Why is "Inventing an '-ing' tense, e.g. *je suis mangeant* for 'I am eating'" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: English speakers expect a continuous form ('am/is/are + -ing') and try to copy it into French. How to avoid it: Remember the present tense already means '-ing'. 'I am eating' is just *je mange*; 'she is going' is just *elle va*. Never put *être* + a verb to make a continuous. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4

Why is "Using être for age and feelings (*je suis faim*, *je suis quinze ans*)" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: English says 'I am hungry / I am 15', so learners translate 'am' as *suis*. How to avoid it: Learn that age and feelings take **avoir**: *j'ai faim* (hungry), *j'ai froid* (cold), *j'ai soif* (thirsty), *j'ai quinze ans* (I'm 15). Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy

Why is "Writing the wrong silent ending (*je parles*, *il parlent*, *tu parle*)" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: The endings -e, -es and -ent sound identical, so the ear gives no clue when writing. How to avoid it: Memorise the spelling by subject: je → -e, tu → -es, il → -e, ils → -ent. Always check the ending matches the subject pronoun in written answers. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Why is "Pronouncing the verb -ent ending (saying *ils parlent* as 'par-LENT')" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: Learners read every letter and assume -ent is sounded, as in English '-ent' (different). How to avoid it: The verb ending **-ent is always silent**: *ils parlent* = 'parl', *ils finissent* = 'fee-NEESS', *ils vendent* = 'vond'. Say the form as if the -ent were not there. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)

Why is "Conjugating the verb after *aller* in the near future (*je vais joue*)" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: Learners feel the need to conjugate every verb and forget the second verb stays infinitive. How to avoid it: In the near future, only *aller* changes; the action verb stays in the **infinitive**: *je vais jouer*, *nous allons manger*, *ils vont arriver*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4

Why is "Dropping the -iss- in plural -ir verbs (*nous finons* instead of *nous finissons*)" a common mistake in Present tense - regular and key irregulars?

Why it happens: Learners apply a single ending to the bare stem and forget the -iss- infix in the plural forms. How to avoid it: For regular -ir verbs, the plural endings are **-issons, -issez, -issent**: *nous finissons*, *vous choisissez*, *ils réussissent*. Learn the *nous* form, where the -iss- shows up. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Verb Tenses and MoodsCambridge IGCSE French (0520)

Present tense - regular and key irregulars

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The French present tense — regular -er, -ir, -re verbs and key irregulars — Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 (2025-2027)

A complete beginner's guide to conjugating French verbs in the present tense: the three regular endings patterns plus the four must-know irregulars (être, avoir, aller, faire). Master the tense that carries the most marks across every 0520 paper.

At a glance

The French present tense (le présent) does the work of three English presents at once: je mange means 'I eat', 'I am eating' and 'I do eat'. French has no separate '-ing' form.
Almost every French verb belongs to one of three families, named after the last two letters of the infinitive: -er (parler — to speak), -ir (finir — to finish) and -re (vendre — to sell).
To conjugate a regular verb you chop off the ending (-er/-ir/-re) to get the stem, then add the ending that matches the subject (je, tu, il...).
The -er family is by far the biggest — around 90% of French verbs — so learning its endings (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent) is the single highest-value thing you can do.
The endings -e, -es, -ent are all silent: je parle, tu parles and ils parlent sound identical (par-l). Only the spelling differs.
French has no helper word for the present: there is no 'am/is/are' and no 'do/does'. Je travaille = 'I work' / 'I am working' — never je suis travaille.
The four highest-frequency verbs — être (to be), avoir (to have), aller (to go) and faire (to do/make) — are irregular and must be learned by heart; they appear in nearly every sentence.
aller (to go) is also the engine of the near future (je vais manger — I am going to eat), so it earns its place twice over.

What you’ll learn

Mapped to the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 syllabus (2025-2027).

Explain when the French present tense is used and how it maps onto the three English present forms.
Identify the three regular verb families (-er, -ir, -re) from the infinitive.
Form the stem of a regular verb and add the correct present-tense ending for each subject pronoun.
Conjugate regular -er, -ir and -re verbs in full across all six persons.
Conjugate the four key irregular verbs être, avoir, aller and faire in the present tense.
Use present-tense verbs accurately in real sentences about yourself, others and daily routine.
Recognise how present-tense accuracy is assessed across Papers 1-4 and avoid the most common conjugation errors.

What the present tense means — one French tense, three English jobs

Le présent covers 'I eat', 'I am eating' and 'I do eat' — French has no separate -ing or 'do' form.

Before learning the endings, understand what the present tense does, because it is wider than the English present.

