Irregular French verbs

All 141, with their three forms, the English meaning and an example sentence each — sorted by what actually happens, not by the alphabet.

Why not alphabetical

The usual list has three columns in alphabetical order. You find something in it if you already know what you are looking for — for learning it is poor, because it hides the only order there is here. These verbs are not 141 separate cases. Most of them fall into groups in which the same change happens, and once you have the group, you have several verbs at once.

Find a verb

141 verbs.

Past participle in -u

67 verbs

The biggest group. The past participle ends in -u, and for most of these verbs the passé simple ends in -ut: vouloir → voulu → il voulut, lire → lu → il lut. Know one form and you can build the other. Three kinds of verb break the link, and all three are easy to spot: the ordinary verbs in -re such as rendre, attendre, perdre and battre take -it (rendu → il rendit); venir, tenir and their family take -int (venu → il vint); and voir gives il vit.

Base form	Past	Participle	English	Level
pouvoir	put	pu	can, to be able to	A1
Il n’a pas pu venir.He wasn’t able to come.
vouloir	voulut	voulu	to want	A1
Elle a voulu partir tôt.She wanted to set off early.
devoir	dut	dû	must, to have to; to owe	A1
J’ai dû rentrer à pied.I had to walk home.
savoir	sut	su	to know (a fact), to know how to	A1
Je n’ai jamais su son nom.I never knew his name.
voir	vit	vu	to see	A1
Il vit la lumière de loin.He saw the light from a long way off.
boire	but	bu	to drink	A1
Nous avons bu un café ensemble.We had a coffee together.
lire	lut	lu	to read	A1
Elle a lu le livre en deux jours.She read the book in two days.
croire	crut	cru	to believe	A2
Personne ne l’a cru.Nobody believed him.
recevoir	reçut	reçu	to receive, to get	A2
J’ai reçu ta lettre hier.I got your letter yesterday.
apercevoir	aperçut	aperçu	to catch sight of	B1
Il aperçut une lumière au loin.He caught sight of a light in the distance.
connaître	connut	connu	to know (a person, a place)	A1
Je l’ai connu à l’école.I got to know him at school.
paraître	parut	paru	to seem; to come out (a book)	B1
Le livre a paru en mars.The book came out in March.
disparaître	disparut	disparu	to disappear	B1
Les clés ont disparu.The keys have disappeared.
plaire	plut	plu	to please	A2
Le film nous a plu.We liked the film.
taire	tut	tu	to keep quiet about	B2
Il a tu la vérité.He kept the truth to himself.
vivre	vécut	vécu	to live	A2
Elle a vécu dix ans à Lyon.She lived in Lyon for ten years.
survivre	survécut	survécu	to survive	B2
Personne n’a survécu à l’accident.Nobody survived the accident.
courir	courut	couru	to run	A2
Il a couru jusqu’au bout.He ran all the way to the end.
parcourir	parcourut	parcouru	to cover (a distance), to travel through	B2
Nous avons parcouru trois cents kilomètres.We covered three hundred kilometres.
tenir	tint	tenu	to hold, to keep	A2
Il a tenu sa promesse.He kept his promise.
obtenir	obtint	obtenu	to obtain, to get	B1
Elle a obtenu la place.She got the job.
appartenir	appartint	appartenu	to belong	B1
Cette maison a appartenu à ma famille.This house used to belong to my family.
retenir	retint	retenu	to hold back; to keep in mind	B1
Je n’ai pas retenu son nom.His name didn’t stick.
soutenir	soutint	soutenu	to support, to back	B1
Ils ont soutenu le projet.They backed the project.
venir	vint	venu	to come	A1
Il est venu sans prévenir.He turned up without warning.
revenir	revint	revenu	to come back	A2
Elle est revenue le lendemain.She came back the next day.
devenir	devint	devenu	to become	A2
Il est devenu médecin.He became a doctor.
prévenir	prévint	prévenu	to let know, to warn	B1
Préviens-moi si tu es en retard.Let me know if you’re running late.
se souvenir	se souvint	souvenu	to remember	A2
Je me souviens de ce jour.I remember that day.
falloir	fallut	fallu	to be necessary	A2
Il a fallu attendre une heure.We had to wait an hour.
