Calmer Conjugation in French

calmer means “to calm” in English, and it is one of the verbs French learners meet early — it sits at frequency rank 212 in VerbFlow’s French list. It is a non-reflexive, regular -er verb, and this page gives you its complete conjugation — 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: “Je calme Marie tous les jours.” — “I calm Marie every day.”

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: calmer
  • English: to calm
  • Verb type: Non-reflexive, Regular
  • Irregular in: no tense — fully regular
  • Gerund: en calmant
  • Past participle: calmé
  • Auxiliary: avoir (all perfect tenses are formed with avoir + the past participle)

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

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for calmer. 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 calme
tu calmes
il/elle calme
nous calmons
vous calmez
ils/elles calment

Passé simple

Person Form
je calmai
tu calmas
il/elle calma
nous calmâmes
vous calmâtes
ils/elles calmèrent

Imperfect

Person Form
je calmais
tu calmais
il/elle calmait
nous calmions
vous calmiez
ils/elles calmaient

Future

Person Form
je calmerai
tu calmeras
il/elle calmera
nous calmerons
vous calmerez
ils/elles calmeront

Conditional

Person Form
je calmerais
tu calmerais
il/elle calmerait
nous calmerions
vous calmeriez
ils/elles calmeraient

Present perfect

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

Pluperfect (past perfect)

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

Future perfect

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

Conditional perfect

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

Present subjunctive

Person Form
je calme
tu calmes
il/elle calme
nous calmions
vous calmiez
ils/elles calment

Imperfect subjunctive

Person Form
je calmasse
tu calmasses
il/elle calmât
nous calmassions
vous calmassiez
ils/elles calmassent

Imperative (affirmative)

Person Form
tu calme
nous calmons
vous calmez

Imperative (negative)

Person Form
tu calme
nous calmons
vous calmez

Gerund and past participle

Form French
Gerund en calmant
Past participle calmé

When to use each tense

Present indicative

The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Je calme Marie tous les jours.” — “I calm Marie every day.”

Passé simple

The passé simple is used for completed actions in the past, mainly in written and literary French. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Tu calmas Marie la semaine dernière.” — “You calmed Marie last week.”

Imperfect

The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Il calmait Marie ce matin.” — “He used to calm Marie this morning.”

Future

The future is used for what will happen, and for predictions. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Nous calmerons Marie.” — “We will calm Marie.”

Conditional

The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Vous calmeriez Marie.” — “You would calm Marie.”

Present perfect

The present perfect (passé composé) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken French. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Ils ont calmé Marie hier.” — “They have calmed Marie yesterday.”

Pluperfect (past perfect)

The pluperfect (past perfect) is used for an action completed before another past action. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “J'avais calmé Marie hier.” — “I had calmed Marie yesterday.”

Future perfect

The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Tu auras calmé Marie la semaine prochaine.” — “You will have calmed Marie next week.”

Conditional perfect

The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Il aurait calmé Marie ce matin.” — “He would have calmed Marie this morning.”

Present subjunctive

The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Il est important que nous calmions Marie tous les jours.” — “It is important that We calm Marie every day.”

Imperfect subjunctive

The imperfect subjunctive is used for the past subjunctive: wishes and hypotheticals about the past, mostly in formal and literary French. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Il fallait que vous calmassiez Marie hier.” — “It was necessary that You calm Marie yesterday.”

Imperative (affirmative)

The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Calmez Marie !” — “Calm Marie!”

Imperative (negative)

The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. With calmer this tense is regular, so the forms follow the standard -er pattern. For example: “Ne calme pas Marie !” — “Do not calm Marie!”

Gerund and past participle

The gerund en calmant is used after en for an action happening at the same time as the main verb. For example: “En calmant, je commence la journée.” — “While calming, I start the day.” The past participle calmé is used with avoir in the perfect tenses, as in j'ai calmé — “I have calmed Marie yesterday.”

Example sentences

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

  1. “Je calme Marie à la maison.” — “I calm Marie at home.”
  2. “Tu calmas Marie ce matin.” — “You calmed Marie this morning.”
  3. “Il calmait Marie avec Paul.” — “He used to calm Marie with Paul.”
  4. “Je calmerai Marie demain.” — “I will calm Marie tomorrow.”
  5. “Tu calmerais Marie tous les jours.” — “You would calm Marie every day.”
  6. “Il a calmé Marie la semaine dernière.” — “He has calmed Marie last week.”
  7. “J'avais calmé Marie ce matin.” — “I had calmed Marie this morning.”
  8. “Tu auras calmé Marie demain.” — “You will have calmed Marie tomorrow.”
  9. “Il est important que il calme Marie tous les jours.” — “It is important that He calm Marie every day.”
  10. “Calme Marie !” — “Calm Marie!”