In English we have three present forms:

Simple present: "I eat."
Present continuous: "I am eating."
Emphatic present: "I do eat."

French uses one single tense — le présent — for all three. So je mange can be translated, depending on context, as:

I eat (every day),
I am eating (right now),
I do eat (in reply to "you never eat!").

This is great news: there is less to learn, not more. But it has two traps for English speakers.

Trap 1 — there is no '-ing' verb form. You must never glue a separate word on for "am/is/are eating". Je suis mangeant is wrong. The continuous idea is already inside je mange.

Trap 2 — there is no 'do/does'. English uses "do" for questions and negatives ("Do you work?", "I don't work"). French does not. The verb itself stretches to cover it: Tu travailles ? (Do you work?), Je ne travaille pas (I don't work).

What else the present is used for.

A general truth or habit: Elle parle français. (She speaks French.)
An action happening now: Je regarde la télé. (I am watching TV.)
A scheduled near event, like English: Le train arrive à huit heures. (The train arrives / is arriving at eight.)
With depuis (for/since), where English uses a perfect: J'habite ici depuis deux ans. (I have lived here for two years — but French uses the present.)

Worked mini-example. Translate "She is learning French." Do not reach for an '-ing' word. The verb apprendre (to learn) in the present, third person, is elle apprend. So the answer is simply Elle apprend le français.

One present tense covers 'I eat', 'I am eating' and 'I do eat'.
There is no separate '-ing' form — je suis mangeant is wrong.
There is no 'do/does' — questions and negatives use the plain verb (Tu travailles ?, Je ne travaille pas).
Also used for habits, general truths, scheduled events, and with depuis where English uses 'have done'.

The three verb families — spotting -er, -ir and -re

Every regular verb ends in -er, -ir or -re; the infinitive ending tells you which endings set to use.

A French verb in the dictionary is in its infinitive form — the "to ..." form, like parler (to speak). Look at the last two letters of the infinitive and you can sort almost every verb into one of three families.

Family	Infinitive ends in	Example	Meaning
1st group	-er	parler	to speak
2nd group	-ir	finir	to finish
3rd group	-re	vendre	to sell

The -er group is the giant. Roughly 90% of all French verbs are -er verbs, and almost every new verb that enters the language is -er (googler — to google!). Master this family and you can handle the vast majority of sentences. Common members: parler (to speak), aimer (to like/love), habiter (to live), regarder (to watch), manger (to eat), travailler (to work), jouer (to play), écouter (to listen).

The -ir group is smaller but important: finir (to finish), choisir (to choose), réussir (to succeed), grandir (to grow).

The -re group is smaller still: vendre (to sell), attendre (to wait for), répondre (to answer), entendre (to hear), descendre (to go down).

How conjugation works in three steps.

Take the infinitive: parler.
Chop off the family ending (-er / -ir / -re) to get the stem (le radical): parl-.
Add the ending that matches the subject (je, tu, il...).

That stem-plus-ending idea is the heart of the whole tense. The next sections give you the exact endings for each family.

Worked mini-example. Which family is choisir (to choose), and what is its stem? It ends in -ir, so it is a 2nd-group verb; chop -ir to get the stem chois-. We will add the -ir endings to that stem in a moment.

Sort verbs by the last two letters of the infinitive: -er, -ir, -re.
-er verbs are ~90% of all French verbs — the top priority.
Conjugate by: infinitive → chop the ending → stem → add subject ending.
Example stems: parler → parl-, finir → fin-, vendre → vend-.

Regular -er verbs — the endings to learn first

Chop -er, add -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. Three of these endings are silent.

This is the most important table in beginner French. Learn it cold. Take the stem (e.g. parl- from parler, to speak) and add:

Subject	Ending	parler (to speak)	Sounds like
je (I)	-e	je parle	zhuh parl
tu (you, informal)	-es	tu parles	tew parl
il / elle / on (he/she/one)	-e	il parle	eel parl
nous (we)	-ons	nous parlons	noo par-LON
vous (you, formal/plural)	-ez	vous parlez	voo par-LAY
ils / elles (they)	-ent	ils parlent	eel parl

The six -er endings on parler; three of them (-e, -es, -ent) are silent and sound identical.

The silent-endings rule (very important). The endings -e, -es and -ent are all silent. That means je parle, tu parles, il parle and ils parlent are pronounced exactly the same — just "parl". Only -ons ("on") and -ez ("ay") are actually heard. So in speech you rely on the subject pronoun (je, tu, il...) to tell who is doing the action, not the ending.

Warning: because -ent is silent, never read ils parlent as "par-LENT". The -ent on a verb is silent; you say "parl".

A second example — aimer (to like / to love).

