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FRENCH VERB

se pencher

to lean over

  • #447 most used
  • Regular -er verb
  • Past participle: penché
  • Present participle: se penchant

Conjugation

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

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

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

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

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

How to use se pencher

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

  1. Present

    Je me penche et je ramasse tes clés, attends.

    I'll bend down and pick up your keys, hold on.

  2. Past

    Il s'est penché pour lire le prix sur l'étiquette.

    He leaned over to read the price on the label.

  3. Imperfect

    Les enfants se penchaient trop au-dessus du bassin.

    The children were leaning too far over the pond.

  4. Future

    Le comptable se penchera sur ton dossier lundi.

    The accountant will look into your file on Monday.

  5. Conditional

    Je me pencherais bien par la fenêtre, mais j'ai le vertige.

    I'd lean out of the window, but I get dizzy.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Il faut que tu te penches un peu pour passer.

    You need to duck a little to get through.

  7. Imperative

    Penche-toi, tu vas te cogner la tête.

    Duck, you'll bang your head.

Good to know

  • Se pencher sur un problème is to look into it.
  • Ne vous penchez pas par la fenêtre : don't lean out of the window.

Verbs like this one

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