Écrire Conjugation in French
écrire means “to write” in English, and it is one of the first verbs French learners meet — it sits at number 70 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for French verbs. You use it whenever you talk about writing a letter to Marie, and because it comes up in everyday conversation so often, learning its forms properly pays off from the very first week. This page gives you the complete conjugation of écrire — 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: “J'écris une lettre à Marie tous les jours.” — “I write a letter to Marie every day.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: écrire
- English: to write
- Verb type: Irregular
- Irregular in: present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative
- Gerund: écrivant
- Past participle: écrit
- Auxiliary: avoir (all perfect tenses are formed with avoir + the past participle)
- Ending: -re verbs; pattern crire in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for écrire, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Learn the spelling of the forms first, and listen to a native speaker for the sounds rather than trusting an invented transcription. The forms below are the ones that matter: once you can read écrire in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about écrire
- It is irregular in 5 tense(s): present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. Learn those forms as a set rather than guessing them from the infinitive, because the regular pattern will not produce them.
- The perfect tenses use avoir: the present perfect is formed with avoir in the present plus the past participle écrit. The tables on this page give the participle in the masculine singular form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table.
- The gerund is écrivant and the participle is écrit: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because the gerund appears in progressive constructions and the participle appears in every perfect tense. If you know those two forms and the present tense, you already know the skeleton of the whole conjugation.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for écrire. 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 | écris |
| tu | écris |
| il/elle | écrit |
| nous | écrivons |
| vous | écrivez |
| ils/elles | écrivent |
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With écrire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “J'écris un livre sur Paris tous les jours.” — “I write a book about Paris every day.”
Passé simple
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrivis |
| tu | écrivis |
| il/elle | écrivit |
| nous | écrivîmes |
| vous | écrivîtes |
| ils/elles | écrivirent |
The passé simple is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written and literary French. With écrire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Tu écrivis un livre sur Paris hier.” — “You wrote a book about Paris yesterday.”
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrivais |
| tu | écrivais |
| il/elle | écrivait |
| nous | écrivions |
| vous | écriviez |
| ils/elles | écrivaient |
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and for background description. For example: “Il écrivait un livre sur Paris autrefois.” — “He used to write a book about Paris in the past.”
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrirai |
| tu | écriras |
| il/elle | écrira |
| nous | écrirons |
| vous | écrirez |
| ils/elles | écriront |
The future is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “J'écrirai un livre sur Paris demain.” — “I will write a book about Paris tomorrow.”
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrirais |
| tu | écrirais |
| il/elle | écrirait |
| nous | écririons |
| vous | écririez |
| ils/elles | écriraient |
The conditional is used for what would happen, for polite requests and for hypothetical situations. For example: “Tu écrirais un livre sur Paris un jour.” — “You would write a book about Paris one day.”
Present perfect (passé composé)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ai écrit |
| tu | as écrit |
| il/elle | a écrit |
| nous | avons écrit |
| vous | avez écrit |
| ils/elles | ont écrit |
The present perfect (passé composé) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken French. For example: “Il a écrit un livre sur Paris cette semaine.” — “He has written a book about Paris this week.”
Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | avais écrit |
| tu | avais écrit |
| il/elle | avait écrit |
| nous | avions écrit |
| vous | aviez écrit |
| ils/elles | avaient écrit |
The pluperfect (plus-que-parfait) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “J'avais écrit un livre sur Paris avant la fête.” — “I had written a book about Paris before the party.”
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurai écrit |
| tu | auras écrit |
| il/elle | aura écrit |
| nous | aurons écrit |
| vous | aurez écrit |
| ils/elles | auront écrit |
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Tu auras écrit un livre sur Paris pour demain.” — “You will have written a book about Paris by tomorrow.”
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurais écrit |
| tu | aurais écrit |
| il/elle | aurait écrit |
| nous | aurions écrit |
| vous | auriez écrit |
| ils/elles | auraient écrit |
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Il aurait écrit un livre sur Paris hier.” — “He would have written a book about Paris yesterday.”
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrive |
| tu | écrives |
| il/elle | écrive |
| nous | écrivions |
| vous | écriviez |
| ils/elles | écrivent |
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. With écrire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Il est important que j'écrive un livre sur Paris.” — “It is important that I write a book about Paris.”
Imperfect subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | écrivisse |
| tu | écrivisses |
| il/elle | écrivît |
| nous | écrivissions |
| vous | écrivissiez |
| ils/elles | écrivissent |
The imperfect subjunctive is used in formal written French for past wishes and hypotheticals after que. For example: “Il est important que tu écrivisses un livre sur Paris.” — “It is important that you write a book about Paris.”
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | écris |
| nous | écrivons |
| vous | écrivez |
The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. With écrire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Écris un livre sur Paris !” — “Write a book about Paris!”
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | écris |
| nous | écrivons |
| vous | écrivez |
The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. With écrire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Ne écris pas un livre sur Paris.” — “Do not write a book about Paris.”
Gerund
| Form | French |
|---|---|
| Gerund | en écrivant |
The gerund is used for an action happening at the same time as another action, usually after en. For example: “En écrivant une lettre à Marie, je passe un bon moment.” — “While writing a letter to Marie, I have a good time.”
