Stem-Changing -er Verbs: -yer → -ie (payer, envoyer)

In French, some letters change to help with pronunciation. The letter y is quite strong. The letter i is softer. When the verb ending is silent, the y feels too heavy. We swap it for an i to keep things light. This happens in the "boot" positions of the conjugation table. These are the forms for je, tu, il/elle/on, and ils/elles. The nous and vous forms are different. They have endings you can actually hear. Because you hear the ending, the y stays put. It is like the y is hiding from the silence. If you can't hear the ending, use i. If you can hear the ending, keep the y.

1. 1Take a verb ending in -yer like envoyer (to send).
2. 2Remove the -er to find the stem: envoy-.
3. 3For je, tu, il, and ils, change y to i.
4. 4Add your standard -er endings: -e, -es, -e, -ent.
5. 5For nous and vous, keep the y exactly as it is.
6. 6Add the standard endings: -ons and -ez.
7. 7Let's look at envoyer in action:
8. 8J'envoie (I send)
9. 9Tu envoies (You send)
10. 10Il envoie (He sends)
11. 11Nous envoyons (We send - See the y?)
12. 12Vous envoyez (You send - Still there!)
13. 13Ils envoient (They send - Back to i!)

You will use this rule every single day. Imagine you are at a cute Parisian café. You need to pay for your croissant. You use the verb payer. You might say, Je paie par carte (I am paying by card). Or maybe you are at a new job. You need to send an email to your boss. You use envoyer. You say, J'envoie l'e-mail maintenant. It is also vital for chores. If you are cleaning your apartment, use nettoyer (to clean). Tu nettoies la cuisine ? (Are you cleaning the kitchen?). These verbs cover shopping, working, and living. They are the "action" verbs of a busy life.

Do not change the y in the nous and vous forms. This is the most important part. Nous and vous are the "VIPs" who keep their y. Also, this rule only applies to the present tense for now. If you are using the infinitive, keep the y. For example, Je veux envoyer (I want to send). The y stays because the verb isn't conjugated yet. Also, watch out for -ayer verbs like payer. These are special rebels. You can actually use y OR i for them. Je paye and je paie are both correct! It is like a "choose your own adventure" book. Most people prefer the i version because it looks consistent.

The biggest mistake is keeping the y everywhere. Je envoye looks wrong to a French person. It sounds a bit clunky too. Another mistake is changing the y to i for nous. Nous envoions is a big no-no. Remember, nous and vous love the y. They are best friends. Do not separate them! Also, remember the silent -ent at the end of ils/elles. Even though it is a long ending, you don't hear it. That means the y must change to i. It is a silent ending, so the i rule applies.

Compare this to regular -er verbs like parler. In parler, the stem never changes. Je parle, nous parlons. Easy! But -yer verbs are more like -eler or -eter verbs. Think of appeler (to call). It doubles the l in the same "boot" spots. These are all "stem-changing" verbs. They all have a little "glitch" in the boot. The -yer group is actually easier. You just swap one letter for another. You don't have to double anything. Just remember: y is for loud endings, i is for silent ones.