Subject	Form	English
j'	j'aime	I like/love
tu	tu aimes	you like
il/elle/on	il aime	he likes
nous	nous aimons	we like
vous	vous aimez	you like
ils/elles	ils aiment	they like

Note je becomes j' before a vowel (elision): j'aime, not je aime.

Worked mini-example. Conjugate travailler (to work) for 'we'. Stem = travaill-; the 'we' ending is -ons; result nous travaillons (we work), said "noo tra-va-YON".

-er endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent.
-e, -es, -ent are silent — je parle = tu parles = ils parlent in speech.
Only -ons (on) and -ez (ay) are heard.
je → j' before a vowel (j'aime).
Never pronounce verb -ent — ils parlent is said 'parl', not 'par-LENT'.

Regular -ir and -re verbs

-ir verbs add -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent; -re verbs add -s, -s, --, -ons, -ez, -ent.

Once -er is solid, the other two families are quick to add.

Regular -ir verbs — example finir (to finish). Chop -ir to get the stem fin-. Notice the -iss- that appears in the plural forms.

Subject	Ending	finir (to finish)	English
je	-is	je finis	I finish
tu	-is	tu finis	you finish
il/elle/on	-it	il finit	he finishes
nous	-issons	nous finissons	we finish
vous	-issez	vous finissez	you finish
ils/elles	-issent	ils finissent	they finish

Other verbs that follow this exact pattern: choisir (to choose), réussir (to succeed), grandir (to grow), finir (to finish). So je choisis (I choose), nous choisissons (we choose).

Regular -re verbs — example vendre (to sell). Chop -re to get the stem vend-. The big thing to notice: the il/elle/on form adds nothing at all — the bare stem is the form.

Subject	Ending	vendre (to sell)	English
je	-s	je vends	I sell
tu	-s	tu vends	you sell
il/elle/on	— (nothing)	il vend	he sells
nous	-ons	nous vendons	we sell
vous	-ez	vous vendez	you sell
ils/elles	-ent	ils vendent	they sell

The endings -s, -s, --, -ons, -ez, -ent are mostly silent in the singular: je vends, tu vends, il vend all sound the same ("von"). In il vend the d is silent; in ils vendent the added -ent "switches on" the d, so you hear it ("vond").

Other verbs following vendre: attendre (to wait for), répondre (to answer), entendre (to hear), descendre (to go down), perdre (to lose).

Worked mini-example. Conjugate attendre (to wait for) for 'he'. Stem = attend-; the il/elle ending is nothing; result il attend (he waits), said "ee-la-TON" (final d silent, with liaison from il).

-ir endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent (note the -iss- in the plural).
-re endings: -s, -s, — (nothing), -ons, -ez, -ent.
For -re verbs the il/elle form is just the bare stem (il vend).
choisir, réussir, grandir follow finir; attendre, répondre, entendre follow vendre.

The two giants — être (to be) and avoir (to have)

être and avoir are irregular, ultra-common, and the building blocks of compound tenses; memorise them.

Two verbs appear more than any others in French: être (to be) and avoir (to have). They are completely irregular — you cannot build them from a stem — so you simply learn them by heart. They are worth the effort because (a) you use them constantly, and (b) they are the auxiliaries that build the perfect tense later (j'ai mangé — I have eaten; je suis allé — I went).

être — to be.

Subject	Form	English
je	je suis	I am
tu	tu es	you are
il/elle/on	il est	he/she/one is
nous	nous sommes	we are
vous	vous êtes	you are
ils/elles	ils sont	they are

Pronunciation notes: je suis (zhuh swee), tu es (tew eh), il est (eel eh), nous sommes (noo som), vous êtes (voo-zet — with liaison), ils sont (eel son). Used for who/what you are, descriptions, feelings, and nationality: Je suis anglais. (I am English.) Elle est fatiguée. (She is tired.)

avoir — to have.

Subject	Form	English
j'	j'ai	I have
tu	tu as	you have
il/elle/on	il a	he/she/one has
nous	nous avons	we have
vous	vous avez	you have
ils/elles	ils ont	they have

Pronunciation notes: j'ai (zhay), tu as (tew ah), il a (eel ah), nous avons (noo-za-VON), vous avez (voo-za-VAY), ils ont (eel-zon). Watch the liaison in nous avons, vous avez, ils ont.

A French speciality — feelings and age use avoir, not être. Where English says "I am hungry/cold/15 years old", French says "I have hunger/cold/15 years":

J'ai faim. — I am hungry (lit. I have hunger).
J'ai froid. — I am cold.
J'ai soif. — I am thirsty.
Elle a quinze ans. — She is fifteen (lit. she has fifteen years).

