Rendre is the verb to give back or return (something) — and one of the cleanest examples of the regular -re conjugation (the so-called vendre family). Beyond the literal "give back" sense, rendre anchors a remarkable web of high-frequency constructions where English uses different verbs entirely: to make someone feel something (ça me rend triste — that makes me sad), to pay a visit (rendre visite à), to surrender (se rendre), and to realize (se rendre compte). Master rendre and you have unlocked the regular -re paradigm plus a fistful of constructions you will use every day.
The conjugation is fully regular: stem rend- with the standard -re endings. Unlike prendre (a notorious irregular), rendre is the well-behaved cousin — what you see in the infinitive is what you get in every form. This page is the verb-reference entry: every paradigm, every compound tense, the four core uses with examples, and the idioms.
The simple tenses
These are the tenses formed without an auxiliary — the basic conjugational paradigms.
Présent de l'indicatif
The model paradigm for regular -re verbs. The stem rend- takes the endings -s, -s, -∅, -ons, -ez, -ent. Note that the 3sg has no ending: the bare stem rend serves as the form.
| Person | Form | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| je | rends | /ʁɑ̃/ |
| tu | rends | /ʁɑ̃/ |
| il / elle / on | rend | /ʁɑ̃/ |
| nous | rendons | /ʁɑ̃dɔ̃/ |
| vous | rendez | /ʁɑ̃de/ |
| ils / elles | rendent | /ʁɑ̃d/ |
A subtle pronunciation point: in the singular forms, the final -d is silent — je rends, tu rends, il rend are all pronounced /ʁɑ̃/, identical to one another in speech. The -d only becomes audible in the plural (rendons, rendez, rendent), where it appears between vowels.
Je te rends ton livre demain, promis.
I'll give you back your book tomorrow, I promise.
Cette chanson me rend toujours nostalgique.
That song always makes me nostalgic.
Ils rendent visite à leurs grands-parents tous les dimanches.
They visit their grandparents every Sunday.
Imparfait
Built on the same stem rend- plus the regular imparfait endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. Predictable from the nous form (nous rendons → drop -ons, add imparfait endings).
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rendais |
| tu | rendais |
| il / elle / on | rendait |
| nous | rendions |
| vous | rendiez |
| ils / elles | rendaient |
Quand j'étais enfant, mon père me rendait fier en parlant de moi.
When I was a kid, my dad used to make me proud by talking about me.
On rendait toujours les clés au gardien avant de partir.
We always used to give the keys back to the caretaker before leaving.
Passé simple (literary)
The literary past tense. Stem rend- plus the -i- family endings -is, -is, -it, -îmes, -îtes, -irent. Used in literary writing and historical narration.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rendis |
| tu | rendis |
| il / elle / on | rendit |
| nous | rendîmes |
| vous | rendîtes |
| ils / elles | rendirent |
The circumflex on rendîmes and rendîtes is obligatory — historically a signal of a lost -s-, and a recurring marker across all -re verbs in passé simple. Skipping it is a spelling error.
Le général rendit son épée et la bataille fut perdue.
The general surrendered his sword and the battle was lost. (literary)
Cette nouvelle le rendit silencieux pendant plusieurs jours.
That news made him silent for several days. (literary)
Futur simple
Stem rendr- — the infinitive minus the final -e. Endings are the universal futur set.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rendrai |
| tu | rendras |
| il / elle / on | rendra |
| nous | rendrons |
| vous | rendrez |
| ils / elles | rendront |
Je te rendrai l'argent dès que je serai payé.
I'll give you back the money as soon as I get paid.
Cette décision rendra beaucoup de gens heureux.
This decision will make a lot of people happy.
Conditionnel présent
Same rendr- stem as the futur, with imparfait endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rendrais |
| tu | rendrais |
| il / elle / on | rendrait |
| nous | rendrions |
| vous | rendriez |
| ils / elles | rendraient |
Ça me rendrait vraiment service si tu pouvais me déposer à la gare.
