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Verbs of the First Group

Verbs of the Second Group

3rd Group: Verbs with the roots: battre, tenir, courir, and cueillir

3rd Group: Verbs with the roots: mettre, venir, cevoir, and the verbs conjugating like rendre

3rd Group: Verbs ending in eindre, tendre, prendre, and crire

3rd Group: Verbs conjugating like: sentir, connaître, construire, and faire

The Negative Form

Negation in the Present Simple

aa
AA

La négation simple

When conjugating in the present tense, the simple negative is formed by using ne before the verb and pas after the verb. Thus, we tend to have the following order:

Subject+ ne + verb + pas

Elle ne lit pas le journal.
She does not read the newspaper.

Tu ne travailles pas le dimanche.
You don’t work on Sunday.

As a general rule, when two verbs follow each other, The second one is always in the infinitive. In this case, the ne is placed before the first verb, and the pas is placed between the conjugated verb and the infinitive.

Nous ne voulons pas étudier ce soir.
We don’t want to study tonight.

Je ne peux pas voyager la semaine prochaine.
I cannot travel next week.

When the verb conjugated begins with a vowel, the ne changes to n’. This is known as elision: élision.

Il n’aime pas les politiciens.
He does not like politicians.

Je n’habite pas en ville.
I don’t live in the city.

In colloquial speech, the ne is often dropped:

T’es pas fatigué?
Aren’t you tired?

Non, j’suis pas fatigué.
No, I am not tired.

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