Répondre in the Present Tense in French

Introduction

Répondre means “to answer”, and this page covers exactly one thing: répondre 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 répondre, 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 répondre in the present. For example: “Je réponds à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “I answer to Marie this evening every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of répondre exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.

Répondre in the Present Tense — full table

Person Form
je réponds
tu réponds
il/elle répond
nous répondons
vous répondez
ils/elles répondent

Gerund: répondant · Past participle: répondu

The gerund is répondant, which you use after en for an action happening at the same time as another action. The past participle is répondu, which you use with avoir in the perfect tenses: the je form of the present perfect is ai répondu, 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 répondre is used.

How the present of répondre is formed

The present of répondre follows the regular -re pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je réponds, tu réponds, il/elle répond, nous répondons, vous répondez, ils/elles répondent. 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 répondant and the participle répondu belong to the same family of forms — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise répondre in every tense.

When to use the present of répondre

The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use répondre in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. Answering to Marie this evening — the everyday use

Répondre is the verb for answering to Marie this evening. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Je réponds à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “I answer to Marie this evening every day.”

2. Answering to the teacher's question — a second everyday use

Répondre also covers answering to the teacher's question. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Tu réponds à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “You answer to the teacher's question every day.”

3. Answering on the telephone every day — a third everyday use

In a third everyday situation, you use répondre for answering on the telephone every day. 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 répond au téléphone tous les jours tous les jours.” — “He answers on the telephone every day 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 répondre is no exception. Use time expressions such as tous les jours, toujours or chaque semaine to make the routine explicit. Example: “Nous répondons à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “We answer to Marie this evening 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 répondre 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 répondez à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “You answer to the teacher's question 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 réponds à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “I answer to Marie this evening every day.”

  • Imperfect: “Je répondais à Marie ce soir autrefois.” — “I used to answer to Marie 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.

  • Present: “Tu réponds à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “You answer to the teacher's question every day.”

  • Imperfect: “Tu répondais à la question du professeur autrefois.” — “You used to answer to the teacher's question 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 répondons au téléphone tous les jours tous les jours.” — “We answer on the telephone every day every day.”

  • Imperfect: “Nous répondions au téléphone tous les jours autrefois.” — “We used to answer on the telephone 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.

Example sentences: répondre 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.

  1. “Je réponds à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “I answer to the teacher's question every day.”

  2. “Tu réponds au téléphone tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You answer on the telephone every day every day.”

  3. “Il répond à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “He answers to Marie this evening every day.”

  4. “Nous répondons à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “We answer to the teacher's question every day.”

  5. “Vous répondez au téléphone tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You answer on the telephone every day every day.”

  6. “Ils répondent à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “They answer to Marie this evening every day.”

  7. “Je réponds à la question du professeur tous les jours.” — “I answer to the teacher's question every day.”

  8. “Tu réponds au téléphone tous les jours tous les jours.” — “You answer on the telephone every day every day.”

Common mistakes with répondre 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 répondent à Marie ce soir.” Right: “Je réponds à Marie ce soir.” Why: The je form is réponds, not répondent. Répondent belongs with ils/elles. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.

  • Wrong: “Nous répondent à Marie ce soir.” Right: “Nous répondons à Marie ce soir.” Why: Nous keeps its own form: répondons, not répondent. Learn nous and vous as a separate pair from the singular forms.

  • Wrong: “À marie ce soir” with the infinitive: “Je répondre à Marie ce soir.” Right: “Je réponds à Marie ce soir.” Why: The infinitive répondre never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form réponds.

  • Wrong: “Il est important que je réponds à Marie ce soir.” Right: “Il est important que je réponde à Marie ce soir.” Why: After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use réponde here, not the indicative réponds.

Quiz: répondre 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 ______ à la question du professeur.”

  • (A) répondez
  • (B) réponds
  • (C) répond
  • (D) répondons

2. Complete the sentence: “Tu ______ au téléphone tous les jours.”

  • (A) répondez
  • (B) réponds
  • (C) répond
  • (D) répondons

3. Complete the sentence: “Il ______ à Marie ce soir.”

  • (A) répond
  • (B) réponds
  • (C) répondons
  • (D) répondez

4. Complete the sentence: “Nous ______ à la question du professeur.”

  • (A) répondons
  • (B) réponds
  • (C) répond
  • (D) répondez

5. Complete the sentence: “Vous ______ au téléphone tous les jours.”

  • (A) répondons
  • (B) répondez
  • (C) réponds
  • (D) répond

6. Complete the sentence: “Ils ______ à Marie ce soir.”

  • (A) répondons
  • (B) répondent
  • (C) réponds
  • (D) répond

7. What does répondre mean in English?

  • (A) to wait
  • (B) to answer
  • (C) to work
  • (D) to listen to

8. What is the past participle of répondre?

  • (A) travaillé
  • (B) écouté
  • (C) attendu
  • (D) répondu

Answer key

  1. B) réponds — The je form is réponds.
  2. B) réponds — The tu form is réponds.
  3. A) répond — The il/elle form is répond.
  4. A) répondons — The nous form is répondons.
  5. B) répondez — The vous form is répondez.
  6. B) répondent — The ils/elles form is répondent.
  7. B) to answer — répondre means “to answer”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
  8. D) répondu — The past participle of répondre is répondu; the present is formed with avoir + répondu.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present of répondre formed?

The present of répondre is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je réponds, tu réponds, il répond, nous répondons, vous répondez, ils répondent.

When do I use the present of répondre?

Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Je réponds à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” — “I answer to Marie this evening every day.” For a finished past action, use the passé composé instead.

What is the difference between the present and the imperfect of répondre?

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 réponds à Marie ce soir tous les jours.” with “Je répondais à Marie ce soir 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 répondre, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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