Avancer Present Tense Conjugation in French
The present tense of avancer — “to advance” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for avancer, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “J'avance lentement dans la file.” — “I move forward slowly in the queue.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for avancer, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of avancer
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for avancer. avancer is spelling-changing in the present: c becomes ç before a and o, as the table shows.
Present indicative — avancer
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | avance |
| tu | avances |
| il/elle | avance |
| nous | avançons |
| vous | avancez |
| ils/elles | avancent |
The gerund of avancer is en avançant and the past participle is avancé. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.
How the present tense of avancer is formed
The present tense of avancer does not follow the regular pattern, so the stem-and-endings description above is only a starting point: je → avance, tu → avances, il/elle → avance, nous → avançons, vous → avancez, ils/elles → avancent. Learn these six forms as a set — they are the forms you will use most often, and the subjunctive and imperative are built on them. A note on spelling: the cedilla in avançons is part of the form, not decoration. It keeps the c soft before o; copy the forms from the table above exactly, cedillas included.
When to use the present tense of avancer
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with avancer: “J'avance lentement dans la file tous les jours.” — “I move forward slowly in the queue.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
2. General truths and facts
Use the present tense for general truths and facts. For example, with avancer: “Tu avances lentement dans la file en général.” — “You move forward slowly in the queue.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
3. What is happening right now
Use the present tense for what is happening right now. For example, with avancer: “Il avance lentement dans la file maintenant.” — “He moves forward slowly in the queue.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
4. Scheduled plans and the near future
Use the present tense for scheduled plans and the near future. For example, with avancer: “Nous avançons lentement dans la file demain.” — “We move forward slowly in the queue.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
5. Narration and instructions
Use the present tense for narration and instructions. For example, with avancer: “Ils avancent lentement dans la file souvent.” — “They move forward slowly in the queue.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: avancer now, avancer later
The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.
Present Tense: “J'avance lentement dans la file tous les jours.” — “I move forward slowly in the queue.”
Future: “J'avancerai lentement dans la file demain.” — “I will move forward slowly in the queue tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Tu avances lentement dans la file maintenant.” — “You move forward slowly in the queue.”
Future: “Tu avanceras lentement dans la file demain.” — “You will move forward slowly in the queue tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Nous avançons lentement dans la file en classe.” — “We move forward slowly in the queue.”
Future: “Nous avancerons lentement dans la file demain.” — “We will move forward slowly in the queue tomorrow.”
Example sentences: avancer in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of avancer, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “J'avance lentement dans la file tous les jours.” — “I move forward slowly in the queue.”
- “Tu avances lentement dans la file chaque matin.” — “You move forward slowly in the queue.”
- “Il avance lentement dans la file souvent.” — “He moves forward slowly in the queue.”
- “Nous avançons lentement dans la file maintenant.” — “We move forward slowly in the queue.”
- “Vous avancez lentement dans la file en général.” — “You move forward slowly in the queue.”
- “Ils avancent lentement dans la file le week-end.” — “They move forward slowly in the queue.”
Common mistakes with avancer in the present tense
Mistake 1: Forgetting the cedilla
Wrong: “avancons”
Right: “avançons”
The cedilla in avançons keeps the c soft before o.
Mistake 2: Mixing up the persons
Wrong: “Tu avance lentement dans la file.”
Right: “Tu avances lentement dans la file.”
After tu you need avances, not the je form avance. Each person has its own ending.
Mistake 3: Using the future for a habit
Wrong: “J'avancerai lentement dans la file.” (for something you do every day)
Right: “J'avance lentement dans la file tous les jours.”
A habit takes the present, not the future. The future (avancerai) is for what will happen.
Mistake 4: Using the passé composé for a habit
Wrong: “J'ai avancé lentement dans la file tous les jours.” (for a daily habit)
Right: “J'avance lentement dans la file tous les jours.”
A daily habit takes the present. The passé composé is for finished events.
Quiz: avancer in the present tense
What is the je form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avançons
- B) avance
- C) avancez
- D) avances
What is the tu form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avançons
- B) avancent
- C) avances
- D) avancez
What is the il/elle form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avançons
- B) avance
- C) avances
- D) avancent
What is the nous form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avancez
- B) avances
- C) avançons
- D) avancent
What is the vous form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avancez
- B) avançons
- C) avance
- D) avancent
What is the ils/elles form of avancer in the Present indicative?
- A) avancez
- B) avançons
- C) avancent
- D) avances
What is the gerund of avancer?
- A) en avançant
- B) avance
- C) avancé
- D) avancerai
What does avancer mean in English?
- A) to be
- B) to advance
- C) to go
- D) to have
Answer key
- B) avance — the je form of avancer in the present indicative is avance.
- C) avances — the tu form of avancer in the present indicative is avances.
- B) avance — the il/elle form of avancer in the present indicative is avance.
- C) avançons — the nous form of avancer in the present indicative is avançons.
- A) avancez — the vous form of avancer in the present indicative is avancez.
- C) avancent — the ils/elles form of avancer in the present indicative is avancent.
- A) en avançant — the gerund of avancer is en avançant.
- B) to advance — avancer means “to advance” in English.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of avancer formed?
From the stem plus the present endings — the full table is at the top of this page. The je form is avance and the ils form is avancent. The c becomes ç before a and o.
When do I use the present tense of avancer?
Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. The five usage rules above, with examples, cover the situations you will meet most often.
What is the difference between the present tense and the future?
The present is for what is true now or happens regularly (avance), while the future is for what will happen (avancerai). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.
Where can I see the full conjugation of avancer?
On the full conjugation page for avancer, which has every tense, plus examples and a longer quiz. The examples and quiz page has more sentences in context.
Practice drill
Say the six present tense forms of avancer in order, without looking: avance, avances, avance, avançons, avancez, avancent. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using avance, ai avancé and avancerai. Check every form against the table above. When you can produce all six persons without looking, move on to the examples and quiz page.
Related pages
- avancer in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- avancer examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- French irregular verbs — every common irregular French verb, grouped by pattern.
- Reculer conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise avancer with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise avancer with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.