Rire Conjugation in French
rire means “laugh” in English, and it is a verb French learners meet early — it sits in VerbFlow’s frequency list for French. You use it for talking about humour, for describing a funny film, and for laughing with friends. Because it comes up in everyday conversation so often, learning its forms properly pays off from the very first week. This page gives you the complete conjugation of rire — every tense, every person, the gerund and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Je ris beaucoup.” — “I laugh a lot.”
Quick facts
- Infinitive: rire
- English: laugh
- Verb type: Irregular
- Irregular in: present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative
- Gerund: en risant
- Past participle: ri
- Auxiliary: avoir (all perfect tenses are formed with avoir + the past participle)
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for rire, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for rire. Learn the present tense first, then the passé composé and the imperfect, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present indicative
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ris |
| tu | ris |
| il/elle | rit |
| nous | risons |
| vous | risez |
| ils/elles | risent |
Passé simple
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ris |
| tu | ris |
| il/elle | rit |
| nous | rîmes |
| vous | rîtes |
| ils/elles | rirent |
Imperfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | risais |
| tu | risais |
| il/elle | risait |
| nous | risions |
| vous | risiez |
| ils/elles | risaient |
Future
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rirai |
| tu | riras |
| il/elle | rira |
| nous | rirons |
| vous | rirez |
| ils/elles | riront |
Conditional
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rirais |
| tu | rirais |
| il/elle | rirait |
| nous | ririons |
| vous | ririez |
| ils/elles | riraient |
Present subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rise |
| tu | rises |
| il/elle | rise |
| nous | risions |
| vous | risiez |
| ils/elles | risent |
Imperfect subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | risse |
| tu | risses |
| il/elle | rît |
| nous | rissions |
| vous | rissiez |
| ils/elles | rissent |
Present perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ai ri |
| tu | as ri |
| il/elle | a ri |
| nous | avons ri |
| vous | avez ri |
| ils/elles | ont ri |
Pluperfect (past perfect)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | avais ri |
| tu | avais ri |
| il/elle | avait ri |
| nous | avions ri |
| vous | aviez ri |
| ils/elles | avaient ri |
Future perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurai ri |
| tu | auras ri |
| il/elle | aura ri |
| nous | aurons ri |
| vous | aurez ri |
| ils/elles | auront ri |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | aurais ri |
| tu | aurais ri |
| il/elle | aurait ri |
| nous | aurions ri |
| vous | auriez ri |
| ils/elles | auraient ri |
Imperative (affirmative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | ris |
| nous | risons |
| vous | risez |
Imperative (negative)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| tu | ris |
| nous | risons |
| vous | risez |
Gerund and past participle
| Form | French |
|---|---|
| Gerund | en risant |
| Past participle | ri |
When to use each tense
Present indicative
The present indicative is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With rire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Je ris aux blagues.” — “I laugh at jokes.”
Passé simple
The passé simple is used for completed actions in the past, mainly in written and literary French. With rire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Je ris aux blagues hier.” — “I laughed at jokes yesterday.”
Imperfect
The imperfect is used for ongoing or habitual actions in the past, and background description. For example: “Je risais aux blagues avant.” — “I used to laugh at jokes before.”
Future
The future is used for what will happen, predictions and plans. For example: “Je rirai aux blagues demain.” — “I will laugh at jokes tomorrow.”
Conditional
The conditional is used for what would happen, polite requests and hypothetical situations. For example: “Je rirais aux blagues un jour.” — “I would laugh at jokes one day.”
Present subjunctive
The present subjunctive is used for wishes, doubts, emotions and opinions after que. With rire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Bien que je rise aux blagues” — “Although I laugh at jokes.”
Imperfect subjunctive
The imperfect subjunctive is used for the past subjunctive: wishes and hypotheticals about the past, in formal and literary French. For example: “Bien que je risse aux blagues” — “Although I laugh at jokes.”
Present perfect
The present perfect is used for recent past actions and life experience; this is the everyday spoken past tense, the passé composé. For example: “J'ai ri aux blagues cette semaine.” — “I have laughed at jokes this week.”
Pluperfect (past perfect)
The pluperfect (past perfect) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “J'avais ri aux blagues avant la fête.” — “I had laughed at jokes before the party.”
Future perfect
The future perfect is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “J'aurai ri aux blagues pour demain.” — “I will have laughed at jokes by tomorrow.”
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “J'aurais ri aux blagues hier.” — “I would have laughed at jokes yesterday.”
Imperative (affirmative)
The imperative (affirmative) is used for direct commands and instructions. With rire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “ris aux blagues !” — “Laugh at jokes!”
Imperative (negative)
The imperative (negative) is used for prohibitions and negative commands. With rire this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Ne ris pas aux blagues !” — “Don't laugh at jokes!”
Gerund and past participle
The gerund en risant is used after en for an action in progress, and the past participle ri builds the perfect tenses with avoir. For example: “J'ai ri tous les jours cette semaine.” — “I have laughed every day this week.”
