How to Conjugate "Déjeuner" (to Have Lunch)

A single French verb, déjeuner, is used to say "to have lunch." It's a very specific word and identical to the noun for "lunch," le déjeuner. Learning how to transform, or conjugate, the verb into the past, present, or future tense is rather simple as this quick lesson will demonstrate.

Conjugating the French Verb Déjeuner

In English, we use -ed and -ing endings to conjugate verbs. Things are a little more complex in French because we need to use a new ending for every subject pronoun within each tense. That means you have more than just a few words to memorize.

Don't worry, though, déjeuner is a regular -ER verb and that makes conjugating it just a little easier. This is particularly true if you've already memorized similar verbs such as cuisiner (to cook) and demander (to ask). 

To conjugate déjeuner, pair the subject pronoun with the appropriate tense. For example, "I am having lunch" is "je déjeune" and "we will have lunch" is "nous déjeunerons." Practice these in context and you'll be one step closer to memorizing all the forms.

Subject	Present	Future	Imperfect
je	déjeune	déjeunerai	déjeunais
tu	déjeunes	déjeuneras	déjeunais
il	déjeune	déjeunera	déjeunait
nous	déjeunons	déjeunerons	déjeunions
vous	déjeunez	déjeunerez	déjeuniez
ils	déjeunent	déjeuneront	déjeunaient

The Present Participle of Déjeuner

The present participle of déjeuner is déjeunant. It's as simple as adding -ant to the verb stem. Beyond its use as a verb, it can also become an adjective, gerund, or noun when needed.

The Past Participle and Passé Composé 

The passé composé is a common way to express the past tense "had lunch" in French and it's an alternative to the imperfect. To construct this, conjugate the auxiliary verb avoir to fit the subject pronoun, then add the past participle déjeuné."

For example, "I had lunch" is "j'ai déjeuné" while "we had lunch" is "nous avons déjeuné."

More Simple Déjeuner Conjugations

You may also find one of the following forms of déjeuner useful as your fluency progresses. The subjunctive verb mood implies some sort of uncertainty to the action. Similarly, the conditional form says that the action will only take place if something else does.

In literature and formal writing, the passé simple or the imperfect subjunctive may be found. You might not use these yourself, but knowing of them will help your French reading comprehension.

Subject	Subjunctive	Conditional	Passé Simple	Imperfect Subjunctive
je	déjeune	déjeunerais	déjeunai	déjeunasse
tu	déjeunes	déjeunerais	déjeunas	déjeunasses
il	déjeune	déjeunerait	déjeuna	déjeunât
nous	déjeunions	déjeunerions	déjeunâmes	déjeunassions
vous	déjeuniez	déjeuneriez	déjeunâtes	déjeunassiez
ils	déjeunent	déjeuneraient	déjeunèrent	déjeunassent

The imperative verb form is extremely easy and it's used with just three subject pronouns. However, you do not have to include the pronoun itself: use "déjeune" alone rather than "tu déjeune."

	Imperative
(tu)	déjeune
(nous)	déjeunons
(vous)	déjeunez