Courir Conjugation in French: Complete Tenses Chart and Guide

If you are learning French, mastering the verb courir (to run) is an essential milestone. Classified as an irregular 3rd-group verb, courir behaves differently from standard -ir verbs like finir (which take the -issant stem).

In this complete guide by the pedagogical team at my-french.com, you will find full conjugation tables, pronunciation notes, grammar rules, and the most common pitfalls to avoid when conjugating courir in French.

1. Present Indicative (Présent de l'indicatif)

In the present tense, the singular forms take the endings -s, -s, -t, dropping any intermediate letters, while the plural forms maintain the stem cour- followed by typical regular endings.

Subject Pronoun Conjugation IPA Pronunciation
:--- :--- :---
Je cours /ʒə kuʁ/
Tu cours /ty kuʁ/
Il / Elle / On court /il kuʁ/
Nous courons /nu ku.ʁɔ̃/
Vous courez /vu ku.ʁe/
Ils / Elles courent /il kuʁ/

> Pronunciation Tip: The forms cours, court, and courent are homophones in spoken French. They are all pronounced /kuʁ/. The final consonants (-s, -t, and the plural ending -ent) remain silent.

2. Past Tenses (Passé Composé, Imparfait, Passé Simple)

Passé Composé (Compound Past)

Unlike many other verbs indicating physical displacement (such as aller, venir, or partir), courir uses the auxiliary verb avoir in standard compound tenses.

  • J'ai couru (I ran / I have run)
  • Tu as couru
  • Il / Elle / On a couru
  • Nous avons couru
  • Vous avez couru
  • Ils / Elles ont couru

The past participle is couru. Because it pairs with avoir, it does not agree with the subject: Elle a couru un marathon (no "e" added to couru).

Imparfait (Imperfect Tense)

The imperfect describes habitual actions or continuous states in the past. It uses the stem from the 1st person plural (nous courons -> cour-) plus the regular imperfect endings:

  • Je courais (I used to run / was running)
  • Tu courais
  • Il courait
  • Nous courions
  • Vous couriez
  • Ils couraient

    • Passé Simple

Used primarily in formal writing and literature:

  • Je courus
  • Tu courus
  • Il courut
  • Nous courûmes
  • Vous courûtes
  • Ils coururent

    • 3. Future & Conditional: Watch Out for the Double "R"

The single most critical trap students face with the courir conjugation in French is spelling the future and conditional stems. You must double the "r"!

Simple Future (Futur simple)

  • Je courrai (I will run)
  • Tu courras
  • Il / Elle courra
  • Nous courrons
  • Vous courrez
  • Ils / Elles courront

Oral distinction: Listen carefully to the difference between the imperfect je courais (/ʒə ku.ʁɛ/) and the future je courrai (/ʒə ku.ʁe/).

Present Conditional (Conditionnel présent)

  • Je courrais (I would run)
  • Tu courrais
  • Il courrait
  • Nous courrions
  • Vous courriez
  • Ils courraient

    • 4. Subjunctive Present (Subjonctif présent)

The subjunctive expresses doubt, necessity, wishes, or emotion. Fortunately, courir has a regular subjunctive stem (cour-):

  • Que je coure
  • Que tu coures
  • Qu'il / elle coure
  • Que nous courions
  • Que vous couriez
  • Qu'ils / elles courent

Example: Il est nécessaire que nous courions pour ne pas rater le bus. (It is necessary that we run so we don't miss the bus.)

5. Imperative (Impératif)

When urging someone to hurry:

  • Cours ! (Run! - singular informal)
  • Courons ! (Let's run!)
  • Courez ! (Run! - plural / formal)

Note that cours keeps its terminal -s in the imperative, unlike regular -er verbs.

6. Derived Verbs Follow the Same Pattern

Once you learn how to conjugate courir, you unlock several related French verbs that conjugate identically:

  • Parcourir (to browse, to travel through, to cover a distance): J'ai parcouru 20 km. / Je parcourrai le document.
  • Secourir (to rescue, to help): Les médecins secourent les patients.
  • Accourir (to come running): Elle accourt vers nous. (Note: accourir can occasionally take être in literary contexts: elle est accourue).
  • Discourir (to discourse, to lecture at length).

    • 7. Popular French Idioms with Courir

1. Courir sur le haricot (à quelqu'un): Literally "to run on the bean"; means to get on someone's nerves or annoy them.

2. Laisser courir: To let something slide or overlook a remark/issue.

3. Par les temps qui courent: In these days / in current times.

4. Courir deux lièvres à la fois: To chase two hares at once (to attempt two incompatible goals simultaneously).

Keep practicing your pronunciation and written drills to make the courir conjugation second nature in your everyday French communication!