Répondre is the verb to answer, reply, or respond — and one of the textbook examples of a French verb that requires à before its object. Je réponds à ta question, il a répondu au téléphone, réponds-moi vite. Where English "answer" is plainly transitive ("answer the question," "answer the phone"), French répondre is intransitive in this sense: the question, the phone, the person — they all sit behind a mandatory à. Get this preposition right and you sound like a native; skip it and you mark yourself as a beginner immediately.
The conjugation is fully regular: stem répond- with the standard -re endings, past participle répondu, auxiliary avoir. The é is part of the stem and never disappears — every form preserves it. Répondre is part of the vendre family alongside attendre, entendre, rendre, perdre, descendre, vendre. Beyond the basic answering meaning, it covers a surprising range: meeting expectations (répondre à l'attente), corresponding to (ces couleurs ne se répondent pas), and the legal sense of being responsible for (répondre de ses actes).
This page is the verb-reference entry: every paradigm, every compound tense, the 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 répond- takes the endings -s, -s, -∅, -ons, -ez, -ent. The 3sg has no overt ending — bare répond is the form.
| Person | Form | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| je | réponds | /ʁepɔ̃/ |
| tu | réponds | /ʁepɔ̃/ |
| il / elle / on | répond | /ʁepɔ̃/ |
| nous | répondons | /ʁepɔ̃dɔ̃/ |
| vous | répondez | /ʁepɔ̃de/ |
| ils / elles | répondent | /ʁepɔ̃d/ |
The orthography requires the acute accent on the é in every form: réponds, répond, répondons, répondez, répondent. Skipping the accent (writing reponds) is a spelling error every learner makes at least once.
In the singular, the final -d is silent — je réponds, tu réponds, il répond are all pronounced /ʁepɔ̃/, identical in speech. The -d becomes audible only in the plural, between vowels (répondons, répondez, répondent).
Je te réponds dès que je peux, promis.
I'll get back to you as soon as I can, I promise.
Tu ne réponds jamais à mes messages, c'est frustrant.
You never reply to my messages, it's frustrating.
On répond toujours au téléphone après trois sonneries, c'est la règle de la maison.
We always answer the phone after three rings, that's the house rule.
Imparfait
Built on the stem répond- plus the regular imparfait endings. The é of the stem is preserved everywhere.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | répondais |
| tu | répondais |
| il / elle / on | répondait |
| nous | répondions |
| vous | répondiez |
| ils / elles | répondaient |
À l'époque, on répondait toujours aux lettres dans les huit jours.
Back then, people always answered letters within a week.
Quand j'étais petite, je ne répondais jamais quand on m'appelait — j'étais très timide.
When I was little, I never used to answer when people called me — I was very shy.
Passé simple (literary)
Stem répond- plus the -i- family endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | répondis |
| tu | répondis |
| il / elle / on | répondit |
| nous | répondîmes |
| vous | répondîtes |
| ils / elles | répondirent |
The circumflex on répondîmes and répondîtes is obligatory. (literary)
Il leva les yeux et répondit d'une voix calme : « Vous avez tort. »
He raised his eyes and answered in a calm voice: 'You are wrong.' (literary)
Futur simple
Stem répondr- — infinitive minus the final -e. Like all -re verbs, the stem ends in a consonant cluster -dr-.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | répondrai |
| tu | répondras |
| il / elle / on | répondra |
| nous | répondrons |
| vous | répondrez |
| ils / elles | répondront |
Je te répondrai par écrit dans la semaine, c'est plus prudent.
I'll reply in writing within the week, it's safer.
Personne ne répondra à cette annonce, elle est trop bizarre.
Nobody will respond to this ad, it's too weird.
Conditionnel présent
Same répondr- stem with imparfait endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | répondrais |
| tu | répondrais |
| il / elle / on | répondrait |
| nous | répondrions |
| vous | répondriez |
| ils / elles | répondraient |
Je répondrais bien, mais je ne sais pas quoi dire.
I'd love to answer, but I don't know what to say.
Subjonctif présent
Single stem répond- with regular subjunctive endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (que) je | réponde |
| (que) tu | répondes |
| (qu')il / elle / on | réponde |
| (que) nous | répondions |
| (que) vous | répondiez |
| (qu')ils / elles | répondent |
J'aimerais qu'il me réponde franchement, sans détours.
I'd like him to answer me honestly, without beating around the bush.
Il faut que tu répondes à ce mail avant la fin de la journée.
