Building Blocks Part 3: ' ir' Verbs

Today we look at verbs again!


Do you remember the three main types of endings for French verbs?

They are:
-er
-ir
and
-re

When making a sentence, each of these endings are conjugated (that is, changed) in different ways. Last time we looked at '-er' endings. If the dots (.....) represent the stem of an '-er' verb, it is conjugated as below, with a certain type of ending for each personal prononun.
 
.....er

Je .....e
Tu .....s
Il/Elle/On .....e
Nous .....ons
Vous .....ez
Ils/Elles .....ent 


There are some exceptions to this rule, these are called irregular verbs. They are stubborn verbs that refuse to follow these rules. If you learn the rules first it makes it easier to learn about the exceptions. So today we continue to look at regular verbs, but with a different ending. INstead of 'er' verbs we will look at 'ir' verbs.  There are different rules for conjugating each type of verb ending. The 'ir' rules are as follows:

.....ir



Je .....is
Tu .....is
Il/Elle/On .....it
Nous .....issons
Vous .....issez
Ils/Elles .....issent 


Now for some examples of conjugated 'ir' verbs:


Choisir (to choose)



Je  choisis
Tu  choisis
Il/Elle/On  choisit
Nous  choisissons
Vous  choisissez
Ils/Elles  choisissent 



Finir (to choose)



Je  finis
Tu  finis
Il/Elle/On  finit
Nous  finissons
Vous  finissez
Ils/Elles  finissent 





and


Réussir (to succeed)



Je   réussis
Tu   réussis
Il/Elle/On   réussit
Nous   réussissons
Vous   réussissez
Ils/Elles   réussissent 


TIP: Say the English meaning in your head, followed by the French as you practice conjugating verbs. This will help you not only learn how to conjugate, but also help you learn the meaning of the verb itself and the pronunciation of the verbs.

Here are some more regular 'ir' verbs you can conjugate: nourir- to nourish, remplir- to fill, obéir -to obey, punir-to punish, grandir- to grow (up) and vieillir- to grow old. 


The ability to make simple sentences by conjugating verbs is really useful, so although it can be boring, it is worth spending some time learning how to change verbs to match their pronouns! Plus, when verbs are conjugated correctly it allows you to sound much more sophisticated than if you are left saying 'she dance' and 'he speak' .