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The Basics of French Verb Conjugation
–ER Verbs -RE Verbs-IR Verbs
Robert J. LaRocqueCEP 811
The purpose of this tutorial is to provide an opportunity to learn, practice, or review French verb conjugation in the affirmative. Click on a unit below to focus on a specific topic or begin with ‘The Basics
of French Verb Conjugation’ and work your way through all four units. There are some quizzes along the way to help monitor your
progress.
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Why do we conjugate verbs in French?
Conjugation is the process of listing different forms of a verb in a conventional order. The forms of a verb differ in order to show
person and number
The three persons are:
o The speaker or 1st person (I)o The person spoken too or 2nd person (you)o The person or thing referred to or 3rd person (he, she, it)
The two number in English and French are:
o Singularo Plural
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French Subject PronounsThe subject pronouns in French do not correspond exactly to the English system. The French verb forms designated by person and number are summarized in the chart below with their English equivalent in parentheses.
SINGULAR PLURAL
FIRST PERSON je (I) nous (we)
SECOND PERSON tu (you) vous (you)
THIRD PERSON il (he) ils (they (m.))
elle (she) elles (they (f.))
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Some Things to Remember About French Subject Pronouns
o French has two subject pronouns meaning you, tu and vous.
o Tu is used when addressing one person to show an informal relationship. Use this pronoun with relatives, friends, classmates, etc.
o Vous is used when addressing one person to show a formal relationship. Use this pronoun with strangers, neighbors, adult colleagues, persons of authority, etc.
o Vous can also be used to address more than one person in informal and formal relationships.
o The third-person plural pronouns in French distinguish gender: ils v. elles
o The masculine form, ils, is used for groups of males or groups of males and females.
o The feminine from, elles, is used for groups consisting of only females. Next
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French Verb Classes
French verbs have more endings than English verbs. The endings in French reflect the subject and show tense and mood. There are 3 major classes, called conjugations. Each conjugation has its own set of endings. The conjugation to which a verb belongs is shown by the infinitive, the form ending in –er, -ir, or –re.
For Example:
parler (to speak) -er verb or first-conjugation verb
finir (to finish) -ir verb or second-conjugation verb
vendre (to sell) -re verb or third-conjugation verb
✔ For Understandi
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The Basics of Conjugation Question # 1
Conjugation is the process of listing different forms of a verb in a conventional order. The forms of a verb differ in order to show:
Day & Time
Person and Feelings
Person and Number
I’m not sure, I need to review the basics again.
A
B
C
D
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The Basics of Conjugation Question # 2
Click on the subject pronouns that represent the singular and plural first person forms.
Tu & Ils
Ils & Elles
Je & Tu
Je & Nous
Il & Elle Nous & Vous
Elle & Elles
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The Basics of Conjugation Question # 3
Click on the subject pronouns that represent the singular third person forms.
Tu & Ils
Il & Elle Je & Nous
Nous & Elles Tu & Vous
Il & Ils
Je & Vous
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The Basics of Conjugation Question # 4
There are two subject pronouns, tu and vous that can be used for ‘you’. What is the difference between these to forms or when is it appropriate to use each form?
Tu is used for informal relationships. Vous is used for formal relationships.
Vous is used with referring to strangers, adults, persons of authority.
Tu is used for people you know well, friends, and family.
All of the above
A
B
C
D
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The Basics of Conjugation Question # 5
Ils is the third person plural subject pronoun. It can be used to identify a group of males or a
group of males & females.
True False
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ER Verbs
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What is an –er verb?o -er verbs are considered first conjugation verbs
o -er verbs are the most numerous among French verbs
o The infinitive of the verb ends in –er.
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Examples of –er Verbs
nager- to
swim
étudier- to study
parler- to talkpenser- to think
manger- to eat
danser- to dance
écouter- to listen
regarder- to watch
aimer- to like
adorer- to love
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-ER Verb Conjugation
Most –er verbs are conjugated using the same pattern. We must memorize this pattern. To demonstrate how to conjugate a regular –er verb, follow these easy steps. For this demonstration, we will use the verb aimer. Remember, the –er verbs listed on the last slide and any regular –er verb will be conjugated using this process.
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– ER Verb ConjugationStep 1
The first step is to form the stem by dropping the –er off of the infinitive.
aimeraimeraim
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✕The infinitive
Drop the –er ending
The stem
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– ER Verb ConjugationStep 2
Once we have the stem, we can add the corresponding ending that relates to the person(s) who performs the action or the subject pronoun. For regular –er verbs, the endings we add are:
je (j’) -enous -ons
tu -esvous -ez
il -eils -ent
elle -eelles -ent
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– ER Verb ConjugationUsing the stem, aim- , and the endings for regular –er verbs, this is
what the conjugation for the verb aimer will look like.
je (j’) aimenous aimons
tu aimesvous aimez
il aimeils aiment
elle aimeelles aiment
Note: je becomes j’ if the verb begins with a vowel.
TEST YOUR SKILLS
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Test Your Skills-ER Verbs
For each question, the –er verb will be given at the end of the sentence in parentheses. Your task is to correctly identify the
appropriate conjugation of the verb in parentheses by clicking on the choice that you feel fits into the blank.
Example Question
Il __________ les escargots. (aimer)
a. aimes b. aiment c. aime d. aimons
Ready to Begin?
