Décider Conjugation in French
décider means “to decide” in English, and it is a verb French learners meet early and use often. This page gives you the complete conjugation of décider — 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 décide de partir demain.” — “I decide to leave tomorrow.” Learning the forms on this page first, before you try to use the verb in conversation, saves you from guessing later: French spelling and endings change with the person and the tense, and décider is no exception. Work through the tables one tense at a time, say each form aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: décider
- English: to decide
- Verb type: Regular -er verb
- Irregular in: — (regular in every tense)
- Gerund: en décidant
- Past participle: décidé
- 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 décider, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for décider. 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 | décide |
| tu | décides |
| il/elle | décide |
| nous | décidons |
| vous | décidez |
| ils/elles | décident |
Passé simple
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | décidai |
| tu | décidas |
| il/elle | décida |
| nous | décidâmes |
| vous | décidâtes |
| ils/elles | décidèrent |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | décidais |
| tu | décidais |
| il/elle | décidait |
| nous | décidions |
| vous | décidiez |
| ils/elles | décidaient |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | déciderai |
| tu | décideras |
| il/elle | décidera |
| nous | déciderons |
| vous | déciderez |
| ils/elles | décideront |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | déciderais |
| tu | déciderais |
| il/elle | déciderait |
| nous | déciderions |
| vous | décideriez |
| ils/elles | décideraient |
Present perfect (passé composé)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ai décidé |
| tu | as décidé |
| il/elle | a décidé |
| nous | avons décidé |
| vous | avez décidé |
| ils/elles | ont décidé |
Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | avais décidé |
| tu | avais décidé |
| il/elle | avait décidé |
| nous | avions décidé |
| vous | aviez décidé |
| ils/elles | avaient décidé |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurai décidé |
| tu | auras décidé |
| il/elle | aura décidé |
| nous | aurons décidé |
| vous | aurez décidé |
| ils/elles | auront décidé |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurais décidé |
| tu | aurais décidé |
| il/elle | aurait décidé |
| nous | aurions décidé |
| vous | auriez décidé |
| ils/elles | auraient décidé |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | décide |
| tu | décides |
| il/elle | décide |
| nous | décidions |
| vous | décidiez |
| ils/elles | décident |
Imperfect subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | décidasse |
| tu | décidasses |
| il/elle | décidât |
| nous | décidassions |
| vous | décidassiez |
| ils/elles | décidassent |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | décide |
| nous | décidons |
| vous | décidez |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | décide |
| nous | décidons |
| vous | décidez |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | French |
|---|---|
| Gerund | en décidant |
| Past participle | décidé |
When to use each tense
Present indicative
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Je décide de partir demain.” — “I decide to leave tomorrow.”
Passé simple
The passé simple is used for completed actions in the past, mainly in written and literary French. For example: “Tu décidas de partir demain.” — “You decided to leave tomorrow one day.”
Imperfect
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and background description. For example: “Il décidait de partir demain quand j’étais jeune.” — “He used to decide to leave tomorrow.”
Future
The future is used for what will happen, predictions and promises. For example: “Nous déciderons de partir demain.” — “We will decide to leave tomorrow tomorrow.”
Conditional
The conditional is used for what would happen, polite requests and hypothetical situations. For example: “Vous décideriez de partir demain.” — “You would decide to leave tomorrow if you could.”
Present perfect (passé composé)
The present perfect (passé composé) is used for recent past actions and completed events. With décider it is formed with avoir + the past participle décidé. For example: “Ils ont décidé de partir demain hier.” — “They have decided to leave tomorrow.”
Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait)
The pluperfect (plus-que-parfait) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “J'avais décidé de partir demain avant la fête.” — “I had decided to leave tomorrow before the party.”
Future perfect
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Tu auras décidé de partir demain.” — “You will have decided to leave tomorrow by tomorrow evening.”
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Il aurait décidé de partir demain.” — “He would have decided to leave tomorrow if he had been able to.”
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. For example: “Il faut que je décide de partir demain.” — “It is important that I decide to leave tomorrow.”
Imperfect subjunctive
The imperfect subjunctive is used for the past subjunctive: wishes and hypotheticals about the past, mainly in formal writing. For example: “Il fallait que je décidasse de partir demain.” — “It was important that I decide to leave tomorrow.”
Imperative (affirmative)
The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Décide de partir demain !” — “Decide to leave tomorrow!”
Imperative (negative)
The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. For example: “Décide de partir demain !” — “Do not decide to leave tomorrow!”
Gerund and past participle
The gerund is en décidant — “while deciding” — used after en to say how something happens. The past participle is décidé, used with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in ai décidé.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with décider, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the French and try to produce it from the English.
- “Je décide de partir demain.” — “I decide to leave tomorrow.”
- “Tu décides de partir demain.” — “You decide to leave tomorrow.”
- “Il décidait de partir demain.” — “He used to decide to leave tomorrow.”
