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FRENCH VERB

tenir

to hold

  • #35 most used
  • Irregular -ir verb
  • Past participle: tenu
  • Present participle: tenant

Conjugation

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

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

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

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

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

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

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

Future

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

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

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

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

Present subjunctive

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

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

Imperative

Impératif · requests and orders

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

How to use tenir

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

  1. Present

    Tu tiens le sac, je cherche les clés.

    You hold the bag, I'll look for the keys.

  2. Past

    Il a tenu sa promesse, finalement.

    He kept his promise, in the end.

  3. Imperfect

    Elle tenait la main de sa fille en traversant.

    She held her daughter's hand while crossing.

  4. Future

    Ce pont tiendra encore cent ans.

    This bridge will hold another hundred years.

  5. Conditional

    Je tiendrais bien une semaine sans sucre.

    I could last a week without sugar.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Il faut que ça tienne jusqu'à demain.

    It has to hold until tomorrow.

  7. Imperative

    Tiens, prends mon écharpe, tu as froid.

    Here, take my scarf, you're cold.

Good to know

  • Tiens ! is here you are, or well, well! when you are surprised. Tenir à quelqu'un is to care about them.

Where you hear tenir

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

French · Beginner Level 1

  • Je tiens mon livre. I'm holding my book.
  • J'ai tenu la porte pour Emma. I held the door for Emma.
  • Je vais tenir ton sac. I'm going to hold your bag.
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Happy Birthday!

Beginner Level 1 · Tiens ! · Tenez !

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Verbs like this one

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