French guides · Verb tables + audio
Partir: to leave — one of four.
Partir means “to leave” in the sense of setting off, going away from where you are. French has three more verbs that English also translates as “leave”, and picking between them is a far more common problem than the conjugation. The rule that sorts most of it out: partir can never be followed by what you are leaving.
Présent — the consonant that drops
Partir is an -ir verb but not the finir kind — there is no -iss- anywhere in it. Instead the stem loses its final consonant in the singular: part- becomes par- for je, tu and il, and comes back in the plural.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je pars | I leave | |
| tu pars | you leave | |
| il / elle part | he / she leaves | |
| nous partons | we leave | |
| vous partez | you leave | |
| ils / elles partent | they leave |
Partir, sortir and dormir all work this way — drop the last consonant of the stem in the singular, restore it in the plural. So do mentir, sentir, servir and repartir. Learn the shape once.
You can hear the plural clearly: il part is “par” and ils partent is “part”, with the t audible. That final consonant is the only thing separating singular from plural by ear.
The four verbs that mean “to leave”
This is the section worth the visit. English uses one verb; French uses four, and they are not interchangeable.
| French | Use it for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| partir | setting off — never takes an object | je pars demain |
| quitter | leaving a place or a person — always takes an object | je quitte Paris |
| sortir | going out, exiting a building | je sors ce soir |
| laisser | leaving a thing behind | j’ai laissé mes clés |
Je pars Paris is wrong. Partir cannot take a direct object — you need je quitte Paris, or je pars de Paris with a preposition. Whenever you want to name the thing being left, either add de or switch to quitter.
The prepositions are worth having: partir à or partir pour for where you are going, partir de for where you are going from, partir en vacances for going on holiday.
Passé composé — with être
A movement verb, so the helper is être and the participle agrees with whoever left: il est parti, elle est partie, ils sont partis, elles sont parties.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je suis parti(e) | I left / have left | |
| tu es parti(e) | you left / have left | |
| il / elle est parti(e) | he / she left / have left | |
| nous sommes parti(e)s | we left / have left | |
| vous êtes parti(e)(s) | you left / have left | |
| ils / elles sont parti(e)s | they left / have left |
Unlike venu / venue, where the extra e changes nothing, parti and partie also sound the same — the t is already pronounced. The agreement is visible but not audible. Worth knowing so you do not listen for something that is not there.
Imparfait — regular
From partons, so the t is present throughout: je partais. No irregularity at all in this tense.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je partais | I used to leave / was leaving | |
| tu partais | you used to leave / was leaving | |
| il / elle partait | he / she used to leave / was leaving | |
| nous partions | we used to leave / was leaving | |
| vous partiez | you used to leave / was leaving | |
| ils / elles partaient | they used to leave / was leaving |
Futur and conditionnel — the infinitive plus endings
As regular as it gets: the whole infinitive is the stem, so partir + -ai gives je partirai. Nothing to learn.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je partirai | I will leave | |
| tu partiras | you will leave | |
| il / elle partira | he / she will leave | |
| nous partirons | we will leave | |
| vous partirez | you will leave | |
| ils / elles partiront | they will leave |
Conditionnel — would leave
Je partirais. Common in advice and hypotheticals: moi, je partirais tôt — “if I were you I’d leave early”.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je partirais | I would leave | |
| tu partirais | you would leave | |
| il / elle partirait | he / she would leave | |
| nous partirions | we would leave | |
| vous partiriez | you would leave | |
| ils / elles partiraient | they would leave |
Subjonctif — parte
Built off the ils stem, which keeps the t everywhere. Il faut que je parte — “I have to go” — is one of the most useful subjunctives in the language, and the standard way to excuse yourself.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je parte | (that) I leave | |
| tu partes | (that) you leave | |
| il / elle parte | (that) he / she leave | |
| nous partions | (that) we leave | |
| vous partiez | (that) you leave | |
| ils / elles partent | (that) they leave |
Impératif — go on
Pars ! and partez !. Partons is a gentle “let’s go” — softer than allons-y, which is more “come on then”.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| pars ! | leave! (to one person you know) | |
| partons ! | let’s leave! | |
| partez ! | leave! (formal, or to a group) |
Plus-que-parfait — had left
Être in the imparfait plus the agreeing participle: il était déjà parti, “he had already left”.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| j’étais parti(e) | I had left | |
| tu étais parti(e) | you had left | |
| il / elle était parti(e) | he / she had left | |
| nous étions parti(e)s | we had left | |
| vous étiez parti(e)(s) | you had left | |
| ils / elles étaient parti(e)s | they had left |
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Quick answers
Partir, answered.
The questions that come up while you are learning the table.