Apporter Conjugation in French

apporter means “bring (something)” in English, and it is a verb French learners meet early — it sits in VerbFlow’s frequency list for French. You use it for bringing something to dinner, for carrying a present, and for bringing a book to class. Because it comes up in everyday conversation so often, learning its forms properly pays off from the very first week. This page gives you the complete conjugation of apporter — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “J'apporte un gâteau.” — “I bring (something) a cake.”

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: apporter
  • English: bring (something)
  • Verb type: Regular
  • Irregular in: none — it is regular in every tense
  • Gerund: en apportant
  • Past participle: apporté
  • Auxiliary: avoir (all perfect tenses are formed with avoir + the past participle)

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for apporter, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for apporter. Learn the present tense first, then the passé composé and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.

Present indicative

Person Form
je apporte
tu apportes
il/elle apporte
nous apportons
vous apportez
ils/elles apportent

Passé simple

Person Form
je apportai
tu apportas
il/elle apporta
nous apportâmes
vous apportâtes
ils/elles apportèrent

Imperfect

Person Form
je apportais
tu apportais
il/elle apportait
nous apportions
vous apportiez
ils/elles apportaient

Future

Person Form
je apporterai
tu apporteras
il/elle apportera
nous apporterons
vous apporterez
ils/elles apporteront

Conditional

Person Form
je apporterais
tu apporterais
il/elle apporterait
nous apporterions
vous apporteriez
ils/elles apporteraient

Present subjunctive

Person Form
je apporte
tu apportes
il/elle apporte
nous apportions
vous apportiez
ils/elles apportent

Imperfect subjunctive

Person Form
je apportasse
tu apportasses
il/elle apportât
nous apportassions
vous apportassiez
ils/elles apportassent

Present perfect

Person Form
je ai apporté
tu as apporté
il/elle a apporté
nous avons apporté
vous avez apporté
ils/elles ont apporté

Pluperfect (past perfect)

Person Form
je avais apporté
tu avais apporté
il/elle avait apporté
nous avions apporté
vous aviez apporté
ils/elles avaient apporté

Future perfect

Person Form
je aurai apporté
tu auras apporté
il/elle aura apporté
nous aurons apporté
vous aurez apporté
ils/elles auront apporté

Conditional perfect

Person Form
je aurais apporté
tu aurais apporté
il/elle aurait apporté
nous aurions apporté
vous auriez apporté
ils/elles auraient apporté

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tu apporte
nous apportons
vous apportez

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tu apporte
nous apportons
vous apportez

Gerund and past participle

Form French
Gerund en apportant
Past participle apporté

When to use each tense

Present indicative

The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “J'apporte des fleurs.” — “I bring (something) some flowers.”

Passé simple

The passé simple is used for completed actions in the past, mainly in written and literary French. For example: “J'apportai des fleurs hier.” — “I brought some flowers yesterday.”

Imperfect

The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and background description. For example: “J'apportais des fleurs avant.” — “I used to bring (something) some flowers before.”

Future

The future is used for what will happen, predictions and plans. For example: “J'apporterai des fleurs demain.” — “I will bring (something) some flowers tomorrow.”

Conditional

The conditional is used for what would happen, polite requests and hypothetical situations. For example: “J'apporterais des fleurs un jour.” — “I would bring (something) some flowers one day.”

Present subjunctive

The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. For example: “Bien que j'apporte des fleurs” — “Although I bring (something) some flowers.”

Imperfect subjunctive

The imperfect subjunctive is used for the past subjunctive: wishes and hypotheticals about the past, in formal and literary French. For example: “Bien que j'apportasse des fleurs” — “Although I bring (something) some flowers.”

Present perfect

The present perfect is used for recent past actions and life experience; this is the everyday spoken past tense, the passé composé. For example: “J'ai apporté des fleurs cette semaine.” — “I have brought some flowers this week.”

Pluperfect (past perfect)

The pluperfect (past perfect) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “J'avais apporté des fleurs avant la fête.” — “I had brought some flowers before the party.”

Future perfect

The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “J'aurai apporté des fleurs pour demain.” — “I will have brought some flowers by tomorrow.”

Conditional perfect

The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “J'aurais apporté des fleurs hier.” — “I would have brought some flowers yesterday.”

Imperative (affirmative)

The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “apporte des fleurs !” — “Bring (something) some flowers!”

Imperative (negative)

The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Ne apporte pas des fleurs !” — “Don't bring (something) some flowers!”

Gerund and past participle

The gerund en apportant is used after en for an action in progress, and the past participle apporté builds the perfect tenses with avoir. For example: “J'ai apporté le livre cette semaine.” — “I have brought the book this week.”

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with apporter, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the French and try to produce it from the English.

