Espérer Present Tense Conjugation in French
The present tense of espérer — “to hope” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for espérer, 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: “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui.” — “I hope for good news today.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for espérer, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of espérer
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for espérer. espérer is spelling-changing in the present: é becomes è in the singular and third-person plural, as the table shows.
Present indicative — espérer
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | espère |
| tu | espères |
| il/elle | espère |
| nous | espérons |
| vous | espérez |
| ils/elles | espèrent |
The gerund of espérer is en espérant and the past participle is espéré. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.
How the present tense of espérer is formed
The present tense of espérer does not follow the regular pattern, so the stem-and-endings description above is only a starting point: je → espère, tu → espères, il/elle → espère, nous → espérons, vous → espérez, ils/elles → espèrent. Learn these six forms as a set — they are the forms you will use most often, and the subjunctive and imperative are built on them. A note on spelling: the written accent in this tense is part of the form, not decoration. In the present tense, espère carries a grave accent, and leaving it out or writing the acute accent changes the form, so copy the forms from the table above exactly, accents included.
When to use the present tense of espérer
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with espérer: “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.” — “I hope for good news today.” 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 espérer: “Tu espères une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui en général.” — “You hope for good news today.” 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 espérer: “Il espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui maintenant.” — “He hopes for good news today.” 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 espérer: “Nous espérons une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui demain.” — “We hope for good news today.” 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 espérer: “Ils espèrent une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui souvent.” — “They hope for good news today.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: espérer now, espérer 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: “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.” — “I hope for good news today.”
Future: “J'espérerai une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui demain.” — “I will hope for good news today tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Tu espères une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui maintenant.” — “You hope for good news today.”
Future: “Tu espéreras une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui demain.” — “You will hope for good news today tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Nous espérons une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui en classe.” — “We hope for good news today.”
Future: “Nous espérerons une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui demain.” — “We will hope for good news today tomorrow.”
Example sentences: espérer in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of espérer, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.” — “I hope for good news today.”
- “Tu espères une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui chaque matin.” — “You hope for good news today.”
- “Il espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui souvent.” — “He hopes for good news today.”
- “Nous espérons une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui maintenant.” — “We hope for good news today.”
- “Vous espérez une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui en général.” — “You hope for good news today.”
- “Ils espèrent une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui le week-end.” — “They hope for good news today.”
Common mistakes with espérer in the present tense
Mistake 1: Forgetting the grave accent
Wrong: “espére”
Right: “espère”
The accent on espère is part of the spelling in the present. Without it the form is wrong.
Mistake 2: Mixing up the persons
Wrong: “Tu espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui.”
Right: “Tu espères une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui.”
After tu you need espères, not the je form espère. Each person has its own ending.
Mistake 3: Using the future for a habit
Wrong: “J'espérerai une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui.” (for something you do every day)
Right: “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.”
A habit takes the present, not the future. The future (espérerai) is for what will happen.
Mistake 4: Using the passé composé for a habit
Wrong: “J'ai espéré une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.” (for a daily habit)
Right: “J'espère une bonne nouvelle aujourd’hui tous les jours.”
A daily habit takes the present. The passé composé is for finished events.
Quiz: espérer in the present tense
What is the je form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espère
- B) espérez
- C) espères
- D) espérons
What is the tu form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espérez
- B) espères
- C) espèrent
- D) espère
What is the il/elle form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espèrent
- B) espérez
- C) espère
- D) espérons
What is the nous form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espérons
- B) espère
- C) espères
- D) espérez
What is the vous form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espérez
- B) espèrent
- C) espère
- D) espérons
What is the ils/elles form of espérer in the Present indicative?
- A) espèrent
- B) espère
- C) espérez
- D) espérons
What is the gerund of espérer?
- A) en espérant
- B) espérerai
- C) espère
- D) espéré
What does espérer mean in English?
- A) to go
- B) to hope
- C) to have
- D) to be
Answer key
- A) espère — the je form of espérer in the present indicative is espère.
- B) espères — the tu form of espérer in the present indicative is espères.
- C) espère — the il/elle form of espérer in the present indicative is espère.
- A) espérons — the nous form of espérer in the present indicative is espérons.
- A) espérez — the vous form of espérer in the present indicative is espérez.
- A) espèrent — the ils/elles form of espérer in the present indicative is espèrent.
- A) en espérant — the gerund of espérer is en espérant.
- B) to hope — espérer means “to hope” in English.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of espérer formed?
From the stem plus the present endings — the full table is at the top of this page. The je form is espère and the ils form is espèrent. The accent changes from é to è in the singular and third-person plural.
When do I use the present tense of espérer?
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 (espère), while the future is for what will happen (espérerai). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.
Where can I see the full conjugation of espérer?
On the full conjugation page for espérer, 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 espérer in order, without looking: espère, espères, espère, espérons, espérez, espèrent. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using espère, ai espéré and espérerai. 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
- espérer in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- espérer examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- French irregular verbs — every common irregular French verb, grouped by pattern.
- Desirer conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise espérer with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise espérer with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.