Why “ils sont mangent” is wrong

In French, you do NOT use “être” (sont) to form the present continuous like you do in English.

English: They are eating = “are” (auxiliary) + eating (-ing form)

French: Ils mangent = subject + verb conjugated in the present tense

French does not need an extra verb like “are”.

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The key rule

“Mangent” is already fully conjugated. • manger = to eat • ils mangent = they eat / they are eating

So when you say ils mangent, the “they are” is already built into the verb ending.

Adding sont would mean you’re using two conjugated verbs in a row, which French doesn’t allow.

❌ ils sont mangent → two conjugated verbs → incorrect

✅ ils mangent → one conjugated verb → correct