participer

Participer is a French verb meaning to take part in or to participate. It is a regular -er verb, belonging to the first conjugation. Like other -er verbs such as parler, participer follows the standard patterns of present, past, and compound tenses with regular endings.

In typical use, the verb governs the preposition à when referring to involvement in activities, events, or projects: participer à un concours, participer à une discussion. The compound tenses are formed with the auxiliary avoir: j'ai participé, tu as participé, il a participé, nous avons participé, vous avez participé, ils ont participé. The phrase is commonly used to indicate active engagement rather than mere presence.

Conjugation (selected forms):

Present: je participe, tu participes, il participe, nous participons, vous participez, ils participent.

Passé composé: j'ai participé.

Imparfait: je participais.

Futur simple: je participerai.

Conditionnel présent: je participerais.

Subjonctif présent: que je participe.

Impératif: participe, participons, participez.

Nouns and related forms include le participant/la participante (the person who participates) and la participation (the act or result of participating). Adjectives such as participatif/participative describe participatory processes or designs.

Etymology and classification: participer derives from Latin participare and entered Old French as participer, ultimately yielding the modern French verb. Related terms include participation, participant, and participatif, which share the same semantic field of taking part or contributing.

Notes on usage: while participer is commonly followed by à for activities and events, other constructions exist for specialized senses, but à is by far the most frequent preposition in ordinary usage.