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Vendre Conjugation

vendre means "to to sell" in French. Present: je vends, tu vends, il / elle / on vend, nous vendons, vous vendez, ils / elles vendent. Below: all 23 tenses we teach, with examples.

Present Présent

Add the present-tense endings to the verb stem; it covers current actions, general truths, habits, and (informally) the near future.

jevends
tuvends
il / elle / onvend
nousvendons
vousvendez
ils / ellesvendent

Present progressive être en train de + infinitif

A periphrastic construction, not a true tense: conjugate être en train de in the present, followed by the infinitive. Used to stress that an action is happening right now, more emphatically than the simple present.

jesuis en train de vendre
tues en train de vendre
il / elle / onest en train de vendre
noussommes en train de vendre
vousêtes en train de vendre
ils / ellessont en train de vendre

Passé composé

Avoir or être in the present + past participle. The everyday spoken and written past tense for a single completed action ('I spoke', 'I have spoken').

jeai vendu
tuas vendu
il / elle / ona vendu
nousavons vendu
vousavez vendu
ils / ellesont vendu

Imperfect Imparfait

Stem from the nous form of the present (minus -ons) + imperfect endings. Describes ongoing or habitual past actions, background description, and states ('I was speaking', 'I used to speak').

jevendais
tuvendais
il / elle / onvendait
nousvendions
vousvendiez
ils / ellesvendaient

Pluperfect Plus-que-parfait

Avoir or être in the imperfect + past participle. Describes an action completed before another past action ('I had spoken').

jeavais vendu
tuavais vendu
il / elle / onavait vendu
nousavions vendu
vousaviez vendu
ils / ellesavaient vendu

Simple past (literary) Passé simple

Literary tense built on its own stem with distinctive endings; used only in formal narrative writing (novels, history, journalism) and never in speech, where the passé composé replaces it. Marks a single completed past action viewed as a finished event.

jevendis
tuvendis
il / elle / onvendit
nousvendîmes
vousvendîtes
ils / ellesvendirent

Past anterior (literary) Passé antérieur

Avoir or être in the passé simple + past participle. Purely literary; appears in a subordinate clause after quand, lorsque, dès que, à peine to mark an action just completed before the passé simple action in the main clause.

jeeus vendu
tueus vendu
il / elle / oneut vendu
nouseûmes vendu
vouseûtes vendu
ils / elleseurent vendu

Near future Futur proche

Aller in the present + infinitive. The normal, everyday way to talk about the near or planned future, much more common in speech than the futur simple.

jevais vendre
tuvas vendre
il / elle / onva vendre
nousallons vendre
vousallez vendre
ils / ellesvont vendre

Simple future Futur simple

Infinitive (or an irregular future stem) + future endings (-ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont). Used for future events, promises, and predictions, and in formal or written style.

jevendrai
tuvendras
il / elle / onvendra
nousvendrons
vousvendrez
ils / ellesvendront

Future perfect Futur antérieur

Avoir or être in the simple future + past participle. Marks an action that will be completed before another future action or a future deadline ('I will have spoken').

jeaurai vendu
tuauras vendu
il / elle / onaura vendu
nousaurons vendu
vousaurez vendu
ils / ellesauront vendu

Recent past Passé récent

Venir de in the present + infinitive. Describes an action that just happened a moment ago ('I have just spoken').

jeviens de vendre
tuviens de vendre
il / elle / onvient de vendre
nousvenons de vendre
vousvenez de vendre
ils / ellesviennent de vendre

Conditional present Conditionnel présent

Infinitive (or irregular future stem) + imperfect endings. Expresses hypothetical or polite statements ('I would speak'), the result clause of a hypothesis with si + imparfait, and softened requests.

jevendrais
tuvendrais
il / elle / onvendrait
nousvendrions
vousvendriez
ils / ellesvendraient

Conditional past Conditionnel passé

Avoir or être in the conditional present + past participle. Expresses what would have happened, regret, or reproach, and is the result clause of si + plus-que-parfait.

jeaurais vendu
tuaurais vendu
il / elle / onaurait vendu
nousaurions vendu
vousauriez vendu
ils / ellesauraient vendu

Present subjunctive Subjonctif présent

Stem from the ils form of the present (minus -ent) + subjunctive endings (nous/vous forms usually match the imperfect indicative). Used after que in the dependent clause whenever the main clause expresses will, necessity, emotion, doubt, or judgment.

jevende
tuvendes
il / elle / onvende
nousvendions
vousvendiez
ils / ellesvendent

Past subjunctive Subjonctif passé

Avoir or être in the present subjunctive + past participle. Used the same way as the present subjunctive but for an action seen as completed before the time of the main verb.

jeaie vendu
tuaies vendu
il / elle / onait vendu
nousayons vendu
vousayez vendu
ils / ellesaient vendu

Imperfect subjunctive (literary) Subjonctif imparfait

Built on the passé simple stem + distinctive endings. Almost extinct outside formal literature (replaced by the present subjunctive in speech and ordinary writing); used when the main verb is in a past tense and the rule of sequence of tenses is respected in formal style.

jevendisse
tuvendisses
il / elle / onvendît
nousvendissions
vousvendissiez
ils / ellesvendissent

Pluperfect subjunctive (literary) Subjonctif plus-que-parfait

Avoir or être in the imperfect subjunctive + past participle. The literary equivalent of the past subjunctive, used after a past main verb in formal written narration; in speech the subjonctif passé replaces it.

jeeusse vendu
tueusses vendu
il / elle / oneût vendu
nouseussions vendu
vouseussiez vendu
ils / elleseussent vendu

Present imperative Impératif présent

Same form as the present indicative (dropping the subject pronoun), except -er verbs drop the final -s in the tu form. Only exists for tu, nous and vous; used for direct commands, requests and suggestions. Negative commands simply place ne ... pas around the same verb form.

je—
tuvends
il / elle / on—
nousvendons
vousvendez
ils / elles—

Past imperative Impératif passé

Avoir or être in the imperative + past participle; rare, used to order that something be completed by a certain point ('have finished by...'). Exists only for tu, nous and vous.

je—
tuaie vendu
il / elle / on—
nousayons vendu
vousayez vendu
ils / elles—

Infinitive Infinitif

The dictionary form of the verb; used after modal and semi-modal verbs, prepositions, and as a verbal noun.

vendre

Present participle Participe présent

Stem from the nous form of the present (minus -ons) + -ant. Used as a verbal adjective or, preceded by en, to form the gerund; invariable when used verbally.

vendant

Gerund Gérondif

En + present participle. Expresses an action simultaneous with, or the manner/means of, the main verb's action ('while/by speaking').

en vendant

Past participle Participe passé

Forms the compound tenses with avoir/être and is used as an adjective; agrees in gender and number with the subject (être verbs, reflexives) or with a preceding direct object (avoir verbs).

vendu

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