Stem-Changing -er Verbs: e → è (acheter, lever)

In French, pronunciation is king. Sometimes, a regular conjugation sounds a bit flat. To fix this, we add a grave accent è. This opens up the sound of the vowel. It sounds like the 'e' in 'pet' or 'bed'. Without the accent, the e would be 'mute' or very soft. This change happens in the 'stem' of the verb. The stem is the part before the -er ending. For acheter, the stem is achet-. When we conjugate it, that second e gets a makeover. It becomes achèt-. This only happens when the ending is silent. If you can hear the ending clearly, the accent stays away. It is a very logical system once you hear it.

1. 1Changing these verbs is a simple four-step process.
2. 2Start with the infinitive like lever (to lift/raise).
3. 3Remove the -er ending to find your stem: lev-.
4. 4Add your standard -er endings: -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent.
5. 5Add the grave accent è to the stem for specific people.
6. 6This change applies to je, tu, il/elle/on, and ils/elles.
7. 7For je, it becomes j'achète.
8. 8For tu, it becomes tu achètes.
9. 9For il, it becomes il achète.
10. 10For ils, it becomes ils achètent.
11. 11Notice that nous and vous are the exceptions. They keep the original stem. They are the 'safe zones' of this grammar rule.

Use this rule for a specific group of -er verbs. The most common one is acheter. You will use this at the market or a clothing store. Imagine you are in Paris. You see a beautiful scarf. You say, J'achète cette écharpe. Another common verb is lever. You use this when you get up in the morning. Je me lève à sept heures is a classic daily routine sentence. You also use emmener (to take someone). This is perfect for social plans. J'emmène mon ami au restaurant. These verbs cover shopping, movement, and daily habits. They are essential for basic survival in a French-speaking city.

There are two main 'no-go' zones for this accent. The first is the nous and vous forms. These forms have endings that we pronounce clearly: -ons and -ez. Because we hear the ending, we don't need the accent to help the sound. It is like a grammar traffic light. Green means go for the accent. Red means stop for nous and vous. The second zone is other regular -er verbs. Don't try to put an accent on parler or manger. They are perfectly happy as they are. This rule is a VIP club. Only a few verbs like acheter, lever, mener, and peser are invited.

Even native speakers might trip here occasionally. The biggest mistake is putting the accent on nous. People write nous achètons, but that is incorrect. It should be nous achetons. Another common slip is the ils/elles form. Because the -ent ending is silent, you MUST use the accent. Ils achètent is correct. Ils achetent is a spelling error. Also, watch out for the accent direction. It must be a grave accent è. A common mistake is using the acute accent é. Think of the grave accent as pointing down to the left. It opens the sound up. If you get it wrong, don't worry. People will still understand you, but your writing will look much sharper if you get it right.

French loves variety, which can be confusing. Some verbs like appeler (to call) double their consonant instead. They go from appeler to j'appelle. This achieves the same sound change but with a different method. Other verbs like espérer (to hope) already have an accent. They change é to è. Our current group starts with a plain e and adds the è. It is like different paths to the same mountain top. The goal is always the same: a clear 'eh' sound. Just remember that acheter and lever are the 'add an accent' group. They don't double letters. They just like a little hat on their e.