BASIC GRAMMAR

05/ Conjugation of first group verbs.

We have already learnt that first group verbs are verbs ending in "er". Now let's learn their conjugation. But, before everything, let's first see some first group verbs

Some first group verbs.

Verbs	Meaning
parler	to speak
chanter	to sing
danser	to dance
tourner	to turn
briller	to shine
aimer	to like / love
chercher	to look for / search / dig
piller	to plunder / loot
surveiller	to look after
commander	to oder / to give orders / to command
commencer	to begin
jouer	to play
bouger	to move
démenager	to move out
aménager	to move in
manger	to eat
acheter...	to buy...

Now, how to conjugate them ?
They are conjugated differently following the conjugation tenses. That's why we have to conjugate them in the simple tenses and compound tenses of the conjugation.

SIMPLE TENSES.

In French, there are four (04) simple tenses : le présent simple (the simple present), l'imparfait (the simple past / preterit), le passé simple (the simple past / preterit) and le futur simple (the simple future).
The imparfait or the passé simple is just one tense in english. We'll explain this when conjugating the passé simple.

01-"Le présent simple" (simple present) :

When conjugating the first group verbs in the simple present tense, we replace er with the following endings :

Subject pronouns	Endings
je	e
tu	es
il	e
elle	e
nous	ons
vous	ez
ils	ent
elles	ent

Example
Paler : (to speak).

Affirmative form :
Je parle : I speak.
tu parles : you speak.
il parle : he speaks.
elle parle : she speaks.
nous parlons : we speak.
vous parlez : you speak.
ils parlent : they speak.
elles parlent : they speak.

Negative form :
Je ne parle pas : I do not speak.
tu ne parles pas : you do not speak.
il ne parle pas : he does not speak.
elle ne parle pas : she does not speak.
nous ne parlons pas : we do not speak.
vous ne parlez pas : you do not speak.
ils ne parlent pas : they do not speak.
elles ne parlent pas : they do not speak.

Interrogative form :
parlé-je ? : do I speak ?
parles-tu ? : do you speak ?
parle-t-il ? : does he speak ?
parle-t-elle ? : does she speak ?
parlons-nous ? : do we speak ?
parlez-vous ? : do you speak ?
parlent-ils ? : do they speak ?
parlent-elles ? : do they speak ?

Interronegative form :
ne parlé-je pas ? : do I not speak ?
ne parles-tu pas ? : do you not speak ?
ne parle-t-il pas ? : does he not speak ?
ne parle-t-elle pas ? : does she not speak ?
ne parlons-nous pas ? : do we not speak ?
ne parlez-vous pas ? : do you not speak ?
ne parlent-ils pas ? : do they not speak ?
ne parlent-elles pas ? : do they not speak ?

Notice :

For pronunciation problems, Some first-group verbs may change spelling.

When dealing with interrogative and interronegative forms, we change the vowel of the first subject pronoun from "e" to "é", as illustrated in the conjugation. And at the third subject pronouns, we add "t" to allow us to put a question.

For verbs ending in ger, at "we", we add "e" before the ending. Example :
nous mangeons : we eat.

For verbs ending in cer, at "we", we change "c" to "ç". Example :
nous commençons : we begin.

For verbs ending in oyer, at "all pronouns", we change "y" to "i". Example, the verb nettoyer (to clean), we shall say:
Je nettoie : I clean.

For verbs ending in "eler" and "eter", we double the consonnant at "I, you, he, she, they". Example, the verbs "appeler" (to call) and "jeter" (to cast / to throw), we shall say:

Appeler :
J'appelle : I call.
tu appelles : you call.
il appelle : he calls.
elle appelle : she calls.
nous appelons : we call.
vous appelez : you call.
ils appellent : they call.
elles appellent : they call.

Jeter :
Je jette : I cast.
tu jettes : you cast.
il jette : he casts.
elle jette : she casts.
nous jetons : we cast.
vous jetez : you cast.
ils jettent : they cast.
elles jettent : they cast.

Present continuous We've just conjugated the present simple. However, it's important to note that when it comes to the present continuous, French uses the present simple. It all depends on the action.

If the speaker hasn't finished the action yet, then in English, we'll translate the present simple into the present continuous. Example:

French	English
je parle anglais	I am speaking English
tu parles anglais	you are speaking English
il parle anglais	he is speaking English
elle parle anglais	she is speaking English
nous parlons anglais...	we are speaking English...

But if this person is talking about an habit, then the present simpe will remain the same in English. Example:

French	English
je parle anglais	I speak English
tu parles anglais	you speak English
il parle anglais	he speaks English
elle parle anglais	she speaks English
nous parlons anglais...	we speak English..