Verbs - present tense Flashcards
What are the 3 conjugations in French verbs and how do you find the stem?
First conjugation is a verb whose infinitive ends in -er
Second conjugation is a verb whose infinitive ends in -ir
Third conjugation is a verb whose infinitive ends in -re
To find the stem, take the infinitive form (e.g passer) and remove the ending -> pass. Same with all 3 verb types
What are the present tense endings for -er verbs?
Je e
Tu es
Il/elle/on e
Nous ons
Vous ez
Ils/Elles ent
What are 5 groups of -er verbs that have spelling changes in the present tense?
Verbs ending in:
-cer
-ger
-eler
-eter
-yer
How do -er verbs that end in -cer change their spelling when conjugated in the present tense?
c becomes ç in the nous form so as to remain a soft c
e.g. nous lançons
(Normally a c without a cedilla, followed by an o or an a would have a hard c sound)
How do -er verbs that end in -ger change their spelling when conjugated in the present tense?
g becomes ge in the nous form so as to remain a soft g
e.g. nous mangeons,
nous rangeons (tidy)
nous les dérangeons (we are disturbing them)
(Normally a g without an e immediately after it, followed by an o or an a would have a hard g sound)
How do -er verbs that end in -eler change their spelling when conjugated in the present tense?
What are 2 exceptions?
The l doubles before present tense endings 1,2,3 and 6.
E.g. appeler (to call)
J’appelle
tu appelle
il appelle
Nous appelons
Vous appelez
Ils appellent
(note the pronunciation therefore changes as I already knew)
Also rappeler - to remind
2 exceptions to this rule are:
geler - to freeze
peler - to peel
(note both of these are 2 syllables only)
Both of these are conjugated like lever
How do -er verbs that end in -eter change their spelling when conjugated in the present tense?
What is an exception?
The t doubles before present tense endings 1,2,3 and 6.
E.g. jeter (to throw0
Je jette
tu jettes
il jettent
Nous jetons
Vous jetez
Ils jettent
(note the pronunciation therefore changes as I already knew)
An exceptions to this rule is acheter which changes in the same way as lever
How do -er verbs that end in -yer change their spelling when conjugated in the present tense?
The y changes to i before present tense endings 1,2,3 and 6.
E.g. nettoyer (to clean)
Je nettoie
tu nettoies
il nettoie
Nous nettoyons
Vous nettoyez
Ils nettoient
(note 3rd person singular is irregular)
(note the pronunciation therefore changes as I already knew)
Also balayer - to sweep
What is the rule regarding present tense conjugation of verbs that end in -ayer?
These can be spelled with either a y or an i in tenses 1,2,3 and 6.
E.g. payer - to pay
Je paie or je paye
tu paies or tu payes
il paient or il payent
nous payons
vous payez
ils paient or ils payent
Same for essayer - to try
Name 3 -er verbs that add an accent in the present tense?
3 verbs that add an accent:
Lever (to raise)
Peser (to weigh)
Acheter (to buy)
I got up to go and buy an accent but had to weight it first
A grave accent is added to the e before the final consonant/consonant group of the stem for present tense endings 1,2,3 and 6.
Je lève
tu lèves
il lève
Nous levons
Vous levez
Ils lèvent
(note the pronunciation therefore changes as I already knew)
Name 3 -er verbs that change an accent in the present tense?
What change is made?
3 verbs that change an accent:
Espérer (to hope)
Régler (to adjust)
Préférer (to prefer)
I prefer to measure my accent and hope it will not need to change.
The e before the FINAL consonant/consonant group in the stem changes from acute to grave for present tense endings 1,2,3 and 6.
J’espère
tu espères
il espère
Nous espérons
Vous espérez
Ils espèrent
(note the pronunciation therefore changes as I already knew)
This means it is Je préfère but nous préférons
And elle règle but vous réglez
What are the present tense endings for -ir verbs?
Je is
Tu is
Il/elle/on it
Nous issons
Vous issez
Ils/Elles issent
Note the nous and vouz forms now have 3 syllables rather than 2
E.g. Finir - to finish
Je finis
Tu finis
Il finit
Nous finissons
Vouz finissez
Ils finissent
What are the present tense endings for -re verbs?
Je s
Tu. s
Il/elle/on
Nous ons
Vous ez
Ils/Elles. ent
E.g attendre
J’attends
Tu attends
Il attend
Nous attendons
Vous attendez
Ils attendent
Note the last 3 endings are the same as for -er verbs
What is the common pattern for many irregular -ir verbs in the present tense?
In the singular the je and tu forms often end in s and the il form ends in t
E.g.
partir (to leave)
tenir (to hold)
Je pars, tu pars, il part
Je tiens, tu tiens, il tient
(Note the stem is irregular - par, not part and tien not ten)
