List of 100+ Common Irregular French Verbs

Did you know that not all French verbs follow the regular rules? Keep reading to brush up on some of the most common, irregular verbs in French. We’ll list over a hundred unique verbs that all French students should know.

Common Irregular French Verbs

aller – to go

Je vais
Tu vas
Il/Elle va
Nous allons
Vous allez
Ils/Elles vont
Past Participle – allé

avoir – to have

J’ai
Tu as
Il/Elle a
Nous avons
Vous avez
Ils/Elles ont
Past Participle – eu

dire – to say, to tell

Je dis
Tu dis
Il/Elle dit
Nous disons
Vous dites
Ils/Elles disent
Past Participle – dit

être – to be

Je suis
Tu es
Il/Elle est
Nous sommes
Vous êtes
Ils/Elles sont
Past Participle – été

faire – to make, to do

Je fais
Tu fais
Il/Elle fait
Nous faisons
Vous faites
Ils/Elles – font
Past Participle – fait

falloir – to be necessary

Il faut
Past Participle – fallu

pouvoir – to be able to do

Je peux
Tu peux
Il/Elle peut
Nous pouvons
Vous pouvez
Ils/Elles peuvent
Past Participle – pu

savoir – to know, to know how to

Je sais
Tu sais
Il/Elle sait
Nous savons
Vous savez
Ils/Elles savent
Past Participle – su

voir – to see

Je vois
Tu vois
Il/Elle voit
Nous voyons
Vous voyez
Ils/Elles voient
Past Participle – vu

vouloir – to want to

Je veux
Tu veux
Il/Elle veut
Nous voulons
Vous voulez
Ils/Elles veulent
Past Participle – voulu

Common Irregular Verb Patterns

Some verbs follow irregular patterns. Once you know these patterns, it’s easier to identify and conjugate irregular verbs. Here are several common irregular verb patterns you’ll come across as you learn how to speak French.

Verbs Like Prendre

Verbs ending in –prendre are all conjugated like prendre:

Je prends
Tu prends
Il/Elle prend
Nous prenons
Vous prenez
Ils/Elles prennent
Past Participle – pris

• apprendre – to learn
• comprendre – to  understand
• entreprendre – to undertake
• méprendre – to mistake
• prendre – to take
• reprendre – to retake, to take again
• surprendre – to surprise

Verbs Like Mettre

Mettre and the verbs ending in –mettre all follow the same pattern of conjugation.

Je mets
Tu mets
Il/Elle met
Nous mettons
Vous mettez
Ils/Elles mettent
Past Participle – mis

• admettre – to admit
• commettre – to commit
• compromettre – to compromise
• mettre – to put, to place
• permettre – to permit
• promettre – to promise
• remettre – to turn in work, to postpone
• soumettre – to submit
• transmettre – to transmit

Verbs Like Tenir and Venir

Tenir and venir are two similar verbs that have their own pattern of conjugation.

Je tiens
Tu tiens
Il/Elle tient
Nous tenons
Vous tenez
Ils/Elles tiennent
Past Participle – tenu

Je viens
Tu viens
Il/Elle vient
Nous venons
Vous venez
Ils/Elles viennent
Past Participle – venu

• abstenir – to refrain, to abstain from
• advenir – to happen
• appartenir – to belong to
• circonvenir – to circumvent
• contenir – to contain
• convenir – to suit, to be suitable
• détenir – to detain
• devenir – to become
• entretenir – to look after, to support
• intrevenir – to intervene
• maintenir – to maintain
• obtenir – to obtain
• parvenir – to reach, to achieve
• prévenir – to warn
• retenir – to retain
• soutenir – to support
• souvenir – to remember
• subvenir – to provide for
• survenir – to occur, to take place
• tenir – to hold, to keep
• venir – to come

Verbs Like Manger

Verbs ending in -ger have a spelling change in the nous form of the verb. An extra -e is added to keep the -g sound soft.

Je mange
Tu manges
Il/Elle mange
Nous mangeons
Vous mangez
Ils/Elles mangent
Past Participle – mangé

• bouger – to move
• changer – to change
• corriger – to correct
• décourager – to discourage
• déménager – to move
• déranger – to disturb
• diriger – to direct
• encourager – to encourage
• engager – to bind
• exiger – to demand
• juger – to judge
• loger – to lodge
• manger – to eat
• mélanger – to mix
• nager – to swim
• obliger – to oblige
• partager – to share
• rédiger – to write
• voyager – to travel

Verbs Like Lancer

Verbs like lancer that end in -cer also have a spelling change in the nous form. The -c is changed to a -ç to maintain a soft -c sound.

Je lance
Tu lances
Il/Elle lance
Nous lançons
Vous lancez
Ils/Elles lancent
Past Participle – lancé

• annoncer – to announce
• avancer – to advance
• commencer – to commence
• dénoncer – to denounce
• divorcer – to divorce
• effacer – to erase
• lancer – to throw
• menacer – to threaten
• placer – to put
• prononcer – to pronounce
• remplacer – to replace
• renoncer – to renounce

Verbs Like Payer

Verbs ending in -yer change the -y to an -i in the je, tu, il, and ils forms.

Je paie
Tu paies
Il/Elle paie
Nous payons
Vous payez
Ils/Elles paient
Past Participle – payé

• aboyer – to bark
• balayer – to sweep
• effrayer – to frighten
• s’ennuyer – to be bored
• envoyer – to send
• essayer – to try
• essuyer – to wipe
• nettoyer – to clean
• payer – to pay
• renvoyer – to send back, to fire

Verbs Like Acheter

Some verbs, like acheter, change the -e in the root to -è in the je, tu, il, and ils forms.

J’achète
Tu achètes
Il/Elle achète
Nous achetons
Vous achetez
Ils/Elles achètent
Past Participle – acheté

• acheter – to buy
• amener – to bring
• enlever – to take off
• espérer – to hope
• geler – to freeze
• se lever – to get up
• posséder – to own
• préférer – to prefer
• se promener – to take a stroll
• répéter – to repeat
• suggérer – to suggest

Verbs Like Appeler

Finally, there are verbs like appeler that have a doubled final consonant in the je, tu, il, and ils forms.

J’appelle
Tu appelles
Il/Elle appelle
Nous appelons
Vous appelez
Ils/Elles appellent
Past Participle – appelé

• appeler – to call
• épeler – to spell out
• étinceler – to sparkle
• feuilleter – to leaf through a book
• jeter – to jump
• renouveler – to renew

Practicing your skills with a tutor is a great way to learn French verbs and advance to the next level of fluency faster. Need some extra help mastering all of these irregular verbs? Try practicing with a TakeLessons Live instructor, or a private French tutor near you, or online.