Don't confuse a and à. il a = he has (verb avoir, no accent). à = to/at (a preposition, grave accent). They sound the same but are totally different words.

Worked mini-example. Translate "We are tired and we are hungry." 'Tired' is a description → être: nous sommes fatigués. 'Hungry' is a feeling → avoir faim: nous avons faim. Full answer: Nous sommes fatigués et nous avons faim.

être (to be): suis, es, est, sommes, êtes, sont.
avoir (to have): ai, as, a, avons, avez, ont.
French uses avoir for hunger, thirst, cold and age: j'ai faim, elle a quinze ans.
il a (has) has no accent; à (to/at) does — they sound the same but differ.
Both are auxiliaries for the perfect tense later (j'ai mangé, je suis allé).

Two more must-knows — aller (to go) and faire (to do/make)

aller powers the near future; faire covers do, make, weather and many activities. Both are irregular.

Two more irregular verbs round out the essential set. Like être and avoir, learn them by heart.

aller — to go.

Subject	Form	English
je	je vais	I go
tu	tu vas	you go
il/elle/on	il va	he/she/one goes
nous	nous allons	we go
vous	vous allez	you go
ils/elles	ils vont	they go

Pronunciation: je vais (zhuh vay), tu vas (tew va), il va (eel va), nous allons (noo-za-LON), vous allez (voo-za-LAY), ils vont (eel von). Notice the stems are wildly different (vai-/va-/all-/vont) — that's what 'irregular' means.

aller builds the near future (le futur proche). Use the present of aller + an infinitive to say what is going to happen — exactly like English:

Je vais manger. — I am going to eat.
Nous allons jouer au foot. — We are going to play football.
Ils vont arriver demain. — They are going to arrive tomorrow.

This is a huge return on one verb: master aller and you unlock talking about the future.

aller is also used for health. Comment allez-vous ? (How are you? — lit. how do you go?) → Je vais bien. (I'm well.) Ça va ? (How's it going?) → Ça va bien.

faire — to do / to make.

Subject	Form	English
je	je fais	I do/make
tu	tu fais	you do/make
il/elle/on	il fait	he/she/one does
nous	nous faisons	we do/make
vous	vous faites	you do/make
ils/elles	ils font	they do/make

Pronunciation: je fais (zhuh feh), il fait (eel feh), nous faisons (noo fuh-ZON — note the odd 'uh' sound), vous faites (voo fet), ils font (eel fon). Watch the two irregular forms vous faites (not faisez) and ils font (not faisent).

faire covers weather and many activities:

Weather: Il fait beau. (It's nice/fine.) Il fait froid. (It's cold.) Il fait chaud. (It's hot.)
Activities: Je fais du sport. (I do sport.) Elle fait ses devoirs. (She does her homework.) Nous faisons la cuisine. (We do the cooking.)

Worked mini-example. Translate "She is going to do her homework." 'Going to' → near future with aller: elle va; '+ do' → infinitive faire; 'her homework' → ses devoirs. Answer: Elle va faire ses devoirs.

aller (to go): vais, vas, va, allons, allez, vont.
faire (to do/make): fais, fais, fait, faisons, faites, font.
aller + infinitive = the near future: je vais manger (I'm going to eat).
faire covers weather (il fait beau) and activities (je fais du sport).
Irregular traps: vous faites (not faisez), ils font (not faisent).

Memorise this

Verbatim phrases and definitions Cambridge mark schemes credit.

-er endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent (parler → je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent).
-ir endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent (finir → je finis ... nous finissons).
-re endings: -s, -s, — , -ons, -ez, -ent (vendre → je vends, il vend, nous vendons).
être = je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils sont.
avoir = j'ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont.
aller = je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont.
faire = je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font.
Near future: aller + infinitive — je vais manger (I'm going to eat).
Feelings/age with avoir: j'ai faim (hungry), j'ai froid (cold), elle a quinze ans (she is 15).
je → j' before a vowel (j'aime, j'ai); verb -ent is silent (ils parlent = 'parl').

How it’s examined

The present tense is the most heavily used tense in Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 and underpins every paper.

Paper 1 (Listening): You must recognise present-tense verbs at speed, and tell persons apart by the subject pronoun since -e/-es/-ent are silent (je parle vs ils parlent sound the same). The audible -ons and -ez endings, and irregular forms like sont/ont/vont/font, are common comprehension hooks.
Paper 2 (Reading): Spotting the verb and its subject lets you decode who does what. Recognising aller + infinitive as the near future, and avoir-feelings (j'ai faim), prevents mistranslation.
Paper 3 (Speaking): Almost every answer needs accurate present-tense verbs — describing yourself with être, your possessions with avoir, your plans with aller + infinitive, your hobbies with faire. Verb accuracy and range feed directly into the marks.
Paper 4 (Writing): Correct endings are an accuracy requirement. Because -e/-es/-ent sound identical, candidates must spell them correctly (je → -e, tu → -es, ils → -ent). Wrong endings, and confusing être/avoir (je suis faim), are penalised.