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je calmer Marie.”

✓ Right: “Je calme Marie tous les jours.”

The infinitive calmer never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form calme.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je calmes Marie.”

✓ Right: “Je calme Marie tous les jours.”

calmes is the tu form, not the je form. The je form is calme — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Je calme Marie hier.”

✓ Right: “J'ai calmé Marie hier.”

Hier points to the past, so use the present perfect ai calmé here, not the present calme.

4. Mixing up the stem in the stressed forms

✗ Wrong: “Je calmons Marie.”

✓ Right: “Je calme Marie tous les jours.”

calmons is the nous form. The je form is calme — the two persons never share a form in the present of calmer.

5. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passé composé

✗ Wrong: “Je suis calmé Marie hier.”

✓ Right: “J'ai calmé Marie hier.”

calmer takes avoir in the compound tenses, not être: ai calmé, never the être form.

6. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Il est important que nous calmons Marie.”

✓ Right: “Il est important que nous calmions Marie.”

After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use calmions here, not the indicative calmons.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) calmerais
    • B) calmasse
    • C) ai calmé
    • D) calme

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

    • A) a calmé
    • B) aurait calmé
    • C) calma
    • D) calmai

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

    • A) calmions
    • B) calmaient
    • C) aurions calmé
    • D) calmâmes

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

    • A) calmeras
    • B) auras calmé
    • C) calmasses
    • D) aurais calmé

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

    • A) aurai calmé
    • B) calmeraient
    • C) calmerais
    • D) calmerions

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

    • A) calmera
    • B) aura calmé
    • C) calmions
    • D) calme

  7. What is the nous form of calmer in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) avons calmé
    • B) avez calmé
    • C) a calmé
    • D) ai calmé

  8. What is the gerund of calmer?

    • A) conclusant
    • B) en calmant
    • C) cessant
    • D) assistant

  9. What is the past participle of calmer?

    • A) calmé
    • B) ajouté
    • C) cassé
    • D) brillé

  10. What does calmer mean in English?

  • A) calm
  • B) break
  • C) consult
  • D) consider

Answer key

  1. D) calme — the je form of calmer in the present indicative is calme. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  2. C) calma — the il/elle form of calmer in the passé simple is calma. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  3. A) calmions — the nous form of calmer in the imperfect is calmions. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  4. A) calmeras — the tu form of calmer in the future is calmeras. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  5. C) calmerais — the je form of calmer in the conditional is calmerais. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  6. D) calme — the il/elle form of calmer in the present subjunctive is calme. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  7. A) avons calmé — the nous form of calmer in the present perfect (passé composé) is avons calmé. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  8. B) en calmant — the gerund of calmer is en calmant; it is used with en for actions happening at the same time as the main verb. The other options are the present participles of neighbouring verbs.
  9. A) calmé — the past participle of calmer is calmé; perfect tenses use avoir + calmé. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. A) calm — calmer means “to calm” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

How to learn this verb

Learn calmer in three passes. First, say the present tense aloud in order — je calme, tu calmes, il calme, nous calmons, vous calmez, ils calment — three times, then write three sentences with the verb. Second, learn the passé composé with its auxiliary: ai calmé shows the pattern, and the participle calmé is the same in every perfect tense. Third, add one new tense a day, always in a sentence, and test yourself the next day before you learn the next one. A verb you can use in a sentence is learnt; a verb you can only recite is not. Use the Verb Quiz and the Verb Conjugator to check what has stuck, and compare calmer with the other verbs in this batch on the French verbs hub.

Frequently asked questions

What does calmer mean in English?

calmer means “to calm”. It is a non-reflexive, regular verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is calmer regular or irregular?

calmer is regular, and it is irregular in these tenses: none. calmer is regular: every form follows the standard -er endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem. There are no surprises in any tense — the tables below are exactly what the endings predict.

What are the gerund and past participle of calmer?

The gerund is en calmant — use it after en for an action happening at the same time as the main verb. The past participle is calmé — use it with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in j'ai calmé.

How do I say “I calm” in French?

Say “Je calme Marie tous les jours.” — “I calm Marie every day.” The je form of the present is calme, and it is the form you will use most often.

How do you pronounce calmer?

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

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