How to conjugate the verb être in French with all tenses & moods

To be or not to be… Telle est la question. “Be” is probably one of the most, if not the most, important verb in many languages. Knowing its proper conjugation will allow you to:

• Say how you feel in French
• Describe your personality in French
• Use French adjectives
• Explain where you are
• Mention your job
• Use the passive voice
• Talk about existentialism
• And many more!

Below, we have compiled a comprehensive guide to French “to be” conjugation. Ok, you might not need to use all these tenses — especially the fancy/vintage plusperfect subjunctive — but you’ll certainly take your French skills to the next level. And you’ll be able to read old French books!

The verb être

Être and avoir

“Être” and “Avoir” are the two most important French verbs. Unfortunately, these are irregular verbs, so you’re going to have to learn their conjugation. The good news is, once you do, you’ll be able to use them in a wide variety of contexts!

Main uses of “être”

“Être” means “to be”. As in English, it’s used to express a sense of being, whether temporary or permanent. It’s also used in the passive voice as an auxiliary verb.

Additionally, you’ll find “être” in these four grammatical expressions:

• c'est – this is, that is.
• est-ce que – to be used in a question.
• être en train de – to express something progressive.
• n'est-ce pas – to ask for confirmation of information or a statement.

Differences with English

While there are many similarities between “être” and “to be”, watch out for the following differences:

1. Age: In French, you’re not an age, you have it.

“J’ai trente ans” and NOT “Je suis trente ans”.

2. Weather: To comment on the weather in French, use “faire.”

“Il fait chaud” and NOT “Il est chaud”.

3. Basic needs

If you’re thirsty, hungry, hot or cold, use “avoir” in French. “J’ai soif” and NOT “Je suis soif”.

French verb to be complete conjugation charts

We want to make learning French as clear as possible for you, so you'll find complete French chart tables below for conjugating to be in French, in all tenses and all moods. It could be a good idea to print these all out for a nifty French verb grammar guide for the most popular verb: être. Or alternatively, bookmark this page, and come back to it for whenever you need a straightforward grammar check.

Present tense

The present tense is usually the first tense you’ll learn in a foreign language.

Even if you don’t master other tenses yet, you can get around and be understood using the present tense.

A great motivation to learn the table below, right?

And while you’re at it, make sure to learn the French pronouns.

Imperfect tense

The imperfect tense is the easiest past tense in French, with few irregular conjugations.

So forget about perfection and learn the French imperfect for “être”!

Future tense

Another staple of French grammar, the future tense is key to speaking about… well… the future.

That reminds me, did you read our article on possessive pronouns in French?

Ok, I’m getting off topic, back to the future!

Conditional tense

The French conditionnel can be used as a mood and a tense. How cool is that?

Present subjunctive

The subjunctive is widely used in French and other Latin languages. This mood is used to indicate uncertainty, subjectivity or unreality.

Imperfect subjunctive

And here is another subjunctive for you! It's used in formal and written French from literature to history and journalism.

Passé composé

The “passé composé” is very handy if you haven’t mastered the “imperfect” tense yet. It’s way easier to learn and easier to use in a conversation!

Past perfect

Past perfect follows the structure of the “passé composé”. Pretty easy!

Future perfect

Ok, we’re entering advanced French territory… But hey, even if you don’t get to use the tenses and moods below, they might still help you to read books in French!

Past conditional

Yep, another advanced one… you can use the past conditional in French to talk about something that would, could, or should have, but didn't happen.

Past subjunctive

And another… you can use the past subjunctive in French to express emotion, doubts, and uncertainty.

Pluperfect subjunctive

If you’re capable of learning and using the extremely rare, extremely formal French verb form pluperfect subjunctive of être in a conversation with Francophones, you deserve a prize. Up to the challenge?

Passé simple

Even though you won’t hear this one very often in everyday conversations, it’s a very useful tense to know if you want to speak French properly.

Past anterior

Try to use this one to impress your French-speaking friends!

Imperative mood

The imperative mood is used to give orders/commands. The lack of a subject pronoun identifies this mood. To find the French conjugation for “être” in the imperative mood, just use the present indicative.

In this article, we covered the most important things to know about French to be conjugation.

By now, you should be a true “spelling be” in French.

But if you’re still struggling with “être,” don’t let it be. Check out our French learning blog or our French lessons!