From fronce "frown, scowl" from Middle French fronce, from Old French fronces, fronche "frown, wrinkles, small creases in cloth", from Frankish *hrunkja "wrinkle" from Proto-Germanic *hrunkijō, *hrunkitō (“fold, wrinkle”), from Proto-Indo-European *sker- (“to turn, bend”). Akin to Old High German runza "fold, wrinkle, crease" (German Runzel "wrinkle"), Middle Dutch ronse "frown", Old Norse hrukka "wrinkle, crease" (Icelandic hrukka "wrinkle, crease, ruck"). More at ruck2.
froncer
This verb is part of a group of -er verbs for which 'c' is softened to a 'ç' before the vowels 'a' and 'o'.
| infinitive | simple | froncer | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| compound | avoir + past participle | ||||||
| present participle or gerund1 | simple | fronçant /fʁɔ̃.sɑ̃/ | |||||
| compound | ayant + past participle | ||||||
| past participle | froncé /fʁɔ̃.se/ | ||||||
| singular | plural | ||||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | je (j’) | tu | il, elle, on | nous | vous | ils, elles | |
| (simple tenses) |
present | fronce /fʁɔ̃s/ |
fronces /fʁɔ̃s/ |
fronce /fʁɔ̃s/ |
fronçons /fʁɔ̃.sɔ̃/ |
froncez /fʁɔ̃.se/ |
froncent /fʁɔ̃s/ |
| imperfect | fronçais /fʁɔ̃.sɛ/ |
fronçais /fʁɔ̃.sɛ/ |
fronçait /fʁɔ̃.sɛ/ |
froncions /fʁɔ̃.sjɔ̃/ |
fronciez /fʁɔ̃.sje/ |
fronçaient /fʁɔ̃.sɛ/ | |
| past historic2 | fronçai /fʁɔ̃.se/ |
fronças /fʁɔ̃.sa/ |
fronça /fʁɔ̃.sa/ |
fronçâmes /fʁɔ̃.sam/ |
fronçâtes /fʁɔ̃.sat/ |
froncèrent /fʁɔ̃.sɛʁ/ | |
| future | froncerai /fʁɔ̃.sʁe/ |
fronceras /fʁɔ̃.sʁa/ |
froncera /fʁɔ̃.sʁa/ |
froncerons /fʁɔ̃.sʁɔ̃/ |
froncerez /fʁɔ̃.sʁe/ |
fronceront /fʁɔ̃.sʁɔ̃/ | |
| conditional | froncerais /fʁɔ̃.sʁɛ/ |
froncerais /fʁɔ̃.sʁɛ/ |
froncerait /fʁɔ̃.sʁɛ/ |
froncerions /fʁɔ̃.sə.ʁjɔ̃/ |
fronceriez /fʁɔ̃.sə.ʁje/ |
fronceraient /fʁɔ̃.sʁɛ/ | |
| (compound tenses) |
present perfect | present indicative of avoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior2 | past historic of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que je (j’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ils, qu’elles | |
| (simple tenses) |
present | fronce /fʁɔ̃s/ |
fronces /fʁɔ̃s/ |
fronce /fʁɔ̃s/ |
froncions /fʁɔ̃.sjɔ̃/ |
fronciez /fʁɔ̃.sje/ |
froncent /fʁɔ̃s/ |
| imperfect2 | fronçasse /fʁɔ̃.sas/ |
fronçasses /fʁɔ̃.sas/ |
fronçât /fʁɔ̃.sa/ |
fronçassions /fʁɔ̃.sa.sjɔ̃/ |
fronçassiez /fʁɔ̃.sa.sje/ |
fronçassent /fʁɔ̃.sas/ | |
| (compound tenses) |
past | present subjunctive of avoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect2 | imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | – | – | ||||
| simple | — | fronce /fʁɔ̃s/ |
— | fronçons /fʁɔ̃.sɔ̃/ |
froncez /fʁɔ̃.se/ |
— | |
| compound | — | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | — | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | — | |
| 1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en. | |||||||
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
(Christopher Kendris , Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81). | |||||||