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"er" Verbs Conjugation
Conjugaison des Verbes en "er"
Hover on title to translate to French :)
The majority of French verbs are regular -ER verbs. Once you learn the conjugation rules for this group, you'll be able to correctly conjugate hundreds of the most common verbs in the French language!
The verb form that ends in -ER is called the infinitive, and -ER is the infinitive ending. The verb with the infinitive ending removed is called the stem or radical. To conjugate -ER verbs, remove the infinitive ending to find the stem and add the endings.
The table below lists the present tense conjugations for the regular -ER verbs parler (to speak or talk), donner (to give), and visiter (to visit).
A Photo of the French "er" verbs
Take some time to familiarize yourself with the most common -ER verbs, because you're likely to encounter these words often when reading or speaking French. They all share the same conjugation patterns!
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aimer - to like, to love
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arriver - to arrive, to happen
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chanter - to sing
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chercher - to look for
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commencer - to begin
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danser - to dance
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demander - to ask for
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dépenser - to spend (money)
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détester - to hate
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donner - to give
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écouter - to listen to
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étudier - to study
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fermer - to close
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goûter - to taste
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jouer - to play
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laver - to wash
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manger - to eat
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nager - to swim
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parler - to talk, to speak
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passer - to pass, spend (time)
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porter - to wear, to carry
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rêver - to dream
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sembler - to seem
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skier - to ski
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travailler - to work
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trouver - to find
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voler - to fly, to steal
A Few Exceptions
Most French verbs ending in -ER follow the same, simple conjugation pattern, making them easy to learn! However, you need to watch out for two small spelling changes in certain verbs:
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Verbs ending in -ger (like manger/to eat, or nager/to swim) and verbs ending in -cer (like commencer/to begin) are called Spelling-change Verbs. They conjugate like normal -er verbs, but they change one letter in certain forms to keep the correct sound
Example: For the verb manger (to eat), we add an e still. We write nous mangeons (we eat) instead of nous mangnons. The extra e is needed to keep the soft 'g' sound
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Also pay close attention to verbs ending in -ier (like étudier/to study or skier/to ski) because they will sometimes have a slightly tricky spelling when conjugated.
To sum it up, mastering how to use these "er" verbs is crucial to your French learning journey for they are commonly used in the sentences you make and can broaden your creativity in the language!
