Mastering Regular French -ER Verbs in the Present Tense

In this post we’re going to cover regular French -ER verbs. French verb forms can be daunting, but most of them are regular. Thankfully the majority of French verbs are regular -ER verbs. Mastering regular verb conjugation is key to feeling comfortable when you speak French. So it’s important to spend time practicing. First we’ll start by looking at the conjugation of regular French -ER verbs. Then we’ll see some examples common -ER verbs. Next we’ll summarize just a few spelling changes you have to keep in mind with some regular -ER verbs. Finally, you’ll have a chance to practice every covered in this post.

Regular French -ER Verb Conjugation

First let’s look at the forms of regular French -ER verbs. To conjugate them in the present tense, follow these simple steps:

1. Start with the infinitive: For example, parler (to speak), aimer (to love), or travailler (to work).
2. Take off the -ER ending: This gives you the stem (parl-, aim-, travaill–).
3. Add the appropriate endings based on the subject:

Note about French Pronouns and Verbs in the Present Tense

Now let’s pause to keep in mind just a few notes in mind when using French pronouns and conjugating French verbs:

• First, the pronoun je becomes j’ before a vowel or silent h: j’aime (I love), j’habite (I live).
• Second, there are two ways to say you in French. Tu is singular you, used when you’re speaking to one person who you know well, or who is younger than you. Vous has two uses. It is the formal form of you, for when you’re speaking to someone you don’t know well or to whom you want to show respect. Vous is also used to speak to more than one person, in a familiar or formal setting.
• Third, the pronoun on has two meanings. It can mean one in a general sense, meaning any person. But it also means we, and is often used more commonly than nous to mean we.
• Fourth, there are two ways to say they. Use ils to refer to an all-male group, and elles to refer to an all-female group. Ils can also be used for mixed groups.
• Fifth, if you’d like to use a gender-neutral third person pronoun, use iel for singular they, and iels for plural they. You may also hear el and els.
• Sixth, even though the je, tu, il/elle/on, and ils/elles forms have different spellings, they’re all pronounced the same way. The ending is silent.

Examples of Regular French -ER Verbs in Context

Next let’s see some examples of verbs used in context. Here are several examples with aimer (to like/love), habiter (to live), regarder (to watch/look at), parler (to speak), and jouer (to play). Remember that you can negate verbs by putting ne… pas (not) or ne… jamais (never) around the verb.

• J’aime la musique.
  I love music.
• Nous aimons voyager.
  We like traveling.
• Tu habites à Paris.
  You live in Paris.
• Ils habitent dans une grande maison.
  They live in a big house.
• Elle ne regarde jamais la télé.
  She never watches TV.
• Vous regardez les étoiles?
  Are you looking at the stars?
• Parlez-vous français ?
  Do you speak French?
• Nous parlons chinois à la maison.
  We speak Chinese at home.
• Nous jouons aux jeux vidéo. / On joue aux jeux vidéo.
  We’re playing video games.
• Elle ne joue pas de piano.
  She doesn’t play piano.

1. Practice

Give the full conjugations of each of these verbs:

1. regarder (to look at)
2. écouter (to listen to)
3. travailler (to work)

Spelling Changes

Next let’s talk about just a few spelling changes you’ll need to keep in mind. Regular French -ER verbs generally follow a consistent conjugation pattern. But some require spelling changes to maintain correct pronunciation. Here’s a breakdown of the most common spelling changes for regular -ER verbs:

Verbs Ending in -GER

First let’s look at verbs with the common ending –ger. For verbs like manger (to eat) or nager (to swim), you add an e before the ending –ons in the nous form to keep the soft “g” sound.

2. Practice

Give the full conjugation of:

1. changer (to change)
2. voyager (to travel)

Verbs Ending in -CER

Next we’ll turn to verbs ending in –cer. For verbs like commencer (to start, to begin), you change c to ç before the ending –ons in the nous form to keep the soft “s” sound.

3. Practice

Give the full conjugation of:

1. remplacer (to replace)
2. lancer (to throw)

Verbs Ending in -YER

Now we’ll turn to verbs ending in –yer. For verbs like payer (to pay) or envoyer (to send), the y changes to an i in all forms except nous and vous.  

Note that you may also come across examples where y to i changing verbs retain the y. This is considered more formal or traditional.

4. Practice

Give the full conjugation of:

1. payer (to pay)
2. essayer (to try)

Verbs with Double L or T

Now let’s look at verbs that double their final stem consonant. For verbs like appeler (to call) and jeter (to throw), the l or t is doubled in all forms except nous and vous. These are the forms that are all pronounced alike, with no additional syllable. Doubling the final consonant in these forms ensure that the e of the verb stem is pronounced like è (e in English get or set) instead of a softer e like French me, te, or le.  

