French verbs: A guide to the “être” conjugation

While French isn’t short of verbs, among the most important ones is the verb to be or être. So, knowing the être conjugation is an essential step in your French learning journey. Whether you are a beginner or you want to refresh your memory,  let’s find out how to use and conjugate être in French! 

• Use of the verb “être”
• How to conjugate “être” in French
• Présent – Present simple 
• Futur – Future simple
• Passé simple – Past simple
• Imparfait 
• Conditionnel présent – Present conditional
• Subjonctif présent – Present subjunctive
• Imparfait du subjonctif – Imperfect subjunctive
• Passé composé – Present perfect
• Plus que parfait – Past perfect
• Passé antérieur
• Futur antérieur –  Future perfect
• Impératif – Imperative

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Use of the verb “être”

You will find and use the verb “être” in several contexts. Some of these might be familiar to an English-speaking student since they mirror those of the verb “to be”. Let’s dive into them nonetheless: 

• Identity:

Example: “I am a student” – Je suis étudiante.

• Permanent or temporary characteristics:

They can be both physical or emotional:

Examples:

“He is tall” – Il est grand.

“She is tired” – Elle est fatiguée.

• Origin or provenance:

Example: “I am from Paris”- Je suis de Paris.

• Auxiliary verb in compound constructions :

When forming compound tenses, like the past tense

Example: “I have been there” – J’ai été ici.

How to conjugate “être” in French

Présent – Present simple 

French	English
Je suis	I am
Tu es	You are
Il/Elle/On est	He/She is
Nous sommes	We are
Vous êtes	You are
Ils/Elles sont	They are

Futur – Future simple

When planning, promising or dreaming of becoming something/someone, the future simple of “être” is your go-to tense.

French	English
Je serai	I will be
Tu seras	You will be
Il/Elle/On sera	He/She will be
Nous serons	We will be
Vous serez	You will be
Ils/Elles seront	They will be

Passé simple – Past simple

Used mainly in literature but rarely in everyday spoken French, learn how to conjugate être when talking about past events.

French	English
Je fus	I was
Tu fus	You were
Il/Elle/On fut	He/She was
Nous fûmes	We were
Vous fûtes	You were
Ils/Elles furent	They were

Imparfait 

Used to talk about continuing or repeated actions in the past or to describe past habits, here is how to conjugate être in French in its imparfait tense:

French	English
J’étais	I was
Tu étais	You were
Il/Elle/On était	He/She was
Nous étions	We were
Vous étiez	You were
Ils/Elles étaient	They were

Conditionnel présent – Present conditional

This tense will be handy when talking about hypothetical situations, wishes and desires.

French	English
Je serais	I would be
Tu serais	You would be
Il/Elle/On serait	He/She would be
Nous serions	We would be
Vous seriez	You would be
Ils/Elles seraient	They would be

Subjonctif présent – Present subjunctive

You will learn below how to conjugate être in the present subjunctive. This mood is used to indicate uncertainty, subjectivity or unreality.

French	English	Example
que je sois (contente)	To be	Elle veut que je sois contente.
que tu sois	To be	Elle veut que tu sois content.
qu’il/elle/on soit	To be	Elle veut qu’il soit content.
que nous soyons	To be	Elle veut que nous soyons contents.
que vous soyez	To be	Elle veut que vous soyez contents.
qu’ils/elles soient	To be	Elle veut qu’ils soient contents.

Imparfait du subjonctif – Imperfect subjunctive

It’s used in formal French and comes from literature, history and journalism.

French	English	Example
que je fusse	To be	Il voulait que je fusse contente.
que tu fusses	To be	Il voulait que tu fusses content.
qu’il/elle/on fût	To be	Il voulait qu’elle fût contente.
que nous fussions	To be	Il voulait que nous fussions contents.
que vous fussiez	To be	Il voulait que vous fussiez contents.
qu‘ils/elles fussent	To be	Il voulait qu’elles fussent contentes.

Passé composé – Present perfect

French	English
J’ai été	I have been
Tu as été	You have been
Il/Elle/On a été	He/She has been
Nous avons été	We have been
Vous avez été	You have been
Ils/Elles ont été	They have been

Plus que parfait – Past perfect

To conjugate être in the past perfect, use the same structure as Passé composé.

French	English
J’avais été	I had been
Tu avais été	You had been
Il/Elle/On avait été	He/She had been
Nous avions été	We had been
Vous aviez été	You had been
Ils/Elles avaient été	They had been

Passé antérieur

French	English
J’eus été	I would have been
Tu eus été	You would have been
Il/Elle/On eut été	He/She would have been
Nous eûmes été	We would have been
Vous eûtes été	You would have been
Ils/Elles eurent été	They would have been

Futur antérieur –  Future perfect

This tense is present in literature.

French	English
J’aurai été	I will have been
Tu auras été	You will have been
Il/Elle/On aura été	He/She will have been
Nous aurons été	We will have been
Vous aurez été	You will have been
Ils/Elles auront été	They will have been

Impératif – Imperative

The imperative mood is used to give an order. There is no pronoun. We conjugate to be in the present indicative.

French	English
Sois	Be
Soyons	Let’s be
Soyez (contents)	Be

All conjugations of the verb être

There are many tenses in the French language. We have explained to you here the conjugation of the verb être in the most used tenses. There are still other tenses such as the subjunctive pluperfect for grammar buffs. Otherwise, the tenses cited above should allow you to conjugate the verb to be at every tense! It’s up to you to memorize each conjugation little by little.

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