Examiner reports for 0520 repeatedly highlight wrong verb endings and être/avoir confusion as frequent accuracy errors, and reward candidates who use the four key irregulars confidently and correctly.

Sources: Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 Syllabus 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Paper 2 (Reading) & Paper 4 (Writing) Specimen 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports 2022-2024. Last reviewed 2026-06-02.

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Step-by-step worked examples — Present tense - regular and key irregulars

Step-by-step solutions to past-paper-style questions on present tense - regular and key irregulars, written exactly the way a tutor would explain them at the board.

1Conjugate a regular -er verb across all six persons
Getting started
Question
Conjugate parler (to speak) in the present tense for all six subjects (je, tu, il, nous, vous, ils), and say which endings are silent.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Find the family and stem. parler ends in -er, so it is a 1st-group verb. Chop off -er to get the stem parl-.
2. Step 2
  Add the -er endings to the stem: je → -e, tu → -es, il/elle/on → -e, nous → -ons, vous → -ez, ils/elles → -ent.
3. Step 3
  Write them out: je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent.
4. Step 4
  Mark the silent endings. -e, -es and -ent are all silent, so je parle, tu parles, il parle and ils parlent all sound the same ('parl'). Only nous parlons (par-LON) and vous parlez (par-LAY) are heard.
Answer
je parle, tu parles, il/elle parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils/elles parlent. Silent endings: -e, -es, -ent (all sound like 'parl'); heard endings: -ons, -ez.
Examiner tip
Because three endings sound identical, marks are lost in Paper 4 for writing the wrong one (je parles, il parlent). Learn the spellings by subject: je → -e, tu → -es, il → -e, ils → -ent.
2Choose être or avoir correctly
Building confidence
Question
Complete with the correct present-tense form of être (to be) or avoir (to have): Je ___ anglais et j'___ quinze ans. Ma sœur ___ fatiguée parce qu'elle ___ faim. (I am English and I'm fifteen. My sister is tired because she is hungry.)
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  'I am English' is a description / nationality → use être. je form of être is suis: Je suis anglais.
2. Step 2
  'I'm fifteen' uses age → French uses avoir (lit. 'I have fifteen years'). je form of avoir is ai, elided to j'ai: j'ai quinze ans.
3. Step 3
  'My sister is tired' is a description → être, elle form is est: Ma sœur est fatiguée. (Note the feminine -e on fatiguée.)
4. Step 4
  'She is hungry' is a feeling → avoir (avoir faim), elle form is a: elle a faim.
Answer
Je suis anglais et j'ai quinze ans. Ma sœur est fatiguée parce qu'elle a faim. (être for description/nationality; avoir for age and hunger.)
Examiner tip
The être/avoir split is a top accuracy issue in 0520. Remember: feelings and age (faim, froid, soif, ... ans) take avoir, never être. Writing je suis faim or je suis quinze ans is a clear error.
3Build the near future with aller + infinitive
Building confidence
Question
Rewrite these in the near future (aller + infinitive): (a) 'I am going to play football.' (b) 'We are going to do our homework.' (c) 'They are going to arrive tomorrow.'
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  Recall the formula: present tense of aller + an infinitive = 'going to do something'.
2. Step 2
  (a) 'I' → je vais; '+ play' → infinitive jouer; 'football' → au foot. Result: Je vais jouer au foot.
3. Step 3
  (b) 'We' → nous allons; '+ do' → infinitive faire; 'our homework' → nos devoirs. Result: Nous allons faire nos devoirs.
4. Step 4
  (c) 'They' → ils vont; '+ arrive' → infinitive arriver; 'tomorrow' → demain. Result: Ils vont arriver demain.
Answer
(a) Je vais jouer au foot. (b) Nous allons faire nos devoirs. (c) Ils vont arriver demain. — present of aller + infinitive throughout.
Examiner tip
The verb after aller stays in the infinitive — do not conjugate it (je vais joue is wrong; it must be je vais jouer). This near-future structure is a high-value, easy way to show a second time-frame in Speaking and Writing.
4Conjugate -ir and -re verbs and avoid the -ent trap
Stretch
Question
Complete: (a) Nous ___ (finir) à six heures. (We finish at six.) (b) Il ___ (vendre) sa voiture. (He is selling his car.) (c) Elles ___ (choisir) un cadeau. (They are choosing a gift.) Then say how ils finissent and ils vendent are pronounced.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) finir is a regular -ir verb. Stem fin-; the nous ending is -issons (note the -iss-). → Nous finissons à six heures.
2. Step 2
  (b) vendre is a regular -re verb. Stem vend-; the il form adds nothing (bare stem). → Il vend sa voiture. (final d silent: 'von').
3. Step 3
  (c) choisir is a regular -ir verb (like finir). Stem chois-; the elles ending is -issent. → Elles choisissent un cadeau.
4. Step 4
  Pronunciation of the -ent forms. ils finissent is said 'fee-NEESS' — the verb -ent is silent, but the -iss- before it is heard. ils vendent is said 'vond' — here the -ent silently 'switches on' the d, so you hear a d that was silent in il vend.
Answer
(a) Nous finissons (b) Il vend (c) Elles choisissent. Pronunciation: ils finissent = 'fee-NEESS', ils vendent = 'vond' — the verb -ent is always silent.
Examiner tip
Two traps here: forgetting the -iss- in the plural of -ir verbs (nous finissons, not nous finons), and reading the verb -ent aloud. The -ent ending on a verb is never pronounced — ils parlent, ils finissent, ils vendent all end in a silent -ent.