- “Nous déciderons de partir demain.” — “We will decide to leave tomorrow tomorrow.”
- “Je déciderais de partir demain.” — “I would decide to leave tomorrow if I could.”
- “Tu as décidé de partir demain.” — “You have decided to leave tomorrow.”
- “Il avait décidé de partir demain.” — “He had decided to leave tomorrow before the party.”
- “Nous aurons décidé de partir demain.” — “We will have decided to leave tomorrow by tomorrow evening.”
- “Il faut que je décide de partir demain.” — “It is important that I decide to leave tomorrow.”
- “Décide de partir demain !” — “Decide to leave tomorrow!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Je décider de partir demain.”
✓ Right: “Je décide de partir demain.”
The infinitive décider never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form décide.
2. Confusing décider with choisir
✗ Wrong: “Je décide un livre à la librairie.” (meant as “choisir”)
✓ Right: “Je décide de partir demain.”
décider means “to decide”; choisir means “to choose”. Keep the two verbs apart by their meaning, not by their sound.
3. Using the wrong auxiliary for the passé composé
✗ Wrong: “Je suis décidé de partir demain.”
✓ Right: “J'ai décidé de partir demain.”
With décider the passé composé is formed with avoir, not être: ai décidé.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “Il faut que je décide de partir demain.”
✓ Right: “Il faut que je décide de partir demain.”
After il faut que French needs the subjunctive, so use décide here, not the indicative décide.
5. Using the present for a finished past event
✗ Wrong: “Je décide de partir demain hier.”
✓ Right: “J'ai décidé de partir demain hier.”
Yesterday’s finished event needs the passé composé (ai décidé), not the present.
Quiz: test yourself
What is the je form of décider in the Present indicative?
- A) décide
- B) décidez
- C) décidons
- D) décides
What is the ils/elles form of décider in the Present indicative?
- A) décident
- B) décidons
- C) décide
- D) décides
What is the il/elle form of décider in the Passé simple?
- A) décidai
- B) décidèrent
- C) décida
- D) décidas
What is the nous form of décider in the Imperfect?
- A) décidaient
- B) décidiez
- C) décidais
- D) décidions
What is the tu form of décider in the Future?
- A) déciderez
- B) décideront
- C) déciderai
- D) décideras
What is the je form of décider in the Conditional?
- A) déciderait
- B) décideraient
- C) déciderais
- D) déciderions
What is the il/elle form of décider in the Present perfect (passé composé)?
- A) as décidé
- B) a décidé
- C) avez décidé
- D) ont décidé
What is the vous form of décider in the Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait)?
- A) avions décidé
- B) aviez décidé
- C) avait décidé
- D) avais décidé
What is the gerund of décider?
- A) décidé
- B) en décidant
- C) déciderai
- D) décide
What is the past participle of décider?
- A) décidais
- B) décide
- C) décidé
- D) en décidant
Answer key
- A) décide — the je form of décider in the present indicative is décide.
- A) décident — the ils/elles form of décider in the present indicative is décident.
- C) décida — the il/elle form of décider in the passé simple is décida.
- D) décidions — the nous form of décider in the imperfect is décidions.
- D) décideras — the tu form of décider in the future is décideras.
- C) déciderais — the je form of décider in the conditional is déciderais.
- B) a décidé — the il/elle form of décider in the present perfect (passé composé) is a décidé.
- B) aviez décidé — the vous form of décider in the pluperfect (plus-que-parfait) is aviez décidé.
- B) en décidant — the gerund of décider is en décidant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
- C) décidé — the past participle of décider is décidé; perfect tenses use avoir + décidé.
Frequently asked questions
What does décider mean in English?
décider means “to decide”. You use it in everyday situations like the examples on this page — for example, “Je décide de partir demain.” (“I decide to leave tomorrow.”). It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is décider regular or irregular?
décider is regular: its endings follow the standard -er pattern in every tense. The gerund is en décidant and the past participle is décidé.
What are the gerund and past participle of décider?
The gerund is en décidant — use it after en for actions in progress. The past participle is décidé — use it with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in ai décidé.
What is the difference between décider and choisir?
décider means “to decide”, while choisir means “to choose”. They are easy to mix up because they appear in similar situations, but their meanings are different. If you are unsure, check the full conjugation page for choisir and compare the meanings in context.
How do I say “I decide” in French?
Say “Je décide de partir demain.” — “I decide to leave tomorrow.” The je form of the present is décide, and it is the form you will use most often.
How to learn décider
Start with the present tense: décide, décides, décide, décidons, décidez, décident. Say them in order every day for a week, then add the passé composé — ai décidé — and the imperfect — décidais. Next, learn the future (déciderai) and the conditional (déciderais), which share the same stem. Finally, tackle the subjunctive (décide) and the imperative (décide). Write one sentence of your own in each tense, using the examples above as models, and check every form against the tables. When you can produce all six persons of the present without looking, move on to the present-tense quiz.
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.