gagner Present Tense Conjugation in French

The present of gagner — win — is the form you need for habits, facts and things happening now. gagner is the verb for talking about sport: it comes up whenever you talk about describing work and money or winning a competition. This page gives you the complete present table for gagner, 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 gagne le match.” — “I win the match.”

Present conjugation of gagner

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for gagner. gagner is regular (regular in the present), so watch out for the forms that break the pattern — they are the ones learners need to memorise.

Present — gagner

Person Form
je gagne
tu gagnes
il/elle gagne
nous gagnons
vous gagnez
ils/elles gagnent

The gerund of gagner is en gagnant and the past participle is gagné. The participle matters here because the present is often confused with the other past tenses — keep them apart.

How the present of gagner is formed

The present of gagner is formed from its stem with the present endings. The six forms are gagne, gagnes, gagne, gagnons, gagnez and gagnent. Copy them from the table above exactly as written — do not guess a form from the infinitive.

A note on spelling: the forms in the table are the verified forms. If a form carries an accent, the accent is part of the spelling — for example gagne — so always write it exactly as shown.

The present is the tense to learn first for gagner: every other tense in the full table is built from patterns you meet here, and the present is the form you will use most often in conversation.

When to use the present of gagner

Habits and routines

Use the present for something you do regularly. For example: “Je gagne le match.” — “I win the match.”

Facts and general truths

Use the present for facts that are true in general. For example: “Il gagne de l'argent.” — “He wins some money.”

Things happening now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment. For example: “Nous gagnons un prix.” — “We win a prize.”

Near future plans

French often uses the present with a time word for a plan that is already fixed. For example: “Je gagne souvent.” — “I win often.”

Present vs passé composé: gagner finished, gagner in progress

The present and the passé composé are the two tenses learners confuse most with gagner. The present is for habits, facts and things happening now; the passé composé is for recent past actions and life experience; this is the everyday spoken past tense, the passé composé. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the passé composé form from the full conjugation table.

  • Present: “Je gagne le match.” — “I win the match.”

  • Passé composé: “J'ai gagné le match cette semaine.” — “I have won the match this week.”

  • Present: “Il gagne de l'argent.” — “He wins some money.”

  • Passé composé: “Il a gagné de l'argent cette semaine.” — “He has won some money this week.”

  • Present: “Nous gagnons un prix.” — “We win a prize.”

  • Passé composé: “Nous avons gagné un prix cette semaine.” — “We have won a prize this week.”

Example sentences: gagner in the present

Six sentences using only the present of gagner, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Je gagne le match.” — “I win the match.”
  • “Tu gagnes de l'argent.” — “You win some money.”
  • “Il gagne un prix.” — “He wins a prize.”
  • “Nous gagnons souvent.” — “We win often.”
  • “Vous gagnez le match.” — “You win the match.”
  • “Ils gagnent de l'argent.” — “They win some money.”

Common mistakes in the present of gagner

1. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je gagnons le match.”

✓ Right: “Je gagne le match.”

gagnons is the nous form. With je the present form is gagne.

2. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je gagner de l'argent.”

✓ Right: “Je gagne de l'argent.”

The infinitive gagner never takes a subject. After je you need gagne.

3. Using the passé composé for a habit

✗ Wrong: “Tous les jours, j'ai gagné un prix.”

✓ Right: “Tous les jours, je gagne un prix.”

A habit needs the present gagne, not the passé composé.

4. Using the present where the imperfect belongs

✗ Wrong: “Avant, je gagne souvent tous les jours.” (said of a repeated habit)

✓ Right: “Avant, je gagnais souvent tous les jours.”

For something you did regularly in the past, use the imperfect gagnais.

5. Mixing up tu and je

✗ Wrong: “Tu gagne le match.”

✓ Right: “Tu gagnes le match.”

With tu the present form is gagnes, not gagne. Copy the form for the right person from the table.

Quiz: test yourself on the present of gagner

Ten questions on gagner. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. What is the je form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagne
    • B) gagnent
    • C) gagnez
    • D) gagnes

  2. What is the tu form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagnons
    • B) gagnes
    • C) gagne
    • D) gagnent

  3. What is the il/elle form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagne
    • B) gagnes
    • C) gagnons
    • D) gagnez

  4. What is the nous form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagnons
    • B) gagne
    • C) gagnes
    • D) gagnent

  5. What is the vous form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagnes
    • B) gagnez
    • C) gagnent
    • D) gagnons

  6. What is the ils/elles form of gagner in the Present indicative?

    • A) gagnons
    • B) gagnent
    • C) gagnes
    • D) gagnez

  7. What is the je form of gagner in the Present perfect?

    • A) avez gagné
    • B) ai gagné
    • C) avons gagné
    • D) ont gagné

  8. What is the gerund of gagner?

    • A) gagnant
    • B) dormant
    • C) buvant

  9. What is the past participle of gagner?

    • A) dormi
    • B) gagné
    • C) bu

  10. What does gagner mean in English?

  • A) win
  • B) drink
  • C) open
  • D) sleep

Answer key

  1. A) gagne — The je form of gagner in the present indicative is gagne.
  2. B) gagnes — The tu form of gagner in the present indicative is gagnes.
  3. A) gagne — The il/elle form of gagner in the present indicative is gagne.
  4. A) gagnons — The nous form of gagner in the present indicative is gagnons.
  5. B) gagnez — The vous form of gagner in the present indicative is gagnez.
  6. B) gagnent — The ils/elles form of gagner in the present indicative is gagnent.
  7. B) ai gagné — The je form of gagner in the present perfect is ai gagné.
  8. A) gagnant — The gerund of gagner is en gagnant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  9. B) gagné — The past participle of gagner is gagné; perfect tenses use avoir + gagné.
  10. A) win — gagner means “win” in English.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present of gagner?

Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. For gagner that covers talking about sport, describing work and money and winning a competition.

Is the present of gagner regular?

gagner is regular. In the present it is regular — copy the forms from the table on this page.

What is the past participle of gagner?

The past participle is gagné. You need it for the passé composé, which uses avoir + gagné.

How do I say “I win” in the present?

Say “Je gagne le match.” — “I win the match.” The je form is gagne.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for gagner, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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