Model Answers — Present tense - regular and key irregulars

High-scoring sample answers for present tense - regular and key irregulars on the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 paper, with examiner-style notes mapping each response to the mark scheme and assessment objectives.

Question 1
Paper 3 (Speaking) / Paper 4 (Writing) style. Introduce yourself in 2-3 sentences using the present tense — say who you are, where you live, your age, and one hobby.
Model answer
Je m'appelle Sophie et je suis française. (My name is Sophie and I am French.) J'habite à Lyon avec ma famille et j'ai seize ans. (I live in Lyon with my family and I am sixteen.) J'aime le sport, alors je fais du foot le week-end. (I like sport, so I play football at the weekend.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It packs in four present-tense verbs accurately: être (je suis) for nationality, the -er verb habiter (j'habite) for where you live, avoir (j'ai ... ans) for age — not être — and faire (je fais du foot) for a hobby. The elision j' before vowels (j'habite, j'ai, j'aime) is correct, and the range of verbs lifts the mark.
Question 2
Paper 4 (Writing) style. Describe what your family does on a typical Saturday, using a range of present-tense verbs.
Model answer
Le samedi, mes parents travaillent à la maison et ma sœur finit ses devoirs. (On Saturdays, my parents work at home and my sister finishes her homework.) Nous mangeons ensemble à midi, puis je vais au parc avec mes amis. (We eat together at midday, then I go to the park with my friends.) Mon frère fait du vélo et il choisit toujours la même route ! (My brother cycles and he always chooses the same route!)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It mixes all three regular families and two irregulars: -er (travaillent, mangeons), -ir (finit, choisit), plus aller (je vais) and faire (fait). Note the spelling tweak nous mangeons (extra e to keep the g soft) and the correct -it ending on the -ir verbs — both are easy marks to bank.
Question 3
Paper 3 (Speaking) style. The examiner asks: Qu'est-ce que tu vas faire ce week-end ? (What are you going to do this weekend?) Give a model answer using the near future.
Model answer
Ce week-end, je vais rester à la maison samedi matin. (This weekend, I'm going to stay home on Saturday morning.) L'après-midi, mes amis et moi, nous allons jouer au tennis. (In the afternoon, my friends and I are going to play tennis.) Et dimanche, ma famille va manger au restaurant. (And on Sunday, my family is going to eat at a restaurant.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. Every future idea uses aller + an infinitive (vais rester, allons jouer, va manger) — the verb after aller is correctly left in the infinitive. This directly answers a vas faire question and shows a second time-frame, which examiners reward.

Key Definitions and Keywords — Present tense - regular and key irregulars

Definitions to memorise and the exact keywords mark schemes credit for present tense - regular and key irregulars answers — sharpened from recent examiner reports for the 2026 0520 sitting.

