Languages ›French
Finir Conjugation, Usage, and Examples
The French verbfinir means "to finish," "to end," or "to complete" and it is conjugated as a regular -ir verb. In this article you can learn how to conjugate finirin the present, present progressive, compound past, imperfect, simple future, near future indicative, the conditional, the present subjunctive, as well as the imperative and the gerund.
Conjugating Regular '-ir' Verbs
Regular verbs shareconjugation patternsin person, number, tense, and mood. Finiris a regular -irverb. Thisis the second largest category of regular French verbs, making it a little easier for French students to learn each new verb from this category.
To conjugate finir, and all other -ir verbs, remove the infinitive ending (-ir) to find the stem (also called the "radical"), which in this case is fin-. Then add the appropriate simple conjugation endings.
Other similar -irverbs includeabolir(to abolish),obéir(to obey),établir(to establish), andréussir(to succeed).
Meanings ofFinir
Finirmeans"to finish," but it can take on other meanings as well. There are also two synonyms that meanroughly the same thing:terminerandachever,although the latter is a little more dramatic.
- Qui va finir ce travail?-Who is going to finish this work?
- Nous finissons nos études cette semaine.-We are completing our studies this week.
- J'ai terminé mon repas.-Ifinished my meal / food.
If you usefinirwithêtrewhen referring to a person, it means "dead" (literally or figuratively):
- Il est fini.-He's a dead duck. /It's all over for him.
Finirand Prepositions
When we pairfinirwith certain prepositions, the meaning changes a little bit, though they all tend to imply a finish to something.
Finir dewith aninfinitivemeans "to stop" or "to be done":
- Tu as fini de nous déranger? -Are you done bothering us?
- Finis de te plaindre ! -Stop complaining!
Finir enmeans "to end in":
- Il n'y a pas beaucoup de mots qui finissent en -de. -There aren't many words that end in-de.
- Est-ce que cela finit en pointe? -Does this make a point?
Finir parwith an infinitive means "to end up ___-ing" or "to ___ in the end":
- J'ai fini par déménager en Europe. -I ended up moving to Europe.
- Il va finir par perdre sa famille. -He's going lose his family in the end.
En finir (avec / de)means "to be done with":
- J'en ai fini avec Paul. -I'm done with Paul, I ended it with Paul.
- Tu n'en finis jamais de te plaindre. -You never stop complaining.
Expressions WithFinir
As you might expect,finircan be used in some rather useful idiomatic expressions. Here are a few that you can use to build your French vocabulary.
- Finissons-en !-Let's get it over with.
- C'est fini !-It's finished!
- Elle a voulu en finir.-She wanted to end it all.
- des plaintes a n'en plus finir-endless / never-ending complaints
- Et maintenant, fini de se croiser les bras !-And now let's see some action!
- finir en queue de poisson-to fizzle out
- Çava mal finir.-No good will come of it. / It will end in disaster
- Tout est bien qui fini bien.-All's well that ends well.
- finir en beauté-to end with a flourish / to finish brilliantly
- finir en tragédie-to end in tragedy
Present Indicative
The indicative verb mood is the form offinirthat you will use most often.These are the conjugations for the present indicative, orprésent.
| Je | finis | Je finis mes devoirs rapidement. | I finish my homework quickly. |
| Tu | finis | Tu finis le travail sans aide. | You finish the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | finit | Elle finit d'étudier anglais. | She stops studying English. |
| Nous | finissons | Nous finissons par rester à la maison. | We end up staying at home. |
| Vous | finissez | Vous finissez de préparer le repas. | You finish preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | finissent | Elles finissent l'oeuvre d'art. | They finish the work of art. |
Present Progressive Indicative
The present progressive in French is formed with the present tense conjugation of the verbêtre(to be) +en train de+ the infinitive verb (faire). However, the present progressive can also be expressed with the simple present indicative.
| Je | suis en train de finir | Je suis en train de finir mes devoirs rapidement. | I am finishing my homework quickly. |
| Tu | es en train de finir | Tu es en train de finir le travail sans aide. | You are finishing the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | est en train de finir | Elle est en train de finir d'étudier anglais. | She is stopping studying English. |
| Nous | sommes en train de finir | Nous sommes en train de finir par rester à la maison. | We are ending up staying at home. |
| Vous | êtes en train de finir | Vous êtes en train de finir de préparer le repas. | You are finishing preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | sont en train de finir | Elles sont en train de finir l'oeuvre d'art. | They are finishing the work of art. |
Compound Past Indicative
There are a fewcompound tenses and moodsthat you can use. Thepast tensepassé composéis formed withtheauxiliary verbavoir,andthe past participlefini. Thoughfiniris most often used withavoirin compound tenses as discussed, itcan be used withêtreas well. This happensin the third person impersonal or with inanimate objects. For example,C'est fini !(It's finished!) orL'été est fini.(Summer is over.)
