Taking place now; regularly; started in the past and carries on in the
present; will happen in the near future; relates to historical events,
bringing them to life; that is timeless/universal
Regular Endings
-ER: -e,-es,-e,-ons,-ez,-ent
-IR: -is,-is,-it,-issons,-issez,-issent
-RE: -e,-es,-e,-ons,-ez,-ent
Some Irregular Verbs
Avoir: j'ais; nous
avons
Devoir: je dois; nous
devons
Pouvoir: je peux, nous
pouvons
Savoir: je sais; nous savons
Aller: je vais; nous
allons
Faire: je fais; nous
faisons
Dire: je dis; nous
disons
En train de + Infinitive
Use instead of present tense
to emphasize that
something is happening at
the time of speaking/writing
Depuis + present tense
Depuis = since; for
Use to talk about what has
been and is still going on; e.g.,
J'habite au Canada depuis 1999
Present tense of 'venir' + de +
infinititive
To say that you 'have just done' something
PERFECT
Expresses a
completed
action in the past
How to form:
PRESENT TENSE OF
AVOIR/ETRE + PAST
PARTICIPLE
Most verbs
take avoir,
'movement'
verbs take etre
Etre verbs: past
participle must agree
with the subject of
the verb
Only time avoir verbs need to agree with the subject is when
there is a direct object before the verb; e.g. j'ai fabriqué une
tasse que j'ai ramenée a la maison
How to form past
participle
-ER: take off -er and
add -é
-IR: take off -ir and
add -i
-RE: take off -re and
add -u
Some common irregular past participles:
Avoir: eu
Devoir: dû
Etre: été
Faire:
fait
Pouvoir:
pu
Vouloir:
voulu
Savoir: su
Vivre: vécu
Prendre:
pris
Croire:
cru
IMPERFECT
Used
to..
Describe
what
someone/thing
was
like
in
the
past
(general)
Describe
continuous/interrupted
actions in the past
Something that
happened
regularly
With 'depuis' when
the action lasted for
some time but is
now over
After 'si'
clauses
In reported speech (to
report the present
tense)
How to form: NOUS
form of verb minus
-ons + endings
(-ais,-ais,-ait,-ions,-iez,aient)
Exception! Etre -
ét-
Imperfect tense of 'venir' + de +
infinitive
To say that you 'had just done'
something
Important
Verbs
AVOIR: j'avais, tu
avais, il avait, nous
avions; vous aviez,
ils avaient
ETRE: j'étais, tu
étais, il était, nous
étions, vous étiez,
ils étaient
PLUPERFECT
Used
to..
Say what had
happened before
some other event; e.g.
Je suis arrivée trop
tard, mes copains
étaient deja partis
How to form:
imperfect tense of
avoir/etre + past
participle
FUTURES
Immediate
Use to say something is 'going to happen'
How to form:
present tense
of 'aller' +
infinitive
Simple
Used
to..
describe future
plans
say how
you think
the future
will be
say what
will
happen
give an order
describe what will happen
'when...' or 'as soon as...' (i.e.
with 'quant a' or 'des que'
How to form:
infinitive (reg. verbs)
+ endings
-ai, -as,
-a,
-ons,
-ez,
-ont
Some Irregulars
Aller:
j'irai
Avoir: j;aurai
Devoir: je
devrai
Etre: je
serai
Faire: je
ferai
Il faut: il
faudra
Pouvoir: je
pourrai
Savoir: je
saurai
Venir: je
viendrai
Vouloir: je
voudrai
FUTURE
PERFECT
Used
to..
Refer to something that
'will have taken place
before something else'
in the future
How it is
formed: future
tense of
AVOIR/ETRE +
PAST PARTICIPLE
Avoir Future Tense:
j'aurai, tu auras, il
aura, nous aurons,
vous aurez, ils
auront
Etre Future
Tense: je serai,
tu seras, il sera,
nous serons,
vous serez, ils
seront
PRESENT CONDITIONAL
Used to..
Express a
wish/make a
suggestion
Polite request
Refer to an action
which depends on
another event/action
How it is formed: INFINITIVE +
endings
Endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions,
-iez, -aient
Some
Irregulars
Avoir:
j'aurais
Etre: je
serais
Aller:
j'irais
il faut: il
faudrait
Pouvoir: je
pourrais
Savoir: je
saurais
PAST
CONDITIONAL
Used
to..
Say that something
would have
happened given
certain
circumstances (but
actually didn't
happen)
How it is formed:
CONDITIONAL of
AVOIR/ETRE +
PAST PARTICIPLE
Avoir Conditional:
j'aurais, tu aurais, il
aurait, nous aurions,
vous auriez, ils auraient
Etre Conditional: je
serais, tu serais, il
serait, nous serions,
vous seriez, ils
seraient
SUBJUNCTIVE
Used..
After many verbs
expressing an
emotion or
opinion
after impersonal
expressions; e.g. il faut
que
After conjunctions
expressing: time,
concession, aim,
condition
After a relative pronoun
(qui/que) when it
follows a superlative or
negative
After Que at
the
beginning of
a sentence
After: qui que,
quel que, quoi
que, ou que,
SEE
TRIGGER
PHRASES
FLASHCARDS!
How to
form..
Present
subjunctive
take 'ils' form of present tense,
take off final -ent, and add
endings
Endings: -e, -es, -e, -ions,
-iez, -ent
Avoir: j'aie, tu
aies, il ait, nous
ayons, vous
ayez, ils aient
Etre: je sois, tu sois, tu soit, nous
soyons, vous soyez, ils soient
Perfect
subjunctive
Present
subjunctive of
avoir/etre + past
participle