Le présent (the present tense)
Examiner keyword
The French tense covering 'I do', 'I am doing' and 'I do do' at once. French has no separate '-ing' form and no 'do/does' helper.
Example
je mange = I eat / I am eating / I do eat.
L'infinitif (the infinitive)
Examiner keyword
The base 'to ...' form of a verb, as listed in a dictionary. It ends in -er, -ir or -re and is the starting point for conjugation.
Example
parler (to speak), finir (to finish), vendre (to sell).
Le radical (the stem)
What is left after you chop the -er/-ir/-re ending off the infinitive; you add the present-tense endings to it.
Example
parler → stem parl-; finir → stem fin-.
-er verb endings (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent)
Examiner keyword
The present-tense endings for the largest verb family. The endings -e, -es and -ent are silent.
Example
parler → je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent.
être (to be)
Examiner keyword
Irregular verb for being, descriptions, feelings and nationality, and an auxiliary for the perfect tense.
Example
je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils sont — Je suis anglais. (I am English.)
avoir (to have)
Examiner keyword
Irregular verb for having; also used for age, hunger, thirst and cold where English uses 'to be'.
Example
j'ai, tu as, il a, nous avons, vous avez, ils ont — J'ai faim. (I am hungry.) Elle a quinze ans. (She is 15.)
aller (to go)
Examiner keyword
Irregular verb for going; combined with an infinitive it forms the near future ('going to do something').
Example
je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont — Je vais manger. (I'm going to eat.)
faire (to do / to make)
Examiner keyword
Irregular verb for doing and making; also used for weather and many activities. Watch the forms vous faites and ils font.
Example
je fais, tu fais, il fait, nous faisons, vous faites, ils font — Il fait beau. (It's nice out.) Je fais du sport.
Le futur proche (the near future)
A future formed with the present tense of aller + an infinitive, meaning 'going to'. The infinitive is never conjugated.
Example
Nous allons jouer au foot. (We are going to play football.)
-ir / -re verb endings
Regular -ir verbs add -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent; regular -re verbs add -s, -s, (nothing), -ons, -ez, -ent.
Example
finir → nous finissons; vendre → il vend, nous vendons.

Common Mistakes and Misconceptions — Present tense - regular and key irregulars

The traps other students keep falling into on present tense - regular and key irregulars questions — taken from recent Cambridge IGCSE 0520 examiner reports and mark schemes — and how to avoid them.

✕Inventing an '-ing' tense, e.g. je suis mangeant for 'I am eating'
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4
Why it happens
English speakers expect a continuous form ('am/is/are + -ing') and try to copy it into French.
How to avoid it
Remember the present tense already means '-ing'. 'I am eating' is just je mange; 'she is going' is just elle va. Never put être + a verb to make a continuous.
✕Using être for age and feelings (je suis faim, je suis quinze ans)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy
Why it happens
English says 'I am hungry / I am 15', so learners translate 'am' as suis.
How to avoid it
Learn that age and feelings take avoir: j'ai faim (hungry), j'ai froid (cold), j'ai soif (thirsty), j'ai quinze ans (I'm 15).
✕Writing the wrong silent ending (je parles, il parlent, tu parle)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
The endings -e, -es and -ent sound identical, so the ear gives no clue when writing.
How to avoid it
Memorise the spelling by subject: je → -e, tu → -es, il → -e, ils → -ent. Always check the ending matches the subject pronoun in written answers.
✕Pronouncing the verb -ent ending (saying ils parlent as 'par-LENT')
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking)
Why it happens
Learners read every letter and assume -ent is sounded, as in English '-ent' (different).
How to avoid it
The verb ending -ent is always silent: ils parlent = 'parl', ils finissent = 'fee-NEESS', ils vendent = 'vond'. Say the form as if the -ent were not there.
✕Conjugating the verb after aller in the near future (je vais joue)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 3 & 4
Why it happens
Learners feel the need to conjugate every verb and forget the second verb stays infinitive.
How to avoid it
In the near future, only aller changes; the action verb stays in the infinitive: je vais jouer, nous allons manger, ils vont arriver.
✕Dropping the -iss- in plural -ir verbs (nous finons instead of nous finissons)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
Learners apply a single ending to the bare stem and forget the -iss- infix in the plural forms.
How to avoid it
For regular -ir verbs, the plural endings are -issons, -issez, -issent: nous finissons, vous choisissez, ils réussissent. Learn the nous form, where the -iss- shows up.

Past paper style quiz

Get a report showing which sub-topics you've nailed and which ones still need work.

Before learning the endings, understand what the present tense does, because it is wider than the English present.

In English we have three present forms:

Simple present: "I eat."
Present continuous: "I am eating."
Emphatic present: "I do eat."

French uses one single tense — le présent — for all three. So je mange can be translated, depending on context, as:

I eat (every day),
I am eating (right now),
I do eat (in reply to "you never eat!").

This is great news: there is less to learn, not more. But it has two traps for English speakers.

Trap 1 — there is no '-ing' verb form. You must never glue a separate word on for "am/is/are eating". Je suis mangeant is wrong. The continuous idea is already inside je mange.

