Vocabulary lists often focus on nouns — la réunion, le contrat, le budget. But verbs are where professional French really lives. Saying what you do, what needs to be done, and what went wrong all depends on having the right verbs. Here are 30 that come up constantly in French offices, with real usage examples for each.
Why verbs matter more than you think in French professional contexts
In English, the same verb often does multiple jobs. You “run” a meeting, “run” a report, and “run” a company. French is more precise: you animer a meeting, générer a report, and diriger a company. Using the wrong verb — even one that technically makes sense — will mark you as a non-native speaker in a way that word-for-word nouns rarely do.
These 30 verbs are grouped by function so you can learn them in context. Each one includes the infinitive, a short definition, and a sentence you could actually use at work.
Verbs for organising and planning
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1. Planifier — to plan, to schedule
Nous devons planifier la prochaine réunion avant vendredi. (We need to schedule the next meeting before Friday.) -
2. Organiser — to organise, to set up
Pouvez-vous organiser une réunion avec toute l’équipe ? (Can you set up a meeting with the whole team?) -
3. Fixer — to set (a date, a deadline, a target)
On a fixé la date de livraison au 15 juin. (We have set the delivery date for 15 June.) -
4. Établir — to establish, to draw up
Il faut établir un calendrier précis. (We need to draw up a precise schedule.) -
5. Anticiper — to anticipate, to plan ahead for
Il faudrait anticiper les risques liés au projet. (We should anticipate the risks associated with the project.) -
6. Prioriser — to prioritise
Dans cette phase, on doit prioriser les tâches urgentes. (At this stage, we need to prioritise urgent tasks.)
Verbs for communicating and collaborating
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7. Informer — to inform, to let someone know
Je vous informe que la réunion est reportée. (I am letting you know that the meeting has been postponed.) -
8. Transmettre — to pass on, to forward, to transmit
Pouvez-vous transmettre ce document à l’équipe ? (Can you forward this document to the team?) -
9. Coordonner — to coordinate
Elle est chargée de coordonner les différentes équipes. (She is responsible for coordinating the different teams.) -
10. Collaborer — to collaborate, to work together
Nous collaborons avec une agence externe sur ce projet. (We are working with an external agency on this project.) -
11. Relancer — to follow up, to chase (a contact or a deadline)
Je vais relancer le client qui n’a pas répondu. (I am going to follow up with the client who has not replied.) This verb appears constantly in French professional email culture. -
12. Confirmer — to confirm
Pourriez-vous confirmer votre présence avant lundi ? (Could you confirm your attendance before Monday?)
Verbs for managing and deciding
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13. Gérer — to manage, to handle
Il gère un portefeuille de clients importants. (He manages a portfolio of major clients.) One of the most versatile verbs in French business. -
14. Piloter — to lead (a project), to drive
Elle pilote le projet de refonte du site. (She is leading the website overhaul project.) More dynamic than gérer. -
15. Valider — to sign off on, to approve, to validate
Le directeur doit valider le budget avant le lancement. (The director must approve the budget before launch.) -
16. Arbitrer — to arbitrate, to make the final call
C’est au manager d’arbitrer entre les deux options. (It is up to the manager to make the call between the two options.) -
17. Déléguer — to delegate
Je délègue la gestion des emails à mon assistant. (I am delegating email management to my assistant.) -
18. Soumettre — to submit, to put forward
Nous allons soumettre notre proposition la semaine prochaine. (We are going to submit our proposal next week.)
Verbs for analysing and reporting
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19. Analyser — to analyse
Nous avons analysé les résultats du trimestre. (We have analysed the quarterly results.) -
20. Évaluer — to evaluate, to assess
Il convient d’évaluer l’impact de cette décision. (It would be advisable to assess the impact of this decision.) -
21. Mesurer — to measure (performance, results)
Comment mesurez-vous la performance de l’équipe ? (How do you measure team performance?) -
22. Rendre compte — to report back, to give an account
Je vous rendrai compte de l’avancement lors de notre prochaine réunion. (I will report back on progress at our next meeting.) -
23. Synthétiser — to summarise, to synthesise
Pourriez-vous synthétiser les points principaux de la réunion ? (Could you summarise the main points from the meeting?)
Verbs for solving problems and adapting
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24. Résoudre — to resolve, to solve
Nous devons résoudre ce problème avant la livraison. (We need to resolve this issue before delivery.) -
25. Identifier — to identify
Avez-vous identifié les causes du retard ? (Have you identified the causes of the delay?) -
26. Ajuster — to adjust, to adapt
Nous avons ajusté notre stratégie en fonction des retours clients. (We have adjusted our strategy based on client feedback.) -
27. Pallier — to compensate for, to make up for a gap or shortcoming
Cette solution permet de pallier le manque de ressources. (This solution helps compensate for the lack of resources.) A useful formal verb. -
28. Reporter — to postpone, to reschedule
La réunion a dû être reportée en raison d’un imprévu. (The meeting had to be postponed due to an unforeseen issue.)
Verbs for negotiating and persuading
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29. Proposer — to propose, to suggest
Je vous propose une réunion de 30 minutes pour en discuter. (I suggest a 30-minute meeting to discuss this.) Softer and more common than suggérer in business French. -
30. Convaincre — to convince, to persuade
Nous devons convaincre les investisseurs que le projet est viable. (We need to convince investors that the project is viable.)
Three patterns that unlock dozens more verbs
Once you have these 30 down, you can expand your vocabulary quickly by recognising verb patterns:
- -iser verbs: Many are borrowed or parallel to English: optimiser (to optimise), finaliser (to finalise), prioriser (to prioritise). If you know the noun, you can usually guess the verb.
- Reflexive forms: Many business verbs have reflexive versions that change meaning slightly. Engager (to hire, to commit to) → s’engager à (to commit oneself to doing something).
- Compound verbs with re-: Relancer (to follow up, literally “to relaunch”), revoir (to review, to revisit), recadrer (to refocus, or more colloquially, to reprimand).
To see these verbs in the context of actual professional communication, the guide on 20 professional French expressions shows how many of them combine into full phrases. For the written register, see how to write a professional email in French.
A quick exercise to make these stick
Take any five verbs from this list and write a sentence about something that actually happened at your workplace last week — in French. Do not translate; think of the situation first, then find the verb. This forces active recall rather than passive recognition, which is what effective vocabulary memorisation relies on.
Then try using two or three of these in your next written message in French, even if it is just a short internal email. Frequency of use is what moves vocabulary from a list into your natural speech.