French -RE Verbs Explained: Conjugation Rules and Examples

Key takeaways

• Regular -RE verbs drop the -re ending and add a fixed set of endings for each subject pronoun.
• The il/elle/on (he/she/one) form takes no ending at all in the present tense: il attend, not il attende.
• The past participle of regular -RE verbs is formed by replacing -re with -u: attendre becomes attendu.
• Many high-frequency -RE verbs are irregular and do not follow this pattern, including prendre (to take) and mettre (to put).
• Adding an -e to the il/elle/on singular form is the most common mistake learners make with this verb group.

You studied -ER verbs. You worked through -IR verbs. Then you hit -RE verbs and notice that the singular forms behave differently from anything you have seen so far, particularly the third-person singular which takes no ending at all.

That gap between what you expect and what the rule actually says is where most errors happen. italki connects learners with 30,000+ expert tutors across 150+ languages with experience drilling French verb conjugations until they become automatic.

The good news is that once you understand the pattern for regular -RE verbs, it applies consistently across a solid group of common French words. Working through conjugation drills with a French teacher online means you get immediate correction rather than practising the wrong forms for weeks.

This guide covers the full present tense pattern for regular -RE verbs, the passé composé, the imparfait, and a clear guide to which irregular -RE verbs you need to learn separately.

How regular -RE verbs work

French verbs are grouped into three families by their infinitive endings: -ER, -IR, and -RE. To conjugate a regular -RE verb, you take the infinitive, remove the -re ending, and add a new ending that matches the subject. The model verb for this group is attendre (to wait). Removing -re gives you the stem: attend-. The endings for the present tense are:

Subject	Ending	Notes
je	-s
tu	-s
il/elle/on	(nothing)	No ending added
nous	-ons
vous	-ez
ils/elles	-ent	Silent in speech

The third-person singular ending is zero: you add nothing. This is what makes -RE verbs distinctive and what catches learners out.

Present tense: the full pattern

Here is the complete conjugation of attendre (to wait) in the present tense:

Subject	French	English
je	j’attends	I wait / I am waiting
tu	tu attends	you wait / you are waiting
il/elle/on	il attend	he/she/one waits
nous	nous attendons	we wait / we are waiting
vous	vous attendez	you wait (plural/formal)
ils/elles	ils attendent	they wait

Note: the -ent ending for ils/elles is silent. Ils attendent sounds the same as il attend in spoken French. Hear the distinctions in natural French. An online French tutor can help you hear these distinctions in natural speech, which matters when you are listening to native French and need to catch whether a subject is singular or plural.

Regular -RE verbs to know

The same pattern applies to all regular -RE verbs. Here are the most useful ones:

Infinitive	English	Stem	Ils/elles form
attendre	to wait	attend-	ils attendent
répondre	to answer	répond-	ils répondent
vendre	to sell	vend-	ils vendent
perdre	to lose	perd-	ils perdent
entendre	to hear	entend-	ils entendent
rendre	to give back / to hand in	rend-	ils rendent
descendre	to go down	descend-	ils descendent
défendre	to defend	défend-	ils défendent
étendre	to stretch / to extend	étend-	ils étendent

Practice conjugating each of these verbs in full before moving on. The pattern is identical each time, so once the stem is established, the endings follow automatically. Drill -RE verb conjugations systematically. Work with a French teacher to conjugate these verbs repeatedly until the patterns stick.

Passé composé for -RE verbs

The passé composé (past tense, roughly equivalent to “I did” or “I have done”) for regular -RE verbs uses avoir (to have) as the auxiliary verb, plus a past participle. The past participle of regular -RE verbs is formed by replacing -re with -u:

• attendre becomes attendu (waited)
• répondre becomes répondu (answered)
• vendre becomes vendu (sold)
• perdre becomes perdu (lost)
• entendre becomes entendu (heard)

Full conjugation example using attendre (to wait):

Subject	French	English
j’	j’ai attendu	I waited / I have waited
tu	tu as attendu	you waited
il/elle/on	il a attendu	he/she waited
nous	nous avons attendu	we waited
vous	vous avez attendu	you waited (plural/formal)
ils/elles	ils ont attendu	they waited

For a deeper look at the passé composé and how it contrasts with the imparfait, the guide to passé composé in French covers the full picture. Master the passé composé pattern. The auxiliary + past participle structure is straightforward once you get the rules straight. Practice it with a French tutor.

