# dire conjugation

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Updated 2026-11-09 · HTML version: https://learnwithkin.com/french/conjugations/dire

> *Dire* means "to say" or "to tell". The present is *je dis, tu dis, il dit, nous disons, vous dites, ils disent*: watch *vous dites*, not *disez*. The passé composé is *j'ai dit*, the imparfait *je disais*, the future *je dirai*, the conditional *je dirais* and the subjunctive *que je dise*.

**Diagram.** The present runs on dis-, and the one form that breaks it is vous dites, like vous faites. The future takes the infinitive without its e, dir-, then the normal endings.
> The conjugation of dire as two grids, singular on the left and plural on the right. Present: je dis, tu dis, il dit, nous disons, vous dites, ils disent, with dites marked as irregular. Future: je dirai, tu diras, il dira, nous dirons, vous direz, ils diront, with the stem dir- marked.
- dire, present: dis, dis, dit, disons, **dites**, disent.
- dire, future: **dir**ai, **dir**as, **dir**a, **dir**ons, **dir**ez, **dir**ont.
- Bold marks the letters that break the pattern.
- **Red pencil** is what breaks the pattern, **graphite** is the normal endings.
- *Dis*, *dis* and *dit* all sound the same: *dee*. In *ils disent* the *-ent* is silent: *deez*.

**dire** — to say, to tell. *Je dis*.

## Present (présent)

*The everyday present: what you do, what's true, what's going on.*


| Pronoun | dire | Say |
| --- | --- | --- |
| je | dis | zhuh DEE |
| tu | dis | tew DEE |
| il / elle / on | dit | eel DEE |
| nous | disons | noo dee-ZOHN |
| vous | dites | voo DEET |
| ils / elles | disent | eel DEEZ |

*Vous dites* is the one to learn. Nearly every French verb ends its *vous* form in *-ez*. *Dire*, *être* and *faire* end in *-tes* instead: *vous dites, vous êtes, vous faites*. Even dire's relatives mostly don't follow it: *vous interdisez*. *Redire* does (*vous redites*).

*Ils disent* sounds like *deez*. The *-ent* on the end of a verb is never said, so *ils disent* and *il dit* differ by one *z* sound.

## Past (passé composé)

*The everyday past, for things that happened: "I was", "I had". It's avoir or être plus the past participle.*


| Pronoun | dire | Say |
| --- | --- | --- |
| je (j') | ai dit | zhay DEE |
| tu | as dit | tew ah DEE |
| il / elle / on | a dit | eel ah DEE |
| nous | avons dit | noo za-vohn DEE |
| vous | avez dit | voo za-vay DEE |
| ils / elles | ont dit | eel zohn DEE |

*Avoir* plus *dit*. The *t* is silent: *j'ai dit* sounds just like *j'ai dis* would, which is why people misspell it.

## Imperfect (imparfait)

*The past for how things were or used to be: "I was tired", "we used to have a dog".*


| Pronoun | dire | Say |
| --- | --- | --- |
| je | disais | zhuh dee-ZEH |
| tu | disais | tew dee-ZEH |
| il / elle / on | disait | eel dee-ZEH |
| nous | disions | noo dee-ZYOHN |
| vous | disiez | voo dee-ZYAY |
| ils / elles | disaient | eel dee-ZEH |

## Future, conditional and subjunctive

*"Will" and "would", plus the subjunctive: the form French uses after il faut que, je veux que and other wishes and doubts.*


| Pronoun | Futur | Conditionnel | Subjonctif |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| je | dirai | dirais | dise |
| tu | diras | dirais | dises |
| il / elle / on | dira | dirait | dise |
| nous | dirons | dirions | disions |
| vous | direz | diriez | disiez |
| ils / elles | diront | diraient | disent |

*On dirait* (you'd think, it looks like) is everywhere: *on dirait qu'il va pleuvoir*, looks like it's going to rain. The subjunctive is regular on *dis-*: *il faut que je te dise quelque chose* (I need to tell you something).

## Participles

*The "-ing" form (étant, being) and the past participle that makes the passé composé (été, been).*


| Form | dire | In a sentence |
| --- | --- | --- |
| present participle | disant | *Il est parti en disant au revoir* (he left saying goodbye) |
| past participle | dit | *Je te l'avais dit* (I told you so) |

## Imperative (impératif)

*Commands: telling someone to do something, or not to.*


| Person | Affirmative | Negative |
| --- | --- | --- |
| tu | dis | ne dis pas |
| nous | disons | ne disons pas |
| vous | dites | ne dites pas |

*Dis-moi* (tell me) and *dites-moi* are the ones you'll use. *Dis donc* is "hey" or "wow", depending on the tone.

## What dire does

*Phrases you'll hear all the time*

| French | Means |
| --- | --- |
| qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ? | what does that mean? *vouloir dire* is "to mean" |
| c'est-à-dire | that is, I mean |
| on dit que… | they say that… |
| ça va sans dire | it goes without saying |
| à vrai dire | to tell the truth |

**Dire or parler?** *Dire* takes what's said: *il a dit oui*. *Parler* is talking in general, or a language: *il parle français*. Telling someone something is *dire quelque chose à quelqu'un*: *dis-lui la vérité* (tell him the truth).

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## Questions

### Is it vous dites or vous disez?

*Vous dites*. *Disez* isn't a word. *Dire*, *être* and *faire* are the common verbs whose *vous* form ends in *-tes*: *vous dites, vous êtes, vous faites*.

### What is the passé composé of dire?

*J'ai dit, tu as dit, il a dit, nous avons dit, vous avez dit, ils ont dit*. It takes *avoir*, and the participle is *dit*.

### What is the future of dire?

*Je dirai, tu diras, il dira, nous dirons, vous direz, ils diront*. The stem is *dir-*: the infinitive without its *e*.

### What is the conditional of dire?

*Je dirais, tu dirais, il dirait, nous dirions, vous diriez, ils diraient*. *On dirait* means "you'd think" or "it looks like".

### What is the subjunctive of dire?

*Que je dise, que tu dises, qu'il dise, que nous disions, que vous disiez, qu'ils disent*.

### How do you pronounce ils disent?

*Eel deez*. The *-ent* at the end of a French verb is silent, so you only hear the *z* sound of the *s*.

## Related

- [faire conjugation](https://learnwithkin.com/french/conjugations/faire.md)
- [pouvoir conjugation](https://learnwithkin.com/french/conjugations/pouvoir.md)
- [French verb conjugations](https://learnwithkin.com/french/conjugations.md)

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