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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb filmer

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The English translation of the French verb filmer is “to film” or “to record.” The infinitive form of filmer is pronounced “fee-lm-ay.”

Filmer comes from the French word “film,” which is derived from the Latin word “pellicula,” meaning “thin skin” or “membrane.” The word “film” was originally used to refer to a thin layer of liquid or a thin sheet of material, but it came to be associated with motion pictures in the late 19th century.

In everyday French, filmer is most often used in the present tense to describe the action of recording or filming something. Here are three simple examples of its usage in this tense:

  1. Je filme mon chat en train de jouer. (I am filming my cat playing.)
  2. Tu filmes tes vacances pour les montrer à tes amis. (You are recording your vacation to show to your friends.)
  3. Ils filment le concert avec leur téléphone portable. (They are filming the concert with their cell phone.)

In these examples, filmer is used to describe ongoing actions in the present moment. It is commonly used in the context of videography, but can also refer to recording with other devices such as a phone or camera.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je filme Je filme ma famille. I film my family.
tu filmes Tu filmes une vidéo. You film a video.
il filme Il filme un documentaire. He films a documentary.
elle filme Elle filme ses amis. She films her friends.
on filme On filme un concert. We film a concert.
nous filmons Nous filmons un court-métrage. We film a short film.
vous filmez Vous filmez en HD. You film in HD.
ils filment Ils filment un paysage. They film a landscape.
elles filment Elles filment un coucher de soleil. They film a sunset.

Other Conjugations for Filmer.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb filmer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Filmer – 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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