200 Most Common French Verbs, Ranked by Real Use
The 200 French verbs you will use most, ranked by how often they really appear. For each one: the English meaning, its verb group, avoir or être, the past participle and an example sentence. Plus a free printable PDF.
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How we ranked these verbsThe top 10 verbsVerbs 11–20Verbs that take êtreCommon mistakesThe full list: 200 verbsPractice: 10 questionsNext step: tensesFAQQuick answer
The most common French verbs are être (to be), avoir (to have), faire (to do, to make), aller (to go), dire (to say), pouvoir (can), vouloir (to want), voir (to see), savoir (to know) and devoir (must). Learn these ten first: in film and TV dialogue they make up about half of all the verbs people use.
Most French verb lists are alphabetical, or in an order nobody explains. This one is ranked by real use, so you can learn the verbs in the order you will meet them. Start with the top 10, which get a full card below. Then move to the top 20, and use the table of 200 as your reference.
For every verb you get the details that cause the most mistakes: whether it takes avoir or être in the passé composé, and its past participle. Tap Listen to hear the 50 most common verbs with their example sentence.
How we ranked these verbs
We ranked the verbs with Lexique 3.83, a free French word-frequency database from French university researchers (New, Pallier and colleagues). It counts words in two collections: subtitles of films and TV series, which are close to everyday speech, and books. We averaged the two, so a verb has to be common in both speech and writing to rank high.
We left out two frequent words that would mislead a learner: a vulgar verb, and désoler, which is almost always the adjective désolé (sorry). Reflexive forms are counted with their verb (s’asseoir under asseoir).
In the subtitle collection, the top 10 verbs make up about 54% of all the verbs used, and the 200 on this page about 86%. That count includes être and avoir as helper verbs. Treat the ranks as “about this common”, not as exact positions: neighbors are often nearly tied (voir and savoir, numbers 8 and 9, are level).
The top 10 French verbs
These ten are all irregular, so their forms have to be learned one by one. For each verb: the present tense, the two other tenses a beginner needs first (passé composé and futur proche), an example you can use today and a teacher’s tip.
The present tense table gives the singular on the left (je, tu, il / elle / on) and the plural on the right (nous, vous, ils / elles). On takes the il form and often means “we” in conversation.
1. Être (to be)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je suis | nous sommes |
| tu es | vous êtes |
| il / elle / on est | ils / elles sont |
Passé composé: j’ai étéFutur proche: je vais être
Je suis en retard, désolé !I’m late, sorry!
Être is also a helper verb: it forms the passé composé of about 17 verbs of movement and change, and of every reflexive verb (je suis allé, je me suis levé). Age is not one of its jobs: say j’ai 20 ans, not je suis 20 ans.
More: The French verb être: conjugation and usage
2. Avoir (to have)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| j’ai | nous avons |
| tu as | vous avez |
| il / elle / on a | ils / elles ont |
Passé composé: j’ai euFutur proche: je vais avoir
J’ai faim, on mange ?I’m hungry, shall we eat?
Avoir does a lot of the work English gives to “to be”: avoir faim (to be hungry), avoir froid (to be cold), avoir raison (to be right), avoir 30 ans (to be 30). It is also the helper verb for the passé composé of most verbs: j’ai mangé.
More: Avoir conjugation in all tenses
3. Faire (to do; to make)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je fais | nous faisons |
| tu fais | vous faites |
| il / elle / on fait | ils / elles font |
Passé composé: j’ai faitFutur proche: je vais faire
Il fait beau aujourd’hui.The weather is nice today.
Use faire for the weather (il fait froid) and for activities (faire du sport, faire les courses). The vous form is vous faites, never vous faisez. In nous faisons, the ai sounds like the “e” in le.
More: French verb faire: how to conjugate
4. Aller (to go)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je vais | nous allons |
| tu vas | vous allez |
| il / elle / on va | ils / elles vont |
Passé composé: je suis allé(e)Futur proche: je vais aller
On va au cinéma ce soir ?Shall we go to the movies tonight?
Aller + an infinitive is the easiest way to talk about the future: je vais manger (I’m going to eat). No preposition in between: je vais faire, not je vais à faire. Aller also gives you Ça va ? (How are you?). It ends in -er but is fully irregular.
More: French verb aller: how to conjugate
5. Dire (to say; to tell)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je dis | nous disons |
| tu dis | vous dites |
| il / elle / on dit | ils / elles disent |
Passé composé: j’ai ditFutur proche: je vais dire
Qu’est-ce que tu dis ?What are you saying?
To tell someone to do something: dire à quelqu’un de faire quelque chose (Dis-lui de venir, Tell him to come). The vous form is vous dites, never vous disez.
