Why These 40 French Verbs Are Essential for Intermediate Learners
As you progress in your French language journey, mastering key verbs becomes crucial for expressing yourself fluently. These 40 verbs in French are absolutely essential for intermediate learners who want to communicate effectively in various contexts. Unlike beginners who focus on basic verbs like "être" and "avoir," intermediate learners need to expand their verbal repertoire to express more complex thoughts, emotions, and actions. In our Complete Guide on French Conjugation, we explored the fundamentals of verb forms, but now we'll delve deeper into specific verbs that will elevate your French to the next level.
Important
Understanding these 40 verbs will significantly improve your ability to express yourself in French. They appear frequently in everyday conversations, literature, media, and formal communications, making them indispensable for any serious French language learner.
High-Frequency Regular Verbs for Everyday Communication
Regular verbs follow predictable conjugation patterns, making them easier to master once you understand the rules. These verbs appear constantly in daily conversations and will help you express common actions with confidence.
-ER Verbs You Should Master
The -ER verb group is the largest and most common in French. These verbs follow a consistent conjugation pattern that you've likely encountered in your beginner studies. However, as an intermediate learner, you should aim for complete mastery of these essential -ER verbs.
When using these verbs in conversation, pay attention to the subtle pronunciation differences between tenses. For example, "je parle" (present) and "j'ai parlé" (past) sound distinctly different, and mastering these nuances will make your French sound more natural, as we discussed in our guide on understanding spoken French.
Essential -IR Verbs for Intermediate Expression
The -IR verb group includes many verbs that express important everyday actions. While some follow the regular -IR pattern, others have irregular conjugations that you'll need to memorize.
Notes
Remember that many -IR verbs follow the second group conjugation pattern, where you add -iss in plural forms of the present tense. For example: nous finissons, vous finissez, ils finissent.
Must-Know -RE Verbs for Intermediate Learners
The -RE verb group contains fewer verbs than the -ER group but includes several frequently used verbs that are essential for intermediate communication.
Mastering Irregular Verbs: The Key to French Fluency
Irregular verbs don't follow standard conjugation patterns and must be memorized individually. Despite this challenge, many of the most common and useful French verbs are irregular, making them essential to master for intermediate learners.
Fundamental Irregular Verbs for Daily Use
These irregular verbs appear constantly in everyday French and are absolutely essential for intermediate learners to master in all tenses.
Examples
The verb "faire" is particularly versatile in French. It appears in many common expressions: - (to pay attention) - (to play sports) - (to go shopping) - (to cook)
The verb "faire" is especially important when discussing cooking, as we explored in our guide to French cooking vocabulary.
Modal Verbs That Express Ability, Possibility, and Obligation
Modal verbs help express concepts like ability, possibility, necessity, and permission. They're often used with other verbs in the infinitive form to modify their meaning.
These modal verbs are frequently used in the French subjunctive mood, which is an important grammatical concept for intermediate learners to master.
Verbs That Express Movement and Direction
Verbs of movement are essential for describing physical actions and travel. They often combine with prepositions to indicate direction or manner of movement.
Important
Many verbs of movement require "être" as their auxiliary verb in compound past tenses, rather than "avoir." This is a key grammatical point for intermediate learners to master.
For example: (I left) NOT .
Verbs for Expressing Thoughts, Feelings, and Opinions
Being able to express your thoughts, feelings, and opinions is crucial for meaningful conversations in French. These verbs will help you communicate your inner world more effectively.
When expressing opinions, these verbs are often paired with descriptive adjectives to provide more nuanced communication.
Communication Verbs for Social Interaction
Communication verbs are essential for describing how people interact verbally and in writing. These verbs will help you discuss various forms of communication more precisely.
These verbs are particularly useful for intermediate-level French conversations, where you'll need to discuss more complex topics and exchange detailed information.
Verbs for Daily Routines and Activities
These verbs describe common daily activities and routines, making them essential for discussing everyday life in French.
Many of these verbs are reflexive, meaning they're used with reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous, se) to indicate that the subject performs the action on themselves. This is a key grammatical concept for intermediate French learners to master.
Verbs That Express Change and Transformation
These verbs describe changes, transformations, and developments, allowing you to discuss how things evolve over time.
Notes
The verb "devenir" is particularly important for discussing career paths, personal development, and future aspirations. It's conjugated like "venir" but with the prefix "de-".
Verbs for Expressing Possession and Relationships
These verbs help you express ownership, possession, and relationships between people and things.
Understanding the correct gender of nouns is particularly important when using these verbs, as you'll often need to use the appropriate pronouns and articles to refer to possessed objects.
Mastering Verb Conjugation in Different Tenses
Now that we've explored the 40 essential verbs, let's look at how to conjugate them in different tenses. As an intermediate learner, you should be comfortable with these key tenses.
Present Tense (Le Présent)
The present tense is used to describe current actions, habitual actions, and near-future events. Here's how to conjugate some of our essential verbs in the present tense:
Past Tense (Le Passé Composé)
The passé composé is the most common past tense in spoken French. It's formed with an auxiliary verb (usually avoir, sometimes être) and the past participle of the main verb.
Important
Remember that verbs conjugated with "être" in the passé composé must agree in gender and number with the subject. For example: "elle est allée" (feminine singular) vs. "ils sont allés" (masculine plural).
