e → è

Spelling Change: E to E with a Grave Accent

Level 2

In certain -er verbs like acheter (to buy) or lever (to raise), the 'e' in the stem changes to è when the ending is silent. This happens in the 'boot' forms of the present tense and all forms of the future and conditional.

How It Works

This pattern affects verbs that have an unaccented e in the syllable just before the infinitive ending (e.g., acheter, mener).

1. Present Tense (The 'Boot'):
The accent appears in the je, tu, il/elle/on, and ils/elles forms because these endings are silent. It does not appear in the nous and vous forms because those endings are pronounced.

  • J'achète (silent ending)
  • Nous achetons (pronounced ending - no accent)

This same 'boot' pattern applies to the present subjunctive (e.g., que j'achète vs que nous achetions).

2. Future and Conditional Tenses:
In the future and conditional, the 'e' of the infinitive ending (the '-er-') becomes silent in pronunciation. To maintain the open sound in the preceding syllable, the è is used in all forms.

  • J'achèterai
  • Nous achèterons

3. Modern Spelling Standards:
While older rules favored doubling consonants (like appeler and jeter), the 1990 spelling reform recommends using the grave accent for almost all verbs ending in -eler and -eter. Common verbs using the è pattern include:

  • acheter (to buy)
  • lever (to raise)
  • mener (to lead)
  • peser (to weigh)
  • promener (to walk)
  • geler (to freeze)
  • peler (to peel)

Examples (5)

  1. Je lève la main pour poser une question.

    I raise my hand to ask a question.

    Word by Word: I raise the hand for to-pose a question.

    The verb 'lever' takes a grave accent in the 'je' form because the ending '-e' is silent.

  2. Nous achetons du pain tous les matins.

    We buy bread every morning.

    Word by Word: We buy some bread all the mornings.

    No accent is needed here because the 'nous' ending (-ons) is pronounced, so the stem 'e' remains 'mute'.

  3. Ils mèneront l'enquête jusqu'au bout.

    They will lead the investigation to the end.

    Word by Word: They will-lead the investigation until the end.

    In the future tense, the grave accent is used for all subjects, including 'ils'.

  4. Tu te promènes dans le parc.

    You are walking in the park.

    Word by Word: You yourself walk in the park.

    The 'tu' form of 'promener' requires the accent because the '-es' ending is silent.

  5. Elle achèterait cette robe si elle avait l'argent.

    She would buy this dress if she had the money.

    Word by Word: She would-buy this dress if she had the money.

    The conditional tense also requires the grave accent across all forms.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding the accent to 'nous' and 'vous' forms in the present tense.

    Nous achètons des pommes.
    Nous achetons des pommes.

    The accent is only used when the ending is silent. Since '-ons' is pronounced, the accent is incorrect.

  • Forgetting the accent in the future or conditional tenses.

    Je menerai l'équipe.
    Je mènerai l'équipe.

    In the future and conditional, the stem-change is mandatory for all persons.

  • Doubling the consonant instead of adding an accent.

    J'achette un livre.
    J'achète un livre.

    While verbs like 'appeler' double the consonant, 'acheter' and its group always use the grave accent.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

e → èLevel 2Spelling Change: E to E with a Grave Accent

Learn This First

To understand e to e-grave stem-changing verbs, you must first be comfortable with regular -er verb conjugations. This pattern is a specific spelling modification that occurs in the 'boot' forms of certain -er verbs to maintain the correct pronunciation when the verb ending is silent.