Le Conditionnel (Junior Cert French): Revision Notes
Le Conditionnel
The conditional tense in French is used to talk about what would happen, just like in English when you say "I would like" or "I would go."
Note 1: The conditional tense will always have the word would in the English translation.
Note 2: There is always an r in the conditional tense.
Note 3: There is only one set of conditional tense endings. These endings are used for regular and irregular verbs.
| Je | -ais |
|---|---|
| Tu | -ais |
| Il/Elle | -ait |
| Nous | -ions |
| Vous | -iez |
| Ils/Elles | -aient |
| -er | Infinitive of the verb + future endings |
|---|---|
| -ir | Infinitive of the verb + future endings |
| -re | Infinitive of the verb + drop the -e + future endings |
Regular Verbs in 'Le Conditionnel'
-er and -ir verbs Infinitive of the verb + conditional endings
-re verbs
Infinitive of the verb + drop the -e + conditional endings
"Chanter" (to sing)
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je chanterais | I would sing |
| Tu chanterais | You would sing |
| Il/Elle/On chanterait | He/She/One would sing |
| Nous chanterions | We would sing |
| Vous chanteriez | You would sing |
| Ils/Elles chanteraient | They would sing |
"Choisir" (to choose)
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je choisirais | I would choose |
| Tu choisirais | You would choose |
| Il/Elle/On choisirait | He/She/One would choose |
| Nous choisirions | We would choose |
| Vous choisiriez | You would choose |
| Ils/Elles choisiraient | They would choose |
"Vendre" (to sell)
Infinitive: Vendre
Drop the -e: Vendr
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je vendrais | I would sell |
| Tu vendrais | You would sell |
| Il/Elle/On vendrait | He/She/One would sell |
| Nous vendrions | We would sell |
| Vous vendriez | You would sell |
| Ils/Elles vendraient | They would sell |
Irregular Verbs in 'Le Conditionnel'
| Infinitive Verb | Conditional (je) |
|---|---|
| aller | j'irais |
| avoir | j'aurais |
| battre | je battrais |
| boire | je boirais |
| connaître | je connaîtrais |
| courir | je courrais |
| craindre | je craindrais |
| croire | je croirais |
| devoir | je devrais |
| dire | je dirais |
| dormir | je dormirais |
| écrire | j'écrirais |
| envoyer | j'enverrais |
| être | je serais |
| faire | je ferais |
| lire | je lirais |
| mettre | je mettrais |
| mourir | je mourrais |
| naître | je naîtrais |
| ouvrir | j'ouvrirais |
| pouvoir | je pourrais |
| recevoir | je recevrais |
| résoudre | je résoudrais |
| rire | je rirais |
| savoir | je saurais |
| sentir | je sentirais |
| servir | je servirais |
| suivre | je suivrais |
| tenir | je tiendrais |
| venir | je viendrais |
| vivre | je vivrais |
| voir | je verrais |
| vouloir | je voudrais |
Memory Hacks: Of all the irregular verbs, only 16 are very irregular in the the conditional.
Five verbs have a double "r".
-
Courir: je courrais
-
Envoyer: j'enverrais
-
Mourir: je mourrais
-
Pouvoir: je pourrais
-
Voir: je verrais
Three verbs have a "d"
-
Venir: je viendrais
-
Tenir: je tiendrais
-
Vouloir: je voudrais
Important Note on "Je Voudrais" (Vouloir):
- "Je voudrais" in the conditional form is especially important in French because it's the polite way to say "I would like."
- It's commonly used when making requests, ordering food, or asking for something in a polite manner.
- Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît. (I would like a coffee, please.) Using "je voudrais" instead of "je veux" (I want) is considered more courteous and respectful in everyday conversations.
Link your learning: Le Futur Simple & Le Conditionnel
- Both the futur simple and the conditional tenses use the same verb stem (the infinitive or a special stem for irregular verbs).
- They both add specific endings to this stem.
- The main difference is that futur simple talks about certain future actions, while conditional talks about possible or hypothetical actions.
- The endings are also different. Le Futur Simple Endings: Add ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont to the stem.
Le Conditionnel Endings: Add ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient to the stem.