Monter Present Tense Conjugation in French
The present tense of monter — “to go up” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for monter, 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 monte dans le train à huit heures.” — “I get on the train at eight o’clock.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for monter, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of monter
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for monter. monter is a regular -er verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.
Present indicative — monter
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | monte |
| tu | montes |
| il/elle | monte |
| nous | montons |
| vous | montez |
| ils/elles | montent |
The gerund of monter is en montant and the past participle is monté. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.
How the present tense of monter is formed
For a regular -er verb, the present tense is built on the stem mont- (the infinitive monter without its -er ending) plus the present tense endings: je → monte, tu → montes, il/elle → monte, nous → montons, vous → montez, ils/elles → montent. So monter gives monte, montes, monte, montons, montez, montent.
When to use the present tense of monter
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with monter: “Je monte dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.” — “I get on the train at eight o’clock.” 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 monter: “Tu montes dans le train à huit heures en général.” — “You get on the train at eight o’clock.” 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 monter: “Il monte dans le train à huit heures maintenant.” — “He gets on the train at eight o’clock.” 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 monter: “Nous montons dans le train à huit heures demain.” — “We get on the train at eight o’clock.” 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 monter: “Ils montent dans le train à huit heures souvent.” — “They get on the train at eight o’clock.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: monter now, monter 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: “Je monte dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.” — “I get on the train at eight o’clock.”
Future: “Je monterai dans le train à huit heures demain.” — “I will get on the train at eight o’clock tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Tu montes dans le train à huit heures maintenant.” — “You get on the train at eight o’clock.”
Future: “Tu monteras dans le train à huit heures demain.” — “You will get on the train at eight o’clock tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Nous montons dans le train à huit heures en classe.” — “We get on the train at eight o’clock.”
Future: “Nous monterons dans le train à huit heures demain.” — “We will get on the train at eight o’clock tomorrow.”
Example sentences: monter in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of monter, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “Je monte dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.” — “I get on the train at eight o’clock.”
- “Tu montes dans le train à huit heures chaque matin.” — “You get on the train at eight o’clock.”
- “Il monte dans le train à huit heures souvent.” — “He gets on the train at eight o’clock.”
- “Nous montons dans le train à huit heures maintenant.” — “We get on the train at eight o’clock.”
- “Vous montez dans le train à huit heures en général.” — “You get on the train at eight o’clock.”
- “Ils montent dans le train à huit heures le week-end.” — “They get on the train at eight o’clock.”
Common mistakes with monter in the present tense
Mistake 1: Using the infinitive instead of the present
Wrong: “Je monter dans le train à huit heures.”
Right: “Je monte dans le train à huit heures.”
The infinitive never takes a subject; use the conjugated form monte.
Mistake 2: Mixing up the persons
Wrong: “Tu monte dans le train à huit heures.”
Right: “Tu montes dans le train à huit heures.”
After tu you need montes, not the je form monte. Each person has its own ending.
Mistake 3: Using the future for a habit
Wrong: “Je monterai dans le train à huit heures.” (for something you do every day)
Right: “Je monte dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.”
A habit takes the present, not the future. The future (monterai) is for what will happen.
Mistake 4: Using the passé composé for a habit
Wrong: “Je suis monté dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.” (for a daily habit)
Right: “Je monte dans le train à huit heures tous les jours.”
A daily habit takes the present. The passé composé is for finished events.
Quiz: monter in the present tense
What is the je form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montons
- B) montent
- C) montes
- D) monte
What is the tu form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montes
- B) monte
- C) montons
- D) montez
What is the il/elle form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montes
- B) montez
- C) montons
- D) monte
What is the nous form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montons
- B) montent
- C) montez
- D) monte
What is the vous form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montez
- B) monte
- C) montons
- D) montes
What is the ils/elles form of monter in the Present indicative?
- A) montes
- B) montent
- C) monte
- D) montez
What is the gerund of monter?
- A) monté
- B) monterai
- C) monte
- D) en montant
What does monter mean in English?
- A) to go
- B) to be
- C) to have
- D) to go up
Answer key
- D) monte — the je form of monter in the present indicative is monte.
- A) montes — the tu form of monter in the present indicative is montes.
- D) monte — the il/elle form of monter in the present indicative is monte.
- A) montons — the nous form of monter in the present indicative is montons.
- A) montez — the vous form of monter in the present indicative is montez.
- B) montent — the ils/elles form of monter in the present indicative is montent.
- D) en montant — the gerund of monter is en montant.
- D) to go up — monter means “to go up” in English.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of monter formed?
From the stem plus the present endings — the full table is at the top of this page. The je form is monte and the ils form is montent.
When do I use the present tense of monter?
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 (monte), while the future is for what will happen (monterai). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.
Where can I see the full conjugation of monter?
On the full conjugation page for monter, 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 monter in order, without looking: monte, montes, monte, montons, montez, montent. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using monte, suis monté and monterai. 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
- monter in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- monter 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.
- Descendre conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise monter with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise monter with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.