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FRENCH VERB

chanter

to sing

  • #181 most used
  • Regular -er verb
  • Past participle: chanté
  • Present participle: chantant

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

  1. je I sing
  2. tu you sing
  3. il, elle, on he/she sings
  4. nous we sing
  5. vous you sing
  6. ils, elles they sing

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

  1. je I sang
  2. tu you sang
  3. il, elle, on he/she sang
  4. nous we sang
  5. vous you sang
  6. ils, elles they sang

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. je I used to sing
  2. tu you used to sing
  3. il, elle, on he/she used to sing
  4. nous we used to sing
  5. vous you used to sing
  6. ils, elles they used to sing

Future

Futur simple · plans; in speech, “je vais parler” is just as common

  1. je I will sing
  2. tu you will sing
  3. il, elle, on he/she will sing
  4. nous we will sing
  5. vous you will sing
  6. ils, elles they will sing

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

  1. je I would sing
  2. tu you would sing
  3. il, elle, on he/she would sing
  4. nous we would sing
  5. vous you would sing
  6. ils, elles they would sing

Present subjunctive

Subjonctif présent · wishes, doubts, “il faut que …”

  1. je (that) I sing
  2. tu (that) you sing
  3. il, elle, on (that) he/she sing
  4. nous (that) we sing
  5. vous (that) you sing
  6. ils, elles (that) they sing

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

  1. tu sing!
  2. nous sing! (let’s)
  3. vous sing! (plural, or formal)

How to use chanter

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Elle chante dans une chorale le jeudi.

    She sings in a choir on Thursdays.

  2. Past

    On a chanté toute la soirée au mariage.

    We sang all evening at the wedding.

  3. Imperfect

    Mon père chantait sous la douche tous les matins.

    My father sang in the shower every morning.

  4. Future

    Les enfants chanteront à la fête de l'école.

    The kids will sing at the school party.

  5. Conditional

    Je chanterais volontiers, mais je chante faux.

    I'd gladly sing, but I sing out of tune.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Ils veulent que tu chantes quelque chose ce soir.

    They want you to sing something tonight.

  7. Imperative

    Chantez avec moi, vous connaissez les paroles !

    Sing with me, you know the words!

Where you hear chanter

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

French · Beginner Level 1

  • Je chante sous la douche. I sing in the shower.
  • On a chanté pour Emma. We sang for Emma.
  • On va chanter, et après, on va danser. We're going to sing, and then we're going to dance.

French · Beginner Level 2

  • Je chante sous la douche. I sing in the shower.
  • On a chanté pour Emma. We sang for Emma.
  • On va chanter, et après, on va danser. We're going to sing, and then we're going to dance.
27
Happy Birthday!

Beginner Level 1 · chanter · on chante

Needs a subscription 10
The Housewarming

Beginner Level 2 · on a chanté

Needs a subscription 7
A Parcel for Chicago

Beginner Level 3 · je chanterai

Needs a subscription

Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -er verb.