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Introduction

In French, the endings "-er" and "-é" (or "-ée", "-és", "-ées") are pronounced exactly the same way. This is why they are often confused in writing. However, they are used in different situations and play different roles in the sentence.

This confusion is one of the most frequent spelling mistakes in French, even among native speakers. This lesson will give you the keys to avoiding these mistakes.

1. The ending "-er": the infinitive

The "-er" ending is that of the infinitive for first-group verbs. The infinitive is the base form of the verb, the one found in the dictionary.

When do we use the infinitive in "-er"?

• After a preposition (à, de, pour, sans, avant de, par, etc.)
• After another conjugated verb (vouloir, pouvoir, devoir, aller, aimer, etc.)
• As a subject or complement of a sentence

Examples after a preposition:

• Il part sans manger. (He leaves without eating.)
• J'apprends à nager. (I am learning to swim.)
• Elle travaille pour gagner sa vie. (She works to earn her living.)
• Téléphone-moi avant de partir. (Call me before leaving.)
• Il est capable de réussir. (He is capable of succeeding.)

Examples after a conjugated verb:

• Je veux manger une pizza. (I want to eat a pizza.)
• Il peut venir demain. (He can come tomorrow.)
• Nous allons voyager cet été. (We are going to travel this summer.)
• Elle aime chanter sous la pluie. (She likes to sing in the rain.)
• Tu dois travailler davantage. (You must work more.)
• Ils savent cuisiner très bien. (They know how to cook very well.)

2. The ending "-é": the past participle

The "-é" ending is that of the past participle for first-group verbs. The past participle is used with an auxiliary (avoir or être) to form compound tenses, or alone as an adjective.

When do we use the past participle in "-é"?

• After the auxiliary "avoir" (ai, as, a, avons, avez, ont)
• After the auxiliary "être" (suis, es, est, sommes, êtes, sont)
• Alone, as an adjective to qualify a noun

Examples with the auxiliary "avoir":

• J'ai mangé une pomme. (I have eaten an apple.)
• Tu as travaillé toute la journée. (You have worked all day.)
• Il a téléphoné ce matin. (He called this morning.)
• Nous avons voyagé en train. (We traveled by train.)
• Vous avez oublié vos clés. (You forgot your keys.)
• Elles ont chanté pendant le concert. (They sang during the concert.)

Examples with the auxiliary "être":

• Il est arrivé en retard. (He arrived late.)
• Elle est partie tôt ce matin. (She left early this morning.)
• Nous sommes restés à la maison. (We stayed at home.)
• Ils sont rentrés hier soir. (They came back last night.)

Examples as an adjective:

• Un travail bien réalisé. (A well-performed job.)
• Une lettre envoyée hier. (A letter sent yesterday.)
• Des enfants bien élevés. (Well-behaved children.)
• Une porte fermée. (A closed door.)

Agreement of the past participle:

The past participle can agree in gender and number when used as an adjective or with the auxiliary "être":

• Masculine singular: -é → Il est arrivé.
• Feminine singular: -ée → Elle est arrivée.
• Masculine plural: -és → Ils sont arrivés.
• Feminine plural: -ées → Elles sont arrivées.

3. The infallible method: the replacement test

The golden rule to avoid mistaking "-er" and "-é" is the replacement test. Simply replace the first-group verb with a third-group verb (like "vendre" [to sell] or "prendre" [to take]) whose infinitive and past participle forms are different:

• If you can use "vendu" (past participle) → write "-é"
• If you can use "vendre" (infinitive) → write "-er"

Examples with the test:

4. Comparative table

5. Specific cases and frequent traps

Trap #1: Two verbs in a row

When two verbs follow each other, the second is always in the infinitive ("-er"):

• Il faut travailler. (One must work.)
• Je vais téléphoner. (I am going to call.)
• Nous devons partir. (We must leave.)
• Tu peux rester. (You can stay.)
• Elle veut chanter. (She wants to sing.)

Trap #2: After "faire", "laisser", "voir", "entendre"

After these verbs, we always use the infinitive ("-er"):

• Il fait réparer sa voiture. (He has his car repaired.)
• Je l'ai entendu chanter. (I heard him singing.)
• Elle l'a laissé partir. (She let him go.)
• Je l'ai vu travailler. (I saw him working.)

Trap #3: "c'est à" + infinitive

After "c'est à", we always use the infinitive ("-er"):

• C'est à deviner. (It's for guessing.)
• C'est à pleurer. (It's enough to make you cry.)
• C'est à mourir de rire. (It's hilarious / "to die laughing".)

Trap #4: The past participle used alone (adjective)

When the past participle is used alone as an adjective, it is written with "-é" and agrees:

• Un projet bien préparé. / Une leçon bien préparée.
• Un enfant fatigué. / Des enfants fatigués.
• Une porte fermée. / Des portes fermées.

Trap #5: Sentences with several verbs

In a sentence with several verbs, each verb must be analyzed separately:

• Il a décidé de partir après avoir terminé son travail.
  ("décidé" = past participle after "a" / "partir" = infinitive after "de" / "terminé" = past participle after "avoir")
• Elle a voulu chanter mais elle a oublié de répéter.
  ("voulu" = past participle after "a" / "chanter" = infinitive after "voulu" / "oublié" = past participle after "a" / "répéter" = infinitive after "de")

6. Comparative examples

Here are pairs of sentences to clearly visualize the difference:

Interactive Exercise

Summary

Key points to remember:

• "-er" and "-é" are pronounced the same way, but play different roles
• After a preposition → always "-er" (infinitive)
• After an auxiliary (avoir, être) → always "-é" (past participle)
• After a conjugated verb (vouloir, pouvoir, devoir...) → always "-er" (infinitive)
• The past participle can agree: -é, -ée, -és, -ées
• The infinitive is always invariable
• The test with "vendre / vendu" works every time