Understanding French Present Participle with EN
The French construction EN + present participle expresses simultaneous actions, manner, or means. It's equivalent to English "while/by/upon + -ing".
Formation: EN + present participle (-ant)
- EN + verb stem + -ant
- Example: marcher → en marchant (while walking)
Main uses:
- Simultaneous actions: En mangeant, il regarde la télé. (While eating, he watches TV.)
- Manner/means: Il a réussi en travaillant dur. (He succeeded by working hard.)
- Time relationship: En arrivant, j'ai vu... (Upon arriving, I saw...)
- Cause: En tombant, il s'est blessé. (By falling, he hurt himself.)
This advanced structure adds sophistication to French expression and shows the relationship between actions.
Examples
En lisant ce livre, j'ai appris beaucoup. (While reading this book, I learned a lot.)
Simultaneous action - two things happening at once
Il gagne sa vie en enseignant. (He earns his living by teaching.)
Means/method - how something is accomplished
En sortant, fermez la porte. (Upon leaving, close the door.)
Time relationship - when one action occurs
Formation of Present Participle
French present participles are formed by adding -ant to the verb stem:
Present Participle Formation
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| -er verbs | stem + -ant | parler → parlant (speaking) |
| -ir verbs | stem + -ant | finir → finissant (finishing) |
| -re verbs | stem + -ant | vendre → vendant (selling) |
| avoir | ayant | having |
| être | étant | being |
| savoir | sachant | knowing |
Regular Formation
Most verbs follow regular patterns:
manger → mangeant (eating)
choisir → choisissant (choosing)
attendre → attendant (waiting)
prendre → prenant (taking)
Irregular Present Participles
Some verbs have irregular forms:
avoir → ayant, être → étant
savoir → sachant, voir → voyant
EN + Present Participle: Simultaneous Actions
EN + present participle expresses actions happening at the same time:
Examples
En conduisant, il téléphone. (While driving, he talks on the phone.)
Elle chante en travaillant. (She sings while working.)
En regardant la télé, nous mangeons. (While watching TV, we eat.)
Il réfléchit en marchant. (He thinks while walking.)
Same Subject Required
Both actions must have the same subject:
✅ En étudiant, je comprends mieux. (While studying, I understand better.)
❌ En étudiant, le livre est difficile. (Wrong - different subjects)
EN + Present Participle: Manner and Means
Expressing how or by what means something is done:
Examples
Il a appris le français en vivant en France. (He learned French by living in France.)
Elle gagne de l'argent en vendant des fleurs. (She earns money by selling flowers.)
On peut réussir en travaillant dur. (One can succeed by working hard.)
Il s'est blessé en tombant. (He hurt himself by falling.)
Method and Process
Describing the method used:
J'ai trouvé la solution en réfléchissant. (I found the solution by thinking.)
Elle a maigri en faisant du sport. (She lost weight by doing sports.)
EN + Present Participle: Time Relationships
Expressing when something happens, often translated as "upon" or "when":
Examples
En arrivant à la gare, j'ai vu Paul. (Upon arriving at the station, I saw Paul.)
En ouvrant la porte, elle a trouvé une lettre. (When opening the door, she found a letter.)
En rentrant chez moi, j'ai acheté du pain. (When going home, I bought bread.)
En finissant ses devoirs, il est sorti. (Upon finishing his homework, he went out.)
Immediate Sequence
Actions happening in immediate sequence:
En voyant l'accident, il a appelé la police. (Upon seeing the accident, he called the police.)
En entendant la nouvelle, elle a pleuré. (Upon hearing the news, she cried.)
EN + Present Participle: Cause and Effect
Expressing cause or reason for something:
Examples
En courant trop vite, il est tombé. (By running too fast, he fell.)
En ne faisant pas attention, elle a fait une erreur. (By not paying attention, she made a mistake.)
En buvant trop de café, j'ai mal à la tête. (From drinking too much coffee, I have a headache.)
En parlant fort, il a réveillé le bébé. (By speaking loudly, he woke up the baby.)
Negation with EN + Present Participle
To negate, place NE PAS before the present participle:
Examples
En ne travaillant pas, il a échoué. (By not working, he failed.)
En ne faisant pas attention, on fait des erreurs. (By not paying attention, one makes mistakes.)
En n'étudiant jamais, elle ne réussira pas. (By never studying, she won't succeed.)
En ne disant rien, il a évité les problèmes. (By saying nothing, he avoided problems.)
Reflexive Verbs with EN
Reflexive verbs maintain their reflexive pronouns:
Examples
En se levant tôt, elle a plus de temps. (By getting up early, she has more time.)
En se dépêchant, nous arriverons à l'heure. (By hurrying, we'll arrive on time.)
En se promenant, ils ont découvert un café. (While walking, they discovered a café.)
En s'entraînant, il devient plus fort. (By training, he becomes stronger.)
Common Expressions with EN + Present Participle
Frequently used phrases and expressions:
Examples
En attendant (while waiting/in the meantime)
En passant (by the way/while passing)
En général (generally speaking)
En fait (actually/in fact)
Fixed Expressions
Common idiomatic uses:
En attendant, nous pouvons prendre un café. (In the meantime, we can have coffee.)
En passant, as-tu vu Marie? (By the way, did you see Marie?)
EN + Present Participle vs Other Constructions
Comparing with similar structures:
Comparison of Constructions
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| EN + present participle | en marchant | while/by walking |
| PENDANT QUE + verb | pendant que je marche | while I walk |
| TOUT EN + present participle | tout en marchant | while walking (emphasis) |
| Simple present participle | marchant | walking (literary) |
TOUT EN + Present Participle
Emphasizing simultaneous actions:
Tout en travaillant, elle écoute la radio. (While working, she listens to the radio.)
More emphasis than simple "en travaillant"
Style and Register
EN + present participle usage varies by context:
Formal Writing
Common in academic and literary texts:
En analysant les données, nous constatons que... (By analyzing the data, we observe that...)
En étudiant ce phénomène, les chercheurs ont découvert... (By studying this phenomenon, researchers discovered...)
Spoken French
Also used in everyday conversation:
En rentrant, j'ai vu ton frère. (When coming home, I saw your brother.)
En faisant les courses, j'ai rencontré Paul. (While shopping, I met Paul.)
Common Mistakes with EN + Present Participle
Here are frequent errors students make:
1. Different subjects: Using different subjects for main and participle clauses
2. Wrong participle formation: Incorrect -ant forms
3. Missing EN: Using present participle alone instead of EN + participle
4. Overuse: Using when simpler constructions would be better
Examples
❌ En étudiant, le livre est difficile → ✅ En étudiant, je trouve le livre difficile
Wrong: different subjects (book vs I)
❌ en allant → ✅ en allant
Wrong: incorrect present participle formation
❌ Marchant dans la rue → ✅ En marchant dans la rue
Wrong: missing EN (literary style vs standard)
❌ En étant fatigué, en allant au lit → ✅ Comme j'étais fatigué, je suis allé au lit
Wrong: overuse when simpler construction is clearer