It would really do me a favor if you could drop me at the station.
Subjonctif présent
Single stem rend-, with regular subjunctive endings -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent. Note that 1pl/2pl (rendions, rendiez) are spelled identically to the imparfait — context disambiguates.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (que) je | rende |
| (que) tu | rendes |
| (qu')il / elle / on | rende |
| (que) nous | rendions |
| (que) vous | rendiez |
| (qu')ils / elles | rendent |
Il faut que tu me rendes mon stylo, j'en ai besoin.
You need to give me back my pen, I need it.
Je veux que ça te rende heureux, c'est tout.
I want it to make you happy, that's all.
Impératif
Three forms, derived directly from the indicative present. The tu form keeps the -s (a feature of -re and -ir imperatives, unlike -er verbs).
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (tu) | rends |
| (nous) | rendons |
| (vous) | rendez |
Rends-moi mon téléphone, c'est pas drôle !
Give me back my phone, that's not funny!
Rendez la monnaie au client avant qu'il s'en aille.
Give the change back to the customer before he leaves.
Participles and gérondif
- Participe passé: rendu (agrees with preceding direct object when avoir is auxiliary)
- Participe présent: rendant
- Gérondif: en rendant
En rendant les clés, j'ai réalisé que je laissais derrière moi cinq belles années.
As I handed back the keys, I realized I was leaving five wonderful years behind.
The participle rendu follows standard agreement rules: les livres que j'ai rendus (masculine plural), la voiture que j'ai rendue (feminine singular).
The compound tenses
Rendre uses avoir as its auxiliary in all compound tenses, regardless of meaning. Even se rendre (the reflexive — see below) takes être, but only because all reflexives do.
Passé composé
avoir (présent) + rendu
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| j' | ai rendu | I gave back / I've given back |
| tu | as rendu | you gave back |
| il / elle / on | a rendu | he/she/we gave back |
| nous | avons rendu | we gave back |
| vous | avez rendu | you gave back |
| ils / elles | ont rendu | they gave back |
J'ai rendu visite à ma tante hier après-midi.
I visited my aunt yesterday afternoon.
Cette histoire m'a rendu triste pendant des semaines.
That story made me sad for weeks.
Plus-que-parfait
avoir (imparfait) + rendu
J'avais déjà rendu le livre avant qu'elle ne me le demande.
I'd already given back the book before she asked me for it.
Futur antérieur, conditionnel passé, subjonctif passé
avoir (in respective tense) + rendu
Quand tu reviendras, j'aurai rendu tous les livres à la bibliothèque.
By the time you get back, I'll have returned all the books to the library.
Sans toi, je n'aurais jamais rendu mon manuscrit à temps.
Without you, I'd never have turned in my manuscript on time.
The four core uses
1. Give back, return (something to someone): rendre quelque chose à quelqu'un
The literal, etymological sense. The construction is fully transitive on the thing returned, and the recipient is marked with à (indirect object).
Tu peux me rendre les dix euros que je t'ai prêtés ?
Can you give me back the ten euros I lent you?
N'oublie pas de rendre ce livre à la bibliothèque avant vendredi.
Don't forget to return this book to the library before Friday.
Le caissier m'a rendu trop de monnaie, je dois y retourner.
The cashier gave me too much change, I have to go back.
This use is also extended to giving back abstract things: rendre service (to do a favor — literally "give back service"), rendre justice (to do justice to), rendre hommage (to pay homage to).
Tu me rendrais un grand service si tu pouvais garder les enfants ce soir.
You'd be doing me a huge favor if you could watch the kids tonight.
2. Make + adjective: rendre quelqu'un + adjectif
This is one of the most frequent and most-mistranslated uses. Where English says make X happy / make X angry / make X tired, French says rendre X heureux / fâché / fatigué. The verb faire does not work here — faire triste is wrong.
Cette nouvelle me rend tellement heureux !
This news makes me so happy!
Le bruit constant me rend fou, je ne peux plus me concentrer.
