How to conjugate French -er verbs

French -er verbs are the largest group of regular verbs. Understanding how to conjugate them is essential for building your French language skills.

Basic Rules

Most -er verbs follow a simple pattern:

1. Remove the -er ending
2. Add the appropriate ending for each subject

Here's the conjugation pattern for the present tense:

• je: -e
• tu: -es
• il/elle/on: -e
• nous: -ons
• vous: -ez
• ils/elles: -ent

Example: Parler (to speak)

• je parle
• tu parles
• il/elle/on parle
• nous parlons
• vous parlez
• ils/elles parlent

Common Exceptions

Some -er verbs have slight spelling changes to maintain pronunciation:

• Verbs ending in -ger: Add 'e' before 'ons' (nous mangeons)
• Verbs ending in -cer: Change 'c' to 'ç' before 'ons' (nous commençons)
• Verbs with é in the second-to-last syllable: Change é to è in all forms except nous and vous (je préfère, nous préférons)

Practice these rules with common verbs like aimer, danser, and étudier to improve your French conjugation skills.