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French subject–verb agreement: 9 questions on who controls the verb

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Practise agreement with names, nearby plural nouns, object pronouns, on and polite vous. Nine A1 questions include explanations and a short checking routine.

In short

Find the person or thing doing the action, then choose the verb form. In Le voisin de mes parents arrive, the subject is le voisin, so the verb stays singular. A nearby plural noun or object pronoun can sit beside the verb without controlling it.

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An older neighbour arriving at a French family home, two parents greeting him from the open doorway.
In le voisin de mes parents arrive, the neighbour acts. Illustration: Atelier
Study first: remove the distraction
Whole sentenceSubjectUseful replacement
La sœur de mes amis parle français.la sœurelle
Léa et Sami parlent français.Léa et Samiils
Nous vous parlons.nousnous
Je les regarde.jeje

Ask “Who is speaking?” in the first row: one sister. Mes amis tells you whose sister she is. Replacing the whole subject with elle makes the ending easier to check. Put the complete subject back once you have chosen the verb.

Tu parles. Elle parle. Ils parlent.

You speak. She speaks. They speak.

These three verb forms usually sound the same. The written subject tells you which ending to use.

Two special subjects
SubjectVerb formExample
onthird-person singularOn est ici.
vous: one person politelysecond-person plural formVous êtes ici.

How does subject–verb agreement work in French?

Choose the verb for each gap. Look for the subject of that particular verb. If there are two verbs, first check whether the second is an infinitive or belongs to a new clause.

  1. Question 1No account needed
    Choose the verb for the singular subject.Le voisin de mes parents ___.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    arrive. The subject is le voisin. Mes parents belongs to its description.

  2. Question 2No account needed
    Two names form a plural subject.Léa et Sami ___ français.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    parlent. Léa and Sami correspond to ils, so regular parler takes -ent.

  3. Question 3No account needed
    Which verb matches nous?Nous vous ___ souvent.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    parlons. The subject is nous. The object vous receives the action.

  4. Question 4No account needed
    Choose the form with on.On ___ ici.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    est. On takes a third-person singular verb, including when it means we.

  5. Question 5No account needed
    Address one person politely.Vous ___ ici pour le cours ?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    êtes. Polite singular vous still takes the vous verb form êtes.

  6. Question 6No account needed
    The subject is je; les is an object.Je les ___.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    regarde. The object pronoun les leaves the singular subject je in control.

  7. Question 7No account needed
    Complete with faire.Vous ___ une pause ?

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    faites. The irregular vous form is faites. Learn it as a complete form.

  8. Question 8No account needed
    Complete with the infinitive after pouvoir.Nous pouvons ___ demain.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    venir. Pouvons is conjugated for nous. The following action stays in the infinitive.

  9. Question 9No account needed
    The second clause has its own subject.Nous pensons qu’elle ___ demain.

    Choose one answer.

    Answer and explanation

    arrive. Elle controls arrive. Nous controls only the earlier verb pensons.

Use the same routine in your writing

  • I found the subject of each conjugated verb.
  • I set aside object pronouns and phrases beginning with de.
  • I checked the complete form for an irregular verb.
  • I left an infinitive unchanged after a modal such as pouvoir.

For another attempt, replace a name with two names, or change nous to vous. Keep the rest of the sentence steady. The changed subject should lead you to a new verb form; the object can stay exactly where it was.

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