More: French verb dire: how to conjugate
6. Pouvoir (can; to be able to)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je peux | nous pouvons |
| tu peux | vous pouvez |
| il / elle / on peut | ils / elles peuvent |
Passé composé: j’ai puFutur proche: je vais pouvoir
Vous pouvez répéter, s’il vous plaît ?Could you repeat that, please?
Pouvoir is followed by an infinitive: je peux venir. For a polite request, use the conditional: Je pourrais avoir l’addition ? (Could I have the check?).
More: How to express modal verbs in French
7. Vouloir (to want)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je veux | nous voulons |
| tu veux | vous voulez |
| il / elle / on veut | ils / elles veulent |
Passé composé: j’ai vouluFutur proche: je vais vouloir
Tu veux un café ?Do you want a coffee?
Je veux sounds blunt when you order or ask for something. Say je voudrais (I would like) instead: Je voudrais un café, s’il vous plaît. The futur proche je vais vouloir exists but is rare.
More: Vouloir French conjugation
8. Voir (to see)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je vois | nous voyons |
| tu vois | vous voyez |
| il / elle / on voit | ils / elles voient |
Passé composé: j’ai vuFutur proche: je vais voir
On se voit demain ?Shall we meet up tomorrow?
Notice the y in nous voyons and vous voyez. In conversation, On va voir means “We’ll see”, and Tu vois ? is a filler like “you know?”.
More: French verb voir: how to conjugate
9. Savoir (to know (a fact); to know how to)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je sais | nous savons |
| tu sais | vous savez |
| il / elle / on sait | ils / elles savent |
Passé composé: j’ai suFutur proche: je vais savoir
Je ne sais pas où est la gare.I don’t know where the station is.
Savoir is for facts and skills: je sais où il habite, je sais nager (I can swim). For people and places, use connaître: je connais Paul, je connais Lyon. In the passé composé, j’ai su usually means “I found out”.
More: Savoir conjugation · Savoir vs connaître
10. Devoir (must; to have to; to owe)
| Present: singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| je dois | nous devons |
| tu dois | vous devez |
| il / elle / on doit | ils / elles doivent |
Passé composé: j’ai dûFutur proche: je vais devoir
Je dois travailler demain.I have to work tomorrow.
Devoir means “must” or “to have to”, and also “to owe”: Je te dois dix euros. Two forms you will hear constantly: tu devrais (you should) and il a dû oublier (he must have forgotten).
More: How to express modal verbs in French
Verbs 11–20: short notes
The next ten are a mix of irregular verbs and the first regular -er verbs. One note per verb on how French people really use it.
11. Venir: to come
Takes être in the passé composé (je suis venu). Venir de + infinitive means “to have just done”: Je viens de manger (I’ve just eaten).
Tu viens avec nous ?Are you coming with us?
12. Prendre: to take; to have (food, drink)
The verb for ordering food and taking transport: je prends le train. Apprendre and comprendre follow exactly the same pattern (nous prenons, ils prennent).
Je prends un croissant, s’il vous plaît.I’ll have a croissant, please.
13. Parler: to speak; to talk
The model regular -er verb. Learn its endings once (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent) and you can conjugate most of the -er verbs on this page.
Vous parlez anglais ?Do you speak English?
14. Falloir: to be necessary (il faut)
Only exists with il: il faut (it is necessary, we/you have to). Il faut + infinitive is the everyday form; il faut que needs the subjunctive.
Il faut partir maintenant.We have to leave now.
15. Passer: to pass; to spend (time); to stop by
False friend: passer un examen means to take an exam; to pass it is réussir. Takes être when it means “to go past”: je suis passé chez toi.
J’ai passé une bonne journée.I had a good day.
16. Croire: to believe; to think
Je crois que… is a softer “I think”. In speech the ne often drops: je crois pas.
Je crois que oui.I think so.
17. Aimer: to love; to like
With a person, aimer means to love: je t’aime. Adding bien makes it weaker: je t’aime bien means “I like you”.
J’aime beaucoup ce quartier.I really like this neighborhood.
18. Penser: to think
Penser à = to think about (je pense à toi). Penser de = to have an opinion about, usually in a question: Qu’est-ce que tu en penses ?
Qu’est-ce que tu en penses ?What do you think of it?
19. Trouver: to find; to think (that)
Besides “to find”, je trouve que… is a very common way to give an opinion: je trouve que c’est cher (I think it’s expensive).
Je ne trouve pas mes clés.I can’t find my keys.
20. Regarder: to look at; to watch
No preposition after it, unlike “look at”: Regarde ça ! (Look at that!), not Regarde à ça. Ça ne te regarde pas = none of your business.
On regarde un film ce soir ?Shall we watch a movie tonight?
