# Perdre Conjugation — Every Tense of the French Verb “To Lose”

> **Perdre** means “to lose”. Présent: **je perds, tu perds, il perd, nous perdons, vous perdez, ils perdent** — a regular *-re* verb. If it is *you* who is lost rather than an object, French makes it reflexive: **je me suis perdu**, “I got lost”.

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Updated: 2026-09-16

## Présent — the regular -re pattern

Stem perd-, endings -s, -s, —, -ons, -ez, -ent, with the bare il perd.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je perds | I lose |
| tu perds | you lose |
| il / elle perd | he / she loses |
| nous perdons | we lose |
| vous perdez | you lose |
| ils / elles perdent | they lose |

**Hearing the plural** — Perds, perds and perd are all “pehr”. Perdent is “pehrd” — the d surfaces because the silent -ent behind it stops it being final.

## Perdre or se perdre?

If the thing lost is separate from you, the verb is plain. If it is your bearings, it is reflexive.

| French | Means |  |
|---|---|---|
| j’ai perdu mes clés | I’ve lost my keys | plain, with avoir |
| je me suis perdu | I got lost | reflexive, with être |
| on a perdu le match | we lost the match |  |
| j’ai perdu mon chemin | I lost my way | also possible, less common |
| perdre connaissance | to lose consciousness | no article |

**The reflexive takes être** — Every reflexive verb does. Je me suis perdu, elle s’est perdue — with agreement. The plain verb keeps avoir and agrees only with a preceding direct object.

## Losing time, and other things French loses

A cluster of everyday expressions, several of which are the standard way to say the thing:

- perdre du temps — to waste time. Ne perds pas ton temps, don’t waste your time.
- perdre patience — to lose patience (no article).
- perdre l’habitude — to get out of the habit.
- perdre de vue — to lose sight of, or to lose touch with.
- c’est peine perdue — it’s a lost cause.

**No article after some of these** — Perdre patience, perdre connaissance, perdre courage — these are fixed and take no la or le. Adding one is not wrong exactly, but it is not what is said.

## Passé composé — perdu

Regular -u participle with avoir. It also works as an adjective: je suis perdu — “I’m lost” — describing the state rather than the event.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| j’ai perdu | I lost / have lost |
| tu as perdu | you lost / have lost |
| il / elle a perdu | he / she lost / have lost |
| nous avons perdu | we lost / have lost |
| vous avez perdu | you lost / have lost |
| ils / elles ont perdu | they lost / have lost |

## Imparfait — was losing

Je perdais. Common in sport commentary and in describing a decline.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je perdais | I used to lose / was losing |
| tu perdais | you used to lose / was losing |
| il / elle perdait | he / she used to lose / was losing |
| nous perdions | we used to lose / was losing |
| vous perdiez | you used to lose / was losing |
| ils / elles perdaient | they used to lose / was losing |

## Futur and conditionnel

Drop the e: je perdrai.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je perdrai | I will lose |
| tu perdras | you will lose |
| il / elle perdra | he / she will lose |
| nous perdrons | we will lose |
| vous perdrez | you will lose |
| ils / elles perdront | they will lose |

## Conditionnel — would lose

Je perdrais. Tu n’as rien à perdre — “you’ve nothing to lose”.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je perdrais | I would lose |
| tu perdrais | you would lose |
| il / elle perdrait | he / she would lose |
| nous perdrions | we would lose |
| vous perdriez | you would lose |
| ils / elles perdraient | they would lose |

## Subjonctif — regular

From the plural stem, unchanged.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je perde | (that) I lose |
| tu perdes | (that) you lose |
| il / elle perde | (that) he / she lose |
| nous perdions | (that) we lose |
| vous perdiez | (that) you lose |
| ils / elles perdent | (that) they lose |

## Impératif — don’t lose it

Perds ! keeps its s, though the negative is far commoner: ne perds pas espoir, “don’t lose hope”.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| perds ! | lose! (to one person you know) |
| perdons ! | let’s lose! |
| perdez ! | lose! (formal, or to a group) |

## Plus-que-parfait — had lost

J’avais perdu — or reflexively, je m’étais perdu.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| j’avais perdu | I had lost |
| tu avais perdu | you had lost |
| il / elle avait perdu | he / she had lost |
| nous avions perdu | we had lost |
| vous aviez perdu | you had lost |
| ils / elles avaient perdu | they had lost |

## FAQ

### How do you conjugate perdre in the present tense?

Je perds, tu perds, il / elle perd, nous perdons, vous perdez, ils / elles perdent.

### How do you say “I got lost” in French?

Je me suis perdu (or perdue if you are female) — reflexive, with être. J’ai perdu is for losing an object.

### What is the past participle of perdre?

Perdu, with avoir. It doubles as an adjective: je suis perdu, “I’m lost”.

### How do you say “waste time” in French?

Perdre du temps. French loses time where English wastes it.

### Is perdre a regular -re verb?

Yes — it follows vendre exactly, including the bare il perd with no ending.

## Related guides

- Vendre conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/vendre-conjugation
- Descendre conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/descendre-conjugation
- Attendre conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/attendre-conjugation
- All free French guides: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides