Envoyer Conjugation in French: Complete Tables and Essential Rules

The verb envoyer (meaning "to send") is one of the most frequently used verbs in everyday French conversation and professional correspondence. While it belongs to the first conjugation group (-er verbs), envoyer is notorious among French learners for being a semi-irregular verb.

In this comprehensive grammar guide, you will master the conjugation of envoyer across all indicative, subjunctive, and conditional tenses, while uncovering the two golden rules that eliminate common spelling mistakes.

1. Why Is "Envoyer" Irregular? The Two Golden Rules

Most verbs ending in -er follow a straightforward pattern (like parler -> je parlerai). However, envoyer displays two critical phonetic and spelling adjustments:

1. The Y to I Stem Change: Before a silent "e" ending (-e, -es, -ent), the letter y shifts to an i. You say j'envoie, but nous envoyons.

2. The Future & Conditional Irregularity: Instead of retaining the infinitive stem (envoyer-), envoyer contracts into enverr- with a double "r". This makes j'enverrai sound similar to voir (je verrai). Envoyer and its derivative renvoyer are the only -er verbs in French with this specific irregular root.

2. Present Indicative (Présent de l'indicatif)

In the present tense, apply the y -> i shift for singular subjects and the third-person plural:

  • J'envoie – I send / I am sending
  • Tu envoies – You send (singular/informal)
  • Il / Elle / On envoie – He / She / One sends
  • Nous envoyons – We send
  • Vous envoyez – You send (plural/formal)
  • Ils / Elles envoient – They send

Pronunciation tip: Envoie, envoies, and envoient are homophones; all three sound like [ɑ̃.vwa].

3. The Future and Conditional Tenses (Watch the Double 'R')

This is where most learners make mistakes. Never write "j'envoierai".

Simple Future (Futur simple)

  • J'enverrai – I will send
  • Tu enverras – You will send
  • Il / Elle / On enverra – He / She will send
  • Nous enverrons – We will send
  • Vous enverrez – You will send
  • Ils / Elles enverront – They will send

    • Present Conditional (Conditionnel présent)

  • J'enverrais – I would send
  • Tu enverrais – You would send
  • Il / Elle / On enverrait – He / She would send
  • Nous enverrions – We would send
  • Vous enverriez – You would send
  • Ils / Elles enverraient – They would send

    • 4. Past Tenses: Passé Composé & Imparfait

    Passé Composé

Envoyer uses the auxiliary avoir combined with the past participle envoyé:

  • J'ai envoyé – I sent / I have sent
  • Tu as envoyé – You sent
  • Il / Elle / On a envoyé – He / She sent
  • Nous avons envoyé – We sent
  • Vous avez envoyé – You sent
  • Ils / Elles ont envoyé – They sent

Agreement rule: The past participle agrees in gender and number with the direct object only if it precedes the verb. Example: "La lettre que j'ai envoyée." (The letter that I sent – feminine singular).

Imperfect (Imparfait)

The imperfect stem remains regular (envoy-) across all pronouns:

  • J'envoyais – I used to send / I was sending
  • Tu envoyais – You used to send
  • Il / Elle / On envoyait – He / She was sending
  • Nous envoyions – We were sending (note the double sound y + i)
  • Vous envoyiez – You were sending
  • Ils / Elles envoyaient – They were sending

    • 5. Subjunctive & Imperative Moods

    Present Subjunctive (Subjonctif présent)

Used after expressions of necessity, desire, or emotion (Il faut que...):

  • Que j'envoie
  • Que tu envoies
  • Qu'il / elle / on envoie
  • Que nous envoyions
  • Que vous envoyiez
  • Qu'ils / elles envoient

    • Imperative (Impératif présent)

Commands and requests:

  • Envoie ! – Send! (no final 's' in the tu-form)
  • Envoyons ! – Let's send!
  • Envoyez ! – Send! (formal/plural)

Special exception: Add an "s" before the pronouns y or en for ease of pronunciation: "Envoies-en !" (Send some!).

6. Practical Examples and Derived Verbs

The verb renvoyer (to send back, fire, or dismiss) conjugates identically: je renvoie, nous renvoyons, je renverrai.

Real-world sentences:

  • Je vous enverrai le devis demain matin. (I will send you the quote tomorrow morning.)
  • N'oublie pas d'envoyer une carte postale. (Don't forget to send a postcard.)
  • Ils nous ont envoyé une invitation par e-mail. (They sent us an invitation via email.)

By remembering the stem change enverr- for the future/conditional and y -> i before silent endings, you will conjugate envoyer fluently in any context.