Prendre in French: meanings, conjugation and examples
Take a train, have a coffee, make a decision. Learn the verb with the words around it.
Prendre often means “take”. Learn it with its object: transport, food and decisions give it different natural English translations.
What does prendre mean?
Prendre is often translated as “take”, but the best English translation depends on what follows it. French uses the verb for transport, food and drink, and expressions such as making a decision.
Remember a phrase as well as a form. Knowing je prends is useful; knowing je prends le train also tells you where the form belongs.
Je prends le train.
I take the train.
On prend un café ?
Shall we have a coffee?
Elle prend une décision.
She makes a decision.
Learn the whole phrase. “Take” is a useful starting point, but English does not use it in every equivalent expression.
How do you conjugate prendre?
The present tense is irregular. Compare the three singular forms with nous prenons, vous prenez and ils prennent. The table also includes the passé composé and simple future so you can compare the same subject across time.
Present
- je
- prends
- tu
- prends
- il / elle / on
- prend
- nous
- prenons
- vous
- prenez
- ils / elles
- prennent
Je prends le bus.
I take the bus.
Passé composé
- j’
- ai pris
- tu
- as pris
- il / elle / on
- a pris
- nous
- avons pris
- vous
- avez pris
- ils / elles
- ont pris
J’ai pris le bus.
I took the bus.
Simple future
- je
- prendrai
- tu
- prendras
- il / elle / on
- prendra
- nous
- prendrons
- vous
- prendrez
- ils / elles
- prendront
Je prendrai le bus.
I will take the bus.
The present nous and vous forms lose the d; ils prennent doubles the n. In the future, the stem is prendr-.
How do you use pris in the past tense?
In the passé composé, prendre uses avoir followed by pris. Change the helper for the subject; do not substitute a present-tense form of prendre after it.
Avoir in the present + pris, the past participle.
Does pris ever change?
With avoir, the participle does not simply agree with the subject. A preceding direct object can trigger agreement: les photos que j’ai prises. The examples here keep the direct object after the verb.
Check a form in context
Read the subject and time expression before choosing. The first sentence describes a repeated present habit; the second names a completed action yesterday.
Original teaching examples. English explanations with French marked in its original language. Meaning reference: Larousse.