The Present Subjunctive in French

Quick Answer

The French subjonctif(subjunctive) is a mode(mood) used to talk about wishes, desires, necessity, emotions, opinions, uncertainty, and possibility. It commonly occurs in subordinate clauses starting with que(that) but can also be used with other conjunctions. In contemporary usage, the présent du subjonctif(present subjunctive) is used in French unless the action in the subordinate clause happens before the action of the main clause.

examples
Tout le monde veut que tu viennes avec nous. Everyone wants you to come with us.
Repose-toi jusqu'à ce que tu te sentes mieux. Rest until you feel better.
Il était possible que nous ne comprenions pas la situation. It was possible that we didn't understand the situation.

examples

Tout le monde veut que tu viennes avec nous.

Everyone wants you to come with us.

Repose-toi jusqu'à ce que tu te sentes mieux.

Rest until you feel better.

Il était possible que nous ne comprenions pas la situation.

It was possible that we didn't understand the situation.

In this article, you'll learn how and when to use the present subjunctive in French. Commençons !(Let's get started!)

Questions This Article Answers

What is the subjunctive mood?

What is the present subjunctive in French?

When do you use the present subjunctive in French?

How do you conjugate verbs in the present subjunctive in French?

The Subjunctive in French

The subjonctif(subjunctive) is a mode(mood) used to talk about wishes, desires, necessity, emotions, opinions, uncertainty, and possibility. The subjunctive commonly shows up in subordinate clauses, which means it often appears in a clause starting with que(that).

examples
Je suis étonnée que vous sachiez parler tant de langues. I'm amazed that you know how to speak so many languages.
Nous doutons que tu connaisses la réponse. We doubt you know the answer.
Il se peut que nous soyons sur une fausse piste. It's possible we're on the wrong track.
Il faut que tu fasses attention ! You have to pay attention!

The subjunctive is also used after certain conjunctions that indicate goals, consequences, fear, restrictions, and time.

examples
On continuera jusqu'à ce qu'on trouve une solution. We'll keep going until we find a solution.
Fais-le avant qu'il fasse noir Do it before it gets dark.
Bien qu'il soit malade, il ne veut pas rester à la maison. Even though he's sick, he doesn't want to stay home.

In the examples above, the conjunctions jusqu'à ce que(until), avant que(before), and bien que(even though) trigger the subjunctive.

The Present Subjunctive in French

There are four subjunctive tenses in French, but only two are commonly used in contemporary French: the présent du subjonctif(present subjunctive) and the passé du subjonctif(past subjunctive). Here are some examples of the present subjunctive:

examples
Je doute qu'il neige demain. I doubt it will snow tomorrow.
Il faut que je fasse du yoga tous les jours. It's necessary for me to do yoga every day.
Tu es content que tes cousins viennent à la fête ? Are you happy your cousins are coming to the party?
Ma mère veut que je l'appelle plus souvent. My mom wants me to call her more often.
Je vais m'asseoir à côté de toi pour que nous puissions parler. I'm going to sit next to you so that we can talk.

The present subjunctive is the tense you'll use most often. Think of it as the “default” tense for the subjunctive. When deciding on whether to use the present subjunctive, you'll have to take into account the action of the subordinate clause relative to the main clause. Use the present subjunctive in the following situations:

When to Use the Present Subjunctive in French

The action in the subordinate clause happens ...	Main Clause	Subordinate Clause
at the same time as the main clause	Il est important... It's important ...	que nous soyons attentifs. that we be attentive.
after the main clause	Je souhaite... I want ...	que tu viennes à ma fête demain. you to come to my party tomorrow.
before the main clause	Je suis contente... I'm happy ...	que tu aies déjà fait tes devoirs. you already did your homework.

In the last example, the past subjunctive is used in the subordinate clause.

In sum, use the present subjunctive unless the action of the subordinate clause happens before the action of the main clause.

