The future simple tense describes what will happen and is used for predictions, intentions, and timely plans. This guide focuses on how to form the tense with regular and common irregular verbs.
Formation
The future simple is formed by adding endings to the infinitive or stem, and the endings are the same for all three groups so you can apply them consistently. Here are the endings you add for each person.
| French Ending | English Meaning | French Ending | English Meaning | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je / j' | je ...ai | nous | nous ...ons | |
| tu | tu ...as | vous | vous ...ez | |
| il / elle / on | il/elle/on ...a | ils / elles | ils/elles ...ont |
-er Verbs
For -er verbs, use the whole infinitive as the stem and add the future endings. This makes the formation straightforward for verbs like parler.
Tomorrow, I will sing at the festival.
-ir Verbs
For -ir verbs, keep the infinitive as the stem and add the endings, so verbs like finir follow the same pattern as -er verbs in the future simple.
-re Verbs
For -re verbs, remove the final -e from the infinitive before adding the endings, which slightly shortens the stem for verbs like vendre.
Irregular Verbs
Some common verbs change their stem in the future simple, but they still take the usual endings, so you just learn the new stem and apply the standard endings. Here are key irregular stems to memorize.
| French Verb | Future Stem | English Meaning | French Verb | Future Stem | English Meaning | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| être | ser- | to be | pouvoir | pourr- | to be able to | |
| avoir | aur- | to have | venir | viendr- | to come | |
| aller | ir- | to go | voir | verr- | to see | |
| faire | fer- | to do / make | devoir | devr- | to have to |
Usage
Use the future simple for actions that will happen, when you make predictions, and for polite or formal statements about the future. It can also signal intention or when an event is expected to occur.
Summary
The future simple uses the infinitive (or modified stem) plus endings that are the same for all verbs; learn the few common irregular stems so you can predict forms, and use the tense for clear statements about what will happen.
Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025