Present tense: -er verbs
A1 Le présent des verbes en -er 6 / 52
In short
-er verbs are the biggest and most regular verb group in French (about 90% of all verbs). Drop the -er from the infinitive and add the six present endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent.
The rule
A French verb in the dictionary is an infinitive - the “to do” form, like parler (to speak). To conjugate a regular -er verb in the present, work in two steps:
- Find the stem: remove the -er ending -> parler becomes the stem parl-.
- Add the present ending for the subject pronoun (see Lesson 1 for the pronouns).
The present tense covers three English meanings at once: je parle = “I speak”, “I am speaking”, and “I do speak”. French has no separate continuous form here.
Pronunciation note. Four forms sound identical: je parle, tu parles, il parle, and ils parlent are all pronounced the same - the endings -e, -es, -e, -ent are silent. Only nous parlons and vous parlez are heard as different. The spelling still matters, so learn to write all six.
Regular -er endings
Take any regular -er verb - aimer (to like/love), habiter (to live), travailler (to work), regarder (to watch) - and attach the endings to the stem:
- je + -e: j’aime (note the elision: je -> j’ before a vowel)
- tu + -es: tu aimes
- il/elle/on + -e: elle aime
- nous + -ons: nous aimons
- vous + -ez: vous aimez
- ils/elles + -ent: ils aiment
Spelling changes: manger, commencer, acheter, appeler
Some -er verbs keep the endings above but adjust the stem to preserve a sound or to match pronunciation. These are still called regular, just spelling-adapted.
- -ger verbs (manger, voyager, nager): add an e before the -ons of nous to keep the soft “g” sound -> nous mangeons, nous voyageons. All other forms are normal: je mange, tu manges.
- -cer verbs (commencer, placer, lancer): the c becomes ç before -ons to keep the soft “s” sound -> nous commençons, nous plaçons. Elsewhere it stays plain: je commence.
- acheter type (e + consonant + -er): a silent e in the stem becomes è in all forms except nous and vous -> j’achète, tu achètes, but nous achetons, vous achetez. Same pattern: (se) lever, (se) promener, emmener.
- appeler / jeter type: these double the consonant (l -> ll, t -> tt) in the same four forms -> j’appelle, ils appellent, but nous appelons, vous appelez; likewise je jette vs nous jetons.
- préférer type (é + consonant + -er): the é becomes è in the four “boot” forms -> je préfère, ils préfèrent, but nous préférons, vous préférez. Same: répéter, espérer, considérer.
- -yer verbs (payer, employer, nettoyer): the y becomes i before a silent ending -> je paie, ils paient, but nous payons, vous payez.
Notice the shared pattern: the change hits the four forms where the ending is silent (je, tu, il, ils) and spares nous and vous. Teachers call this the “boot” or “L-shape” because of where those forms sit in the table.
Forms & patterns
Regular endings on parler (to speak):
| Person | Stem | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|---|
| je | parl- | -e | je parle |
| tu | parl- | -es | tu parles |
| il/elle/on | parl- | -e | il parle |
| nous | parl- | -ons | nous parlons |
| vous | parl- | -ez | vous parlez |
| ils/elles | parl- | -ent | ils parlent |
Spelling-change verbs side by side (watch the bold cells):
| Person | manger | commencer | acheter | appeler | préférer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| je/j’ | mange | commence | achète | appelle | préfère |
| tu | manges | commences | achètes | appelles | préfères |
| il/elle | mange | commence | achète | appelle | préfère |
| nous | mangeons | commençons | achetons | appelons | préférons |
| vous | mangez | commencez | achetez | appelez | préférez |
| ils/elles | mangent | commencent | achètent | appellent | préfèrent |
Examples
| Français | English |
|---|---|
| Je parle un peu français. | I speak a little French. |
| Tu habites à Paris ? | Do you live in Paris? |
| Nous mangeons au restaurant ce soir. | We are eating at the restaurant tonight. |
| Le cours commence à neuf heures. | The class starts at nine o’clock. |
| J’achète du pain à la boulangerie. | I buy bread at the bakery. |
| Elle s’appelle Camille. | Her name is Camille. |
| Nous commençons un nouveau projet. | We are starting a new project. |
| Ils préfèrent le café au thé. | They prefer coffee to tea. |
Common mistakes
- je parle-e / je parles -> je parle - the je ending is a single -e, never -es.
- ils parlont -> ils parlent - the ils/elles ending is -ent (silent), not -ont.
- nous mangons -> nous mangeons - keep the e after g to hold the soft sound.
- nous commencons -> nous commençons - the cedilla ç is required before -ons.
- j’achete -> j’achète - add the grave accent è in the four “boot” forms.
- nous appellons -> nous appelons - appeler does not double the l for nous/vous; the doubling is only in the boot forms.
Tips
- Memorize the six endings as one chant: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. They fit almost every -er verb.
- Before a vowel or silent h, je becomes j’: j’aime, j’habite, j’écoute.
- If four written forms sound the same, that is normal - only nous (-ons) and vous (-ez) are audible.
- The spelling changes all target the same “boot”: je, tu, il/elle, ils/elles. Nous and vous stay closest to the infinitive.
- One clue for the stem swap: -ger and -cer verbs change only for nous; acheter/appeler/préférer types change everywhere except nous/vous.
- aller (to go) ends in -er but is irregular - do not conjugate it this way (see Lesson 12).