The constant noise is driving me crazy, I can't concentrate anymore.
Ses messages la rendaient nerveuse, alors elle a fini par bloquer son numéro.
His messages used to make her anxious, so she ended up blocking his number.
3. Pay a visit: rendre visite à
A fixed expression. Note that the structure is rendre visite à quelqu'un — never visiter quelqu'un (which is wrong for people, though visiter works for places: visiter Paris). This is a major transfer error: English "visit" covers both, but French splits them.
Je vais rendre visite à mon grand-père cet après-midi, ça lui fera plaisir.
I'm going to visit my grandfather this afternoon, it'll make him happy.
On lui a rendu visite à l'hôpital tous les jours pendant deux semaines.
We visited him in the hospital every day for two weeks.
❌ Je vais visiter ma grand-mère ce week-end. (wrong for people)
Wrong — visiter is for places, not people.
✅ Je vais rendre visite à ma grand-mère ce week-end.
I'm going to visit my grandmother this weekend.
4. Reflexive: se rendre
The reflexive se rendre has three distinct, very high-frequency uses:
a) Go (to a place) — formal/neutral. Synonym for aller, slightly more elevated. Used in news, official communication, instructions.
Le président s'est rendu à Bruxelles pour rencontrer les dirigeants européens.
The president went to Brussels to meet European leaders.
Veuillez vous rendre au guichet numéro trois.
Please go to counter number three. (formal)
b) Surrender. The military/police sense.
Les voleurs se sont rendus à la police après deux heures de négociation.
The thieves surrendered to the police after two hours of negotiation.
c) Realize, become aware: se rendre compte (de / que). This is one of the most-used phrases in spoken French. Note that compte is invariable — agreement is on neither se nor compte.
Je me suis rendu compte que j'avais oublié mes clés au bureau.
I realized I'd forgotten my keys at the office.
Elle s'est rendu compte trop tard de son erreur.
She realized her mistake too late.
High-frequency rendre idioms
- rendre visite à — pay a visit to
- rendre service à — do a favor for
- rendre la monnaie — give back change
- rendre justice à — do justice to
- rendre hommage à — pay tribute to
- rendre les armes — surrender
- rendre l'âme — pass away (literally, "give up the soul")
- rendre compte (de) — give an account (of), report
- se rendre compte (de / que) — realize
- se rendre à — go to (formal); surrender to
- rendre quelqu'un fou — drive someone crazy
- rendre fier — make proud
- rendre malade — make sick
- rendre un verdict — deliver a verdict
Tu m'as rendu un fier service en me prêtant ta voiture.
You did me a great favor by lending me your car.
Le tribunal a rendu son verdict ce matin : non coupable.
The court delivered its verdict this morning: not guilty.
Comparison with English
Three friction points for English speakers:
- No single English equivalent. Rendre covers "give back," "make (+ adj)," "pay (a visit)," "deliver (a verdict)," "surrender," "go (formal)," and "realize" (with compte). Each of these uses a different English verb. Trying to memorize rendre = "to render" gets you almost nothing — the English cognate is rare and elevated, while French rendre is everyday vocabulary.
- "Make + adjective" is rendre, not faire. The most common transfer error: ça me fait triste is wrong (or at best informal/childlike). Correct French is ça me rend triste. Faire is for actions; rendre is for state changes.
- "Visit a person" is rendre visite à, not visiter. Visiter is reserved for places (visiter Paris, visiter un musée). For people, the fixed expression is rendre visite à quelqu'un. Saying je visite ma mère sounds like you're inspecting her, not seeing her socially.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Using faire instead of rendre for "make + adjective."
❌ Cette chanson me fait triste.
Wrong — French uses rendre, not faire, for state changes.
✅ Cette chanson me rend triste.
That song makes me sad.
Mistake 2: Using visiter for people instead of rendre visite à.
❌ J'ai visité mon oncle hier.
Wrong — visiter is for places, not people.
✅ J'ai rendu visite à mon oncle hier.
