prendre

ByFast French

The French verb “prendre” means “to take,” but a bit confusingly it can also mean “to bring.” Its conjugation in the present tense is irregular, so it must be memorised. However, “prendre” forms the basis for compound verbs such as “comprendre” (to understand), “apprendre” (to learn), “reprendre” (to take back), “surprendre” (to surprise) and many more. See the Compounds & Homologues post for more information. So if you can successfully conjugate “prendre,” you will be able to conjugate 11 other verbs too.

Conjugation in Present Tense:

  • Je prends (I take)
  • Tu prends (You take)
  • Il/elle/on prend (He/she/one takes)
  • Nous prenons (We take)
  • Vous prenez (You take)
  • Ils/elles prennent (They take)

Conjugation in Passé Composé:

To form the passé composé, “prendre” uses the auxiliary verb “avoir” and the past participle “pris.”

  • J’ai pris (I took)
  • Tu as pris (You took)
  • Il/elle/on a pris (He/she/one took)
  • Nous avons pris (We took)
  • Vous avez pris (You took)
  • Ils/elles ont pris (They took)

Usage Examples:

  1. Taking Objects:
    • Je prends le livre. (I take the book.)
    • Il prend son café tous les matins. (He takes his coffee every morning.)
  2. Taking Transport:
    • Nous prenons le train pour Paris. (We take the train to Paris.)
    • Elle prend l’avion pour voyager à l’étranger. (She takes the plane to travel abroad.)
  3. Taking Time:
    • Je prends une heure pour déjeuner. (I take an hour for lunch.)
    • Ils prennent du temps pour réfléchir avant de décider. (They take time to think before deciding.)
  4. Taking Food/Drink:
    • Tu prends du jus d’orange ou du café ? (Are you taking orange juice or coffee?)
    • Elle prend toujours une salade pour le déjeuner. (She always takes a salad for lunch.)
  5. Taking Actions:
    • Ils prennent des mesures pour résoudre le problème. (They take measures to solve the problem.)
    • Prends ton temps pour répondre. (Take your time to answer.)
  6. Taking Medication:
    • Elle prend des médicaments contre le rhume. (She takes medicine for the cold.)
    • Tu prends ce médicament après les repas. (You take this medicine after meals.)
  7. To Bring:
    • n’oublie pas de prendre des bottes (don’t forget to bring boots)
    • je n’ai pas pris assez d’argent (I haven’t brought enough money)

Don’t miss new articles!

Get 1 email a week with new articles about French

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Similar Posts

  • Grammar: Plus-Que-Parfait

    ByFast French

    Understanding the French Plus-Que-Parfait Verb Tense: Actions in the Past Before Another Past Action In French grammar, there’s a tense called the plus-que-parfait that helps us talk about actions that happened before another past action. It adds depth to our storytelling and gives a clearer picture of the sequence of events. “Plus-que-parfait” literally means “more…

  • reflexive verbs imperative

    ByFast French

    The imperative mood in French is used to give commands, make requests, or offer advice. When using reflexive verbs (verbes pronominaux) in the imperative, the word order and placement of reflexive pronouns change depending on whether the command is affirmative or negative. 1. Affirmative Imperative with Reflexive Verbs In affirmative commands, the reflexive pronoun follows…

  • en catimini

    ByFast French

    “En catimini” is a French expression that means furtively, stealthily, on the sly or discreetly. It dates back to the second half of the 14th century. The word “catimini” is often linked to the Greek word “katamenia” which means menstruation. The idea being that women of the era kept their menstrual status largely to themselves….

  • monter

    ByFast French

    The French verb monter is a versatile verb with several meanings, primarily “to climb,” “to go up,” or “to mount.” It can also mean “to assemble,” “to set up,” or “to take up” depending on the context. Additionally, its conjugation in the passé composé varies between être and avoir, which changes its meaning slightly. Main…