The present tense: -ir and -re verbs, prendre and mettre

Most French verbs end in -er, but many common ones end in -ir or -re. Learn four -ir patterns, three -re patterns and mettre.

GCSE · 1FR1
International GCSE · 4FR1
About 16 minutes

Practise this lesson free (7 questions)

Four -ir patterns

Each pattern has a model verb. Learn the model and you can do the others like it.
choisir pattern (also finir, réussir, réfléchir): nous choisissons.
partir pattern (also sortir, dormir, servir): drop the consonant before the ending in the singular.
venir pattern (also devenir, revenir, tenir). ouvrir pattern (also découvrir, offrir) takes -er endings.

	choisir	partir	venir	ouvrir
je	choisis	pars	viens	ouvre
tu	choisis	pars	viens	ouvres
il / elle / on	choisit	part	vient	ouvre
nous	choisissons	partons	venons	ouvrons
vous	choisissez	partez	venez	ouvrez
ils / elles	choisissent	partent	viennent	ouvrent

Three -re patterns

entendre pattern (also attendre, vendre, perdre, répondre, descendre, rendre): no ending at all for il / elle: il entend.
prendre pattern (also apprendre, comprendre): watch the double n in ils prennent.
traduire pattern (also conduire, réduire, produire, construire): an s appears in the plural: nous traduisons.

	entendre	prendre	traduire
je	entends	prends	traduis
tu	entends	prends	traduis
il / elle / on	entend	prend	traduit
nous	entendons	prenons	traduisons
vous	entendez	prenez	traduisez
ils / elles	entendent	prennent	traduisent

Mettre, and how to use them

mettre (to put, to put on): je mets, tu mets, il met, nous mettons, vous mettez, ils mettent. Also promettre, permettre.
Je mets la table. = I lay the table. Je prends le bus. = I take the bus.
J'apprends le français. = I learn / I am learning French. The French present covers both English forms.
The endings -s, -t and -ent are silent, so in the dictation think about the subject before you write the verb.

Worked example

Translate: We take the train and my sisters wait at the station.

We take = nous prenons (prendre pattern, one n in the nous form)
my sisters wait = mes sœurs attendent (entendre pattern, -ent ending)
at the station = à la gare

Answer: Nous prenons le train et mes sœurs attendent à la gare.

Key idea

-ir: choisis / choisissons, pars / partons, viens / viennent, ouvre / ouvrons. -re: entends / il entend, prends / prennent, traduis / traduisons. Mettre: mets, met, mettons, mettent.

Key words

réussir: to succeed, to pass
dormir: to sleep
devenir: to become
découvrir: to discover
offrir: to give (as a present)

All GCSE and International GCSE French key terms and definitions →

Common mistakes

Not “finons”. The plural needs -iss-.
Not “finirons”. That is the future tense.
Not “prendent”. Prendre drops the d in the plural.
Not “ouvert”. Ouvert is the past participle.

Quick check

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Extra practice

2 more questions

Try each one, then tap to check.

Ils ___ un film. (choisir)
1. choisent
2. choisissent
3. choisiront
4. choisissez
Show the answer
Answer: choisissent
Ils choisissent, with -iss-.
Mes sœurs ___ l'espagnol. (apprendre)
1. apprendent
2. apprennent
3. apprenent
4. apprends
Show the answer
Answer: apprennent
Apprendre: ils apprennent.

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Practise this lesson free (7 questions)All GCSE and International GCSE French lessons

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Sources and references

Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.