L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dicter

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The English translation of the French verb dicter is “to dictate.” It is pronounced as “deek-teh.”

The language origin of dicter can be traced back to the Latin verb dictare, meaning “to dictate” or “to order.” In everyday French, it is most often used in the infinitive form, as “dicter,” in the L’infinitif Présent tense.

Some examples of its usage in this tense are:

1) Je lui ai demandé de me dicter les réponses. (I asked him/her to dictate the answers to me.)
2) Le professeur dicte les notes aux élèves. (The teacher dictates notes to the students.)
3) L’écrivain dicte son nouveau livre à son assistant. (The writer dictates his new book to his assistant.)

In these sentences, dicter is used to express the action of dictating or giving instructions to someone. It is often used in a professional or educational context, such as in schools or offices.

Table of the L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of dicter

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je dicte Je dicte une lettre. I dictate a letter.
tu dictes Tu dictes trop vite. You dictate too fast.
il dicte Il dicte ses mémoires. He dictates his memoirs.
elle dicte Elle dicte les ordres. She dictates the orders.
on dicte On dicte les règles. We dictate the rules.
nous dictons Nous dictons les notes. We dictate the notes.
vous dictez Vous dictez le texte. You dictate the text.
ils dictent Ils dictent leurs droits. They dictate their rights.
elles dictent Elles dictent les phrases. They dictate the sentences.

Other Conjugations for Dicter.

Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter 

L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter

L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dicter  (this article)

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Dicter – About the French L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense

BEFORE you continue…. why not take a deep dive into all the French tenses with my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.
The French “l’infinitif présent” (Infinitive Present) tense is not a true verb tense in the same way that the present, past, or future tenses are. Instead, it’s the base form of a verb, and it has several important uses and interactions with other tenses.

Forming the Infinitive Present

To form the infinitive present of a verb, you typically take the unconjugated form of the verb (the form you’d find in a French dictionary) and remove the ending. For regular verbs, you remove the -er, -ir, or -re ending, and you’re left with the infinitive. For example:
   – Parler (to speak)
   – Finir (to finish)
   – Vendre (to sell)

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

As a Verb’s Dictionary Form

The most common use of the infinitive present is to represent a verb in its base form. It’s the form you would find in a dictionary or verb conjugation table.

After Modal Verbs

When you use modal verbs like “pouvoir” (can), “vouloir” (want), or “devoir” (must), the verb that follows is in its infinitive form. For example:
     – Je veux manger. (I want to eat.)
     – Il peut parler français. (He can speak French.)

As an Imperative

In informal commands, the infinitive is often used. For example:
     – Ferme la porte. (Close the door.)

In Infinitive Clauses

In complex sentences, especially after certain conjunctions, the infinitive is used to express actions that are separate from the main verb. For example:
     – J’ai besoin de manger avant de partir. (I need to eat before leaving.)

Interactions with Other Tenses

Present Tense

The infinitive present can be used with the present tense to express ongoing actions or habitual actions. For example:
     – J’aime manger des croissants. (I like eating croissants.)

Future Tense

When combined with the future tense of “aller,” the infinitive present can express future actions. For example:
     – Je vais manger au restaurant demain. (I am going to eat at the restaurant tomorrow.)

Conditional Tense

The infinitive present is often used with the conditional to express actions that would happen in a hypothetical situation. For example:

     – Il mangerait s’il avait faim. (He would eat if he were hungry.)

Passé Composé

When forming compound tenses like “passé composé,” the auxiliary verb (être or avoir) is conjugated, and the main verb remains in its infinitive form. For example:
     – J’ai mangé une pomme. (I ate an apple.)
     – Elle est partie. (She left.)

Imperfect Tense

The infinitive present can be combined with the imperfect tense to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past. For example:
     – Quand j’étais enfant, j’aimais jouer. (When I was a child, I liked to play.)

Subjunctive and Conditional Moods

In some complex sentences, the infinitive can be used with the subjunctive and conditional moods, especially when expressing uncertainty, possibility, or doubt.

Summary

The infinitive present in French serves as the base form of a verb and is used in various contexts, including after modal verbs, in imperative commands, in infinitive clauses, and in combination with other tenses to convey a wide range of meanings and actions. Its flexibility makes it a fundamental part of French grammar.

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