pleuvoir	plut	plu	to rain	A2
Il a plu toute la nuit.It rained all night.
valoir	valut	valu	to be worth	B1
Cela n’a rien valu.It wasn’t worth anything.
déplaire	déplut	déplu	to displease	B2
Sa remarque m’a déplu.I didn’t care for his remark.
émouvoir	émut	ému	to move (emotionally)	B2
Son discours nous a émus.His speech moved us.
résoudre	résolut	résolu	to solve, to resolve	B1
Nous avons résolu le problème.We solved the problem.
vaincre	vainquit	vaincu	to defeat, to overcome	B2
L’équipe a vaincu la peur.The team overcame their fear.
convaincre	convainquit	convaincu	to convince	B1
Tu ne m’as pas convaincu.You haven’t convinced me.
battre	battit	battu	to beat	B1
Ils ont battu le record.They broke the record.
abattre	abattit	abattu	to cut down, to knock down	B2
Ils ont abattu le vieil arbre.They cut down the old tree.
relire	relut	relu	to reread	B1
J’ai relu la lettre trois fois.I read the letter three times over.
croître	crût	crû	to grow	C1
La population a crû lentement.The population grew slowly.
accroître	accrut	accru	to increase	C1
Cela a accru la confusion.That only added to the confusion.
élire	élut	élu	to elect	B2
On l’a élu au premier tour.He was elected in the first round.
concevoir	conçut	conçu	to design, to conceive	B2
Ils ont conçu un nouveau modèle.They designed a new model.
décevoir	déçut	déçu	to disappoint	B1
Le résultat m’a déçu.The result disappointed me.
secourir	secourut	secouru	to rescue, to come to the aid of	C1
Les voisins les ont secourus.The neighbours came to their rescue.
accourir	accourut	accouru	to come running	C1
Tout le monde a accouru.Everyone came running.
conclure	conclut	conclu	to conclude	B2
Ils ont conclu un accord.They reached an agreement.
exclure	exclut	exclu	to exclude, to rule out	B2
On ne l’a pas exclu.He wasn’t excluded.
rendre	rendit	rendu	to give back; to make (+ adjective)	A2
Il a rendu le livre à la bibliothèque.He took the book back to the library.
entendre	entendit	entendu	to hear	A2
Je n’ai rien entendu.I didn’t hear a thing.
attendre	attendit	attendu	to wait (for)	A2
Nous avons attendu une heure.We waited for an hour.
descendre	descendit	descendu	to go down, to get off	A2
Elle est descendue à la station suivante.She got off at the next stop.
perdre	perdit	perdu	to lose	A2
J’ai perdu mes clés.I’ve lost my keys.
répondre	répondit	répondu	to answer, to reply	A2
Personne n’a répondu.Nobody answered.
vendre	vendit	vendu	to sell	A2
Ils ont vendu la maison en mars.They sold the house in March.
défendre	défendit	défendu	to defend; to forbid	B1
Il a défendu son point de vue.He defended his point of view.
prétendre	prétendit	prétendu	to claim	B2
Il prétend n’avoir rien vu.He claims he didn’t see anything.
tendre	tendit	tendu	to stretch; to hold out	B1
Elle m’a tendu la main.She held out her hand to me.
confondre	confondit	confondu	to mix up, to confuse	B1
Je confonds toujours les deux frères.I always mix up the two brothers.
correspondre	correspondit	correspondu	to correspond, to match	B1
Le prix ne correspond pas à la qualité.The price doesn’t reflect the quality.
mordre	mordit	mordu	to bite	B1
Le chien n’a jamais mordu personne.The dog has never bitten anyone.
rompre	rompit	rompu	to break (off)	B2
Ils ont rompu le silence.They broke the silence.
interrompre	interrompit	interrompu	to interrupt	B2
Ne m’interrompez pas.Don’t interrupt me.
coudre	cousit	cousu	to sew	B2
Elle a cousu le bouton elle-même.She sewed the button on herself.
moudre	moulut	moulu	to grind	C1
Le café est moulu trop fin.The coffee is ground too fine.
vêtir	vêtit	vêtu	to dress, to clothe	C1
Il était vêtu de noir.He was dressed in black.

Past participle in -i or -is

36 verbs

The second big group. The participle ends in -i or -is and the passé simple in -it: partir → parti → il partit, prendre → pris → il prit. The same link as above, with a different vowel. The -is matters more than it looks: the s is silent in il est pris but heard in the feminine, elle est prise.

