevoir "disappoint" |
| devoir | Note: Very similar to recevoir, but adds a circumflex to du to distinguish it from the partitive article du - due, dus and dues remain unchanged |
| mouvoir | Adds a circumflex to mu to distinguish it from the Greek letter mu (μ) - mue, mus and mues remain unchanged |
| émouvoir | Similar: promouvoir "promote" |
| choir | Missing the indicative imperfect and the subjunctive mood (except by chût, in singular 3rd person imperfect subjunctive)
Similar: échoir "befall" |
| pleuvoir | Impersonal (3rd-singular only) |
| vendre | So-called "regular -re" verbs; all end in -dre, but not -indre
Similar: attendre "wait", défendre "defend", descendre "go down", entendre "hear", étendre "extend", fondre "melt", pendre "hang", perdre "lose", prétendre "pretend", rendre "return, give back", répandre "spill", répondre "respond", etc. |
| battre | Close to vendre |
| rompre | Very close to vendre |
| vaincre | Essentially same as vendre, except for c/qu variation
Similar: convaincre "convince" |
| craindre | Similar: All verbs in -aindre, -eindre, -oindre, e.g. contraindre "compel", plaindre "complain"; atteindre "reach", ceindre "gird", empreindre "stamp", éteindre "turn off", étreindre "hug", feindre "pretend", geindre "whine", peindre "paint", restreindre "restrict", teindre "dye"; joindre "join", oindre "anoint", poindre "dawn", rejoindre "rejoin" |
| conduire | Similar: All verbs in -uire e.g. construire "build", cuire "cook", détruire "destroy", instruire "instruct", réduire "reduce", produire "produce", traduire "translate", etc. |
| traire | PS is conjugated as in 1st group verbs.
Similar: contraire "contract", extraire "extract", soustraire "subtract", retraire "withdraw" |
| prendre | Similar: comprendre "understand", apprendre "study", reprendre "take again", etc. |
| mettre | Similar: promettre "promise", permettre "permit", compromettre "compromise, damage", soumettre "submit, subdue", transmettre "transmit" |
| écrire | Similar: décrire "describe", inscrire "inscribe" |
| suffire | Similar: confire "pickle", circoncire "circumcise", frire "fry" |
| plaire | Note the 3rd sg. plaît
Similar: déplaire "displease" |
| bruire | Rare outside of third person, conjugated like choisir (regular -ir verbs) |
| maudire | Very close to bruire |
| rire | Similar: sourire "smile" |
| conclure | Similar: Other verbs in -clure |
| vivre | Similar: revivre "come alive again", survivre "survive" |
| suivre | Similar: poursuivre "pursue" |
| connaître | note the 3rd sg. connaît
Similar: reconnaître "recognize", paraître "seem", apparaître "appear", reparaître "reappear", disparaître "disappear" |
| naître | Note the 3rd sg. naît |
| absoudre | The same as résoudre, except for the past participle. Note the masculine absous and feminine absoute |
| clore | Missing the subjunctive and indicative imperfect, as well as the simple past tense. Note the 3rd sg. clôt |
Example
Infinitive: recevoir "to receive"
INF: recev-
1S: reçoi-
1P: recev-
3P: reçoiv-
FUT: recevr-
PP: reçu-
PAST: reçu-
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple Past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | reçoi-s | reçu-s | recev-ais | recevr-ai | reçoiv-e | reçu-sse | recevr-ais | |
| tu | recevr-as | reçoiv-es | reçu-sses | reçoi-s | ||||
| il/elle | reçoi-t | reçu-t | recev-ait | recevr-a | reçoiv-e | reçû-t | recevr-ait | |
| nous | recev-ons | reçû-mes | recev-ions | recevr-ons | recev-ions | reçu-ssions | recevr-ions | recev-ons |
| vous | recev-ez | reçû-tes | recev-iez | recevr-ez | recev-iez | reçu-ssiez | recevr-iez | recev-ez |
| ils/elles | reçoiv-ent | reçu-rent | recev-aient | recevr-ont | reçoiv-ent | reçu-ssent | recevr-aient | |
Present participle: recev-ant
Past participle: reçu
Verbs with irregular subjunctive stem
There are nine verbs which have an irregular subjunctive stem. These verbs are generally the most irregular verbs in French. With them the 3P stem plays no role and the 1S stem is little use in inferring the present indicative inflections. 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.
