The present tense for –re verbs

 

The present tense is used for actions you do or are doing.

 

A small group of verbs have an infinitive ending in -re.  For example:  descendre (to go down, to get off / out of ), attendre (to wait), répondre (to reply), perdre (to lose) and vendre (to sell)

 

Regular –er verbs take the following endings:

 

* These words sound the same

Vendre                                    To sell

Je vends*                                 I sell / I am selling

Tu vends*                                You sell / you are selling (familiar)

Il vend*                                    He sells / he is selling

Elle vend*                                She sells / she is selling

On vend*                                 We sell, “one” sells / we are selling, “one” is selling

Nous vendons                          We sell / we are selling

** The –ent is silent

Vous vendez                             You sell / you are selling (polite and / or plural)

Ils vendent**                            They sell / they are selling (masculine / mixed)

Elles vendent**                        They sell / they are selling (feminine)

 

 

Irregular verbs

Here are some common irregular –re verbs:

 

Mettre = To put, to put on                Prendre = To take

Je mets                                                 Je prends

Tu mets                                                Tu prends

Il met                                                    Il prend

Nous mettons                                       Nous prenons

Vous mettez                                         Vous prenez

Ils mettent                                             Ils prennent

                                                                                               

 

Other verbs like prendre : comprendre (to understand, to consist of ) and apprendre (to learn, to learn of ).