Base form	Past	Participle	English	Level
prendre	prit	pris	to take	A1
Il a pris le train de sept heures.He took the seven o’clock train.
apprendre	apprit	appris	to learn	A1
J’ai appris le français à l’école.I learnt French at school.
comprendre	comprit	compris	to understand	A1
Je n’ai rien compris.I didn’t understand a thing.
surprendre	surprit	surpris	to surprise	B1
Sa réponse m’a surpris.His answer surprised me.
reprendre	reprit	repris	to resume, to take up again	B1
Il a repris son travail lundi.He went back to work on Monday.
entreprendre	entreprit	entrepris	to undertake	B2
Ils ont entrepris un long voyage.They set out on a long journey.
mettre	mit	mis	to put, to place	A1
J’ai mis les clés sur la table.I put the keys on the table.
permettre	permit	permis	to allow	A2
On ne m’a pas permis d’entrer.They wouldn’t let me in.
promettre	promit	promis	to promise	A2
Tu me l’avais promis.You had promised me.
remettre	remit	remis	to put back; to postpone	B1
Nous avons remis la réunion à mardi.We’ve moved the meeting to Tuesday.
admettre	admit	admis	to admit	B1
Il a admis son erreur.He admitted his mistake.
soumettre	soumit	soumis	to submit	B2
Elle a soumis le dossier hier.She submitted the paperwork yesterday.
partir	partit	parti	to leave, to set off	A1
Ils sont partis à l’aube.They set off at dawn.
sortir	sortit	sorti	to go out	A1
Elle est sortie sans manteau.She went out without a coat.
dormir	dormit	dormi	to sleep	A1
J’ai mal dormi cette nuit.I slept badly last night.
servir	servit	servi	to serve	A2
On nous a servi le café.We were served coffee.
sentir	sentit	senti	to feel; to smell	A2
J’ai senti le froid tout de suite.I felt the cold straight away.
mentir	mentit	menti	to lie (tell lies)	B1
Il nous a menti deux fois.He lied to us twice.
suivre	suivit	suivi	to follow	A2
J’ai suivi la route jusqu’au village.I followed the road as far as the village.
poursuivre	poursuivit	poursuivi	to pursue, to carry on	B2
Ils ont poursuivi le travail.They carried on with the work.
rire	rit	ri	to laugh	A2
Tout le monde a ri.Everyone laughed.
sourire	sourit	souri	to smile	A2
Elle m’a souri de loin.She smiled at me from across the room.
suffire	suffit	suffi	to be enough	B1
Une heure a suffi.An hour was enough.
acquérir	acquit	acquis	to acquire	B2
Il a acquis une bonne réputation.He has earned himself a good reputation.
conquérir	conquit	conquis	to conquer	C1
Ils ont conquis le marché en deux ans.They conquered the market in two years.
asseoir	assit	assis	to sit (someone) down	B1
Nous nous sommes assis au fond.We sat down at the back.
cueillir	cueillit	cueilli	to pick (fruit, flowers)	B2
Nous avons cueilli des pommes.We picked apples.
accueillir	accueillit	accueilli	to welcome	B1
Ils nous ont bien accueillis.They made us very welcome.
fuir	fuit	fui	to flee	B2
Ils ont fui la ville.They fled the city.
nuire	nuisit	nui	to harm	C1
Cela a nui à sa réputation.It damaged his reputation.
naître	naquit	né	to be born	A2
Elle est née en juin.She was born in June.
bouillir	bouillit	bouilli	to boil	B2
L’eau a bouilli trop longtemps.The water boiled for too long.
haïr	haït	haï	to hate	B2
Il a haï cette ville pendant des années.He hated this town for years.
rejaillir	rejaillit	rejailli	to reflect on, to rebound on	C1
Cela a rejailli sur toute l’équipe.It reflected on the whole team.
sursauter	sursauta	sursauté	to jump, to start (in surprise)	B2
J’ai sursauté au bruit.The noise made me jump.
surgir	surgit	surgi	to appear suddenly, to loom up	B2
Une voiture a surgi de la droite.A car shot out from the right.

Past participle in -t

34 verbs

A small group, but you meet it in almost every sentence: dit, écrit, ouvert, peint, conduit. Within a family the pattern holds — -uire gives -uit, -eindre gives -eint — but the families themselves have to be learned one by one. The passé simple is kinder: apart from mourir → il mourut, it ends in -it throughout.

