The present of regular -er verbs: Most French verbs end in -er (parler, habiter, aimer, travailler…) — it is by far the biggest verb group. To put one in the present (le présent), you take the stem (drop the -er) and add one fixed set of endings. Learn the endings once and you can conjugate thousands of verbs. The model verb is parler (to speak): je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent.
- un verbe en -er
- an -er verb (the largest, most regular group)
- l'infinitif
- the infinitive — the base form (parler, aimer…)
- le radical (the stem)
- what is left after you drop -er (parl-, aim-…)
- la terminaison
- the ending you add (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent)
- le présent
- the present tense (I speak / I am speaking / I do speak)
- conjuguer
- to conjugate — to change the verb for its subject
One present = three English meanings: French has one present tense where English has three. « Je parle » can mean I speak, I am speaking and I do speak — French does not add an extra word for the -ing or the do. So « Je parle » never becomes « je suis parle » or « je fais parle ».
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The six endings (model: PARLER): Take the stem parl- and add the endings. Notice that je, tu, il/elle and ils/elles all sound the same out loud — the difference is only in spelling. Nous always ends in -ons and vous always ends in -ez.
| Pronoun | Ending | PARLER (to speak) | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| je | -e | je parle | I speak / I'm speaking |
| tu | -es | tu parles | you speak (one friend) |
| il / elle / on | -e | il parle | he / she / we speak(s) |
| nous | -ons | nous parlons | we speak |
| vous | -ez | vous parlez | you speak (formal / plural) |
| ils / elles | -ent | ils parlent | they speak |
Silent endings: The -e, -es, -ent endings are all silent — je parle, tu parles and ils parlent are pronounced the same. Only -ons (nous) and -ez (vous) are heard. So you must see the subject to know who is meant: that is why the pronoun is never dropped in French.
More regular -er verbs (same endings): Every plain -er verb works exactly like parler. Just swap the stem:
| Infinitive | je | nous | ils/elles |
|---|---|---|---|
| aimer (to like / love) | j'aime | nous aimons | ils aiment |
| habiter (to live) | j'habite | nous habitons | ils habitent |
| travailler (to work) | je travaille | nous travaillons | ils travaillent |
| regarder (to watch) | je regarde | nous regardons | ils regardent |
| jouer (to play) | je joue | nous jouons | ils jouent |
je → j' before a vowel or h: Before a vowel or a silent h, je becomes j': j'aime, j'habite, j'écoute. This is élision — never write « je aime ».
Spelling-change -er verbs: A few -er verbs keep the same endings but tweak the spelling of the stem so the sound stays right:
| Infinitive | Watch the form | Why |
|---|---|---|
| manger (to eat) | nous mangeons | keep the e after g so it stays a soft 'zh' sound |
| commencer (to begin) | nous commençons | ç (cédille) keeps the soft 's' sound before -ons |
| appeler (to call) | j'appelle, ils appellent | double the l (nous/vous keep one: nous appelons) |
| acheter (to buy) | j'achète, ils achètent | add an accent grave è (nous/vous: nous achetons) |
| préférer (to prefer) | je préfère, ils préfèrent | é → è (nous/vous keep é: nous préférons) |
| payer (to pay) | je paie / paye | y → i is optional (both are accepted) |
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Four jobs of the French present: The present (le présent) is used more widely than you might expect. Use it for habits / routines, general truths, what is happening now, and even the near future when a time word makes it clear.
When to use the present
1
Habits & routines
Things you do regularly. « Chaque matin, je parle français. » (Every morning, I speak French.)
2
General truths
Facts that are always true. « L'eau bout à 100 degrés. » → with -er verbs: « Léa habite à Lyon. »
3
What's happening now
Actions at this moment. « En ce moment, je regarde un film. » (Right now, I'm watching a film.)
4
Near future (with a time word)
A planned soon-event, made clear by a time word. « Demain, je travaille. » (Tomorrow I'm working.)
Habits → general truths → now → near future (with a time word)
| Use | Signal words | Example (-er verb) |
|---|---|---|
| Habit / routine | toujours, chaque jour, le matin, d'habitude | « D'habitude, nous dînons à huit heures. » |
| General truth | (no time word; a stated fact) | « Mes amis aiment le sport. » |
| Happening now | maintenant, en ce moment | « Maintenant, j'écoute de la musique. » |
| Near future | demain, ce soir, samedi prochain | « Samedi prochain, je joue au tennis. » |
Don't reach for a future tense too soon: For a soon, planned action with a time word, the present is natural in French: « Ce soir, je travaille » (Tonight I'm working). You do not need a separate future tense for everyday near-future plans — the time word does the work.
Regular -er verbs in a real paragraph: Here is a short original paragraph where every verb is a regular -er verb in the present. Read it once for the meaning — tap Voir la traduction if you get stuck — then we'll point out each verb and its subject.
La semaine de Léa: Léa habite à Lyon avec sa famille. Chaque matin, elle parle français avec sa grand-mère et elle écoute la radio.
À l'école, nous travaillons ensemble et nous regardons des vidéos en classe. Après les cours, mes amis jouent au foot et moi, je rentre à la maison.
Le week-end, la famille dîne tard et tout le monde aime parler de la semaine.
Spot the -er verbs — stem + ending, matched to the subject
Verb by verb
- habite — subject Léa (il/elle): stem habit- + -e → habite. Same for parle and écoute (elle parle, elle écoute).
- travaillons and regardons — subject nous: stem + -ons → nous travaillons, nous regardons. The -ons ending is always heard.
- jouent — subject mes amis (ils): stem jou- + -ent → jouent. The -ent ending is silent, so it sounds like joue.
- rentre — subject je (after « moi, je »): stem rentr- + -e → je rentre. And dîne — subject la famille (elle): la famille dîne.
Always match the verb to its subject: The ending is decided by who does the action, not by the meaning. Find the subject first (Léa, nous, mes amis…), then choose the ending. A singular noun like la famille behaves like il/elle → -e.
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The mistakes anglophones make with -er verbs: Most slip-ups come from copying English. Spot these five and you'll fix the majority of -er-present errors in your writing.
Wrong (avoid)
- Je suis parle français.
- Nous parlez demain.
- Je aime le sport.
- Nous mangons / nous commencons.
- Ils parle vite.
Right (use)
- Je parle français.
- Nous parlons demain.
- J'aime le sport.
- Nous mangeons / nous commençons.
- Ils parlent vite.
The big one: no « je suis » + verb: Because English says I am speaking, learners write « je suis parle » — but French already says it all in one word: « je parle ». There is no être + verb here. (You will meet « je suis en train de parler » later, but never « je suis parle ».)
Self-check: subject → ending: Before you write a verb, ask two questions: (1) Who is the subject? (je / tu / il / nous / vous / ils). (2) Which ending does it take? (-e / -es / -e / -ons / -ez / -ent). Do this and the silent endings (-e, -es, -ent) stop tripping you up — they sound alike but must be spelt for the right subject.