chanter Present Tense Conjugation in French

The present of chanter — sing — is the form you need for habits, facts and things happening now. chanter is the verb for talking about music: it comes up whenever you talk about describing a concert or singing at home. This page gives you the complete present table for chanter, 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: “Je chante une chanson.” — “I sing a song.”

Present conjugation of chanter

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for chanter. chanter is regular (regular in the present), so watch out for the forms that break the pattern — they are the ones learners need to memorise.

Present — chanter

Person Form
je chante
tu chantes
il/elle chante
nous chantons
vous chantez
ils/elles chantent

The gerund of chanter is en chantant and the past participle is chanté. The participle matters here because the present is often confused with the other past tenses — keep them apart.

How the present of chanter is formed

The present of chanter is formed from its stem with the present endings. The six forms are chante, chantes, chante, chantons, chantez and chantent. Copy them from the table above exactly as written — do not guess a form from the infinitive.

A note on spelling: the forms in the table are the verified forms. If a form carries an accent, the accent is part of the spelling — for example chante — so always write it exactly as shown.

The present is the tense to learn first for chanter: every other tense in the full table is built from patterns you meet here, and the present is the form you will use most often in conversation.

When to use the present of chanter

Habits and routines

Use the present for something you do regularly. For example: “Je chante une chanson.” — “I sing a song.”

Facts and general truths

Use the present for facts that are true in general. For example: “Il chante dans la chorale.” — “He sings in the choir.”

Things happening now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment. For example: “Nous chantons sous la douche.” — “We sing in the shower.”

Near future plans

French often uses the present with a time word for a plan that is already fixed. For example: “Je chante très bien.” — “I sing very well.”

Present vs passé composé: chanter finished, chanter in progress

The present and the passé composé are the two tenses learners confuse most with chanter. The present is for habits, facts and things happening now; the passé composé is for recent past actions and life experience; this is the everyday spoken past tense, the passé composé. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the passé composé form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present: “Je chante une chanson.” — “I sing a song.”

  • Passé composé: “J'ai chanté une chanson cette semaine.” — “I have sung a song this week.”

  • Present: “Il chante dans la chorale.” — “He sings in the choir.”

  • Passé composé: “Il a chanté dans la chorale cette semaine.” — “He has sung in the choir this week.”

  • Present: “Nous chantons sous la douche.” — “We sing in the shower.”

  • Passé composé: “Nous avons chanté sous la douche cette semaine.” — “We have sung in the shower this week.”

Example sentences: chanter in the present

Six sentences using only the present of chanter, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Je chante une chanson.” — “I sing a song.”
  • “Tu chantes dans la chorale.” — “You sing in the choir.”
  • “Il chante sous la douche.” — “He sings in the shower.”
  • “Nous chantons très bien.” — “We sing very well.”
  • “Vous chantez une chanson.” — “You sing a song.”
  • “Ils chantent dans la chorale.” — “They sing in the choir.”

Common mistakes in the present of chanter

1. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je chantons une chanson.”

✓ Right: “Je chante une chanson.”

chantons is the nous form. With je the present form is chante.

2. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je chanter dans la chorale.”

✓ Right: “Je chante dans la chorale.”

The infinitive chanter never takes a subject. After je you need chante.

3. Using the passé composé for a habit

✗ Wrong: “Tous les jours, j'ai chanté sous la douche.”

✓ Right: “Tous les jours, je chante sous la douche.”

A habit needs the present chante, not the passé composé.

4. Using the present where the imperfect belongs

✗ Wrong: “Avant, je chante très bien tous les jours.” (said of a repeated habit)

✓ Right: “Avant, je chantais très bien tous les jours.”

For something you did regularly in the past, use the imperfect chantais.

5. Mixing up tu and je

✗ Wrong: “Tu chante une chanson.”

✓ Right: “Tu chantes une chanson.”

With tu the present form is chantes, not chante. Copy the form for the right person from the table.

Quiz: test yourself on the present of chanter

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

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

    • A) chantez
    • B) chantons
    • C) chante
    • D) chantes

  2. What is the tu form of chanter in the Present indicative?

    • A) chantons
    • B) chantes
    • C) chantez
    • D) chante

  3. What is the il/elle form of chanter in the Present indicative?

    • A) chantent
    • B) chantons
    • C) chante
    • D) chantez

  4. What is the nous form of chanter in the Present indicative?

    • A) chante
    • B) chantons
    • C) chantez
    • D) chantent

  5. What is the vous form of chanter in the Present indicative?

    • A) chante
    • B) chantons
    • C) chantez
    • D) chantent

  6. What is the ils/elles form of chanter in the Present indicative?

    • A) chantez
    • B) chantes
    • C) chantent
    • D) chantons

  7. What is the je form of chanter in the Present perfect?

    • A) as chanté
    • B) ont chanté
    • C) a chanté
    • D) ai chanté

  8. What is the gerund of chanter?

    • A) chantant
    • B) dormant
    • C) buvant

  9. What is the past participle of chanter?

    • A) chanté
    • B) bu
    • C) dormi

  10. What does chanter mean in English?

  • A) sleep
  • B) open
  • C) drink
  • D) sing

Answer key

  1. C) chante — The je form of chanter in the present indicative is chante.
  2. B) chantes — The tu form of chanter in the present indicative is chantes.
  3. C) chante — The il/elle form of chanter in the present indicative is chante.
  4. B) chantons — The nous form of chanter in the present indicative is chantons.
  5. C) chantez — The vous form of chanter in the present indicative is chantez.
  6. C) chantent — The ils/elles form of chanter in the present indicative is chantent.
  7. D) ai chanté — The je form of chanter in the present perfect is ai chanté.
  8. A) chantant — The gerund of chanter is en chantant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  9. A) chanté — The past participle of chanter is chanté; perfect tenses use avoir + chanté.
  10. D) sing — chanter means “sing” in English.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present of chanter?

Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. For chanter that covers talking about music, describing a concert and singing at home.

Is the present of chanter regular?

chanter is regular. In the present it is regular — copy the forms from the table on this page.

What is the past participle of chanter?

The past participle is chanté. You need it for the passé composé, which uses avoir + chanté.

How do I say “I sing” in the present?

Say “Je chante une chanson.” — “I sing a song.” The je form is chante.

Pronunciation

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

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