Imparfait for -RE verbs

The imparfait (imperfect tense, used for ongoing past states and habitual past actions) follows the same rule as all other French verbs. You take the nous (we) form of the present tense, drop the -ons ending, and add the imparfait endings. Nous form of attendre: nous attendons. Remove -ons: stem is attend-. The imparfait endings are: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.

Subject	French	English
je	j’attendais	I was waiting / I used to wait
tu	tu attendais	you were waiting
il/elle/on	il attendait	he/she was waiting
nous	nous attendions	we were waiting
vous	vous attendiez	you were waiting
ils/elles	ils attendaient	they were waiting

The same formula works for all regular -RE verbs: take the nous present stem and add the imparfait endings.

The most common mistake

The most frequent error with -RE verbs is adding an -e to the il/elle/on form: Incorrect: il réponde, elle attende, on perde Correct: il répond, elle attend, on perd This error happens because learners expect every verb form to have an ending, as -ER and most -IR verbs do. With -RE verbs, the third-person singular is the bare stem. No ending is added. A useful check: if you look at the infinitive répondre and remove -re, you get répond. The il/elle/on form is exactly that stem, with nothing added. Avoid the zero-ending trap. This is the single most common -RE verb error. Recognize it, and half your work is done.

Irregular -RE verbs: the ones that break the rules

Many high-frequency French verbs end in -re but do not follow the regular pattern. These verbs need to be learned individually:

Infinitive	English	Why It’s Irregular
prendre	to take	Stem changes: je prends, nous prenons
mettre	to put	Stem changes: je mets, nous mettons
battre	to beat	Drops one t in singular: je bats
suivre	to follow	Stem: sui-: je suis
vivre	to live	Stem: vi-: je vis
connaître	to know (a person/place)	Circumflex on î before t
boire	to drink	Multiple stem changes
dire	to say/tell	vous dites (not vous disez)
lire	to read	Stem change: vous lisez
écrire	to write	Stem change: nous écrivons

The verbs in this list appear constantly in everyday French, so learning their irregular forms is a high priority. For targeted grammar work, the guide to French grammar practice covers approaches that help these forms stick. Focusing on a few of these each week in conversation practice builds fluency faster than drilling in isolation.

Making -RE verbs automatic

Regular -RE verbs are a small but reliable group. Once the present tense pattern is solid, the passé composé and imparfait follow logically from rules you can apply each time. The real challenge is building the speed to use these forms in conversation without pausing to run through the pattern in your head. Put conjugations into real speech with a tutor. Knowing the conjugation tables and using the language under pressure are two different things. italki has 30,000+ expert tutors trusted by over 10 million learners worldwide. Find a French specialist who focuses specifically on verb fluency and the kind of real-time feedback that drills in a textbook cannot give you. Book a trial lesson with a French online tutor and put these conjugations into practice.

FAQ

Are there -RE verbs that take être in the passé composé instead of avoir? Yes. Descendre (to go down), as well as some other -RE verbs used intransitively, can take être depending on meaning. For example, il est descendu means he went downstairs, while il a descendu les valises means he brought the suitcases down. The distinction depends on whether the verb is being used intransitively or with a direct object. How do I know whether a -RE verb is regular or irregular? There is no shortcut for this: you need to check or memorise. Verbs ending in -endre, -ondre, -erdre, and -endre are usually regular. Verbs with stems that look compressed or unusual, like prendre, mettre, battre, or boire, are typically irregular. As you encounter new -RE verbs, a quick check of the je and nous forms will tell you immediately if the pattern holds. Does the silent -ent ending on ils/elles ever affect pronunciation? In regular speech, the -ent ending is always silent on regular verbs. However, it does affect liaison in certain contexts: ils attendent is pronounced with the same final vowel sound as il attend in careful speech, but the -ent does not add an audible sound of its own.