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FRENCH VERB

signifier

to mean

  • Regular -er verb
  • Past participle: signifié
  • Present participle: signifiant

Conjugation

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

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

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

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

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

How to use signifier

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

  1. Present

    Un avis favorable signifie presque oui.

    A favourable opinion nearly means yes.

  2. Past

    Son silence a signifié beaucoup pour moi.

    His silence meant a lot to me.

  3. Imperfect

    Ce mot signifiait autre chose au Moyen Âge.

    That word meant something else in the Middle Ages.

  4. Future

    Une lettre recommandée signifiera une mauvaise nouvelle.

    A registered letter will mean bad news.

  5. Conditional

    Un refus signifierait un an de plus à attendre.

    A refusal would mean another year's wait.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Je ne crois pas que ça signifie grand-chose.

    I don't think that means much.

  7. Imperative

    Signifiez clairement votre refus par courrier.

    State your refusal clearly in writing.

Good to know

  • Qu'est-ce que ça signifie ? is what does that mean?; in everyday speech vouloir dire is more common : ça veut dire quoi ?

Where you hear signifier

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

French · Fluency Level 2

  • Que signifie la laïcité ? What does secularism mean?
  • Cette lettre a signifié la fin de six mois d'attente. That letter meant the end of six months of waiting.
  • Un avis favorable signifiera presque oui. A favourable opinion will mean nearly yes.
11
Interview Revision with Camille

Fluency Level 2 · Question : que signifie l'égalité entre les femmes et les hommes ?

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Verbs like this one

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