The Present Subjunctive is Used for Future Actions

You may feel tempted to use a future tense if the action in the subordinate clause happens in the future. However, if there is a context that triggers the subjunctive, as is the case for the verb souhaiter(to want) in the table above or the verb douter(to doubt) below, you'll use the present subjunctive!

Correct	Incorrect	English
Je doute que ce candidat gagne la prochaine élection.	Je doute que ce candidat gagnera la prochaine élection.	I doubt that candidate will win the next election.

If the action of the subordinate clause happens after the action of the main clause, the passé du subjonctif(past subjunctive) is used in French. Learn about this tense in this article:

The Past Subjunctive in French

The present subjunctive can even be used with a main clause in the past tense!

examples
Je doutais qu'il fasse beau aujourd'hui. I doubted it would be nice today.
C'était dommage que tu sois malade. It was a shame that you were sick.
Gérard est parti sans qu'on sache pourquoi. Gérard left without anyone knowing why.
Nous avons attendu jusqu'à ce que la pluie s'arrête. We waited until the rain stopped.

Conjugating Verbs in the Present Subjunctive in French

There's a trick to conjugating any verb in the present subjunctive in French, but you'll need to rely on your knowledge of the present indicative! To conjugate any verb in the present subjunctive, follow these steps:

Conjugate the verb in the ils/elles form of the present indicative.
Remove the final -ent to get the present subjunctive stem.
Add the present subjunctive endings below to the end of the stem.

Present Subjunctive Endings in French

Subject	Ending
je	-e
tu	-es
il, elle, on	-e
nous	-ions
vous	-iez
ils, elles	-ent

Let's take a look at an -er verb like trouver(to find) in the present subjunctive. If we conjugate this verb in the ils/elles form of the present indicative, we get (ils/elles) trouvent. After we remove the final -ent, we're left with the present subjunctive stem: trouv-. We're now ready to conjugate the verb in the present subjunctive by adding the endings!

Trouver in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	French Example	English
je	que je trouve	that I find
tu	que tu trouves	that you find
il, elle, on	qu'elle trouve	that she find
nous	que nous trouvions	that we find
vous	que vous trouviez	that you (all) find
ils, elles	qu'ils trouvent	that they find

Next, let's take a look at the -ir verb réfléchir(to think). The ils/elles form of this verb in the present indicative is réfléchissent. We remove the final -ent ending, which gives us the present subjunctive stem réfléchiss-. Here's the whole set of conjugations:

Réfléchir in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	French Example	English
je	que je réfléchisse	that I think
tu	que tu réfléchisses	that you think
il, elle, on	qu'elle réfléchisse	that she think
nous	que nous réfléchissions	that we think
vous	que vous réfléchissiez	that you (all) think
ils, elles	qu'ils réfléchissent	that they think

Finally, let's get the present subjunctive stem of the -re verb dire(to say):

dire → (ils/elles) disent → dis-

This gives us the the following conjugations in the present subjunctive:

Dire in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	French Example	English
je	que je dise	that I say
tu	que tu dises	that you say
il, elle, on	qu'elle dise	that she say
nous	que nous disions	that we say
vous	que vous disiez	that you (all) say
ils, elles	qu'ils disent	that they say

To be able to conjugate verbs in the present subjunctive, you'll want to be confident in conjugating verbs in the present indicative! Review this tense here:

The Present Indicative in French

Irregular Conjugations for Nous and Vous

There are quite a few verbs where all persons follow the regular rules above except for nous(we) and vous(you-all)!

Let's first take prendre(to take) and venir(to come) as examples. The present indicative stem is formed like this:

prendre → (ils/elles) prennent → prenn-
venir → (ils/elles) viennent → vienn-

This stem will be used for all persons except nous and vous! For these persons, we instead use the following irregular stems:

pren-
ven-

Prendre and Venir in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	Prendre	Venir
je	que je prenne that I take	que je vienne that I come
tu	que tu prennes that you take	que tu viennes that you come
il, elle, on	qu'elle prenne that she take	qu'elle vienne that she come
nous	que nous prenions that we take	que nous venions that we come
vous	que vous preniez that you (all) take	que vous veniez that you (all) come
ils, elles	qu'ils prennent that they take	qu'ils viennent that they come

