The regular -re pattern (attendre-type)
The textbook "regular -re" pattern is small in modern French. Maybe 30 verbs total actually follow it, and most of the ones you meet daily are not on that list. Still, the pattern is worth learning because the verbs that do follow it are useful: attendre, entendre, rendre, perdre, vendre, descendre, repondre. That is most of the regular -re class in one breath.
The endings are: je -s, tu -s, il (no ending), nous -ons, vous -ez, ils -ent.
Take attendre (to wait) fully:
- j'attends
- tu attends
- il / elle attend
- nous attendons
- vous attendez
- ils / elles attendent
Note the third-person singular has no ending at all. It is just the bare stem: il attend, not il attendt. This is the only common French verb pattern that does this, and it trips up almost every learner at first because every other group adds a -t or an -e there. Get used to the silent ending; it is what defines this paradigm.
The other regulars in this class follow the same template exactly: il entend, il rend, il perd, il vend, il descend, il repond. Drop the -re from the infinitive, add the ending, done.
The prendre family
Prendre (to take) is one of the most-used French verbs in the language, and it has its own irregularity that ripples through every compound built on it: comprendre (to understand), apprendre (to learn), surprendre (to surprise), entreprendre (to undertake), reprendre (to take back / to resume).
Take prendre fully:
- je prends
- tu prends
- il / elle prend
- nous prenons
- vous prenez
- ils / elles prennent
Two things to flag. First, the stem drops the d and changes from prend- to pren- in the nous and vous plural forms. Second, the ils form doubles the n: prennent, not prenent. So you have three different stems in one paradigm: prend- (singular), pren- (nous / vous), prenn- (ils / elles).
The good news: every compound built on prendre follows exactly the same pattern with the prefix attached. Je comprends, nous comprenons, ils comprennent. J'apprends, nous apprenons, ils apprennent. Learn prendre once and you have got four or five high-frequency verbs for free.
The mettre family
Mettre (to put / to place) and battre (to beat) form a small family, along with their compounds: promettre (to promise), permettre (to allow), admettre (to admit), remettre (to put back), combattre (to fight).
Take mettre fully:
- je mets
- tu mets
- il / elle met
- nous mettons
- vous mettez
- ils / elles mettent
The shape is single t in the singular, double t in the plural. The singular forms look almost like the bare stem (me-) with the ending tacked on; the plural restores the second t. Same trick that prendre plays, just with a different letter.
Battre follows the same shape exactly:
- je bats
- tu bats
- il / elle bat
- nous battons
- vous battez
- ils / elles battent
Single t through the singular, double t through the plural. Compounds inherit the pattern: je promets, nous promettons; je permets, nous permettons.
The standalone irregulars
These are the high-frequency -re verbs that refuse to join a family and have to be memorised in full. Every one of them appears constantly in everyday French, so the effort pays back fast.
etre (to be): je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes, vous etes, ils sont. The most irregular verb in the language, already taught earlier in the curriculum but worth recapping here. Nothing about etre looks like its infinitive.
faire (to do / to make): je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font. Note the unusual -tes ending on vous faites (not vous faisez) and the -ont ending on ils font (not ils faient). Both are leftovers from older French that survive only on a handful of verbs.
dire (to say): je dis, tu dis, il dit, nous disons, vous dites, ils disent. Same -tes pattern on vous dites (not vous disez). The vous form is the irregular one to watch.
lire (to read): je lis, tu lis, il lit, nous lisons, vous lisez, ils lisent. Regular-ish, no surprises on the vous form.
ecrire (to write): j'ecris, tu ecris, il ecrit, nous ecrivons, vous ecrivez, ils ecrivent. The -v- appears in the plural and stays there for ils. The compounds decrire (to describe) and inscrire (to register) follow the same pattern.
vivre (to live): je vis, tu vis, il vit, nous vivons, vous vivez, ils vivent. Same kind of -v- shift as ecrire, but the v is already in the infinitive and just disappears from the singular.
croire (to believe): je crois, tu crois, il croit, nous croyons, vous croyez, ils croient. The y appears in the nous and vous forms (where it sits between two vowels) and disappears again in ils, which goes back to a plain i.
boire (to drink): je bois, tu bois, il boit, nous buvons, vous buvez, ils boivent. Three stems again: boi- in the singular, buv- in the plural for nous and vous, boiv- for ils. One of the trickier ones.
plaire (to please): je plais, tu plais, il plait, nous plaisons, vous plaisez, ils plaisent. Mostly used in the fixed expression s'il vous plait (please, literally "if it pleases you") and ca me plait (I like it, literally "that pleases me").
connaitre (to know, to be acquainted with): je connais, tu connais, il connait, nous connaissons, vous connaissez, ils connaissent. The -ss- appears in the plural. Compare with savoir, which is the other "to know" verb: connaitre is for people and places, savoir is for facts and skills.
suivre (to follow): je suis, tu suis, il suit, nous suivons, vous suivez, ils suivent. Important to flag: je suis is the exact same form as etre's je suis. Context tells them apart, but the overlap is real. "Je suis le chat" can mean "I am the cat" or "I follow the cat" depending on what came before.
suffire (to suffice): je suffis, tu suffis, il suffit, nous suffisons, vous suffisez, ils suffisent. Most often seen as ca suffit (that's enough).
foutre (vulgar slang, but in the top 1000): conjugates roughly like a regular -re verb with quirks. Appears constantly in spoken French in expressions like je m'en fous (I don't care) and qu'est-ce que tu fous? (what the hell are you doing?). Not for polite contexts, but you will hear it.
The 19 -re verbs in this curriculum
Grouped by pattern, with English translations.
Regular attendre-type:
- attendre (to wait)
- entendre (to hear)
- rendre (to give back / to return)
- perdre (to lose)
prendre family:
- prendre (to take)
- comprendre (to understand)
- apprendre (to learn)
mettre family:
- mettre (to put)
- battre (to beat)
Standalone irregulars:
- plaire (to please)
- connaitre (to know)
- croire (to believe)
- vivre (to live)
- ecrire (to write)
- boire (to drink)
- suivre (to follow)
- lire (to read)
- suffire (to suffice)
- foutre (slang, to put / to do / to give a damn)
How to internalise -re conjugation
Split the work the way you would for any third-group cluster. The regular attendre-type endings (-s, -s, -, -ons, -ez, -ent) are worth drilling because they apply to a dozen useful verbs and the silent third-person singular is the only thing that ever catches anyone out. Get il attend with no t into your reflexes and the rest of the regular -re class falls into place. The prendre and mettre families are exactly that: families. Learn prendre and you have got comprendre and apprendre. Learn mettre and you have got promettre, permettre, and battre. Two paradigms, eight or nine verbs covered.
The rest are high-frequency irregulars that you will meet in every conversation. Memorise them in full and move on. Etre, faire, dire, lire, ecrire, vivre, croire, boire, suivre, connaitre, plaire: every one of these appears so often that even careless exposure embeds them within a few weeks. The list is short, the payoff is immediate, and there is no shortcut. Drill them, then stop worrying about them.