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Test Your Skills-ER Verbs
Question # 1
Elles _______________ la télévision. (regarder)
regarde regardent regardez regardes
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-ER Verbs
Question # 2
Je _______________ la pizza. (manger)
mange mangent mangeons mangez
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-ER Verbs
Question # 3
Nous _______________ au téléphone. (parler)
parle parlent parlez parlons
A B C D
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Question # 4
Vous _______________ la musique française. (écouter)
écoutez écoutentécoutes écoutons
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-ER Verbs
Question # 5
J’ _______________ le français!
aime aiment aimesaimez
Click here…-ER Verb
Conjugation Video In Review
A B C D
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Conjugation Video in Review
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– ER Verb ConjugationVideo in Review
-IR Verbs
Click Here to open video in youtube
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What is an –ir verb?o -er verbs are considered second conjugation
verbs
o The infinitive of the verb ends in –ir.
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Examples of –ir Verbs
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agir to act
choisirto choose
finirto finish
grossirto gain weight
réussirto succeed
réfléchirto reflect
maigrirto lose weight
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-IR Verb Conjugation
Most –ir verbs are conjugated using the same pattern. We must memorize this pattern. To demonstrate how to conjugate a regular –ir verb, follow these easy steps. For this demonstration, we will use the verb finir. Remember, the –ir verbs listed on the last slide and any regular –ir verb will be conjugated using this process.
Next
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– IR Verb ConjugationStep 1
The first step is to form the stem by dropping the –ir off of the infinitive.
finirfinirfin
Next
✕The infinitive
Drop the –ir ending
The stem
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– IR Verb ConjugationStep 2
Once we have the stem, we can add the corresponding ending that relates to the person(s) who performs the action or the subject pronoun. For regular –ir verbs, the endings we add are:
je (j’) -isnous -issons
tu -is vous-issez
il -itils -issent
elle -itelles -issent
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– IR Verb ConjugationUsing the stem, fin- , and the endings for regular –ir verbs, this is
what the conjugation for the verb finir will look like.
je (j’) finisnous finissons
tu finisvous finissezil finit
ils finissentelle finit
elles finissentNote: je becomes j’ if the verb begins with a vowel.
TEST YOUR SKILLS
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Test Your Skills-IR Verbs
For each question, the –ir verb will be given at the end of the sentence in parentheses. Your task is to correctly identify the
appropriate conjugation of the verb in parentheses by clicking on the choice that you feel fits into the blank.
Example Question
Il __________ les escargots. (choisir)
a. choisis b. choisissons c. choisit d. choisissent
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Test Your Skills-IR Verbs
Question # 1
Il _______________ ses devoirs. (finir)
finit finissent finissons finis
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-IR Verbs
Question # 2
Je _______________ un bon restaurant pour le dèjeuner. (chosir)
choisit choisis choisissez choisissent
A B C D
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Question # 3
Ils _______________. (réfléchir)
réfléchit réfléchis réfléchissons réfléchissent
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-IR Verbs
Question # 4
Il_______________ après il mange le gâteau. (grossir)
grossit grossis grossissez grossissons
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-IR Verbs
Question # 5
Tu _______________ à tout ce que fait. (réussir)
réussissent réussis réussitréussissons
Click here…-IR Verb
Conjugation Video In Review
A B C D
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Conjugation Video In Review
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– IR Verb ConjugationVideo in Review
-RE Verbs
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What is an –re verb?o -re verbs are considered third conjugation verbs
o The infinitive of the verb ends in –re.
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Examples of –re Verbs
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prétendreto
pretend
répondreto
respondattendreto wait
descendreto
descend
vendreto sell
perdreto lose
écrireto write
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-RE Verb Conjugation
Most –re verbs are conjugated using the same pattern. We must memorize this pattern. To demonstrate how to conjugate a regular –re verb, follow these easy steps. For this demonstration, we will use the verb vendre. Remember, the –re verbs listed on the last slide and any regular –re verb will be conjugated using this process.
Next
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– RE Verb ConjugationStep 1
The first step is to form the stem by dropping the –re off of the infinitive.
vendrevendrevend
Next
✕The infinitive
Drop the –re ending
The stem
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– RE Verb ConjugationStep 2
Once we have the stem, we can add the corresponding ending that relates to the person(s) who performs the action or the subject pronoun. For regular –re verbs, the endings we add are:
je (j’) -snous -ons
tu -svous -ez
il -ils -ent
elle -elles -ent
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– RE Verb ConjugationUsing the stem, vend, and the endings for regular –re verbs, this is
what the conjugation for the verb vendre will look like.
je (j’) vendsnous vendons
tu vendsvous vendez
il vendils vendent
elle vendelles vendent
Note: je becomes j’ if the verb begins with a vowel.
TEST YOUR SKILLS
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Test Your Skills-RE Verbs
For each question, the –re verb will be given at the end of the sentence in parentheses. Your task is to correctly identify the
appropriate conjugation of the verb in parentheses by clicking on the choice that you feel fits into the blank.
Example Question
Il __________ les escargots. (perdre)
a. perd b. perds c. perdons d. perdez
Ready to Begin?
Click Here to Start
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Test Your Skills-RE Verbs
Question # 1
Nous _______________ une lettre à nos amis. (écrire)
écrit écrivez écrivons écrivent
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-RE Verbs
Question # 2
Je _______________ les escargots. (vendre)
vendons vend vends vendent
A B C D
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Question # 3
Elle_______________ l’autobus. (attendre)
attends attendent attendons attend
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-RE Verbs
Question # 4
Ils_______________ l’escalier. (descendre)
descends descendent descenddescendons
A B C D
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Test Your Skills-RE Verbs
Question # 5
Je _______________ être le français! (prétendre)
prétends prétend prétendonsprétendez
Click here…-REVerb
Conjugation Video In Review
A B C D
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Conjugation Video In Review
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– RE Verb ConjugationVideo in Review
Main Menu
Click Here to open video in youtube