Past participle
| Form | French |
|---|---|
| Past participle | écrit |
The past participle is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “J'ai écrit une lettre à Marie cette semaine.” — “I have written a letter to Marie this week.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with écrire, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the French and try to produce it from the English.
- “J'écris une lettre à Marie tous les jours.” — “I write a letter to Marie every day.”
- “Tu écrivis un livre sur Paris hier.” — “You wrote a book about Paris yesterday.”
- “Il écrivait tous les jours dans mon journal autrefois.” — “He used to write every day in my journal in the past.”
- “J'écrirai une lettre à Marie demain.” — “I will write a letter to Marie tomorrow.”
- “Tu écrirais un livre sur Paris un jour.” — “You would write a book about Paris one day.”
- “Il a écrit tous les jours dans mon journal cette semaine.” — “He has written every day in my journal this week.”
- “J'avais écrit une lettre à Marie avant la fête.” — “I had written a letter to Marie before the party.”
- “Tu auras écrit un livre sur Paris pour demain.” — “You will have written a book about Paris by tomorrow.”
- “Il est important que il écrive tous les jours dans mon journal.” — “It is important that he write every day in my journal.”
- “Écris une lettre à Marie !” — “Write a letter to Marie!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Je écrire une lettre à Marie.”
✓ Right: “Je écris une lettre à Marie.”
The infinitive écrire never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form écris.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Je écrivent une lettre à Marie.”
✓ Right: “Je écris une lettre à Marie.”
écrivent is the ils/elles form, not the je form. Match the verb to the subject every time: je goes with écris.
3. Using the passé simple for a present habit
✗ Wrong: “Je écrivis une lettre à Marie tous les jours.”
✓ Right: “Je écris une lettre à Marie tous les jours.”
The passé simple écrivis describes one finished past action. For something that happens every day, use the present écris.
4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “Il est important que je écris une lettre à Marie.”
✓ Right: “Il est important que je écrive une lettre à Marie.”
After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use écrive here, not the indicative écris.
5. Using the wrong auxiliary in the passé composé
✗ Wrong: “Je suis écrit une lettre à Marie.”
✓ Right: “Je ai écrit une lettre à Marie.”
The passé composé of écrire is formed with avoir plus the past participle écrit: the je form is ai écrit. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.
6. Dropping a written accent
✗ Wrong: “écris” written without its accent
✓ Right: “écris”
Accents are part of the spelling in French. Write the form exactly as it appears in the table, accent included, or it looks like a different word.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on écrire. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the je form of écrire in the Present indicative?
- A) écrivons
- B) écrivez
- C) écris
- D) écrit
What is the il/elle form of écrire in the Passé simple?
- A) écrivîmes
- B) écrivîtes
- C) écrivit
- D) écrivis
What is the nous form of écrire in the Imperfect?
- A) écrivait
- B) écriviez
- C) écrivions
- D) écrivais
What is the tu form of écrire in the Future?
- A) écrirai
- B) écrira
- C) écrirons
- D) écriras
What is the je form of écrire in the Conditional?
- A) écririons
- B) écririez
- C) écrirais
- D) écrirait
What is the il/elle form of écrire in the Present perfect (passé composé)?
- A) a écrit
- B) ai écrit
- C) as écrit
- D) avons écrit
What is the il/elle form of écrire in the Present subjunctive?
- A) écrivions
- B) écriviez
- C) écrive
- D) écrives
What is the je form of écrire in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) écrivisses
- B) écrivît
- C) écrivissions
- D) écrivisse
What is the gerund of écrire?
- A) en comprenant
- B) en écrivant
- C) en lisant
- D) en tombant
What does écrire mean in English?
- A) to fall
- B) to understand
- C) to write
- D) to read
Answer key
- C) écris — the je form of écrire in the Present indicative is écris. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) écrivit — the il/elle form of écrire in the Passé simple is écrivit. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) écrivions — the nous form of écrire in the Imperfect is écrivions. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) écriras — the tu form of écrire in the Future is écriras. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) écrirais — the je form of écrire in the Conditional is écrirais. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) a écrit — the il/elle form of écrire in the Present perfect (passé composé) is a écrit. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) écrive — the il/elle form of écrire in the Present subjunctive is écrive. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) écrivisse — the je form of écrire in the Imperfect subjunctive is écrivisse. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) en écrivant — the gerund of écrire is en écrivant; it is used after en for actions happening at the same time as another action. The other options are the gerunds of neighbouring verbs.
- C) to write — écrire means “to write” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does écrire mean in English?
écrire means “to write”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is écrire regular or irregular?
écrire is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The gerund is écrivant and the past participle is écrit.
What are the gerund and past participle of écrire?
The gerund is écrivant — use it after en for an action happening at the same time as another action. The past participle is écrit — use it with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in ai écrit.
Which auxiliary does écrire take in the passé composé?
écrire takes avoir in the passé composé: the je form is ai écrit. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with avoir plus the past participle écrit.
How do I say “I write” in French?
Say “J'écris une lettre à Marie tous les jours.” — “I write a letter to Marie every day.” The je form of the present is écris, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of écrire — every tense of écrire in one place.
- Écrire in the passé composé tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Écrire examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Lire conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Tomber conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Comprendre conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- French irregular verbs — every common irregular French verb, grouped by pattern.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Spanish Verb Conjugator — practise écrire with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise écrire with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise écrire with the interactive tool.