French –re verbs follow a conjugation pattern that makes it much easier to memorize which verb endings should go with which subjects of the sentence. The –re verbs make up the third and smallest group of the major verb conjugation patterns (the other two are the –er verbs and the -ir verbs).
We discuss conjugating –re verbs in both the present and passé composé/plus-que-parfait tenses in this lesson.
How to Conjugate Regular French -RE verbs in the Present Tense
In present tense, the regular -re verb pattern is to:
| Drop the –re from the infinitive and add… | |
| je [root verb] + s | nous [root verb] + ons |
| tu [root verb] + s | vous [root verb] + ez |
| il [root verb] | ils [root verb] + ent |
Here are the conjugation tables for a few common regular –re verbs. For example:
| vendre (“to sell”) | |
| je vends | nous vendons |
| tu vends | vous vendez |
| il vend | ils vendent |
| perdre (“to lose”) | |
| je perds | nous perdons |
| tu perds | vous perdez |
| il perd | ils perdent |
Other common regular -RE verbs include rendre (“to make or give back”), attendre (“to wait for”), and répondre (“to respond”).
The Prendre French -RE verbs pattern
Some –re verbs follow a slightly different pattern that is similar to the above pattern. This pattern involves dropping the letter before the –re on the plural side of the chart, plus doubling the final consonant on the third person plural (ils/elles) conjugation. These are the prendre model verbs.
| Drop the -re from the infinitive and add… | |
| je [root verb] + s | nous [root verb] – final letter + ons |
| tu [root verb] + s | vous [root verb] – final letter + ez |
| il [root verb] + | ils [root verb] – final letter + double the new final letter + ent |
For example, with prendre:
| prendre (“to take”) | |
| je prends | nous prenons |
| tu prends | vous prenez |
| il prend | ils prennent |
Other common verbs that follow this pattern include verbs that contain prendre, including apprendre (“to learn”) and comprendre (“to understand”).
The Mettre Pattern
The mettre pattern is also followed by verbs that contain mettre, including promettre (“to promise”) and permettre (“to allow or permit”).
| mettre (“to put or place”) | |
| je mets | nous mettons |
| tu mets | vous mettez |
| il met | ils mettent |
Irregular French -RE verbs
Many -re verbs appear as if they should follow the regular -re pattern, but they do not. However, most of them do still follow a recognizable pattern of applying -s, -s, and either -t or nothing to some form of the infinitive on the left-hand side of the chart (the singular side), and the traditional -ons, -ez, -ent endings to some form of the infinitive on the right-hand side (the plural side).
Many (but not all) of these changes are to help with any pronunciation problems that would occur if the verb followed the regular conjugation pattern. Others address a similar problem with spelling issues that would arise.
The –re verbs below have either no or almost no other verbs that follow their pattern but are relatively common verbs you should know.
Dire
Pay special attention to the vous conjugation of dire. It may help you to remember that it is similar to the vous conjugation of faire (vous faites).
| dire (“to say”) | |
| je dis | nous disons |
| tu dis | vous dites* |
| il dit | ils disent |
Lire
Notice an s gets added to all forms of lire.
| lire (“to read”) | |
| je lis | nous lisons |
| tu lis | vous lisez |
| il lit | ils lisent |
Écrire
Notice the v that gets added to the plural side of écrire.
| écrire (“to write”) | |
| j’écris | nous écrivons |
| tu écris | vous écrivez |
| il écrit | ils écrivent |
Boire
Notice that the oi gets replaced by a u in the nous and vous forms.
| boire (“to drink”) | |
| je bois | nous buvons |
| tu bois | vous buvez |
| il boit | ils boivent |
Croire
Notice that the i gets replaced by a y in the nous and vous forms.
| croire (“to believe”) | |
| je crois | nous croyons |
| tu crois | vous croyez |
| il croit | ils croient |
Connaître
Notice that the final s gets doubled on the plural side.
| connaître (“to know or recognize”) | |
| je connais | nous connaissons |
| tu connais | vous connaissez |
| il connaît | ils connaissent |
How to Pronounce Present Tense French -RE verb endings
On the left side of the chart (the singular conjugations), the final s is not pronounced on the je and tu forms, and the il/elle form is pronounced exactly the same way as the je and tu forms). The last sound you will hear is the final consonant of that verb before the ending.
The pronunciation pattern on the plural side follows the same rules as regular -er verbs, including not pronouncing the -ent ending on the ils/elles form.
How to Conjugate French –RE verbs in the Passé Composé and Plus-Que Parfait
To form the passé composé and the plus-que parfait with -re verbs, we’ll need to conjugate avoir to match the subject pronoun and use the past participle.
Regular past participles for -re verbs
Most -re verbs have a past participle that ends in u. Simply drop the -re ending and add a u in its place.
Je rends visite. (“I pay a visit”) → J’ai rendu visite (“I paid a visit”)
Il vend (“He sells”) → Il a vendu (“He sold”)
Nous perdons (“We lose”) → Nous avons perdu (“We lost”)
Irregular past participles for -RE verbs
Just as with present tense conjugations, certain common -re verbs have irregular past participles. Also, some -re verbs that are regular in the present tense may be irregular in the past tense. However, they still often end in the letter -u, like with regular -re verbs. Other times they end in -is or -it.
Irregular -u past participles
Lire → J’ai lu
Boire → J’ai bu
Croire → J’ai cru
Connaître → J’ai connu
Irregular -is/-it past participles
Mettre → J’ai mis
Prendre → J’ai pris
Dire → J’ai dit
Écrire → J’ai écrit
French -RE verbs conjugated with être
Finally, two -re verbs use être instead of avoir as a helping verb in order to construct the passé composé and plus-que parfait. They are descendre (and all its derivatives, like redescendre), which has a regular past participle, and naître, which has an irregular past participle. For example, with descendre:
Ils sont descendus au sous-sol (“They descended into the basement.”)
And for an example with naître:
Elle est née un lundi. (“She was born on a Monday.”)
Next Steps
Got all that? You might want to review -ir verbs in the past and present tenses, or review any of the major French past tenses (passé composé, plus-que parfait, or imparfait).
