Conjugating French Regular -ER Verbs

There are five main kinds of verbs in French: regular -ER, -IR, -RE; stem-changing; and irregular. Once you've learned the rules of conjugation for each of the first three kinds of verbs, you should have no problem conjugating regular verbs in each of those categories. The majority of French verbs are regular -ER verbs.

French Regular -ER Verb Conjugations

The verb form that ends in -ER is called the infinitive, and -ER is the infinitive ending. The verb with the infinitive ending removed is called the stem or radical. To conjugate -ER verbs, remove the infinitive ending to find the stem and add the endings.

The table lists the present tense conjugations for the regular -ER verbs parler (to speak or talk), donner (to give), and visiter (to visit). To help with learning, the infinitive form is listed (such as parler) followed by the stem (such as parl-).

Pronoun	Ending	parler > parl-	donner > donn-	visiter > visit-
je	-e	parle	donne	visite
tu	-es	parles	donnes	visites
il	-e	parle	donne	visite
nous	-ons	parlons	donnons	visitons
vous	-ez	parlez	donnez	visitez
ils	-ent	parlent	donnent	visitent

Regular -ER verbs share conjugation patterns in all tenses and moods.

More -ER Verb Conjugations: Penser

The rules for conjugating regular -ER verbs remain the same throughout all tenses and moods: That's why they the are called "regular" -ER verbs. For your studies, it can be helpful, however, to view all the conjugations for all tenses of moods of a regular -ER verb, such as penser (to think). Remember that to conjugate this regular -ER verb, simply take the stem -pens and then add the appropriate endings.

Pronoun	Present	Future	Imperfect
je	pense	penserai	pensais
tu	penses	penseras	pensais
il	pense	pensera	pensait
nous	pensons	penserons	pensions
vous	pensez	penserez	pensiez
ils	pensent	penseront	pensaient

Pronoun	Subjunctive	Conditional	Passé Simple	Imperfect Subjunctive
je	pense	penserais	pensai	pensasse
tu	penses	penserais	pensas	pensasses
il	pense	penserait	pensa	pensât
nous	pensions	penserions	pensâmes	pensassions
vous	pensiez	penseriez	pensâtes	pensassiez
ils	pensent	penseraient	pensèrent	pensassent

Pronoun	Imperative
tu	pense
nous	pensons
vous	pensez

Some Common French Regular -ER Verbs

Take some time to familiarize yourself with the most common regular -ER verbs, because you're likely to encounter these words often when reading or speaking French. They all share the same conjugation patterns, with a few exceptions noted below.

• aimer > to like, to love
• arriver > to arrive, to happen
• chanter  > to sing
• chercher > to look for
• commencer > to begin
• danser > to dance
• demander  > to ask for
• dépenser  > to spend (money)
• détester  > to hate
• donner  > to give
• écouter > to listen to
• étudier   > to study
• fermer > to close
• goûter  > to taste
• jouer > to play
• laver  > to wash
• manger  > to eat
• nager  > to swim
• parler  > to talk, to speak
• passer > to pass, spend (time)
• porter  > to wear, to carry
• rêver  > to dream
• sembler > to seem
• skier > to ski
• travailler  > to work
• trouver  > to find
• voler  > to fly, to steal

A Few Exceptions

All regular -ER verbs are conjugated according to the regular -ER verb conjugation pattern, except for one small irregularity in verbs that end in -ger and -cer, which are known as spelling-change verbs. Examples of this kind of conjugation would be commencer (to begin), manger (to eat), nager (to swim), and skier (to ski). Though they are conjugated just like regular -ER verbs, watch out for verbs that end in -IER, such as étudier (to study).