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French Verbs - Lessons on French Verbs

Everything there is to know about French verbs, including conjugations, tenses, moods, uses, quizzes, timeline, and more.

Introduction to French Verbs

Learn the basics of French verbs.

Top French Verbs

Of the thousands of French verbs, there are a few that get used far more than the rest, so you need to make sure that you know what they mean and how to use and conjugate them. Here are lessons and conjugations for the most common French verbs.

Dual-verb constructions

Placing pronouns and negatives with dual-verbs is a little different than with compound verbs.

Être verbs

Lesson and quiz on verbs that use être as the auxiliary.

Giving Orders in French - Les Ordres

You probably know that the imperative is commonly used to give orders, but what about other constructions? Have you ever seen another verb form used and figured it was a mistake? It probably wasn't - in fact there are four different ways to give orders in French.

Inversion - Uses

Inversion is the grammatical structure where the normal French word order subject + verb is inverted to verb + subject and joined by a hyphen. You probably know that inversion is commonly used in asking questions, but there are a number of other uses as well.

Si clauses

If... then clauses require specific verb tense pairings. Check out this lesson and quiz on if ... then... clauses.

Tips to Improve your French Verb Conjugations

Conjugating French verbs in a workbook or letter is one thing, but remembering individual verb conjugations when you're speaking is another matter entirely. Here are some tips to help you get better at conjugating French verbs.

Top French Verb Lessons

French verbs can be difficult, and certain verb lessons on my site get visited over and over. For some people, certain verb concepts just don't sink in the first (or second or third) time they are learned, or continue to cause confusion even after years of study. To make it easier for you to find the French verb lessons you need, here are the most commonly visited French verb pages on my site. If you need to review any of these, know that you are not alone!

Translating French Verb Tenses and Moods

Learn how to translate all the different French verb forms into English.

Verbs and Indirect Object Pronouns

In French, à plus a person can usually be replaced by an indirect object pronoun that gets placed in front of the verb (e.g., Il me parle). However, a few French verbs and expressions do not allow a preceding indirect object pronoun - instead, they require that you keep the preposition after the verb, and follow it with a stressed pronoun.

French Verbs with Prepositions

Many French verbs require a certain preposition in order for the meaning of the verb to be complete. In addition, some verbs that do require a preposition in English don't take one in French, and vice versa. Learn all about French verbs with prepositions and then take the test.

Verbs with sports

Learn whether to use jouer, faire, or aller with your favorite sport.

The Best French Verb Books

There are many, many French verb books in existence, which offer explanations and conjugations for hundreds - sometimes thousands - of verbs. In my mind, there are only a few contenders for your French reference library.

Explore French Language

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