{"id":3541,"date":"2020-04-05T12:30:52","date_gmt":"2020-04-05T12:30:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/?p=3541"},"modified":"2020-08-15T16:10:45","modified_gmt":"2020-08-15T16:10:45","slug":"french-prendre-conjugation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/french-prendre-conjugation\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Hold of the \u201cPrendre\u201d Conjugation in French"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Of all the verbs that the French language has to offer, prendre<\/em> is one of the most often used and one of the most versatile. This verb has a lot of different meanings. The most basic and most common use translates to something like \u2018to take\u2019. This can refer to physical things like clothes, books and coffee as well as more abstract ideas like decisions and risks.<\/p>\n

Qui a pris<\/span> ma ceinture?
\n\u2018Who took<\/em> my belt?\u2019<\/p>\n

Elle va prendre<\/span> des risques.
\n\u2018She’s going to take<\/em> a chance\u2019<\/p>\n

This verb comes up so often in French that you should be surprised if you don\u2019t hear it. As such, we strongly recommend that you get familiar with the conjugation of prendre<\/em>. Unfortunately, tthis irregular verb can be a bit difficult. Thankfully, this article is here to make sure that you have a full understanding of it.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u201cPrendre\u201d Conjugation in the Present Tense<\/h2>\n

To start, let\u2019s have an overview of the entire prendre<\/em> conjugation for le pr\u00e9sent<\/em> (the present tense). Thankfully, it is more consistent than both the conjugations of \u00eatre<\/em><\/a> and avoir<\/em><\/a>. That being said, prendre<\/em> is a verb you absolutely must know as it\u2019s one of the most commonly used in the language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Singular<\/strong><\/td>\nPlural<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Je prends<\/td>\nI take<\/td>\nNous prenons<\/td>\nWe take\/get<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tu prends<\/td>\nYou take<\/td>\nVous prenez<\/td>\nYou take\/get<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Il prend<\/td>\nHe takes<\/td>\nIls prennent<\/td>\nThey take\/get<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elle prend<\/td>\nShe takes<\/td>\nElles prennent<\/td>\nThey take\/get<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
On prend<\/td>\nWe take \/ One takes<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Je prends<\/strong><\/span> un raccourci
\n\u2018I\u2019m taking a shortcut\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

Est-ce que tu prends <\/strong><\/span>un jour de cong\u00e9 ?
\n\u2018Are you taking a day off?\u2019<\/p>\n

Elle prend<\/strong><\/span> du sucre dans son caf\u00e9<\/span>
\n\u2018She takes sugar in her coffee\u2019<\/p>\n

L\u2019arbre prend <\/strong><\/span>feu
\n\u2018The tree catches fire\u2019<\/p>\n

Nous prenons <\/strong><\/span>du th\u00e9 apr\u00e8s chaque repas
\n\u2018We take\/drink tea after every meal\u2019<\/p>\n

Vous prenez<\/strong><\/span> \u00e0 droite
\n\u2018You turn right\u2019<\/p>\n

Elles prennent<\/strong><\/span> leur travail aux s\u00e9rieux
\n\u2018They take their work seriously\u2019<\/p>\n

Ils prennent <\/strong><\/span>leur propre d\u00e9cisions<\/span>
\n\u2018They make their own decisions\u2019<\/p>\n

When it comes to meaning, prendre<\/em> is also extremely flexible. We\u2019ve already mentioned the fact that it can mean \u2018to take\u2019. In addition, it can also mean \u2018to catch\u2019 \u2018to drink\u2019 \u2018to turn\u2019 \u2018to pick\u2019 or \u2018to handle.\u2019<\/p>\n

As with the English \u2018get\u2019 and \u2018take\u2019 the verb prendre<\/em> is one of the most commonly used and comes up in a wide variety of idiomatic expressions in French. This is one of the reasons it\u2019s such an important word to know.<\/p>\n