-RE verbs are less common than -ER and -IR verbs, but they stil form a sizeable group.

They are conjugated as follows:

vendre
je vends nous vendons
tu vends vous vendez
elle, il, on vend elles, ils vendent


In the 'je' and 'tu' forms, the 's', a final consonant, is not pronounced.
In all forms of the singular, the 'd' is not pronounced, and the 'n' serves only to nasalize the 'e' (and so is also not pronounced). All forms of the singular are therefore pronounced the same way.
In the third person plural, the 'ent' ending is not pronounced, but since the 'd' is now followed by a vowel (unlike in the singular), the 'd' is pronounced.

Click on a verb form to hear the pronounciation.

Note that there is, in effect, no ending in the third person singular.

À la fin de chaque semestre, je vends mes livres les plus chers.
At the end of each semester I sell my most expensive books.

Ils se vendent comme des petits pains (surtout les livres de mon cours de français).
They sell like hot cakes (especially my French books).

Il y a une boulangerie dans mon quartier qui vend des croissants délicieux.
There's a bakery in my neighborhood that sells delicious croissants.

Other common verbs conjugated like vendre:

rendre to give back répondre to reply
attendre to wait (for) entendre to hear
perdre to lose tondre to mow
descendre to come down répandre (de) to spread
fendre to split

 

There are two subgroups of -RE verbs.

1) Verbs ending in -INDRE

Verbs such as 'éteindre' (to extinguish) and 'plaindre' (to pity) have a different conjugation.

They are conjugated as follows:

éteindre
j' éteins nous éteignons
tu éteins vous éteignez
elle, il, on éteint elles, ils éteignent

In the singular, the final consonants, 's' and 't' are not pronounced. The 'n' is not pronounced, but nasalizes the preceding 'i'. They are all pronounced the same.
In the plural, the 'g' is not pronounced, but it changes the pronunciation of the following 'n', which becomes a 'ny' sound (like in 'canyon').
The 'ent' in the third person plural is not pronounced.

Click on a verb form to hear the pronunciation.

In all these forms, the 'd' from the infinitive disappears. A 't' is added to the third person singular. And a 'g' (of all things!) is added to the plural forms.

Si tu n'éteins pas les phares, ta voiture ne va pas démarrer demain matin.
If you don't switch off your headlights, your car won't start in the morning.

Éteignez la lumière, s'il vous plaît !
Turn out the light, please!

Ces bougies crépitent quand elles s'éteignent.
These candles crackle when they go out.

Other verbs conjugated like éteindre:

craindre to fear atteindre to reach
plaindre to pity se plaindre to complain

 

2) Verbs ending in -UIRE

Verbs such as 'conduire' (to drive) and 'construire' (to build) have yet another conjugation.

They are conjugated as follows:

conduire
je conduis nous conduisons
tu conduis vous conduisez
elle, il, on conduit elles, ils conduisent

In the singular, the 's' and the 't' are not pronounced, since they are final consonants, and so there is no difference in the pronounciation of these forms.
In the plural, the 's', since it falls between two vowels, is pronounced like a 'z'.
In the third person plural, the 'ent' is not pronounced, but the 'e' means that the 's' is pronounced (like a 'z').

Click on a verb form to hear its pronunciation.

This conjugation is marked by an 's' in all forms except the third-person singular. Otherwise, it is quite normal.

Mon père conduit 3 000 kilomètres par semaine. Il est routier.
My father drives 1,800 miles a week. He's a truck driver.

Si vous conduisez aujourd'hui, je vais conduire demain.
If you drive today, I'll drive tomorrow.

Est-ce qu'il est vrai que les Parisiens conduisent comme des fous ?
Is it true that Parisians drive like madmen?

Other verbs conjugated like conduire:

construire to construct traduire to translate
produire to produce    


-er verbs / -ir verbs / -re verbs
être / avoir / faire / aller / prendre / connaître
venir, tenir / pouvoir, vouloir / savoir, devoir / dormir, sortir, servir
lire, dire, écrire / voir, croire