Think you’ve got a handle on the basics of French? It’s time to take action and form more complex sentences! Which means you’ll need to know some common French verbs.
Depending on who you’re speaking to and how well you know them, you’ll have to conjugate verbs to match the context of your conversation. In this blog, you’ll get a handle on the basics of French verbs in the present tense—including conjugations for the top 14 verbs in this list—and the most common ways native speakers use them.
Most common verbs in French
| French | English |
| ȇtre (auxiliary) | To be |
| avoir (auxiliary) | To have |
| faire | To do, to make |
| aller | To go |
| aimer | To love, to like |
| penser | To think |
| trouver | To find |
| regarder | To watch |
| venir | To come |
| suivre | To follow |
| prendre | To take |
| devoir | To have to / Must |
| savoir | To know |
| pouvoir | To be able to / Can |
| parler | To speak, to talk |
| croire | To believe, to think |
| vouloir | To want |
| dire | To say |
| voir | To see |
| finir | To finish, to end |
Irregular French verbs: avoir, aller, être, and faire
The most common verbs in French are avoir (to have), aller (to go), être (to be), and faire (to do). These verbs are used throughout the French language in colloquial phrases like faire la vaisselle (to wash the dishes) or allons-y (let’s go), idioms like être une poule mouillée (to be a coward), and in the case of être and avoir, as auxiliary verbs for conjugating certain tenses.
- faire la vaisselle = to wash the dishes
- allons-y = let’s go
- être une poule mouillée = to be a coward (literal translation: to be a wet chicken)
They’re also all irregular verbs, meaning they each have their own unique conjugations.
Here’s how to form avoir, aller, être, and faire in the present tense:
| avoir / to have | aller / to go | être / to be | faire / to do | |
| Je I |
ai (j’ai) | vais | suis | fais |
| Tu You, informal |
as | vas | es | fais |
| Il, Elle He, She |
a | va | est | fait |
| Nous We |
avons | allons | sommes | faisons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
avez | allez | êtes | faites |
| Ils, Elles They |
ont | vont | sont | font |
Regular French verb endings
Most French verbs can be conjugated according to a pattern based on the verb’s ending. Verbs that follow these conjugation patterns are called regular verbs. When you get more comfortable in French you’ll begin to recognize these patterns.
The context of a conversation will also dictate which words you’ll use. For informal conversations with a friend or a family member, you’ll use tu to say “you.” For more formal conversations, like a business meeting, the pronoun vous is the appropriate way to refer to the other person. Vous is also the pronoun used for “you all” in both formal and informal situations.
Groups in French are also gendered and require different pronouns. For groups of women the plural elles is appropriate, and for mixed gender or groups of only men, ils is the appropriate pronoun to use.
Below, you’ll find common regular verb endings for -ER, -IR, and -RE verbs.
| -ER | -IR | -RE | |
| Je I |
-e | -is | -s |
| Tu You, informal |
-es | -is | -s |
| Il, Elle He, She |
-e | -it | |
| Nous We |
-ons | -issons | -ons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
-ez | -issez | -ez |
| Ils, Elles They |
-ent | -issent | -ent |
Common -ER verbs in French
-ER verbs in French are some of the easiest to conjugate. To conjugate them in the present tense, you’ll drop the -ER off the end of the verb and replace it with the ending matching the subject of the sentence. Aside from aller, there are very few irregular -ER verbs.
1. Aimer
One of the first verbs you’ll learn in French is aimer (to like). You may already recognize this verb from the phrase je t’aime or “I love you.” One of the best (and most intuitive) ways to learn a new language is by talking about the things that you like and dislike.
When you start with these basic sentences, you’ll get comfortable with subject-verb agreement and start to learn vocabulary about the things that interest you!
Here are some examples of sentences that use aimer.
- J’aime le chocolat chaud. = I love hot chocolate
- Elle aime chanter. = She likes to sing.
- Ils aiment jouer aux jeux vidéo. = They like to play video games.
| Je I |
aime |
| Tu You, informal |
aimes |
| Il, Elle He, She |
aime |
| Nous We |
aimons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
aimez |
| Ils, Elles They |
aiment |
2. Penser
Penser means “to think.” There are three main ways that you’ll use penser in a sentence.
The first is penser followed by the infinitive form of another verb.
- Je pense pouvoir finir mon devoir. = I think I can finish my homework.
The second is penser followed by que, which means “to think that.”
- Il pense que la glace au chocolat est la meilleure. = He thinks that chocolate ice cream is the best.
And the third is penser followed by à, meaning “to think of” or “to think about.”
- Nous pensons au dîner. = We’re thinking about dinner.
| Je I |
pense |
| Tu You, informal |
penses |
| Il, Elle He, She |
pense |
| Nous We |
pensons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
pensez |
| Ils, Elles They |
pensent |
3. Trouver
Trouver means “to find.” When used with a reflexive pronoun, such as me (myself), trouver can be an alternative to “I think.”
- Vous trouvez votre clé. = You found your key.
