oublier Present Tense Conjugation in French

The present of oublier — forget — is the form you need for habits, facts and things happening now. oublier is the verb for talking about forgetting: it comes up whenever you talk about describing a busy day or missing an appointment. This page gives you the complete present table for oublier, 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'oublie mes clés.” — “I forget my keys.”

Present conjugation of oublier

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

Person Form
je oublie
tu oublies
il/elle oublie
nous oublions
vous oubliez
ils/elles oublient

The gerund of oublier is en oubliant and the past participle is oublié. The participle matters here because the present is often confused with the other past tenses — keep them apart.

How the present of oublier is formed

The present of oublier is formed from its stem with the present endings. The six forms are oublie, oublies, oublie, oublions, oubliez and oublient. 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 oublie — so always write it exactly as shown.

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

Habits and routines

Use the present for something you do regularly. For example: “J'oublie mes clés.” — “I forget my keys.”

Facts and general truths

Use the present for facts that are true in general. For example: “Il oublie mon parapluie.” — “He forgets my umbrella.”

Things happening now

Use the present for what is happening at this moment. For example: “Nous oublions le rendez-vous.” — “We forget the appointment.”

Near future plans

French often uses the present with a time word for a plan that is already fixed. For example: “J'oublie son nom.” — “I forget his name.”

Present vs passé composé: oublier finished, oublier in progress

The present and the passé composé are the two tenses learners confuse most with oublier. 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'oublie mes clés.” — “I forget my keys.”

  • Passé composé: “J'ai oublié mes clés cette semaine.” — “I have forgotten my keys this week.”

  • Present: “Il oublie mon parapluie.” — “He forgets my umbrella.”

  • Passé composé: “Il a oublié mon parapluie cette semaine.” — “He has forgotten my umbrella this week.”

  • Present: “Nous oublions le rendez-vous.” — “We forget the appointment.”

  • Passé composé: “Nous avons oublié le rendez-vous cette semaine.” — “We have forgotten the appointment this week.”

Example sentences: oublier in the present

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

  • “J'oublie mes clés.” — “I forget my keys.”
  • “Tu oublies mon parapluie.” — “You forget my umbrella.”
  • “Il oublie le rendez-vous.” — “He forgets the appointment.”
  • “Nous oublions son nom.” — “We forget his name.”
  • “Vous oubliez mes clés.” — “You forget my keys.”
  • “Ils oublient mon parapluie.” — “They forget my umbrella.”

Common mistakes in the present of oublier

1. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Je oublions mes clés.”

✓ Right: “Je oublie mes clés.”

oublions is the nous form. With je the present form is oublie.

2. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je oublier mon parapluie.”

✓ Right: “Je oublie mon parapluie.”

The infinitive oublier never takes a subject. After je you need oublie.

3. Using the passé composé for a habit

✗ Wrong: “Tous les jours, j'ai oublié le rendez-vous.”

✓ Right: “Tous les jours, je oublie le rendez-vous.”

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

4. Using the present where the imperfect belongs

✗ Wrong: “Avant, je oublie son nom tous les jours.” (said of a repeated habit)

✓ Right: “Avant, je oubliais son nom tous les jours.”

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

5. Mixing up tu and je

✗ Wrong: “Tu oublie mes clés.”

✓ Right: “Tu oublies mes clés.”

With tu the present form is oublies, not oublie. Copy the form for the right person from the table.

Quiz: test yourself on the present of oublier

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

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

    • A) oubliez
    • B) oublies
    • C) oublie
    • D) oublions

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

    • A) oublient
    • B) oublies
    • C) oublie
    • D) oublions

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

    • A) oublies
    • B) oublions
    • C) oubliez
    • D) oublie

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

    • A) oublient
    • B) oublions
    • C) oublie
    • D) oubliez

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

    • A) oublient
    • B) oubliez
    • C) oublie
    • D) oublies

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

    • A) oubliez
    • B) oublions
    • C) oublie
    • D) oublient

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

    • A) as oublié
    • B) avons oublié
    • C) ai oublié
    • D) ont oublié

  8. What is the gerund of oublier?

    • A) dormant
    • B) oubliant
    • C) buvant

  9. What is the past participle of oublier?

    • A) oublié
    • B) dormi
    • C) bu

  10. What does oublier mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. C) oublie — The je form of oublier in the present indicative is oublie.
  2. B) oublies — The tu form of oublier in the present indicative is oublies.
  3. D) oublie — The il/elle form of oublier in the present indicative is oublie.
  4. B) oublions — The nous form of oublier in the present indicative is oublions.
  5. B) oubliez — The vous form of oublier in the present indicative is oubliez.
  6. D) oublient — The ils/elles form of oublier in the present indicative is oublient.
  7. C) ai oublié — The je form of oublier in the present perfect is ai oublié.
  8. B) oubliant — The gerund of oublier is en oubliant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  9. A) oublié — The past participle of oublier is oublié; perfect tenses use avoir + oublié.
  10. D) forget — oublier means “forget” in English.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use the present of oublier?

Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. For oublier that covers talking about forgetting, describing a busy day and missing an appointment.

Is the present of oublier regular?

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

What is the past participle of oublier?

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

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

Say “J'oublie mes clés.” — “I forget my keys.” The je form is oublie.

Pronunciation

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

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