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French · Verb · #64 most common

descendre

to go down
to descend

Regular3rd ending

In the tables below, the stem is shown in black and the ending in purple.

1.

Présent

Current actions, habits, and general truths.

jedescends
tudescends
il/elledescend
nousdescendons
vousdescendez
ils/ellesdescendent

Je descends les escaliers tous les matins.

I go down the stairs every morning.

Nous descendons au marché cet après-midi.

We are going down to the market this afternoon.

2.

Passé Composé

Completed past actions with present relevance.

jesuis descendu(e)
tues descendu(e)
il/elleest descendu(e)
noussommes descendu(e)s
vousêtes descendu(e)(s)
ils/ellessont descendus(es)

Il est descendu rapidement après avoir entendu le bruit.

He went down quickly after hearing the noise.

Elles sont descendues à la station de métro.

They (feminine) went down to the subway station.

3.

Imparfait

Ongoing or habitual past actions, descriptions, and background.

jedescendais
tudescendais
il/elledescendait
nousdescendions
vousdescendiez
ils/ellesdescendaient

Quand j'étais jeune, je descendais souvent au parc.

When I was young, I often went down to the park.

Nous descendions toujours ensemble pour le dîner.

We always went down together for dinner.

4.

Futur Simple

Future events, promises, and formal predictions.

jedescendrai
tudescendras
il/elledescendra
nousdescendrons
vousdescendrez
ils/ellesdescendront

Demain, je descendrai à la plage avec mes amis.

Tomorrow, I will go down to the beach with my friends.

Ils descendront de la montagne à la fin de la journée.

They will go down from the mountain at the end of the day.

5.

Conditionnel Présent

Hypothetical outcomes, polite requests, and reported future.

jedescendrais
tudescendrais
il/elledescendrait
nousdescendrions
vousdescendriez
ils/ellesdescendraient

Je descendrai si j'avais le temps.

I would go down if I had the time.

Nous descendrions plus souvent si c'était plus près.

We would go down more often if it were closer.

6.

Subjonctif Présent

Doubt, desire, necessity, and emotion in subordinate clauses.

jedescende
tudescendes
il/elledescende
nousdescendions
vousdescendiez
ils/ellesdescendent

Il faut que je descende avant qu'il ne pleuve.

I need to go down before it rains.

Bien qu'ils descendent souvent, ils n'aiment pas la foule.

Although they go down often, they don't like the crowd.

7.

Plus-que-parfait

Actions completed before another past action.

jeétais descendu(e)
tuétais descendu(e)
il/elleétait descendu(e)
nousétions descendus(es)
vousétiez descendus(es)
ils/ellesétaient descendus(es)

J'avais descendu les escaliers avant qu'il n'arrive.

I had gone down the stairs before he arrived.

Nous étions déjà descendus quand le spectacle a commencé.

We had already gone down when the show started.

"descendre" in other languages

Related verbs

Common questions
Is "descendre" regular or irregular in French?
"descendre" is a regular 3rd verb in French. It follows the standard conjugation pattern for 3rd verbs.
How do you conjugate "descendre" in the present tense?
In the Présent, "descendre" conjugates as: descends, descends, descendons, and more. See the full table above.
What is the past tense of "descendre" in French?
In the Passé Composé, "descendre" conjugates as: suis descendu(e), es descendu(e), sommes descendu(e)s, and more. See the full table above.
How common is "descendre" in French?
"descendre" (to go down, to descend) is one of the most commonly used verbs in French.