The verbs that take être (DR MRS VANDERTRAMP)
Most verbs form the passé composé with avoir: j’ai mangé. A small group of verbs, almost all about movement or a change of state, use être instead: je suis allé. English speakers remember them with the name DR MRS VANDERTRAMP. Many teachers draw them as a house, la maison d’être, that you walk into, up, down and out of.
Memory trick
DR MRS VANDERTRAMP
| Letter | Verb | English | Passé composé |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | devenir | to become | je suis devenu(e) |
| R | revenir | to come back | je suis revenu(e) |
| M | monter | to go up | je suis monté(e) |
| R | rester | to stay | je suis resté(e) |
| S | sortir | to go out | je suis sorti(e) |
| V | venir | to come | je suis venu(e) |
| A | aller | to go | je suis allé(e) |
| N | naître | to be born | je suis né(e) |
| D | descendre | to go down | je suis descendu(e) |
| E | entrer | to enter | je suis entré(e) |
| R | rentrer | to go back home | je suis rentré(e) |
| T | tomber | to fall | je suis tombé(e) |
| R | retourner | to go back | je suis retourné(e) |
| A | arriver | to arrive | je suis arrivé(e) |
| M | mourir | to die | je suis mort(e) |
| P | partir | to leave | je suis parti(e) |
- Add passer when it means “to go past”: je suis passé devant la gare.
- Every reflexive verb takes être: je me suis levé, elle s’est assise.
- The participle agrees with the subject: il est parti, elle est partie, ils sont partis, elles sont parties.
- Six of them switch to avoir when they have a direct object: sortir, monter, descendre, rentrer, retourner and passer. Compare je suis sorti (I went out) and j’ai sorti la poubelle (I took the trash out). In the table below, these verbs are marked être*.
Here is the same idea in 36 seconds, from our YouTube channel:
Common mistakes with these verbs
Our teachers hear these in almost every beginner class. Each one is easy to fix once you have seen it.
Say this, not that
- ✗ Vous faisez → ✓ Vous faites: faire is irregular in the vous form (same for vous dites).
- ✗ Je suis 20 ans → ✓ J’ai 20 ans: age uses avoir.
- ✗ Je vais à faire → ✓ Je vais faire: no preposition between aller and the infinitive.
- ✗ J’ai allé → ✓ Je suis allé(e): aller takes être in the passé composé.
- ✗ Elle est allé → ✓ Elle est allée: with être, the past participle agrees with the subject.
- ✗ J’attends pour le bus → ✓ J’attends le bus: attendre already means “to wait for”. Same with regarder (to look at).
- ✗ Je cherche pour mes clés → ✓ Je cherche mes clés: no preposition after chercher.
- ✗ J’ai passé mon examen (meaning “I passed”) → ✓ J’ai réussi mon examen: passer un examen means to take it.
The 200 most common French verbs
The full list, in frequency order. The first 50 have audio. On a phone, each row shows as a card.
How to read the table. Group: -er = regular -er verb; -er* = regular, but the spelling changes in some forms (j’appelle, nous mangeons, j’achète, je paie); -ir (like finir) and -re (like vendre) are the regular patterns; irregular = learn its forms separately. Auxiliary: the helper verb in the passé composé. être* = être, but avoir when the verb has a direct object. Past participles are given in the masculine; with être, add -e for a woman and -s for a plural.
Verbs 1–50
| # | Verb | English | Group | Auxiliary | Past participle | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | être | to be | irregular | avoir | été | Je suis en retard, désolé !I’m late, sorry! |
| 2 | avoir | to have | irregular | avoir | eu | J’ai faim, on mange ?I’m hungry, shall we eat? |
| 3 | faire | to do; to make | irregular | avoir | fait | Il fait beau aujourd’hui.The weather is nice today. |
| 4 | aller | to go | irregular | être | allé | On va au cinéma ce soir ?Shall we go to the movies tonight? |
| 5 | dire | to say; to tell | irregular | avoir | dit | Qu’est-ce que tu dis ?What are you saying? |
| 6 | pouvoir | can; to be able to | irregular | avoir | pu | Vous pouvez répéter, s’il vous plaît ?Could you repeat that, please? |
| 7 | vouloir | to want | irregular | avoir | voulu | Tu veux un café ?Do you want a coffee? |
| 8 | voir | to see | irregular | avoir | vu | On se voit demain ?Shall we meet up tomorrow? |
| 9 | savoir | to know (a fact); to know how to | irregular | avoir | su | Je ne sais pas où est la gare.I don’t know where the station is. |
| 10 | devoir | must; to have to; to owe | irregular | avoir | dû | Je dois travailler demain.I have to work tomorrow. |
| 11 | venir |