boire is the French verb for “to drink.” It’s highly useful for everyday situations involving beverages and consumption. Because boire is irregular, it doesn’t follow standard conjugation patterns, so you’ll need to learn its forms to use it correctly in different tenses and moods.
- Meaning: to drink
- Usage: beverages, consumption
- Verb type: irregular
to drink
Conjugation Overview
boire is irregular and is conjugated as follows in some key tenses:
| Tense | Je | Tu | Il/Elle | Nous | Vous | Ils/Elles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Présent | bois | bois | boit | buvons | buvez | boivent |
| Passé Composé | ai bu | as bu | a bu | avons bu | avez bu | ont bu |
| Imparfait | buvais | buvais | buvait | buvions | buviez | buvaient |
| Futur | boirai | boiras | boira | boirons | boirez | boiront |
- infinitive: boire
- passé composé: avoir + bu
- stem for présent (nous/vous): buv-
Example Sentences
- Je bois de l’eau. (I drink water.)
- Ils boivent du café chaque matin. (They drink coffee every morning.)
- Nous avons bu du vin hier soir. (We drank wine last night.)
- Tu boiras du jus demain. (You will drink juice tomorrow.)
We drank wine last night
Conclusion
boire is key for discussing drinks in French. Master its irregular forms to avoid confusion and communicate naturally about beverages in all tenses.
- boire = to drink (consumption of beverages)
- Irregular: bois, buvons, boir- (future), bu (past participle)
- Useful for everyday talk about drinks and refreshments