Present conditional
Summary
The present conditional expresses what would happen, plus polite requests and hypotheses, and is formed from the future stem with the imperfect endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.
Explanation
The conditionnel présent is the French equivalent of English 'would + verb'. It is used for hypothetical or imagined results (in your dreams, under certain conditions), for polite requests and softened statements (je voudrais, pourriez-vous), and for the future seen from a past point of view in reported speech ('he said he would come' → il a dit qu'il viendrait).
Its formation cleverly combines two tenses you already know: it is built on exactly the same stem as the futur simple (the infinitive, or the irregular future stem), but it takes the endings of the imparfait, namely -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. So parler gives je parlerais, nous parlerions, and the irregular stems carry over unchanged: être → je serais, avoir → j'aurais, aller → j'irais, faire → je ferais, venir → je viendrais.
Because the conditional and the future share a stem, the two forms differ by only one written letter and a subtle vowel: je parlerai (future, 'I will speak') versus je parlerais (conditional, 'I would speak'). In careful speech the endings differ slightly, but learners must rely above all on context and spelling to keep them apart, since the singular conditional forms also echo the imparfait endings.
A central use is the si-clause (conditional sentence) of unreal or hypothetical type: the structure is si + imparfait in the condition, and conditionnel présent in the result. Si j'avais le temps, je voyagerais ('If I had the time, I would travel'). The order can be reversed, but the tense pairing stays fixed.
The single most common and most stigmatised mistake is putting the conditional inside the si-clause itself (*si j'aurais le temps). In standard French the si-clause of this type never takes the conditional; it takes the imperfect, and the conditional stays in the main clause. A second pitfall is confusing the conditional with the future because of their shared stem.
Rule of thumb: take the future stem and add the imperfect endings; use the conditional for 'would', for politeness, and as the result of a si + imparfait sentence — and never let the conditional slip into the si-clause.
Examples
Je voudrais un café, s'il vous plaît. — I would like a coffee, please. (The conditional softens a request; politer than je veux.)
Si j'avais le temps, je voyagerais davantage. — If I had the time, I would travel more. (si + imparfait in the condition, conditional in the result.)
Pourriez-vous m'aider, s'il vous plaît ? — Could you help me, please? (pouvoir keeps its irregular future stem pourr-.)
Il a dit qu'il viendrait demain. — He said he would come tomorrow. (Future-in-the-past in reported speech; venir → viendr-.)
À ta place, je ne ferais pas ça. — If I were you, I wouldn't do that. (Hypothetical advice; faire → fer-.)
Common mistakes
Si j'aurais le temps, je voyagerais.
Si j'avais le temps, je voyagerais.
After si introducing a hypothesis, French uses the imparfait, never the conditional. The conditional belongs only in the main (result) clause: Si j'avais le temps (imparfait), je voyagerais (conditional). Putting the conditional in the si-clause (*si j'aurais) is a very common error and is considered incorrect in standard French. Remember the pairing: si + imparfait → conditionnel présent.
Prerequisites
Related rules
conditionalmoodsi-clausespoliteness