Base form	Past	Participle	English	Level
mourir	mourut	mort	to die	A2
Elle est morte en hiver.She died in the winter.
conduire	conduisit	conduit	to drive; to lead	A2
Il a conduit toute la nuit.He drove all night.
traduire	traduisit	traduit	to translate	B1
Elle a traduit le texte en allemand.She translated the text into German.
construire	construisit	construit	to build	B1
Ils ont construit la maison eux-mêmes.They built the house themselves.
produire	produisit	produit	to produce	B1
L’usine a produit mille pièces.The factory turned out a thousand units.
détruire	détruisit	détruit	to destroy	B1
Le feu a détruit la grange.The fire destroyed the barn.
cuire	cuisit	cuit	to cook, to bake	B1
Le pain a cuit trop longtemps.The bread was left in the oven too long.
dire	dit	dit	to say, to tell	A1
Il a dit la vérité.He told the truth.
écrire	écrivit	écrit	to write	A1
Elle a écrit trois pages.She wrote three pages.
décrire	décrivit	décrit	to describe	B1
Il a décrit la scène en détail.He described the scene in detail.
inscrire	inscrivit	inscrit	to register, to enrol	B1
Je me suis inscrit au cours.I signed up for the course.
ouvrir	ouvrit	ouvert	to open	A1
Il a ouvert la fenêtre.He opened the window.
couvrir	couvrit	couvert	to cover	B1
La neige a couvert le jardin.The snow covered the garden.
découvrir	découvrit	découvert	to discover	A2
Nous avons découvert un petit café.We came across a little café.
offrir	offrit	offert	to give (as a present), to offer	A2
Elle m’a offert un livre.She gave me a book.
souffrir	souffrit	souffert	to suffer	B1
Il a souffert en silence.He suffered in silence.
peindre	peignit	peint	to paint	B1
Nous avons peint la cuisine en blanc.We painted the kitchen white.
éteindre	éteignit	éteint	to switch off, to put out	A2
Tu as éteint la lumière?Did you switch the light off?
atteindre	atteignit	atteint	to reach	B1
Nous avons atteint le sommet.We reached the summit.
craindre	craignit	craint	to fear	B1
Je crains le pire.I fear the worst.
joindre	joignit	joint	to get hold of (someone); to attach	B1
Je n’ai pas pu le joindre.I couldn’t get hold of him.
défaire	défit	défait	to undo, to unpack	B2
Elle a défait sa valise.She unpacked her suitcase.
satisfaire	satisfit	satisfait	to satisfy	B2
La réponse ne m’a pas satisfait.The answer didn’t satisfy me.
plaindre	plaignit	plaint	to feel sorry for	B2
Personne ne l’a plaint.Nobody felt sorry for him.
rejoindre	rejoignit	rejoint	to join, to meet up with	B1
Je vous rejoins dans dix minutes.I’ll join you in ten minutes.
interdire	interdit	interdit	to forbid, to ban	B1
On a interdit le stationnement ici.Parking has been banned here.
prédire	prédit	prédit	to predict	C1
Personne n’avait prédit ce résultat.Nobody had predicted this result.
teindre	teignit	teint	to dye	C1
Elle s’est teint les cheveux.She has dyed her hair.
feindre	feignit	feint	to feign	C1
Il a feint la surprise.He feigned surprise.
restreindre	restreignit	restreint	to restrict	C1
Ils ont restreint l’accès.They restricted access.
astreindre	astreignit	astreint	to compel, to bind	C1
Le contrat l’astreint au silence.The contract binds him to silence.
extraire	extrayit	extrait	to extract	C1
On a extrait la phrase du rapport.The sentence was taken from the report.
distraire	distrayit	distrait	to distract	B2
Le bruit m’a distrait.The noise distracted me.
soustraire	soustrayit	soustrait	to subtract, to deduct	C1
Il faut soustraire les frais.You have to deduct the costs.

Irregular throughout

4 verbs

The verbs no rule reaches: être, avoir, aller, faire. They are also the most common verbs in the language, and that is no accident: only a word used constantly can stay this irregular without being evened out. English shows the same thing — «be» and «go» are its most irregular verbs, and «went» was originally the past of a different verb altogether.

Base form	Past	Participle	English	Level
être	fut	été	to be	A1
Ce fut une longue journée.It was a long day.
avoir	eut	eu	to have	A1
Il eut peur un instant.For a moment he was afraid.
aller	alla	allé	to go	A1
Elle alla jusqu’à la gare.She walked as far as the station.
faire	fit	fait	to do, to make	A1
Il fit ce qu’il put.He did what he could.

Practise the three forms

One base form, two missing forms. Only what you write counts — quotation marks, capitals and spaces are forgiven, not penalised.