Irregular verb conjugation
Irregular French verbs
About 15% of French verbs don't follow the regular patterns. They're also the most-used ones in the language. This list ranks them by frequency so you learn the high-payoff ones first.
Irregular verbs are the high-leverage tier of French conjugation. They're a small group, but they include être, avoir, aller, faire, the four most-used verbs in the language, plus every modal-like verb (pouvoir, vouloir, devoir, savoir, falloir). You'll see them in every conversation, every sentence, every time you open a book.
Don't try to memorize them in alphabetical order. Memorize the top 15 by frequency first; the rest tend to follow sub-patterns (the partir family, the prendre family, the venir/tenir family) you'll start to recognize.
The "non-negotiable" top 5
If you only learn five irregular verbs, learn these. Every other French verb you'll ever conjugate depends on knowing at least the first two.
| #1 être | to be, see table |
|---|---|
| #2 avoir | to have, see table |
| #3 aller | to go, see table |
| #4 faire | to do, to make, see table |
| #5 dire | to say, to tell, see table |
Sub-families of irregular verbs
Many irregular verbs cluster into small families that share a pattern. Learn one verb in the family and you've largely learned the rest.
- partir / sortir / dormir / sentir / mentir / servir, singular drops the last consonant of the stem, plural keeps it. Past participle ends in -i: parti, sorti, dormi. Partir and sortir take être in passé composé.
- prendre / apprendre / comprendre / reprendre / surprendre, drop the d in the plural, double the n in ils prennent. Past participle: pris.
- venir / tenir + all compounds (devenir, revenir, contenir, obtenir…), share the vowel-shift pattern (je viens, nous venons, ils viennent). Past participle: venu, tenu. Venir + compounds takes être.
- mettre + compounds (permettre, promettre, remettre, soumettre), past participle mis.
- connaître / paraître + compounds (reconnaître, apparaître, disparaître), circumflex stays on the î only before t.
- écrire / décrire / inscrire, share the same stem shift (écris → écrivons) and -t past participle (écrit).
- conduire / construire / produire / traduire, all -uire verbs follow the same model.
- pouvoir / vouloir / savoir / devoir / voir / falloir, modal-style verbs with unique futur stems (je pourrai, je voudrai, je saurai, je devrai, je verrai, il faudra) and irregular subjunctives.
How to actually learn these
Reading the tables passively does not work. What works:
- Drill the top 10 first. Don't go in alphabetical order, go in frequency order. The top 10 give you 80% of the practical value.
- Drill typed, not multiple-choice. Recognition ≠ production. If you can't type the form unprompted, you don't know it.
- Drill across tenses, not just present. Most learners learn je suis, je vais, je prends and call it done. The pain comes in futur and subjonctif.
- Use the patterns above. When you've learned prendre, you've largely learned apprendre, comprendre, reprendre. Treat sub-families as a single lesson.