A feature with these verbs is the competition between the SUBJ stem and the 1P stem to control the first and second plural present subjunctive, the imperative and the present participle, in ways that vary from verb to verb.
The paradigm taking into account the subjunctive stem is shown in the following table. The keys 1S etc are as for the 7 principal part irregular verbs. In addition SUBJ stands for first person singular present subjunctive stem.
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | 1S+s | PAST+s | 1P+ais | FUT+ai | SUBJ+e | PAST+sse | FUT+ais | |
| tu | FUT+as | SUBJ+es | PAST+sses | 1S+s / 1S+t1 or SUBJ+e | ||||
| il/elle | 1S+t | PAST+t | 1P+ait | FUT+a | SUBJ+e | PAST+ˆt | FUT+ait | |
| nous | 1P+ons | PAST+ˆmes | 1P+ions | FUT+ons | SUBJ+ions or 1P+ions | PAST+ssions | FUT+ions | 1P+ons or SUBJ+ons |
| vous | 1P+ez | PAST+ˆtes | 1P+iez | FUT+ez | SUBJ+iez or 1P+iez | PAST+ssiez | FUT+iez | 1P+ez or SUBJ+ez |
| ils/elles | 3P+ent | PAST+rent | 1P+aient | FUT+ont | SUBJ+ent | PAST+ssent | FUT+aient | |
1 +t if ends with vowel, else +s
Present participle: 1P-ant or SUBJ-ant
Past participle: PP(e)(s)
The following table gives the principal parts of the nine verbs. Stems that are irregular in the sense of being unpredictable by the above rules are shown in boldface. The column headed 1/2 Plural tells whether the subjunctive 1st and 2nd person plural follow the subjunctive stem or the 1P indicative stem. Likewise the Imperative column and the Present Participle column. Still there are irregularites where the inflections depart from the paradigm. These cases are indicated with an asterisk and the exceptional inflections are listed separately.
| INF | Meaning | FUT | 1P | Present Subjunctive | Imperative | Present Participle | PP | PAST | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUBJ | 1/2 Plural | |||||||||
| pouv-oir | be able, can | pourr-ai | pouv-ons | puiss-e | SUBJ+... | 1P+... | 1P+ant2 | pu | pu-s | |
| sav-oir | know | saur-ai | sav-ons | sach-e | SUBJ+... | SUBJ+... | SUBJ+ant | su | su-s | |
| voul-oir | want | voudr-ai | voul-ons | veuill-e | 1P+... | SUBJ+... | 1P+ant | voulu | voulu-s | |
| val-oir | be worth | vaudr-ai | val-ons | vaill-e | 1P+... | 1P+...* | 1P+ant | valu | valu-s | |
| fall-oir | be necessary | faudr-a | (stem) fall- | faill-e | – | – | – | fallu | fallu-t | 2 |
| fai-re1 | do | fer-ai | fais-ons* | fass-e | SUBJ+... | 1P+... | 1P+ant | fait | fi-s | |
| av-oir | have | aur-ai | av-ons | ai-e | SUBJ+...* | SUBJ+... | SUBJ+ant | eu | eu-s | |
| êt-re | be | ser-ai | (stem) ét- | (stem) soi- | SUBJ+...* | SUBJ+...* | 1P+ant | été | fu-s | |
| all-er | go | ir-ai | all-ons | aill-e | 1P+... | 1P+...* | 1P+ant | allé | all-ai | |
* See following table for exceptions.
