Porter in the Present Tense in French
Introduction
Porter means “to carry, to wear”, and this page covers exactly one thing: porter in the present tense. The present is the tense French speakers reach for when they talk about what happens regularly, what is true in general, and what is happening right now. On this page you will find the full present table for porter, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about porter in the present. For example: “Je porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “I carry a coat in winter every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of porter exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.
Porter in the Present Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | porte |
| tu | portes |
| il/elle | porte |
| nous | portons |
| vous | portez |
| ils/elles | portent |
Gerund: portant · Past participle: porté
The gerund is portant, which you use after en for an action happening at the same time as another action. The past participle is porté, which you use with avoir in the perfect tenses: the je form of the present perfect is ai porté, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the present is only one part of how porter is used.
How the present of porter is formed
The present of porter follows the regular -er pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je porte, tu portes, il/elle porte, nous portons, vous portez, ils/elles portent. The nous and vous forms are the ones learners most often get wrong, because they expect a change that is not there — learn the six forms as two groups, the singular forms and the plural forms, and the pattern becomes automatic. The stem never changes in the present for this verb, so the only work is the endings.
The present stem also feeds other tenses: the imperfect is built from the present nous form, and the present subjunctive is built from the present ils form, so learning the present properly makes the rest of the conjugation easier. The gerund portant and the participle porté belong to the same family of forms — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise porter in every tense.
When to use the present of porter
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use porter in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. Carrying a coat in winter — the everyday use
Porter is the verb for carrying a coat in winter. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Je porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “I carry a coat in winter every day.”
2. Carrying glasses every day — a second everyday use
Porter also covers carrying glasses every day. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Tu portes des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You carry glasses every day every day.”
3. Carrying a red dress this evening — a third everyday use
In a third everyday situation, you use porter for carrying a red dress this evening. The same verb, the same present forms, a different situation — that is why the present is worth learning as a whole table rather than one form at a time. Example: “Il porte une robe rouge ce soir tous les jours.” — “He carries a red dress this evening every day.”
4. Habits and routines
The present tense is the tense of routine. When something happens every day, every week or every morning, the present is the natural choice, and porter is no exception. Use time expressions such as tous les jours, toujours or chaque semaine to make the routine explicit. Example: “Nous portons un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “We carry a coat in winter every day.”
5. What is happening right now
The present also describes an action in progress at this very moment. French often prefers the simple present where English would use the continuous form, so a sentence with porter in the present can mean both “I do this” and “I am doing this now”. Context tells the listener which one you mean. Example: “Vous portez des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You carry glasses every day every day.”
Present Tense vs Imperfect: how to choose
The closest tense to the present is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual past action, while the present describes habits and facts that are true now. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the present sentences use words such as tous les jours or hier, while the imperfect sentences use autrefois or quand. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.
Present: “Je porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “I carry a coat in winter every day.”
Imperfect: “Je portais un manteau en hiver autrefois.” — “I used to carry a coat in winter in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Present: “Tu portes des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You carry glasses every day every day.”
Imperfect: “Tu portais des lunettes tous les jours autrefois.” — “You used to carry glasses every day in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Present: “Nous portons une robe rouge ce soir tous les jours.” — “We carry a red dress this evening every day.”
Imperfect: “Nous portions une robe rouge ce soir autrefois.” — “We used to carry a red dress this evening in the past.”
The present sentence is about the present moment or one finished action; the imperfect sentence is about the past as it used to be. That difference — now or finished versus ongoing in the past — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: porter in the present
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other words — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“Je porte des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “I carry glasses every day every day.”
“Tu portes une robe rouge ce soir tous les jours.” — “You carry a red dress this evening every day.”
“Il porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “He carries a coat in winter every day.”
“Nous portons des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “We carry glasses every day every day.”
“Vous portez une robe rouge ce soir tous les jours.” — “You carry a red dress this evening every day.”
“Ils portent un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “They carry a coat in winter every day.”
“Je porte des lunettes tous les jours tous les jours.” — “I carry glasses every day every day.”
“Tu portes une robe rouge ce soir tous les jours.” — “You carry a red dress this evening every day.”
Common mistakes with porter in the present
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Je portent un manteau en hiver.” Right: “Je porte un manteau en hiver.” Why: The je form is porte, not portent. Portent belongs with ils/elles. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.
Wrong: “Nous portent un manteau en hiver.” Right: “Nous portons un manteau en hiver.” Why: Nous keeps its own form: portons, not portent. Learn nous and vous as a separate pair from the singular forms.
Wrong: “Un manteau en hiver” with the infinitive: “Je porter un manteau en hiver.” Right: “Je porte un manteau en hiver.” Why: The infinitive porter never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form porte.
Wrong: “Il est important que je porte un manteau en hiver.” Right: “Il est important que je porte un manteau en hiver.” Why: After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use porte here, not the indicative porte.
Quiz: porter in the present
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Je ______ des lunettes tous les jours.”
- (A) portons
- (B) portez
- (C) porte
- (D) portes
2. Complete the sentence: “Tu ______ une robe rouge ce soir.”
- (A) porte
- (B) portons
- (C) portez
- (D) portes
3. Complete the sentence: “Il ______ un manteau en hiver.”
- (A) portons
- (B) portez
- (C) porte
- (D) portes
4. Complete the sentence: “Nous ______ des lunettes tous les jours.”
- (A) porte
- (B) portes
- (C) portez
- (D) portons
5. Complete the sentence: “Vous ______ une robe rouge ce soir.”
- (A) portez
- (B) porte
- (C) portes
- (D) portons
6. Complete the sentence: “Ils ______ un manteau en hiver.”
- (A) portent
- (B) porte
- (C) portes
- (D) portons
7. What does porter mean in English?
- (A) to follow
- (B) to think
- (C) to carry, to wear
- (D) to leave, to let
8. What is the past participle of porter?
- (A) suivi
- (B) pensé
- (C) porté
- (D) laissé
Answer key
- C) porte — The je form is porte.
- D) portes — The tu form is portes.
- C) porte — The il/elle form is porte.
- D) portons — The nous form is portons.
- A) portez — The vous form is portez.
- A) portent — The ils/elles form is portent.
- C) to carry, to wear — porter means “to carry, to wear”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
- C) porté — The past participle of porter is porté; the present is formed with avoir + porté.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present of porter formed?
The present of porter is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je porte, tu portes, il porte, nous portons, vous portez, ils portent.
When do I use the present of porter?
Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Je porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” — “I carry a coat in winter every day.” For a finished past action, use the passé composé instead.
What is the difference between the present and the imperfect of porter?
The present describes what is true now or happens regularly; the imperfect describes what used to happen or was happening in the past. Compare “Je porte un manteau en hiver tous les jours.” with “Je portais un manteau en hiver autrefois.” — the first is now, the second is the past as it used to be.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for porter, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of porter — every tense of porter in one place.
- Porter in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Porter examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Laisser conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Suivre conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Penser conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise porter with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise porter with the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — practise porter with the interactive tool.