How to Conjugate the French Verb 'Discuter' ('to Discuss')

Discuter ("to discuss, debate, argue, consider") is a regular French -er verb that shares conjugation patterns in all tenses and moods with every other regular French verb ending in -er, by far the largest group of French verbs. To conjugate discuter, remove the -er ending to reveal the stem discut-, then add the regular -er endings shown in the table at the bottom of the page.

Note that this table includes simple conjugations only. Compound conjugations, which consist of a conjugated form of the auxiliary verb avoir and the past participle discuté, are not included.

Examples and Usage of 'Discuter'

Discuter le coup (familiar) > to have a chat

Discuter un prix > to haggle over a price

Discuter la véracité de quelque chose > to dispute the veracity of something

Inutile de discuter. > It's no use arguing.

Discuter de > to talk about

Discuter de choses et d'autres > to talk about this and that

Ça se discute. (pronominal) > That's debatable.

C'est déplacé de discuter des détails avec toi. > It's not appropriate for me to discuss the details / particulars with you.

Calmez-vous, on veut juste discuter. > Calm down. We just want to talk.

Nous devrons sérieusement discuter du sujet. > We'll have to seriously debate the issue.

J'aimerais discuter d'une proposition. > I have a proposal / proposition I'd like to discuss.

On peut discuter où tu voudras. > We can talk wherever you want.

'Discuter' Is a Regular French '-er' Verb

The majority of French verbs are regular -er verbs, as discuter is. (There are five main kinds of verbs in French: regular -er, -ir, -re verbs; stem-changing verbs; and irregular verbs.)

To conjugate a regular French -er verb, remove the -er ending from the infinitive to reveal the verb's stem.

Then add the regular -er endings to the stem. Note that regular -er verbs share conjugation patterns in all tenses and moods.

You can apply the same endings in the table to any of the regular French -er verbs listed below.

More Common French Regular '-er' Verbs

French regular -er verbs, by far the largest group of French verbs, share a conjugation pattern. Here are just a few of the most common regular -er verbs:

• aimer > to like, to love
• arriver > to arrive, to happen
• chanter > to sing
• chercher > to look for
• commencer* > to begin
• danse > 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
• goûte > to taste
• jouer > to play
• laver > to wash
• manger* > to eat
• nager* > to swim
• parler > to talk, to speak
• passe > to pass, spend (time)
• penser > to think
• porter > to wear, to carry
• regarder > to watch, to look at
• rêver > to dream
• sembler > to seem
• skier** > to ski
• travailler > to work
• trouve > to find
• visiter > to visit (a place)

• voler > to fly, to steal

*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, known as spelling-change verbs.
**Though conjugated just like regular -er verbs, watch out for verbs that end in -ier.

Simple Conjugations of the Regular French '-er' Verb 'Discuter'

	Present	Future	Imperfect	Present participle
je	discute	discuterai	discutais	discutant
tu	discutes	discuteras	discutais
il	discute	discutera	discutait
nous	discutons	discuterons	discutions
vous	discutez	discuterez	discutiez
ils	discutent	discuteront	discutaient

Passé composé
Auxiliary verb	avoir
Past participle	discuté

	Subjunctive	Conditional	Passé simple	Imperfect subjunctive
je	discute	discuterais	discutai	discutasse
tu	discutes	discuterais	discutas	discutasses
il	discute	discuterait	discuta	discutât
nous	discutions	discuterions	discutâmes	discutassions
vous	discutiez	discuteriez	discutâtes	discutassiez
ils	discutent	discuteraient	discutèrent	discutassent

	Imperative
tu	discute
nous	discutons
vous	discutez