Tomber in the Present Tense in French
Introduction
Tomber means “to fall”, and this page covers exactly one thing: tomber 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 tomber, 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 tomber in the present. For example: “Je tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I fall in the garden every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of tomber exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.
Tomber in the Present Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | tombe |
| tu | tombes |
| il/elle | tombe |
| nous | tombons |
| vous | tombez |
| ils/elles | tombent |
Gerund: tombant · Past participle: tombé
The gerund is tombant, which you use after en for an action happening at the same time as another action. The past participle is tombé, which you use with être in the perfect tenses: the je form of the present perfect is suis tombé, 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 tomber is used.
How the present of tomber is formed
The present of tomber follows the regular -er pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je tombe, tu tombes, il/elle tombe, nous tombons, vous tombez, ils/elles tombent. 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 tombant and the participle tombé belong to the same family of forms — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise tomber in every tense.
When to use the present of tomber
The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use tomber in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. Falling in the garden — the everyday use
Tomber is the verb for falling in the garden. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Je tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I fall in the garden every day.”
2. Falling in love with Paris — a second everyday use
Tomber also covers falling in love with Paris. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Tu tombes amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “You fall in love with Paris every day.”
3. Falling off my bike on the road — a third everyday use
In a third everyday situation, you use tomber for falling off my bike on the road. 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 tombe de vélo sur la route tous les jours.” — “He falls off my bike on the road 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 tomber is no exception. Use time expressions such as tous les jours, toujours or chaque semaine to make the routine explicit. Example: “Nous tombons dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “We fall in the garden 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 tomber 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 tombez amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “You fall in love with Paris 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 tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I fall in the garden every day.”
Imperfect: “Je tombais dans le jardin autrefois.” — “I used to fall in the garden 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 tombes amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “You fall in love with Paris every day.”
Imperfect: “Tu tombais amoureux de Paris autrefois.” — “You used to fall in love with Paris 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 tombons de vélo sur la route tous les jours.” — “We fall off my bike on the road every day.”
Imperfect: “Nous tombions de vélo sur la route autrefois.” — “We used to fall off my bike on the road 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: tomber 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 tombe amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “I fall in love with Paris every day.”
“Tu tombes de vélo sur la route tous les jours.” — “You fall off my bike on the road every day.”
“Il tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “He falls in the garden every day.”
“Nous tombons amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “We fall in love with Paris every day.”
“Vous tombez de vélo sur la route tous les jours.” — “You fall off my bike on the road every day.”
“Ils tombent dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “They fall in the garden every day.”
“Je tombe amoureux de Paris tous les jours.” — “I fall in love with Paris every day.”
“Tu tombes de vélo sur la route tous les jours.” — “You fall off my bike on the road every day.”
Common mistakes with tomber 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 tombent dans le jardin.” Right: “Je tombe dans le jardin.” Why: The je form is tombe, not tombent. Tombent belongs with ils/elles. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.
Wrong: “Nous tombent dans le jardin.” Right: “Nous tombons dans le jardin.” Why: Nous keeps its own form: tombons, not tombent. Learn nous and vous as a separate pair from the singular forms.
Wrong: “Dans le jardin” with the infinitive: “Je tomber dans le jardin.” Right: “Je tombe dans le jardin.” Why: The infinitive tomber never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated present form tombe.
Wrong: “Il est important que je tombe dans le jardin.” Right: “Il est important que je tombe dans le jardin.” Why: After il est important que French needs the subjunctive, so use tombe here, not the indicative tombe.
Quiz: tomber 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 ______ amoureux de Paris.”
- (A) tombez
- (B) tombe
- (C) tombes
- (D) tombons
2. Complete the sentence: “Tu ______ de vélo sur la route.”
- (A) tombons
- (B) tombez
- (C) tombes
- (D) tombe
3. Complete the sentence: “Il ______ dans le jardin.”
- (A) tombez
- (B) tombe
- (C) tombes
- (D) tombons
4. Complete the sentence: “Nous ______ amoureux de Paris.”
- (A) tombes
- (B) tombez
- (C) tombons
- (D) tombe
5. Complete the sentence: “Vous ______ de vélo sur la route.”
- (A) tombe
- (B) tombes
- (C) tombons
- (D) tombez
6. Complete the sentence: “Ils ______ dans le jardin.”
- (A) tombe
- (B) tombes
- (C) tombons
- (D) tombent
7. What does tomber mean in English?
- (A) to begin
- (B) to call
- (C) to fall
- (D) to understand
8. What is the past participle of tomber?
- (A) appelé
- (B) tombé
- (C) compris
- (D) commencé
Answer key
- B) tombe — The je form is tombe.
- C) tombes — The tu form is tombes.
- B) tombe — The il/elle form is tombe.
- C) tombons — The nous form is tombons.
- D) tombez — The vous form is tombez.
- D) tombent — The ils/elles form is tombent.
- C) to fall — tomber means “to fall”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
- B) tombé — The past participle of tomber is tombé; the present is formed with être + tombé.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present of tomber formed?
The present of tomber is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving je tombe, tu tombes, il tombe, nous tombons, vous tombez, ils tombent.
When do I use the present of tomber?
Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Je tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I fall in the garden every day.” For a finished past action, use the passé composé instead.
What is the difference between the present and the imperfect of tomber?
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 tombe dans le jardin tous les jours.” with “Je tombais dans le jardin 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 tomber, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of tomber — every tense of tomber in one place.
- Tomber in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Tomber examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Comprendre conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Commencer conjugation — another everyday French verb.
- Appeler 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 tomber with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise tomber with the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — practise tomber with the interactive tool.