# Prendre Conjugation — Every Tense of the French Verb “To Take”

> **Prendre** means “to take”. Présent: **je prends, tu prends, il prend, nous prenons, vous prenez, ils prennent**. The *d* of the infinitive survives in the singular and vanishes in the plural. It is also the verb French uses for food, drink and transport: *je prends un café*, *on prend le train*.

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## Présent — where the d goes

This is the table’s one real trick, and it is worth seeing rather than memorising. The singular keeps the d of the infinitive — prends, prends, prend — and the plural throws it away: prenons, prenez, prennent.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je prends | I take |
| tu prends | you take |
| il / elle prend | he / she takes |
| nous prenons | we take |
| vous prenez | you take |
| ils / elles prennent | they take |

**The d is silent anyway** — All three singular forms sound identical — “prañ” — because the final s, s and d are all silent. The d matters for spelling, not for speech. Where you can hear the difference is prennent: the double n un-nasalises the vowel, giving “pren” rather than “prañ”.

**⚠ Not an -re verb like vendre** — Prendre looks like it should follow vendre, and in the singular it does. The plural is where it defects: regular -re verbs keep the stem throughout (vendons, vendent), while prendre drops the d and then doubles the n.

## What French takes

The literal “take” is the least of it. These are everyday and none of them uses “take” in English:

| French | Literally | Means |
|---|---|---|
| je prends un café | I take a coffee | I’ll have a coffee |
| on prend le train | one takes the train | we’re getting the train |
| prendre une décision | to take a decision | to make a decision |
| prendre une photo | to take a photo | to take a photo |
| prendre son temps | to take one’s time | to take your time |
| prendre froid | to take cold | to catch a cold |
| ça prend deux heures | that takes two hours | it takes two hours |
| qu’est-ce qui te prend ? | what takes you? | what’s got into you? |

**Ordering with it** — Je prends is the normal way to order once you have decided — it is what you say pointing at a menu. Je voudrais is the more formal request; je vais prendre… (“I’ll take…”) is the most natural of all and what you will hear locals use.

## Passé composé — pris

Built with avoir, participle pris — short, irregular, and shared by the whole family (appris, compris, surpris). The final s is silent.

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

## Imparfait — from the plural stem

Take prenons, drop the -ons, add the endings. Because the imparfait always builds off the nous form, the d is absent from this entire tense.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je prenais | I used to take / was taking |
| tu prenais | you used to take / was taking |
| il / elle prenait | he / she used to take / was taking |
| nous prenions | we used to take / was taking |
| vous preniez | you used to take / was taking |
| ils / elles prenaient | they used to take / was taking |

## Futur and conditionnel — the d comes back

The futur is built from the infinitive minus its final e, so the d returns: prendr-. That makes this the easy half of the verb — je prendrai is as regular as it looks.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je prendrai | I will take |
| tu prendras | you will take |
| il / elle prendra | he / she will take |
| nous prendrons | we will take |
| vous prendrez | you will take |
| ils / elles prendront | they will take |

## Conditionnel — would take

Same prendr- stem with the imparfait endings. Je prendrais bien un café — “I could go for a coffee” — is a small, very French way of suggesting something.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je prendrais | I would take |
| tu prendrais | you would take |
| il / elle prendrait | he / she would take |
| nous prendrions | we would take |
| vous prendriez | you would take |
| ils / elles prendraient | they would take |

## Subjonctif — the boot once more

Prenne in the boot, prenions and preniez outside it — the same split as the présent, with the double n in the same four places.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je prenne | (that) I take |
| tu prennes | (that) you take |
| il / elle prenne | (that) he / she take |
| nous prenions | (that) we take |
| vous preniez | (that) you take |
| ils / elles prennent | (that) they take |

## Impératif — take it

Prends !, prenez ! — handing something over. Prenons is also the standard “let’s” for suggesting a route or a meal: prenons un taxi.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| prends ! | take! (to one person you know) |
| prenons ! | let’s take! |
| prenez ! | take! (formal, or to a group) |

## Plus-que-parfait — had taken

J’avais pris. Useful for explaining a mistake after the fact: j’avais pris le mauvais train.

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

## FAQ

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

Je prends, tu prends, il / elle prend, nous prenons, vous prenez, ils / elles prennent. The d is there in the singular and gone in the plural.

### Is prendre a regular -re verb?

No. The singular looks regular, but a regular -re verb like vendre keeps its stem all the way through. Prendre drops the d for nous and vous and doubles the n for ils.

### What is the past participle of prendre?

Pris, with avoir: j’ai pris. The whole family follows — appris, compris, surpris.

### How do you order a coffee in French?

Je vais prendre un café or je prends un café once you have decided; je voudrais un café if you want to be more formal. French takes a drink rather than having one.

### Which verbs conjugate like prendre?

Apprendre (to learn), comprendre (to understand), surprendre (to surprise), reprendre (to take back) and entreprendre — all identically.

### How do you tell il prend and ils prennent apart by ear?

By the vowel. Prend is nasal, “prañ”. Prennent has a double n, which cancels the nasal and gives “pren”. The endings themselves are silent in both.

## Related guides

- Comprendre conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/comprendre-conjugation
- Mettre conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/mettre-conjugation
- French verb conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/french-verb-conjugation
- All free French guides: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides