French guides · Verb tables + audio
Finir: the model -ir verb, and the -iss- giveaway.
Finir means “to finish”, and it is the model for the second verb family. The thing worth knowing before the table itself: French has two unrelated groups of -ir verbs, and the infinitive does not tell you which one you are holding. Finir adds -iss- in the plural. Partir, sortir and dormir do not. That is the whole distinction, and it is audible.
Présent — where the -iss- appears
The singular is bare — finis, finis, finit, all pronounced “fee-NEE”. The plural inserts -iss- between stem and ending, which makes those three forms a syllable longer and clearly different by ear.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je finis | I finish | |
| tu finis | you finish | |
| il / elle finit | he / she finishes | |
| nous finissons | we finish | |
| vous finissez | you finish | |
| ils / elles finissent | they finish |
Nous finissons against nous partons. Same infinitive ending, different verb. There is no way to predict which family a new -ir verb belongs to — but the finir group is much the larger, and the other group is a short list worth memorising: partir, sortir, dormir, mentir, sentir, servir, plus venir, tenir and ouvrir, which are irregular in their own ways.
Verbs that follow finir exactly include choisir (to choose), réussir (to succeed), grandir (to grow), réfléchir (to think it over), obéir (to obey) and remplir (to fill).
Finir de or finir par?
Two prepositions, two quite different meanings — and the second one surprises people.
| French | Means | |
|---|---|---|
| j’ai fini de manger | I’ve finished eating | de = stop doing it |
| j’ai fini par comprendre | I eventually understood | par = end up doing it |
| le film finit à dix heures | the film ends at ten | no preposition before a time |
| c’est fini | it’s over | the participle as an adjective |
It does not mean finishing with something. Il a fini par accepter is “he ended up agreeing” — after resistance, eventually. It is extremely common in speech and almost never taught early.
Passé composé — fini
Regular -ir verbs drop the r: finir → fini. Built with avoir. Note it sounds identical to finis and finit in the présent.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| j’ai fini | I finished / have finished | |
| tu as fini | you finished / have finished | |
| il / elle a fini | he / she finished / have finished | |
| nous avons fini | we finished / have finished | |
| vous avez fini | you finished / have finished | |
| ils / elles ont fini | they finished / have finished |
Imparfait — the -iss- stays
Because the imparfait is always built from the nous form, the -iss- runs through the entire tense: je finissais. This is the tense where the two -ir families look most different — je finissais against je partais.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je finissais | I used to finish / was finishing | |
| tu finissais | you used to finish / was finishing | |
| il / elle finissait | he / she used to finish / was finishing | |
| nous finissions | we used to finish / was finishing | |
| vous finissiez | you used to finish / was finishing | |
| ils / elles finissaient | they used to finish / was finishing |
Futur and conditionnel — the whole infinitive
As with -er verbs, nothing is removed: finir + -ai = je finirai. The -iss- vanishes here entirely.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je finirai | I will finish | |
| tu finiras | you will finish | |
| il / elle finira | he / she will finish | |
| nous finirons | we will finish | |
| vous finirez | you will finish | |
| ils / elles finiront | they will finish |
Conditionnel — would finish
Je finirais. One letter from the futur je finirai, and the same near-identical sound that catches everyone.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je finirais | I would finish | |
| tu finirais | you would finish | |
| il / elle finirait | he / she would finish | |
| nous finirions | we would finish | |
| vous finiriez | you would finish | |
| ils / elles finiraient | they would finish |
Subjonctif — -iss- everywhere
Built from the ils stem finiss-, so every form carries it. Il faut que je finisse.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| je finisse | (that) I finish | |
| tu finisses | (that) you finish | |
| il / elle finisse | (that) he / she finish | |
| nous finissions | (that) we finish | |
| vous finissiez | (that) you finish | |
| ils / elles finissent | (that) they finish |
Impératif — the s stays
Unlike -er verbs, the tu form keeps its s: finis ! And finissez ! is what you will hear from a teacher.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| finis ! | finish! (to one person you know) | |
| finissons ! | let’s finish! | |
| finissez ! | finish! (formal, or to a group) |
Plus-que-parfait — had finished
J’avais fini.
| French | English | Listen |
|---|---|---|
| j’avais fini | I had finished | |
| tu avais fini | you had finished | |
| il / elle avait fini | he / she had finished | |
| nous avions fini | we had finished | |
| vous aviez fini | you had finished | |
| ils / elles avaient fini | they had finished |
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Quick answers
Finir, answered.
The questions that come up while you are learning the table.