How to Form the Simple Future Tense in French

Learning how to use the simple future tense in French is important. It helps you talk about things that will happen. Let’s break it down into easy steps.

1. How to Form the Simple Future Tense

In French, the simple future tense is made using the base form of regular verbs. You then add special endings. Here are the endings you’ll need to know:

• -ai (I will)
• -as (you will, speaking to one person informally)
• -a (he/she/it will)
• -ons (we will)
• -ez (you will, speaking to multiple people or formally)
• -ont (they will)

Regular Verb Conjugation

1. -er Verbs (like parler):

   • Je parlerai (I will speak)
   • Tu parleras (You will speak)
   • Il/Elle parlera (He/She will speak)
   • Nous parlerons (We will speak)
   • Vous parlerez (You will speak)
   • Ils/Elles parleront (They will speak)

2. -ir Verbs (like finir):

   • Je finirai (I will finish)
   • Tu finiras (You will finish)
   • Il/Elle finira (He/She will finish)
   • Nous finirons (We will finish)
   • Vous finirez (You will finish)
   • Ils/Elles finiront (They will finish)

3. -re Verbs (like vendre):

   • Je vendrai (I will sell)
   • Tu vendras (You will sell)
   • Il/Elle vendra (He/She will sell)
   • Nous vendrons (We will sell)
   • Vous vendrez (You will sell)
   • Ils/Elles vendront (They will sell)

Common Irregular Verbs

Some verbs are a little different. They have special forms but use the same endings:

• Être (to be): serai, seras, sera, serons, serez, seront
• Avoir (to have): aurai, auras, aura, aurons, aurez, auront
• Aller (to go): irai, iras, ira, irons, irez, iront
• Faire (to do/make): ferai, feras, fera, ferons, ferez, feront

2. Articles and Gender Agreement

In French, nouns have genders. This matters for adjectives and articles.

• Definite Articles: le (masculine), la (feminine), les (plural)
• Indefinite Articles: un (masculine), une (feminine), des (plural)

Example:

• Le livre (the book - masculine)
• La table (the table - feminine)

When you describe things, make sure the words agree in gender:

• Un livre intéressant (An interesting book - masculine)
• Une table intéressante (An interesting table - feminine)

3. Negative Sentences and Questions

Negative Sentences

To make a sentence negative, use ne...pas around the verb:

• Je ne parlerai pas (I will not speak).

Questions

To ask questions, you can say “est-ce que” or switch the order of the words:

• Est-ce que tu parleras? (Will you speak?)
• Parleras-tu? (Will you speak?)

4. Reflexive and Demonstrative Verbs

For reflexive verbs, the reflexive pronoun goes before the verb:

• Je me lèverai (I will get up).

Demonstrative Adjectives:

• Ce (masculine), cette (feminine), ces (plural) point to specific nouns:
• Ce livre (This book - masculine)
• Cette table (This table - feminine)

5. Pronouns

Subject Pronouns: Je, Tu, Il/Elle, Nous, Vous, Ils/Elles.
Object Pronouns: me, te, le/la, nous, vous, les. Use these when you create your sentences.

Example Sentences

• Je ferai du sport demain. (I will play sports tomorrow).
• Elle ira au cinéma ce soir. (She will go to the cinema tonight).

By learning these parts, you can make sentences in the simple future tense easily and with confidence!