Regular -re Verbs
5.7.1. The Main Idea
Some French verbs end in -re. A common group of regular -re verbs follows this pattern:
vendre | to sell |
attendre | to wait / to wait for |
répondre | to answer / to respond |
perdre | to lose |
descendre | to go down / to get off |
To use a regular -re verb in the present tense, remove -re and add the correct ending.
5.7.2. The Regular -re Pattern
vendre | to sell |
vend- | stem |
je vends | I sell / I am selling |
tu vends | you sell / you are selling |
il vend | he sells / he is selling |
elle vend | she sells / she is selling |
nous vendons | we sell / we are selling |
vous vendez | you sell / you are selling |
ils vendent | they sell / they are selling |
elles vendent | they sell / they are selling |
5.7.3. Regular -re Endings
je | -s |
tu | -s |
il / elle | no ending |
nous | -ons |
vous | -ez |
ils / elles | -ent |
The d in je vends, tu vends, and il vend is usually silent.
5.7.4. Example: Attendre
j’attends | I wait / I am waiting |
tu attends | you wait / you are waiting |
il attend | he waits / he is waiting |
elle attend | she waits / she is waiting |
nous attendons | we wait / we are waiting |
vous attendez | you wait / you are waiting |
ils attendent | they wait / they are waiting |
elles attendent | they wait / they are waiting |
Because attendre begins with a vowel sound, je becomes j’.
5.7.5. Example: Répondre
je réponds | I answer / I am answering |
tu réponds | you answer / you are answering |
il répond | he answers / he is answering |
elle répond | she answers / she is answering |
nous répondons | we answer / we are answering |
vous répondez | you answer / you are answering |
ils répondent | they answer / they are answering |
elles répondent | they answer / they are answering |
5.7.6. Example: Perdre
je perds | I lose / I am losing |
tu perds | you lose / you are losing |
il perd | he loses / he is losing |
elle perd | she loses / she is losing |
nous perdons | we lose / we are losing |
vous perdez | you lose / you are losing |
ils perdent | they lose / they are losing |
elles perdent | they lose / they are losing |
5.7.7. Common Regular -re Verbs
vendre | to sell |
attendre | to wait / to wait for |
répondre | to answer / to respond |
perdre | to lose |
descendre | to go down / to get off |
entendre | to hear |
rendre | to give back / to return |
rendre visite à | to visit someone |
5.7.8. Examples in Context
J’attends mon ami. | I am waiting for my friend. |
Tu réponds à la question. | You answer the question. |
Il vend du pain. | He sells bread. |
Elle perd son stylo. | She loses her pen. |
Nous descendons au café. | We are going down to the café. |
Vous entendez la musique ? | Do you hear the music? |
Ils rendent les livres. | They return the books. |
5.7.9. Negative Sentences
Place ne… pas around the conjugated verb.
Je vends du café. | I sell coffee. |
Je ne vends pas de café. | I do not sell coffee. |
J’attends mon ami. | I am waiting for my friend. |
Je n’attends pas mon ami. | I am not waiting for my friend. |
Tu réponds à la question. | You answer the question. |
Tu ne réponds pas à la question. | You do not answer the question. |
5.7.10. Informal Questions
In informal speech, keep the same word order and raise your voice.
Tu attends ton ami ? | Are you waiting for your friend? |
Tu réponds à la question ? | Are you answering the question? |
Tu vends du pain ? | Do you sell bread? |
Tu perds ton stylo ? | Are you losing your pen? |
Vous entendez la musique ? | Do you hear the music? |
5.7.11. Core Patterns
infinitive ending in -re | vendre |
remove -re | vend- |
je + stem + s | je vends |
tu + stem + s | tu vends |
il / elle + stem | il vend / elle vend |
nous + stem + ons | nous vendons |
vous + stem + ez | vous vendez |
ils / elles + stem + ent | ils vendent / elles vendent |
5.7.12. Practice
I am waiting for my friend. |
You answer the question. informal |
He sells bread. |
She loses her pen. |
We hear the music. |
You return the books. formal |
They are going down to the café. masculine or mixed |
I do not sell coffee. |
Are you waiting for your friend? informal |
5.7.13. Answers
I am waiting for my friend. | J’attends mon ami. |
You answer the question. informal | Tu réponds à la question. |
He sells bread. | Il vend du pain. |
She loses her pen. | Elle perd son stylo. |
We hear the music. | Nous entendons la musique. |
You return the books. formal | Vous rendez les livres. |
They are going down to the café. masculine or mixed | Ils descendent au café. |
I do not sell coffee. | Je ne vends pas de café. |
Are you waiting for your friend? informal | Tu attends ton ami ? |
5.7.14. Short Dialogue
A : Tu attends quelqu’un ? | A: Are you waiting for someone? |
B : Oui, j’attends mon ami. Et toi ? | B: Yes, I am waiting for my friend. And you? |
A : Je descends au café. Tu viens ? | A: I am going down to the café. Are you coming? |
B : Oui, j’arrive. | B: Yes, I’m coming. |
5.7.15. Checkpoint
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to recognize regular -re verbs, form the present tense by removing -re and adding the correct endings, and use common verbs such as attendre, répondre, vendre, perdre, entendre, and descendre.
5.7.16. Try It Out
Try saying this in French:
Are you waiting for your friend?
Yes, I’m waiting for my friend.
Possible answer:
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