Je parle Nous parlons Tu parles Vous parlez Ils/elles parlent Il/elle/on parle Ils/elles parlent The following endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent are for forming the present tense. What pattern can you see? 1. The endings (-e, -es, -e, and -ent) are all silent. 2. The only endings that are pronounced are the nous (-ons) and the vous (-ez) endings. Stem-changing verbs are also known as boot verbs, because the irregular stems occur in all the singular forms as well as the third person plural. The four silent endings form a boot shape in the verb conjugation. If you draw the pattern with one continuous line, it looks like a boot.
CER 1. Verbs in –cer placer = to place Je place Nous plaçons ** Tu places Vous placez Il/elle/on place Ils/elles placent *Note: in the present tense ONLY the NOUS form requires an accent cédille (ç). This accent softens the pronunciation of the C.
GER 2. Verbs in –ger manger = to eat Je mange Nous mangeons Tu manges Vous mangez Il/elle/on mange Ils/elles mangent *Note: in the present tense ONLY the NOUS form requires an additional e. This letter softens the pronunciation of the G.
YER 3a. Verbs in –oyer nettoyer = to clean Je nettoie Nous nettoyons Tu nettoies Vous nettoyez Il/elle/on nettoie Ils/elles nettoient *Note: in the present tense requires stem change y to i in all forms but nous and vous.
YER 3b. Verbs in –ayer and –uyer *** payer* = to pay ennuyer* = to annoy / bore Je paie Nous payons Tu paies Vous payez Il/elle/on paie Ils/elles paient J’ennuie Nous ennuyons Tu ennuies Vous ennuyez Il/elle/on ennuie Ils/elles ennuient *Note: -ayer and –uyer verbs have an optional stem change in which y changes to an i in all forms but nous and vous.
tt 4. Verbs in –eter jeter = to throw Je jette Nous jetons Tu jettes Vous jetez Il/elle/on jette Ils/elles jettent *Note: present tense: t becomes tt in all forms but nous and vous.
LL 5. Verbs in –eler appeler = to call J’appelle Nous appelons Tu appelles Vous appelez Il/elle/on appelle Ils/elles appellent *Note: present tense: l becomes ll in all forms but nous and vous.
mute e 6. Verbs with e in the penultimate syllable (except for the -eler and -eter verbs) mute e lever = to lift / to raise Je lève Nous levons Tu lèves Vous levez Il/elle/on lève Ils/elles lèvent *Note: present tense: e in the penultimate syllable changes to è in all forms but nous and vous.
Albert verb: é to è considérer = to consider Je considère 6. Verbs with é in the penultimate syllable considérer = to consider Je considère Nous considérons Tu considères Vous considérez Il/elle/on considère Ils/elles considèrent *Note: present tense: é in the penultimate syllable changes to è in all forms but nous and vous.