Verbs with Accent Changes

Finally we’ll wrap up spelling changes by looking at verbs with accent changes. Some verbs do the same thing in a different way. Instead of doubling the consonant, they change the stem vowel from e or é to è. The e to è change happens in verbs like acheter (to buy), and the é to è change happens in verbs like préférer (to prefer).

5. Practice

Give the full conjugations of:

1. rappeler (to remind, to recall)
2. peser (to weigh)

6. Practice

Finally, let’s practice conjugating a mix of regular French -ER verbs. Complete each sentence by conjugating the verb in parentheses to match the subject. Then, check your answers in the key below.

1. J’ _______ beaucoup de livres. (acheter)
2. Nous _______ le français chaque jour. (étudier)
3. Ils _______ souvent au parc. (jouer)
4. Vous _______ un bon film ce soir? (regarder)
5. Tu _______ à ta mère? (parler)
6. Elle _______ bien la cuisine. (préparer)
7. On _______ toujours à l’heure. (arriver)
8. J’_______ beaucoup mes amis. (aimer)
9. Nous _______ à la montagne ce week-end. (marcher)
10. Ils _______ dans cette ville depuis cinq ans. (habiter)
11. Tu _______ une lettre à ton grand-père. (envoyer)
12. Vous _______ à votre travail? (penser)
13. Elle _______ son chien chaque matin. (promener)
14. Je _______ un beau dessin. (dessiner)
15. Nous _______ un cadeau pour Marie. (chercher)
16. On _______ souvent au café. (déjeuner)
17. Vous _______ les fenêtres avant de partir? (fermer)
18. Ils _______ les fleurs dans le jardin. (arroser)
19. Je _______ le chat dans le salon. (trouver)
20. Tu _______ pour tes examens. (étudier)

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Answers

1. Practice

1. regarder (to look at) je regarde, tu regardes, il/elle/on regarde, nous regardons, vous regardez, ils/elles regardent
2. écouter (to listen to): j’écoute, tu écoutes, il/elle/on écoute, nous écoutons, vous écoutez, ils/elles écoutent
3. travailler (to work): je travaille, tu travailles, il/elle/on travaille, nous travaillons, vous travaillez, ils/elles travaillent

2. Practice

1. changer (to change) je change, tu changes, il/elle/on change, nous changeons, vous changez, ils/elles changent
2. voyager (to travel) je voyage, tu voyages, il/elle/on voyage, nous voyageons, vous voyagez, ils/elles voyagent

3. Practice

1. remplacer (to replace): je remplace, tu remplaces, il/elle/on remplace, nous remplaçons, vous remplacez, ils/elles remplacent
2. lancer (to throw): je lance, tu lances, il/elle/on lance, nous lançons, vous lancez, ils/elles lancent

4. Practice

1. payer (to pay) je paie, tu paies, il/elle/on paie, nous payons, vous payez, ils/elles paient
2. essayer (to try) j’essaie, tu essaies, il/elle/on essaie, nous essayons, vous essayez, ils/elles essaient

5. Practice

1. rappeler (to remind, to recall): je rappelle, tu rappelles, il/elle/on rappelle, nous rappelons, vous rappelez, ils/elles rappellent
2. peser (to weigh): je pèse, tu pèses, il/elle/on pèse, nous pesons, vous pesez, ils/elles pèsent

6. Practice

1. J’achète beaucoup de livres. (acheter) – I buy a lot of books.
2. Nous étudions le français chaque jour. (étudier) – We study French every day.
3. Ils jouent souvent au parc. (jouer) – They often play in the park.
4. Vous regardez un bon film ce soir? (regarder) – Are you watching a good movie tonight?
5. Tu parles à ta mère? (parler) – Do you talk to your mother?
6. Elle prépare bien la cuisine. (préparer) – She cooks well.
7. On arrive toujours à l’heure. (arriver) – We always arrive on time.
8. J’aime beaucoup mes amis. (aimer) – I love my friends a lot.
9. Nous marchons à la montagne ce week-end. (marcher) – We’re walking in the mountains this weekend.
10. Ils habitent dans cette ville depuis cinq ans. (habiter) – They’ve been living in this city for five years.
11. Tu envoies une lettre à ton grand-père. (envoyer) – You’re sending a letter to your grandfather.
12. Vous pensez à votre travail? (penser) – Are you thinking about your job?
13. Elle promène son chien chaque matin. (promener) – She walks her dog every morning.
14. Je dessine un beau dessin. (dessiner) – I’m drawing a beautiful picture.
15. Nous cherchons un cadeau pour Marie. (chercher) – We’re looking for a gift for Marie.
16. On déjeune souvent au café. (déjeuner) – We often have lunch at the café.
17. Vous fermez les fenêtres avant de partir? (fermer) – Are you closing the windows before leaving?
18. Ils arrosent les fleurs dans le jardin. (arroser) – They’re watering the flowers in the garden.
19. Je trouve le chat dans le salon. (trouver) – I’m finding the cat in the living room.
20. Tu étudies pour tes examens. (You study for your exams.)

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