
Worried about conjugating the irregular French verb faire? Fret not — this guide is exactly what you need to learn how to conjugate faire smoothly and efficiently, as if French were your first language.
As an irregular verb, faire doesn’t follow a strict pattern, so it’s mandatory to memorize and practice conjugating it. It’s a commonly used verb that you will read and hear often.
Here, we offer guidance on how to conjugate faire in the most common French verb tenses. Following are lists of conjugations for faire in present simple tense and other tenses.
Faire Conjugation: Present Simple Tense
Pronoun | Ending | Output |
Je | -ais | fais |
Tu | -ais | fais |
Il/elle/on | -ait | fait |
Nous | -aisons | faisons |
Vous | -aites | faites |
Ils/elles | -ont | font |
Example:
Je fais le ménage pendant mon temps libre. (I do chores in my spare time.)
Faire Conjugation: Perfect Tense
It’s important to remember that avoir is an auxiliary verb used with faire.
Pronoun | Ending | Output |
Je | -ait | ai fait |
Tu | -ait | as fait |
Il/elle/on | -ait | a fait |
Nous | -ait | avons fait |
Vous | -ait | avez fait |
Ils/elles | -ait | ont fait |
Example:
Le charpentier a fait une table. (The carpenter made a table.)
Faire Conjugation: Imperfect Tense
Pronoun | Ending | Output |
Je | -sais | faisais |
Tu | -sais | faisais |
Il/elle/on | -sait | faisait |
Nous | -sions | faisions |
Vous | -siez | faisiez |
Ils/elles | -saient | faisaient |
Example:
En vacances, quand ils allaient en famille, ils faisaient des tables en bois pour s’amuser. Désormais quand ils y vont avec des amis, ils préfèrent cuisiner pour s’amuser. (When they used to go on vacation as a family, they would make wooden tables for fun. Nowadays when they go with friends, they prefer to cook for fun.)
Faire Conjugation: Future Simple Tense
Pronoun | Ending | Output |
Je | -erai | ferai |
Tu | -eras | feras |
Il/elle/on | -era | fera |
Nous | -erons | ferons |
Vous | -erez | ferez |
Ils/elles | -ront | feront |
Example:
Que ferez-vous lorsque vous aurez un emploi ? (What will you do when you have an job?)
Faire Conjugation: Conditional Tense
Pronoun | ending | Output |
Je | -erais | ferais |
Tu | -erias | ferais |
Il/elle/on | -erait | ferait |
Nous | -erions | ferions |
Vous | -eriez | feriez |
Ils/elles | -eraient | feraient |
Example:
Je ne ferais des affaires que si cela me permettait de réaliser des profits élevés. (I would only do business if it made me earn high profits.)
Review what you’ve learned so far with the video below on conjugating the French verb faire:
Faire Conjugation: Subjunctive Mood
Pronoun | Ending | Output |
Je | -asse | fasse |
Tu | -asses | fasses |
Il/elle/on | -asse | fasse |
Nous | -assions | fassions |
Vous | -assiez | fassiez |
Ils/elles | -assent | fassent |
Example:
Je veux qu’il fasse ses propres devoirs à partir de maintenant. (I want him to do his own duties from now on.)
Faire: Imperative Forms
Forms | Examples |
Fais (tu) | Fais la vaiselle. (Do the dishes.) |
Faites (vous) | Faites une liste de choses que vous aimez. (Make a list of things you love.) |
Faisons (nous) | Faisons la cuisine. Ainsi nous pourrons nager plus tard. (Let’s do the cooking. Then we can go swimming later.) |
Uses for Faire
Faire is important when learning French since you can use it instead of other verbs that you might not know yet. For instance, it’s fine to use faire for “create” or “make,” and as you learn more French and your vocabulary increases, you can replace it with verbs such as creer, inventer, fabriquer and others.
There are some cases though where you discover that faire is just the right fit in certain fixed expressions. There will be no alternative. Below are some common examples.
Phrasal Verbs With Faire
There are numerous expressions and verbs that use faire. Here are some of the most common phrasal verbs with faire that you might come across.
Phrasal verbs | Uses |
faire l’amour | to make love |
faire chier | This vulgar expression can be used to show annoyance. |
faire confiance | to have faith or trust Elle est fiable. J’ai confiance en elle. (She is reliable. I have faith in her.) |
faire connaissance | to meet someone Nous avons fait connaissance au Comic-Con. (We met at Comic-Con.) |
faire les courses | to run errands |
faire croire | to make someone believe something |
faire demi-tour | to look back |
faire dodo | informal way to say “go to sleep” |
faire du bruit | to make noise |
faire gaffe | faire attention, meaning to watch out or pay attention |
faire la manche | to beg for money |
faire mouche | to hit the nail on the head |
faire la part des choses | to see things objectively |
faire la queue | to wait in line |
faire le pont | Faire le pont means giving yourself a long weekend by taking the day off just before or after — a very French practice! |
faire semblant de | to pretend |
faire de la peine a quelqu’un | to hurt someone’s feelings |
faire un tour | to take a walk |
Other Ways to Use Faire
Tell Time
Faire can be used to show that a certain amount of time has passed: Cela fait dix minutes qu’elle attend. In English, it’s not exactly right to say, “That makes ten minutes since she’s been waiting,” but you get the idea!
Give Dimensions
Faire can be used to talk about measurements.
Example :
Cette salle fait 80 mètres carrés. (This room is 80 square meters.)
“Equals” in Mathematics
Example:
4 et 4 font 8.
Using faire this way is more common than the alternative: 2 plus 2 égal 4.
Talk About the Weather
Example:
Quel temps fait-il aujourd’hui ? (How is the weather today?)
Il pleut. (It’s raining.)
C’est beau quand il fait beau. (It’s beautiful when it’s sunny.)
Make Someone Do Something or Have Something Done
Example :
Ils lui ont fait faire tout leur travail. (They made her do all their duties.)
Il a fait réparer le véhicule. (He had the vehicle repaired.)
Cooking Expressions
Example:
Faire bouillir l’eau. (Boil the water.)
Faire fondre le beurre. (Melt the butter.)
Using Faire as a Noun
In some instances, you’ll find that faire works as a noun instead of a verb. The more popular examples (think savoir-faire and laissez-faire) have infiltrated other languages and are common in many countries.
Points to Remember
While faire does mean to do or to make, and it can be used to talk about making other people do something, it cannot be used with feelings. When we talk about making other people feel emotions, we use rendre: Elle le rend heureux. Cela me rend triste.
Now that you’ve learned a few different meanings for faire and some common conjugations, using it gets simpler with practice. Start watching French TV shows, films, and YouTube clips, and you’ll hear the word everywhere. These activities help you acquire more knowledge in French before you know it. You can also get further help and guidance from our French tutors.
Quiz: Test your knowledge of French Faire!