You need to reply to this email before the end of the day.
Impératif
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (tu) | réponds |
| (nous) | répondons |
| (vous) | répondez |
Réponds-moi quand je te parle, c'est la moindre des politesses.
Answer me when I'm talking to you, it's basic politeness.
Répondez par oui ou par non, s'il vous plaît.
Please answer yes or no.
The negative imperative is also high-frequency: ne réponds pas (don't answer / don't talk back). In family contexts with children, ne me réponds pas ! often means "don't talk back!" — a sharp scold for impertinence.
Ne me réponds pas sur ce ton, jeune homme !
Don't talk back to me in that tone, young man! (parental)
Participles and gérondif
- Participe passé: répondu (does NOT agree, since répondre is intransitive — see below)
- Participe présent: répondant
- Gérondif: en répondant
En répondant si vite, tu as montré que tu prenais ce projet au sérieux.
By answering so quickly, you showed that you were taking this project seriously.
The compound tenses
Répondre uses avoir as its auxiliary in all compound tenses.
Passé composé
avoir (présent) + répondu
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| j' | ai répondu | I answered / I've answered |
| tu | as répondu | you answered |
| il / elle / on | a répondu | he/she/we answered |
| nous | avons répondu | we answered |
| vous | avez répondu | you answered |
| ils / elles | ont répondu | they answered |
J'ai répondu à ton message ce matin, tu n'as pas reçu ?
I replied to your message this morning, didn't you get it?
Elle n'a pas répondu, et ça m'a fait beaucoup de peine.
She didn't answer, and it really hurt me.
Plus-que-parfait
avoir (imparfait) + répondu
J'avais déjà répondu à cette question hier, mais elle me la repose aujourd'hui.
I'd already answered that question yesterday, but she's asking it again today.
Futur antérieur, conditionnel passé, subjonctif passé
avoir (in respective tense) + répondu
Quand tu reviendras, j'aurai répondu à tous les mails.
When you come back, I'll have answered all the emails.
Sans toi, je n'aurais pas su quoi répondre à cette accusation.
Without you, I wouldn't have known what to answer to that accusation.
The four core uses
1. Answer / reply (with à before the object): the basic sense
The default construction. Répondre à + person, question, message, phone, letter — anything you can answer.
Je réponds à ta question dans une seconde, laisse-moi finir mon café.
I'll answer your question in a second, let me finish my coffee.
Tu peux répondre au téléphone ? Je suis dans la douche.
Can you answer the phone? I'm in the shower.
Réponds à Marie — elle attend ta réponse depuis hier.
Answer Marie — she's been waiting for your reply since yesterday.
The à is preserved regardless of whether the object is a person, a thing, or an abstract concept:
Il a répondu à toutes les critiques avec un calme remarquable.
He responded to every criticism with remarkable calm.
2. Answer with content: répondre + content (no preposition)
When you specify what you answered (the actual words said), it's a direct object. The structure is répondre + content (direct) — à + recipient (indirect). Both can appear together.
Il m'a répondu « non » sans hésiter une seconde.
He answered me 'no' without a moment's hesitation.
Elle a répondu une bêtise pour faire rire ses amis.
She answered something silly to make her friends laugh.
The two structures combine:
Je lui ai répondu la vérité, même si ça lui faisait mal.
I answered him with the truth, even though it hurt him.
(Here lui = indirect object "to him" / la vérité = direct object "the truth.")
The most common follow-up structure is répondre que + indicative (reported speech):
Il m'a répondu qu'il ne savait pas.
He answered (told me) that he didn't know.
Elle a répondu qu'elle viendrait demain.
She replied that she would come tomorrow.
3. Meet (an expectation, a need): répondre à
A more abstract use, common in formal and journalistic writing. Répondre à un besoin / aux attentes / aux critères — to meet a need / expectations / criteria.
Ce produit répond parfaitement aux besoins des consommateurs.
This product perfectly meets consumers' needs.
Le candidat ne répond pas aux critères du poste, malheureusement.
The candidate doesn't meet the job criteria, unfortunately.
Le film n'a pas répondu à mes attentes — j'en attendais beaucoup mieux.
The film didn't live up to my expectations — I was expecting much better.
4. Be answerable for / vouch for: répondre de (formal/legal)
The construction with de (instead of à) shifts the meaning to "be responsible for" or "vouch for." This is more formal — common in legal contexts, but also in everyday phrasing of personal guarantee.
Je réponds de lui — c'est un homme de confiance.
