# Rester Conjugation — Every Tense of the French Verb “To Stay”

> **Rester** means “to stay” or “to remain” — **not** “to rest”. Présent: **je reste, tu restes, il reste, nous restons, vous restez, ils restent**. It takes **être** in the past: *je suis resté(e)*. To rest is **se reposer**.

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Updated: 2026-09-16

## Présent — regular throughout

Stem rest-, standard -er endings, nothing to watch.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je reste | I stay |
| tu restes | you stay |
| il / elle reste | he / she stays |
| nous restons | we stay |
| vous restez | you stay |
| ils / elles restent | they stay |

## ⚠ It is not “to rest”

One of the most reliable false friends in the language. The two verbs are unrelated and both are common.

| French | Means |  |
|---|---|---|
| je reste à la maison | I’m staying home | rester = to stay |
| je me repose | I’m resting | se reposer = to rest |
| reste ici | stay here |  |
| repose-toi | get some rest | reflexive |

**Where the confusion comes from** — English “rest” and French rester both descend from the same Latin root, which is why they look alike. English kept the sense of stopping to recover; French kept the sense of remaining behind. Both are faithful to the original in different directions.

## Il reste — what is left

The impersonal il reste is how French says “there is … left”, and it is extremely common — at the table, at the till, and counting down to anything.

| French | Literally | Means |
|---|---|---|
| il reste du pain | it remains some bread | there’s bread left |
| il me reste dix euros | it remains to me ten euros | I have ten euros left |
| il ne reste rien | it remains nothing | there’s nothing left |
| il reste deux jours | it remains two days | two days to go |

**The verb stays singular** — Il reste deux jours, not “ils restent deux jours”. The il is impersonal — the same dummy subject as in il pleut or il y a — so it never agrees with what follows.

## Passé composé — with être

Rester takes être even though nobody moves — it is on the list because it describes a state rather than an action done to something. The participle agrees: elle est restée.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je suis resté(e) | I stayed / have stayed |
| tu es resté(e) | you stayed / have stayed |
| il / elle est resté(e) | he / she stayed / have stayed |
| nous sommes resté(e)s | we stayed / have stayed |
| vous êtes resté(e)(s) | you stayed / have stayed |
| ils / elles sont resté(e)s | they stayed / have stayed |

## Imparfait — used to stay

Je restais, for habits and for background: on restait toujours chez ma grand-mère.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je restais | I used to stay / was staying |
| tu restais | you used to stay / was staying |
| il / elle restait | he / she used to stay / was staying |
| nous restions | we used to stay / was staying |
| vous restiez | you used to stay / was staying |
| ils / elles restaient | they used to stay / was staying |

## Futur and conditionnel

Full infinitive as stem: je resterai.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je resterai | I will stay |
| tu resteras | you will stay |
| il / elle restera | he / she will stay |
| nous resterons | we will stay |
| vous resterez | you will stay |
| ils / elles resteront | they will stay |

## Conditionnel — would stay

Je resterais bien — “I’d happily stay”, the polite way to accept another drink.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je resterais | I would stay |
| tu resterais | you would stay |
| il / elle resterait | he / she would stay |
| nous resterions | we would stay |
| vous resteriez | you would stay |
| ils / elles resteraient | they would stay |

## Subjonctif — regular

Identical to the présent in four forms.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| je reste | (that) I stay |
| tu restes | (that) you stay |
| il / elle reste | (that) he / she stay |
| nous restions | (that) we stay |
| vous restiez | (that) you stay |
| ils / elles restent | (that) they stay |

## Impératif — stay

Reste ! with no s. Restez en contact — “keep in touch”.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| reste ! | stay! (to one person you know) |
| restons ! | let’s stay! |
| restez ! | stay! (formal, or to a group) |

## Plus-que-parfait — had stayed

J’étais resté, agreeing.

| French | English |
|---|---|
| j’étais resté(e) | I had stayed |
| tu étais resté(e) | you had stayed |
| il / elle était resté(e) | he / she had stayed |
| nous étions resté(e)s | we had stayed |
| vous étiez resté(e)(s) | you had stayed |
| ils / elles étaient resté(e)s | they had stayed |

## FAQ

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

Je reste, tu restes, il / elle reste, nous restons, vous restez, ils / elles restent.

### Does rester mean “to rest”?

No. Rester means “to stay” or “to remain”. To rest is se reposer — je me repose.

### Does rester take être or avoir?

Être, and the participle agrees: elle est restée, ils sont restés.

### What does il reste mean?

“There is … left.” Il reste du pain is “there’s bread left”; il me reste dix euros is “I have ten euros left”. The verb stays singular.

### How do you say “stay here” in French?

Reste ici to someone you know, restez ici otherwise.

## Related guides

- Arriver conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/arriver-conjugation
- Monter conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/monter-conjugation
- French verb conjugation: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides/french-verb-conjugation
- All free French guides: https://cocoonfrench.com/guides