Tourner Present Tense Conjugation in French
The present tense of tourner — “to turn” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for tourner, 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: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour.” — “I turn to the left at the crossroads.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for tourner, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of tourner
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for tourner. tourner is a regular -er verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.
Present indicative — tourner
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | tourne |
| tu | tournes |
| il/elle | tourne |
| nous | tournons |
| vous | tournez |
| ils/elles | tournent |
The gerund of tourner is en tournant and the past participle is tourné. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.
How the present tense of tourner is formed
For a regular -er verb, the present tense is built on the stem tourn- (the infinitive tourner without its -er ending) plus the present tense endings: je → tourne, tu → tournes, il/elle → tourne, nous → tournons, vous → tournez, ils/elles → tournent. So tourner gives tourne, tournes, tourne, tournons, tournez, tournent.
When to use the present tense of tourner
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with tourner: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.” — “I turn to the left at the crossroads.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
2. General truths and facts
Use the present tense for general truths and facts. For example, with tourner: “Tu tournes à gauche au carrefour en général.” — “You turn to the left at the crossroads.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
3. What is happening right now
Use the present tense for what is happening right now. For example, with tourner: “Il tourne à gauche au carrefour maintenant.” — “He turns to the left at the crossroads.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
4. Scheduled plans and the near future
Use the present tense for scheduled plans and the near future. For example, with tourner: “Nous tournons à gauche au carrefour demain.” — “We turn to the left at the crossroads.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
5. Narration and instructions
Use the present tense for narration and instructions. For example, with tourner: “Ils tournent à gauche au carrefour souvent.” — “They turn to the left at the crossroads.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: tourner now, tourner later
The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.
Present Tense: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.” — “I turn to the left at the crossroads.”
Future: “Je tournerai à gauche au carrefour demain.” — “I will turn to the left at the crossroads tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Tu tournes à gauche au carrefour maintenant.” — “You turn to the left at the crossroads.”
Future: “Tu tourneras à gauche au carrefour demain.” — “You will turn to the left at the crossroads tomorrow.”
Present Tense: “Nous tournons à gauche au carrefour en classe.” — “We turn to the left at the crossroads.”
Future: “Nous tournerons à gauche au carrefour demain.” — “We will turn to the left at the crossroads tomorrow.”
Example sentences: tourner in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of tourner, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.” — “I turn to the left at the crossroads.”
- “Tu tournes à gauche au carrefour chaque matin.” — “You turn to the left at the crossroads.”
- “Il tourne à gauche au carrefour souvent.” — “He turns to the left at the crossroads.”
- “Nous tournons à gauche au carrefour maintenant.” — “We turn to the left at the crossroads.”
- “Vous tournez à gauche au carrefour en général.” — “You turn to the left at the crossroads.”
- “Ils tournent à gauche au carrefour le week-end.” — “They turn to the left at the crossroads.”
Common mistakes with tourner in the present tense
Mistake 1: Using the infinitive instead of the present
Wrong: “Je tourner à gauche au carrefour.”
Right: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour.”
The infinitive never takes a subject; use the conjugated form tourne.
Mistake 2: Mixing up the persons
Wrong: “Tu tourne à gauche au carrefour.”
Right: “Tu tournes à gauche au carrefour.”
After tu you need tournes, not the je form tourne. Each person has its own ending.
Mistake 3: Using the future for a habit
Wrong: “Je tournerai à gauche au carrefour.” (for something you do every day)
Right: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.”
A habit takes the present, not the future. The future (tournerai) is for what will happen.
Mistake 4: Using the passé composé for a habit
Wrong: “J'ai tourné à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.” (for a daily habit)
Right: “Je tourne à gauche au carrefour tous les jours.”
A daily habit takes the present. The passé composé is for finished events.
Quiz: tourner in the present tense
What is the je form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tournez
- B) tourne
- C) tournons
- D) tournes
What is the tu form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tournons
- B) tournent
- C) tournes
- D) tournez
What is the il/elle form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tournent
- B) tournons
- C) tournes
- D) tourne
What is the nous form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tourne
- B) tournons
- C) tournez
- D) tournes
What is the vous form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tourne
- B) tournes
- C) tournez
- D) tournons
What is the ils/elles form of tourner in the Present indicative?
- A) tournent
- B) tournez
- C) tournes
- D) tournons
What is the gerund of tourner?
- A) en tournant
- B) tourné
- C) tournerai
- D) tourne
What does tourner mean in English?
- A) to go
- B) to be
- C) to have
- D) to turn
Answer key
- B) tourne — the je form of tourner in the present indicative is tourne.
- C) tournes — the tu form of tourner in the present indicative is tournes.
- D) tourne — the il/elle form of tourner in the present indicative is tourne.
- B) tournons — the nous form of tourner in the present indicative is tournons.
- C) tournez — the vous form of tourner in the present indicative is tournez.
- A) tournent — the ils/elles form of tourner in the present indicative is tournent.
- A) en tournant — the gerund of tourner is en tournant.
- D) to turn — tourner means “to turn” in English.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of tourner formed?
From the stem plus the present endings — the full table is at the top of this page. The je form is tourne and the ils form is tournent.
When do I use the present tense of tourner?
Use it for habits, facts and things happening now. The five usage rules above, with examples, cover the situations you will meet most often.
What is the difference between the present tense and the future?
The present is for what is true now or happens regularly (tourne), while the future is for what will happen (tournerai). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.
Where can I see the full conjugation of tourner?
On the full conjugation page for tourner, which has every tense, plus examples and a longer quiz. The examples and quiz page has more sentences in context.
Practice drill
Say the six present tense forms of tourner in order, without looking: tourne, tournes, tourne, tournons, tournez, tournent. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using tourne, ai tourné and tournerai. Check every form against the table above. When you can produce all six persons without looking, move on to the examples and quiz page.
Related pages
- tourner in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- tourner examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- French present tense guide — how this tense works for regular verbs.
- Traverser conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Sarreter conjugation — another French verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise tourner with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise tourner with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.