I visited my uncle yesterday.
Mistake 3: Forgetting à before the recipient.
❌ Je rends mon livre la bibliothèque.
Wrong — the recipient takes à.
✅ Je rends mon livre à la bibliothèque.
I'm returning my book to the library.
Mistake 4: Agreeing the participle in se rendre compte.
❌ Elle s'est rendue compte de son erreur.
Wrong — compte is the direct object, so no agreement on rendu.
✅ Elle s'est rendu compte de son erreur.
She realized her mistake.
Mistake 5: Adjective agreement after rendre.
❌ Cette nouvelle me rend heureux. (said by a woman)
Wrong — heureux must agree with the speaker (here, feminine).
✅ Cette nouvelle me rend heureuse. (said by a woman)
This news makes me happy.
Key takeaways
Rendre is the model verb for the regular -re family — fully predictable, with the stem rend- across all paradigms. Stem variations: rend- for simple tenses (present, imparfait, subjunctive), rendr- for futur and conditional, rendu for the past participle. Auxiliary: avoir in all compound tenses (except for the reflexive se rendre, which takes être like all reflexives).
Beyond the literal "give back" meaning, four constructions are essential. Rendre quelque chose à quelqu'un (return X to Y). Rendre quelqu'un + adjective (make someone feel/become — me rend triste). Rendre visite à (visit a person — never visiter for people). And the reflexive se rendre, which spans "go to" (formal), "surrender," and the indispensable se rendre compte (realize). Native speakers use these dozens of times a day; mastering them is a giant step toward fluency.
The agreement rules deserve a final note. The adjective in rendre + adj agrees with the direct object: cette nouvelle me rend heureux/heureuse. And in se rendre compte, the participle rendu never agrees, because compte is the post-verbal direct object. Get these two rules right and you have mastered one of the most useful verbs in French.
Now practice French
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning French→Related Topics
- Attendre: Full Verb ReferenceA1 — Attendre is to wait, to wait for, to expect — and one of the cleanest examples of a French regular -re verb. The single most important fact about attendre is that it takes a direct object: j'attends le bus, with no preposition. English speakers want to slip in a 'for' or a 'pour' that simply does not belong. This is the full reference: every paradigm, every compound tense, the core uses, and the idioms.
- Perdre: Full Verb ReferenceA1 — Perdre is to lose — keys, time, money, weight, balance, hope, one's mind. It's a regular -re verb (vendre family) with a fully predictable conjugation. The reflexive se perdre is essential for 'get lost' in every sense (physically lost, lost in thought, lost in a conversation). This is the full reference: every paradigm, every compound tense, the core uses, and the rich body of idioms.
- Vendre: Full Verb ReferenceA1 — Vendre means to sell — and it is the model verb for the entire regular -re family. Master its paradigms and you have the template for rendre, perdre, attendre, descendre, répondre, entendre, and dozens more. This page covers every tense, the avoir auxiliary, and the high-frequency idioms from se vendre bien to vendre cher.
- Le Présent: Verbes Réguliers en -reA1 — How to conjugate the regular -re verbs in the present indicative — vendre, attendre, entendre, and the d-stem family that follows the cleanest pattern in the 3e groupe.
- Pronominaux Idiomatiques: s'en faire, s'en aller, se la couler douceB2 — A whole class of high-frequency French pronominals don't translate literally — *s'en aller* (leave), *s'en faire* (worry), *s'y prendre* (go about it), *se débrouiller* (manage). Many fossilize *en* or *y* as a fixed clitic. Learn them as units.
- Rendre: Full Verb ReferenceA2 — Rendre is to give back, to return — and the model verb for an entire family of regular -re verbs. It also covers a vast range of senses where English uses different verbs entirely: to make (in 'rendre triste' = make sad), to pay (in 'rendre visite' = pay a visit), to surrender (in 'se rendre'), and to realize (in 'se rendre compte'). This is the full reference: every paradigm, every compound tense, the core uses, and the idioms.