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with rire, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the French and try to produce it from the English.
- “Je ris beaucoup.” — “I laugh a lot.”
- “Tu ris aux blagues hier.” — “You laughed at jokes yesterday.”
- “Il risait tous les jours avant.” — “He used to laugh every day before.”
- “Je rirai très fort demain.” — “I will laugh very loudly tomorrow.”
- “Tu rirais beaucoup un jour.” — “You would laugh a lot one day.”
- “Il a ri aux blagues cette semaine.” — “He has laughed at jokes this week.”
- “J'avais ri tous les jours avant la fête.” — “I had laughed every day before the party.”
- “Tu auras ri très fort pour demain.” — “You will have laughed very loudly by tomorrow.”
- “Bien que il rise beaucoup” — “Although he laughs a lot.”
- “ris aux blagues !” — “Laugh at jokes!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Je rire beaucoup.”
✓ Right: “Je ris beaucoup.”
The infinitive rire never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form ris.
2. Using the wrong person
✗ Wrong: “Je risons aux blagues.”
✓ Right: “Je ris aux blagues.”
risons is the nous form. With je the present form is ris — check the person in the table before you speak.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Hier, je ris beaucoup.”
✓ Right: “Hier, j'ai ri beaucoup.”
The present ris describes now. For something finished yesterday, use the passé composé ai ri.
4. Using the passé simple in everyday speech
✗ Wrong: “Hier, je ris tous les jours.” (in casual conversation)
✓ Right: “Hier, j'ai ri tous les jours.”
The passé simple ris belongs in novels and formal writing. In everyday speech, say the passé composé ai ri.
5. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “Bien que je ris beaucoup.”
✓ Right: “Bien que je rise beaucoup.”
After bien que French needs the subjunctive, so use rise here, not the indicative ris.
6. Using the imperfect for a single finished action
✗ Wrong: “Je risais très fort avant.” (said of one finished moment)
✓ Right: “J'ai ri très fort avant.”
The imperfect risais describes something ongoing or repeated in the past. For one finished action, use the passé composé ai ri.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on rire. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the je form of rire in the Present indicative?
- A) risons
- B) risent
- C) risez
- D) ris
What is the il/elle form of rire in the Passé simple?
- A) ris
- B) rîtes
- C) rirent
- D) rit
What is the nous form of rire in the Imperfect?
- A) risais
- B) risaient
- C) risions
- D) risiez
What is the tu form of rire in the Future?
- A) rira
- B) riront
- C) rirez
- D) riras
What is the je form of rire in the Conditional?
- A) ririez
- B) rirait
- C) riraient
- D) rirais
What is the il/elle form of rire in the Present subjunctive?
- A) rises
- B) rise
- C) risions
- D) risent
What is the je form of rire in the Imperfect subjunctive?
- A) risses
- B) risse
- C) rissent
- D) rît
What is the gerund of rire?
- A) buvant
- B) risant
- C) dormant
What is the past participle of rire?
- A) ri
- B) bu
- C) dormi
What does rire mean in English?
- A) drink
- B) sleep
- C) laugh
- D) open
Answer key
- D) ris — The je form of rire in the present indicative is ris.
- D) rit — The il/elle form of rire in the passé simple is rit.
- C) risions — The nous form of rire in the imperfect is risions.
- D) riras — The tu form of rire in the future is riras.
- D) rirais — The je form of rire in the conditional is rirais.
- B) rise — The il/elle form of rire in the present subjunctive is rise.
- B) risse — The je form of rire in the imperfect subjunctive is risse.
- B) risant — The gerund of rire is en risant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
- A) ri — The past participle of rire is ri; perfect tenses use avoir + ri.
- C) laugh — rire means “laugh” in English.
Frequently asked questions
What does rire mean in English?
rire means “laugh”. You use it for talking about humour, for describing a funny film, and for laughing with friends. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is rire regular or irregular?
rire is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The gerund is en risant and the past participle is ri.
What are the gerund and past participle of rire?
The gerund is en risant — use it after en for actions in progress. The past participle is ri — use it with avoir for the perfect tenses, as in ai ri.
How do I say “I laugh” in French?
Say “Je ris beaucoup.” — “I laugh a lot.” The je form of the present is ris, and it is the form you will use most often.
What is the difference between rire and pleurer?
rire means “laugh” while pleurer means “cry” — they describe different actions, so they are not interchangeable. Compare the full table for pleurer and check the meaning in context before you choose.
Related pages
- Rire Passé Composé Tense Conjugation in French
- Rire Examples, Sentences & Quiz in French
- Pleurer conjugation
- Sourire conjugation
- Jouer conjugation
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages and tools.
- Verb Conjugator — practise rire with the interactive tool.
- Irregular Verb Finder — practise rire with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise rire with the interactive tool.