Construire is "to build" — and like produire, traduire, and détruire, it belongs to the -uire family that all conjugate the same way. The participe passé is the short irregular construit, and compound tenses take avoir (j'ai construit une maison).
The semantic range of construire is broader than English "construct" or even "build." French uses it for physical buildings (construire une maison), but also routinely for abstract structures: a sentence (construire une phrase), an argument (construire un raisonnement), an identity (se construire en tant qu'individu), a relationship (construire une relation solide). Where English would often say "develop," "form," or "shape," French reaches for construire — and the reflexive se construire in particular has a strong existential and developmental flavor that English struggles to capture in one word.
This page is the full reference: every paradigm, the dense productivity of the verb in modern French, the family of -uire relatives, and the distinctions that English speakers tend to blur (especially construire vs bâtir vs fabriquer).
The conjugation pattern
The conjugation is the -uire family pattern: stem constru- in the singular present, plural inserts an -s- (nous construisons), and the participe passé is the short construit.
Présent de l'indicatif
| Person | Form | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| je | construis | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi/ |
| tu | construis | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi/ |
| il / elle / on | construit | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi/ |
| nous | construisons | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi.zɔ̃/ |
| vous | construisez | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi.ze/ |
| ils / elles | construisent | /kɔ̃s.tʁɥiz/ |
The three singular forms are pronounced identically — /kɔ̃s.tʁɥi/. The plural inserts an audible /z/ that marks the difference. Note the consonant cluster /kɔ̃stʁ/ at the start — French speakers cluster these without difficulty, but English speakers sometimes reach for an epenthetic vowel (avoid that).
On construit un nouveau pont sur la Seine.
They're building a new bridge over the Seine.
Tu construis ta maison toi-même ? Chapeau.
You're building your house yourself? Hats off.
Les enfants construisent une cabane dans le jardin.
The kids are building a fort in the garden.
Imparfait
Stem construis- (from nous construisons) plus regular endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | construisais |
| tu | construisais |
| il / elle / on | construisait |
| nous | construisions |
| vous | construisiez |
| ils / elles | construisaient |
Mon grand-père construisait des bateaux à voile dans son atelier.
My grandfather used to build sailboats in his workshop.
On construisait beaucoup dans ce quartier dans les années 70.
There was a lot of construction in this neighborhood in the seventies.
Passé simple (literary)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | construisis |
| tu | construisis |
| il / elle / on | construisit |
| nous | construisîmes |
| vous | construisîtes |
| ils / elles | construisirent |
Eiffel construisit sa tour pour l'Exposition universelle de 1889.
Eiffel built his tower for the Universal Exposition of 1889. (literary)
Futur simple
Stem construir- with regular futur endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | construirai |
| tu | construiras |
| il / elle / on | construira |
| nous | construirons |
| vous | construirez |
| ils / elles | construiront |
On construira une nouvelle école d'ici trois ans.
They'll build a new school within three years.
Quand j'aurai un terrain, je construirai ma maison de rêve.
When I have land, I'll build my dream house.
Conditionnel présent
Stem construir- with imparfait endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | construirais |
| tu | construirais |
| il / elle / on | construirait |
| nous | construirions |
| vous | construiriez |
| ils / elles | construiraient |
Avec ce budget, on construirait quelque chose de bien plus solide.
With this budget, we'd build something much more solid.
Tu construirais ta vie autour de quoi, en fait ?
What would you actually build your life around?
Subjonctif présent
Stem construis- with regular subjunctive endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (que) je | construise |
| (que) tu | construises |
| (qu')il / elle / on | construise |
| (que) nous | construisions |
| (que) vous | construisiez |
| (qu')ils / elles | construisent |
Il faut qu'on construise un argumentaire solide avant la réunion.
We need to build a solid case before the meeting.
Je doute qu'ils construisent quoi que ce soit cette année.
I doubt they'll build anything this year.
Impératif
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (tu) | construis |
| (nous) | construisons |
| (vous) | construisez |
Construis ta phrase en commençant par le sujet.
Build your sentence starting with the subject.
Construisons quelque chose de durable, pas juste pour la rentabilité.
