Conjugating "Aller"

Updated on 2024-08-19

The French verb "aller" (to go) is one of the most common and useful verbs in the French language. However, it's also an irregular verb, which means its conjugation doesn't follow standard patterns. Let's explore how to conjugate "aller" in various tenses and moods.

Present Tense

The present tense conjugation of "aller" is:

Je vais
Tu vas
Il/Elle/On va
Nous allons
Vous allez
Ils/Elles vont

Example: "Je vais au marché." (I'm going to the market.)

Passé Composé

"Aller" uses "être" as its auxiliary verb in compound tenses:

Je suis allé(e)
Tu es allé(e)
Il/Elle/On est allé(e)
Nous sommes allé(e)s
Vous êtes allé(e)(s)
Ils/Elles sont allé(e)s

Example: "Nous sommes allés au cinéma hier soir." (We went to the cinema last night.)

Imparfait

The imperfect tense conjugation is more regular:

J'allais
Tu allais
Il/Elle/On allait
Nous allions
Vous alliez
Ils/Elles allaient

Example: "J'allais souvent à la plage quand j'étais enfant." (I often used to go to the beach when I was a child.)

Future Simple

The future tense of "aller" is formed by adding the following endings to the stem "ir-":

J'irai
Tu iras
Il/Elle/On ira
Nous irons
Vous irez
Ils/Elles iront

Example: "Nous irons en France l'été prochain." (We will go to France next summer.)

Conditional

The conditional mood uses the same stem as the future tense:

J'irais
Tu irais
Il/Elle/On irait
Nous irions
Vous iriez
Ils/Elles iraient

Example: "J'irais bien au restaurant ce soir." (I would like to go to the restaurant tonight.)

Remember, "aller" is also used to form the near future tense (futur proche) when followed by an infinitive. For example: "Je vais manger" (I'm going to eat).

Mastering the conjugation of "aller" is crucial for French learners as it's used frequently in everyday conversations and helps form other tenses. Practice these conjugations regularly to become more fluent in French!