Grammar / A1 : Beginner / -ER verbs in the present tense
-ER verbs in the present tense
Regular pattern: parler, manger, habiter...
The most useful pattern in French
Around 90% of regular French verbs follow the -ER pattern. That means once you understand how parler works, you have the key to thousands of words: aimer, habiter, travailler, manger, écouter, voyager, acheter and many more. The conjugation itself is not the hard part. The hard part is something most textbooks mention too quietly, so it is worth saying clearly here.
In spoken French, four of the six present-tense forms of an -ER verb sound exactly the same. Je parle, tu parles, il parle and ils parlent all produce the sound /parl/. The written endings -e, -es, -e and -ent are real and must be written correctly, but the ear cannot tell them apart. Only nous and vous have endings with a sound of their own.
This has a practical consequence for listening: when you hear a French speaker use an -ER verb, the verb ending tells you almost nothing. You need to catch the subject pronoun (je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils, elles) to know who is performing the action. Train your ear to reach for the pronoun first, before the verb.
1. The regular pattern : parler as the model
To conjugate any regular -ER verb: take the infinitive, remove -er, and add the ending for each person.
parler (to speak) stem: parl-
| Subject | Conjugated form | Pronunciation | Written ending |
|---|---|---|---|
| je | je parle | /parl/ (ending is silent) | -e |
| tu | tu parles | /parl/ (ending is silent) | -es |
| il / elle / on | il parle | /parl/ (ending is silent) | -e |
| nous | nous parlons | /parlɔ̃/ (-ons IS pronounced) | -ons |
| vous | vous parlez | /parle/ (-ez IS pronounced) | -ez |
| ils / elles | ils parlent | /parl/ (ending is silent) | -ent |
The three spoken forms of any regular -ER verb:
/parl/ for je, tu, il/elle/on, ils/elles
/parlɔ̃/ for nous
/parle/ for vous
Six written forms. Three spoken sounds. This is normal; not an exception.
⚠ The -ent ending is one of the most persistent written errors. It is never pronounced, but it must always be written when the subject is plural (ils, elles, or a plural noun).
✓ Ils parlent. (They speak.) ✓ Les étudiants travaillent. (The students work.)
❌ Ils parle. ❌ Les étudiants travaille.
2. Applying the pattern to other verbs
The stem is always the infinitive minus -er. Here are four very common -ER verbs conjugated in full so you can see the pattern repeat.
| Subject | aimer (to like/love) | habiter (to live) | travailler (to work) | écouter (to listen) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je | j'aime | j'habite | je travaille | j'écoute |
| tu | tu aimes | tu habites | tu travailles | tu écoutes |
| il/elle | il aime | elle habite | il travaille | elle écoute |
| nous | nous aimons | nous habitons | nous travaillons | nous écoutons |
| vous | vous aimez | vous habitez | vous travaillez | vous écoutez |
| ils/elles | ils aiment | elles habitent | ils travaillent | elles écoutent |
💡 Notice that aimer and habiter use j' instead of je before the verb, because both stems begin with a vowel. The elision rule (je becomes j' before a vowel) applies to all -ER verbs whose stem starts with a vowel: j'aime, j'habite, j'écoute, j'arrive, j'oublie.
3. Essential -ER vocabulary at A1
These are the -ER verbs you will encounter most often at this level. Learning them as thematic groups makes them easier to retain.
| Theme | Verbs |
|---|---|
| Daily life | habiter (to live), travailler (to work), manger (to eat), préparer (to prepare), cuisiner (to cook), rentrer (to go home), arriver (to arrive) |
| Likes and opinions | aimer (to like/love), adorer (to love/adore), détester (to hate), préférer (to prefer), trouver (to find/think), penser (to think) |
| Communication | parler (to speak), écouter (to listen), demander (to ask), expliquer (to explain), appeler (to call), chercher (to look for) |
| Learning and studying | étudier (to study), pratiquer (to practise), répéter (to repeat), oublier (to forget), noter (to note down) |
| Shopping and movement | acheter (to buy), porter (to carry/wear), montrer (to show), voyager (to travel), marcher (to walk) |
| Leisure | regarder (to watch/look at), chanter (to sing), danser (to dance), jouer (to play), visiter (to visit) |
4. Spelling adjustments in the nous form
A small group of -ER verbs require a minor spelling change in the nous form. The reason is always phonetic: French spelling tries to preserve the pronunciation of the stem across all forms. These are not irregular verbs; the pattern is consistent, just slightly adapted.
