Le conditionnel
The conditionnel expresses what would happen under certain conditions. It is also the polite form for requests and corresponds to "would" in English.
How to form the conditionnel
The rule
The conditionnel uses the same stems as the futur simple — infinitive for regular verbs, irregular stem for irregular ones. The endings, however, are identical to the imparfait endings.
-er verbs
parler → je parlerais
-ir verbs
finir → je finirais
-re verbs
vendre → je vendrais
Conditionnel endings · parler (to speak)
| Pronoun | Ending | Full form |
|---|---|---|
| je | -ais | je parlerais |
| tu | -ais | tu parlerais |
| il / elle / on | -ait | il parlerait |
| nous | -ions | nous parlerions |
| vous | -iez | vous parleriez |
| ils / elles | -aient | ils parleraient |
Irregular stems
The irregular stems are identical to those of the futur simple. If you know the future, you already know the conditional stem: just swap the endings.
| Infinitive | English | Conditional stem |
|---|---|---|
| être | to be | ser- |
| avoir | to have | aur- |
| aller | to go | ir- |
| faire | to do / make | fer- |
| venir | to come | viendr- |
| voir | to see | verr- |
| savoir | to know | saur- |
| vouloir | to want | voudr- |
| pouvoir | to be able | pourr- |
| devoir | to have to | devr- |
| tenir | to hold | tiendr- |
| courir | to run | courr- |
Polite requests
Using the conditionnel softens a request and sounds much more polite than the present tense.
| French | English | |
|---|---|---|
| Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît. | I would like a coffee, please. | |
| Pourriez-vous m'aider ? | Could you help me? | |
| Auriez-vous une table libre ? | Would you have a free table? | |
| Il faudrait partir bientôt. | We should / ought to leave soon. |
Si-clause hypotheticals
To talk about hypothetical or unreal situations, use si + imparfait in the condition clause, and the conditionnel in the result clause. Never use the conditionnel directly after si.
| French | English | Pattern | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Si j'avais le temps, je voyagerais. | If I had time, I would travel. | si + imparfait → conditionnel | |
| Si elle travaillait plus, elle réussirait. | If she worked more, she would succeed. | si + imparfait → conditionnel | |
| Si nous habitions à Paris, nous visiterions les musées. | If we lived in Paris, we would visit the museums. | si + imparfait → conditionnel | |
| Si tu m'appelais, je répondrais. | If you called me, I would answer. | si + imparfait → conditionnel |
Quick tense sequence guide
Real / likely
si + présent → futur simple
Si tu pars, je viendrai.
Hypothetical
si + imparfait → conditionnel
Si tu partais, je viendrais.
Contrary to past
si + plus-que-parfait → conditionnel passé
Si tu étais parti, je serais venu.