Let's build something lasting, not just for profitability.
Participles and gérondif
- Participe passé: construit (agrees with preceding direct object when avoir is auxiliary; agrees with subject in the reflexive)
- Participe présent: construisant
- Gérondif: en construisant
En construisant ce mur, ils se sont rendu compte qu'il manquait des matériaux.
While building this wall, they realized that materials were missing.
The participle construit is also a high-frequency adjective: bien construit (well built/structured), mal construit (poorly built/structured) — used for buildings, sentences, films, arguments.
The compound tenses
Construire takes avoir in the active. The reflexive se construire takes être (like all reflexives).
Passé composé
avoir (présent) + construit (active) être (présent) + agreement + construit (reflexive)
| Person | Active form | Reflexive form |
|---|---|---|
| j' | ai construit | me suis construit(e) |
| tu | as construit | t'es construit(e) |
| il / elle / on | a construit | s'est construit(e) |
| nous | avons construit | nous sommes construit(e)s |
| vous | avez construit | vous êtes construit(e)(s) |
| ils / elles | ont construit | se sont construit(e)s |
Ils ont construit cette cathédrale en plus de deux siècles.
They built this cathedral over more than two centuries.
Elle s'est construite toute seule, sans aucun soutien familial.
She built herself up alone, without any family support.
Plus-que-parfait
avoir (imparfait) + construit
J'avais construit toute mon argumentation autour de cette idée — et elle s'est révélée fausse.
I had built my whole argument around this idea — and it turned out to be wrong.
Futur antérieur
avoir (futur) + construit
D'ici dix ans, on aura construit deux fois plus de logements.
Within ten years, we'll have built twice as much housing.
Conditionnel passé
avoir (conditionnel) + construit
Sans la guerre, ils auraient construit un empire industriel.
Without the war, they would have built an industrial empire.
Subjonctif passé
avoir (subjonctif) + construit
Je suis fier qu'ils aient construit cette maison ensemble.
I'm proud that they built this house together.
The four core uses
1. Build something physical
The basic use: erect a building, structure, or object. Construire is the standard, neutral verb for this — more technical than bâtir (which is older and more poetic) and less narrow than édifier (which is formal and often suggests monumental construction).
On a construit cette maison pierre par pierre.
We built this house stone by stone.
L'État construit une ligne de TGV entre les deux villes.
The state is building a high-speed rail line between the two cities.
Il a construit le bateau dans son garage.
He built the boat in his garage.
2. Construct something abstract
Construire extends naturally to abstract objects: a sentence, an argument, a theory, a film, a relationship, a strategy. This use is extremely productive in modern French and is often where English would use "develop," "form," "shape," or "structure."
Tu construis tes phrases trop longues — divise-les en deux.
You build your sentences too long — split them in two.
Ce film est très bien construit, du début à la fin.
This film is very well constructed, from start to finish.
Elle construit son raisonnement avec une précision remarquable.
She builds her reasoning with remarkable precision.
The collocations construire un argument, construire un récit, construire une théorie, construire une relation, construire une carrière are all standard. Note that the past participle bien construit is one of the most common ways to praise the structure of any creative work.
3. Se construire: develop, grow, form oneself
The reflexive se construire has a deep developmental meaning. When applied to a person, it means to develop, to grow, to forge an identity — usually with a sense of overcoming difficulties. When applied to a structure or relationship, it means to be built, to develop over time.
On se construit à travers les épreuves qu'on traverse.
We build ourselves through the hardships we go through.
Leur amitié s'est construite peu à peu.
Their friendship developed little by little.
Il s'est construit en opposition à son père.
He built himself in opposition to his father.
4. Passive: be built / be structured
The passive être construit(e) is extremely common. It is used both for physical objects ("this building was built in 1880") and for abstract structures ("this argument is built around three premises").
Cette église a été construite au douzième siècle.
This church was built in the twelfth century.
Le film est construit autour d'un seul personnage.
The film is built around a single character.
Sa théorie est construite sur des fondements fragiles.
His theory is built on shaky foundations.
