Listen to the audio recording of how to say tricky French verbs in present tense:
As you might already know, French verbs are usually classified between REGULAR verbs (who follow a pattern) and IRREGULAR verbs (who need to be memorised in their own right).
Let me introduce you to a third category aka ‘the TRICKY ones’. These are mostly regular but have a few quirks.
The key French verbs in the present tense fall under these categories. You can usually spot them by their endings.
Quelques particularités parmi les verbes du premier groupe :
A few quirks within the first group verbs :
- verbes en -yer : le y devient i aux trois personnes du singulier et à la troisième personne du pluriel.
- the y becomes i in the 3rd person singular and the 3rd person plural
essayer = to tryappuyer = to press (down)J’essaieJ’appuieTu essaiesTu appuiesIl essaieIl appuieNous essayonsNous appuyonsVous essayezVous appuyezIls essaientIls appuient - verbes en -cer : le c devient ç à la première personne du pluriel.
- the c becomes ç in the 1st person plural
percer = to piercelancer = to throwJe perceJe lanceTu percesTu lancesIl perceIl lanceNous perçonsNous lançonsVous percezVous lancezIls percentIls lancent - verbes en -ger : on ajoute un e après le g à la première personne du pluriel.
- on ajoute un e après le g à la première personne du pluriel.
nager = to swimmanger = to eatJe nageJe mangeTu nagesTu mangesIl nageIl mangeNous nageonsNous mangeonsVous nagezVous mangezIls nagentIls mangent - verbes en -eler : certains verbes prennent un accent, d’autres doublent le l.
- certains verbes prennent un accent, d’autres doublent le l.
geler = to freezeappeler = to callJe gèleJ’appelleTu gèlesTu appellesIl gèleIl appelleNous gelonsNous appelonsVous gelezVous appelezIls gèlentIls appellent - verbes en -eter : certains verbes prennent un accent, d’autres doublent le t.
- certains verbes prennent un accent, d’autres doublent le t.
acheter = to buyjeter = to throwJ’achèteJe jetteTu achètesTu jettesIl achèteIl jetteNous achetonsNous jetonsVous achetezVous jetezIls achètentIls jettent
Listen to the audio recording:
So, there you have it… now you know how to say tricky French verbs in present tense.
It’s no coincidence that my “One-stop French verb lookup guide” lists these three tricky French verb tenses as the first 3 tenses to focus your efforts on.
Grab this French Verb Guide below >>