French -IR verbs (present tense)

Overview

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.

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In Module 12 of A1.1, we learned how to conjugate regular -ER verbs. Remember that a regular verb follows a specific pattern for its conjugation. Irregular verb conjugations are unique.

Another group of regular verbs that we are going to study are -IR verbs, or verbs that end with the letters -ir. To review, the first two steps of conjugating any regular verb are:

  1. First choose the verb that makes the most sense for the context of your sentence.
  2. Take off the ending.

In this lesson, the ending we are removing from the infinitive is -ir. Finally,

  1. Add the ending to the verb’s stem that corresponds with the subject of the sentence or phrase.

Take a look at the following verb chart and example sentences with the -IR verb choisir, meaning “to choose.”

Choisir → Chois…

Subject PronounEndingStem + EndingExampleTranslation
Je-ischoisisJe choisis le café.I choose the café. I am choosing the café.
Tu-ischoisisTu choisis le musée.You choose the museum. You are choosing the museum.
Il/Elle/On-itchoisitElle choisit le parc.She chooses the park. She is choosing the park.
Nous-issonschoisissonsNous choisissons l’église.We choose the church. We are choosing the church.
Vous-issezchoisissezVous choisissez la librairie.You choose the bookstore. You are choosing the bookstore.
Ils/Elles-issentchoisissentIls choisissent le centre commercial.They choose the mall. They are choosing the mall.

See the Reading link in this lesson to review a list of some of the most common -IR verbs.

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stephen

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