joindre

Joindre is a French verb with several related senses. It primarily means to attach or fasten two things together, to connect or unite elements, and more generally to bring together people or ideas. It can also mean to add or include something, such as attaching a file to an email. In pronominal form, se joindre à means to join oneself to someone or to participate in a group or project.

Etymology and related forms: Joindre comes from the Latin iungere, meaning to join. It is related to the literary verb conjoindre and to other Romance verbs sharing the same root. The past participle used with avoir is joint. The verb also has a reflexive form, se joindre, with its own conjugation in tenses.

Usage notes and examples: Je joins les deux pièces avec une vis. I join the two pieces with a screw. J’ai joint le fichier à l’e-mail. I attached the file to the email. Se joindre à quelqu’un peut signifier rejoindre un groupe: elle s’est jointe au comité. In idiomatic French, on peut aussi dire joindre les deux bouts to make ends meet.

Conjugation overview: In the present tense, the non‑pronominal forms are je joins, tu joins, il joint, nous joignons, vous joignez, ils joignent. The past participle is joint. The imperfect is joignais/joignais/joignait/joignions/joigniez/joignaient. Subjunctive present uses joigne, joignes, joigne, joignions, joigniez, joignent. The imperative is joins, joignons, joignez. For the pronominal form, se joindre, the present tense is je me joins, tu te joins, il se joint, nous nous joignons, vous vous joignez, ils se joignent.