Nous faisons → faisant
Take the nous form, remove -ons and add -ant. It works even for irregular verbs.
| Verb | nous … | en …ant | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| parler | nous parlons | en parlant | speaking |
| finir | nous finissons | en finissant | finishing |
| prendre | nous prenons | en prenant | taking |
| faire | nous faisons | en faisant | doing |
| voir | nous voyons | en voyant | seeing |
| être | nous sommes | en étant | being (irregular) |
| avoir | nous avons | en ayant | having (irregular) |
| savoir | nous savons | en sachant | knowing (irregular) |
While, by, if
The same shape covers three English meanings. Context tells you which.
Tout en souriant
Adding tout before en stresses that the two actions happen together, often with a sense of contrast, like “while still” or “even as”.
Un film amusant, des enfants souriants
Many -ant forms are also adjectives. As adjectives they agree like any other (-e, -s); as verbs, after en, they never change. A few change spelling too.
En lisant or lisant? The participle in writing
Without en, the -ant form is the present participle (participe présent). It belongs to written French and replaces a qui clause or a reason. Ayant and étant + past participle show that one action came first. These sound formal in speech.
| Written form | Everyday equivalent | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| les étudiants parlant chinois | les étudiants qui parlent chinois | students who speak Chinese |
| Ne sachant pas quoi dire, il se tut. | Comme il ne savait pas quoi dire… | Not knowing what to say, he fell silent. |
| Ayant fini, elle est partie. | Quand elle a eu fini… | Having finished, she left. |
| Étant arrivés tôt, nous avons attendu. | Comme nous étions arrivés tôt… | Having arrived early, we waited. |
| Le train arrivant de Lyon… | Le train qui arrive de Lyon… | The train arriving from Lyon… |
En attendant, en passant, c’est en forgeant…
Some gerunds have become everyday phrases, and one is a famous proverb. Learn them as whole units.