After the -ER verbs — French's largest verb group — -ir verbs form the second-largest group of regular verbs. They're often called "2nd group" verbs, and they follow one predictable pattern built around the model verb finir (to finish).
1. How to conjugate -ir verbs
Drop the -ir ending from the infinitive, then add these endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent.
| Je finis mon dîner. | I'm finishing my dinner. |
| Tu choisis un dessert. | You're choosing a dessert. |
| Elle réussit toujours. | She always succeeds. |
| Nous finissons à midi. | We finish at noon. |
2. The pronunciation trap
In the singular, -is and -it are both pronounced the same way — a short "i" sound, with the final consonant silent. That means je finis, tu finis, and il finit all sound identical: /fi-ni/.
Listen for the "iss": the plural forms are where you actually hear the verb change — -issons, -issez, and -issent all add an audible "iss" syllable, as in nous finissons or ils finissent. Listening for that "iss" is the fastest way to catch whether a speaker means singular or plural.
3. Watch out — not every -ir verb works this way
| choisir | to choose |
| réussir | to succeed |
| grandir | to grow (up) |
| réfléchir | to think, reflect |
| obéir (à) | to obey |
| rougir | to blush |
| grossir / maigrir | to gain / lose weight |
| applaudir | to applaud |
| punir | to punish |
Common mistake: assuming every verb ending in -ir follows the finir pattern. Some very common ones don't — partir, sortir, dormir, venir, and tenir conjugate differently (no -iss- in the plural, and often a different stem). We'll cover those irregular -ir verbs in a separate lesson — for now, this page focuses only on the regular, predictable "2nd group."
4. Conjugation — present tense (model: finir)
| je finis | I finish / I am finishing |
| tu finis | you finish (informal) |
| il / elle / on finit | he / she / one finishes |
| nous finissons | we finish |
| vous finissez | you finish (formal / plural) |
| ils / elles finissent | they finish |