inviter Present Tense Conjugation in French

The present of inviter — invite — is the form you need for habits, facts and things happening now. inviter is the verb for organising a dinner: it comes up whenever you talk about inviting friends over or planning a party. This page gives you the complete present table for inviter, 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'invite mes amis.” — “I invite my friends.”

Present conjugation of inviter

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for inviter. inviter 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 — inviter

Person Form
je invite
tu invites
il/elle invite
nous invitons
vous invitez
ils/elles invitent

The gerund of inviter is en invitant and the past participle is invité. The participle matters here because the present is often confused with the other past tenses — keep them apart.

How the present of inviter is formed

The present of inviter is formed from its stem with the present endings. The six forms are invite, invites, invite, invitons, invitez and invitent. 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 invite — so always write it exactly as shown.

The present is the tense to learn first for inviter: 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 inviter

Habits and routines

Use the present for something you do regularly. For example: “J'invite mes amis.” — “I invite my friends.”

Facts and general truths

Use the present for facts that are true in general. For example: “Il invite Marie.” — “He invites Marie.”

Things happening now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment. For example: “Nous invitons à dîner.” — “We invite to dinner.”

Near future plans

French often uses the present with a time word for a plan that is already fixed. For example: “J'invite pour le week-end.” — “I invite for the weekend.”

Present vs passé composé: inviter finished, inviter in progress

The present and the passé composé are the two tenses learners confuse most with inviter. 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: “J'invite mes amis.” — “I invite my friends.”

  • Passé composé: “J'ai invité mes amis cette semaine.” — “I have invited my friends this week.”

  • Present: “Il invite Marie.” — “He invites Marie.”

  • Passé composé: “Il a invité Marie cette semaine.” — “He has invited Marie this week.”

  • Present: “Nous invitons à dîner.” — “We invite to dinner.”

  • Passé composé: “Nous avons invité à dîner cette semaine.” — “We have invited to dinner this week.”

Example sentences: inviter in the present

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

  • “J'invite mes amis.” — “I invite my friends.”
  • “Tu invites Marie.” — “You invite Marie.”
  • “Il invite à dîner.” — “He invites to dinner.”
  • “Nous invitons pour le week-end.” — “We invite for the weekend.”
  • “Vous invitez mes amis.” — “You invite my friends.”
  • “Ils invitent Marie.” — “They invite Marie.”

Common mistakes in the present of inviter

1. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je invitons mes amis.”

✓ Right: “Je invite mes amis.”

invitons is the nous form. With je the present form is invite.

2. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je inviter Marie.”

✓ Right: “Je invite Marie.”

The infinitive inviter never takes a subject. After je you need invite.

3. Using the passé composé for a habit

✗ Wrong: “Tous les jours, j'ai invité à dîner.”

✓ Right: “Tous les jours, je invite à dîner.”

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

4. Using the present where the imperfect belongs

✗ Wrong: “Avant, je invite pour le week-end tous les jours.” (said of a repeated habit)

✓ Right: “Avant, je invitais pour le week-end tous les jours.”

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

5. Mixing up tu and je

✗ Wrong: “Tu invite mes amis.”

✓ Right: “Tu invites mes amis.”

With tu the present form is invites, not invite. Copy the form for the right person from the table.

Quiz: test yourself on the present of inviter

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

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

    • A) invitez
    • B) invitons
    • C) invite
    • D) invites

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

    • A) invite
    • B) invitent
    • C) invitons
    • D) invites

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

    • A) invites
    • B) invitent
    • C) invitez
    • D) invite

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

    • A) invite
    • B) invitez
    • C) invites
    • D) invitons

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

    • A) invitent
    • B) invites
    • C) invitons
    • D) invitez

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

    • A) invitez
    • B) invitent
    • C) invites
    • D) invite

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

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

  8. What is the gerund of inviter?

    • A) dormant
    • B) buvant
    • C) invitant

  9. What is the past participle of inviter?

    • A) invité
    • B) bu
    • C) dormi

  10. What does inviter mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. C) invite — The je form of inviter in the present indicative is invite.
  2. D) invites — The tu form of inviter in the present indicative is invites.
  3. D) invite — The il/elle form of inviter in the present indicative is invite.
  4. D) invitons — The nous form of inviter in the present indicative is invitons.
  5. D) invitez — The vous form of inviter in the present indicative is invitez.
  6. B) invitent — The ils/elles form of inviter in the present indicative is invitent.
  7. B) ai invité — The je form of inviter in the present perfect is ai invité.
  8. C) invitant — The gerund of inviter is en invitant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  9. A) invité — The past participle of inviter is invité; perfect tenses use avoir + invité.
  10. C) invite — inviter means “invite” in English.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present of inviter?

Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. For inviter that covers organising a dinner, inviting friends over and planning a party.

Is the present of inviter regular?

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

What is the past participle of inviter?

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

How do I say “I invite” in the present?

Say “J'invite mes amis.” — “I invite my friends.” The je form is invite.

Pronunciation

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

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