Appeler in the Present Tense in French
Introduction
Appeler means “to call”, and this page covers exactly one thing: appeler in the present tense. The present is the tense French speakers reach for when they talk about what happens regularly, what is true in general, and what is happening right now. On this page you will find the full present table for appeler, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about appeler in the present. For example: “J'appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “I call Marie every evening every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of appeler exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.
Appeler in the Present Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | appelle |
| tu | appelles |
| il/elle | appelle |
| nous | appelons |
| vous | appelez |
| ils/elles | appellent |
Gerund: appelant · Past participle: appelé
The gerund is appelant, which you use after en for an action happening at the same time as another action. The past participle is appelé, which you use with avoir in the perfect tenses: the je form of the present perfect is ai appelé, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the present is only one part of how appeler is used.
How the present of appeler is formed
The present of appeler is irregular: the forms do not follow the regular -er pattern, so learn them as a set — je appelle, tu appelles, il/elle appelle, nous appelons, vous appelez, ils/elles appellent. There is no single stem that produces all six forms, which is why this verb is listed as irregular in the present in the verified tables. Say the six forms aloud in order, je to ils, until the set feels like one unit rather than six separate words.
The present stem also feeds other tenses: the imperfect is built from the present nous form, and the present subjunctive is built from the present ils form, so learning the present properly makes the rest of the conjugation easier. The gerund appelant and the participle appelé belong to the same family of forms — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise appeler in every tense.
When to use the present of appeler
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use appeler in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. Calling Marie every evening — the everyday use
Appeler is the verb for calling Marie every evening. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “J'appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “I call Marie every evening every day.”
2. Calling the doctor this morning — a second everyday use
Appeler also covers calling the doctor this morning. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Tu appelles le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “You call the doctor this morning every day.”
3. Calling my friends in Paris — a third everyday use
In a third everyday situation, you use appeler for calling my friends in Paris. The same verb, the same present forms, a different situation — that is why the present is worth learning as a whole table rather than one form at a time. Example: “Il appelle mes amis à Paris tous les jours.” — “He calls my friends in Paris every day.”
4. Habits and routines
The present tense is the tense of routine. When something happens every day, every week or every morning, the present is the natural choice, and appeler is no exception. Use time expressions such as tous les jours, toujours or chaque semaine to make the routine explicit. Example: “Nous appelons Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “We call Marie every evening every day.”
5. What is happening right now
The present also describes an action in progress at this very moment. French often prefers the simple present where English would use the continuous form, so a sentence with appeler in the present can mean both “I do this” and “I am doing this now”. Context tells the listener which one you mean. Example: “Vous appelez le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “You call the doctor this morning every day.”
Present Tense vs Imperfect: how to choose
The closest tense to the present is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual past action, while the present describes habits and facts that are true now. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the present sentences use words such as tous les jours or hier, while the imperfect sentences use autrefois or quand. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.
Present: “J'appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “I call Marie every evening every day.”
Imperfect: “J'appelais Marie tous les soirs autrefois.” — “I used to call Marie every evening in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Present: “Tu appelles le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “You call the doctor this morning every day.”
Imperfect: “Tu appelais le médecin ce matin autrefois.” — “You used to call the doctor this morning in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Present: “Nous appelons mes amis à Paris tous les jours.” — “We call my friends in Paris every day.”
Imperfect: “Nous appelions mes amis à Paris autrefois.” — “We used to call my friends in Paris in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: appeler in the present
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other words — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“J'appelle le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “I call the doctor this morning every day.”
“Tu appelles mes amis à Paris tous les jours.” — “You call my friends in Paris every day.”
“Il appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “He calls Marie every evening every day.”
“Nous appelons le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “We call the doctor this morning every day.”
“Vous appelez mes amis à Paris tous les jours.” — “You call my friends in Paris every day.”
“Ils appellent Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “They call Marie every evening every day.”
“J'appelle le médecin ce matin tous les jours.” — “I call the doctor this morning every day.”
“Tu appelles mes amis à Paris tous les jours.” — “You call my friends in Paris every day.”
Common mistakes with appeler in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Je appellent Marie tous les soirs.” Right: “Je appelle Marie tous les soirs.” Why: The je form is appelle, not appellent. Appellent belongs with ils/elles. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.
Wrong: “Nous appellent Marie tous les soirs.” Right: “Nous appelons Marie tous les soirs.” Why: Nous keeps its own form: appelons, not appellent. Learn nous and vous as a separate pair from the singular forms.
Wrong: “Marie tous les soirs” with the infinitive: “Je appeler Marie tous les soirs.” Right: “Je appelle Marie tous les soirs.” Why: The infinitive appeler never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form appelle.
Wrong: “Il est important que je appelle Marie tous les soirs.” Right: “Il est important que je appelle Marie tous les soirs.” Why: After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use appelle here, not the indicative appelle.
Quiz: appeler in the present
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Je ______ le médecin ce matin.”
- (A) appelez
- (B) appelle
- (C) appelles
- (D) appelons
2. Complete the sentence: “Tu ______ mes amis à Paris.”
- (A) appelons
- (B) appelez
- (C) appelles
- (D) appelle
3. Complete the sentence: “Il ______ Marie tous les soirs.”
- (A) appelez
- (B) appelle
- (C) appelles
- (D) appelons
4. Complete the sentence: “Nous ______ le médecin ce matin.”
- (A) appelles
- (B) appelez
- (C) appelons
- (D) appelle
5. Complete the sentence: “Vous ______ mes amis à Paris.”
- (A) appelle
- (B) appelles
- (C) appelons
- (D) appelez
6. Complete the sentence: “Ils ______ Marie tous les soirs.”
- (A) appelle
- (B) appelles
- (C) appelons
- (D) appellent
7. What does appeler mean in English?
- (A) to look for
- (B) to call
- (C) to allow
- (D) to look at
8. What is the past participle of appeler?
- (A) cherché
- (B) appelé
- (C) permis
- (D) regardé
Answer key
- B) appelle — The je form is appelle.
- C) appelles — The tu form is appelles.
- B) appelle — The il/elle form is appelle.
- C) appelons — The nous form is appelons.
- D) appelez — The vous form is appelez.
- D) appellent — The ils/elles form is appellent.
- B) to call — appeler means “to call”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
- B) appelé — The past participle of appeler is appelé; the present is formed with avoir + appelé.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present of appeler formed?
The present of appeler is irregular, so the six forms must be learned as a set from the table above: je appelle, tu appelles, il appelle, nous appelons, vous appelez, ils appellent. There is no regular pattern that produces them.
When do I use the present of appeler?
Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “J'appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” — “I call Marie every evening every day.” For a finished past action, use the passé composé instead.
What is the difference between the present and the imperfect of appeler?
The present describes what is true now or happens regularly; the imperfect describes what used to happen or was happening in the past. Compare “J'appelle Marie tous les soirs tous les jours.” with “J'appelais Marie tous les soirs autrefois.” — the first is now, the second is the past as it used to be.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for appeler, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of appeler — every tense of appeler in one place.
- Appeler in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Appeler examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Permettre conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Regarder conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Chercher conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- French irregular verbs — every common irregular French verb, grouped by pattern.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise appeler with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise appeler with the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — practise appeler with the interactive tool.