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L’infinitif
The French infinitive, which always ends in –er, –ir, or –re, serves as the name of any given verb. It’s what you look up in dictionaries and verb conjugation tables, so it’s important to learn the infinitive of every new verb you see or hear. Because the infinitive has no number or person marker, it’s known as an impersonal verb mood.
French infinitives are generally equivalent to "to" + verb in English.
Par exemple…
| donner | to give | |
| choisir | to choose | |
| vendre | to sell |
When speaking or writing French, verbs usually need to be conjugated, but there are several constructions that require the infinitive itself.
After verbs
The infinitive is used after semi-auxiliary verbs, including in the causative and after requests:
| semi-auxiliary | J’espère partir Ă midi. | I’m hoping to leave at noon. | ||
| causative | Nous faisons rĂ©parer le toit. | We’re getting/having the roof repaired. | ||
| request | Il m’a demandĂ© de chuchoter. | He asked me to whisper. |
After adjectives and nouns
Impersonal expressions, copular verbs + adjectives, and expressions with avoir + noun are all followed by the infinitive:
| impersonal expression + Ă / de | Il est difficile Ă comprendre. | That’s hard to understand. | ||
| copular verb + adj + de | Je suis dĂ©solĂ© de l’apprendre. | I’m sorry to hear that. | ||
| avoir + noun + de | Elle n’a pas envie de manger. | She doesn’t feel like eating. |
The infinitive is only used when the above constructions end in a preposition. When they are followed by que, a conjugated verb is required – possibly the subjunctive – learn more.
After prepositions
1) When a preposition is used with no preceding verb, the infinitive is required:
| avant de commencer | before (we/you/they) begin | |
| pour comprendre la situation … | in order to understand the situation … |
2) In the passive infinitive:
| Ă vendre | for sale | |
| Je n’ai rien Ă lire. | I have nothing to read. |
3) With verbs that require a preposition:
| J’ai dĂ» changer de train. | I had to change trains. | |
| Il vont finir par divorcer. | They’re going to end up getting divorced. |
Impersonal orders
In written documents like recipes, instruction manuals, and safety instructions, the infinitive is used to give impersonal orders (learn more):
| Chauffer l’huile sur feu modĂ©rĂ©. | Heat the oil over medium heat. | |
| Rester assis. | Stay seated. | |
| En cas d’incendie, composer le 18. | In case of a fire, dial 18. |
Word order
Word order with the infinitive is different—and much simpler—than with conjugated verbs: everything goes in front of the infinitive.
- The two parts of negative adverbs (e.g., ne and pas) stay together in front of the infinitive
- Object, reflexive, and adverbial pronouns precede the infinitive
- When you have both of the above, negation goes first
| Ne pas ouvrir la porte. | Don’t open the door. | |
| La chauffer pendant 30 seconds. | Heat it for 30 seconds. | |
| Je t’ai dit de ne jamais l’ouvrir. | I told you never to open it. |
Infinitive as noun
The infinitive can also be used as a noun; the English equivalent is either a noun or a gerund.
| Voyager seul peut ĂŞtre dangereux. | Traveling alone can be dangerous. | |
| Voir, c’est croire. | Seeing is believing. | |
| Savoir, c’est pouvoir. | Knowledge is power. |
Related lessons
- Adverbial pronouns
- Impersonal orders
- Negative adverbs
- Object pronouns
- Passive infinitive
- Reflexive pronouns
- Semi-auxiliary verbs
- Verbs with prepositions
- Introduction to verbs
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