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FRENCH VERB

respirer

to breathe

  • #226 most used
  • Regular -er verb
  • Past participle: respiré
  • Present participle: respirant

Conjugation

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

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

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

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

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

How to use respirer

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

  1. Present

    On respire mieux ici, loin de la ville.

    You breathe better here, far from the city.

  2. Past

    J'ai respiré un grand coup avant de parler.

    I took a deep breath before speaking.

  3. Imperfect

    Il respirait fort après avoir monté les escaliers.

    He was breathing hard after climbing the stairs.

  4. Future

    Avec ce médicament, vous respirerez mieux la nuit.

    With this medicine, you'll breathe better at night.

  5. Conditional

    On respirerait mieux avec la fenêtre ouverte.

    We'd breathe better with the window open.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Le médecin veut que je respire lentement.

    The doctor wants me to breathe slowly.

  7. Imperative

    Respirez profondément et ne bougez pas.

    Breathe deeply and don't move.

Where you hear respirer

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

French · Beginner Level 2

  • Je respire lentement. I breathe slowly.
  • Vous avez bien respiré. You breathed well.
  • Vous allez respirer lentement. You're going to breathe slowly.
16
At the Doctor's

Beginner Level 2 · Respirez !

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Verbs like this one

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