How to conjugate the verb être in French with all tenses & moods

To be or not to be… Telle est la question. “Be” is probably one of the most, if not the most, important verb in many languages. Knowing its proper conjugation will allow you to:

Below, we have compiled a comprehensive guide to French “to be” conjugation. Ok, you might not need to use all these tenses — especially the fancy/vintage plusperfect subjunctive — but you’ll certainly take your French skills to the next level. And you’ll be able to read old French books!

The verb être

Happy students looking at laptop learning about the verb etre in French to be conjugation.

Être and avoir

“Être” and “Avoir” are the two most important French verbs. Unfortunately, these are irregular verbs, so you’re going to have to learn their conjugation. The good news is, once you do, you’ll be able to use them in a wide variety of contexts!

Main uses of “être”

“Être” means “to be”. As in English, it’s used to express a sense of being, whether temporary or permanent. It’s also used in the passive voice as an auxiliary verb. 

Additionally, you’ll find “être” in these four grammatical expressions:

  • c'est – this is, that is.
  • est-ce que – to be used in a question.
  • être en train de – to express something progressive.
  • n'est-ce pas – to ask for confirmation of information or a statement.

Differences with English

While there are many similarities between “être” and “to be”, watch out for the following differences:

1. Age: In French, you’re not an age, you have it. 

“J’ai trente ans” and NOT “Je suis trente ans”

2. Weather: To comment on the weather in French, use “faire.” 

“Il fait chaud” and NOT “Il est chaud”

3. Basic needs

If you’re thirsty, hungry, hot or cold, use “avoir” in French. “J’ai soif” and NOT “Je suis soif”. 

French verb to be complete conjugation charts

We want to make learning French as clear as possible for you, so you'll find complete French chart tables below for conjugating to be in French, in all tenses and all moods. It could be a good idea to print these all out for a nifty French verb grammar guide for the most popular verb: être. Or alternatively, bookmark this page, and come back to it for whenever you need a straightforward grammar check.

 Present tense

The present tense is usually the first tense you’ll learn in a foreign language.

Even if you don’t master other tenses yet, you can get around and be understood using the present tense.

A great motivation to learn the table below, right?

And while you’re at it, make sure to learn the French pronouns

French English Example sentence Translation
Je suis I am Je suis heureux/heureuse. I am happy.
Tu es You are Tu es heureux/heureuse. You are happy.
Il/Elle est He/she is Il est heureux./Elle est heureuse. He/she is happy.
Nous sommes We are Nous sommes heureux/heureuses. We are happy.
Vous êtes You (all) are Vous êtes heureux/heureuses. You (all) are happy.
Ils/Elles sont They are Ils sont heureux./Elles sont heureuses. They are happy.

Imperfect tense

The imperfect tense is the easiest past tense in French, with few irregular conjugations.

So forget about perfection and learn the French imperfect for “être”!

French English Example sentence Translation
J’étais  I was J’étais heureux/heureuse. I was happy.
Tu étais You were Tu étais heureux/heureuse. You were happy.
Il/Elle était He/She was Il était heureux./Elle est heureuse. He/she was happy.
Nous étions We were Nous étions heureux/heureuses. We were happy.
Vous étiez You (all) were Vous êtiez heureux/heureuses. You (all) were happy.
Ils/Elles étaient They were Ils étaient heureux/Elles étaient heureuses. They were happy.

Future tense

Another staple of French grammar, the future tense is key to speaking about… well… the future.

That reminds me, did you read our article on possessive pronouns in French

Ok, I’m getting off topic, back to the future

French English Example sentence Translation
Je serai I will be Je serai heureux/heureuse.

I will be happy.

Tu seras You will be Tu seras heureux/heureuse. You will be happy.
Il/Elle sera He/she will be Il sera heureux./Elle est heureuse. He/she will be happy.
Nous serons

We will be

Nous serons heureux/heureuses. We will be happy.
Vous serez You (all) will be Vous serez heureux/heureuses. You (all) will be happy.
Ils/Elles seront They will be Ils seront heureux./Elles seront heureuses. They will be happy.

Conditional tense

The French conditionnel can be used as a mood and a tense. How cool is that?

