French conjugation explanation
Hard and soft g
<p>In French, the pronunciation of the letter <span style="font-style: italic;">g</span> changes depending on the vowel that immediately follows it:</p>
<ul>
<li>When followed by <strong>a</strong>, <strong>o</strong>, or <strong>u</strong>, it is a <strong>hard g</strong> pronounced [g] (like in <span style="font-style: italic;">gare</span>).</li>
<li>When followed by <strong>e</strong>, <strong>i</strong>, or <strong>y</strong>, it is a <strong>soft g</strong> pronounced [ʒ] (like in <span style="font-style: italic;">girafe</span>).</li>
</ul>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Verbs ending in -ger</div>
<p>For verbs ending in <span style="font-style: italic;"><strong>-ger</strong></span> (such as <span style="font-style: italic;">
<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/manger/" title="Click to see conjugations for manger" target="_blank">manger</a>
,<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/voyager/" title="Click to see conjugations for voyager" target="_blank">voyager</a>
,<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/nager/" title="Click to see conjugations for nager" target="_blank">nager</a>
,<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/bouger/" title="Click to see conjugations for bouger" target="_blank">bouger</a>
</span>), the stem ends in the soft [ʒ] sound. To preserve this pronunciation throughout the conjugation, a spelling change is required when the ending begins with a hard vowel (<strong>a</strong> or <strong>o</strong>).</p><p>In these cases, we must insert a silent <strong>e</strong> between the <span style="font-style: italic;">g</span> and the vowel. This ensures the <span style="font-style: italic;">g</span> remains soft.</p>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Nous <span class="green_emphasis">mangeons</span> des pommes. (<span style="font-style: italic;">We eat apples.</span>)</div>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(We add <strong>e</strong> before <strong>o</strong> to avoid the pronunciation "mangons".)</div>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Il <span class="green_emphasis">voyageait</span> souvent. (<span style="font-style: italic;">He traveled often.</span>)</div>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(We add <strong>e</strong> before <strong>a</strong>.)</div>
<p>This spelling change typically affects:</p>
<ul>
<li>The <strong>nous</strong> form of the
<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/25/" target="_blank">Present Indicative</a>
(ending in <span style="font-style: italic;">-ons</span>).</li><li>The singular forms and the third person plural of the
<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/26/" target="_blank">Imperfect</a>
(endings starting with <span style="font-style: italic;">a</span>).</li></ul>
<p>Note that we do <strong>not</strong> add the extra <span style="font-style: italic;">e</span> when the ending starts with <strong>i</strong> (such as <span style="font-style: italic;">nous mangions</span>), because the <span style="font-style: italic;">g</span> is already soft before <span style="font-style: italic;">i</span>.</p>
<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Conjugation Tables</div>
<p>In the following tables for the verb
<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/manger/" title="Click to see conjugations for manger" target="_blank">manger</a>
, the forms requiring the extra <strong>e</strong> are highlighted:</p><div class="study_conjugations_tense_container">
<a class="study_conjugations_tense_label box_label tense_box no_dark_mode " href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/25/" target="_blank" title="Open tense guide">Présent</a>
<div class="study_conjugations_conjugation conjugations_table two_columns">
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
je
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">e</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
tu
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">es</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
il
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">e</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms highlighted_conjugation">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
nous
</span><span class="irregular_conjugation" title="irregular conjugation">mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">eons</span><span class="irregularity_circle">●</span></span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
vous
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">ez</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
ils
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">ent</span></span>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_tense_container">
<a class="study_conjugations_tense_label box_label tense_box no_dark_mode " href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/26/" target="_blank" title="Open tense guide">Imparfait</a>
<div class="study_conjugations_conjugation conjugations_table two_columns">
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms highlighted_conjugation">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
je
</span><span class="irregular_conjugation" title="irregular conjugation">mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">eais</span><span class="irregularity_circle">●</span></span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms highlighted_conjugation">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
tu
</span><span class="irregular_conjugation" title="irregular conjugation">mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">eais</span><span class="irregularity_circle">●</span></span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms highlighted_conjugation">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
il
</span><span class="irregular_conjugation" title="irregular conjugation">mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">eait</span><span class="irregularity_circle">●</span></span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
nous
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">ions</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
vous
</span>mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">iez</span></span>
</div>
</div>
<div class="study_conjugations_forms conjugation_forms highlighted_conjugation">
<div class="conjugation_form">
<span><span class="study_conjugations_pronoun conjugation_pronoun">
ils
</span><span class="irregular_conjugation" title="irregular conjugation">mang<span style="text-decoration: underline;">eaient</span><span class="irregularity_circle">●</span></span></span>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>