Tomber Verb Conjugation: Every Tense Explained With Translations & Examples

If Tomber Verb Conjugation seems more complex than expected, it’s because the verb goes far beyond physical falling. It is one of DR MRS VANDERTRAMP verbs. Have you noticed how often it’s used for illness, agreement, or sudden events? This article breaks down every tense with clear explanations, translations, and practical examples.

Let’s begin with what makes tomber special.

What You Need To Know Before Conjugating Tomber

Tomber means to fall, to drop, to collapse, or to happen suddenly depending on context. It is a movement and state-change verb that always uses être in compound tenses. The past participle tombé must agree in gender and number with the subject.

This rule never changes.

Indicative Mood

The indicative mood is used to express facts, events, habits, and real situations.

Present Tense (Présent)

The present tense describes actions happening now, repeated events, or general truths. In English, tomber often translates as “fall,” “am/is/are falling,” or sometimes “happen.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	tombe	I fall / I am falling
Tu	tombes	you fall / you are falling
Il / Elle / On	tombe	he / she falls
Nous	tombons	we fall / we are falling
Vous	tombez	you fall / you are falling
Ils / Elles	tombent	they fall / they are falling

Examples:

• Je tombe souvent malade. → I often fall sick.
• Elle tombe par terre. → She is falling to the ground.
• Les feuilles tombent. → The leaves are falling.

To describe repeated or ongoing falling in the past, French uses the imperfect.

Imperfect Tense (Imparfait)

The imperfect tense is used for ongoing past actions, repeated events, or background situations. In English, it usually translates as “was falling” or “used to fall.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	tombais	I was falling / I used to fall
Tu	tombais	you were falling
Il / Elle / On	tombait	he / she was falling
Nous	tombions	we were falling
Vous	tombiez	you were falling
Ils / Elles	tombaient	they were falling

Examples:

• Je tombais souvent ici. → I used to fall here often.
• Elle tombait lentement. → She was falling slowly.
• Les feuilles tombaient. → The leaves were falling.

To express a completed fall or sudden event, French uses the passé composé.

Passé Composé (Always Être)

The passé composé is used for completed actions or sudden events. Tomber always uses être, and the past participle agrees with the subject. In English, it usually becomes “fell” or “has fallen.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	suis tombé(e)	I fell / I have fallen
Tu	es tombé(e)	you fell
Il / Elle / On	est tombé(e)	he / she fell
Nous	sommes tombé(e)s	we fell
Vous	êtes tombé(e)(s)	you fell
Ils / Elles	sont tombé(e)s	they fell

Examples:

• Je suis tombé hier. → I fell yesterday.
• Elle est tombée malade. → She fell ill.
• Ils sont tombés d’accord. → They came to an agreement.

To show that the fall happened before another past action, French uses another tense.

Plus-Que-Parfait

The plus-que-parfait expresses an action that had already happened before another past event. In English, it usually translates as “had fallen.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	étais tombé(e)	I had fallen
Tu	étais tombé(e)	you had fallen
Il / Elle / On	était tombé(e)	he / she had fallen
Nous	étions tombé(e)s	we had fallen
Vous	étiez tombé(e)(s)	you had fallen
Ils / Elles	étaient tombé(e)s	they had fallen

Examples:

• J’étais tombé avant lui. → I had fallen before him.
• Elle était tombée malade. → She had fallen ill.
• Les feuilles étaient tombées. → The leaves had fallen.

Some tenses are mainly used in literature.

Passé Simple (Rare – Literary)

The passé simple of tomber appears mainly in novels and historical writing, not in spoken French.

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	tombai	I fell
Tu	tombas	you fell
Il / Elle / On	tomba	he / she fell
Nous	tombâmes	we fell
Vous	tombâtes	you fell
Ils / Elles	tombèrent	they fell

Examples:

• Il tomba soudainement. → He suddenly fell.
• Elle tomba en silence. → She fell silently.
• Ils tombèrent ensemble. → They fell together.

French also uses the future tense to talk about falling later or expected events.

Simple Future (Futur Simple)

The future tense describes actions or events that will happen later, including physical falls or figurative outcomes.

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	tomberai	I will fall
Tu	tomberas	you will fall
Il / Elle / On	tombera	he / she will fall
Nous	tomberons	we will fall
Vous	tomberez	you will fall
Ils / Elles	tomberont	they will fall

Examples:

• Je tomberai si je cours. → I will fall if I run.
• Les feuilles tomberont. → The leaves will fall.
• Tout tombera en place. → Everything will fall into place.

Subjunctive Mood

The subjunctive is used to express emotion, doubt, necessity, or judgment, often with figurative uses of tomber.

Present Subjunctive

In English, this usually translates as “for someone to fall” or “that someone should fall.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Que je	tombe	for me to fall / that I should fall
Que tu	tombes	for you to fall
Qu’il / elle / on	tombe	for him/her to fall
Que nous	tombions	for us to fall
Que vous	tombiez	for you to fall
Qu’ils / elles	tombent	for them to fall

Examples:

• Il faut que je tombe d’accord. → I need to agree.
• Je crains qu’il tombe. → I fear he may fall.
• Bien qu’ils tombent souvent… → Although they fall often…

Past Subjunctive

Used when the fall happened before the main verb. In English, it often becomes “to have fallen.”

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Que je	sois tombé(e)	for me to have fallen
Que tu	sois tombé(e)	for you to have fallen
Qu’il / elle / on	soit tombé(e)	for him/her to have fallen
Que nous	soyons tombé(e)s	for us to have fallen
Que vous	soyez tombé(e)(s)	for you to have fallen
Qu’ils / elles	soient tombé(e)s	for them to have fallen

Examples:

• Je regrette qu’il soit tombé. → I regret that he fell.
• Bien qu’elle soit tombée… → Although she fell…
• Je suis content qu’ils soient tombés d’accord. → I’m glad they agreed.

Conditional Mood

The conditional expresses hypothetical situations, imagined outcomes, or cautious statements.

Present Conditional

Subject	Conjugation	English Translation
Je	tomberais	I would fall
Tu	tomberais	you would fall
Il / Elle / On	tomberait	he / she would fall
Nous	tomberions	we would fall
Vous	tomberiez	you would fall
Ils / Elles	tomberaient	they would fall

Examples:

• Je tomberais sans aide. → I would fall without help.
• Elle tomberait malade. → She would fall ill.
• Tout tomberait à l’eau. → Everything would fall apart.

Imperative Mood

The imperative is used to give warnings, advice, or encouragement, often involving prevention.

Present Imperative

Form	Conjugation	English Translation
(Tu)	tombe	fall
(Nous)	tombons	let’s fall
(Vous)	tombez	fall (formal/plural)

Examples:

• Ne tombe pas. → Don’t fall.
• Tombons d’accord. → Let’s agree.
• Tombez prudemment. → Fall carefully.

Final Takeaway

The Tomber Verb Conjugation is essential because tomber appears constantly in physical, emotional, and figurative contexts. Once you understand that it always uses être and how its meanings shift with context, you’ll recognize and use it naturally in real French.