Future Tense (Le Futur Simple)
The future simple tense is used to describe actions that will happen in the future. For regular verbs, it's formed by adding the appropriate endings to the infinitive.
For irregular verbs in the future tense, you need to learn the irregular stems, but the endings remain the same as regular verbs.
Common Verb Expressions and Idioms
Many French verbs are used in idiomatic expressions that might not translate literally. Learning these expressions will significantly enhance your French fluency.
Expressions with "Avoir"
The verb "avoir" (to have) appears in many common expressions where English would use different verbs:
Expressions with "Faire"
"Faire" (to do/make) is used in numerous idiomatic expressions, particularly related to weather and activities:
These expressions are particularly useful during holiday seasons when discussing weather and activities.
Expressions with "Prendre"
"Prendre" (to take) appears in many common expressions:
Verb Patterns and Prepositions
In French, verbs are often followed by specific prepositions that might differ from their English equivalents. Mastering these patterns is crucial for intermediate learners.
Verbs Followed by "à"
Some verbs require the preposition "à" before an infinitive or noun:
Verbs Followed by "de"
Other verbs require the preposition "de" before an infinitive or noun:
Verbs Without Prepositions
Some verbs are directly followed by an infinitive without any preposition:
Important
Memorizing verb patterns with their correct prepositions is essential for speaking grammatically correct French. These patterns often differ from English, so don't assume that the preposition will be the same in both languages.
Pronominal Verbs: Reflexive and Reciprocal Actions
Pronominal verbs are conjugated with reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous, se) and are used to express actions that the subject performs on themselves (reflexive) or actions that subjects perform on each other (reciprocal).
Common Reflexive Verbs
Notes
In compound tenses like the passé composé, reflexive verbs always use "être" as their auxiliary verb, and the past participle must agree with the subject in gender and number.
Example: (She washed herself.) - Note the extra "e" on "lavée" to agree with the feminine subject.
Reciprocal Verbs
Reciprocal verbs express actions that people do to each other. They're always used in the plural form.
Advanced Verb Usage for Intermediate Learners
As you progress in your French studies, you'll encounter more complex verb forms and usages. Here are some advanced concepts to start incorporating into your French.
The Conditional Mood
The conditional mood is used to express hypothetical situations, polite requests, and suggestions. It's formed similarly to the future tense but uses the imperfect tense endings.
Examples of conditional usage:
- (I would like to reserve a table.)
- (Could you help me?)
- (If I had time, I would travel more.)
The Subjunctive Mood
The subjunctive mood is used to express doubt, desire, emotion, and necessity. It's often used after certain expressions and conjunctions.
Common expressions followed by the subjunctive:
- (It is necessary that...)
- (I want that...)
- (I am happy that...)
- (Although...)
- (Before...)
Examples:
- (You need to come tomorrow.)
- (I want you to understand this.)
- (Although he is rich, he lives simply.)
Practical Tips for Mastering These 40 Essential French Verbs
Now that we've covered these 40 essential verbs and their various forms and uses, here are some practical tips to help you master them:
Create verb conjugation flash cards
Make flash cards with the verb on one side and its conjugation in different tenses on the other. Review them regularly to reinforce your memory.
Practice with sentence building
For each new verb you learn, try to create at least three sentences using different tenses and constructions. This will help you understand how the verb functions in real contexts.
Group verbs by patterns
Study verbs with similar conjugation patterns together. For example, learn all the "-ir" verbs that follow the same pattern, or group irregular verbs with similar irregularities.
Use verb-focused listening exercises
Listen to French audio content and pay special attention to the verbs being used. Try to identify which tense is being used and why.
Create a verb journal
Keep a journal where you record new verbs you encounter in your reading or listening practice, along with example sentences and notes about their usage.
Practice with conversation partners
Find a language exchange partner or tutor to practice using these verbs in real conversation. Ask for feedback on your usage and pay attention to how native speakers use these verbs.
Examples
When learning verb conjugations, try creating memorable sentences for each form. For example, to remember the conjugation of "aller" in the present tense, you might create a sentence like: "Je vais au cinéma, tu vas au parc, il va à l'école, nous allons au restaurant, vous allez au musée, ils vont à la plage."
Conclusion: Building Fluency Through Verb Mastery
Mastering these 40 essential French verbs will significantly improve your ability to express yourself in French and understand native speakers. These verbs form the foundation of intermediate French communication, appearing constantly in everyday conversations, literature, media, and formal communications.
Remember that verb mastery is a gradual process. Focus on learning a few verbs thoroughly before moving on to others. Pay attention to how these verbs are used in authentic contexts, and practice using them in your own speaking and writing regularly.
As you continue your French language journey, you'll find that a strong command of these core verbs will make it easier to learn more specialized vocabulary and express increasingly complex ideas. Your investment in learning these essential verbs will pay dividends throughout your French language learning journey.
Important
Practice makes perfect! Try to use these verbs daily in your French practice. Consider keeping a daily journal in French where you describe your activities, thoughts, and plans using these essential verbs.
Are you ready to take your French to the next level? Continue exploring our French learning resources, including our guides on mastering the subjunctive mood, advanced French vocabulary, and speaking French with confidence.
Bonne chance avec votre apprentissage du français! (Good luck with your French learning!)