| Je | ai fini | J'ai fini mes devoirs rapidement. | I finished my homework quickly. |
| Tu | as fini | Tu as fini le travail sans aide. | You finished the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | a fini | Elle a fini d'étudier anglais. | She stopped studying English. |
| Nous | avons fini | Nous avons fini par rester à la maison. | We ended up staying at home. |
| Vous | avez fini | Vous avez fini de préparer le repas. | You finished preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | ont fini | Elles ont fini l'oeuvre d'art. | They finished the work of art. |
Imperfect Indicative
The imperfect, calledimparfaitin French, is another past tense that is used to talk about ongoing events or repeated actions in the past. It can be translated to English as "was finishing" or "used to finish".
| Je | finissais | Je finissais mes devoirs rapidement. | I used to finish my homework quickly. |
| Tu | finissais | Tu finissais le travail sans aide. | You used to finish the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | finissait | Elle finissait d'étudier anglais. | She used to stop studying English. |
| Nous | finissions | Nous finissions par rester à la maison. | We used to end up staying at home. |
| Vous | finissiez | Vous finissiez de préparer le repas. | You used to finish preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | finissaient | Elles finissaient l'oeuvre d'art. | They used to finish the work of art. |
Simple Future Indicative
The future, or futuris easy to conjugate because the stem of the verb is the complete infinitive,finir.
| Je | finirai | Je finirai mes devoirs rapidement. | I will finish my homework quickly. |
| Tu | finiras | Tu finiras le travail sans aide. | You will finish the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | finira | Elle finirai d'étudier anglais. | She will stop studying English. |
| Nous | finirons | Nous finirons par rester à la maison. | We will end up staying at home. |
| Vous | finirez | Vous finirez de préparer le repas. | You will finish preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | finiront | Elles finiront l'oeuvre d'art. | They will finish the work of art. |
Near Future Indicative
In French, the near future is formed with the present tense conjugation of the verballer(to go) + the infinitive (faire). It is the equivalent to the English"going to + verb."
| Je | vais finir | Je vais finir mes devoirs rapidement. | I am going to finish my homework quickly. |
| Tu | vas finir | Tu vas finir le travail sans aide. | You are going to finish the work without help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | va finir | Elle va finir d'étudier anglais. | She is going to stop studying English. |
| Nous | allons finir | Nous allons finir par rester à la maison. | We is going to end up staying at home. |
| Vous | allez finir | Vous allez finir de préparer le repas. | You are going to finish preparing the meal. |
| Ils/Elles | vont finir | Elles vont finir l'oeuvre d'art. | They are going to finish the work of art. |
Conditional
The conditionalmood in French can betranslated to English as "would + verb."
| Je | finirais | Je finirais mes devoirs rapidement si c'était plus facile. | I would finish my homework quickly if it were easier. |
| Tu | finirais | Tu finirais le travail sans aide si tu avais le temps. | You would finish the work without help if you had the help. |
| Ils/Elles/On | finirait | Elle finirait d'étudier anglais si elle voulait. | She would stop studying English if she wanted to. |
| Nous | finirions | Nous finirions par rester à la maison si nous étions malades. | We would end up staying at home if we were sick. |
| Vous | finiriez | Vous finiriez de préparer le repas, mais vous ne voulez pas. | You would finish preparing the meal, but you don't want to. |
| Ils/Elles | finiraient | Elles finiraient l'oeuvre d'art, mais c'est très difficile. | They would finish the work of art, but it is very difficult. |
Present Subjunctive
The present subjunctive, orsubjonctif présentcan be used when the action of finishing is uncertain, but there are manydifferent uses forthe subjunctive mood.
| Que je | finisse | Ma mère souhaite que je finisse mes devoirs rapidement. | My mother hopes that I finish my homework quickly. |
| Que tu | finisses | Le patron exige que tu finisses le travail sans aide. | The boss demands that you finish the work without help. |
| Qu'ils/Elles/On | finisse | Eric suggère qu'elle finisse d'étudier anglais. | Eric suggests that she stop studying English. |
| Que nous | finissions | David souhaite que nous finissions par rester à la maison. | David wishes that we end up staying home. |
| Que vous | finissiez | Anna conseille que vous finissiez de préparer le repas. | Anna advises that you finish preparing the meal. |
| Qu'ils/Elles | finissent | Monique préfère qu'elles finissent l'oeuvre d'art. | Marc prefers that they finish the work of art. |
Imperative
A very useful and simple form offiniristhe imperative verb mood. This is reserved for those times when you want to demand that someone "Finish!" When using it, skip the subject pronoun and leave it as, "Finis !" To form negative commands, simply placene...pasaround the positive command.
