The Present Tense

The present tense (le présent) describes what happens now, what happens regularly, and facts that are generally true. Crucially, one French present-tense form covers two English meanings:

• je mange = I eat (a habit or fact)
• je mange = I am eating (right now)

French has no separate continuous tense, so you never add a second verb for the -ing idea. Je regarde la télé can mean I watch TV or I am watching TV depending on context.

Every French verb ends in -er, -ir or -re in its infinitive form. To conjugate, remove that ending to find the stem (le radical) and add a new ending that shows who is doing the action.

Pronoun	Meaning
je (j')	I
tu	you (singular, informal)
il/elle/on	he / she / one, we (informal)
nous	we
vous	you (plural or formal)
ils/elles	they (m / f)

Unlike Spanish, French keeps the subject pronoun: you must write je parle, not just parle.

Most French verbs (around 90%) are -er verbs, and they are almost all regular. Take the stem and add the -er endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. The three endings -e, -es, -ent are all silent, so je parle, tu parles and ils parlent sound identical.

Person	parler (to speak)	English
je	parle	I speak
tu	parles	you speak
il/elle/on	parle	he/she speaks
nous	parlons	we speak
vous	parlez	you speak
ils/elles	parlent	they speak

Worked examples:

• Je regarde un film. — I am watching a film.
• Nous habitons à Lyon. — We live in Lyon.
• Ils jouent au foot le samedi. — They play football on Saturdays.

Learn one -er verb and you can conjugate hundreds: aimer, jouer, travailler, écouter, manger all take the same endings.

The main -ir pattern adds -iss- in all three plural forms. Endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent. finir (to finish) and choisir (to choose) both follow this.

Person	finir (to finish)	choisir (to choose)
je	finis	choisis
tu	finis	choisis
il/elle/on	finit	choisit
nous	finissons	choisissons
vous	finissez	choisissez
ils/elles	finissent	choisissent

Worked examples:

• Je finis mes devoirs. — I am finishing my homework.
• Nous choisissons un cadeau. — We are choosing a present.
• Elle réussit ses examens. — She passes her exams.

Watch for the double -ss- in the plural: nous finissons, not nous finons. The -iss- is the signature of this group.

A smaller group of very common -ir verbs does not take -iss-. Instead they drop the final consonant of the stem in the singular. Endings: -s, -s, -t, -ons, -ez, -ent. Learn partir (to leave), sortir (to go out) and dormir (to sleep) as a set.

Person	partir (to leave)	sortir (to go out)	dormir (to sleep)
je	pars	sors	dors
tu	pars	sors	dors
il/elle/on	part	sort	dort
nous	partons	sortons	dormons
vous	partez	sortez	dormez
ils/elles	partent	sortent	dorment

Worked examples:

• Je pars à huit heures. — I leave at eight o'clock.
• Nous sortons ce soir. — We are going out tonight.
• Ils dorment tard le week-end. — They sleep late at the weekend.

The trap: finir keeps its full stem and adds -iss- (finissons), but partir loses the t in the singular (je pars) and never takes -iss-.

-re verbs remove -re and add -s, -s, (nothing), -ons, -ez, -ent. The il/elle/on form has no ending at all after the stem, so il vend ends in the bare stem. vendre (to sell) is the model.

Person	vendre (to sell)	English
je	vends	I sell
tu	vends	you sell
il/elle/on	vend	he/she sells
nous	vendons	we sell
vous	vendez	you sell
ils/elles	vendent	they sell

Other -re verbs on this pattern: attendre (to wait), entendre (to hear), répondre (to answer), descendre (to go down), perdre (to lose).

Worked examples:

• J'attends le bus. — I am waiting for the bus.
• Elle répond à la question. — She answers the question.
• Nous perdons souvent. — We often lose.

Do not add a -t to the il form. It is il vend and il attend, with a silent -d and no extra letter.

Some -er verbs adjust their stem so the spelling matches the sound. The endings stay completely regular; only the stem shifts.

Change	Verb	Where it changes
-ger → -geons	manger (to eat)	nous mangeons (keeps soft g)
-cer → -çons	commencer (start)	nous commençons (keeps soft c)
e → è	acheter (to buy)	j'achète, tu achètes, ils achètent
l → ll	appeler (to call)	j'appelle, tu appelles, ils appellent
é → è	préférer (prefer)	je préfère, tu préfères, ils préfèrent

The stem changes in every form except nous and vous, whose endings are pronounced, so no change is needed: nous achetons, vous préférez.

Worked examples:

• Nous mangeons à midi. — We eat at midday.
• J'achète du pain. — I am buying some bread.
• Je préfère le français. — I prefer French.

depuis + present (j'habite ici depuis deux ans = I have lived here for two years) is a Higher-tier structure. > (Higher tier) — Foundation students can recognise it but are not expected to produce it.

Beyond avoir, être, aller and faire (in their own lesson), the spec lists nine more common verbs whose singular present forms you should recognise and use. Learn the je and il / elle forms:

Verb	je	il / elle	Meaning
boire	bois	boit	to drink
connaître	connais	connaît	to know (a person/place)
courir	cours	court	to run
croire	crois	croit	to believe
écrire	écris	écrit	to write
recevoir	reçois	reçoit	to receive
rire	ris	rit	to laugh
suivre	suis	suit	to follow
voir	vois	voit	to see

je suis has two meanings: "I am" (from être) and "I follow" (from suivre). Context tells them apart: je suis un cours d'espagnol = I am taking (following) a Spanish course.

Two other verbs follow patterns you already know: ouvrir (to open) takes regular -er endings in the present (j'ouvre, il ouvre), and traduire (to translate) follows the prendre pattern (je traduis, il traduit, ils traduisent).

1. Adding a second verb for "am doing"

Je suis manger does not exist. French has one present tense, so I am eating is simply je mange. Never translate the English -ing with être plus another verb.

2. Giving partir the -iss- of finir

Partir, sortir and dormir take no -iss-. It is nous partons and nous dormons, never nous partissons. Only finir-type verbs (finir, choisir, réussir) add -iss- in the plural.

3. Putting a -t on the il form of -re verbs

The il/elle/on form of an -re verb ends in the bare stem: il vend, elle attend, on répond. Adding a -t (il vendt) is wrong.

4. Forgetting the spelling change in nous

Manger becomes nous mangeons and commencer becomes nous commençons. Writing nous mangons or nous commencons loses the soft sound the extra letter protects.

5. Dropping the subject pronoun

French is not like Spanish: the pronoun stays. Write je parle and nous finissons, never just parle or finissons on their own.