Conjugations
All six tenses and their examples are shown below. Use the links above to jump to a tense. English translations use the meaning “to reform.”
Present Présent
Habits, current states, and actions happening now.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | réforme | I reform | |
| tu | réformes | you reform | |
| il / elle / on | réforme | he / she / it reformson: we reform / one reforms | |
| nous | réformons | we reform | |
| vous | réformez | you reform | |
| ils / elles | réforment | they reform |
IN A SENTENCEPresent example
Le gouvernement réforme le système scolaire.
The government reforms the school system.
Passé composé
Completed past events, using avoir or être plus a past participle.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | ai réformé | I reformed | |
| tu | as réformé | you reformed | |
| il / elle / on | a réformé | he / she / it reformedon: we reformed / one reformed | |
| nous | avons réformé | we reformed | |
| vous | avez réformé | you reformed | |
| ils / elles | ont réformé | they reformed |
IN A SENTENCEPassé composé example
Hier, le gouvernement a réformé le système scolaire.
Yesterday, the government reformed the school system.
The passé composé uses avoir. The table shows the unmarked participle; agreement with a preceding direct object is outside this reference.
Back to tense navigation ↑Imperfect Imparfait
Past habits, descriptions, and actions in progress.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | réformais | I used to reform | |
| tu | réformais | you used to reform | |
| il / elle / on | réformait | he / she / it used to reformon: we used to reform / one used to reform | |
| nous | réformions | we used to reform | |
| vous | réformiez | you used to reform | |
| ils / elles | réformaient | they used to reform |
IN A SENTENCEImperfect example
Autrefois, le gouvernement réformait le système scolaire.
Back then, the government used to reform the school system.
Future Futur simple
Future events and predictions.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | réformerai | I will reform | |
| tu | réformeras | you will reform | |
| il / elle / on | réformera | he / she / it will reformon: we will reform / one will reform | |
| nous | réformerons | we will reform | |
| vous | réformerez | you will reform | |
| ils / elles | réformeront | they will reform |
IN A SENTENCEFuture example
Plus tard, le gouvernement réformera le système scolaire.
Later, the government will reform the school system.
Conditional Conditionnel présent
Hypothetical events and polite requests.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | réformerais | I would reform | |
| tu | réformerais | you would reform | |
| il / elle / on | réformerait | he / she / it would reformon: we would reform / one would reform | |
| nous | réformerions | we would reform | |
| vous | réformeriez | you would reform | |
| ils / elles | réformeraient | they would reform |
IN A SENTENCEConditional example
Le gouvernement réformerait le système scolaire.
The government would reform the school system.
Present subjunctive Subjonctif présent
Dependent clauses expressing wishes, necessity, doubt, and certain feelings.
| Subject | French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| je / j’ | réforme | (that) I reform | |
| tu | réformes | (that) you reform | |
| il / elle / on | réforme | (that) he / she / it reformson: (that) we reform / one reforms | |
| nous | réformions | (that) we reform | |
| vous | réformiez | (that) you reform | |
| ils / elles | réforment | (that) they reform |
IN A SENTENCEPresent subjunctive example
Il est possible que le gouvernement réforme le système scolaire.
It is possible that the government reforms the school system.
French forms omit the subject. Use j’ before a vowel sound. Vous is polite singular or plural “you”; on often means “we,” or the general “one.” English wording depends on the context: passé composé can also use “have,” and the imperfect can describe an ongoing action. Subjunctive translations here follow “it is possible that.”
Meaning & usage
- to reform (put into a new form)
- to reform (improve, make better)
- to declare unfit for military service
English glosses are a starting point. The meaning of a verb can change with context, a preposition, or se. Read the full dictionary entry ↗
Meanings and simple conjugation forms adapted from English Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki.org / Wiktextract. Passé composé forms combine the source auxiliary and past participle. Frequency scores from wordfreq 3.1.1 by Robyn Speer and contributors. Adapted data is available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Entry source · Sources, download & limitations