Let's take a look at two more of these types of verbs. Here's how we get the present subjunctive stem for acheter(to buy) and appeler(to call).

acheter → (ils/elles) achètent → achèt-
appeler → (ils/elles) appellent → appell-

Again, we'll use these stems for all persons except nous and vous. For these persons, the irregular stem will instead resemble the infinitive:

achet- (with no accent on the e)
appel- (with a single l)

Acheter and Appeler in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	Acheter	Appeler
je	que j'achète that I buy	que j'appelle that I call
tu	que tu achètes that you buy	que tu appelles that you call
il, elle, on	qu'elle achète that she buy	qu'elle appelle that she call
nous	que nous achetions that we buy	que nous appelions that we call
vous	que vous achetiez that you (all) buy	que vous appeliez that you (all) call
ils, elles	qu'ils achètent that they buy	qu'ils appellent that they call

Other Verbs with Irregular Nous and Vous Forms

There are many more verbs whose nous and vous forms are irregular in the present subjunctive. Here's a list of some common ones. Click the links to explore our cool online French Verb Conjugation Tool and see each verb's conjugations!

boire (to drink)

comprendre (to understand)

croire (to believe)

devoir (to have to)

devenir (to become)

envoyer (to send)

espérer (to hope)

essayer (to try)

jeter (to throw)

mourir (to die)

nettoyer (to clean)

préférer (to prefer)

recevoir (to receive)

tenir (to hold)

voir (to see)

Other Common Irregular Verbs

Some verbs in the present subjunctive have irregular stems but regular endings. This is the case for faire(to do, to make), pouvoir(to be able to), and savoir(to know).

Faire, Pouvoir, and Savoir in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	Faire	Pouvoir	Savoir
je	que je fasse that I do, make	que je puisse that I can	que je sache that I know
tu	que tu fasses that you do, make	que tu puisses that you can	que tu saches that you know
il, elle, on	qu'elle fasse that she do, make	qu'elle puisse that she can	qu'elle sache that she know
nous	que nous fassions that we do, make	que nous puissions that we can	que nous sachions that we know
vous	que vous fassiez that you (all) do, make	que vous puissiez that you (all) can	que vous sachiez that you (all) know
ils, elles	qu'ils fassent that they do, make	qu'ils puissent that they can	qu'ils sachent that they know

Aller(to go), vouloir(to want), and valoir(to be worth) also have irregular stems but regular endings. Notice how the nous and vous stems are different from the other persons!

Aller, Vouloir, and Valoir in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	Aller	Vouloir	Valoir
je	que j'aille that I go	que je veuille that I want	que je vaille that I be worth
tu	que tu ailles that you go	que tu veuilles that you want	que tu vailles that you be worth
il, elle, on	qu'elle aille that she go	qu'elle veuille that she want	qu'elle vaille that she be worth
nous	que nous allions that we go	que nous voulions that we want	que nous valions that we be worth
vous	que vous alliez that you (all) go	que vous vouliez that you (all) want	que vous valiez that you (all) be worth
ils, elles	qu'ils aillent that they go	qu'ils veuillent that they want	qu'ils vaillent that they be worth

Unsurprisingly, the verbs être(to be) and avoir(to have) are very irregular; they have both irregular stems and endings!

Être and Avoir in the Present Subjunctive in French

Subject	Être	Avoir
je	que je sois that I be	que j'aie that I have
tu	que tu sois that you be	que tu aies that you have
il, elle, on	qu'elle soit that she be	qu'elle ait that she have
nous	que nous soyons that we be	que nous ayons that we have
vous	que vous soyez that you (all) be	que vous ayez that you (all) have
ils, elles	qu'ils soient that they be	qu'ils aient that they have

Need More Practice?

Try conjugating verbs in the présent du subjonctif with our Conjugation Drill! With a little practice, the présent du subjonctif will become a natural part of your conversations in French.