The construction être construit(e) sur / autour de is highly productive: built on (foundations), built around (an idea, a character, a theme).
High-frequency construire expressions
- construire une maison / un pont / une ville — build a house / bridge / city
- construire une phrase — build/structure a sentence
- construire un argument / un raisonnement — build an argument / line of reasoning
- construire son avenir — build one's future
- construire une relation — build a relationship
- bien/mal construit — well/poorly built or structured
- se construire — develop oneself, grow, find oneself
- en construction — under construction
- construire de toutes pièces — build from scratch / fabricate entirely (often pejorative for stories)
Cette histoire a été construite de toutes pièces — rien n'est vrai.
This story was completely fabricated — none of it is true.
Le bâtiment est encore en construction.
The building is still under construction.
The -uire family — same conjugation
| Verb | Meaning |
|---|---|
| conduire | drive, lead |
| traduire | translate |
| produire | produce |
| construire | build |
| détruire | destroy |
| réduire | reduce |
| introduire | introduce, insert |
| séduire | seduce, charm |
| reproduire | reproduce |
All take avoir in compound tenses; all have a participe passé in -uit (and cuire in cuit).
Comparison with English
Three friction points:
- Construire vs bâtir vs fabriquer. English has "build," "construct," "make." French distinguishes: construire (the standard, technical-or-everyday verb for buildings, structures, abstract things), bâtir (older, more poetic, especially for buildings and life-projects — bâtir sa vie), fabriquer (manufacture, make a manufactured object — a chair, a watch, a tool). A house can be construite or bâtie; a watch is fabriquée, not construite.
- Se construire has no clean English equivalent. The reflexive expresses self-development in a way English needs four or five words to say. Borrow it: je suis encore en train de me construire (I'm still developing as a person / still finding myself).
- Construire is broader than English "construct." French uses construire casually for anything with structure: a sentence, a film, a relationship. English "construct" sounds technical or academic in those contexts — French does not. Bien construit applied to a film is not academic; it is an everyday compliment.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Spelling the participle as construis instead of construit.
❌ Ils ont construis une maison.
Wrong — the participe passé is construit, not construis.
✅ Ils ont construit une maison.
They built a house.
Mistake 2: Using fabriquer for buildings or construire for small manufactured objects.
❌ Cette usine construit des montres.
Awkward — for manufactured objects like watches, French uses fabriquer.
✅ Cette usine fabrique des montres.
This factory manufactures watches.
❌ Ils fabriquent un nouveau pont.
Wrong — for a bridge, you build (construire), you don't manufacture.
✅ Ils construisent un nouveau pont.
They're building a new bridge.
Mistake 3: Forgetting agreement with subject in s'est construit(e).
❌ Cette amitié s'est construit sur la confiance.
Wrong — construite must agree with the feminine subject l'amitié.
✅ Cette amitié s'est construite sur la confiance.
This friendship was built on trust.
Mistake 4: Forgetting the -s- in plural present forms.
❌ Nous construions une cabane.
Wrong — the plural present inserts -s-: nous construisons. Without the -s-, you've accidentally written the imparfait stem (which would be construisions, with -ions).
✅ Nous construisons une cabane.
We're building a fort.
Mistake 5: Using développer where se construire is more natural.
⚠️ Il s'est développé en tant qu'individu.
Acceptable but less idiomatic — French would say se construire here.
✅ Il s'est construit en tant qu'individu.
He developed as an individual.
Key takeaways
Construire is "to build" — and a member of the -uire family that conjugates identically to traduire, produire, détruire, conduire. The plural inserts an -s- (nous construisons), and the participe passé is the short irregular construit. Compound tenses take avoir in the active.
Three uses to internalize: physical building (construire une maison, un pont), abstract construction (construire une phrase, un argument, un récit, une relation) — far more productive than English "construct" — and the reflexive se construire meaning to develop, grow, forge an identity (on se construit à travers les épreuves) — a psychologically rich verb with no clean English equivalent.
Distinguish construire (standard, broad) from bâtir (older, more poetic) and fabriquer (manufacture small objects). And remember: French bien construit is everyday praise — for films, books, sentences, arguments — not technical jargon.
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