Now that we have learnt how to conjugate regular French -er verbs, it is time to learn how to conjugate the second group of French verbs, the verbs that end with the letters -ir.
Like with all French verbs, there are regular and irregular -ir verbs (the ones that don’t follow the rules and complicate things for us 😒) but today we will focus on learning how to conjugate regular French -ir verbs in the present tense.
It’s a simple 4-step process.
Step 1: Learn the verb endings
Step 2: Identify the verbs and their stems
Step 3: Conjugate!
Step 4: Make sentences because you’re a pro now 😎
Step 1: Learn the verb endings
Je = -is
Tu = -is
Il/Elle = -it
Nous = -issons
Vous = -issez
Ils/Elles = -issent
Step 2: Identify the verbs and their stems
The verb stem is the word that’s left behind after you take out the ending ‘ir’.
For example:
a. Punir = To punish
“Pun” is the stem while “ir” is the ending
b. Finir = To finish
“Fin” is the stem while “ir” is the ending
c. Réussir = To win
“Reuss” is the stem while “ir” is the ending
d. Remplir = To fill (up)
“Rempl” is the stem while “ir” is the ending
e. Bénir = To bless
“Ben” is the stem while “ir” is the ending
Step 3: Conjugate!
Just replace the original -ir ending with the appropriate ending for each pronoun.
Punir:
Je punis
Tu punis
Il/Elle punit
Nous punissons
Vous punissez
Ils/Elles punissent
Finir:
Je finis
Tu finis
Il/Elle finit
Nous finissons
Vous finissez
Ils/Elles finissent
Réussir:
Je réussis
Tu réussis
Il/Elle réussit
Nous réussissons
Vous réussissez
Ils/Elles réussissent
Remplir:
Je remplis
Tu remplis
Il/Elle remplit
Nous remplissons
Vous remplissez
Ils/Elles remplissent
Benir:
Je benis
Tu benis
Il/Elle benit
Nous benissons
Vous benissez
Ils/Elles benissent
Step 4: Make sentences because you’re a pro now 😎
a. Pick a regular -IR verb.
b. Think of an English sentence in the present tense
c. Translate to French making sure you use the right conjugation.
Examples:
Il benit le Seigneur – He blesses the Lord
Je punis mon mari – I am punishing my husband
SI elle réussit à l’examen, sa mère va l’acheter une voiture – If she passes the exam, her mother will buy her a car
Appelle-moi si vous remplissez le bus – Call me if you fill up the bus
Nous finissons à dix-sept heures – We finish at 5 o’clock
P.S. Please note that in French ‘ss’ is pronounced as ‘s’ but an ‘s’ between two vowels is pronounced like a ‘z’
Your turn!
Search for other regular -ir verbs online and make sentences with their conjugations in the present tense.
Don’t forget, you have to let us know what the verbs mean just as I did so everyone can learn.
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2 Comments
Juliet
Thanks,this helped a lot.
Irene
Je vous en prie