Five verbs do most of the work in French: être (to be), avoir (to have), aller (to go), faire (to do/make), and dire (to say). Learn these first — they appear in idioms, tenses, and everyday speech constantly.
The big 5 — learn these first
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| être | to be | Irregular. Helping verb for movement verbs and reflexives. |
| avoir | to have | Irregular. Helping verb for most verbs. Also: avoir faim/soif/froid. |
| aller | to go | Irregular. With infinitive = near future: je vais manger. |
| faire | to do, make | Used for weather (il fait beau) and activities (faire du sport). |
| dire | to say, tell | dire à quelqu'un = tell someone. |
Movement
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| venir | to come | venir de + infinitive = to have just done. |
| partir | to leave | |
| sortir | to go out | |
| entrer | to enter | |
| arriver | to arrive | |
| monter | to go up | |
| descendre | to go down | |
| rester | to stay | |
| marcher | to walk; to function | |
| courir | to run | Irregular. |
Daily life
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| manger | to eat | |
| boire | to drink | Irregular. |
| dormir | to sleep | |
| se réveiller | to wake up | Reflexive. |
| se lever | to get up | Reflexive with accent change. |
| s'habiller | to get dressed | Reflexive. |
| travailler | to work | |
| étudier | to study | |
| lire | to read | Irregular. |
| écrire | to write | Irregular. |
| écouter | to listen to | No preposition: écouter la musique. |
| regarder | to watch, look at | No preposition: regarder un film. |
Thinking and feeling
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| penser | to think | |
| croire | to believe | Irregular. |
| savoir | to know (facts, how to) | savoir + infinitive = to know how to. |
| connaître | to know (people, places) | Different from savoir. |
| comprendre | to understand | |
| vouloir | to want | Je voudrais (polite) = I would like. |
| pouvoir | can, to be able | |
| devoir | must, have to; owe | |
| aimer | to like, love | |
| préférer | to prefer | Accent flips: je préfère. |
Communication and exchange
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| parler | to speak, talk | |
| demander | to ask (for) | False friend — NOT 'demand'. |
| répondre | to answer, reply | |
| appeler | to call | Double l: j'appelle. |
| donner | to give | |
| prendre | to take | Irregular. |
| acheter | to buy | Accent: j'achète. |
| vendre | to sell | |
| payer | to pay | y can become i: je paie or je paye. |
Tips to memorize this list faster
- Memorize the present-tense conjugations of être, avoir, aller, and faire cold. They show up everywhere — as helping verbs too.
- venir de + infinitive = just did. aller + infinitive = going to do. Two patterns cover past and future without a real tense.
- savoir = know facts or skills. connaître = be familiar with people, places, works of art. Not interchangeable.
- Reflexive verbs (se laver, se lever, s'habiller) describe things you do to yourself. They use être in the passé composé.
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