Verbs ending in -ger (manger, voyager, nager)
When you add -ons to a stem ending in g, the g would produce a hard /g/ sound as in "go". To preserve the soft /ʒ/ sound (as in "measure") that these verbs have throughout, an e is inserted: nous mangeons, not nous mangons.
manger: je mange, tu manges, il mange, nous mangeons, vous mangez, ils mangent
voyager: je voyage, tu voyages, il voyage, nous voyageons, vous voyagez, ils voyagent
Verbs ending in -cer (commencer, placer, lancer)
The same logic applies to verbs ending in -cer. Before the -ons ending, the c would produce a hard /k/ sound. A cedilla is added to keep the soft /s/ sound: nous commençons.
commencer: je commence, tu commences, il commence, nous commençons, vous commencez, ils commencent
Verbs with a mute e in the stem (acheter, lever, peser)
When the stem contains a mute e (a vowel that is not clearly pronounced), French adds a grave accent in the forms where the syllable after it is also silent. This gives the mute e a sound. The affected forms are je, tu, il/elle and ils/elles.
acheter: j'achète, tu achètes, il achète, nous achetons, vous achetez, ils achètent
lever: je lève, tu lèves, il lève, nous levons, vous levez, ils lèvent
Verbs with é in the stem (préférer, espérer, répéter)
These follow a similar logic: in the je, tu, il and ils forms, the é in the stem shifts to è because the following syllable is silent. In the nous and vous forms, the following syllable has a sound, so é stays.
préférer: je préfère, tu préfères, il préfère, nous préférons, vous préférez, ils préfèrent
espérer: j'espère, tu espères, elle espère, nous espérons, vous espérez, ils espèrent
Verbs ending in -eler and -eter (appeler, jeter)
Most of these double the final consonant in the je, tu, il and ils forms. The doubled consonant creates a short, clear vowel sound before it.
appeler: j'appelle, tu appelles, il appelle, nous appelons, vous appelez, ils appellent
jeter: je jette, tu jettes, il jette, nous jetons, vous jetez, ils jettent
💡 All five adjustments above follow the same underlying idea: keep the pronunciation of the stem consistent across all forms. French spelling is not arbitrary; it is trying, sometimes clumsily, to reflect sound.
5. Negation
Negation with -ER verbs follows the standard rule: ne before the verb, pas after. When the verb starts with a vowel or silent h, ne shortens to n'.
| Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|
| Je parle français. (I speak French.) | Je ne parle pas français. (I don't speak French.) |
| Elle travaille ici. (She works here.) | Elle ne travaille pas ici. (She doesn't work here.) |
| Ils habitent à Paris. (They live in Paris.) | Ils n'habitent pas à Paris. (They don't live in Paris.) |
| Nous aimons le café. (We like coffee.) | Nous n'aimons pas le café. (We don't like coffee.) |
6. -ER verbs in context
Here is a short paragraph using several -ER verbs. Read it once for meaning, then again to identify each verb and its subject.
Marie habite à Bordeaux. Elle travaille dans une école et enseigne le français. Le matin, elle écoute la radio et mange un croissant. Ses collègues aiment beaucoup travailler avec elle parce qu'elle explique très bien et n'oublie jamais les réunions. Le week-end, elle voyage souvent et visite des musées.
Marie lives in Bordeaux. She works in a school and teaches French. In the morning she listens to the radio and eats a croissant. Her colleagues love working with her because she explains things very well and never forgets meetings. At the weekend she often travels and visits museums.
7. Key points
✓ Remove -er from the infinitive, then add: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent
✓ Four forms sound identical in speech: je, tu, il/elle, ils/elles all produce the same sound
✓ Only nous (-ons) and vous (-ez) have endings you can hear
✓ The -ent ending is never pronounced but must always be written for plural subjects
✓ Elision: je becomes j' before a vowel stem (j'aime, j'habite, j'écoute)
✓ Spelling adjustments in the nous form: nous mangeons / nous commençons
✓ Accent changes in je/tu/il/ils forms: j'achète, je préfère, j'appelle
✓ Negation: ne + verb + pas · n' before a vowel stem