- Je me trouve plus vieille. = I think that I look older. (literal translation: I find myself older.)
| Je I |
trouve |
| Tu You, informal |
trouves |
| Il, Elle He, She |
trouve |
| Nous We |
trouvons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
trouvez |
| Ils, Elles They |
trouvent |
4. Regarder
Regarder means “to watch.” It reflects the more active act of watching, whether that’s a TV show or a performance. Depending on the context, you may want to use the more passive verb voir (to see) instead.
- Je regarde la télé. = I’m watching tv.
- Ils regardent le match. = They are watching the game.
| Je I |
regarde |
| Tu You, informal |
regardes |
| Il, Elle He, She |
regarde |
| Nous We |
regardons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
regardez |
| Ils, Elles They |
regardent |
Common -IR verbs in French
To conjugate -IR verbs in the present tense, you’ll drop off the ending of the verb and replace it with the ending matching the subject of the sentence. While the last two letters are the same, -IR verbs are conjugated differently than -OIR verbs, which are irregular.
5. Venir
Venir means “to come.” There are two main ways you’ll use venir in a sentence.
The first is venir on its own.
- Ils viennent pour déjeuner. = They are coming for lunch.
The second is venir followed by de, which means “to come from.” You’ll use this to tell people where you’re from!
- Je viens des États-Unis. = I am from the United States.
| Je I |
viens |
| Tu You, informal |
viens |
| Il, Elle He, She |
vient |
| Nous We |
venons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
venez |
| Ils, Elles They |
viennent |
Common -RE verbs in French
To conjugate -RE verbs in the present tense, you’ll drop off the ending of the verb and replace it with the ending matching the subject of the sentence. However, there are plenty of -RE verbs in French that are irregular, including être. Knowing which -RE verbs are regular or irregular will become easier as you practice.
6. Suivre
Suivre means “to follow.”
- Cette route suit la rivière. = This road follows the river.
- Les canetons suivent leur mère. = The ducklings are following their mother.
You’ll notice that the present tense of suivre for je and tu is spelled the same as the present tense of être. Depending on the context of the sentence you’ll be able to differentiate between the two.
| Je I |
suis |
| Tu You, informal |
suis |
| Il, Elle He, She |
suit |
| Nous We |
suivons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
suivez |
| Ils, Elles They |
suivent |
7. Prendre
Prendre means “to take.” This verb comes in handy when describing methods of transportation.
- Je prends le metro. = I’m taking the subway.
- Tu prends ton livre. = You are taking your book.
| Je I |
prends |
| Tu You, informal |
prends |
| Il, Elle He, She |
prend |
| Nous We |
prenons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
prenez |
| Ils, Elles They |
prennent |
Common -OIR verbs in French
There are many French verbs that end in -OIR, and all of them are irregular! Verbs that end in -OIR all have similar conjugations, but since every -OIR verb is irregular there will be small differences between them.
8. Devoir
Devoir means “to have to.” Along with describing actions that you must take, devoir will often be used in commands. It is usually followed by the infinitive form of another verb.
- Il doit travailler. = He has to work.
- Tu dois finir ton repas. = You must finish your meal.
Colloquially, le devoir means “homework.”
- Je dois finir mes devoirs. = I have to finish my homework.
| Je I |
dois |
| Tu You, informal |
dois |
| Il, Elle He, She |
doit |
| Nous We |
devons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
devez |
| Ils, Elles They |
doivent |
9. Savoir
Savoir means “to know”, but specifically to know facts or how to do things. It’s the kind of knowledge that can be certain. Whereas connaître— the other French verb that means “to know”— refers to knowledge with a sense of familiarity, like knowing someone you’ve met personally or knowledge of a type of music.
A good way to remember the difference is to consider the commonly-used phrase savoir-faire or “know-how.” In English, savoir-faire refers to someone having practical “street-smarts”, a certain knowledge of how to accomplish things and do them correctly.
- Je sais qui est le président. = I know who the President is.
- Je ne sais pas. = I don’t know.
- Mes sœurs savent où est le restaurant. = My sisters know where the restaurant is.
| Je I |
sais |
| Tu You, informal |
sais |
| Il, Elle He, She |
sait |
| Nous We |
savons |
| Vous You, formal or plural |
savez |
| Ils, Elles They |
savent |
10. Pouvoir
Pouvoir means “to be able to.” Most often pouvoir is used to create sentences expressing things that you can and can not do.
- Elle ne peut pas venir aujourd’hui. = She can’t come today.
- Nous pouvons jouer avec vous. = We can play with you.
| JeI | peux, puis |
| TuYou, informal | puex |
| Il, ElleHe, She | puet |
| NousWe | pouvons |
| VousYou, formal or plural | pouvez |
| Ils, EllesThey | peuvent |
Moving beyond the French present tense
Want to learn how to conjugate even more verbs in other tenses? Check out our complete guide to French verb conjugation!
You’ll learn the ins and outs of regular and irregular verbs, the four main tenses in French, and find out how to conjugate parler, croire, vouloir, dire, voir, and finir.
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