How many tenses are there in French?

14 tenses across 4 moods (indicatif, subjonctif, conditionnel, impératif) if you count both simple and compound forms. In practice, only 8 are used in modern spoken/written French, the others (passé simple, passé antérieur, subjonctif imparfait, subjonctif plus-que-parfait) are literary.

Which French tenses do I really need?

Présent, passé composé, imparfait, futur simple, conditionnel présent, and subjonctif présent cover roughly 95% of everyday French. Add plus-que-parfait and futur proche (aller + infinitive) and you're set for any conversation.

What is the difference between passé composé and imparfait?

Passé composé is for completed, bounded actions in the past (j'ai mangé, I ate). Imparfait is for ongoing states, repeated actions, or background descriptions (je mangeais, I was eating / I used to eat). Most French past-tense sentences use both: imparfait for the scene, passé composé for what happened.

French verb conjugation

French tenses chart

Every French verb tense, what it's for, and when you'll actually use it. Plus links to in-depth pages for the five tenses that carry 95% of the load.

French has 14 tenses across 4 moods. Most learners panic at that number. Don't, only about 6 of them are used in daily life. The rest are literary (you'll read them, you won't speak them) or specialized.

Here's the full picture, grouped by mood, with the "you'll actually use this" tenses called out.

Indicatif (the "real" mood)

Facts and statements about the real world. The tenses you'll meet first and use most.

Présent · for: anything happening now, habits, near future

Used constantly. Also doubles as English's "I am ___ing", French has no separate progressive. Je parle = "I speak" / "I am speaking" / "I do speak." → Full page on présent

Passé composé · for: completed past actions

The everyday past tense. Compound: auxiliary (avoir or être) + past participle. J'ai parlé = "I spoke" / "I have spoken." → Full page on passé composé

Imparfait · for: ongoing past, habits, descriptions

The "background" past. Used for what was going on, what used to happen, what things were like. Je parlais = "I was speaking" / "I used to speak." → Full page on imparfait

Plus-que-parfait · for: past-before-past

When you need to say something happened before another past event. Auxiliary in imparfait + past participle. J'avais parlé = "I had spoken."

Futur simple · for: future events

The "real" future. For predictions, plans, promises, conditional consequences. Je parlerai = "I will speak." → Full page on futur simple

Futur antérieur · for: future-perfect

"By the time X happens, Y will have happened." Auxiliary in futur + past participle. J'aurai parlé = "I will have spoken."

Passé simple · literary past

You'll read it in novels and history books, you won't speak it. Replaced in conversation by passé composé.

Subjonctif (the "uncertain / emotional" mood)

Used after specific trigger phrases (il faut que, je veux que, bien que, avant que…) to mark doubt, emotion, necessity, or subjectivity.

Subjonctif présent · the everyday subjunctive

The one you'll use 95% of the time. Il faut que je parle = "I have to speak." → Full page on subjonctif présent

Subjonctif passé · past subjunctive

Auxiliary in subjonctif + past participle. Je suis content qu'il ait parlé.

Subjonctif imparfait & plus-que-parfait · literary only

You'll see these in 19th-century literature. Don't try to produce them.

Conditionnel (the "would" mood)

Conditionnel présent · for: hypotheticals, polite requests

English's "would ___". Futur stem + imparfait endings. Je parlerais = "I would speak."

Conditionnel passé · for: hypotheticals about the past

"I would have ___". Auxiliary in conditionnel + past participle. J'aurais parlé = "I would have spoken."

Impératif (the "command" mood)

Impératif présent · for: commands, instructions, advice

Only three persons: tu, nous, vous. No pronoun: parle ! parlons ! parlez !

Where to go next

For each of the five must-know tenses, we have a dedicated page with endings, when to use it, and worked examples across multiple verbs:

Présent Passé composé Imparfait Futur simple Subjonctif présent

Or jump to a verb's full conjugation table, every verb on this site shows all 11+ tenses we cover:

être avoir aller faire parler finir attendre All verbs