Forming and Using the Conditional

The conditional (le conditionnel) is not a tense but a [object Promise], which means it indicates not the time or period when something happened, but the tone of the sentence, and makes the intentions of the speaking person clear. This mood helps you show the possible outcomes related to a condition.

Usage of the Conditional in the Present Tense

Rule 1: The conditionnel présent is used for:

- wishes

- possibilities

- suspicions

- advice

- polite requests

- main clauses of an unreal conditional sentence

Forming the Conditional

Rule 2: To form the conditional mood with regular verbs, the endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient are added to the infinitive.

Here's an example with the verb jouer (to play):

Exception: If the infinitive of the verb ends with -e, it is omitted. For example, prendre (to take): -> je prendrais.

Forming the Conditional: Irregular Forms

Rule 3: The endings of the conditionnel présent don't change (-ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient), but some verbs' stems change.

- Verbs ending with -oir are also irregular:

- For some verbs that end with -rir, the "i" is omitted:

- Like in the present tense, sometimes there are other small changes when forming the conditional (accent, boubling of a consonant, changing "y" to "i"):