Choisir Present Tense Conjugation in French
The present tense of choisir — “to choose” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for choisir, 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 choisis un livre à la librairie.” — “I choose a book at the bookshop.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for choisir, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of choisir
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for choisir. choisir is a regular -ir verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.
Present indicative — choisir
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | choisis |
| tu | choisis |
| il/elle | choisit |
| nous | choisissons |
| vous | choisissez |
| ils/elles | choisissent |
The gerund of choisir is en choisissant and the past participle is choisi. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.
How the present tense of choisir is formed
For a regular -ir verb, the present tense is built on the stem chois- (the infinitive choisir without its -ir ending) plus the present tense endings: je → choisis, tu → choisis, il/elle → choisit, nous → choisissons, vous → choisissez, ils/elles → choisissent. So choisir gives choisis, choisis, choisit, choisissons, choisissez, choisissent.
When to use the present tense of choisir
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with choisir: “Je choisis un livre à la librairie tous les jours.” — “I choose a book at the bookshop.” 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 choisir: “Tu choisis un livre à la librairie en général.” — “You choose a book at the bookshop.” 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 choisir: “Il choisit un livre à la librairie maintenant.” — “He chooses a book at the bookshop.” 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 choisir: “Nous choisissons un livre à la librairie demain.” — “We choose a book at the bookshop.” 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 choisir: “Ils choisissent un livre à la librairie souvent.” — “They choose a book at the bookshop.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: choisir now, choisir 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: “Je choisis un livre à la librairie tous les jours.” — “I choose a book at the bookshop.”
Future: “Je choisirai un livre à la librairie demain.” — “I will choose a book at the bookshop tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Tu choisis un livre à la librairie maintenant.” — “You choose a book at the bookshop.”
Future: “Tu choisiras un livre à la librairie demain.” — “You will choose a book at the bookshop tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Nous choisissons un livre à la librairie en classe.” — “We choose a book at the bookshop.”
Future: “Nous choisirons un livre à la librairie demain.” — “We will choose a book at the bookshop tomorrow.”
Example sentences: choisir in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of choisir, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “Je choisis un livre à la librairie tous les jours.” — “I choose a book at the bookshop.”
- “Tu choisis un livre à la librairie chaque matin.” — “You choose a book at the bookshop.”
- “Il choisit un livre à la librairie souvent.” — “He chooses a book at the bookshop.”
- “Nous choisissons un livre à la librairie maintenant.” — “We choose a book at the bookshop.”
- “Vous choisissez un livre à la librairie en général.” — “You choose a book at the bookshop.”
- “Ils choisissent un livre à la librairie le week-end.” — “They choose a book at the bookshop.”
Common mistakes with choisir in the present tense
Mistake 1: Using the infinitive instead of the present
Wrong: “Je choisir un livre à la librairie.”
Right: “Je choisis un livre à la librairie.”
The infinitive never takes a subject; use the conjugated form choisis.
Mistake 2: Mixing up the persons
Wrong: “Tu choisis un livre à la librairie.”
Right: “Tu choisis un livre à la librairie.”
After tu you need choisis, not the je form choisis. Each person has its own ending.
Mistake 3: Using the future for a habit
Wrong: “Je choisirai un livre à la librairie.” (for something you do every day)
Right: “Je choisis un livre à la librairie tous les jours.”
A habit takes the present, not the future. The future (choisirai) is for what will happen.
Mistake 4: Using the passé composé for a habit
Wrong: “J'ai choisi un livre à la librairie tous les jours.” (for a daily habit)
Right: “Je choisis un livre à la librairie tous les jours.”
A daily habit takes the present. The passé composé is for finished events.
Quiz: choisir in the present tense
What is the je form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisissez
- B) choisissent
- C) choisit
- D) choisis
What is the tu form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisit
- B) choisis
- C) choisissez
- D) choisissons
What is the il/elle form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisissez
- B) choisissons
- C) choisit
- D) choisis
What is the nous form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisissez
- B) choisissent
- C) choisissons
- D) choisit
What is the vous form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisissons
- B) choisissez
- C) choisissent
- D) choisit
What is the ils/elles form of choisir in the Present indicative?
- A) choisis
- B) choisissez
- C) choisissent
- D) choisissons
What is the gerund of choisir?
- A) choisirai
- B) choisi
- C) en choisissant
- D) choisis
What does choisir mean in English?
- A) to have
- B) to be
- C) to choose
- D) to go
Answer key
- D) choisis — the je form of choisir in the present indicative is choisis.
- B) choisis — the tu form of choisir in the present indicative is choisis.
- C) choisit — the il/elle form of choisir in the present indicative is choisit.
- C) choisissons — the nous form of choisir in the present indicative is choisissons.
- B) choisissez — the vous form of choisir in the present indicative is choisissez.
- C) choisissent — the ils/elles form of choisir in the present indicative is choisissent.
- C) en choisissant — the gerund of choisir is en choisissant.
- C) to choose — choisir means “to choose” in English.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of choisir formed?
From the stem plus the present endings — the full table is at the top of this page. The je form is choisis and the ils form is choisissent.
When do I use the present tense of choisir?
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 (choisis), while the future is for what will happen (choisirai). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.
Where can I see the full conjugation of choisir?
On the full conjugation page for choisir, 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 choisir in order, without looking: choisis, choisis, choisit, choisissons, choisissez, choisissent. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using choisis, ai choisi and choisirai. 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
- choisir in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- choisir examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- French present tense guide — how this tense works for regular verbs.
- Decider conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise choisir with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise choisir with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.