| pouvoir | Indicative present | je peux, tu peux, il peut, nous pouvons, vous pouvez, ils peuvent | |
| savoir | Indicative present | je sais, tu sais, il sait, nous savons, vous savez, ils savent | |
| vouloir | Indicative present | je veux, tu veux, il veut, nous voulons, vous voulez, ils veulent | |
| valoir | Indicative present | je vaux, tu vaux, il vaut, nous valons, vous valez, ils valent | |
| valoir | Imperative | vaux! valons! valez! | |
| falloir | Indicative present | il faut | |
| faire | Indicative present | je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font | |
| faire | Imperative | fais! faisons! faites! | |
| avoir | Indicative present | j' ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont | |
| avoir | Subjunctive | j'aie, tu aies, il aie, nous ayons, vous ayez, ils aient | |
| avoir | Imperative | aie! ayons! ayez! | |
| être | Indicative present | je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils sont | |
| être | Subjunctive | je sois, tu sois, il soit; nous soyons, vous soyez, ils soient | |
| être | Imperative | sois! soyons! soyez! | |
| aller | Indicative present | je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont | 3 |
| aller | Imperative | va! allons! allez! | 2 |
1 See following table for similar verbs.
2 See following table for notes.
3 In Classical French and even in certain dialects (like in Cajun and some Quebec dialects) je vas is used.
| pouvoir | alternate 1st sing. puis required in questions, use elsewhere is mannered; note that old pres. part. puiss-ant is attested as an adjective "powerful" |
| falloir | Impersonal (3rd-singular only) |
| faire | Similarly conjugated verbs: défaire, refaire, satisfaire |
| aller | 2nd. sg. imperat. va, but vas-y "go there" |
Avoir
This verb has different stems for different tenses. These are imperfect av- ; present subjunctive ai- future and conditional aur-; simple past and past subjunctive e-. 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:
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple Past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| j' | ai | eus | avais | aurai | aie | eusse | aurais | |
| tu | as | auras | aies | eusses | aie1 | |||
| il/elle/on | a | eut | avait | aura | ait | eût | aurait | |
| nous | avons | eûmes | avions | aurons | ayons | eussions | aurions | ayons1 |
| vous | avez | eûtes | aviez | aurez | ayez | eussiez | auriez | ayez1 |
| ils/elles | ont | eurent | avaient | auront | aient | eussent | auraient | |
1 Notice that the imperative form uses the subjunctive conjugation.
Non-finite forms:
- Infinitive: avoir
- Present participle: ayant
- Past participle: eu
Auxiliary verb: avoir
Être
This verb has different stems for different tenses. These are all pronounced differently: imperfect ét-; present subjunctive soi-; future and conditional ser-; simple past and past subjunctive in 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 of other -re and -oir verbs.
In the simple present, not only are there stem changes, but the inflections are irregular as well:
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | suis | fus | étais | serai | sois | fusse | serais | |
| tu | es | seras | fusses | sois1 | ||||
| il/elle/on | est | fut | était | sera | soit | fût | serait | |
| nous | sommes | fûmes | étions | serons | soyons | fussions | serions | soyons1 |
| vous | êtes | fûtes | étiez | serez | soyez | fussiez | seriez | soyez1 |
| ils/elles | sont | furent | étaient | seront | soient | fussent | seraient | |
1 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
- Past participle: été
Auxiliary verb: avoir
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-; conditional and future ir-. 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:
| Indicative | Subjunctive | Conditional | Imperative | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Simple past | Imperfect | Future | Present | Imperfect | Present | Present | |
| je | vais, vas1 | allai | allais | irai | aille | allasse | irais | |
| tu | vas | allas | iras | ailles | allasses | va | ||
| il/elle/on | va | alla | allait | ira | aille | allât | irait | |
| nous | allons | allâmes | allions | irons | allions | allassions | irions | allons |
| vous | allez | allâtes | alliez | irez | alliez | allassiez | iriez | allez |
| ils/elles | vont | allèrent | allaient | iront | aillent | allassent | iraient | |
The non-finite forms are all based on all- :
- Infinitive: aller
- Present participle: allant
- Past participle: allé
Auxiliary verb: être
1 In Classical French and even in certain dialects (like in Cajun and some Quebec dialects) je vas is used.
- Bescherelle, a reference book for (usually French) verb conjugation
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