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FRENCH VERB

mettre

to put, to put on

  • #20 most used
  • Irregular -re verb
  • Past participle: mis
  • Present participle: mettant

Conjugation

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

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

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

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

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

How to use mettre

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

  1. Present

    Je mets un pull, il fait frais ce soir.

    I'm putting on a jumper, it's chilly tonight.

  2. Past

    Où est-ce que tu as mis les clés ?

    Where did you put the keys?

  3. Imperfect

    Elle mettait toujours trop de sel dans la soupe.

    She always put too much salt in the soup.

  4. Future

    On mettra une heure pour y aller en voiture.

    It'll take us an hour to get there by car.

  5. Conditional

    Je mettrais la table près de la fenêtre.

    I'd put the table near the window.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Il faut que tu mettes ton manteau, il neige.

    You need to put your coat on, it's snowing.

  7. Imperative

    Mets tes chaussures, on sort dans deux minutes.

    Put your shoes on, we're going out in two minutes.

Good to know

  • "Mettre la table" is to set the table; "je mets dix minutes" is "it takes me ten minutes".

Where you hear mettre

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

French · Beginner Level 2

  • Je mets la table. I'm laying the table.
  • J'ai mis le plat au four. I put the dish in the oven.
  • Je vais mettre ma robe bleue. I'm going to wear my blue dress.

French · Beginner Level 3

  • Je mets les livres dans le salon. I'm putting the books in the living room.
  • J'ai mis le miroir dans la salle de bains. I put the mirror in the bathroom.
  • Je mettrai la lampe à côté de la fenêtre. I'll put the lamp next to the window.
25
Cooking with Sylvie

Beginner Level 2 · Mets !

Needs a subscription 21
Hugo Moves In

Beginner Level 3 · mets-le

Needs a subscription 25
The First Argument

Beginner Level 3 · je mettrai

Needs a subscription 29
Painting the Walls

Beginner Level 3 · on mettra

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: irregular -re verb.