The French Present Tense: One Form Doing Three Jobs
Le présent in French does the work of three English tenses: right now, habitual actions, and near future. Full conjugation patterns and examples.
The French present tense (le présent) does the work of three English tenses: right now (je mange - I’m eating), habitual actions (je mange tous les jours - I eat every day), and near future in casual speech (j’arrive dans 5 minutes - I’ll be there in 5 minutes).
Quick answer
The French present tense (le présent) does the work of three English tenses: right now (je mange - I’m eating), habitual actions (je mange tous les jours - I eat every day), and near future in casual speech (j’arrive dans 5 minutes - I’ll be there in 5 minutes).
Master the present tense with real sentences and native audio. Get it on the App Store or Google Play.
For the wider tense system this belongs to, see French conjugation guide.
Job 1: right now
Je mange covers both “I eat” and “I’m eating” - no separate continuous tense needed, unlike English.
Job 2: habitual actions
Je mange à midi tous les jours (I eat at noon every day).
Job 3: near future (casual speech)
J’arrive dans 5 minutes (I’ll be there in 5 minutes) - the present tense standing in for the near future, extremely common in everyday speech.
Forming the present: regular verbs
-er verbs: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. -ir verbs (finir type): -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent. -re verbs (vendre type): -s, -s, -, -ons, -ez, -ent.
The irregulars you need first
| être | avoir | aller | faire | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je | suis | ai | vais | fais |
| tu | es | as | vas | fais |
| il/elle | est | a | va | fait |
| nous | sommes | avons | allons | faisons |
| vous | êtes | avez | allez | faites |
| ils/elles | sont | ont | vont | font |
For each of these verbs individually, see être conjugation and avoir conjugation.
The présent, fully mastered
LexiFr teaches French verbs in context with native audio, so présent conjugation becomes instinct.
Free to start - no ads, no streak guilt. Your first 200 words are waiting.
Questions about this note
Does French have a continuous "-ing" tense?
No - the présent alone covers it: je mange means both "I eat" and "I'm eating."
Can the présent express future time?
Yes, informally, for near-future events: je pars demain (I'm leaving tomorrow).
How do you conjugate regular -er verbs in the present?
Stem + -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent.
What are the most important irregular present-tense verbs?
être, avoir, aller, faire.
Is the présent the first tense to learn in French?
Yes - it's the foundation for near-future and covers most daily conversation.