simple past
The passé simple is a literary tense that is mainly used in writing and formal speeches. It serves the same role as the passé composé, describing completed past actions. While not important for speaking, it’s useful to have knowledge of the passé simple for reading.
Regular -er verbs take the following endings: -ai, -as, -a, -âmes, -âtes and -èrent. Regular -ir and -re verbs take the following endings: -is, -is, -it, -îmes, -îtes and -irent. For verbs like prononcer, add a cedilla (ç) and for verbs like nager and an extra -e- for all forms except ils.
Table of Contents
Speed up your learning with an app
Many of our students have greatly enhanced their learning by using an app. On these pages we've examined the top-30 apps for learning French. On this pages we've written comprehensive reviews for Pimsleur (great for people struggling with pronunciation), Rosetta Stone and FrenchPod101 (both great for visual learners).
regular verb conjugations
| PARLER TO SPEAK | |
| je parlai tu parlas il parla | nous parlâmes vous parlâtes ils parlèrent |
| FINIR TO FINISH | |
| je finis tu finis il finit | nous finîmes vous finîtes ils finirent |
| VENDRE - TO SELL | |
| je vendis tu vendis il vendit | nous vendîmes vous vendîtes ils vendirent |
| PRONONCER TO PRONOUNCE | |
| je prononçai tu prononças il prononça | nous prononçâmes vous prononçâtes ils prononcèrent |
| NAGER - TO SWIM | |
| je nageai tu nageas il nagea | nous nageâmes vous nageâtes ils nagèrent |
avoir, être, faire and aller
The passé simple endings for avoir, être and faire are irregular. Aller takes the endings of regular -er verbs in the passe simplé.
| ÊTRE TO BE | |
| je fus tu fus il fut | nous fûmes vous fûtes ils furent |
| AVOIR TO HAVE | |
| j'eus tu eus il eut | nous eûmes vous eûtes ils eurent |
| FAIRE TO MAKE, DO | |
| je fis tu fis il fit | nous fîmes vous fîtes ils firent |
| ALLER TO GO | |
| j'allai tu allas il alla | nous allâmes vous allâtes ils allèrent |
irregular verb list
Here’s a list of irregular verbs in the passé simple. It’s a good idea to get a grasp of these verbs in both the third-person singular (il/elle) and third-person plural (ils/elles) forms for reading.
| INFINITIVE | ENGLISH | IL/ELLE FORM | ILS/ELLES FORM |
| acquérir | to acquire, get | il acquit | ils acquirent |
| appuyer | to press | il appuya | ils appuyèrent |
| s'asseoir | to sit | il s'assit | ils s'assirent |
| boire | to drink | il but | ils burent |
| conduire | to drive | il conduisit | ils conduisirent |
| connaître | to know | il connut | ils connurent |
| courir | to run | il courut | ils coururent |
| croire | to believe | il crut | ils crurent |
| cueillir | to gather, pick | il cueillit | ils cueillirent |
| devoir | must | il dut | ils durent |
| dire | to say | il dit | ils dirent |
| dormir | to sleep | il dormit | ils écrivirent |
| écrire | to write | il écrivit | ils écrivirent |
| envoyer | to send | il envoya | ils envoyèrent |
| falloir | to be necessary | il fallut | |
| fuir | to flee | il fuit | ils fuirent |
| lire | to read | il lut | ils lurent |
| mettre | to put | il mit | ils mirent |
| mourir | to die | il mourut | ils moururent |
| naître | to be born | il naquit | ils naquirent |
| ouvrir | to open | il ouvrit | ils ouvrirent |
| peindre | to paint | il peignit | ils peignirent |
| plaire | to please | il plut | ils plurent |
| pleuvoir | to rain | il plut | |
| pouvoir | to be able, can | il put | ils purent |
| prendre | to take | il prit | ils prirent |
| recevoir | to receive | il reçut | ils reçurent |
| résoudre | to resolve | il résolut | ils résolurent |
| rire | to laugh | il rit | ils rirent |
| rompre | to break | il rompit | ils rompirent |
| savoir | to know | il sut | ils surent |
| sortir | to go out | il sortit | ils sortirent |
| suivre | to follow | il suivit | ils suivirent |
| se taire | to be quiet | il se tut | ils se turent |
| tenir | to hold | il tint | ils tinrent |
| vaincre | to win, conquer | il vainquit | ils vainquirent |
| valoir | to be worth, deserve, merit | il valut | ils valurent |
| venir | to come | il vint | ils vinrent |
| vivre | to live | il vécut | ils vécurent |
| voir | to see | il vit | ils virent |
| vouloir | to want, wish | il voulut | ils voulurent |
More Resources:
- la-conjugaison.nouvelobs.com
- francaisfacile.com (includes exercise)
- learn-french-help.com
- wikipedia.org
Related Lessons:
If you've found this post useful you might want to considering looking at our post covering the best apps for learning French. We've looked a total 33 apps and have written comprehensive reviews of Rosetta Stone, Pimsleur and FrenchPod101.
- 12 Ways To Say Sorry In French Beyond “Désolé” - May 20, 2022
- 20 Ways To Say Thank You In French - May 20, 2022
- How To Say Good Morning In French + 5 Ways To Say “Get Up!” - May 19, 2022
Bonjour! My name is David Issokson. I'm based in Victor, Idaho (near Jackson, Wyoming) and have helped hundreds of students to learn French online since 2013.