  1. “J'apporte un gâteau.” — “I bring (something) a cake.”
  2. “Tu apportas des fleurs hier.” — “You brought some flowers yesterday.”
  3. “Il apportait le livre avant.” — “He used to bring (something) the book before.”
  4. “J'apporterai du vin demain.” — “I will bring (something) some wine tomorrow.”
  5. “Tu apporterais un gâteau un jour.” — “You would bring (something) a cake one day.”
  6. “Il a apporté des fleurs cette semaine.” — “He has brought some flowers this week.”
  7. “J'avais apporté le livre avant la fête.” — “I had brought the book before the party.”
  8. “Tu auras apporté du vin pour demain.” — “You will have brought some wine by tomorrow.”
  9. “Bien que il apporte un gâteau” — “Although he brings (something) a cake.”
  10. “apporte des fleurs !” — “Bring (something) some flowers!”

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je apporter un gâteau.”

✓ Right: “Je apporte un gâteau.”

The infinitive apporter never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form apporte.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je apportons des fleurs.”

✓ Right: “Je apporte des fleurs.”

apportons is the nous form. With je the present form is apporte — check the person in the table before you speak.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Hier, je apporte un gâteau.”

✓ Right: “Hier, j'ai apporté un gâteau.”

The present apporte describes now. For something finished yesterday, use the passé composé ai apporté.

4. Using the passé simple in everyday speech

✗ Wrong: “Hier, je apportai le livre.” (in casual conversation)

✓ Right: “Hier, j'ai apporté le livre.”

The passé simple apportai belongs in novels and formal writing. In everyday speech, say the passé composé ai apporté.

5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Bien que je apporte un gâteau.”

✓ Right: “Bien que je apporte un gâteau.”

After bien que French needs the subjunctive, so use apporte here, not the indicative apporte.

6. Using the imperfect for a single finished action

✗ Wrong: “Je apportais du vin avant.” (said of one finished moment)

✓ Right: “J'ai apporté du vin avant.”

The imperfect apportais describes something ongoing or repeated in the past. For one finished action, use the passé composé ai apporté.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on apporter. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. What is the je form of apporter in the Present indicative?

    • A) apportez
    • B) apportons
    • C) apportent
    • D) apporte

  2. What is the il/elle form of apporter in the Passé simple?

    • A) apportâmes
    • B) apportai
    • C) apportâtes
    • D) apporta

  3. What is the nous form of apporter in the Imperfect?

    • A) apportait
    • B) apportiez
    • C) apportaient
    • D) apportions

  4. What is the tu form of apporter in the Future?

    • A) apporteront
    • B) apporterez
    • C) apporterai
    • D) apporteras

  5. What is the je form of apporter in the Conditional?

    • A) apporterait
    • B) apporteriez
    • C) apporteraient
    • D) apporterais

  6. What is the il/elle form of apporter in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) apportions
    • B) apporte
    • C) apportent
    • D) apportiez

  7. What is the je form of apporter in the Imperfect subjunctive?

    • A) apportasse
    • B) apportassiez
    • C) apportassent
    • D) apportassions

  8. What is the gerund of apporter?

    • A) apportant
    • B) dormant
    • C) buvant

  9. What is the past participle of apporter?

    • A) apporté
    • B) bu
    • C) dormi

  10. What does apporter mean in English?

  • A) open
  • B) sleep
  • C) bring (something)
  • D) drink

Answer key

  1. D) apporte — The je form of apporter in the present indicative is apporte.
  2. D) apporta — The il/elle form of apporter in the passé simple is apporta.
  3. D) apportions — The nous form of apporter in the imperfect is apportions.
  4. D) apporteras — The tu form of apporter in the future is apporteras.
  5. D) apporterais — The je form of apporter in the conditional is apporterais.
  6. B) apporte — The il/elle form of apporter in the present subjunctive is apporte.
  7. A) apportasse — The je form of apporter in the imperfect subjunctive is apportasse.
  8. A) apportant — The gerund of apporter is en apportant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  9. A) apporté — The past participle of apporter is apporté; perfect tenses use avoir + apporté.
  10. C) bring (something) — apporter means “bring (something)” in English.

Frequently asked questions

What does apporter mean in English?

apporter means “bring (something)”. You use it for bringing something to dinner, for carrying a present, and for bringing a book to class. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is apporter regular or irregular?

apporter is regular, and it is irregular in these tenses: none — it is regular in every tense. The gerund is en apportant and the past participle is apporté.

What are the gerund and past participle of apporter?

The gerund is en apportant — use it after en for actions in progress. The past participle is apporté — use it with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in ai apporté.

How do I say “I bring (something)” in French?

Say “J'apporte un gâteau.” — “I bring (something) a cake.” The je form of the present is apporte, and it is the form you will use most often.

What is the difference between apporter and emporter?

apporter means “bring (something)” while emporter means “take away” — they describe different actions, so they are not interchangeable. Compare the full table for emporter and check the meaning in context before you choose.

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