Positive commands
| Tu | finis ! | Finis le travail sans aide ! | Finish the work without help! |
| Nous | finissons ! | Finissons par rester à la maison! | Let's end up staying home! |
| Vous | finissez ! | Finissez de prépare ! | Finish preparing the meal! |
Negative commands
| Tu | ne finis pas ! | Ne finis pas le travail sans aide ! | Don't finish the work without help! |
| Nous | ne finissons pas ! | Ne finissons pas par rester à la maison! | Let's not end up staying home! |
| Vous | ne finissez pas ! | Ne finissez pas de prépare ! | Don't finish preparing the meal! |
Present Participle/Gerund
Thepresent participleoffinirisfinissant. This is formed by adding-issantto the verb stem. In French thepresent participlecan be used to form the gerund (usually preceded by the prepositionen), which can beused to talk about simultaneous actions.
Present Participle/Gerund of Finir: finissant
Je mange en finissant mes devoirs.-> I eat while finishing my homework.
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Team, ThoughtCo. "French Verb Finir Conjugation." ThoughtCo, Dec. 6, 2021, thoughtco.com/finir-to-finish-1370327.Team, ThoughtCo. (2021, December 6). French Verb Finir Conjugation. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/finir-to-finish-1370327Team, ThoughtCo. "French Verb Finir Conjugation." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/finir-to-finish-1370327 (accessed July 17, 2022).
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FAQs
What are the 3 forms of the imperative of the verb Finir? ›
There are three forms of the imperative: tu, nous and vous. For all verbs, the imperative is formed by taking the corresponding forms of the present indicative, but without subject pronouns. The lack of a subject pronoun is what identifies the imperative mood.
How do you conjugate IR verbs in French? ›Verbs with infinitives ending in -ir form a second group of regular verbs in French, often called 'second conjugation' verbs. To conjugate these verbs, drop the -ir from the infinitive and add the second conjugation present tense endings: -is, -is, -it, -issons, -issez, -issent.
What does the verb Finir in French mean? ›Full verb table intransitive verb. to finish ⧫ to end.
How do you use Finir in French? ›...
Finir Conjugation: Present Tense.
| je | finis |
|---|---|
| ils/elles | finissent |
Finir is a regular -ir verb. Note that the auxiliary verb is avoir.
How do you use Finir in a sentence? ›finir par – to end up/to finally. Example: Nous étions si fatigués que nous avons fini par dormir sur place. (We were so tired that we ended up staying and sleeping there.)
Is Finir conjugated with être or avoir? ›Finir is conjugated with the two auxiliaries être and avoir. Finir verb is direct transitive, intransitive. Finir verb is a direct transitive verb, so passive voice can be used. Attention: passive voice can only be used when finir verb is conjugated with auxiliary avoir.
How do you conjugate verbs in French? ›- 1st group: verbs ending in -er (except aller, envoyer, and renvoyer).
- 2nd group: verbs ending in -ir, with the gerund ending in -issant.
- 3rd group: verbs ending in -re (with the exception of irregular verbs).
Step 1. Take the ar, er or ir ending off of the infinitive to find the stem. Step 2. Add the matching ar, er or ir present tense endings to the stem.
How many French IR verbs are there? ›These verbs can be tricky, but there is some good news: Only about 50 irregular -ir verbs exist in French, and they have only 16 conjugations.
How do you write IR verbs? ›
Verbs with infinitives ending in –ir form a third group of regular verbs, often called third conjugation verbs. To form the present tense conjugations of these verbs, drop the –ir from the infinitive and add the third conjugation endings (-o, -es, -e, -imos, -en) to the resulting stem.
How do you conjugate Finir in the subjunctive? ›- j'eus fini.
- tu eus fini.
- il/elle eut fini.
- nous eûmes fini.
- vous eûtes fini.