French English

Example sentence Translation
Je serais  I would be Je serais heureux/heureuse. I would be happy.
Tu serais You would be Tu serais heureux/heureuse. You would be happy.
Il/Elle serait He/she would be Il serait heureux./Elle serait heureuse. He/she would be happy.
Nous serions We would be Nous serions heureux/heureuses. We would be happy.
Vous seriez You (all) would be Vous seriez heureux/heureuses. You (all) would be happy.
Ils/Elles seraient They would be Ils seraient heureux./Elles seraient heureuses. They would be happy.

Present subjunctive

The subjunctive is widely used in French and other Latin languages. This mood is used to indicate uncertainty, subjectivity or unreality. 

French English Example sentence Translation
Je sois I am/To be Il veut que je sois heureux/heureuse. He wants me to be happy.
Tu sois You are/To be Il veut que tu sois heureux/heureuse. He wants you to be happy.
Il/Elle soit He/she is/To be Il veut qu’il soit heureux./qu’elle soit heureuse. He wants him/her to be happy.
Nous soyons We are/To be Il veut que nous soyons heureux/heureuses. He wants us to be happy.
Vous soyez You (all) are/To be Il veut que vous soyez heureux/heureuses. He wants you (all) to be happy.
Ils/Elles soient They are/To be Il veut qu’ils soient heureux./qu’elles soient heureuses. He wants them to be happy.

Imperfect subjunctive

And here is another subjunctive for you! It's used in formal and written French from literature to history and journalism.

French English Example sentence Translation
Je fusse I was/To be Il voulait que je fusse heureux/heureuse. He wanted me to be happy.
Tu fusses You were/To be Il voulait que tu fusses heureux/heureuse. He wanted you to be happy.
Il/Elle fût He/she was/To be Il voulait qu’il fusse heureux/qu’elle fusse heureuse. He wanted him/her to be happy.
Nous fussions We were/To be Il voulait que nous fussions heureux/heureuses. He wanted us to be happy.
Vous fussiez You (all) were/To be Il voulait que vous fussiez heureux/heureuses. He wanted you (all) to be happy.
Ils/Elles fussent They were/To be Il voulait qu’ils fussent heureux./qu’elles fussent heureuses. He wanted them to be happy.

Passé composé

The “passé composé” is very handy if you haven’t mastered the “imperfect” tense yet. It’s way easier to learn and easier to use in a conversation!

French English Example sentence Translation
J’ai été I have been J’ai été heureux/heureuse. I have been happy.
Tu as été You have been Tu as été heureux/heureuse. You have been happy.
Il/Elle a été He/she has been Il a été heureux./Elle a été heureuse. He/she has been happy.
Nous avons été We have been Nous avons été heureux/heureuses. We have been happy.
Vous avez été You (all) have been Vous avez été heureux/heureuses. You (all) have been happy.
Ils/Elles ont été They have been Ils ont été heureux./Elles sont heureuses. They have been happy.

Past perfect

Past perfect follows the structure of the “passé composé”. Pretty easy!

French English Example sentence Translation
J’avais été  I had been J’avais été heureux/heureuse. I had been happy.
Tu avais été You had been Tu avais été heureux/heureuse. You had been happy.
Il/Elle avait été He/she had been Il avait été heureux./Elle avait été heureuse. He/she had been happy.
Nous avions été We had been Nous avions été heureux/heureuses. We had been happy.
Vous aviez été You (all) had been Vous aviez été heureux/heureuses. You (all) had been happy.
Ils/Elles avaient été They had been Ils avaient été heureux/Elles avaient été heureuses. They had been happy.

Future perfect

Ok, we’re entering advanced French territory… But hey, even if you don’t get to use the tenses and moods below, they might still help you to read books in French!

French English Example sentence Translation
J’aurai été  I will have been J’aurai été heureux/heureuse. I will have been happy.
Tu auras été You will have been Tu auras été heureux/heureuse. You will have been happy.

Il/Elle aura été He/she will have been Il aura été heureux./Elle aura été heureuse. He/she will have been happy.
Nous aurons été We will have been Nous aurons été heureux/heureuses. We will have been happy.
Vous aurez été You (all) will have been Vous aurez été heureux/heureuses. You (all) will have been happy.
Ils/Elles auront été They will have been Ils auront été heureux./Elles auront été heureuses. They will have been happy.

Past conditional

Yep, another advanced one… you can use the past conditional in French to talk about something that would, could, or should have, but didn't happen.