I vouch for him — he's a trustworthy man.
Tu devras répondre de tes actes devant le tribunal.
You will have to answer for your actions before the court.
Je ne réponds plus de rien si tu continues comme ça !
I won't be responsible for anything anymore if you keep going like this!
The fixed expression je n'en réponds pas / je ne réponds de rien means "I take no responsibility" / "I won't vouch for anything" — a way of dismissing accountability for what's about to happen.
High-frequency expressions
- répondre à — answer (someone, a question, a message, the phone)
- répondre que — reply that... (followed by indicative)
- répondre par oui / par non — answer yes / no
- répondre du tac au tac — answer with a quick comeback
- ça ne répond pas — there's no answer / nobody's picking up (phone)
- répondre présent — reply "here" / show up when called
- répondre à un besoin — meet a need
- répondre aux attentes — meet expectations
- répondre de quelqu'un / quelque chose — vouch for, take responsibility for
- ne pas savoir quoi répondre — not know what to say in reply
J'ai sonné trois fois mais ça ne répond pas — il doit être sorti.
I rang three times but there's no answer — he must be out.
Quand tu lui poses une question difficile, elle répond toujours du tac au tac.
When you ask her a tough question, she always has a quick comeback.
On peut compter sur lui — il répondra présent quoi qu'il arrive.
We can count on him — he'll show up no matter what.
Comparison with English
Three friction points for English speakers:
- Mandatory à before the object. This is THE error. English "answer the question" → French répondre à la question. The grammatical type of the verb is different: French treats the object as indirect (with à), English treats it as direct. There is no way around this — the à is obligatory in every situation where there's an object that's a person, a thing, or an abstract entity.
- Direct content vs indirect recipient. When you specify the content of an answer ("he answered yes"), it IS a direct object — il a répondu oui, no preposition. So répondre can take both kinds of complement, but they're different roles. Recipient = à; content = direct. Both can co-occur: il m'a répondu oui (he answered me yes — me is recipient, oui is content).
- The participle does not agree. Because the object of répondre à is indirect (preposition à), the past participle répondu never agrees with it. Les questions auxquelles j'ai répondu (no agreement). Compare attendre (direct): les heures que j'ai attendues (with agreement). This grammatical contrast catches even advanced learners.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Dropping à before the object. This is THE error.
❌ Je réponds ta question.
Wrong — répondre requires à before its object.
✅ Je réponds à ta question.
I'm answering your question.
Mistake 2: Using pour or sur instead of à.
❌ Il a répondu pour le téléphone.
Wrong — répondre takes à, never pour or sur.
✅ Il a répondu au téléphone.
He answered the phone.
Mistake 3: Forgetting the é in the stem.
❌ Je reponds à ta question.
Wrong — répondre always has the acute accent on the é.
✅ Je réponds à ta question.
I'm answering your question.
Mistake 4: Adding agreement to répondu in the passé composé.
❌ Les questions auxquelles j'ai répondues étaient difficiles.
Wrong — répondre takes à, so its object is indirect; the participle does not agree.
✅ Les questions auxquelles j'ai répondu étaient difficiles.
The questions I answered were hard.
Mistake 5: Confusing répondre à (answer) with répondre de (be responsible for).
❌ Je réponds à mes actes devant le juge.
Wrong — for accountability, the construction is répondre de.
✅ Je réponds de mes actes devant le juge.
I take responsibility for my actions before the judge.
Key takeaways
Répondre is a fully regular -re verb — stem répond- (with mandatory é), predictable across all paradigms. Auxiliary avoir; participle répondu. The futur and conditional stem is répondr-. Singular forms (réponds, réponds, répond) are pronounced identically /ʁepɔ̃/, with the -d silent in the singular and audible only in the plural.
The single most important grammatical fact: répondre takes à before its object. Répondre à quelqu'un, à une question, au téléphone, à un message. This makes the object indirect (not direct), which has two consequences. First, the à is mandatory and must never be dropped. Second, the past participle répondu never agrees with this object — les questions auxquelles j'ai répondu, no agreement. English speakers fight this because their "answer" is plainly transitive; French is not.
Three constructions extend the verb's range. Répondre que + indicative ("answer that," for reported speech). Répondre à + abstract noun ("meet a need / expectations / criteria"), common in formal writing. And répondre de + person/thing ("be responsible for / vouch for"), common in legal and personal-guarantee contexts. Master the basic à construction first; the others build on it naturally.
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