- ils/elles eurent fini.
- je fus fini.
- tu fus fini.
- je finis. tu finis.
- il finissait. nous avons fini.
- vous finirez.
- ils finiraient.
past tense of finish is finished.
Is suis a verb in French? ›...
2.4 The Verb Être.
| Person | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person | Je suis | I am |
| 2nd person | Tu es | You are |
| 3rd person | Il est Elle est On est | He/it is She/it is One/we is |
- je fais.
- tu fais.
- il fait.
- elle fait.
- on fait.
- nous faisons.
- vous faites.
- ils font.
In most instances the auxiliary verb used is avoir. However, several intransitive verbs, like aller (to go), require the auxiliary être instead.
Is venir an irregular verb? ›The French verb venir literally means "to come" and is also used in many idiomatic expressions. Its conjugation is very irregular.
How do you conjugate verbs in French? ›- 1st group: verbs ending in -er (except aller, envoyer, and renvoyer).
- 2nd group: verbs ending in -ir, with the gerund ending in -issant.
- 3rd group: verbs ending in -re (with the exception of irregular verbs).
Finir is conjugated with the two auxiliaries être and avoir. Finir verb is direct transitive, intransitive. Finir verb is a direct transitive verb, so passive voice can be used. Attention: passive voice can only be used when finir verb is conjugated with auxiliary avoir.
How do you conjugate Finir in the past tense? ›
Finir (to finish) — Past Tense (French verbs conjugated by ... - YouTube
How do you conjugate avoir? ›- I have = J'ai. I have two dogs = J'ai deux chiens.
- You have = Tu as (casual) You have a big problem = Tu as un gros problème.
- She has = Elle a. ...
- He has = Il a. ...
- We have = on a. ...
- We have = nous avons. ...
- You have = vous avez (formal or you all) ...
- They have = Elles ont (for an exclusively feminine group)
- Choose the verb you need.
- Write only the stem (the verb without the –er/-ir/-oir/ or -re ending.)
- Add the ending that matches the subject.
allé, arrivé, venu, revenu, entré, rentré, descendu, devenu, sorti, parti, resté, retourné, monté, tombé, né et mort.
How many French verb conjugations are there? ›There are 8 different verb tenses in the indicative mood: présent (present), imparfait (imperfect), passé simple (simple past), futur simple (simple future), passé composé (perfect), plus-que-parfait (pluperfect), passé antérieur (past anterior), and futur antérieur (future anterior).
What is Finir in future tense? ›...
Future-perfect.
| j' | aurai fini |
|---|---|
| il/elle | aura fini |
| nous | aurons fini |
| vous | aurez fini |
| ils/elles | auront fini |
- je finis. tu finis.
- il finissait. nous avons fini.
- vous finirez.
- ils finiraient.
...
Passé Antérieur Avoir Conjugation in French.
| Subject Pronoun | Avoir | English Pronoun |
|---|---|---|
| Tu | Eus eu | You |
| Il/Elle | Eut eu | He/she |
| Nous | Eûmes eu | We |
| Vous | Eûtes eu | You |
- j'eus fini.
- tu eus fini.
- il/elle eut fini.
- nous eûmes fini.
- vous eûtes fini.
- ils/elles eurent fini.
- je fus fini.
- tu fus fini.
...
2.4 The Verb Être.
| Person | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person | Je suis | I am |
| 2nd person | Tu es | You are |
| 3rd person | Il est Elle est On est | He/it is She/it is One/we is |
What is the past tense of avoir? ›
| Verb | Past participle | English |
|---|---|---|
| avoir | eu | had |
| boire | bu | drunk |
| comprendre | compris | understood |
| connaître | connu | known |
Generally speaking, à means "to," "at," or "in," while de means "of" or "from." Both prepositions have numerous uses and to understand each better, it is best to compare them. Learn more about the preposition de. Learn more about the preposition à.
What is the meaning of être? ›Être (pronounced: ay-tr, with a soft 'r' at the end) is used to indicate how things are. Literally meaning 'to be', être can be conjugated with the various French subject pronouns, paired with adjectives or used in numerous idiomatic expressions. Each French pronoun requires a different conjugation of the verb être.
How do you conjugate qui? ›There's an easy pattern to spot when deciding between qui and que to say who, that or which: Use qui when the following word is a verb or reflexive /object pronoun (e.g. me, te, se, lui, le, la, nous, vous, leur, les, etc), and use que if the following word is a noun (thing or person).