French English Example sentence Translation
J’aurais été  I would have been J’aurais été heureux/heureuse. I would have been happy.
Tu aurais été You would have been Tu aurais été heureux/heureuse. You would have been happy.
Il/Elle aurait été He/she would have been Il aurait été heureux./Elle aurait été heureuse. He/she would have been happy.
Nous aurions été We would have been Nous aurions été heureux/heureuses. We would have been happy.
Vous auriez été You (all) would have been Vous auriez été heureux/heureuses. You (all) would have been happy.
Ils/Elles auraient été They would have been Ils auraient été heureux./Elles auraient été heureuses. They would have been happy.

Past subjunctive

And another… you can use the past subjunctive in French to express emotion, doubts, and uncertainty.

French English Example sentence Translation
J’aie été  I was Elle est contente que j’aie été heureux/heureuse. She is glad I was happy.
Tu aies été You were Elle est contente que tu aies été heureux/heureuse. She is glad you were happy.
Il/Elle ait été He/she was Elle est contente qu’il ait été heureux./Qu’elle ait été heureuse. She is glad he/she was happy.
Nous ayons été We were Elle est contente que nous ayons été heureux/heureuses. She is glad we were happy.
Vous ayez été You (all) were Elle est contente que vous ayez été heureux/heureuses. She is glad you (all) were happy.
Ils/Elles aient été They were Elle est contente qu’ils aient été heureux./Qu’elles aient été heureuses. She is glad they were happy.

Pluperfect subjunctive

If you’re capable of learning and using the extremely rare, extremely formal French verb form pluperfect subjunctive of être in a conversation with Francophones, you deserve a prize. Up to the challenge?

French English Example sentence Translation
J’eusse été I would have been Avec lui, j’eusse été heureux/heureuse. With him, I would have been happy.
Tu eusses été You would have been Avec lui, tu eusses été heureux/heureuse. With him, you would have been happy.
Il/Elle eût été He/she would have been Avec lui, il eusse été heureux./Elle eusse été heureuse. With him, he/she would have been happy.
Nous eussions été We would have been Avec lui, nous eussions été heureux/heureuses. With him, we would have been happy.
Vous eussiez été You (all) would have been Avec lui, vous eussiez été heureux/heureuses. With him, you (all) would have been happy.
Ils/Elles eussent été They would have been Avec lui, ils eussent été heureux./Elles eussent été heureuses. With him, they would have been happy.

Passé simple

Even though you won’t hear this one very often in everyday conversations, it’s a very useful tense to know if you want to speak French properly.

French English Example sentence Translation
Je fus I was Je fus heureux/heureuse. I was happy.
Tu fus You were Tu fus heureux/heureuse. You were happy.
Il/Elle fut He/she was Il fut heureux./Elle est heureuse. He/she was happy.
Nous fûmes We were Nous fûmes heureux/heureuses. We were happy.
Vous fûtent You (all) were Vous fûtes heureux/heureuses. You (all) were happy.
Ils/Elles furent They were Ils furent heureux./Elles furent heureuses. They were happy.

Past anterior

Try to use this one to impress your French-speaking friends!

French English Example sentence Translation
J’eus été I would have been J’eus été heureux/heureuse. I would have been happy.
Tu eus été You would have been Tu eus été heureux/heureuse. You would have been happy.
Il/Elle eut été He/she would have been Il eut été heureux./Elle eut été heureuse. He/she would have been happy.
Nous eûmes été We would have been Nous eûmes été heureux/heureuses. We would have been happy.
Vous eûtes été You (all) would have been Vous eûtes été heureux/heureuses. You (all) would have been happy.
Ils/Elles eurent été They would have been Ils eurent été heureux./Elles eurent été heureuses. They would have been happy.

Imperative mood

The imperative mood is used to give orders/commands. The lack of a subject pronoun identifies this mood. To find the French conjugation for “être” in the imperative mood, just use the present indicative.

French English Example sentence Translation
Sois Be Sois heureux/heureuse Be happy
Soyons Let’s be Soyons heureux/heureuses Let’s be happy
Soyez Be Soyez heureux/heureuses Be happy (all)



In this article, we covered the most important things to know about French to be conjugation. 

By now, you should be a true “spelling be” in French. 

But if you’re still struggling with “être,” don’t let it be. Check out our French learning blog or our French lessons!






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