Aller means to go. It is an irregular verb used to express movement, forming the near future tense, and more.
Conjugations
Present Tense
- Indicates current or habitual action of going.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| je | vais | I | go |
| tu | vas | you | go |
| il/elle/on | va | he/she/one | goes |
| nous | allons | we | go |
| vous | allez | you | go |
| ils/elles | vont | they | go |
Passé Composé (Past Tense)
- Describes completed actions of going.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| je | suis allé(e) | I | went |
| tu | es allé(e) | you | went |
| il | est allé | he | went |
| elle | est allée | she | went |
| nous | sommes allé(e)s | we | went |
| vous | êtes allé(e)(s) | you | went |
| ils | sont allés | they | went |
| elles | sont allées | they | went |
Note: Use the auxiliary verb être and agree the past participle allé with the subject’s gender and number.
Imparfait (Imperfect)
- Describes ongoing or repeated past actions.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| je | allais | I | was going / used to go |
| tu | allais | you | were going / used to go |
| il/elle/on | allait | he/she/one | was going / used to go |
| nous | allions | we | were going / used to go |
| vous | alliez | you | were going / used to go |
| ils/elles | allaient | they | were going / used to go |
Futur Simple (Future)
- Describes actions that will happen.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| je | irai | I | will go |
| tu | iras | you | will go |
| il/elle/on | ira | he/she/one | will go |
| nous | irons | we | will go |
| vous | irez | you | will go |
| ils/elles | iront | they | will go |
Subjonctif Présent (Present Subjunctive)
- Used in dependent clauses after expressions of doubt, emotion, necessity, etc.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| que je | aille | that I | go |
| que tu | ailles | that you | go |
| qu’il/elle/on | aille | that he/she/one | go |
| que nous | allions | that we | go |
| que vous | alliez | that you | go |
| qu’ils/elles | aillent | that they | go |
Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present)
- Describes what would happen under certain conditions.
| French Pronoun | French Conjugation | English Pronoun | English Conjugation |
|---|
| je | irais | I | would go |
| tu | irais | you | would go |
| il/elle/on | irait | he/she/one | would go |
| nous | irions | we | would go |
| vous | iriez | you | would go |
| ils/elles | iraient | they | would go |
Usage
. Describing Movement
- Aller means “to go” somewhere.
| French Example | English Example |
|---|
| Je vais à l’école. | I go to school. |
| Nous allons au cinéma. | We are going to the cinema. |
. Telling How Someone Feels (Aller + Adjective)
- Used colloquially to express how someone is doing.
| French Example | English Example |
|---|
| Comment ça va ? | How’s it going? |
| Ça va bien, merci. | It’s going well, thank you. |
. Talking About Immediate Future (Near Future Tense)
- Aller + infinitive indicates something about to happen.
| French Example | English Example |
|---|
| Je vais manger. | I am going to eat. |
| Ils vont partir bientôt. | They are going to leave soon. |
. Using Aller as an Auxiliary Verb
- Used to form the compound past of some verbs indicating movement (rarely; usually only aller itself uses être).
| French Example | English Example |
|---|
| Elle est allée au marché. | She went to the market. |
Summary
- Aller = to go.
- Irregular stem: va- (present), irr- (future/conditional).
- Helps form near future tense.
- Uses être in passé composé.
- Can describe movement, state of being, or upcoming events.
