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