What else the present is used for.

A general truth or habit: Elle parle français. (She speaks French.)
An action happening now: Je regarde la télé. (I am watching TV.)
A scheduled near event, like English: Le train arrive à huit heures. (The train arrives / is arriving at eight.)
With depuis (for/since), where English uses a perfect: J'habite ici depuis deux ans. (I have lived here for two years — but French uses the present.)

Family

Infinitive ends in

Example

Meaning

1st group

-er

parler

to speak

2nd group

-ir

finir

to finish

3rd group

-re

vendre

to sell

Subject

Ending

parler (to speak)

Sounds like

je (I)

-e

je parle

zhuh parl

tu (you, informal)

-es

tu parles

tew parl

il / elle / on (he/she/one)

-e

il parle

eel parl

nous (we)

-ons

nous parlons

noo par-LON

vous (you, formal/plural)

-ez

vous parlez

voo par-LAY

ils / elles (they)

-ent

ils parlent

eel parl

Subject

Form

English

I like/love

tu aimes

you like

il/elle/on

il aime

he likes

nous

nous aimons

we like

vous

vous aimez

you like

ils/elles

ils aiment

they like

Subject

Ending

finir (to finish)

English

-is

je finis

I finish

-is

tu finis

you finish

il/elle/on

-it

il finit

he finishes

nous

-issons

nous finissons

we finish

vous

-issez

vous finissez

you finish

ils/elles

-issent

ils finissent

they finish

Subject

Ending

vendre (to sell)

English

-s

je vends

I sell

-s

tu vends

you sell

il/elle/on

— (nothing)

il vend

he sells

nous

-ons

nous vendons

we sell

vous

-ez

vous vendez

you sell

ils/elles

-ent

ils vendent

they sell

Subject

Form

English

je suis

I am

tu es

you are

il/elle/on

il est

he/she/one is

nous

nous sommes

we are

vous

vous êtes

you are

ils/elles

ils sont

they are

Subject

Form

English

j'ai

I have

tu as

you have

il/elle/on

il a

he/she/one has

nous

nous avons

we have

vous

vous avez

you have

ils/elles

ils ont

they have

Subject

Form

English

je vais

I go

tu vas

you go

il/elle/on

il va

he/she/one goes

nous

nous allons

we go

vous

vous allez

you go

ils/elles

ils vont

they go

Subject

Form

English

je fais

I do/make

tu fais

you do/make

il/elle/on

il fait

he/she/one does

nous

nous faisons

we do/make

vous

vous faites

you do/make

ils/elles

ils font

they do/make

Present tense - regular and key irregulars

Detailed Notes

What you’ll learn

How it’s examined

1Conjugate a regular -er verb across all six persons

2Choose être or avoir correctly

3Build the near future with aller + infinitive

4Conjugate -ir and -re verbs and avoid the -ent trap

Le présent (the present tense)

L'infinitif (the infinitive)

Le radical (the stem)

-er verb endings (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent)

être (to be)

avoir (to have)

aller (to go)

faire (to do / to make)

Le futur proche (the near future)

-ir / -re verb endings

✕Inventing an '-ing' tense, e.g. je suis mangeant for 'I am eating'

✕Using être for age and feelings (je suis faim, je suis quinze ans)

✕Writing the wrong silent ending (je parles, il parlent, tu parle)

✕Pronouncing the verb -ent ending (saying ils parlent as 'par-LENT')

✕Conjugating the verb after aller in the near future (je vais joue)

✕Dropping the -iss- in plural -ir verbs (nous finons instead of nous finissons)

Past paper style quiz

Present tense - regular and key irregulars

Detailed Notes

What you’ll learn

How it’s examined

1Conjugate a regular -er verb across all six persons

2Choose être or avoir correctly

3Build the near future with aller + infinitive

4Conjugate -ir and -re verbs and avoid the -ent trap

Le présent (the present tense)

L'infinitif (the infinitive)

Le radical (the stem)

-er verb endings (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent)

être (to be)

avoir (to have)

aller (to go)

faire (to do / to make)

Le futur proche (the near future)

-ir / -re verb endings

✕Inventing an '-ing' tense, e.g. je suis mangeant for 'I am eating'

✕Using être for age and feelings (je suis faim, je suis quinze ans)

✕Writing the wrong silent ending (je parles, il parlent, tu parle)

✕Pronouncing the verb -ent ending (saying ils parlent as 'par-LENT')

✕Conjugating the verb after aller in the near future (je vais joue)

✕Dropping the -iss- in plural -ir verbs (nous finons instead of nous finissons)

Past paper style quiz